Last weekend I went on a trip to Oxford to visit family. My mum, sister and I flew to Bristol (fun fact: I hate flying) where my dad picked us up to drive to the town of Abingdon. We took a detour on our journey to get food supplies from Tesco for breakfast, lunch and snacks. I also picked up some pasta and sauce just incase I could not get a decent meal whilst we were out at a restaurant (always be prepared). Funnily enough, this pasta did not get eaten the entire time we were there, as the whole weekend I ate just as much as everyone else when we went out for a meal. In this post I am going to share my experience eating at non-vegan restaurants in Oxford, with some additional tips on eating out as a vegan.
The first night we got there we had a table booked at a pub called The Nags Head in Abingdon. This was a last minute arrangement and I did not expect to have a full meal there, so I ate some hobnobs and vegan nutella before going. FYI this is the most amazing combo ever and you have to try it. Unknown to me, my Grandad had notified the restaurant that a vegan would be attending and asked them if they could cater for me.
When we were sat at our table, the waitress came over to chat to me about what the chef could make and she told me there was a vegan in earlier that night! I am not a fussy eater at all so I had no fear just letting them know I would be happy for them to make me anything, plus chips (incase they decide some leaves on the plate are a substantial meal). I was very wrong.
They brought me out a plate full of Mediterranean roasted vegetables, olives and potatoes in the most delicious tomato sauce I have ever tasted, with fresh herbs to top it off. It may not sound spectacular but trust me, it was. My dad and sister also had a taste (as I kept raving about how good it was) and they were just as amazed as me. Seriously, what was in that sauce? Unfortunately I do not have a photo to show you but just trust me when I say it was a 10/10 meal.
The next day we headed to Guildford and whilst we were waiting for the rest of our family to arrive, we headed to Giraffe for a drink. My sister got this green smoothie called the Green Canyon which is made up of kale, banana, spinach and apple juice - healthy AF, whilst I decided to stick with water. The coffee's looked tempting but I had already had my caffeine fix that day in the form of a soya latte from Costa (too much caffeine makes me feel AWFUL). I know I could have asked for decaf but I have serious trust issues - Costa have let me down before and I thought I was having a heart attack.
Later that day, we decided to go to Pizza Express with the whole family. My Grandad was worried there wouldn't be anything I could eat but little did he know there is actually a vegan pizza on their menu! For a starter I ordered the Superboost salad which consists of:
Black rice, edamame beans, red quinoa, mung beans, chickpeas, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, kale, rocket, roasted peppers and parsley.
This was probably one of the best salads I have ever had so it's a thumbs up from me! For my main I chose the Pianta pizza which is cheese-less and topped with spinach, mushrooms, pine kernels, artichoke, tomato, chilli flakes, garlic oil, olive oil, rocket and fresh parsley. There are other pizzas which can of course be veganised by choosing a vegetarian one and asking for no cheese, however I do recommend the Pianta if you like all the ingredients listed above!
For Sunday lunch we went to my Grandad's favourite pub for a roast dinner - The Brewery Tap. We had already notified the chef weeks in advance that I (THE vegan - my second name for the weekend) was going to be coming as well, hoping that they could whip something together. Yet again I had no high hopes, I just wanted to enjoy the company of my family.
To my surprise the chef had made me a mushroom and celeriac pie, with the addition of pearl barley inside as well. It was another successful meal which I absolutely loved. On the side I was also given broccoli and sauteed leaks (not photographed) to have with the roasted potatoes, carrot and parsnip - deeelicious!
All in all I was extremely lucky to have 3 amazing meals over the whole weekend. Especially when 2 of the restaurants didn't even have a single vegan meal on their menu - which they definitely should as they all tasted so good. Below I have listed some tips which I hope will give you some ideas about eating out as a vegan. It is a lot easier than you think!
Tips for eating vegan at a non-vegan restaurant:
1. Call up in advance. If you are booking a table a few weeks or days in advance then let them know that one (or more) of your guests are vegan. This will ensure the chef has the appropriate ingredients in to make the meal and hopefully they will have had enough time to think of something tasty to make.
2. Let them know if something can be veganised. Last summer I was attending a family meal at a restaurant and we had to pre-order our main meal weeks in advance. I asked for the spinach and chickpea burger on their menu to be veganised (no egg used as a binder and no cheese), which turned out to be really good!
3. If all else fails, make a meal out of sides. Ask for some chips (make sure these are not cooked in animal fat - they usually aren't), salad, vegetables or anything else to tie you over until you get home. If worst comes to worst then you can always grab yourself an orange juice or a gin and tonic.
Most chain restaurants have items on their menu which are vegan or can be veganised. If you are unsure, check on google beforehand or ask the waiter/waitress.
I hope you enjoyed this post and got some helpful tips about eating out as a vegan! I have had a couple of bad experiences eating out at non-vegan restaurants but most of the time people have been very accommodating and I ended up having a fantastic meal. Additionally, if you have good vegan restaurants nearby, why not take your friends there to try the food? They might just be surprised at how good vegan food can be...
