London vegan news, reviews & events
I absolutely adore being part of the regular supper club series at Unity Diner in London.
Not only do these events raise funds for Surge Sanctuary (I wrote about them yesterday) but they are also a showcase of just how special plant-based dining can be.
If you want to see what all the excitement is about, I’m hosting a Spring-themed dinner at Unity in a few weeks.
Read more below.
Do you wanna support independent women in business and eat delicious vegan food?
You need all this news!
Lady Lane Catering Co and The Canvas are proud to bring you Lady Lane Kitchen: a veritable pop-up feast running until the end of 2021. The kitchen is taking over The Canvas Cafe five nights a week, and is is all about sharing cultures, empowering women, sustainable lifestyles, and great food.
The cooperative brings together six women from all different backgrounds who tell a story of their love, their lives, and their dreams through their food. Launched in October, feedback has been overwhelmingly positive and the pop up kitchen is set to stay for the rest of the year.
They are now going to be running Tuesday-Saturday from 6pm, and in December will shake up the menu to offer a selection of dishes called ‘What we eat at Christmas’.
These women set up Lady Lane Catering Co in 2020 and they haven’t even let a pandemic stop them. They have persevered and have made it to this stand out London pop up, even as other hospitality businesses are struggling. It’s not been easy. Childcare, budgeting, and schedules could get in the way of a thriving business, but these women are excelling.
The strong women are coming together through a love of food, a fierce drive to succeed, and a vision to bring their family and heritage recipes to more people.
Flavour and passion abound in a menu featuring Caribbean, South Asian, Persian, Mediterranean and Somalian food from a group of single mums and super women.
Leila is a single mother who has created a Caribbean menu in her kitchen and is quick to point out the parallels between cultures; “Pilau rice is used in Caribbean cooking too – food shows us that we’re not so different after all!” Leila runs Munchbreaks, an eclectic multicultural catering service from the heart of East London (a bit like the person behind it). She says that it’s about community and caring for them.
Woin Ethiopic Kitchen is passionate about making traditional Ethiopic food 100% vegan and has created her business to create high quality, plant based menus, full of rich flavours.
Aseel’s Kitchen was started 5 years ago by Sophia, a mother of four lovely children. Providing for her family and friends great quality and scrumptious food has always been a point of great joy and pride and she specialises in providing great flavoursome dishes from the southern Mediterranean, Levant and Arabian Peninsula kitchens. She says that “cooking isn’t just about serving food, but sharing your story” and hopes to do jus that through her tasty menu.
Dadu’s Kitchen LDN opened in 2019 as a way of spreading love and joy through full bellies! Syeda, a mother of 6, and a grandmother, has had over 40 years of experience cooking a wide range of Bangladeshi foods, using aromatic spices from the south of Asia. Her passion is to extend the joy and love for her food beyond her family and friends, with a vegan twist! She says that “cooking isn’t just about serving food, but sharing your story” and hopes to do jus that through her tasty menu.
Amiira started making her own hot sauce Basbaas (which means chilli) after she lost her job in 2017. She noticed there was a gap in the market for Somali foods and condiments, and decided to use this downtime to launch her own business, as it had always been a dream of hers.
Ruth Rogers, founder and owner of The Canvas says: “The pop up was originally planned to run for a month, but we’ve seen just how transformative it has been. From customers saying they never realised vegan food could be inspired by cultures around the world, to the growth in confidence the women have found, we’re delighted they’re staying around a bit longer.”
Lady Lane Kitchen is a cooperative of women in partnership with business and government:
● Tower Hamlets Council
● The Canvas – East London Profit for Purpose Cafe hosting the pop up
● Heura Foods – proactive vegan meat brand who are donating products for the ladies’ menus
● Lady Lane Market – London’s first women-led market, in east London
Click here to see the exact location of The Canvas thanks to Google Maps.
Follow The Canvas cafe and event hub on Instagram. You can also follow The Lady Lane Kitchen on Instagram.
Book your table for one of these wonderful pop up dining experiences… or all of them!
Tendril is a brand new vegan pop up restaurant starting its residency at The Hive in Bethnal Green from January 10, 2020.
Tendril is the brainchild of Chef Rishim Sachdeva and there more plans to spread his tasty food far and wide around the capital in 2020. Tendril is just the first stop.
So what exactly will Chef Rishim be serving at Tendril in Bethnal Green?
A sample menu highlights the following:
You can follow Tendril on Instagram and see the exact the location of The Hive online thanks to Google Maps.
Tottenham Social Pop Ups is an ongoing series of seriously tasty food events at Craving Coffee on Markfield Road, Tottenham.
The next best reason why you should get along is taking place from Thursday September 12 until Saturday 14, 2019.
