vegan UK

New vegan food at Pret

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Pret a Manger has released some more vegan options so I’m doing my duty to let you know about them.

Cauli & Sweet Potato Dhal Hot Pot, £6.25 (vegan)

A warming, mildly spicy, coconut dhal, with chunks of roasted sweet potato, roasted turmeric cauliflower and baby plum tomatoes. Top it off with the pot of fresh spinach, toasted seeds and a squeeze of lemon.

Apple & Almond Butter Bowl, £1.99 (vegan)

Customers have been asking for more vegan snacks. Pret has kept this recipe nice and simple: crisp, green apple wedges with a generous dollop of almond butter.

Falafel, Avo & Chipotle Flat Bread, £3.99 (vegan)

Sweet potato falafel and freshly sliced avocado with a dollop of chipotle ketchup. Topped with pickled onions, crunchy red peppers, fresh coriander and charred corn and black bean salsa. Available in shops from Thursday 4th January until Monday 5th March.

A non-vegan place turns vegan: Day one

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I am super excited about getting down to the newly-vegan Old Street branch of Arancini Brothers tomorrow (Thursday January 4, 2018) for their grand re-opening.

It is also the official launch of my book and they just shared this post of the stock arriving:

I reached out to owner Dave to see how the soft opening went yesterday and he said:

Even though this area is a ghost town at this time of year, we had a queue out the door between midday and 2pm. There were lots of customers loving the FGV Burger and we didn’t get a single complaint from our regular meat eating customers. It has been a great start to our vegan project!

Such good news!

Click here to see the full menu plus some food photos. Hopefully I’ll see some of you at the grand re-opening/book launch tomorrow. If you can’t make it tomorrow, Arancini Brothers Old Street will be 100% vegan for the entire month of January and maybe longer if it works out for them.

You can also order my book online here.

Introducing the FGV Burger

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News you can eat.

As you have probably heard, Arancini Brothers Old Street location is turning 100% vegan for January 2018.

The entire menu is becoming plant-based for Veganuary (and hopefully longer) and to celebrate, they have added a burger they are calling the FGV Burger.

Check it out.

The FGV Burger features the famous mushroom zucchini risotto patty inside an organic bap plus double cheese, pickles, crispy onion, ketchup and mustard.

I’m absolutely drooling.

This is the burger of my dreams and I’m thrilled to see my name on their new vegan menu.

You can get your hands on the FGV Burger at Arancini Brothers Old Street location all month long. See the full vegan menu online here.

The soft launch for Old Street turning vegan is January 2, 2018 with the grand vegan re-opening in conjunction with my book launch is Thursday January 4. I’ll be there on January 4, so please say hello.

Hope to see you in store where you can grab an FGV Burger and an FGV book!

If you would like to buy the book but cannot make it to this celebration, you can buy a copy online here.

Best nine of Instagram 2017

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As I do at the end of each year, I like to share the most popular photos from my Instagram account from across the previous twelve months.

As you can see from the list below, Wagamama made the list three times and bizarrely the same dish made up two of those posts! If you work at Wagamama and you make a lot of money, I won’t say no to a monetary showing of appreciation. I didn’t post those pics for my own financial return, but holy shit did you people get some incredible PR from me this year.

Some of the entries are surprising (that popcorn chicken in at number 3 and those tiffin bites appearing AT ALL?!) and it is extremely telling that eight of the nine photos feature products from huge, non-vegan multinational companies.

If you need proof of how mainstream and commodified veganism and plant-based eating has become, this list might just come in handy.

Enjoy reliving these most-liked moments from 2017 and if you don’t already, follow me over on Instagram for new adventures in non-animal living in 2018.

Here we go, starting with number nine and counting down to the most popular:

Number 9.

Number 8.

Number 7.

Number 6.

Number 5.

Number 4.

Number 3.

Number 2.

Number 1. The most-liked photo of 2017 on the FGV Instagram account

And finally, here are the top nine in a handy grid for a recap if you need it.

See you all next year!

Another FGV book reading

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Here is book reading number 3 from my VERY SOON to be released book, Fat Gay Vegan: Eat, Drink and Live Like You Give a Sh!t  (you can see readings number 1 and 2 online as well).

You can order your very own copy of my book online here.

Stay tuned for more readings and book launch events such as the official launch at the Arancini Brothers vegan reopening celebration on January 4, 2018.

Vegan NYE in London

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Are you in London with no plans for New Year’s Eve?

Gabriel Moreno and the Intrepid Bard Society are hosting a New Year’s party to remember with some of the top performers from The Lantern Society London and Poetry Brothel London.

They will entertain you until 11:45 pm performing the most refreshing music and poetry in the London Underground Alternative folk, troubadour, singer songwriter scene.

Headline performances by:

  • Adam Beattie
  • Gabriel Moreno
  • RADIO PICTURE
  • Holly Augustine

After midnight they will have top music from the darkest and most vibrant corners of the human psyche with a DJ set including music by Arcade Fire, Nick Cave, Calexico, Marc Ribot, Wilco Bill Callahan, The National Congreso, Band of Horses, Patti Smit, Warren Zevon, Franco Battiato, Neil Young, Morphine, Georges Brasens, tindersticks, Tom Waits, and more dark and upbeat classics.

£10 entry (CASH ONLY)

They will also take requests for their New Year’s Playlist but you need to let them know in advance. Place your requests on the Facebook event page.

The venue will be open from7pm, serving vegan food (tapas style) and prosecco for a very moderate price.

To reserve a place for this night send an email to with your name, amount of people coming and a telephone number to gabrielangelmoreno@gmail.com and then have a fab time!

Vegan supper club West London

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My buddy Mark is hosting his first ever supper club at The Dodo Micropub in Hanwell, West London on January 15, 2018 and you should all book tickets!

