Wrapped in plastic

The latest episode of Tell Me Where I’m Going (Wrong) podcast finds us chatting all things David Lynch, especially our memories of the acclaimed Twin Peaks series.

I was the perfect age to become completely obsessed with Twin Peaks back in 1990, falling in love with the hypnotic storytelling and the incredibly talented cast. Sherilyn Fenn and Billy Zane became true icons for teenage me.

A bit later in life, Lynch’s Mulholland Drive film cemented itself in my list of top ten films and I’ve now seen this in the cinema multiple times. There aren’t many movies for which I would use the term masterpiece, but Mulholland Drive is more than deserving of that accolade.

The podcast also finds us chatting about teeth issues we experience as we grow older and why young people seem to not want to use condoms anymore.

Watch/stream the episode on YouTube.

You can also stream/watch the episode on Spotify.

Use the link below.

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Happy birthday to my book

Seven years ago, a lifelong dream of mine came true. I published a book. Not just any book, rather a book that poured every ounce of my heart, values, and hope for a better world into its pages. Fat Gay Vegan: Eat, Drink and Live Like You Give a Sh!t wasn’t just about veganism—it was about compassionate consumerism, social justice, and the belief that the choices we make can ripple out to create real change.

I worked hard on this book. Every word, every anecdote, and every call to action. To see it in print was a true moment of pride, but to have people still connecting with it seven years later? That’s a gift beyond anything I could have imagined.

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Be my vegan Valentine

This is a call for anyone looking for an exclusive Scandinavian dining event on February 14, 2025 in central London.

It doesn’t matter if you attend with a partner/s, friends, or on your own. This meal is suitable for people in all types of romantic entanglements.

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Ferments and Pickles

Celebrate Veganuary’s Finale with Purpose and Flavour

Join me for an exclusive, one-night-only dining experience at E3 Vegan, a proudly independent and celebrated restaurant nestled on Roman Road, East London.

This special supper club is your chance to savour an inventive three-course plant-based menu created by Head Chef Marc Joseph, formerly of the iconic Vanilla Black, London’s first vegetarian and vegan fine dining destination.

Born out of a love for sustainability and a passion for exceptional cuisine, E3 Vegan’s hyper-local, seasonal approach has made it a standout on the culinary map.

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Best in show

This was a cute and funny surprise.

Last night I attended an event hosted by Viva!, the incredible animal rights campaign charity.

They surprised me by presenting me with the award for Best Vegan Blogger… for 2019! It was a very funny moment.

I apparently won this award six years ago but I mentioned to the charity a few months ago that I didn’t have a memory of the event. So they kindly and humorously went out of their way to reprint the award and frame it for me!

I’d like to send huge love to the Viva! team not only for this kind and funny act, but more importantly for all the incredible work they do for animals.

You can discover more about the work of Viva! online here.

Mini festive market 2023

If you think it feels like a long, long time since I’ve posted on the blog you are completely correct.

The reason I’m coming back to speak to you all after all this time is because it’s the end of 2023 and I’m inviting you to a celebration!

To celebrate this blog being alive and well again, I’m thrilled to announce that I’m hosting a vegan mini festive market in conjunction with vegan food charity, Made in Hackney.

Please join us in The Redmond Community Centre on Saturday December 16th, 2023 between 11am and 4pm for festive fun, gift shopping with local traders, tombola, live music, and time to socialise with friends old and new.

Drop in anytime across the day and say hi… we can’t wait to see you! The market is in support of all the crucial work Made in Hackney does around plant-based food security and nutrition.

Independent traders and stalls will include:

VG Coffee – selling hot drinks and hand held nibbles
I AM NUT OK – award-winning plant-based cheeses perfect for your festive table
Pinkeens Prints – gift ideas including hand-painted mugs in support of London wildlife conservation
Ecotricity – chat with Britain’s leading ethically-sourced energy company
Made In Hackney – chat with us about or community classes and masterclasses
Citizen Cake – homestyle cakes and bakes
Con Pasión Perú – cook-at-home Peruvian tamales and snacks
Cake Cult – decadent cookies, cakes, and tray bakes
Canopy Indoor Plants – plants and pots for you to buy for loved ones… or yourself!
Copperhouse Chocolate – handmade artisan chocolates and chocolate drink mixes
POH Books – specialist in African and Caribbean books for all ages… including vegan recipes!
Singing Santa – the jolly old man will be on the mic singing your favourite pop songs

Extra note: FGV and Made In Hackney would like to thank Ecotricity for financially supporting this event. If you would like to find out more about this ethical energy supplier, click here for a quote. Ecotricity will kindly donate money to Made In Hackney for each new customer signing up via that link.

Vegan pizza party with FGV

I love a good party just as much as I love a good pizza, so why not combine my love for these two things?!

Join me in a week for The Future of Food co-presented with NXT LVL PZA.

Join Fat Gay Vegan at NXT LVL PZA’s Hackney Wick launch party!

Your £5 entry goes straight to madeinhackney.org, a local plant based cookery school and food kitchen helping some of East London’s most vulnerable people. It also entitles you to 1 free beer and free pizza all night!

NXT LVL’s master chef will be cooking up a storm in our courtyard, showing us the secrets of making food so good, you don’t notice it’s saving the planet. Come down, try some next level pizza, talk about the future of food and get to know your community.

