Vegan Sausage Fest

I am jealous.

Jealous that I didn’t think up something as glorious as Vegan Sausage Fest 2016. I’m also jealous that I will be busy running Glasgow Vegan Beer Fest this weekend and will be 300 miles away from this incredible get-together.

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The wonderful people behind Cafe SoVegan are also the wonderful people behind Sausage Fest 2016.

The cafe runs as a permanent pop-up inside the locally-adored Royal Sovereign pub in Hackney. They serve tasty savoury food and, more importantly, cake.

On Sunday August 28 and Monday August 29, 2016 you SHOULD get along to this event that will run between midday and midnight both days.

Here’s a little insight into the event from Cafe SoVegan:

So what is Sausage Fest? I know the standard definition but that’s not what this is!

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you may have noticed that the country has gone a bit to sh*t lately. I think a lot of people are feeling a bit blue, not knowing what to do about it. What we propose is not a solution to all these problems but to bring people together to celebrate the humble sausage (in it’s many vegan forms)!

I’ve grown up in Hackney, it’s my home, my mum’s an immigrant, it’s her home. Lots of my neighbours are immigrants, it’s their home. The Sov is my home away from home and also a microcosm of Hackney, in short my favourite place to be! So to make us feel better (hopefully you too), and to bring people together and have a good time we’ve decided to throw a party. I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t like a good sausage and a two day party, so why not combine the two?!

We don’t want to exclude anyone which is why this is a free event. There will be a collection for the acts who are performing for their dinner. The money made will be put into keeping the cafe going and providing a place and events for people to come together and have a good time.

Hope to see you all there! XX

Amazing!

All manner of vegan sausages to buy and consume fresh from the BBQ, plus an incredible line up of local musicians. What’s not to love?

In addition, there will be a collection of food, clothing and tent donations for refugees in Calais. Do something good for someone else as you devour vegan sausages. You will be a winner.

Click onto the Facebook event page for more info and to let them know you are coming.

Get along to the Royal Sovereign both days if you can but especially on Monday as it is International Vegan Junk Food Day. This is the perfect way to celebrate the annual event and make sure you use #ivjfd16 to share all your sausage photos on the day.

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Vegan fine dining restaurant

I’m normally fast on my feet when it comes to new vegan food, but even I’m struggling to keep up with all the updates coming out of the UK.

Stunning news has just reached me of a brand new vegan fine dining restaurant in Stockport!

The Allotment restaurant is the culmination of many pop up events around Wigan, Huddersfield, Manchester and Liverpool. The owners decided to take the plunge and open a stand alone eatery in the heart of Stockport.

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You can view the exquisite menu online here, which includes an exclusive chef’s tasting option that surely would impress anyone. You can also make table bookings via the website. This food looks fancy and has rave reviews on social media, so I think booking ahead would be smart. I think The Allotment is going to be a firm favourite of local foodies very quickly.

Like the Facebook page for The Allotment to keep up with latest news.

Greater Manchester has the vegan good stuff going on!

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Beer list for Glasgow Vegan Beer Fest

We have talked about the food and the music, but here is the real news surrounding Glasgow Vegan Beer Fest.

The beer list.

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This list will be handed out as a tick sheet to all attendees, with room to make notes on your favourites.

Tickets are just £4 in advance (plus tiny booking fee) or £7 on the door if we have room. Day session or night session, take your pick or come to both!

Now the beer.

Cask

  • Barneys Red Rye 4.5% ABV – Six types of grain and a mix of hops. Copper coloured, with a clean, crisp & fruity taste
  • Cromarty Whiteout 3.8% ABV – A seriously hopped up IPA brewed with modern classic hops such as Citra, Motueka and Mosaic
  • Drygate Dark Skies 4.2% ABV – Good solid stout with chocolate and coffee notes
  • Fallen New World Odyssey 4.1% ABV – Refreshing, easy drinking lager-style beer with a fruity aroma and slightly spicy citrusy flavour
  • Jaw Brew Fathom 4% ABV – Dense dark ale with a rich and satisfying flavour
  • Loch Lomond Southern Summit 4% ABV – Light blonde but highly hopped with summit and citra hops
  • Pilot Orange/Green 5.1% ABV – American hops bring the green, Orange peel brings the orange to this beautiful citrusy pale
  • Stewart Jack Black 3.7% ABV – Light crisp session pale ale with citrus and tropical fruit aromas and a smooth hoppy finish
  • Tempest Cascadian 3.9% ABV – Light and punchy session beer with citrus and pine aromas with balanced bitterness
  • Thistly Cross Traditional Cider 4.4% ABV – A refreshing full body, fruity & aromatic, with a clean apple finish
  • Top Out Altbier 4.5% ABV – A German classic with a Scottish twist. Malty/nutty flavour with bitter-sweet finish
  • Tryst Chocolate Coconut Porter 5% ABV – Velvety chocolate porter enhanced with toasted coconut
  • Windswept Marooned 5.2% ABV – Blackcurrant wheat beer with summer fruit aromas, tart flavours and sweet malt

