UK

15 Years Of Vegan London: From DIY Potlucks To Corporate Takeovers

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Fifteen years ago when I started this very blog, if you wanted to be social as a vegan in London you had to make it happen yourself. There were no vegan pubs and certainly no high street chains with dedicated plant-based menus.

This wilderness forced me to launch London Vegan Drinks, a monthly gathering where we carved out a space for ourselves in a world that barely acknowledged we existed. London Vegan Potluck was another community-driven event I curated, where people cooked and shared food because there weren’t many places to eat out.

Back then, if you wanted a vegan meal, you might get lucky at Pogo Café in Hackney (if they were open and serving something edible) or a measly number of eateries that weren’t always great. Other than that, it was whatever scraps you could cobble together from independent health food stores and Holland & Barrett. There were no vegan ready meals, hardly any supermarket own-brand plant milks, and certainly no Gregg’s vegan sausage rolls.

Then the independent vegan revolution happened. Slowly at first and then rapidly.

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New Podcast Episode – Number 30

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It’s that time of the week again.

My ex-partner Josh and I got together again online to discuss a few pop culture moments and in this episode of Tell Me Where I’m Going (Wrong) podcast, we both get a little bit worked up about Emilia Pérez.

We discuss out collective disbelief at the huge number of Academy Award nominations this film has garnered, as we both feel it is one of the worst movies we have ever seen.

Truly shocking.

There are a few other pop culture moments discussed in the episode such as legendary award show musical performances, as well as Josh’s ongoing fight against his chest infection! Is everyone in the UK seriously unwell, or just everyone I know?

You can watch and/or listen on YouTube:

And click through below to watch or listen via Spotify:

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London’s Disappearing Vegan Scene: Going, Going, GONE!

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There was a time, not that long ago, when I struggled to keep up with newly-opened vegan food businesses in London.

There was a green culinary boom taking place in the UK capital that was tough to track and I’d often find myself being the last to know about a new eatery.

Sadly, there now appears to be another new trend rapidly spreading around town which is equally as exhausting to document.

Vegan restaurant closures.

I’m not here to do a deep dive into why these businesses are closing (mostly because I’m too lazy for investigative journalism) but I did want to take this opportunity to give a shout out to a few locations that had been feeding the vegan and vegan-curious in London but which have now turned out the lights for good.

The huge (and hugely-popular) Club Mexicana on Commercial Street, Shoreditch recently closed quite abruptly. This loss came as a shock to the community as the restaurant had been promoting its offerings almost until the day it was shuttered.

Fans of the Mexican-inspired eatery can still enjoy their favourite menu items at two continuing locations, Soho and Mayfair. Click here to get more information and booking details. Use it or lose it people!

This listicle isn’t my favourite thing to do, but let me rush through these recent closures.

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Foraging Wild Food Walk London

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Hey London, are you looking for a new experience? Perhaps something off the beaten path?

You can join wild food enthusiast, Ken Greenway, for a foraging experience at the amazing award-winning Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park this February!

Ken will share his love and deep knowledge of foraging and will introduce you to the everyday plants you can eat, opening your eyes to a new world of possibilities and flavours. He will share his knowledge of seasonal wild foods as well as where and when to pick them.

These outdoor adventures in foraging happen semi-regularly throughout the year and are curated by food security charity Made In Hackney with the next date scheduled for Saturday February 15, 2025.

Let me tell you a little more information and show you where to book.

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Get Squeaky In UK Supermarkets

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I haven’t done any sort of supermarket product update in a while but this news certainly got me in the mood to share with you all.

I’ve documented my appreciation of the Squeaky Bean brand quite a bit over on my Instagram account and have even collaborated with the brand on a few pieces of content.

They sell really fab, ready-to-eat meat alternatives that are filling a big gap in UK supermarkets… and my belly.

The latest products to join the Squeaky family are these sandwich-friendly Tofu Slices.

Available in either Spinach & Basil or Red Pepper & Tomato, these slices are ready to go and will improve your sandwich game.

