London vegan news, reviews & events
Wanna save some money on a tasty vegan lunch this week, London?
Buffalo Vegan Diner of Hackney is giving lunchtime diners 50% off their new lunch menu on Thursday November 15 and Friday November 16, 2018 between midday and 3pm.
Check out the menu below.
Buffalo has been getting rave reviews online so now this is your chance to find out what all the hype is about AND save some money.
You can see the exact location of Buffalo thanks to Google Maps.
You can follow Buffalo on Instagram.
There was a recent newspaper article sating that the UK was facing a vegan chef shortage as the population took plant-based eating to heart.
This announcement couldn’t have come at a better time for a new vegan chef school launching in London.
The Vegan Chef Institute is open for business and taking bookings.
Co-founder Chef Day Radley says of her desire to elevate vegan cuisine within the UK:
As a newbie vegan chef I expected to dive into a world where my fellow chefs adored their work; creating dishes with love, pushing back the boundaries of cruelty free food. How wrong I was. It was 2010 and I was working in my first pro-chef job. The kitchen was a maelstrom of grumpy, tetchy chefs, barking at each other whilst churning out food with as much care as a factory robot. Any love for food resided solely with me.
The rest of the ‘team’ were not vegan or vegetarian and couldn’t care less about cross contamination. They were grown boys stuck in a career that was the best of a limited choice given them at age 16; work as a mechanic, builder or chef. For many, becoming a chef seemed like the easy choice. The long unsociable hours, minimum wage and sweaty, greasy conditions soon makes it clear that it is far from easy. This is a persistent problem in UK kitchens and one that adds to our terrible reputation for a severe lack of culinary finesse. When you pair that with the vegan movement the consequences could be even more severe; it has the potential to limit the growth of veganism. As a vegan chef you are acutely aware that the dish you serve may convince someone to become vegan or help them to remain vegan. Each good plate of food adds weight to the vegan choice, it says ‘this is delicious, you are not missing out, so yes, you can do this’. For people on the vegan cusp that single plate could mark the deciding moment. For the V-curious, wanting to dip a tentative toe, if that dish is bland they will ascertain that ALL vegan food is bland and steer clear of it in the future. The culinary art of vegan, sustainable and compassionate cuisine needs to be showcased by talented vegan chefs.
Radley continued:
This is the reason I have created The Vegan Chef Institute with co-founder and health coach, Chantal Di Donato. The Institute launched on November 1st, World Vegan Day. Our mission? To provide the vegan movement with a progressive centre of learning and innovation so that we can develop a cuisine that it truly deserves and needs. We kick off the Institute with a fast-track vocational course designed to propel keen home cooks into their first job as a professional vegan chef. The combination of careful and personal tutelage, with an internship element to the course, will give students everything they need to take that first exciting step on the cooking career ladder.
The course runs from January 13th, every Sunday, for 12 weeks. Their kitchen site in Battersea, South London allows each of their 8 students their own station and hobs, with plenty of space to make and create. They will celebrate and showcase the work of the class at a student-led supper club. Family, friends and the vegan community will be invited to eat with the class.
You can find out more and book a place onto the course online.
You can follow the Vegan Chef Institute on Facebook and Instagram.
London. This is HUGE news.
Superstar vegan company Follow Your Heart is teaming up with the original and best vegan market for a super sized vegan food giveaway this Sunday November 4, 2018.
Come along to Hackney Downs Vegan Market from 11am on Sunday and grab some of the finest vegan food products on the planet. FOR FREE!
There will be hundreds of Follow Your Heart products available for absolutely no charge, but you will need to be early to get the best pick.
The company has kindly sent the following:
The products are not just great tasting, they are some of the best on the planet and are produced by one of the most ethical businesses you will ever see.
Hackney Downs Vegan Market Sunday edition traders will also be thrilled to see you, so please take a look at the line up online here and start planning your Sunday shopping and eating (the Saturday version is on as well if you want to make a full weekend of it!).
RSVP and invite friends over on the Facebook event page.
