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Thread: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

  1. #1

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    Default Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I was just wondering if it is hard to be there? Can you get a lot of vegan food? Can you eat vegan in the restaurants?

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    I eve's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    It depends where about in NZ. Same applies to Australia, it depends where about you live. Where I live for example, no vegan restaurants or cafes, but the two supermarkets sell tofu, vegan cheese, etc, and of course there's plenty of fruit, vegetables, pulses, nuts etc. So if you can cater for yourself and do without takeaway, you're fine.
    Eve

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    yogini
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    im a kiwi and lived in nz until i was 16, i wasnt a vegan back then but have been back to visit since as a vegan. i found plenty of options esp in big cities like wellington and auckland. and if there isnt something specifically vegan on the menu, most cafes and restaurants are pretty happy to whip you up a salad or alter something already on the menu if you ask them nicely..kiwis are nice people generally speaking!!
    i went to a pizza place in auckland and even the salads had meat or cheese, so i explained i was vegan and asked if they could leave out the cheese, fully expecting a dull plain salad. they came out with a massive colorful platter of salad with sundried tomatoes, olives, and avocado and a side dish of nuts.and only charged a few dollars!!!! i had to defend it from everyone else at the table who were no longer interested in their pizzas!

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Interested reading this post as I am visiting New Zealand in November and had already decided I would probably have to live on salads, fruit and vegetables!

    One thing, I always carry little bags of nuts, seeds and dried fruit with me and also Gillian McKeith's bars in case there isn't anything to eat. I understand that I can't bring ANY type of food over with me from the UK. Is that correct? Even if it's sealed?

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    yogini
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    kia ora, (hello in maori)

    yeah the rules are really strict about bringing produce into nz..if its highly processed (eg in the form of packaged bars etc) it might be ok, but just to be sure, make sure you declare EVERYTHING youre not sure about..if you dont declare it and you get caught out youll get a huge fine , not to mention putting new zealand flora and fauna at risk!!!!!


    although nz is a small country and quite far away from the rest of civilisation, the more i travel the more i grow proud of just how far advanced and open minded we are in our thinking and how healthy our lifestyle is. veganism has been alive and well in nz for ages. almost everyone there (in my experience) knows what it is.

    have a great time and be sure to tell me all about it when you return! are you going to the north or south? if you want advice on where to go feel free to ask!

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    you can definately live vegan in nz, (i am living in wellington and am from nelson and have no problems, but i dont eat out a lot- but thats partly $$). some places are easier than others, bigger places and more alternative places are easier. if you are ok with making your own food its quite easy, organics shops and health food stores are good. though it can be hard to find places that specifically cater for vegans (eating out) but that can be worked around.

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Quote screamingcarrot
    kia ora, (hello in maori)

    yeah the rules are really strict about bringing produce into nz..if its highly processed (eg in the form of packaged bars etc) it might be ok, but just to be sure, make sure you declare EVERYTHING youre not sure about..if you dont declare it and you get caught out youll get a huge fine , not to mention putting new zealand flora and fauna at risk!!!!!


    although nz is a small country and quite far away from the rest of civilisation, the more i travel the more i grow proud of just how far advanced and open minded we are in our thinking and how healthy our lifestyle is. veganism has been alive and well in nz for ages. almost everyone there (in my experience) knows what it is.

    have a great time and be sure to tell me all about it when you return! are you going to the north or south? if you want advice on where to go feel free to ask!
    Thanks for that Screaming Carrot. My friend lives in Golden Bay and told me that she saw a woman fined $200 for taking an apple in! I will stock up on those things when we go to a city and find a store I think! I am sure I can live without Gillian McKeith for 3 weeks

    We are touring both the islands. We have just completed our itinerary and sent it to my friend to see whether it's workable. We will be driving a long way I know, but there is only the two of us to consider and we have 3 weeks to do it in. I am really looking forward to it.

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    yogini
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    youre going to have a ball!!

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    Talking Travelling around New Zeland

    Hi!
    I'm going travelling to the south island for two weeks, just wondered if anyone has been there or can recommend any places/sights to visit. I'm flying to christchurch
    'Never eat more than you can lift' - 'Miss Piggy' :p

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    Default Re: Travelling around New Zeland

    I've never been but have a good time I hear it's a great place to visit

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    Default Re: Travelling around New Zeland

    I will be going to New Zealand next summer (well, U.S. summer, N.Z.'s winter I think?.. June 1st..) in Wellington, so I would like to know any helpful information as well. Any native NZ-er's out there want to provide any advice regarding entertainment, vegan-friendly places, stuff to see, things to do, etc?