Keg

  • Williams Joker IPA 5% ABV – Complex layer of malts and blended hops, golden in the glass, fruity on the nose with hints of cedar
  • Williams Caesar Augustus 4.1% ABV – A lager /IPA hybrid with crisp clean lager notes but with an IPA bitter finish
  • Williams Draught 4% ABV – Scottish craft lager with a refreshing citrus twist

Bottles & Cans

  • Beavertown Quelle (can) 4.1% ABV – A clean, crisp farmhouse pale packing a pale ale dry hop punch
  • Beavertown Gamma Ray (can) 5.4% ABV – Huge hop flavour rammed with juicy malts and tropical mango/grapefruit aromas
  • Beavertown Holy Cowbell (can) 5.6% ABV – Dark chocolate-like base beer piled on with the tropics of summit and centennial hops
  • Boundary American Pale Ale (bottle) 3.5% ABV – Fruity floral nose with dry hoppy flavour
  • Boundary IPA (bottle) 7% ABV – Clear, dark golden IPA with crisp hoppy body
  • Brewdog Dead Pony Club (can) 3.8% ABV – Packed with US hops and massive citrus aromas of lemongrass and lime zest
  • Burning Sky Easy Answers (bottle) 6% ABV – Clean drinking IPA with good body, subdued bitterness. and piney aromas
  • Buxton Axe Edge (bottle) 6.8% ABV – Full-flavoured IPA with mandarin orange, schnapps, pineapple, & juicy tropical fruits flavours
  • Cromarty Rogue Wave (bottle) 5.7% ABV – Extra pale ale with a mass of hop flavours to quench your thirst
  • Drygate Crossing the Rubicon (can) 6.9% ABV – Pale golden IPA with tropical fruit & citrus notes and bitter finish
  • Drygate Chimera (can) 5.9% ABV – Light, crisp, deceptively bitter with flowering fruit aromas
  • Drygate Disco Forklift Truck (can) 5% ABV – Juicy pale ale loaded with US hops and mango. Sweet with soft/bitter undertones
  • Fallen Just The Ticket (bottle) 4% ABV – Hoppy and pale, brewed with NZ and US hops to make a refreshing light beer
  • Fallen Grapevine (bottle) 5.4% ABV – Big tropical and citrus fruit flavours and aromas develop into a lasting bitterness
  • Fallen Local Motive (bottle) 3.9% ABV – Turbo charged with Mosaic dry-hops. Easy-drinking but loads of flavour
  • Fourpure Juicebox (can) 5.9% ABV – Fresh orange zest and aromatic hops with intense flavours of mango, papaya and bitter orange
  • Jaw Brew Reef Beer (bottle) 4.2% ABV – Beer with a piquant bite
  • Jaw Brew Wave Beer (bottle) 4.7% ABV – Smooth crisp and creamy wheat beer
  • Jaw Brew Glide Beer (bottle) 4.6% ABV – Biscuity sweetness and gentle hops
  • Jaw Brew Surf Beer (bottle) 4.3% ABV – Delightfully crisp and refreshing summer beer
  • Lagunita IPA (bottle) 6.2% ABV – Well-rounded IPA. Caramel Malt barley provides the richness that mellows out the twang of the hops
  • Mad Hatter A Night Out (bottle) 6.6% ABV – Papaya Peach, Coconut & Chilli IPA. This is an IPA for sunny days
  • Mad Hatter Through A Stout Darkly (bottle) 9.7% ABV – A luxurious well-balanced Imperial Stout
  • Mad Hatter Pitch Funk (bottle) 4.3% ABV – Cloudy, yellow beer with spicy citrus, lemon and fruit flavours with a biscuity finish
  • Marble Damage Plan (bottle) 7.1% ABV – Fresh West Coast IPA with juicy tropical notes of pink grapefruit, papaya & mango
  • Moor Agent of Evil (can) 7% ABV – Big bold dark coffee chocolate malt with a burst of citrus hops to cut through
  • Sam Smith Raspberry beer (bottle) 5.1% ABV – Handcrafted complex ale blended with organic raspberry
  • Sam Smith Apricot Beer (bottle) 5.1% ABV – Handcrafted complex ale blended with organic apricot
  • Sierra Nevada Porter (bottle) 5.6% ABV – American style Porter featuring roasted notes of black coffee and cocoa
  • Speyside Dava Way IPA (bottle) 4% ABV – Fresh and flowery, full-flavoured pale ale from the Moray coast
  • Stewart Hollyrood (bottle) 5% ABV – Pale colour with fresh citrus aroma and tangy grapefruit flavours
  • Tiny Rebel Clwb Tropicana (bottle) 5.5% ABV – American hops, amplified by Peach, Passionfruit, Pineapple and Mango flavours
  • Tiny Rebel In & Around the Mouth (bottle) 6% ABV – IPA with spicy, citrussy, tropical and piney flavours
  • Top Out Schmankerl (bottle) 4.9% ABV – Bavarian style wheat beer with medium sweet flavour with warm spice finish
  • Top Out Altbier (bottle) 4.5% ABV – A German classic with a Scottish twist. Malty/nutty flavour with bitter-sweet finish
  • Up Front Ahab (can) 6% ABV – A complex, deep and rich fusion of dark malts with the fruity hop finish of an American Stout
  • Up Front Ishmael (can) 6% ABV – Subtly sweet malt characteristics, heady hop notes & robust bitterness of an American IPA
  • Windswept APA (bottle) 5% ABV – Award-winning IPA with smooth malts and a tangy grapefruit finish
  • Windswept Weizen (bottle) 5.2% ABV – A cloudy effervescent hefeweizen bursting with bananas and caramel

