There is so much juicy, tasty and succulent vegan news to get through this month that I’m going to hold the witty comments and jump straight in.
Is that OK?
I don’t want to be on television
Here is an opportunity for those of you craving national exposure!
This morning I saw a call out on Twitter for a vegan couple to join a new television series and thought I would share the info with you all. You never know, the vegan version of Pauly D or Snooki may very well be reading this right now!
Here are the details you need if you fancy being emotionally vulnerable in front of millions of people:
A brand new series by the multi-award-winning Lime Pictures Ltd is in early stages of production and aims to explore the psychology behind relationships while investigating interculturalism. Kinda heavy.
Each episode will feature two couples aged between 18-25 years old – in both the UK and abroad. A member from each couple will embark on an exciting overseas adventure, exploring and living their counterpart’s life. The other person from the couple will remain in the UK to entertain the visiting half of the overseas couple. The producers say it is through this unique life-swap that each couple will learn about another culture and themselves.
The producers are especially keen to have a vegan couple participate in the show. Check the image below for contact details.
If any of you get involved, I will expect a FGV shout out!
A little too late
I feel kinda guilty.
I’m not trying to suggest that a blog post from me would have saved this company, but taking two years to write a review certainly isn’t getting them any attention they could use.
I was trolling through some old holiday snaps (imagining myself in the sunshine somewhere), when I came across these pics of a completely vegan food truck that once fed hungry highway commuters just outside of Miami, Florida.
Josh and I paid a visit to the Mac’n Food Truck a couple of years ago on a journey between Miami and the Florida Keys. This gorgeous looking truck was positioned in a nondescript parking lot just off the South Dixie Highway outside of Miami and we were so keen to eat that we lined up to be the first customers of the day.
World’s best burger
BAD NEWS UPDATE:
The following information was just posted in the comments at the bottom of this page. Sad news for epic vegan burger fans.
MJ says:
This burger has been discontinued!!!! We were so upset having trekked all the way there to find out that the suppliers no longer work with the restaurant?! As a result, there are no veggie or vegan options on the menu 🙁
Here is the original post on this burger:
A long time ago, there was a burger like no other. Before central London was torn in half by the Crossrail construction, meat-aversionists would swarm on Soho to feast on this burger. Its status was legendary.
But as the machines moved in to build the rapid transit railway, the fast food outlet serving the burger was forced out by the Government. Maybe you remember it? RedVeg was a paradise of deep fried potato, breaded mushrooms and the tastiest vegan burger patty on the planet.
Not long after the Soho location was shuttered, the Brighton RedVeg location was also forced to shut its doors following dwindling fortunes. I was so in love with their burger, I made a special trip to Brighton on their closing weekend and ate what I thought was to be one of the final RedVeg burgers ever served. See here.
But have I got news for you?!
Buy cake without leaving the house
I make no secret for the respect I have for Ms Cupcake and the hard work Mellissa Morgan has put in to make her brand one of the most respected independent businesses in London. Notice I didn’t say ‘vegan’ before businesses? That’s right. Ms Cupcake is in the majors.
One of the secrets to their success has surely got to be the relentless attitude to keep creating new products and new ways to get them to people.
Take for instance their new mail order service.
NYE with FGV
Make your last meal of 2013 extra special as Fat Gay Vegan partners with vegan cuisine leaders Saf to bring you a New Year’s Eve supper club to be remembered. Book now or read on for more details.
Saf Restaurant & Bar (located inside Whole Foods Market on Kensington High Street) serve some of the finest plant-based food in the UK. Every item featured on the Saf menu is world class and lovingly-prepared by the staff.
This exclusive New Year’s Eve event will see Saf closed to the public and will feature a 3 course meal (2 options for each course) with a fizzy welcome cocktail all for £30 (+fee) per person. Fat Gay Vegan (that’s me!) will greet and host throughout the dinner.
There will be time to mingle around the bar and diners can purchase extra wine, cocktails or beer from Saf. All alcohol served in the restaurant is vegan and there are gluten free drink options.
The event will commence at 7pm and come to an end at 10pm, allowing diners time to spirit away into the night to ring in midnight with friends and loved ones.
View the evening’s menu below.
Book now to be part of this special meal.