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    Default Help! Auckland/New Zealand Recommend some shops/products?

    Hi. I'm travelling to New Zealand (from the UK) tomorrow, me and my 7 year old. We're only there for a few days.

    Can someone tell me where I can find information on vegan food in New Zealand. Particularly for my 7 year old who is a fussy eater.

    Are there easily available loaves of white bread that are Vegan? What about some sort of generic sausage that is vegan? Dry sausage mix? Weetabix and/or cornflakes? Is either Marmite or Vegemite vegan there? I thought that one of them wasn't.

    Are there some shops in Auckland where I might find a good selection of vegan products?

    Vegan chocolate bars?

    Online vegan lists for a large supermarket or supermarket chain?

    I think last time I was there I was told that all Sanitarium products are vegan. But I found some Sanitarium sausages with egg in them. This was some time ago and I may have misremembered/got it wrong in the first place.

    Help, please! Sorry if I sound disorganised but it is a rushed trip. I only booked the tickets yesterday.
    Last edited by flutterby; Jun 13th, 2007 at 09:48 PM. Reason: this was the 1st post in a similar thread

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Sanitarium's products are not all vegan. Beware!

    I'm not from NZ but I've been there. You won't have a problem eating vegan.

  14. #14
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    When I was last there I found out about Sanitarium foods. I'll phone their customer number again and see what they say.

    I did find this, however, which I have printed out to take.

    http://www.happycow.net/australia/new_zealand/auckland/

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Well I've been there and back. I did find it difficult to survive as a vegan there. There is very little labelling of food. Sanitarium were not very helpful. They just told me that not all of their products were vegan, and I should check the labels. Presumably for the ingredients, meaning that I have to wonder whether particular e numbers are vegan or not. Even things that you'd expect were vegan, such as tofu sausages with no obviously non-vegan ingredients, weren't even labelled as "suitable for vegetarians".

    To be honest, I did the very best I could in the time available, but I'm damn sure that I must have made at least one mistake while there. And I don't think that would be necessary for someone visiting the UK, with the better labelling and online information here.

    In hindsight, things haven't been as bad as they could have been, as I retroactively checked out some ingredients that I used in food, and so far I've been OK. Chelsea sugar seems to have been vegan since 2003 (I only found Billingtons sugar on sale too late) and the margarine I used, Olivani "dairy free", is quoted as being used by many vegans online. (The one web
    page I found saying it wasn't vegan was incorrectly claiming that lactic acid is made from lactose.)

    Things would be much easier for people eating in cafes I suppose. The only place I ate at was The Bluebird Cafe on Dominion Road, Auckland. I'd personally recommend this place highly. It's definitely a cafe selling food following a pattern, rather than a restaurant with more wide-ranging and varied meals. But I liked what I ate. The main meals are usually some liquid-ish (sauce-ish) food on top of a "base". I wanted to eat food on a kumara (sweet potato) base, but expected the sweetness to be too much. But the "Moroccan" lentil dish I had on top balanced the sweetness of the kumara extremely well. The bread side-dish (with Olivani) served was very nice bread, and the vegan chocolate cake was very popular with all. Here are some reviews, one positive, and one negative. Looking at the reviews, I think the second person had unsatisfied expectations, and I'd agree more with the first.

    http://www.viewauckland.co.nz/review_2714.html

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I'm sorry you found it difficult to be Vegan here.
    I just go to the supermarket and get mostly fruit, veg, rice, oats, oils, herbs and spices and very little else. There are some specialty Vegan products availiable which are labelled as such, but most of the time you do just have to read the ingredients and sometimes look up certain additives numbers. I don't really buy those sorts of things much, except for buckwheat pancake mix and no-egg, and occasionally tofu, but maybe it's a good thing there is a bit of hassle with processed Vegan foods here, processed foods are crap anyway. Healthfood stores and Asian stores have much more packaged Vegan stuff, it's sometimes annoying to find things in the supermarket.

    Burgerfuel (who pride themselves as the healthy alternative to other burgerbars) has Vegan burger that is fucking delicious, and several vegetarian ones that you just need to ask not to have aioli and cheese and they will make them Vegan for you, and they have Vegan soy maltshakes. There is a Burgerfuel on Dominion road, like 30 seconds walk from Bluebird Cafe, you ought to have eaten there.

    Probably a little late now, but yes of course vegemite is vegan! and weetbix and cornflakesl. Most, if not all of the dark chocolate here is Vegan, unlike the U.S. (don't know about U.K.) And lots of Vegan sausages, just don't buy the cheap ones they're yukky.