@ HWK – 29 White Post Ln, London, E9 5EN

Thursday 12th May: 7pm – 11pm

£5 entry – free pizza + 1 beer* – 100% of proceeds go to Made In Hackney

CLICK HERE to buy your ticket now. Numbers are strictly limited.

*Pizza will be served by the slice. Beer tokens will redeem 1 alcoholic or 1 non-alcoholic beer. A soft drink option will also be available. Please check bar listing for more information.

Win some food with FGV

Here is a super rapid Instagram competition where you can win some food and hang out with a bunch of vegans and vegan-friendly peeps.

On the first Wednesday of each month, I host a London’s best party for compassionate people. Get excited for London Vegan Social!

London Vegan Social is the place to meet people, sing karaoke, eat delicious food, and sip refreshing cocktails. Spread across three floors of the Old Crown Pub at 33 New Oxford Street. It’s perfectly located halfway between Tottenham Court Road and Holborn Underground stations.

The monthly party runs between 6pm and 10pm on the first Wednesday and this month I am giving away a food and drink package for two. The event is tomorrow (May 4) so get reading below about how you can win!

This food and drink prize is supplied by resident vegan kitchen Vetomeato and host pub The Old Crown.

Here is what you need to do to win:

I’ll be picking a winner at 5pm on Wednesday May 4th, 2022. The prize can be claimed at London Vegan Social that same night!

The prize does not cover any travel expenses but the winner will get the following:

  • 2 burgers
  • 2 fries
  • 2 Mac n cheese bites
  • 2 vegan cocktails

Click here to visit and comment on the Instagram post.

Don’t forget to follow Fat Gay Vegan and Vetomeato on Instagram.

Wanna invest in vegan pizza?

Ever since I adopted a vegan lifestyle over 20 years ago, I’ve been searching for the best plant-based pepperoni pizza.

We didn’t have a lot of pepperoni pizza opportunities in Australia when I was younger and by the time I got to the UK where they were more popular, I was vegan!

But hey, guess what, people? I think I’ve found the vegan pepperoni pizza of my dreams… and you can invest in the company responsible for bringing it to the UK capital.

NXT LVL PZA is a fast food concept that was pretty easy to fall in love with.

I stumbled upon the NXT LVL pop up restaurant in Soho just over a month or so back and was swept up by excitement and greed. The brand is all bright colours and video game imagery while the menu is 100% plant-based.

The idea of the concept is to give hungry people (like me) the food they desire while doing good stuff for the planet and animals. I saw so many people getting excited about the pizza before they realised it was plant-based and that excitement didn’t let up when they started eating.

The pizza from NXT LVL is extremely tasty.

I think what NXT LVL PZA has got right is not trying to invent the wheel when it comes to ingredients that other people do incredibly well already.

The brand has created partnerships with leading plant-based companies such as Beyond Meat to create pizzas with toppings that can’t be, er.. topped!

This is why the pepperoni pizza has got me all hot and bothered.

The Spice Invaders pizza (see photo above) features the mouthwatering pepperoni slices of Verdino Foods. This is by far the best plant-based pepperoni I have ever enjoyed. My childhood dreams are coming true!

Following on from a trial delivery kitchen near Battersea over the past few months, NXT LVL PZA is ready to take their delicious vegan menu across London via a series of delivery kitchens. I think they plan on opening ten delivery kitchens as a starting point!

And if you like the sound of getting a slice of the action (get it?), you can invest in their expansion via a crowdfunding campaign. Of course you need to know that any sort of investment opportunity carries risk, no matter how much some chubby Australian blogger loves vegan pepperoni pizza.

Click here if you want to discover more info about investing in a chain of vegan pizza kitchens.

You can also follow NXT LVL PZA on Instagram.

Extra note: keep a close eye on my social media announcements in the coming week. I love NXT LVL so much, there might just be an FGV pizza party sponsored by the brand coming to London and you will definitely want to be a part of it.

Special vegan Valentine’s dinner in London

If you know anything about vegan food in London, you’ll be aware that Essential Vegan is one of the best places to get plant-based cuisine in the city.

Vanessa has established her vegan Brazilian food business as a real leader on the food scene over the past few years and now you can celebrate Valentine’s Day 2022 with a special set menu.

Tapioca dice with homemade sweet chili chutney
Palm hearts and plantain moqueca with basmati rice

The 3-course Valentine’s Day dinner is available for one night only at Essential Vegan, inside Dalston Superstore, on Monday February 14, 2022 from 5pm.

The menu is priced at £25 per person and includes:

  • tapioca dice with homemade sweet chili chutney
  • palm hearts and plantain moqueca with basmati rice
  • Brazilian donuts with guava paste

This is an incredible line up of dishes that is going to have you all loved up!

You can choose the time that suits you with bookings starting from 5pm. Click here to make a booking.

The full Essential Vegan menu will also be available on the night, as it is 7-days a week.

If you like the sound of the Valentine’s Day dinner but can’t get along, think about getting along to the Essential Vegan Dalston Superstore drag brunch that takes place every Saturday and Sunday between 12pm and 5pm. You need to book in advance (same link as above) as this event sells out most weeks.

You can follow Essential Vegan on Instagram.