Wow. That is a list and a half.

Get your tickets now!

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New vegan café in Sheffield

Move over London, step aside Manchester and get ready to be challenged for your vegan crown, Glasgow.

Sheffield is quickly becoming a plant based city to be noticed.

I have already written about vegan grocery store The Incredible Nutshell, as well as Steel City Cakes and Burger Lolz, and now the South Yorkshire city is impressing with the grand opening of Make No Bones.

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How rad is that sign?!

Make No Bones has run a vegan food truck for quite a while, but now has taken the leap into bricks and mortar.

The sample menu on their website lists delicacies such as Tempeh Bacon & Avocado Sub, Ultimate Nachos and Jerk Tofu, Rice & Peas.

Sounds like my kinda place.

I have big plans to get there ASAP but in the meantime please do post glowing reviews in the comments below to inspire me to make the trip. If you get there before me, tell them FGV loves them and is on his way!

Follow Make No Bones on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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Vegan hot dogs at Pride

This news makes me smile… and it makes me hungry.

If you go to Southampton Pride this weekend (Sunday August 28, 2016) you can buy and eat vegan hot dogs.

Even better? The vegan hot dog stand is being run by volunteers who are all vegan and all the proceeds from the stall are being donated to Southampton Pride. 

I’m a bit teary knowing that kindhearted people do things like this. I adore that they are supporting the LGBTQ community without contributing to animal harm.

This is resisting oppression without resorting to another form of oppression!

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I asked Hannah of Hannah Banana Bakery (who is one of the volunteers) what is on the menu and she told me:

We have homemade salsa, mayo, mustard, homemade coleslaw, fried onions, and ketchup. 100% of the money goes to the Pride event as we are all unpaid vegan volunteers on our stall. General event info is on the Pride website. We are on the stall outside “The Stage Door” bar on West Marlands Road all day until we sell out!

People, get along to support this wonderful initiative and eat up!

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Vegan relish

Here’s a super quick blog post to let you know about a supermarket find that has me grinning.

All of these are #vegan and all are on offer in Waitrose right now.

A photo posted by Fat Gay Vegan (@fatgayvegan) on


How terrific do these look?!

All three bottles were spotted in my local Waitrose and all were on special offer.

Which one would you start with?

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IVJFD 2016 with Black Cat

As you know, the 3rd annual International Vegan Junk Food Day is taking place on Monday August 29, 2016.

You can read all about this marvellous festival here.

I’m thrilled to announce the first participant in this year’s celebration is Black Cat Café of Hackney.

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The café is opening special hours just for #ivjfd16 (between 4:30pm and 10:00pm) and the menu they have lined up is going to make you drool and the super cheap price is going to make you clap with happiness.