    K-road is good, has the SAFE store and some cool cafe's.

    It's really easy to be Vegan in Auckland, you probably found it difficult just because you were unfamiliar with where to go, and probably alot of the products and brands that you are used to are not here, and you don't know which of our brands are decent.

  17. #17
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    ^ yeah, I live in Auckland too and also find it pretty easy.
    Not always so much with restaurants but then again I think if a chef can't whip something up for you then they're seriously lacking in skills.

    Marmite is vegan here too (didn't realise vegemite was! I'd heard it wasn't, but then never checked because I don't like it.. good to know, though )

    And now I'm hungry for Burgerfuel (there's one literally across the street from me in Botany) so I think I better go make some dinner.. hehe.

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    Claws goon ClawsyWP's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    i dunno, i used to live in Wellington NZ, and we ate very plain food which is OK> But now being in London its like Xmas every shopping day, shops have way more variety and it is a heck of a lot cheaper too.
    Mind due i am now eating a lot of veg sausages, vege roasts, premade meals, and vege burgers , soy yoghurts, and vegan cheeses etc. Where back home i would not eat these because too expensive and not much to choose from. So maybe my food has changed a lot and is tastier because i was never a good cook, but it could be healthier.
    I think I would find it hard to ajust when and if i go back, because am spoiled for choices in london..unless the nz shops have improved alot since 2005. Might be a lot better in Auckland though.

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    We said it was easy to be Vegan in New Zealand, we didn't say it was easy to be a pampered Vegan haha.
    We do have those things, but like, for example the soy yoghurt, at my supermarket anyway, there is only one brand, and there are only strawberry, blueberrie, tropical, and something else.. there is no plain soy yoghurt or vanilla soy yoghurt, which is annoying if you got a recipe or something that wants plain.

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    Claws goon ClawsyWP's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    gosh thats good, cause this is only 2 years ago in wellington, the only place i could get soy yoghurt would have been the organic shop in the city and it would've been extremly pricey. The supermarket we used only had tofu, and sometimes vege sausages (they were pretty expensive though). I suck at cooking so i lived a lot on tofu sandwiches heh.

    oops i jsut remeberd Woolworths did have soy yoghurt, it was jsut a rip off though, too expensive for me, we did our shopping at Countdown , reasonable price but not exactly home of alternative foods.
    Wellington has the best veggie/vegan (im pretty sure its all vegan)resturant , Aunty Menas on Cuba street. OMG their laska is just the best fricking food i have ever tasted EVER. Am craving some now just thinking about it.

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    campbell Campbell's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Hey there! I'm from Melbourne, moving to NZ in December and wondering if anyone had any thoughts on life in Wellington v life in Auckland. Which are the nice areas to look for a place to live? Can't wait to come over, from everything I've read and heard about Kiwiland, it seems a lot more progressive on social justice and looking after mama earth.

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    made of jam Aims's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I live in Auckland so maybe I'm a bit jaded from all the traffic (and I've only just started driving!) and crap, but I tend to think Wellington seems a nicer place to live. It's always a great place to visit anyway. Better public transport, interesting shopping and people. Bigger on the vegetarian-friendly stuff too (I get the veg society emails and there's always huge lists of events in Wellington and Christchurch but bugger all for Auckland).

    Having said that, I like Auckland. That probably wasn't too helpful.

  23. #23
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Quote Poppet View Post
    for example the soy yoghurt, at my supermarket anyway, there is only one brand, and there are only strawberry, blueberrie, tropical, and something else.. there is no plain soy yoghurt or vanilla soy yoghurt, which is annoying if you got a recipe or something that wants plain.
    Yes it sucks!
    I did find some plain soy yoghurt here though: http://www.naturallyorganic.co.nz/
    Of course having to order online is a pain in the arse and not so convenient. They do get your order to you within the same day if you order before 10 or 11 though.. however the downside is they use waaay too much packaging for just a few items. But you take the good with the bad, and I spose it's worth it if it's the missing ingredient for a batch of good cupcakes.

  24. #24
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Hi. This is my first post. I was surprised at how much there is in NZ. (We moved here from the states. I was vegetarian when I got here, but after discovering the dark side behind even the SPCA approved free range eggs - the gassing or grinding of most male chicks - I went vegan.)

    Even though I'm not in a big city, my local grocers have Fry's vegan hotdogs, that soy yogurt Poppet mentions, Bliss soy ice cream, different soy and rice milks, organic nut butters, grains, etc... Also there's an organic veg market and an organic grocery out here.

