Here is some news you don’t hear everyday.
London has a brand new organic grocery store that is completely vegan. Yep. Read it again to make sure.
grocery
Big enough for me
Los Angeles is the danger. If you are vegan, you need to get to LA to experience what it is like to live without restriction.
I am currently in the area to attend Los Angeles Beer Fest and eat what I can. This city is a vegan mecca and plant-eaters are not sidelined or treated as an afterthought. Vegan is front and centre.
One shining example of LA’s love for vegans is the glorious Viva la Vegan supermarket in the Ocean Park Blvd. neighbourhood near Santa Monica.
Tempting tofu and tempeh
Do you enjoy cooking with tempeh and tofu? What about taro? Do you use a lot of bean curd skins in your kitchen? If yes is your answer, you will adore this supermarket in central London brimming with ingredients from Korea, Thailand, Japan and countries across Asia.
On a recent ramble along Queensway, a bustling street springing from the northern side of Hyde Park, I was delighted to see a shop front emblazoned with the words Oriental Supermarket. Well, I was delighted by the idea of the food inside but slightly confronted by the use of the word oriental. It always strikes me as an old-fashioned term used to frame entire cultures as mysterious and intoxicating.
But you didn’t come here for pseudo-sociology, so let me crack on with vegan food talk.
Best kept vegan secret in London
I’m going to tell you about a vegan location in London that you probably have never heard of and if you have, you probably have forgotten. I forgot. I used to visit this location back in 2001, but it had since slipped my mind. This little gem of immense community and plant-eating importance should be a weekly destination for every compassionate shopper in the capital.
Vegans and vegan-curious, I give you FareShares.
Eighth wonder
Would you enjoy shopping for groceries and dining on wholesome food all in the same place? Of course you would. If I mentioned you could also buy tasty vegan slices, cakes and treats from a deli case in the same location, how long would it take you to rush there?
The people of Manchester are onto a good thing with the glorious vegetarian grocery store and cafe called Eighth Day Co-op. This city centre retail outlet is jam-packed with vegetarian and vegan groceries, as well as mouthwatering food to settle your rumbling tummy. The shelves are packed with household products, chilled foods and personal hygiene goods. A huge variety of what is on offer is certified cruelty-free.
That’s the Philly in I
Even though my trip to Philadelphia was several months ago, I am still sifting through the memories in order to bring some international flavour to this blog. This particular jaunt down memory lane takes us to Essene Market & Cafe in South Philly.
Essene is somewhat of an institution in South Philadelphia. This organic grocer, bakery, delicatessen and cafe has been a part of the city landscape since 1969 (their original store was just around the corner from their current South Fourth Street location). Ask any local for a natural food store and you will surely be told to head to Essene. Even the arrival of a Whole Foods on South Street has failed to dampen the love people feel for this retail stalwart.
Sweet and spicy
One of the things I adore about living in London is the vast array of food readily available.
The city is such a remarkable melting pot of cultures and this is reflected in the styles of cuisine on offer. Vegans can dine on Indian food, pizza, Palestinian falafel, Chinese-inspired dishes and even cruelty-free cupcakes. But you don’t need to dine out to dip into this diversity. Supermarkets and grocery stores all over the capital reflect the eclectic population and vegan shoppers can take advantage of it.
What’s in store
Another post from Barcelona and with only a week remaining in this gorgeous city, I had better get a move on if I want to feature all of the vegan food I have been experiencing. There are just so many options for vegans and the two cruelty-free grocery stores are perfect places to start. That’s right… Barcelona has two completely vegan grocery stores!
The first of these stores I want to talk about is Veganoteca. Located a short walk from the bustling tourist area of La Rambla, Veganoteca is a small piece of retail heaven for vegans.
I find another beauty mark with every glass of red wine
I wanted to write a post with a long title and a short story.
Vegan red wine is available at UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s in a plastic bottle. This pleases me immensely. The Cabernet Sauvignon is delicious and ridiculously inexpensive.
Over and out.
To infinity and beyond
I love a quality co-operative grocery store and that love turns to adoration when a grocery store is completely vegetarian.
If you are in Brighton and on the look out for vegan groceries, you couldn’t really do better than stopping by Infinity Foods on North Road. This 40 year old institution contains many of my favourite foods and several I had never seen before strolling through their doors. So what do they have on offer?