PDA

View Full Version : Holiday and vegan



yum
May 16th, 2007, 08:53 AM
hi, i'm going to be booking a holiday soon and the food could be abit of an issue. i was thinking of cyprus or spain...anyone know of any hot european countries that i could o to without starving. Not sure whether to go all-inclusive or self catering...
thanks
yum
xx:p

applepie
May 16th, 2007, 09:07 AM
Have you considered Italy? I've been living there for the past 10 months and it's fantastic vegan-wise. Quite a few dishes are vegan anyway or can easily be veganized. Do I have to mention the fantastic vegan ice-cream you get everywhere? ;) Apart from that, it's a beautiful country and people are ever so nice. I really don't want to leave ever again.
As fas as all-inclusive or self-catering is concerned, that's personal preference. Personally, I could never imagine an all-inclusive holiday. I need my independence even on holiday. But if you go for all-inclusive, I'd make sure to ask about food before booking so that you don't end up eating fruit and salad all day.

yum
May 16th, 2007, 09:14 AM
cheers applepie- mum was thinking italy too (not for the food but becuase she loves it there). She said i would have to 'give the vegan thing up just for the holiday' but i don't want to. I have only been vegan fo 13 days ( :D ) and the thought of eating dairy grosses me out.

yum
xx

harpy
May 16th, 2007, 10:23 AM
Yes, Italy, or Greece is also pretty good, as long as you avoid the most touristy places.

Went to Cyprus yonks ago before I was even vegetarian and seem to remember fish being rather hard to avoid, but I might be wrong and/or it could have changed.

fiamma
May 16th, 2007, 11:11 AM
Italy, definitely. Helps to have a grasp of the language though.

yum
May 16th, 2007, 11:24 AM
thanks for your comments- what about eating out in italy? lots of choice?

fiamma
May 16th, 2007, 11:40 AM
I think so much depends on the individual restaurants, but many regions have staple dishes which are vegan - I ate some amazing spelt and bean soup in Umbria, in Tuscany they have bean soups, and in the South they use a lot of pulses (pasta with chick peas, tomato and rosemary in Calabria). Most places will have vegan dishes - Marinara pizza (tomato, garlic and oregano) and spaghetti with tomato, salads, and i had an amazing soup the other day here in Bologna with cabbage, various veggies and chick peas. And because processed food is a rarity, I think chefs are very willing to make risotto with oil instead of butter and cream, etc. etc., you just have to be very clear as to what constitutes an animal product because they may use cheese without even thinking of it as an animal product in the way they would meat. Vegans are a rarity, if not unheard of by waiters and restaurant owners! Also bread and pizza bases may contain lard. And of course many gelaterie have soya ice-cream - the place down from my flat regularly has at least 3 flavours :cool:

harpy
May 16th, 2007, 11:43 AM
As fiamma said earlier, it's helpful if you mug up a few words of Italian so you can ask to have your pizza senza formaggio and so on.

On the whole people in Italian restaurants are pretty helpful I've found - not like some of the French ones where they look at you as if you're completely mad and sometimes refuse to do what you ask :rolleyes: (I'm allowed to say this because I'm half French.)

Edited to add that I've remembered it's better to ask for your pizza "senza mozzarella" instead (or as well) because they sometimes don't count mozzarella as cheese.

fiamma
May 16th, 2007, 11:49 AM
some of the French ones where they look at you as if you're completely mad and sometimes refuse to do what you ask :rolleyes:

:eek: Do they really do that?

Yum you mentioned Cyprus; Cyprus is breathtakingly beautiful but I found it quite "meaty" (lots of lamb) :(

harpy
May 16th, 2007, 11:58 AM
To be fair, the uncooperative places are probably relatively rare but they are the ones that tend to stick in the mind...You wouldn't think a salad without hardboiled eggs was a particularly awkward request would you? :rolleyes:

nickysr
May 16th, 2007, 01:57 PM
Hi there,
We have been successfully to Turkey - very good aubergine dips, fresh veg and tagine type things...
Also Italy is amazing - especially if you are going self catering - we loved the fresh food in the supermarkets there.
France is hard - when we go we end up eating bread for a week!
Greece is great - think of all the Meze style things to eat.