    Fry's is nice and puts the green symbol of the Vegan Society, but for much of the other stuff I have to check carefully. Having numbers for additive labeling isn't at all helpful!! There is an Australian Veg. site that lists which numbered additives are always or sometimes derived from animal sources.

    I could see where a visitor would be overwhelmed by trying to figure out what was vegan while traveling. As someone who lives here, I've found it very doable. I hope the Green party continues to push for vegetarian and vegan labeling though, so I can stop pouring over labels.

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Hoping to visit NZ in the next 2 years, but found Japan was impossible as a vegan. I spent ages explaining to this guy who spoke perfect English what I didn't eat and the restaurant still served me a bowl of soup with pork in it!!?
    Big time yuck!!! Thankfully I spent 2 day there. (World Cup football 2002)

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I saw this thread and thought I'd give my experience of living in Auckland, New Zealand. I moved here from England in May 2005.

    Being vegetarian is incredibly easy in New Zealand. Being vegan? Not so much but still good. I wanted to make a big list for people in Auckland and Kerikeri because I felt a bit miserable not knowing where I could eat at first, I'm only listing places I have experienced. I hope this helps at least one person!

    Cooking for yourself

    One of the best place to get vegan ingredients is Bin Inn. This actually started off in Auckland, but now has moved to greener pastures, by that I mean there's only 2 stores left in Auckland. One is in Brown's Bay (about 15 minutes from the town center) and one is in Orewa (about 45 minutes from the town center). They sell gluten flour, chickpea flour, chapati flour, brown lentils red lentils green lentils french lentils, chickpeas, pinto beans, lots of spices, vegan breadcrumbs etc. It's insanely cheap so you can stock up your pantry for about $30 and that will last you weeks.

    Foodtown also stocks vegan fare (as does New World). They're the big supermarkets other than Pak'N'Save and Woolworths. Foodtown has a good range of vegetarian food, the ones to check out are:

    New Way vegan puff pastry. This is the best pastry I've ever tasted. They definitely sell it at the Quay Street branch and at 277 Newmarket (unconfirmed). It's $4.99 for 4 sheets which is a bit expensive but it's so easy to use it's great in a pinch. Next to it they usually sell a great brand of rice wrappers. This is in the frozen food section by the way, usually in the upright freezer cabinets.

    Fry's. I wouldn't necessarily recommend these for every day eating because they're insanely expensive ($8.90 for 2 shnitzel) but they're good if you're on the go and just want to have a quick microwave/oven dinner. They're sold in every foodtown branch as far as I know.

    Hokey Pokey Lite Licks. It's a yummy soy 'ice cream' that I've found in every foodtown. Sometimes they sell it on special, otherwise it's about $7 for a tub. Recently they upped the price and decreased the tub size and that made me sad.

    Sanitarium soy delicious 'ice cream'. I don't know what happened recently but it seems that a whole bunch of supermarkets stopped selling this product. It could be that sanitarium is reformulating this yummy pudding. Anyway they still sell it at New World, it will set you back about $7 a tub but it's a decent size tub. They only have two flavours, chocolate and vanilla.

    Bean Supreme Sundried tomato & Olive sausages, cocktail sausages. Bean supreme make the best sausages out of all the other ones offered. Just don't bother with the other brands, especially soy works. Avoid the other flavours of sausage, they're not vegan, of course (with parmesan in the title, it's a bit obvious). They also sell 'tofu chunks'. They're okay, I don't like anything with 'chunk' in the title.

    Organic Tempeh & Organic Tofu
    . These are sold in the fresh section next to all the dips.

    277 Newmarket Foodtown has more options for the vegan than other branches I've been to. Like all food town branches they have an 'international cooking' and 'health' isle. This is where all the goodies are. If you want cashew butter, tahini, tamari or anything organic, this is your aisle. They also sell:

    Orgran. This is for the gluten free vegan. Some of their products actually taste quite good, and their customer service is wonderful. I like the cookies best. They also sell egg replacer (I don't think it's worth it) and the wonderful chocolate mousse pudding mix which is so easy to make and tastes great.

    Phoenix organic drinks. I don't need to explain these, their cola is the best cola around.

    Foodtown has a great range of soy milks, rice milks and nut milks.

    Whittakers sell a range of vegan chocolate such as the bittersweet chocolate bar and my favourite (although rare) the dark chocolate peanut slab which is probably one of the best chocolates I've tasted in my life. Whittakers is cheap and good, if you can find Maya Gold (sold in most supermarkets but expensive) by Green & Blacks nab some of that too.

