Roots at Inspired Nights on the Green

Wednesday, 28 August 2019

Earlier this year we were enjoying a walk with family on Aberdeen beach when we remembered hearing about a new plant-based catering truck near Footdee. We decided to have a look and see if we could get some lunch. The whole family was impressed (non-vegans included) and Roots have become a favourite of theirs too! I didn't have my camera with me that day but when we visited this month we saw Roots would be at Inspired Nights On The Green. We headed along, excited to see what would be on offer this time.

Inspired Nights On The Green is a monthly event held in Aberdeen over summer, with a selection of street food vendors, pop up bars and music it's such a great atmosphere. The Green is also home to some fantastic street art which was part of the nuart festival so make sure to have a wander around and check out the painted doors too!

Roots catering has a small but perfectly formed menu, it changes regularly as they experiment with new creations and so far everything we have tried has been our newest favourite! At Inspired Nights we had the Philly Cheesesteak and Philly Cheesesteak loaded fries. Actually, David had both as he couldn't choose but I just had the fries! I say just, but the portions are very generous so that was plenty for me. The cheese sauce is unbelievable, and the seitan 'steak' is delicious. My sister and her friends came along too and pinched a few of our chips before ordering the same plus the Chickn' Katsu Curry Burger.

Last time, we had a southern fried Chick'aint Burger and Crispy Panko To-fish burger which were perfect after a breezy beach walk. It's definitely given us more motivation to visit the beach on an Aberdeen weekend trip! Roots is the creation of chef Nick Coetzer, you can see his passion for making exciting plant-based food in the attention to detail. The seitan and cheese sauce alone are worth a trip to Aberdeen! Look out for future pop-up events as you don't want to miss food this good.

Find Roots at the beach and local events - check their social media for details:
Roots on Facebook

The Long Dog Cafe

Monday, 26 August 2019

It had been years since I'd visited the Long Dog Cafe in Aberdeen (before I was vegan) and the last time I was there was for one of their famous freakshakes. I was delighted to see they had recently added a vegan version to their menu, so when my sister asked where we should go for a coffee we opted for a huge sugar boost instead.

The Long Dog Cafe is incredibly dog-friendly (we brought Molly), they cater for your furry friends and also have a boutique next door for all your pup's accessories. It's great to see they are now catering for vegans too! There is a sign saying soya and almond milk are available but I've also seen oat and coconut mentioned on Instagram. The freakshake, which we had also seen on social media before visiting, was slightly different from the dark chocolate one here which was topped with banana bread and lotus biscuit. Ours were topped with a tasty flapjack type cake instead, with chocolate sauce, biscoff spread, pretzels, dark chocolate buttons and almonds. The shake itself was just vanilla-y but that's fair considering how much else is going on with this delicious creation!

We didn't try out anything else on the menu, but I think they have a couple of vegan-friendly savoury options for brunch and lunch as well as a cake or two. I'm sure if you're visiting after reading this, it's more likely you'll be ordering a freakshake! They cost £6.50, but it is basically a cake and dessert in one so it's worth it as a treat for sure.
66 Claremont Street, Aberdeen, AB10 6QY
07.30-17.00 Mon-Fri | 09.00-17.00 Sat | 10.00-17.00 Sun
http://www.thelongdogcafe.co.uk/

Tahini

Wednesday, 5 June 2019

It was David's birthday so we thought we'd treat ourselves to one of the most indulgent dinners we know of in Dundee - tapas at Tahini! If you've been before you'll know you need to book for this 5 course extravaganza, simply let them know you're vegan and don't eat much all day in preparation for a Lebanese feast.
Choice:★★★★★Staff Knowledge:★★★★★
Value for Money:★★★★★Overall:★★★★★
We'd been to Tahini once before, just after moving to Dundee, and couldn't get over how much food there was! On arrival our waitress showed us to our table and confirmed our dietary requirements then we were brought flat breads, olives, sundried tomatoes and aubergine with balsamic olive oil. Straight after this was our favourite course on the little turntable, salads and dips - tabbouleh, two types of hummus, baba ganoush, red pepper salad, potato salad and a garlic tomato salad. Everything is so fresh and tasty! At this point a waiter came over and said "don't eat too much, lots more to come" which we had a chuckle at. Next up was a selection of dishes - falafel, spiced cripsy potatoes, garlicy veg, spicey tomato mushrooms and a couple of rice dishes. I know falafel is known as a bit of a boring staple but this one was amazing. That and the potatoes were my favourites! Now we were getting pretty full, and up next was stuffed peppers with more sides so we did struggle to eat these as they were quite heavy going after all the previous food. Finally, was the sweets course which was simply a dish of melon, dates and rose Turkish delight. I think the non-vegan version also includes baklava but we wouldn't have managed much else so I was happy to have something lighter! The 5 course tapas is available on Friday-Saturday evenings at £24.95 per head which is great value for the amount of food you get. Tahini is the perfect place for a special occasion dinner where you really want to treat yourself!
11 Bank Street, Dundee, DD1 1RL
12.00-22.00 Mon - Sun
Tahini on Facebook

Menu Key:
Let them know you're vegan when booking/on arrival
Suitable for Little Vegans:
High chairs available
Dog Friendly:
No
Accessibility:                        
Steps to access, toilets downstairs
Top Tip:
Make sure you're very hungry!

