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Unity Diner

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Hi All! So it’s been a while, 4 months in fact. I’ve had some issues with fatigue over the last few months caused by my thyroid problem, so blogging wasn’t my priority. I’ve had an adjustment to my medication and I feel like I’m getting my mojo back!

There are a couple of things that have inspired me to get back to blogging – my trip to Japan where I have tried some amazing vegan food and a fellow blogger. I got friendly with Jenny from Herbivores’ Heaven last year during Vegan MoFo (vegan month of food). I haven’t taken part this year due to the clash with my big holiday but Jenny is and she is basing her month on her own recent trip to Japan.

I had every intention of posting my review of Unity Diner back when I went a few months ago so here it finally is.

I had been wanting to visit Unity Diner ever since it opened. Unity Diner is the brain child of Earthling Ed and is a non-profit which helps fund Ed’s activism charity Surge. When my friend Marina announced she was coming to the UK (from Japan) during Golden Week (extended this year due to the new emperor being signed in) I knew it was the perfect opportunity to go to Unity Diner.

I chose this enormous burger! As I usually do with burgers this size I chopped it in half to make it more manageable. It was really tasty and the chicken style patty wasn’t dry at all.

Marina chose the cheeseburger and we shared some fries and mac & cheese.

The mac was lovely and gooey and just how I like my mac & cheese.

Even though we were starting to feel full we couldn’t resist dessert. Vegan desserts have come on leaps and bounds in non-vegan restaurants so I definitely have more opportunities to have one, but I’m still excited by a dessert menu at a vegan restaurant where there are multiple options.

I chose the cheesecake and Marina had the (badly photographed) crumble. Both were fabulous.

I hope to return to Unity Diner soon to try out their weekend brunch menu and taste their waffles and/or pancakes!

Have you visited Unity Diner in Hoxton? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

I will be back soon with some posts about Japan.

Plumes x

Unity Diner

My Old Dutch – March 2019

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My Husband and I walk past a branch of My Old Dutch pancake house every week on the way to and from the language school we attend near Holborn. I saw a post on the best places to get vegan pancakes (sorry, I can’t remember who from!) and found out that My Old Dutch had vegan options so we decided to go before our class this week.

You can veganise the standard savoury pancakes on the menu with a vegan pancake and vegan cheese.

There is also a completely vegan pancake which oddly we couldn’t see on the menu so we pulled it up from the website to order. As this seems to be the only pancake advertised as vegan I assume it doesn’t have its own vegan menu so it was odd it wasn’t on the main menu.

My Husband chose this one along with with a vegan vanilla shake.

My Husband enjoyed his pancake although he did find it a bit stodgy and could have done with a drizzle of sauce or something. He also really liked his milkshake and it’s great to see an omni place offering vegan milkshakes.

I ordered a vegan version of the asparagus. Described as below –

When it first arrived it looked like this –

I was suspicious the cheese was dairy due to the texture and smell so I called over a staff. Instead of just apologising and correcting me order they argued that I had only ordered a vegan base. As my Husband had ordered vegan pancake and milkshake think it as pretty obvious we were a vegan couple. They also confirmed the spinach is creamed as well although this isn’t mentioned on the menu. If you were vegan and/or lactose intolerant surely you would need the whole dish to cater to those needs? The only situation I can envision that you would not is if you were allergic to eggs. Some staff training required I think

They took this dish away and remade it with vegan cheese and fresh spinach so a little while later (by which time my Husband had almost finished his) I had a replacement come out.

I found it tasty and filling but was a little undone for my liking (and I tend to like things edging on underdone).

Although this was central London I do feel like these were expensive for what they were and would expect mine to be around £8 and maybe £10 for my Husband’s.

We didn’t have dessert but I don’t think I’ll be rushing back to try them which is a shame. If you do go make sure you are very clear about your dietary requirements.