    Healtheries Savoury/Nutritional Yeast. Most people think they can't buy this product, you can. At foodtown it's often found with the toothpaste and supplements. At New World it's next to the flavourings and baking.

    Gluten Flour, also by Healtheries. I only found this one at 277 Newmarket, it's in the aisle with the regular flour, it's a little green box with a cute brown husk on the front.

    Sanitarium make some great foods (not all of them are vegan), my favourite is the rediburger which sadly is only available at New World. Other vegan products they sell are in cans, usually in the tinned or pasta aisle, tender pieces, lentils, nut meat (tastes nice fried).


    Other goodies at foodtown are:
    1) The Japanese section. They sell a range of delicious organic dried udon, buckwheat noodles...
    2) Vegan pringles. I like the Smokey Bacon flavour best.
    3) Hungry's burgers. These are found in the same place as the pastry. They're a little bland so you need to spice them up a bit.
    4) Sundried tomatoes, capers, everything you need from veganomicon is there. Except soy creamer.
    5) Heinz Baked Beans. I'd die without these.
    6) Signature Range Highland Brown Bread. It's vegan, unlike a lot of other breads. I believe ploughmans make some vegan bread too but don't quote me on that.
    7) There are only 2-3 brands of vegan nacho chip. Our favourite is ETA salsa, but it does contain MSG if you're prone to headaches from MSG.
    8) ETA Balsamic Vinegar and Onion crisps. They're very good. I think they also have MSG, but I don't care since they're a rare item for me to consume.
    9) Lisa's dips. Not all of them are vegan but there's a pretty good selection. I like the red pepper & walnut, or the tahini.

    A lot of people want to know about spices and other 'rare' things such as Agave and Liquid smoke. Well, I haven't found agave in the shops yet but for all those fancy things from VWAV or VCon, you can find them at:

    Zarbo, Newmarket. This is an upmarket, wonderful shop where you can buy every spice you've ever dreamed of, and in that section is also the liquid smoke. It will set you back $14 but it's there. If you can't find what you want at Zarbo I'd suggest you try:

    Sabato. Again this is based off the traditional Italian delicatessen. If you want oils and spices, as well as luxury dark chocolate this is your go-to place. I prefer Zarbo personally, but Sabato has some goodies too, and where else can you buy a 1 gallon can of olive oil?

    For other gluten free and vegan things, you can try Naturally Organic which has a nice small store and online presence, although it's a bit expensive and it's in Albany. This isn't a vegetarian store but it caters well for it. Another good online store is IE Produce, which is an organic/vegetarian store.

    For all things Japanese (you may want to research Japanese if you don't know it) the best store to go to is the Japanese Supermarket, located on Anzac Avenue, they have everything Japanese you could want including macha, tamari, soy, the best sushi rice available and more. Warning: some of their miso contains dairy, especially the ones in the green packet with the cute little girl on the front.

    Instant Noodles


    If you're travelling, poor, hungry and don't have the resources to really cook, a lot of us eat instant noodles. The good thing is that most of the Asian Supermarkets around central auckland stock vegan instant noodles. Our two favourite sources for these are the Asian Warehouse (Kingdon St, Newmarket) which stock at least 10 brands of vegan noodle, and Tai Ping which is one of the best stocked Chinese Supermarkets, you can find this on Beach Road. They also sell a vegan green thai curry paste which believe me, I was happy to find. If you're at an asian supermarket, look out for Veaty Bites, the regular (not pandan) chicken style. They're probably one of the best meat substitutes on the market. The cheapest instant noodles you can get are Indomie Mi Goreng noodles.

    Soy 'Cheese'

    There are two places that I know of to get soy cheese. One of them is 277 Foodtown Newmarket. The other is SAFE on K-Road, a vegan charity shop. SAFE sells Sheese, 277 sells 'Cheddar Style' Kingland soy cheese. Both are dairy free as far as I know. They both taste good cooked, not so much raw.

    Eating Out

    Eating vegan in Auckland isn't that hard actually, but you might need to call ahead. We've been doing a few experiments with eating out (I would like to say it's for the good of mankind, but really I'm just satisfying my belly) and although not extensive because we're too poor to eat out regularly I can recommend:

    Parnell. Okay maybe I'm biased because we live here, but Parnellians are actually quite accommodating toward vegans. Again with the bias, but the best food I've eaten in Auckland is here.

    Blowfish Sushi
    - This is by no means a vegan restaurant but it does sell the best sushi I've ever eaten. You really must call ahead and make sure they don't prepare the tempura with egg. They sell a vegetarian platter for $14. I recommend the Kamon Nasu, it's eggplant prepared with white miso. You'll never want to eat eggplant any other way. The Vegetarian Sushi platter is wonderful, especially accompanied with the tofu nigiri. The portions aren't big so this place is expensive. Yeah, really expensive. But good.

