Vegan Vox Travels...to Berlin

Berlin is a wonderful city for many reasons, the history, the architecture and the people, but as a vegan, it is a paradise – full of vegan choices at every turn.

Here are some of the highlights:

All over the city there are kebab shops, but unlike the UK versions, all of these serve delicious falafel in pitta with salad. A great vegan-friendly option if you need something fast!

There are a few chains of organic shops and health food stores, such as Viv Stores and LPG, which have a wide variety of vegan products and an entirely vegan chain of food shops called Veganz – these are filled with mock meats, cheeses, store cupboard essentials, sweets and drinks including the American brands such as Tofurky, Gardein and Daiya. There is also a coffee shop attached to Veganz – Goodies which sells amazing cakes, paninis, brownies and more. Nearby there are other vegan boutiques selling shoes and clothes such as Avesu and DearGoods. Nearly every shop sells vegan-friendly Fritz Cola if you fancy a soft drink and we found almond and soy options as well as at least one vegan cake at most coffee shops.

Dr. Pogo is an independent vegan shop selling a wide range of chocolates, sweets, mock meats, cheeses, ready meals, drinks, whole foods, skincare and cleaning products.

You have to try the following restaurants/eateries too:

Sfizy Pizza – An all-vegan pizzeria with over a hundred different pizza options on the menu!

Voner – An all-vegan doner kebab shop!

Asia Gourmet – Choose your noodles, veg, tofu and sauce. Eat in or take away.

Vego Cafe – An all-vegan fast food cafe – think hot dogs, burgers, chips, bratwurst etc.

Delores – A Mexican burrito place with two vegan options.

Cupcake Cafe – Lots of vegan cupcakes, cakes and cookies.

Mio Matto – A gourmet veggie/vegan restaurant.

Goura Pakora – An all-vegetarian eatery with many vegan options.

There are so many more all over Berlin, you would need a month to try them all!

Go and visit because Berlin is a perfect weekend break destination for vegans. Have you been to Berlin? Is there somewhere else we should try or have missed out of this brief guide? Let me know in the comments below.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

A version of this article has already been published in the TeenVGN MiniMag Summer Edition.

The Ordinary Vegan - Toby Carvery

Now I know what you're thinking, why would a vegan blogger be reviewing a carvery? Well, yesterday I went out for my Sunday Roast at Toby Carvery and was very pleasantly surprised to find out they have a vegetarian menu of which two of the main courses are vegan and labelled so on the menu. 

In addition to these two vegan main courses - Shepherd's Pie and Nut Roast Wellington, most of the carvery vegetable options are vegan too - excluding the mash potato, Yorkshire pudding and cauliflower cheese. For example, yesterday I had peas, carrot, red cabbage, onion, roast potatoes, leeks, stuffing, gravy and mint sauce along with my Nut Roast Wellington. The veggies are unlimited as is the gravy and sauces and they come in with the price of your vegan main meal. I checked with the chef and all of the veg options apart from the exceptions above are vegan, and they even brought my Nut Roast to the table so as not to cross contaminate.

The prices are good value with the vegan options priced at £5.99 on a weekday and at £8.49 on a Sunday. They also have a weekday 'Meat-free Carvery' option for £4.49 which is just the unlimited veg.

Yesterday I had the Nut Roast Wellington and Mr Vox had the Shepherd's Pie so I could try both options. They were both delicious! The Wellington had a mildly spicy nut roast mix on top of a puff pastry base and the Shepherd's Pie was root vegetables with a bubble and squeak mash on top. Really tasty and they know about veganism and had knowledgeable staff. For those who are vegetarian or like me have a vegetarian family member, there are five main vegetarian options on the menu and all of the desserts are vegetarian too, although sadly none of the desserts are vegan.

It is great to see a chain restaurant start to make positive changes to include a variety of vegan options on their menus and as there are many Toby Carvery restaurants dotted around the country, it is useful to know if you are away from home and looking for a meal option. It also makes a good compromise if you are dining out in a large group which includes omnivores, vegetarians and vegans as you can all eat together with choices and options for everyone.

If home cooking is more your style, pop back tomorrow for another Vegan Recipe of the Week.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

Vegan Vox Reviews...V Revolution, Manchester.

As me and Mr Vox had a week off together this week, we decided to go and spend a lovely day in Manchester on Tuesday and check out their vegan/veggie scene as I had heard some good things about Manchester. I have been to Manchester many times before being vegan so this was with fresh eyes. One of the places I was most excited about visiting was V Revolution in the Northern Quarter. I had been following them on Twitter and Instagram for a while and the food looked amazing so I couldn't wait to try it. The rest of our visit to Manchester will be covered in a future post.

We arrived at V Revolution around 2pm, after walking around Manchester for several hours and we had worked up an appetite! This quirky 1950s style American style diner, with booths, sofas and red & cream chairs was inviting. As well as the all vegan diner, there is a vegan food shop selling chocolates, sweets, jerky, cheese, meat substitutes, pies, sandwiches and more! There is also a punk record shop at the back of the store to cater for your music needs as well.

We took a seat near the window and looked at the menu, it included classic American fast foods which are difficult to find as vegans, unless you make at home. There were vegan versions of big macs, chicken burgers, hotdogs as well as grilled cheese sandwiches, ice cream floats, coffees and milkshakes and cakes! there is also a daily specials board with exciting super sized versions of fast food. I was in heaven! I ordered a Nachodog and Mr Vox had a Mini Mac along with some organic lemonade and cola drinks to wash it all down with. The diner got quite busy while we were in there, although we didn't have to wait too long for our food. Whilst I was waiting though, I had a walk around the shop and viewed the community board, great for vegan meet-ups, animal rights rallies and local bands. There was a leaflet table also for people to advertise local community events, and I browsed the fridge, freezer and shelves for some vegan treats to take away with me.

Now to the food, the portion sizes were generous given the low cost and although both our meals were not very hot, they tasted delicious! My nachodog consisted of a spicy hotdog sausage in a bun topped with cheese, spicy beans, salsa and crushed nachos! Mr Vox's Mini Mac consisted of a beef-style patty in a bun with burger sauce, cheese and gherkins. This was proper vegan junk food, tasty and fun and no mung beans or lentils in sight. The staff were friendly and there was a real community vibe in the place. 

After our meals, which didn't take too long as we were hungry and they were delicious, I bought some Veganic Pizza Cheese and a Primal Strips Hickory Smoked vegan jerky bar to take home. I haven't tried either of these yet but will review them as soon as I do. V Revolution also do a loyalty card where if you buy 9 specials, you get the 10th free! 

We had a great time in V Revolution, I have never been to an all vegan restaurant before and it was so refreshing to be able to order anything on the menu without worrying about ingredients and the knowledge of the staff when it comes to veganism. I wish there was one of these in every city in the UK. Manchester, I will be back soon, I promise! 

V Revolution can be found at:

88 Oldham Street

Manchester

M4 1 LF

Please head back next week for a review of some of the other places I visited on my day trip to Manchester.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx