Yay Pesto!

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josh panel

Ok. This might not be exactly earth-shattering news for anyone, but I was delighted to see Sacla have included the words ‘Suitable for Vegans’ on the new packaging of one of their products. Sacla are a household name in the UK and are the go-to people for decent, reasonably-priced pesto. Last year they launched dairy-free versions of their popular basil and tomato pesto jars, using tofu and cashew nuts to compliment the taste and add a cheesey element to the sauces. Regrettably they didn’t mention the word vegan on the jar, although a quick read of the ingredients list confirmed that the products were indeed free from all animal products. So I was pleased to pick up the new-design jar in Sainsbury’s today and see those magic words ‘Suitable for Vegans’ on the back of the jar. I wish more food manufacturers would follow suit!

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An expensive lesson

The Gate Restaurant of Hammersmith

How much would you pay for a meal? When dining out in a fancy restaurant, do you set yourself a budget or do you sometimes allow yourself to splurge on fine food?

If you don’t mind distributing your wealth now and again, I have some advice for you. Think twice before distributing it to The Gate Restaurant, a vegetarian eatery located in Hammersmith, London. I am going to be blunt and brief. I found it to be over-priced, over-dependent on dairy and severely lacking in vegan options.

The restaurant itself is rather pleasant, if a bit grubby. My seat afforded me a lovely view across the restaurant to the massive feature window. Unfortunately I was also next to a wall that was riddled with bizarre scuff marks and scratches. I’m not above eating in a venue with a bad paint job, but after viewing the prices on the menu I would expect The Gate Restaurant to splash out on a lick of paint now and again.

Speaking of prices, I have never paid so much money for such unexciting, unadventurous and downright dull food.

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