    Renkon Eat in/Dine-out. Get the tofu stir fry. No really. It's that good. Be warned though, when we ate there a man was eating live octopus soup. Yeah, you may want to dine out.

    Burgerfuel. There are other burgerfuels scattered around the country and if you don't visit them, why on earth not? They probably sell the best burger known to man. Or kiwis. I like the combustion tofu without aoli. If you want to make double-sure that the burgers not marked as vegan are in fact vegan, ask for the gluten free bun. It tastes good and it definitely has no dairy in it. Also have the kumara fries with tomato ketchup NOT aoli (really really really make sure you state NO AOLI). They also sell awesome soy shakes. The vegan burgers are also good. The v8 is yummy for my tummy, although sometimes they skimp on sauce and it's dry. Ask them if they can put some plum sauce on it if you think it's going to be dry.

    Kokako. This is Parnell's Vegetarian Cafe. It's really expensive but it is very pretty and they sell a darned good organic coffee. Their food is expensive and not amazing but still good. Al & Petes next door sell a tofu hot dog if you're really broke, and they cook in a different fryer for vegetarian food.

    Hola! Mexican Restaurant. They have a large selection of vegetarian food and if you call ahead or ask specially, they'll happily veganize it. The price isn't that bad either.

    Moto Bento Eat-in/Take-out. They only have a few vegetarian things on the menu and it's nothing compared to Blowfish, but it's still tasty. Again you must call ahead and make sure that they prepare their tempura without egg. They have a vegan sushi roll with spinach, avocado, pepper and some other yummies. All I can say is, avoid Pierre's Sushi. It's crap. Don't waste the money, even if you're starving. Steal some candy from a baby, it'll be better than Pierre's.

    The Turkish Cafe. Okay so technically this is in Newmarket, but they sell, honest to God, the best falafel I've ever had. Ever. They have a huge vegetarian selection, just make sure you tell them that you're vegan and don't want any dairy, because they usually heap yoghurt onto the plate. The portions are so gargantuan that I thought I was going to explode. If you're delicate eaters, you might want to share.

    Movenpick. They sell some very delicious vegan sorbets and also make a hot chocolate with soy milk. Sometimes they're out of soy milk. If you want to make sure they have some, call ahead.

    Hell's Pizza. Oops, I did another Newmarket one. No matter. They sell a vegan pizza with avocado and other nice things. It's a bit pricy but it's a vegan pizza. Just buy it to support vegan pizza! They also do delivery, but again it's expensive. You can make your own vegan pizza too. Again, expensive but isn't it worth it just to heap pineapple on?

    Sweetness Joy. This is a vegetarian/vegan cafe, located on Kingdon Street where the Asian Supermarket is located. Dangit, another Newmarket one! I'm really failing Parnell here. They sell good juice. The food is expensive, but there's more vegan selection than a lot of other places. They have their 'off' days where the food tastes a bit crap, but the good days are, well, very good. If you want to visit the more consistent big brother of Sweetness Joy, go to dominion road and visit the Bluebird Cafe. They make the best vegan sausage rolls known to man. And tofu pies. Call ahead because sometimes they experiment with their menu and come up with the disgusting brocolli/raw nut/plum sauce out of a bottle type recipes that made me feel ill.

    Back to Parnell we have Pandoro bakery. If you want good gourmet bread, this is a place to go. The staff are really enthusiastic and will make sure that you don't buy bread with dairy in if that is what you wish. Speaking of cafes, avoid the Rosehip cafe. I don't think they sell anything without meat or dairy in it. People say "ooh the rosehip cafe is so good". I say that it will break your bank and you'll end up with something you didn't want to eat, even if you ask.

    Oh if you want vegan supplements by the way, I recommend Netpharmacy in Parnell, as they sell vegan gelcaps. Vegan gelcaps are quite common though.

    There are other restaurants in Parnell but I haven't tried them yet.

    Other restaurants

    Revive - I really love Revive and we try to eat there when we can. It's purely vegetarian and their curry of the day is always vegan. You get a decent amount of food. Try and get there when they're serving the food up as it's nicer. They have an express lane downstairs for takeout.

    Tagore - It's not the best indian food but the staff are so lovely. They get really excited about cooking for a 'vaygun' although the chef doesn't really understand what it is, just say vegetarian + no egg or dairy. The portions are quite big. They sell good rotis.