Mark will serve a 4-course, nut-inspired menu with a welcome drink upon arrival and a take home goodie bag with samples for you to try at your leisure. This has all been made possible with the support of some wonderful brands including artisan cheese producers Essential Vegan and Raw Food Rosie’s, while Aqua Esse, Raw & Wild and The Happy Snack Company have provided him with your take home goodies.

Given cheese is at the heart of the menu, Mark has paired the main course and starter with vegan and organic wines from Spain. These are optional, so you can choose the ticket you want to purchase – with the paired wines or without. On the evening, should you wish, you will also be able to purchase alternative drinks from a vegan drinks menu featuring wines, beers and a selection of soft drinks including a limited number of the Aqua Esse intelligent aromatics spring water. You will be able to pay for your drinks by cash or card.

When purchasing your ticket also choose whether you wish to be greeted upon arrival with a mulled wine or a mulled kombucha. It will be mid January so both are assured to warm you up after your journey.

Mark’s mission is to constantly aspire to serve healthy and wholesome plant based food and with this in mind, only the highest quality organic ingredients will be used in all the dishes he personally prepares.

The menu for the evening is below:

Arrival

  • Mulled wine or kombucha
  • Air popped savoury ‘Doritos’ style popcorn

Starter

  • Roasted cauliflower and chestnut soup
  • Optional wine pairing – Lorenzo Bianco (a clean, fresh, natural wine with expressions of grapefruit and almonds. Trebbiano grapes, San Lorenzo, Abruzzo, Italy, 2015)

Main

  • Cheese board & accompaniments:
  • Soft cashew cheese trio – sundried tomatoes, basil and black olive
  • Baked garlic, rosemary and black pepper camembert
  • Flaked almond coated cheddar ball
  • Guest artisan cheeses from Essential Vegan and Raw Food Rosie’s
  • Aged smoked cashew
  • Smoked chipotle cashew brie
  • Baby bleu cashew brie
  • Cracker selection
  • Homemade bread selection (oregano and sea salt focaccia, granary and poppy seed)
  • Mixed olives, activated walnuts, celery, cherry tomatoes, grapes and sweet balsamic onion chutney
  • Optional wine pairing – Pinoso Tinto (a deep, black fruits, spicy wine from Mourvèdre, Petit Verdot grapes. Organic, vegan wine from La Bodega De Pinoso, Alicante, Spain, 2015)

Dessert

  • Roast pecan topped warm brownie with chocolate ganache and whipped coconut cream

Take home goodie bag

  • A selection of plant based products for you to sample at home from Aqua Esse, Raw & Wild and The Happy Snack Company

This is set to be a wonderful event so click here to book your ticket.

For delicious food photos and to stay updated with events, follow Mark on Instagram.

Adored vegan eatery relocates to London

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The Brook in Wallington, Surrey is one of those places that I never stop hearing about.

People who love this eatery REALLY love it. It definitely ranks in the top ten restaurants that I am contacted about by people wanting me to mention it.

The Brook has been a vegan staple of its community but that very community is now feeling sad due to the planned relocation from Wallington to Hackney.

Yes, bloody Hackney! LOL.

I asked owner Thea to give me a little info about the move. This is what she said:

We’re moving to Hackney in the new year (opening 18th Dec). We have a temporary space for 6-12 months. After four years in Surrey we’re itching to bring our food and drink to the London peeps. And from there we’re planning world domination… naturally.

We are also the headline sponsor at Vegan Life Live at Alexandra Palace in February, running the main bar, a catering stand and the live music stage, so it’s going to be a busy new year!

Take a look at some of these food, cake and cocktail photos below and be sure to follow The Brook on Instagram and Facebook.

And here is a cheeky little graphic to show you the new Hackney location for The Brook.

One year down

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I’ve only just recovered from the mammoth three-day Hackney Downs Festive Vegan Market held at Hackney Downs Studios.

Not only was the market a great opportunity for people to buy some of the best street food in the UK, it also marked our one year anniversary of hosting the market in this location.

I want to say a massive thank you to Eat Work Art for giving this market a home.

Hackney Downs Vegan Market has become one of the most iconic and loved destinations for vegans and their friends on the planet.

Thank you to all the attendees who have visited during 2017 and of course extra special thanks to our traders. Until you have done a day on the market, you can’t imagine how hard they work to bring fresh and exciting food to thousands of people each week.

The market returns weekly on Saturday January 6, 2018.

Non-vegan bakery chain adds vegan items

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The Hummingbird Bakery is introducing a vegan cupcake option to the counters of its seven bakeries.

In response to high customer demand, The Hummingbird Bakery will be selling vegan versions of its most popular products, launching the range with its bestselling Red Velvet. It will be available as a vegan cupcake in-store as well as a cupcake and whole Red Velvet Layer Cake online from 8th January 2018.

The Vegan Red Velvet Cupcake will be available at their seven bakeries located across London and Surrey, including their newest branch opened in summer 2017 on the Guildford High Street.

Tarek Malouf, founder and Managing Director of The Hummingbird Bakery, said:

Customers told us they wanted a vegan option of our cakes and we listened. We wanted to offer an amazing vegan cupcake that is every bit as delicious and authentically American tasting as the Red Velvet cupcake we introduced to the UK in 2004. The Hummingbird Bakery’s new Vegan Red Velvet Cupcake compromises nothing from the original recipe, we are really proud of this vegan version of our bestseller. With our new website launching in January 2018, we are delighted we will be able to showcase a new whole vegan Red Velvet Layer Cake on here as well for those wishing to celebrate a special occasion with the highest quality vegan baking.

Established on Portobello Road in 2004, The Hummingbird Bakery is best known for its Red Velvet Cupcakes with a deep red sponge flavoured with a hint of cocoa.