Have you been to My Old Dutch? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

My Old Dutch – March 2019

A Vegan Lunch @ All Bar One – Jan 2019

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I regularly go to All Bar One with my friend Matthieu for lunch as it’s pretty quite we get good service and they have lots of vegan options.

For Veganuary they have an even bigger vegan menu and are doing special price 2 or 3 course meals. We both had 2 courses and shared a starter and dessert.

I had to try their cauliflower wings. This was Matthieu’s first time trying this kind of dish and he said he enjoyed it a lot more than he was expecting. It had a Indian twist by being served with mango chutney and a raita that went well.

For my main I chose the miso tofu bowl. This was a lovely tasting bowl filled with goodness. I would have just liked the grains to have been served warm.

Matthieu chose the burger, which used a beyond meat patty. He asked for regular mayo for his chips and we did a taste test. He couldn’t tell the difference between the egg based mayo and the vegan so he went with the vegan version!

For dessert we shared the biscoff bananas. I was disappointed with this dish. I couldn’t see any biscuit crumb, the coconut mousse had an odd texture and tasted like yogurt on the turn to me. Again I think this dish would have been better served warm.

What would you choose from the menu? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

A Vegan Lunch @ All Bar One – Jan 2019

What I Eat In A Day – Jan 2019

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I haven’t done one of these posts for a while and I thought seeing as it’s Veganuary it might be helpful for new vegans to see what a typical weekend menu looks likes.

I bought this Organ Easy Egg from Ocado. I have used the Follow Your Heart vegan egg before that retails at about £7 whereas this is half the price.

I had had it scrambled but tried making a omlette this time and it quite successful.

I added some black salt to give it more of an eggy flavour and had barbecue sauce with it. A great way to start to the morning!

I had a mid morning snack of these hummus chips from Eat Real I got these in a multipack from Aldi and these are my favourite flavour.

My Husband is newly vegan (yay!) and wanted to make some Southern fried chick’n. We used the Oumph! Thyme and Garlic pieces and this recipe.

It came out really well. We were planning to have it with chips and coleslaw but the chick’n had made the oil really dirty and it was spitting furiously so we decided it wasn’t safe to cook the chips. My Husband had his pieces with barbeque sauce and I went for Follow Your Heart mayo (I use the soy-free one)

For dinner I had a portion left over from what I had made the day before which was a combo of fermented tofu, quinoa and vegetables with a mustard dressing. I was inspired to make this by this video from LDN vegans. I didn’t have the same veg so mine isn’t low FODMAP. I used onions, carrots, peas and cabbage. I love Taifun’s Feto fermented tofu with peppers. It has an additional tang and no pressing involved.

We moved a few weeks ago so I spent most of the day unpacking the last few boxes, sorting stuff out and cleaning. So to treat myself I had some Chunky Monkey ice cream from Ben & Jerry’s. We’ve told ourselves we’re not going to buy any more ice cream from next week. Our Sainsbury’s has started stocking the vegan Magnums and it’s too easy to pick some up on the way home from work!

Have you been eating any new foods or recipes? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

What I Eat In A Day – Jan 2019

New Vegan Foods

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Aren’t we so lucky with all the new foods coming out? I’ve tried a few things that are new or new to me over the past couple of weeks that I thought I’d share with you.

First up my fave! The M&S Plant Kitchen coleslaw. I have always loved coleslaw and now I can easily get my hands on some! Perfect on a jacket potato with vegan cheese.

Likewise the potato salad! Lovely and creamy and perfect for a vegan spread.

The last item I’ve tried from the Plant Kitchen M&S range is their spaghetti Bolognese ready meal. This is great to pick up on the way home when I’ve had a busy day and don’t want to cook.

I added some of my own vegan cheese to this and I would definitely buy it again.

I picked up these bars from Rhythm 108 in my small Sainsbury’s shop. I’ve tried their biscuits before which are available in Costa so I was looking forward to trying these.

These are proper tasty but a little pricy at £1.40 for a fun size bar. Definitely an occasional treat.