    Zest! - this one isn't in Auckland, actually it's in Kerikeri which is a nice town in the Bay of Islands. It's a vegetarian cafe and I love their food, although it can be a bit cheese intensive so make sure they hold off. Kerikeri also has a Bin Inn, New World, a bunch of fresh fruit and veg places and another vegetarian restaurant (actually it's pescatarian) the Ake Ake vineyard.
    Okay my fingers are getting tired, happycow lists most of the other restaurants.

    Subway - Okay you know this one. Anyway I double checked the box with the veggie patty and I'm happy to say it's vegan (unless my eyes were acting up that day). This is a staple of ours, as it's yummy and cheap. Just make sure you say NO CHEESE! and check that the bread you're eating is dairy free.

    I've probably forgotten something but as you can see eating vegan in New Zealand isn't that terrible, I managed and while it might be a little harder for a tourist, if you live here it's a piece of cake.

    If I travel around the country I'll investigate all the vegan options, until now I hope that helped...

  27. #27
    Enchantress's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Wow misssakura, suddenly I have an urge to visit Auckland .

  28. #28
    made of jam Aims's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Great list misssakura!!

    Have you tried Raw Power on Vulcan Lane? I think it used to be more vegan but now it's vegetarian and vegan stuff. Their cakes, cookies, rumballs etc are all vegan. The Tofu Burger is to die for (although after having it a couple of times in a row I'm getting a bit sick of it.. lol).
    The only other proper vegetarian place I've eaten at in town was Revive and I agree, it's awesome

    I had no idea you could get nutritional yeast at the supermarket! I've been getting mine from the health store because you can get a biggish bag for quite cheap. I find a lot of good stuff in my local New World (East Tamaki) and can even get the puff pastry at Pak N Save. Now that I'm driving I will have to make the monster journey out to Bin Inn sometime.

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    You can buy bulk cheap nutritional yeast at Bin Inn too, I just prefer the taste of the Healtheries even if it's more expensive...

    Hadn't heard of Raw Power before, I think I might have to c-c-c-heck it out

  30. #30
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Thanks for these Auckland ideas. Roasted Addiction in Kingsland does a vegan tofu florentine, and Revel and Verona on KRd do some vegan cakey things...

  31. #31
    made of jam Aims's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    ^ I love K Rd. Quite a few vegan friendly places from the sounds (and I like looking in the SAFE store - dangerous though with all that vegan chocolate!) .. I've been meaning to try that curry place forever. Must get out there for some shopping soonish.

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Hi all, I am new so just joined the forums - always amuses me to see q's on forums asking if being vegan in NZ is easy! (Are we really seen as that much of a backwater? ... . well maybe we are a bit in places!)

    Great to see all the posts of other NZer's, some great lists up. I do a vegan guide to Aiuckland which I have put online at:
    http://www.aza-n-dee.net/dee/Vegetar...20Frameset.htm

    Its a bit outdated as there are loads more places to put up now, I am working on an update (anyone on list with additions or suggestions let me know! I have gotten a nzvegan.com domain name and intend to upload it all to that this month and want to make it bigger and better!)

    Other places I need to add include:
    - Mexicali - its a make up your own burrito.taco/nachos place. All taco/burrito etc bases are vegan, so is their gaucamole, black beans, grilled veggies, salsas...
    - Wagamama does a good range of vegan options, just go for the rice based (not egg) noodles
    - Soul Bar in the viaduct - great place for nice dinner out, they have a veggie menu but if you call ahead and say your vegan - well they have always produced an entirely vegan menu for me for the night on the table when we get there with a good ranges of entrees and mains

    Man, my list so needs updating!!

    I also do a vegan product list for NZ the Veg Soc, so if anyone wants a copy email me and I'll send it to you, list gives an idea of what is available in supermarkets etc.

  33. #33

    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    If you guys like mock meat you should check out blissful, I think there are a couple but i've only been to the one in mt albert, new north road. they have an amazing stock of mock meat, chicken nuggets, 'bacon-ham' which is amazing; nothing i've had in either the states or UK compares!

    also there's a place that used to be called fortune, has that been mentioned? It's just off high street in an arcade, can't remember if it's still called fortune or not..

  34. #34
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Mock meat is not high on my "appeals" list, but thanks for the suggestions Can people suggest places they go in Auckland for breakfast / brunch?

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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Good places for breakfast - Roasted Addiqtion in kingsland - do big cooked vegan breakfasts, Verona and Revel both on K-Rd also cater well for vegans and do good breakfast.

    Duo on Ponsonby Rd is also worth a try - think they do scrambed tofu etc.