See the full Follow Your Heart range online and be sure to follow the superstar vegan brand on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Hey, London.
There is a new vegan cafe on Brick Lane called Beanuts.
Beanuts is unique to the UK in that all the fresh plant milks on site (16 kinds of milk rotating daily!) are made in-house and the menu is based around them as well as the milk by-products.
They have polish rye soup, mezze platters, sweet bites, and awesome cocktails (including vegan white Russian and whisky sour).
The freshly-made milks are squeezed from:
Grains – barley, oat, spelt, rice
Legumes – lupin, pea, peanut
Nuts – almond, cashew, hazelnut, walnut pistachio
Seeds – pumpkin, chia, sunflower, sesame, quinoa, hemp, flax
Beanuts will also sort you out with amazing breakfasts, a great lunchtime selection of delicious sharing platters, cakes, smoothies, and fabulous vegan cocktails or warmers for these cold evenings.
You can see the exact location of Beanuts thanks to Google Maps.
You can follow Beanuts on Instagram.
Buffalo, the new vegan diner in London Fields (yes, Hackney!), is launching the Buffalo Bottomless Brunch this Saturday October 27, 2018 from midday.
For £25 diners will receive the Buffalo Breakfast of Champions and unlimited mimosas and beers.
The Champions Breakfast includes vegan sausages, scrambled tofu, smoky seitan bacon, mixed beans, avocado and fresh, locally-sourced sourdough.
And if for some reason you need drink choices other than bottomless mimosas, for an additional £10 you can enjoy unlimited margaritas and Bloody Marys!
Brunch tables are available from midday for two hour slots. Email info@buffalodiner.co.uk to reserve or simply send an Instagram message.
Extra news: Buffalo Vegan Diner is just a 30-minute walk from Hackney Downs Vegan Market, so take a leisurely stroll over to visit us after your bottomless brunch.
You know all about Itis Eats, right? And you love and adore them, right?
Itis is a much-loved vegan street food trader that serves regularly at Hackney Downs Vegan Market and they put on very special supper clubs that you do not want to miss.
They have a Vegan Soul Food supper club coming up on Thursday November 1, 2018 at Space @ 61 in Peckham. They’ll be serving mac ‘n’ cheese, collard greens, mushroom ‘ribs’, fried chickn and loads of the soul food classics.
They’re bringing you an indulgent evening with hearty food inspired by Africa, the Caribbean and the USA. This is a rare chance to enjoy soul food classics done vegan.
Go with your takeaway containers – you’ll struggle to finish this feast!
THE FOOD:
They’ll be serving each of you up a mixed platter containing:
Plus if you have space after all of that, they’ll be serving a delicious dessert.
All food by Itis is always 100% vegan!
Click here to book your spot before it sells out and follow Itis Eats on Instagram.
And don’t forget to catch up with Itis at Hackney Downs Vegan Market every Saturday and Sunday. Details here.
Biff’s Jack Shack to Open at Boxpark Shoreditch for World Vegan Day
SOFT LAUNCH FREE BURGER GIVEAWAY: 20 free burgers given out each day from Monday 29 Oct – Friday 2 Nov
Launching in time for World Vegan Day on 1st November, Biff’s Jack Shack is bringing its all-vegan menu of jackfruit-based fast food to Boxpark in Shoreditch. Started by partners Biff Burrows and Christa Bloom as a reaction against the sad, uninspired bean burger options they suffered in many restaurants, Biff’s is out to change the conversation about what plant-based food can be – with a side of neon and the odd 80s reference.
After hugely successful 10-month run with a pop up at Haunt in Stoke Newington, the Boxpark opening will be Biff’s first permanent home. The menu is centred around Biff’s unique Crispy Fried Jackfruit: young green jackfruit is braised in a secret spice mix and triple-dipped in golden panko to create indulgent burgers and wings.
