I received an interesting email today, asking me to share some information with you all.
The information is about delicious-sounding Japanese cuisine, so I figured it would be rude not to let you know.
Check this out.
London
Day of the Dead menu
My annual Day of the Dead party is coming up close (Sunday November 2nd, 2014) and I am frantic with preparations for the super-sized event.
This year marks the 3rd outing for the event and I’m pulling out all the stops. Click here if you want to read about all the fun activities I have planned, but read the rest of this post to fall in love with the incredible menu.
Ethiopian dinner
I love a tasty ‘one night only’ food event. How delightful to know the food experience you are part of will never be replicated in quite the same way ever again.
This is one of the reasons I run my special events and also why I think you need to know about this event put on by some talented chefs.
Ice cream massacre
Forget all about our quaint Vegan Ice Cream Wars involving bland vanilla and reserved raspberry. Shit just got serious and vegans are rushing all over the UK to find these new flavours by Almond Dream.
It appears these tubs of frozen goodness only started appearing a few days ago in selected Waitrose freezers and already we might have a shortage on our hands.
Day of the Dead 2014
I host a few big parties each year and my Day of the Dead extravaganza is certainly one of my favourites. Lots of candy, a vegan feast and a chance to wear one of my Mexican wrestling masks all night… what’s not to adore?
Get ready to party your socks off as Day of the Dead takes over London on November 2nd, 2014 from 3pm. For the third year in a row, I am asking you to celebrate with me as I show you why I love this festival so deeply.
This year’s party is set to be the biggest and best yet as I team up with brand new vegan venue Kabaret of Wood Green. This huge venue allows our party to explode in size and what we have lined up for entertainment is sure to thrill.
Need some reasons why you should book a ticket?
- massive vegan buffet to keep you well fed – prepared by chef straight from Mexico City
- Vanessa of Essential Vegan giving a cooking demo and talking of Finados (Day of the Dead) celebrations in Brazil
- Emma of Veganbnb Travel talking about her vegan holiday business in Spain and Guatemala and giving you an insight into Day of the Dead celebrations in Guatemala
- a 100% vegan bar staffed by the wonderful owners of Kabaret
- Day of the Dead craft activities
- pose for photos with a luchador (Mexican wrestler) thanks to KANKUN
- venue decorated for a traditional Day of the Dead celebration
- buffet contributions by Scoff Sweets, Cocoafeliz chocolates and Bloom’s popcorn
- altar to place photos of dearly departed loved ones so they can celebrate with us
- stay late and dance into the night
- dress in Day of the Dead costumes for a chance to win prizes (check this for inspiration)
- more to be announced
This is going to be a party to be remembered. I am thrilled to be helping vegan London take part in a celebration that has roots all over the world.
Below is the buffet menu.
Tickets are available for £25 (plus booking fee) and are non-refundable, although you are welcome to sell on or gift to a friend in the instance you can’t attend. This price is only for pre-purchased tickets and the cost will rise on the door if we have space.
The party is all ages and a specially-priced ticket for children under the age of 18 costs £18 plus booking fee. All attendees under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Anyone wanting to buy and consume alcohol will be required to prove they are of legal drinking age.
Ticket price includes vegan buffet and activities, but not drinks. You will be required to pay for your own drinks at the bar. The bar takes card payments.
Learn to bake
I am proud to announce a collaborative event between Fat Gay Vegan (that’s me) and the exquisite Le Pain Quotidien.
The age old traditions of eating well and enjoying life have been at the heart of Le Pain Quotidien since the start of their business. As my readers and event attendees know well, this outlook on life is one I wholeheartedly share. Anything non-vegans can have, vegans can have just as good if not better.
In a celebration of our shared love of quality ingredients and good eating, FGV and LPQ bring you a hands on baking event on Thursday October 23rd, 2014 from 6pm called The Art of Vegan Baking.
This exclusive food crafting session is limited to only 12 spaces and is set to be more than a regular baking class.
Guests will be welcomed by Fat Gay Vegan to the gorgeous LPQ Borough, just a few minutes walk from London Bridge Underground station. The entry price of £27 includes:
Junkyard Dogs
Big vegan food announcements don’t come along often enough for my liking and when they do, they rarely have anything to do with one of my events.
Here is some glorious news, London. I am giggling with excitement.
Eating raw in West London
Somebody call my therapist. This was my second raw meal in a month and I’m a bit frightened by how much I enjoyed the experience.
Have you been to Nama in Notting Hill?
The big one
You know we are only a week away from one of the biggest (the biggest?) vegan events anywhere, right? Approximately ten thousand vegans, vegan friendlies and curious carnivores will descend upon London Olympia for VegfestUK on September 27 and 28, 2014
This show is the result of the tireless dedication shown by organiser Tim Barford who is a rare breed in the vegan community. He works himself ragged getting these monumental shows together and reaches countless people every year with a compassionate message. His shows have been staged for over ten years and he rallies against adversity and financial hardship to put together events packed with information, education, entertainment and food.
It would be wonderful to see how many non-human animals have been saved directly by the influence of these shows. I would imagine the number would be emotionally overwhelming.
Following are some reasons I think you will love this year’s event at London Olympia:
- it is a fab place to take non-vegans so they can see what it’s all about in a friendly and fun environment
- there is SO much tasty vegan food
- meet the people behind some of your favourite vegan brands (and thank them for their hard work)
- it is wonderful to be in a building with THOUSANDS of other vegans
- meet inspiring vegans from the worlds of sport, education, activism and entertainment
- grab some show day deals and specials on your favourite vegan brands
- get inspired to take action by signing up with organisations fighting for animals
You can buy tickets online now and download the programme here. Make sure you follow VegfestUK on Twitter and don’t forget to give Tim a shout out online to thank him for his dedication to improving outcomes for animals.
Vegan venture
There are some fabulously exciting things happening for vegans in London and most of them are pop up ventures. What’s behind this drive to sell food in temporary locations?
London is surely one of the most expensive cities in the world for real estate. It was announced this week that the average house price in London is £514 000 while the average house price in central London is £1.6 million. The increase in property prices in London over the past year has been at a rate of 19%. This is staggering.
The cost of renting commercial space in Camden Stables Market is upwards of £1000 a week. You can see why vegan start ups can only afford to run temporary events and pop ups are the new trend of getting food to the masses. Vegan businesses cannot get permanent premises unless they have a hell of a lot of money behind them.
Get up and get out of the house this weekend and support a vegan pop up venture. Show the people making cruelty free food for the masses that you care.
You might very well start with the brand new Club Mexicana pop up in east London. The taco masters have set up temporary shop in The Convenience, an inventive and quirky cafe near Chatsworth Road with a roof terrace for dining.
The Club Mexicana pop up runs from 6pm Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday and from 4pm on Sundays. See the current menu below but be warned it will be rotating so not everything will be available every night. Rumour has it they are working on a Mexican seitan burger and that chocodilla on the menu sounds fabulous.
The pop up will run until October 12. Follow Club Mexicana on Twitter.