    Lots of places will do a plain bagel with tomato and avocado etc.

  36. #36
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I went to NZ many many years ago. I loved these 3 words: chilly bin, judder bars and jandals

  37. #37
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Glad we could make you happy Roxy jandals are awesome! and vegan! unlike roman sandals

  38. #38
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I've been vegan for about a month, and live in a small town so not much in the way of dairy alternatives, but I get by fine.One soy cheese, soy milk, one soy yoghurt. I've found alot of things accidentally vegan, such as the chocolate and some biscuits (though I have a couple of numbers to check) and breads. But my biggest tip would be to find a bin in. If you have a little time to cook for yourself, even a massive stew or loaf every few days to last, if you have a fridge where you are staying, you'll be fine. I haven't found it as hard as I thought at all, and everywhere has tofu now. But Bin in my friend, Bin in.

  39. #39
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    The words you speak are wise and true. Bin in rocks. I lived in Whakatane one summer and went to bin in most days. There are none in central Auckland, only the outskirts, but I have Victoria Park New Word nearby, so certainly can't complain

  40. #40

    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    I miss being vegan in wellington! Aunty Mena's, Prahna, Midnight Esspresso, Muffins from Fidels's Burger Fuel, Hell Pizza!

    I dig that london has so much more day to day stuff and some really good places to eat but you can't beat NZ for cafe culture and counter food.

    Mmmmm counter food....

  41. #41
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Just discovered angelfood.co.nz with a list of places to get their vegan cupcakes, fudge and marshmallows across NZ. You can even buy a make-your-own marshmallow kit online for $8 (something I discovered because they posted about these at the vegan feast kitchen).

    mmm....


  42. #42
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Those marshmallows are so delicious. I once tried to make my own (not from the kit though) and it was a total disaster. So I buy them. Works out at 50c a marshmallow but feels worth it! Thanks for mentioning it Jessica - it is great to get NZ specific suggestions. My recommendation: RJs Raspberry Licorice.

  43. #43
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Oh I love RJs raspberry licoirice!!!!

    Those vegan marshmallows look so exciting! Yummmm

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    Smile Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Quote jodyk View Post
    Those marshmallows are so delicious. I once tried to make my own (not from the kit though) and it was a total disaster. So I buy them. Works out at 50c a marshmallow but feels worth it! Thanks for mentioning it Jessica - it is great to get NZ specific suggestions. My recommendation: RJs Raspberry Licorice.
    The colour of the raspberry licorice puts me off as it is not the bold red I would have expected, looked peach flavoured or something, but RJ's normal licorice is great!

  45. #45
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Quote jodyk View Post
    My recommendation: RJs Raspberry Licorice.
    Hey Jody, many thanks. I found these at my New world and they were great. I wasn't sure when I first got them, because they were a bit soft and floury, but I left them in the fridge with the bag open and they toughened up. (I used to eat Twizzlers in the states as a child so I'm used to licorice that feels like hard plastic).

    Anyway, I like them!!

  46. #46
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Well, it just goes to show each to their own, because I love the soft raspberry licorice and am disappointed if I get a batch that is "plasticy"

    Another good discovery I made is a peppermint filled dark chocolate bar from Sylvia Park Pak n Save called Fry's Peppermint Cream. Costs 2.60 for a small bar, but a nice treat for special occasions.

  47. #47
    A Cheeky Vegan
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Wow, this is so neat to finally see some fellow New Zealanders on here! I was begining to think I was the only one on this site lol. I felt very much alone!

  48. #48
    A Cheeky Vegan
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    'Many thanks for your much detailed information on where to get products around here in Auckland misssakura! My littleones have been asking about pizzas lately, Im wrapt to see that Hell's Pizza do a Vegan Pizza! We have Hells Pizza just down the road from us along Lincoln Road in West Auckland, I will certaintly be ringing them up tomorrow making enquires for sure!

    Oh and I know where you can get agave nectar from, East West Organics in Glen Eden, they have two varieties, one we have which tastes devine is Organic Raw Blue Agave! I cant remember the cost of it thou.

  49. #49
    A Cheeky Vegan
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    Those marshmallows look tasty too, East West Organics sell them, I didnt know that, I have been looking for marshallows for ages now for my daughters up coming birthday party. They will certaintly go down a treat with stewered assortment of Fruit. Yummy!

  50. #50
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    Default Re: Is it easy to live as a vegan in New Zealand?

    If anyone has made their own marshmallow with success I would be very keen to hear the trick/s!!

    I agree it is nice to see a bit of kiwi action on the message board

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