Lastly we have another product I’ve been excited about. The Naturli spread this is one of the only vegan spreads on the market that is free from palm oil. I asked my local big Sainsbury’s to stock this and luckily they now are. It is currently in the Veganuary area so hopefully this will be stocked beyond January.

I’ve only tried this on a jacket potato with lots of different flavours so I need to try it on toast to experience the full flavour.

What foods have you been trying this year? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

New Vegan Foods

Vegan finds in Aldi

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I think today will go down in Vegan history, I’ve never seen so much in my timelines in social media about one product! Today was the day the vegan sausage roll was released in Gregg’s. I pass a Gregg’s on my way to the station in the morning so it would have been rude not to pop in!

It was delicious and I will now have to avert my eyes as I scurry past to get my train in the morning!

The other good news is that Aldi are doing some vegan items – thanks Emma for the info! This was in their special buys section so I’m not sure how long they’ll be there. I assume for the whole of Veganuary but it may be a when they’re gone they’re gone situation so I’d head to your local one sharpish!

I was out of nutritional yeast so I was glad to see that there and with jackfruit for £1 you can’t go wrong! I’ve tried the jerky and it was quite nice but you didn’t get much in a packet. I’m looking forward to enjoying the shortbread with a cuppa! I’ve got a jar of Vegenaise in the fridge else I would have tried out the Hellman’s one.

So there you have it! Have you already been to Aldi? What did you pick up? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

Vegan finds in Aldi

The Junction – Greene King Pub

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It was my Brother’s birthday and he had decided to hold his annual drinks in The Junction in Upminster which is part of the Greene King chain. As we were going to be eating I took a look at their menu online and was pleased to see they had vegan options.

I originally ordered the mushroom and ale pie but unfortunately they didn’t have any left so I went for the vegan fish and chips instead. They use vbites “fish” which I have had in the past and it was very nice this time too. The chips were a bit pale but acceptable.

My Sister-in-law chose the falafel burger and was curious when it arrived with coleslaw, we double checked with the kitchen and they confirmed this too was vegan. It’s so nice to get a vegan version of the trimmings rather than just having them left off!

There was also a cherry chocolate torte for dessert but we decided to skip that after all the excess of Christmas. The menu isn’t as extensive as other chains and there is a Marston’s pub in the same road (which I reviewed here) but it is good to know if you are going to a Greene King pub you will be catered for as a vegan.

Have you tried the Greene King vegan menu? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

The Junction – Greene King Pub

FGV’s Christmas Market @Guildhall

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I really enjoyed the market Sean (Fat Gay Vegan) put on at the Guildhall in the summer (which I wrote about here) that I had to go to the Christmas edition, especially when I saw the line up.

I hadn’t had breakfast so I headed down early to beat the queues. My first stop was Vausages. I had seen these folk at different events I had been to but this was my first time sampling their delights they had two Christmas hot dogs on, a Cumberland and an Apple and pork style. I went for the Cumberland which came with caramelized red onions and garlic mushrooms, I asked for it to be topped with their trademark blue garlic mayo.

Although it looks like toothpaste it actually tastes delicious! The bun was nice and soft and the sausage had a lovely flavour on the outside and I surprised to see it was filled with quinoa in the middle. I’ll definitely be heading back to them when I see them in the future.

Next stop had to be Vegan Delice. If you’ve read my posts from previous events you know I always stop by these peeps! I had to get my fave Viennese whirl as well as a peanut chocolate brookie for my Husband and I couldn’t be left out so I had to get a peanut butter and jam brownie for myself. Chanel was nice enough to let me try their raw cake which was a bit different.

After mains and dessert I had to have something to take home for later so I bought some cream cheese and lox from The Kinda Co I love their dairy free cheese and thought this one with marinated carrot (to taste similar to salmon) would be perfect on a cracker over the Christmas period.

I was pleased to see that FGV is bringing the market back to Guildhall in January and March although I am unfortunately unable to make the January date.