But where can you buy them?

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Made In Hackney Is One For The Books

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Big news!

Food security heroes Made In Hackney are finally dropping their first-ever cookbook, and it’s an absolute must-have.

We Cook Plants is more than just a recipe book. It’s a love letter to plant-based cooking, packed with 100 global recipes from the incredible Made In Hackney chefs curated by the charity’s founder, Sarah Bentley. And if that wasn’t exciting enough, the book features contributions from celebrity supporters like Andi Oliver, Sami Tamimi, Dr Rupy, and fermentation king Sandor Katz. Fancy, right?

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Tell Me What You Really Really Want

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Tuesdays around these parts is podcast day.

A new episode of the Tell Me Where I’m Going (Wrong) podcast is released on YouTube and Spotify first thing Tuesday morning.

A quick recap if you are new here.

Josh and I are ex-partners of 20-something years wo are still very good friends. Each week we spend an hour talking about pop music, culture, politics, health, travel, and life as middle age gay men. Oh yeah… we record this conversation and post it online.

This podcast is extremely DIY and low effort. It is simply your chance to observe us sharing our memories and opinions with each other. Do not expect it to be polished and do not expect any research!

You can watch/listen to the latest episode on YouTube below. In this episode we chat about the dismal state of global politics, how dreadful singers end up in manufactured pop bands, and why so many pop starts end up supporting the Tories.

You can also watch/stream on Spotify at the link below!

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Dine Scandinavian Style In London

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I don’t know a lot about Scandinavian food.

As a person originating from outside the region known as Scandinavia, I’m not even sure how effective it is to use a coverall term such as Scandinavian to describe all the food developed across a handful of countries with diverse geographic landscapes and historic influences.

To develop an understanding of what really constitutes Scandinavian food, the best I can do as a non-Scandi living in London is to defer to a chef who is happy to use the term to describe the food they create.

And if this plate of deliciousness is the norm, sign me up as a Scandi fan!

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I’m Not Religious But I Do Celebrate Easter Eggs

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The title of this blog is a joke I’ve made a few times, in a few different forms.

I’ve joked about not celebrating Christmas while expressing my devotion to overeating on Christmas day. I don’t celebrate Thanksgiving but that doesn’t stop me from eating food associated with this problematic calendar date.

And just like the above festivities, Easter comes with it’s own delicacies that I love to consume while simultaneously rejecting the cultural and religious framework surrounding it.

Yes. I’m coming out of the closest as an atheist who is obsessed with Easter eggs!

My family wasn’t religious when I was growing up in Australia and I only attended church for weddings and funerals, but Easter was one of those celebrations that reached even the most non-observant of the population Down Under.

As a child, I would build a nest to which the Easter Bunny would deliver chocolate and candy eggs once a year (a tad confusing when I ponder this as an adult). This nest was more often than not simply a beach towel rolled into a spiral, placed in the living rom or at the foot of my bed. Sometimes I would shred newspaper to create a cosy, cushioning base to protect my expected egg delivery! I have no idea if this was a cultural practice outside of my family but we did it for most of my childhood years.

I suppose it was this custom that instilled in me a joy for Easter eggs that has lived long past my childhood and even long past retaining (most of) my family in my life!

This probably isn’t the right place to do a deep dive into my complex family history, however it is the perfect platform for sharing my current Easter faves with you here in the UK.

Check these out!

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Learn To Cook And Contribute To Society

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If you sniff around these parts of the Internet often, you’ll undoubtedly be aware that I work with food security charity Made In Hackney.

Made In Hackney does a lot of work around food security, education, and access however it most well-known in London for the free community cooking classes hosted inside our Clapton Common kitchen.

These classes are designed to help empower the community to eat nutritious and delicious cuisine that is culturally relevant. Often the classes will have a wellbeing focus such as ‘cooking to combat diabetes’ or low cost recipes for people struggling with the cost of living.

These classes are open to anyone and are not income tested. Check out the image below to see some of the upcoming community classes.

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