Superstar vegan food traders Marli’s Kitchen are running their soul menu takeover and the menu sounds exquisite. Check this out.
These Tottenham Social nights have been running since June 2015. Craving Coffee have been inviting street food traders to take over their kitchen with diverse cuisines from around the globe while their Tottenham Social bartenders serve a range of bespoke cocktails craft beers, choice wines, and boutique soft drinks.
The Marli’s Kitchen return is set to be hugely popular. They are a vegan food trader on mission to get carnivores eating vegan food, and to satisfy vegan cravings for junk food with a conscience.
Details you need:
Book to avoid disappointment.
Be sure to follow Marli’s Kitchen on Instagram.
South London. Are you ready to get sloppy?
If you’re interested in an evening of hearty, wholesome, and fresh food served in an informal, soulful space you are in luck.
That Sloppy Vegan has crafted a menu that fuses Indian and European styles for her FIRST EVER supper club. The freshest ingredients and flavours will be combined to create four courses of hearty, vibrant food.
WHAT:
4 courses of fresh, delicious, Indian-fusion food cooked by That Sloppy Vegan (that name though!!!!!!).
WHEN:
5th December, 2018 – 7pm until 10pm
WHERE:
Eleven, Balham, 5 Fernlea Road, SW12 9RT (only a 2-minute walk from Balham Station)
TICKETS:
£35 for four courses and a drink. Click here to book.
Join That Sloppy Vegan for what is set to be a gorgeous night of tasty food and socialising.
You can also follow That Sloppy Vegan on Instagram.
Here is a quick heads up for people who like other people to cook and serve impressive vegan meals for them.
Celebrating the witches and wizards inside all of us, sixty:2 brings you a magical twist on their signature immersive supper clubs. Get ready for their vegan Halloween supper club in east London on Thursday October 25, 2018.
This special Halloween supper club features exciting, explosive dishes and will be an extravagant showcase of the creativity of sixty:2‘s founder and head chef, Maudie Fraser. Seating is limited so book early.
The provisional menu looks fabulous:
As it is Halloween themed, festive dress is encouraged but not essential.
Click here for more info and to book.
OK, London.
You will need to be fast for this event. Last time Dee’s Table hosted their vegan rib feast at 10 Cable Street, it completely sold out.
The food looks stunning!
Menu
Dessert to share
If you can say no to all of the above, you are a stronger person than FGV.
The Ultimate Vegan Ribs Feast event is talking place on Thursday June 21, 2018 from 7:00pm until 10:00pm.
Click here to book now before it sells out.
Follow Dee’s Table on Instagram and while you are over there, follow 10 Cable Street as well.
Do you know Greedy Khao?
If you do, you will understand that this pop up event is not to be missed.
If you are unfamiliar, this March 31 food event is the perfect opportunity to get acquainted.
‘A Plant-Powered Journey through Thailand’ will take diners on a culinary tour from the Southern provinces, famous for seafood and spiciness, through the melting pot of Bangkok, and up to the fresh, zesty North East.
Faai of Greedy Khao says, “North Eastern (Isaan) Thai food has seen increased popularity in recent years, so we want to shed the spotlight on some of Thailand’s other regions, while proving that vegan Thai food can be just as bold, complex, and moreish as its meaty alternative”.
They have the tickets up on Eventbrite (here) so get buying. Don’t miss out!
Calling all London people.
8th March, 2018 is International Women’s Day and a collective of women-led vegan food businesses are getting together to collaborate on a one-off menu at the Spread Eagle London.
Apart from serving up tasty vegan food, they are giving 100% of all the money made (none of them will take any money to cover costs) to a charity called Working Chance. This charity supports women leaving the criminal justice system, helping them to get back into the workforce and break the poverty and re-offence cycle by pairing them up with employees.
The menu is fabulous:
Click here to book your table on the Spread Eagle website for anytime after 6pm on March 8th and be part of their big ‘fuck you’ to patriarchy and big businesses cashing in on women and veganism. Don’t be fooled by other markets and pop ups trying to ride the promo wave of International Women’s Day.
Follow Club Mexicana, Spice Box, I Will Kill Again, The Spread Eagle, and Young Vegans on Instagram.
If you would like to support Working Chance charity but cannot attend this event, please consider donating online.
London. I’m here to warn you to move quickly.
Denai of Dee’s Table always does amazingly well whenever she appears, so this one night only pop up supper club is going to have them rushing in.
Denai’s take on modern Jamaican cuisine is delicious and this menu for her Ultimate Vegan Ribs Feast taking place at 10 Cable Street on February 23, 2018 is the stuff of dreams.
What’s on the menu?
Dessert to share:
This is a Friday night in London and the food is stunning, so click here to book your spot NOW!
You can follow Dee’s Table on Instagram.