Limited availability. No refunds.
See my recent review of Saf here.
Saf’s what I’m talking about
Almost every day. That is how often I get emails or tweets asking for my London vegan dining recommendations.
Of course I don’t mind giving my opinion. The belief that my view matters is the self-centred reason I write a blog. However, I was getting a bit tired of saying that I thought London wasn’t a patch on other international cities when it came to vegan cuisine. Sure, we have some OK places to eat plant-based food but I was never overly impressed the way I have been by Gentle Gourmet in Paris or Vedge in Philadelphia.
Well, finally we have something in the UK capital that I am more than happy to recommend. Vegans and vegan-curious, say hello to the re-imagined Saf Restaurant & Bar menu.
Cool as coconut ice
Hands up if you have been waiting your entire vegan career for mail order fudge and coconut ice. You can’t tell but I paused between typing sentences to throw my chubby, queer hands into the air in exultation.
Coconut Rose Bakery recently got in touch with me to ask if I wanted to review some of their mail order vegan sweets. Me? Why on Earth did they think of little ol’ me?
Based in Preston, Coconut Rose Bakery is a small, home-operated vegan baked goods company that will ship what you want right to your door. They specialise in fudge, coconut ice, cupcakes and treats for special occasions.
The photo below shows my delivery of Orange Fudge and Violet Coconut Ice. Both were delicious and left me wanting to explore the other flavours, especially the fudge. Knowing these people can deliver vegan fudge to my front door is dangerous information.
Thanks to Coconut Rose Bakery for my delights. I thoroughly enjoyed them and I hope lots of fans of handcrafted, vegan sweets get in touch to place an order.
FGV approved.
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Give yourself to the dark side
I feel sorry for people who celebrate Christmas. All that money spent on gifts for other people when they could be buying vegan treats for themselves in Hotel Chocolat.
A few days ago I ventured into the Waterloo Station location of chocolate emporium Hotel Chocolat and was blown away by the tastiness on offer. This was my first experience inside one of their stores, but I’m confident they will get to know me on a first name basis before too long.
Of course not everything is vegan inside the shop, but they certainly give greedy plant eaters like me something to get excited about. On asking about the vegan options, I was inundated with choices as the super-friendly staff member practically fell over trying to show me every product suitable for my compassionate sensibilities. I loved that these items were also clearly marked as being vegan on the packaging.
Check out the photos below to see which items won the distinguished accolade of being devoured by me. There were plenty more options that were almost-rans, but I’ll be getting to know them more intimately in the near future.
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Deep Fry and Friends: Vegan Day of the Dead Supper Club
My mate and all round good person Kip from Messy Vegetarian Cook has stopped by to let you know her take on my recent 2nd Annual Day of the Dead vegan supper club.
She even took fab photos for you to drool over. Thanks Kip!
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Another event organised by Fat Gay Vegan, the second annual Mexican Day of the Dead supper club went off without a hitch.
Día de los Muertos—Day of the Dead—is a Latin American holiday that originated in Mexico to remember and celebrate the lives of those who died. Food and friends are a central theme in the holiday, and this supper club lauded both.
The dinner comprised of five courses (six if you count the hibiscus tequila cocktail): esquites (Mexican sweetcorn salad, a typical street food), smoky lentil soup with fried plantain, potato taquitos (deep fried stuffed corn tortilla rolls), seitan in hibiscus mole sauce with cacao nibs, and cinnamon rice pudding.
While I think it’s safe to say the overall diner favourites were the taquitos and lentil soup, what stood out most to me was the mole sauce. This rich preparation is the end result of a laborious task of toasting, grinding, and mixing a number of latin ingredients. Aside from the necessary chili component, other popular ingredients include nuts, seeds, chocolate, various spices, bread, and various fruits and vegetables. A mole can be incredibly complex, so to know someone painstakingly prepared it from scratch made the whole meal worthwhile for me.
Many thanks to chef Julio for his efforts and skill in the kitchen, and for his enthusiasm in presenting the food and culture of his country with such passion. Hats off also to Josh for his help and to Sean for hosting such a great evening. Also a massive final thanks to all of the companies who donated to guests’ take home goody bags.
I’m already excited about next year’s supper club!
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