Liverpool gets a new vegan eatery

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Remember when I wrote about GIVE Kitchen and their vegan food delivery service? 

Well it seems things are going well for the food enterprise as they are set to open the doors to their very first vegan eatery in Liverpool.

Check out what the official press release says below (and drool over the photos):

The UK’s first, award winning, one for one giving, plant based, whole food, online delivery service are expanding by opening their first Inspiration Centre, Eatery and Organic Shop in Liverpool, next month.

The doors to GIVE Kitchen’s first One for One giving, Inspiration Centre, Eatery and Organic Shop, will officially be open to public at 10am on Monday 4th April, 2016.

For every meal sold in the new eatery, one will be given back to a homeless person in the UK or a starving child abroad through their registered charity (No.1164433) the GIVE2040 Foundation, which aims to eradicate hunger, poverty and disease by 2040, through donating plant based nutrition to those in need.

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GIVE Kitchen’s Inspiration Centre aims to spread the word and educate on the health, wellbeing and environmental benefits that come from leading a plant based lifestyle. The stylish eatery has been designed as a welcoming and comfortable space for guests to relax and enjoy a wide selection of delicious, plant based, whole food breakfasts, large and small plates and desserts, inspired by flavours and spices from around the world.

The original and creative menu has been developed by their spiritual and soulful Head Chef and will be hand-made in their state-of-the-art kitchen and prepared with ‘love and vitality’.

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Co-Founders Paul Hampson and Dario Curcillo’s own-branded, organic, fair trade certified coffee, along with a selection of quality, vegan beverages will also be on offer. The on-site shop, which benefits from ample, free car parking will stock a wide range of fresh and frozen, healthy, vegan and organic groceries.

Co Founder Paul Hampson said. “GIVE just want a greener, cleaner and more caring planet and to give back to those who really need it. We hope that our guests will leave not only feeling satisfyingly full but also great knowing that they’ve really helped someone out who is less fortunate.”

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Co Founder Dario Curcillo added, “We’re extremely excited to be opening GIVE Kitchen’s first of many Inspiration Centre’s, Eateries and Organic Shops, particularly in Liverpool where we’ve received an overwhelming and positive response from people, since announcing our expansion. We’re very much looking forward to welcoming in our guests and treating them to GIVE Kitchen’s unique and delicious, plant based, whole food experience.”

GIVE Kitchen is based at Unit 5, Glacier Buildings, Harrington Road, Brunswick Dock, L3 4BH.

Opening hours are Monday to Sunday 10am to 10pm.

You can follow GIVE Kitchen on Twitter and visit them online.

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Vegan pizza at UK chain

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Alex is a reader who wants you to know about his experience at Zizzi. In case you haven’t heard, Zizzi is a restaurant chain with 140 locations around the UK and they are now offering vegan cheese as a topping option in every restaurant.

They also now serve vegan pasta, vegan wine and vegan desserts.

This is HUGE news and Alex is going to tell you all about it:

After hearing on Facebook about the new vegan cheese available at Italian restaurant chain Zizzi, we headed to the Exeter branch for date night.

The standard menu had vegan options clearly marked with a Ve symbol and our server brought us the “Allergen” menu which has a “Vegan Menu” page. Not a huge selection of vegan options but the revolution is the vegan cheese. No more dry, half empty pizzas.

As we had not booked and promised to give back the table within an hour, we just ordered olives for starters with some Prosecco. A nice touch is the little “Did you know?” box on the menu that tells you all of their wines are vegan except for a few listed. The Prosseco was lovely.

Of course for the main course we had the pizza. You have to pretty much build your own, starting with a Margarita and adding your selection of toppings. I went for artichokes and caramelised balsamic onions, my partner had mushrooms.

When the pizza arrived they looked exactly like the other pizzas, so we both simultaneously asked the server if they were vegan. Another nice touch here, Zizzi put little green stickers on the plates for vegan orders so you can be reassured you’re getting the correct thing. The pizza was brilliant. This is the Italian style thin crust pizza not overloaded with topping so you could easily have a starter and a full pizza and not be too full to order a dessert.

My caramelised balsamic onion topping was great with lots of sweet flavour. The “Mozzarisella” cheese is very creamy in taste and texture but does not take away much from the flavour of the pizza. In texture it does lack the stringy texture some people might associate with pizza, but for me that is more something for deep pan style pizza, loaded with toppings, which this is not.

No dessert for us this time, but a few vegan options based on sorbet are on the menu. Next time we are in town we will probably stop for an afternoon coffee and try the vegan nectarini which is a nectarine with scoops of coconut & mango swirl gelato.

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You can view the full vegan menu from Zizzi online, search for your nearest outlet here and thank the chain for their vegan-friendliness on Twitter.

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Vegan café in Amsterdam

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Post by:

joe panel

One place that everyone seems to mention whenever I write about Amsterdam is Koffie ende Koeck and with very good reason!

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It’s a lovely café, with friendly staff serving coffee and tea, some tasty savouries, and excellent cakes, all beautifully presented. We’ve been twice now, but I can’t seem to find any photos of the first time, and this last time I was so busy digging into this delicious orange drizzle cake that I forgot to take more photos!

But that’s all probably a good sign, right? Koffie ende Koeck should definitely be on your list of vegan places to visit while in Amsterdam.

Also, it’s one of the few places that you’ll find Fentimans soft drinks, if that’s important to you (it’s nice have the occasional Dandelion and Burdock, it’s hard to find on the continent!).

