Bristol: the UK’s vegan capital

In the space of one week this month were two bits of highly significant news from Bristol’s food and drink scene.

On July 15, Pigsty restaurant on Gloucester Road – an unabashed emporium of meat – announced its closure; with their original restaurant in Cargo 1 at Wapping Wharf remaining open.

Just a week before, the owners of the original Oowee Diner on Picton Street in Montpelier had revealed that they too were closing, but with a key difference: by the end of this month the compact restaurant is due to be reopening with a fresh concept, Oowee Vebab.

“Oowee Vebab will take the site back to its roots to a kebab shop with a twist, it will be 100 per cent vegan,” say Oowee co-founders Verity Foss and Charlie Watson.

“We have been working really hard to develop a kebab that we feel is much more tasty than the meat alternative, which will be enjoyed by everyone, not just vegans.”

While Oowee Diner on North Street will remain carnivorous, a Bristol-based vegan campaign group welcomed Oowee’s move. “This is amazing news for veganism,” Viva! said in a statement.

“Just goes to show the impact we can have through our consumer choices. Let’s encourage more places to go vegan and help create a more compassionate world.”

Oowee Diner will soon open Oowee Vebab

A study at the beginning of 2019 placed Bristol top of a global list as the most popular city in the world for veganism. Researchers from website Chef’s Pencil used Google Trends data to scour the internet for vegan-related searches.

Australia beat the UK into second place among the countries, but Bristol topped the world table among cities, followed by Portland, Edinburgh, Vancouver and Seattle.

When it comes to restaurants, Suncraft on Gloucester Road and nearby Koocha on Zetland Road are both vegan and both two of the best restaurants to open in Bristol in the last 18 months.

One of Bristol’s smallest restaurants, Gopal’s Curry Shack in Cargo 2 in Wapping Wharf is also proudly vegan; and if you want even smaller than that, find vegan vending machine Vegan Vend at The Island and the Galleries.

In Fishponds, the UK’s first fully vegan fish and chip shop, Matter Fastfoods on Fishponds Road, will soon have new owners but they are committed to keeping it meat-free.

Opened in March 2017 by Jon Aron, the owner of Matter Wholefoods in Easton, the ethos has always been not just to cater for vegans, but to offer all customers a healthy, plant-based takeaway alternative that actually tastes good.

And this is the key to successful vegan restaurants and takeaways: appealing to everybody who enjoys food, not solely to those who are already vegan.

It’s what new vegan cafe and deli Flip aim to do when they open soon on North Street, promising to serve “simple, yet exquisite dishes and selling delicious deli treats for you to take home”. Another new vegan restaurant, Vegang, is due to open soon on Stokes Croft.

Vegang will open soon in Stokes Croft

I challenge you to visit Earthcake, also on North Street, eat one of their cakes and not pronounce them delicious. All of their products are free from dairy, eggs or any animal-derived ingredients.

Animal-derived ingredients can be found where you are least expecting it. Cask finings are an acidified aqueous suspension of collagen derived from the swim bladder of certain fish, which when added to beers make the liquid clearer.

Moor Beer in St Philip’s have proudly made their beers unfined for many years, with their natural beers designed to be served with a haze.

Fellow Bristol brewery Left Handed Giant’s commitment to veganism saw them open Bristol’s so far only vegan pub, the Adam & Eve in Hotwells, in early 2016 – but it sadly closed soon after only 11 weeks and is currently in danger of being turned into flats.

At LHG’s new premises in Finzels Reach, they have invited Mission Pizza to join them – serving wood-fired vegetarian and vegan pizza.

Pieminister recently introduced its first vegan pie, Kevin, made with mushroom, tomato and red wine with baby onions and thyme. Introducing the new pie, the Stokes Croft-based team said: “As plant-based eating grows in popularity in the UK, we’re hoping that this pie will not only appeal to the growing vegan community but also encourage others to give veganism a go.”

Read more: Your Bristol Favourites: Vegan