(Read this and book straight away – last year’s International Vegan Junk Food Day booked out solid in record time)

For just £15.50 you get to choose 1 main, 2 sides and 1 dessert if booked in advance via info@blackcatcafe.co.uk (so do it now!).

There are also prices for single items if you fancy dropping in during the special opening hours, but you really should get the meal deal and secure your food.

MAINS (£7.50)

  • The fishless burger: ale nori battered cod, remoulade, tartar sauce, rocket
  • Jack fruit quesadillas: slow cooked jackfruit in rich chilli mole, guacamole, carrot and onion escabeche, melted cheese.
  • Black Cat classic beef style burger: seitan and soya mince patty, cheddar cheese, rasher, beefsteak tomatoes, butter lettuce, house made pickles and basil garlic mayo.
  • Curry hot dogs: tofu sausage, mango chutney, onion relish, wholegrain mustard, curried home made ketchup

SIDES (£3.50)

  • Deli potato salad: new potatoes, gherkins, garden peas, diced carrots, chives, house made herby mayo.
  • Hand cut herby potato wedges: raw garlic, vinegar 
  • Hackney Salad: mixed leaves, olives, tomatoes agave mustard dressing.
  • Crunchy slaw: thinly sliced cabbage, red onions, fresh chilly, coriander, sesame seeds, fresh mint and coriander

Dessert (£4)

  • Ice Cream Boat: chocolate and vanilla ice cream, banana, crushed biscuits, chocolate orange sauce, whipped cream
  • Cake (selection in the fridge)

How about that menu?!

Email Black Cat Café right this second to secure your meal for International Vegan Junk Food Day 2016. Be sure to use #ivjfd16 across social media to share your good time eating adventures on August 29, 2016.

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Goodie bag review

The huge opening of GreenBay Supermarket has passed us by but I wanted to go back and say a BIG thank you to the sponsors who made the fantastic goodie bags possible for the invited guests of the sneak preview.

Click on the video below to see the contents of the bag.

A video posted by Fat Gay Vegan (@fatgayvegan) on


Amazing! What’s your favourite item?

Lots of love and thanks to Vegan Life MagazineMoo Free Chocolates, Pudology, Sheese, Coconut Collaborative, Rebel Kitchen Mylks and Fry’s Family Foods.

Good times and yay for sponsors!

Buy all the above and a whole lot more at GreenBay in West London.

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Kebabs with FGV

You’ve heard all about the incredible vegan döner kebabs being served up by What The Pitta in Shoreditch, you’ve drooled over the countless Instagram posts flooding your phone and you’ve made a promise to yourself to get to this brand new food venture ASAP.

Well, friends. The time has come.

Monday-Deal

Join food lover extraordinaire Fat Gay Vegan (that’s me!) for a night of kebabs and socialising as he celebrates the launch of What The Pitta with a Monday night party that will be the talk of the town.

Between 6pm and 9pm on Monday August 22, 2016, What The Pitta will be launching an exclusive Monday night meal deal.

For just £9 you will get:

– a döner kebab

– a cold drink

– a piece of baklava

I’m not sure where else in London you are going to get a deal like this. We are even paying the booking fee for you. All you pay is £9 for a wrap, a drink and a sweet when you book online.

Amazing value, indeed!

This launch event is strictly ticketed only and space is limited to 100. Book your ticket now and we will see you on Monday. Fat Gay Vegan will be on hand across the three hours of the event to check you in and hand you a meal deal token. Swap the token at What The Pitta for food, drink and sweets then join the party.

BOOK YOUR TICKET NOW FOR JUST £9!

Once you have your online ticket, you can drop in anytime between 6pm and 9pm on Monday August 22, 2016. Stay for as long as you like, or grab your food and run. It’s up to you!

Follow What The Pitta on Instagram.

Click here to RSVP to the Facebook event and invite friends.

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Buy vegan beer online

If you are a vegan in the UK and you’ve been to a vegan event, chances are you know about Pitfield Brewery.

Pitfield is a company that is everywhere in the vegan scene.

Whether they are running the exclusive bar at VegfestUK London or driving long distances to serve at small vegan events around the country, Pitfield staff are well known to us plant consumers who enjoy a tipple.

But now you don’t have to wait for Pitfield to roll their kegs into your town as you can shop for beer via their brand new online shop!

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All of your favourites are available and you get a discount when you buy 6 bottles. Get one of everything!

Click here to shop online now.

Extra note: Pitfield head brewer Andy is running the beer bar at Manchester Vegan Beer Fest in September, so you can expect quite a bit of their good stuff as well as plenty of local beers. Click here to buy tickets.

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