Old favourites such as ‘The Father Jack’ – named as Time Out’s favourite vegan burger – and ‘The Samuel Hell Jackson’, topped with maple chipotle hot sauce will be on the menu at Boxpark, alongside brand-new creations. Best of the new dishes is Biff’s biggest most indulgent burger yet, the ‘Jack Bauer Tower of Power’, a double jackfruit patty with deep fried vegan cheese, potato rosti, bacun jam, vegan aioli, served in a toasted brioche bun.
Crispy jackfruit wings come complete with a sugarcane ‘bone’, topped in a range of Biff’s house-made sauces including bourbon-infused sticky BBQ; miso mayo; cinnamon sweet chilli; and blue cheeze.
The Boxpark Shack menu also features a section of ‘Filthy Fries’ including London’s first vegan poutine – fries topped with vegan cheese curds, porcini mushroom, seitan bacon, and gravy. Elsewhere, there’s a jackfruit, brisket chilli bowl; hush puppies (crispy cornbread served with whipped maple butter; and desserts such as the Mug Cake Bar, hot fresh and gooey chocolate cake. Brunch burgers will also be available on the weekend.
All Biff’s packaging is fully compostable and recyclable and there are no single-use plastic drinks on the menu. In an effort to reduce waste further, all customers that bring in their own appropriate food containers will receive a discount of 50p from their order.
You can visit the Biff’s Jack Shack online and follow them on Instagram.
You can see the exact location of Boxpark thanks to Google Maps.
Opening hours: Sunday – Wednesday 12pm-8pm; Thursday – Saturday 12pm – 10pm
Dear London. This is special.
One of the most-loved (and successful!) traders at Hackney Downs Vegan Market is Chanel of Vegan Delice.
Chanel’s cakes, slices, and donuts are one of the main reasons why so many people come back to our market each weekend.
But did you know that Chanel isn’t just a sweet treats superstar? Yep. She also makes stunning savoury food and you can get involved at her Cyprus Night supper club this week (Thursday October 25, 2018).
Check out the stunning vegan Cypriot menu below.
Book a ticket for this stunning 3-course meal which will be taking place at the Temple Goods coffee shop at Hackney Downs Studios.
Extra note: there will be a professional belly dancer on the night for entertainment!
Click here for more information and to book.
You can also follow Vegan Delice on Instagram.
Hey, London.
If you can keep up with all the vegan news coming your way, you are better at it then I am!
Every single day of the week seems to bring news of vegan and plant-based developments and today I found out about Kalifornia Kitchen.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BpEoZ6wnIaQ/
Set to open in November 2018, I first found out about Kalifornia Kitchen through a job advert.
It reads:
Kalifornia Kitchen is a brand new plant-based restaurant launching in central London this autumn. All food is 100% Vegan and served in a casual space. We are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner 7 days a week. This is a modern, fresh space with a fantastic atmosphere.
If you are looking for restaurant work in a vegan environment in central London, you can click here to visit the job advert.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BodyIN5HcEg/
Kalifornia Kitchen is located near the corner of Tottenham Court Road and Percy Street in the West End, so it doesn’t come much more central than that!
You can follow Kalifornia Kitchen on Instagram to stay updated on their menu and opening announcements.
Get ready, London.
You are about the experience the power and deliciousness of brick fired vegan pizza thanks to the same team that brought you vegan pie and mash.
Carla and Marco of Young Vegans have stepped away from the Camden pie shop just long enough to start Death by Pizza, a gourmet pizza outlet located in Netil Market, East London.
Yes, they still have their pie and mash shop in Camden but they are also launching this gourmet pizza joint over a special grand opening weekend this Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 October, 2018. They will be serving between midday and 6:00pm, continuing every weekend going forward.
Look out for extended hours in the future!
Every scrap of food is made fresh by Death by Pizza and that includes dough, vegan meats, and their very own vegan mozzarella. This is artisan stuff!
You should follow Death by Pizza on Instagram. I am helping them celebrate their official opening by running an FGV Follower Drive. We want to get them to 2,000 followers for the grand opening!
See the exact location of Death by Pizza thanks to Google Maps.