Its great to have a vegan market in the city especially so close to work. I would love to see this become a monthly (or even more frequent) event.

Do you work in the city? Would you welcome a lunchtime vegan market close to where you work?

Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

FGV’s Christmas Market @Guildhall

Christmas Menu @ Cafe Forty One

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I’ve had afternoon tea a few times (including for my hen do) at La Suite West a boutique hotel in Bayswater but I’ve never had dinner there. Their restaurant rebranded as Cafe Forty One this year and when I saw their Christmas menu I invited my Mum out to try it.

We chose different options so we could mix and match, you could choose an appetizer or a starter so we went for both the appetizers.

I never tasted fois gras when I ate meat so I can’t judge on that basis but it was tasty all the same. The carrot had a really fishy taste due to the seaweed which was really interesting. The cream cheese didn’t have a distinct flavour.

Mum chose the polenta with mushrooms which was really tasty with the polenta having mustard kick.

The filling for my nut Wellington had been creamed which was a bit different. The pastry was crisp but the mash was lumpy and would have appreciated some cooked veg rather than just salad leaves with it.

We wanted the yule log for dessert but unfortunately they didn’t have any ready as lots of people had ordered them to collect to have on Christmas day. (They must have been good then!) Instead we had the other two desserts, baked Alaska and fondant. My fondant was rich which caramel sauce and a perfectly cooked pear. Mum’s Alaska was sweet and sharp with the fruit although it had a rock hard piece of sponge at the bottom.

We gave our feedback to the waitress who said she would convey it to the kitchen and although it wasn’t perfect I think for £35 it was great value for money and I’ll be heading back there.

The afternoon teas on the other diners’ tables looked delicious as well so I may have to get one for my birthday in Feb!

Have you had dinner or afternoon tea at Cafe Forty One? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

Christmas Menu @ Cafe Forty One

A weekend in Deal

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We love coming to Deal on the Kent coast between Dover and Sandwich and always stay in a lovely little cottage (you can book here).

I love having a whole property which means you can make some of your own food and relax in more than just a room.

We enjoyed an Indian takeaway from Dine India which did us a couple of meals. I like to get a few side dishes and enjoyed channa (chickpea) bhaji, saag aloo (spinach and potatoes), tarka dhal (lentils) and garlic mushrooms with rice.

I looked up some bakeries and was pleased to hear that The Lane Bakery had some vegan options. I had a piece of carrot cake on out first visit while my Husband enjoyed a brookie (part brownie part cookie).

When we returned I bought a lotus blondie which was lovely and moist and similar to a Jamaican ginger cake without the ginger.

When we’ve come in the past the local co-op provided us with logs for the fire but unfortunately it has now shut and the Sainsbury’s opposite doesn’t stick them so we had to venture out to the BP garage in the rain to pick some up. So I had to have a cup of tea while the clothes were drying in front of it!

We had a lovely walk along the pebble beach and it’s much warmer this year than it has been in previous years. The beach is very clear without shops and cafes and the pier has a single restaurant on it rather than the fun fairs and arcades of other piers. I didn’t take any photos so you’ll have to come and see it for yourself!

On our last evening we booked to eat at 81 Beach Street as I had been recommended via the Twitter account Deal Town. We had some nice food but unfortunately I was initially brought the wrong dish so we had to take turns at watching eachother eat. I had the mushroom casserole with pearl barley and celeriac.

For dessert I chose the banana brownie with blood orange sorbet. Unfortunately it was burnt on one side although when I pointed this out to the staff they removed the dessert from the bill.

This is one of the only places in Deal with a separate vegan menu so it’s a shame we had a disappointing time here.

We enjoy coming back here every year and see what has changed and what new things there are to explore. There is a small castle at Deal and a larger one at Walmer which we have visited in the past and you can head out in either direction to Dover or to Sandwich if you fancy.

Have you been to Deal? What did you enjoy about it? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

A weekend in Deal