Sweetpea Cafe

Wednesday, 22 May 2019


While Falda was on holiday I visited Sweetpea Cafe in Broughty Ferry for lunch with my (newly vegan) friend Sam Baxter Art as guest blogger. There wasn't a menu as everything is on display in the counter but it's clearly labelled and there was a lot to choose from! 
Choice:★★★★★Staff Knowledge:★★★★★
Value for Money:★★★★★Overall:★★★★★
We decided to share a couple of things as they all looked so good. There was a jackfruit sweet potato wrap, and spiced roast vegetable tart. Both were served with beautiful, colourful salads topped with flowers, the wrap with crisps and the tart with vegan coleslaw which is always a bonus! They were delicious, enough of a treat to be comfort food but still felt healthy.

Sam had a Teapigs berry tea and I had an oat milk latte with chai syrup. There was also soya and coconut milk to choose from for hot drinks. Sweetpea Cafe offer a lot of vegan sweet options too, we had a pineapple crumble cakey thing which was very tasty. They also had ginger tiffin, scones, and a chocolatey nut thing.

Hopefully we can visit again soon since the menu changes all the time (we spotted vegan sausage rolls on the Sweetpea Cafe Instagram) and Falda doesn't want to miss out!

327A Brook Street, Broughty Ferry, DD5 2DS
08.30-17.00 Mon - Fri | 09:00-17:00 Sat | Closed Sun
https://www.facebook.com/Sweetpeacafebroughtyferry/

Menu Key:
Vegan options labelled + ask staff
Suitable for Little Vegans:
Yes but no baby changing
Dog Friendly:
Yes
Accessibility:                        
All ground floor but not a huge amount of room around tables.
Top Tip:
Ask staff for vegan cake options!

Makers For Maggie's Spring Market

Monday, 6 May 2019

Makers for Maggie's Spring Market might not be a "vegan event" but once we heard there would be vegan rocky road brownies there we knew we had to tell you about it! Taking place on Sunday 12th May from 11am-4pm at Discovery Point, Makers for Maggie's returns for its third market with a fantastic line up of local and regional designers, artists and makers all supporting Maggie's Cancer Centre in Dundee. I'll be there with my JillyJilly goodies, including 'vegan' travel cups and mugs. You'll also find The Black Cat Soap House with their range of vegan soaps, shampoo bars and skincare. Make sure to look out for The Candle Bothy too, for a collection of soy wax candles with lovely fresh scents.

As well as stalls, you'll find a pop-up tea room, creative activities, mini beauty treatments and information about cancer support. Our favourites, Sorbus Coffee will be there, with Minor Figures oat milk and Nitro cold brews, Almighty Foods chocolate bars and Rapscallion Sodas. They won't be selling their brownies but that's because Artisana Brownies will be bringing their vegan rocky road slices, we can't wait to try them!

Artisana Brownies will also be selling their recently launched hot chocolate, the signature and dark hot chocolates are both vegan. We were kindly gifted some to try by Sophie who is organising the market, and it is delicious! Super chocolately, a really indulgent treat. You can also make a luxury chilled chocolate milk - "make up the hot chocolate as usual and allow to cool in a glass bottle. Once cool transfer to the fridge for a few hours. Add ice to a glass and pour the thick chilled chocolate over".

Entry is a £1 donation to Maggie's.
Find out more here - Facebook Event.

The Parlour Cafe

Tuesday, 16 April 2019

We are back TOGETHER… after a few weeks of not blogging together we FINALLY got the chance to have a proper blogging lunch and eat at another place on our ever-growing list. We have been wanting to try lunch at The Parlour Café for ages and with my little one fast asleep in her pram it was the perfect chance for us to have longer and more relaxed lunch.
Choice:★★★★☆Staff Knowledge:★★★★★
Value for Money:★★★☆☆Overall:★★★★☆
Located a bit out of the centre of town but close to the university, The Parlour Café is a popular lunch spot and takeaway. Although we arrived early and before the lunchtime rush we were a little disappointed at how difficult it was to get the pram through the door, however after a wee bit of manoeuvring a member of staff eventually opened the second door. This is a really small but cosy space if you are eating in which is lovely without my little vegan but it was a challenge to fit the pram in and even then we really felt we were getting in everyone’s way especially when the lunch rush started.

We were delighted that all but one of the freshly made and delicious salads were vegan and we decided to share the Vegan Wrap, which changes daily and a couple of random colourful salads. The portion was huge so we were glad we had opted to share, for the wrap and salad it was £7.

We decided to share a piece of Chocolate cake too, there was also a vegan chocolate torte but a big slab of cake between us was just perfect. I opted for a decaf soya latte and Jilly for a lemon San Pellegrino and all together the lunch cost just over £16, which was ok for sharing but a little on the expensive side if we had ordered a meal each. It is cheaper to get your food to go - the wrap and salad would've been £4.50. The food was fantastic and fresh and we would definitely recommend for a sit in lunch, just get there fast to grab a table as this is a busy wee spot.

58 West Port, Dundee DD1 5EP
08.00-18.00 Mon - Fri | 08.00-17.00| Closed Sun
The Parlour Cafe on Facebook
Menu Key:
Vegan options on menu and check at the counter for cakes and Sandwiches
Suitable for Little Vegans:
Yes
Dog Friendly:
No
Accessibility:                        
All ground floor but difficult to get pram in and tight on space
Top Tip:
Ask staff for vegan cake options!

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