Vegan Friendly Restaurants

Eating out vegan

I've been vegan for 4 months now and thankfully I've still been able to pig out at a majority of the places I ate at before - hoorah! I did think it was going to be harder eating out, and I guess it is in terms of not having as much choice as before, but there's not been a place I've come across yet that hasn't been able to cater to my vegan needs yet. 

Vegan options at restaurants

Most restaurants have some form of vegan option or a veggie option that you can ask to make vegan by skipping the cheese, mayo, etc.

Some places I've visited that have been good for vegan options:

1. Nandos
Who knew vegans could eat out at Nandos?! Not me, until I saw JME (yep he's vegan and I'm a fan ha) say he was at Nandos on Twitter. Their veggie burger/pitta/wrap is vegan, without any mayo or yogurt dressing though.  

2. Whetherspoons
The cheap and cheerful Whetherspoons also have vegan options!! I got the sweet potato, chickpea and spinach curry last time I visited. I wasn't sure if the naan was vegan so swapped with the poppadoms to be safe.

3. ASK Italian
Ask have a separate vegan menu that I had no clue about until recently! Just ask (lol) your waiter or waitress for it and choose from pastas, pizzas and desserts! I went with the aubergine pasta and it was divine.

4. Indian

I've found Indian restaurants the most accommodating! They always have veggie dishes which are vegan friendly and my local restaurant even make my favourite vegetable Rogan Josh vegan by frying the tomatoes in oil instead of butter. Shout out to Clove in Reigate ;)

5. Zizi's

I'm yet to have a Zizi's yet since being vegan but they too have a vegan menu and their lentil bolognese looks delicious. I'll add a pic when I've visited...

I will carry this list on as I find and eat at more vegan friendly restaurants!

...Watch this space.

Veg Fest 2017 Brighton

Vegan Festival in Brighton

It was veg fest this weekend at Brighton and I visited on the Saturday with my Mum. I wasn't sure what to expect as I had never been to a vegan festival before but I was pleasantly surprised.

New vegan brands

There were so many different vegan brands there, some that I had heard of before but loads I hadn't. It was so interesting seeing all the different things people had to offer. My mum and I mainly went for the food, and we ate so much lol, but there was also different charities, clothes companies, book brands etc there. 

For lunch my mum had a hot dog from the Vegusto stand and omg it was sooooo tasty (I tried some). I got a pizza from the Purezza stand and we also got some vegan ice cream from Yorica. But most importantly we got some brownies to take home from Liberty Loves and OH MY GOD... they were hands down the tastiest brownies I've ever had in my whole life, non vegan brownies included in my list of comparison. My boyfriend who's not vegan even said they were unreal. If I could create those every day myself I would. Well done Liberty Loves **applause here**. 

 

 

Who else went to veg fest?! Let me know what your favourite stall was.

Best Spread for Vegans

Dairy Free Spreads

You'd be surprised as to how many dairy free spreads there are out there in the UK. I didn't even know it was a thing until turning to the green side but they are there and some are better than others. I've not tried many yet but here's my best 3 that are in most supermarkets:

1. My number 1 and the one I now always get is Flora Freedom. It's brilliant and literally tastes like every other margarine I've had prior to quitting dairy. You can cook with it, put it on bread, add it to mash potato, the lot. 

2. Pure. To be honest this doesn't differ too much from Flora but is a bit harder to get your hands on so I tend to not get it as much now.

3. Vitalite. This one is the cheapest out of the 3 and is nice to bake with but not so great when using it on toast or anything savoury really.

Do please let me know if you've found better.