Vegan London, part 1

[maikeru]

I was not comparing crispy little fries to big fat soggy chips, of course. "Vegan RedVeg and fries to take away please" is convenient for eating on the tube or bus home. Chips are for eating outdoors to warm you up.

Michael.

[aubergine]

I'd love to know about chip shops too. Anyone know?

My local chippy claims to fry their chips in a separate fryer to the other goods. They do them in Ground Nut Oil and they taste amazing.

There isn't a hint of fishyness to the smell or taste so they seem to be true to their word.

[Marrers]

I'm on my way over! ;)

[maikeru]

If anyone is interested the Crystal Palace health store on Westow Hill had at least one of Booja Booja's tubs of stuff, though I still balked at the price. They also had some new items from Fry's, purveyors of South African fakes meats, though.

A cottage pie, and sausage rolls.

I bought the latter and will give them a try this weekend.

Michael.

[maikeru]

My local chippy claims to fry their chips in a separate fryer to the other goods. They do them in Ground Nut Oil and they taste amazing.

There isn't a hint of fishyness to the smell or taste so they seem to be true to their word.

So where is this amazing emporium of fried potatoes?

Michael.

[Marrers]

He can't give away the secret location of the Batcave! (I was driving round for hours this afternoon, dying for a chip! ;))

[maikeru]

Well I have tried a Fry's sausage roll.

Imagine a Fry's Braai sausage wrapped in pastry. Because that is exactly what they are. Literally. One of the ones in my box even had the rounded end still on the sausage.

They come in a box of four with each individually wrapped in its own sealed plastic bag inside the box, which is pretty wasteful and unnecessary.

So whether you like these all depends on whether you like their sausages, and if so you might as well make your own and save some money and the environment.

Personally it is still Linda McCartney ones for me as they have the least 'meaty' (at least to me) sausage meat. Do they still make them?

Michael.

[harpy]

After an absence, the Linda McCartney sausage rolls have reappeared in our local H&B, repackaged and allegedly reformulated, but tasting pretty much the same to us.

One of the cats gave the pastry the seal of approval by leaping on to the hob and licking remnants off the baking tin :eek:

I recommend the recipe posted by Eco in this thread http://www.veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17633&highlight=sausage+rolls
...delicious, and it actually has vegetables in it!

[yanny22]

I've just found this: http://www.smartplanet.com/news/food/10000950/interview-chad-sarno-the-gordon-ramsay-of-raw-food.htm?p5=news

Opening on the 11th of April according to the link.

Though how anyone can be the 'Gordon Ramsay' of veganism is beyond me. Kind of like being the Hugh Hefner of feminism.

Still, looking forward to trying the first ever vegan & raw restaurant in London. :)

[bryzee86]

I've just found this:

Though how anyone can be the 'Gordon Ramsay' of veganism is beyond me. Kind of like being the Hugh Hefner of feminism.


Or the Tony Blair of socialism?

[bryzee86]

P.S. here's the restaurant's site: http://www.safrestaurant.co.uk/

[bryzee86]

'nother good one for folks in Lahndan that I just found about: the 56a infoshop (http://www.56a.org.uk/), and the associated food co-op (http://www.fareshares.org.uk/). Good for those of us (like me) who will be struggling to pay for foods soon!

[Troutina]

I don't know whether or not I should mention this- but the vegan thai buffet which is off from piccadilly (not sure the address) was shut down this week for mice and rat infestation :eek::(
I dont think I can ever go back to any of the now!
ewwwww.

[iseeflops]

hi, could anyone tell me a bit about wimbledon? i'm thinking about moving there for a few months . what is the area like in general? from what i know it' s more quiet, suburbian and green than most of the good london areas ... is it good for vegans, shops and restaurants close by? how long does it take to get to the centre or kensington ect? thank you :)

[bryzee86]

I don't know whether or not I should mention this- but the vegan thai buffet which is off from piccadilly (not sure the address) was shut down this week for mice and rat infestation :eek::(
I dont think I can ever go back to any of the now!
ewwwww.



:eek: argh! I remember when sasa thai was shut down for "urgent renovation" (yeah, they had rats). They re-opened, then closed a bit later only to re-open serving meat, and only called "Sa Thai". Like that's gonna make you cleaner....

[maikeru]

hi, could anyone tell me a bit about wimbledon?

There is a reasonable sized Holland & Barrett in Centre Court which has a nicely stocked freezer. There is also Health Zone, and independent health store, which is okay. It does not do fresh fruit and veg though, so if you want an organic grocer I am not sure about that, but it would not surprise me if there is not one somewhere.

Not really sure about the eating options, unless anything new has opened recently there is nothing especially vegetarian so it is a case of whether the omni places have anything to offer. It does have a Wagamama which is good if you like Japanese food. And you should, because it is very nice.

Transport is pretty good. It is as the end of the District line with trains to both Edgware Road via High Street Kennsington and Upminster via Victoria. It is about 15-20 minutes from Earls Court.

It also has a good suburban train service to places like Kingston, Richmond, Dorking, Guildford, and Woking. There is something like a train every 5 minutes or so to Waterloo which take about 20 minutes, and a half hourly service to Luton via Blackfriars, Farringdon, and St Pancras, which take about half an hour.

And of course there is the tram to Croydon.

It is a fairly green area, there is the large Wimbledon Park to the north to the town as well as the common which is pretty huge itself. And as a windmill in it. Not really familiar outside the town centre, but it does have a large village kind of feel.

Does any of that help?

Michael.

[cobweb]

^ and you might get to meet the Wombles there!

[harpy]

Mind you Wimbledon is quite big and some bits of it are more glam than others. South Wimbledon for example is quite a way from the nearest green space that I can think of. Do you know which bit you'd be in, iseeflops?

[Mr Flibble]

"Vegan RedVeg and fries to take away please" is convenient for eating on the tube or bus home.

Just watch out for the cheese ;)

[bryzee86]

have they given you cheese before? :eek:

[Stu]

I remember when they gave you cheese in Brighton, Mr. F.
Plonkers that they are!

[aubergine]

As a result I always ask for mine Vegan, then detail what it entails. Hopefully it doesn't piss them off but I do try and be polite.

[Mr Flibble]

have they given you cheese before? :eek:

Yes...it was just after my car had been maliciously attacked by a metal column at the carpark, so my day wasn't going well. There were about 30 of us, all vegan and we specified at least 4 times whilst making the order that we were vegan.

[maikeru]

They must either really love you or hate you to do that. Lucky Mr F!

They express their utter indifference to me by always getting my order right. At least I assume so, the receipt always say vegan mayo on it. Although that is the London one, I have only been to the Brighton store once (where the burgers are 50p cheaper!) so maybe they are not so good.

Michael.

[iseeflops]

thanks, michael!!


Mind you Wimbledon is quite big and some bits of it are more glam than others. South Wimbledon for example is quite a way from the nearest green space that I can think of. Do you know which bit you'd be in, iseeflops?

i don't know where i would be, i just know that i want to stay in london and it can't be ultraexpensive or a ''hood''. from what i know wimbledon would be great for me since it's green and quiet from what i've heard, but anything similar will do. so are there areas of wimbledon that would be best to stay away from? what would be the better wimbledon parts? or are there any other places like this in london, quiet/green and closer to the centre with similar prices? :)