Sweet as a bird

Flavoured syrup is a dietary staple, right? A fabulous range of products known as Sweetbird has got me thinking that very thought.

A box of vegan goodies from Beyond the Bean wholesalers

A little while ago I was contacted by a friendly human asking if I would be interested in sampling some of their vegan syrups. I hammered out a positive response as quickly as my fat, gay fingers could type. It surely would go against the natural order of the universe for me to decline. It is always lovely to be offered a gift, but I’m a whole lot happier when the gift turns out to be ample amounts of sweet liquids and powdery chocolate.

Read more

My name is FGV and I’m a Shake’a’holic

Every vegan usually has a product, service or item of food they miss.

Vegan peanut butter milkshake from Shake'a'holic in Leeds

I don’t mean we aren’t committed to our cruelty-free stance, but sometimes you can find yourself daydreaming of more accessible foodstuff. How fantastic would it be to stumble out of a bar at 2am and devour a vegan kebab or a bag of chips? It is my dream to be able to walk into any pub in the world and order a pint of vegan cider. I am sure every vegan out there would have a different answer if poised with the question, but surely on demand milkshakes would rank favourably in a ‘what do you miss’ quiz.

Vegan milkshake lovers in the north of England, be prepared for this discovery. During a somewhat-hungover wander through Leeds city centre yesterday, my FGV eye was drawn to a colourful and cheery establishment known as Shake’a’holic. Being in a fragile state, I wholly intended to keep on until I spied the small print on the shop sign that sent my heart aflutter: “Ask us if you’d prefer vegan”.

Read more