Click here to visit the Koffie ende Koeck website.

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Finally! Eat Natural has a vegan bar

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How many times have you picked up an Eat Natural in the supermarket only to put it back on the shelf when you remembered it had honey in it?

The protein bar people have been teasing us vegans for years with their honey-laden range, but now they have thrown us a bone. A bone in the form of a delicious-sounding vegan bar.

This new bar is crafted from maple syrup, pecans and peanuts, and you can get your compassionate fingers on these newbies at Tesco stores around the UK from this month (March 2016).

The press release for the new bars tells me it “contains 40% more protein than a standard Eat Natural Brazil & Sultana bar. It’s made using naturally protein-loaded nuts and contains no soya. Packed with over 70% nuts and seeds: a mix of Peanuts, indulgent Pecan nuts, Golden linseeds and nutty sunflower seeds all gently drenched with Canadian maple syrup and baked lightly for a mellow, rich taste and crunch. (Vegan, Wheat, Dairy and Gluten free.)”

Sounds tasty! Have you tried one yet?

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Do you need a vegan job?

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Do you need a vegan job?

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The legendary vegan restaurant in north London called Manna has some jobs on offer.

  • trainee front of house supervisor
  • part-time waiting staff

If you want to know what these jobs entail, you need to contact manage@mannaV.com for more info and to apply.

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Ice cream! Milk! Chocolate!

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As of the end of April/beginning of May 2016, I no longer work with Besos de Oro

I teased you all a few days ago about the upcoming developments from my client, Besos de Oro.

Well, the time has come to give you a sneak peek behind the curtain. Are you ready?

Besos new vegan products

Yes, you are seeing what you think you are seeing.

Besos de Oro is the creamy drink crafted from brandy and horchata, a milky liquid made of chufa. Chufa is a tuber also known as tiger nut and is the star ingredient of horchata from Spain.

Besos is now changing the way vegans and dairy-free consumers get their milk, ice cream and chocolate. These creamy new products are made from the chufa plant and the entire range is also gluten free.

As if that isn’t enough to impress, Besos is also set to please with a brand new tomato frito. Frito is a decadent sauce made from roasted tomatoes and is the main tomato ingredient in Spanish cuisine. Peter from Besos de Oro assures me that his frito is the best you will ever taste.

This news is intense and is wearing me out, so let me recap.

The new Besos frito and milk will be available in the UK not long after you read this post, followed by the Besos ice cream and chocolate. All vegan!

As of the end of April/beginning of May 2016, I no longer work with Besos de Oro

You should follow Besos de Oro on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to find out where these glorious new vegan products will be sold (and what those mysterious unannounced products are!).

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UK pub chain has a vegan menu

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If you live in the UK or have ever visited, you will surely know about the J.D. Wetherspoon pub chain with locations everywhere.

These pubs are known for being cheap and sometimes cheerful places to meet friends, down a few drinks and not be too far from home at the end of the night.

And now the chain pub is making a different kind of name for itself by offering a vegan menu!

It isn’t going to set the world alight with excitement, but the menu is going to be a welcome change for thousands of vegans who find themselves in a Wetherspoon pub on any given day.

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Part of the vegan menu at Wetherspoon pubs can be seen above, or click here to download a full PDF version.

You can also click here to locate your nearest Wetherspoon pub.

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Vegan chocolate Easter workshop

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Do you want to learn how to handcraft mouthwatering chocolates? Do you want your teacher to be an expert? Do you want to eat delicious sweet treats?

Yes to everything?

Check out this fabulous vegan chocolate Easter workshop where all of the above will happen.

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On March 25, 2016 you can join chocolatier Ela Harpak, a Le Cordon Bleu graduate, for a fun and delicious Easter vegan chocolate workshop. Ela will teach you the basic skills of a chocolatier as well as introduce you to some surprising vegan ingredients and flavours.

You will make and decorate vegan chocolate eggs, as well as craft delicious vegan creamy pralines, truffles and more!

The cost of the workshop is £35 per person and bookings can be placed via ohlala.workshops@gmail.com. You can also RSVP over on the Facebook event.

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Vegan recipe: salsa verde

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You can support the making of these videos and get early access and downloadable PDF copies of the recipes by becoming an FGV patron – click here.

Here’s the recipe:

Makes approximately two cups/serves four

Ingredients:

  • 4 large fresh tomatillos*
  • 1 small white onion or half a large one, peeled
  • 1 Serrano chile
  • Small bunch of fresh cilantro/coriander, washed
  • Salt to taste
  • Sugar to taste

*If you cannot find fresh tomatillos, used canned but rinse thoroughly

Method:

  • Roughly chop the tomatillos and onions and place in blender
  • Chop the chile lengthways. If you want a spicy Salsa Verde then leave the seeds in, if
    not, remove the seeds. Place in blender
  • Place the cilantro/coriander in the blender
  • Add a large pinch of salt and sugar
  • Blend for approximately 20-30 seconds until you can no longer see any large pieces
    of onion or tomatillo
  • Add more salt and/or sugar if required
  • ¡Buen provecho!

Serve Salsa Verde as a dip or use as a sauce over enchiladas, flautas, tacos or anything else
that needs a light and zesty accompaniment.

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Recipe and photo remain property of Sean O’Callaghan and Julio Alcantara and may not be
reproduced without permission. © fatgayvegan.com