The Cake Hole, Derby

A friend of mine gave me the heads up on Facebook that a new vegan cafe had opened in  Derby. So as I am home in Derby for the summer, I thought I should go to try it out.

So after one of my weekly swimming sessions with my sister, we decided we'd pay a visit to The Cake Hole which is based on the balcony level of The Market Hall in Derby.

As we entered The Cake Hole we were welcomed by a friendly face and browsed the menu. My sister was a bit cautious, not being vegan and favouring ham sandwiches for her lunch, opted for a brownie. She let me try a bit; it was gooey and satisfying.

We shared a pot of tea off the extensive tea menu, deciding to go for the a regular breakfast tea, which came with an option of soy or rice milk. We both loved the way it was presented, I would take a chintzy tea service any day over a matchy modern characterless one.

I was feeling peckish. There was a falafel wrap on offer and a 'make your own meze platter'. I opted for the latter and chose olives, falafel, tortilla and vegan ham. It worked together very well. The falafel were full of flavour and the olives were so juicy and fresh.

I really liked the decor of The Cake Hole, it has a unique and warm charm to it. There are also books dotted around and I enjoyed looking through the Post Secrets one. Not only is the food good and the atmosphere pleasant, but it is also very reasonable priced. I will definitely be visiting again before the end of the summer and whenever I return to see my family.

The only thing that is disappointing; and this is not to do with The Cake Hole, is The Market Hall. I wish more people would open shops and cafes here as it could be so amazing! It is a very beautiful Victorian Market Hall which could be a real gem of Derby.



Lentil As Anything, Melbourne

Lentil As Anything was very easily my favourite place to eat when I lived in Melbourne. It delivers delicious vegetarian and vegan meals 3 times a day; 7 days per week on a 'pay as you feel' basis.

The first time I visited this place I was overwhelmed. I had read briefly about it in my guide book but my friend insisted we must go when he found out I was vegetarian. We went for dinner on a balmy Saturday evening, which became my first of numerous visits. I was like a kid in a candy store- I could eat everything on the menu and help myself to as much as I wanted. The food was impeccable; so flavoursome; leading me to over indulge and go for seconds. It was also clearly labelled- great for one of our dining partners with food allergies. I left a big donation, feeling very satisfied.

Lentil As Anything would then go on to be my saviour when I hit hard time after deciding to stay in Melbourne. Struggling to find work, I was doing various casual jobs to cover my hostel rent and I was absolutely broke. They helped with low cost meals which sustained me until I eventually found a full-time job.

When I got my job and going to Lentil's at all times of the day became a thing of the past. It then became the favourite Sunday breakfast spot for my friends and I. Delivering coffee that could rival some of Melbourne's best and a menu of reliable favourites, made it the perfect place to spend the whole morning (particularly as there are usually interesting things going on at Abbottsford Convent at that time too).

Lentil As Anything will be one of the things I will miss most about not living in Melbourne. Its not just the great food but the philosophy; pleasant atmosphere that the volunteers create and the variety of people dining there.



OM Vegetarian Restaurant, Melbourne

Melbourne really has a lot to offer for vegetarian's and there  are a ton of solely vegetarian places to eat and most places being vegetarian friendly in some way. (Three 'vegetarians' in one sentence- that's how vegetarian Melbourne is!) Not only this, there are so many fantastic cheap eats. Great for backpackers like myself who are either broke or trying to save as much money as possible for their next move.

OM is a fantastic example of good cheap wholesome vegetarian food. They have two locations in Melbourne CBD. I happened to be walking past one day and seeing the sign, noting the words 'VEGETARIAN' and '$6.50 ALL YOU CAN EAT', I knew that this would be a place that I would want to be visiting. I went to following weekend armed with two none vegetarian friends who love a cheap feed.

For your $6.50 you get a vegetarian curry, a daal, rice, chapati and some chutney. It was deliciously satisfying, especially washed done with a glass of $2 mango lassi.

The portion was just the right size but being greedy and wanting to take advantage of the all you can eat aspect we of course had seconds.

This would be a great place to visit when your passing through Melbourne low on cash, eating as much as you can to keep you going for as long as possible. I know, because I have been in the position here when you're so low on cash that food stops being a necessity and becomes a luxury. You're getting up really early for your hostel breakfast, stealing extra bread for lunch and looking on the free shelf for any food you can find. I look back on these pleasantly though- definitely fun, thrifty and character building. It's amazing quite how little you can live off.

Anyway, side thought over, back to OM. The food was simple but really tasty. I loved it so much as Indian food doesn't seem to be as big here as it is in the UK and I have really missed it. Daal is one of my most favourite things to eat as well so the fact I could have as much as I wanted was really heaven!

Even the non-veggies loved it, which was a relief to me, as I did not once here: 'its good but it's just missing something'. They left full and happy saying it was definitely somewhere they would go again for a great cheap lunch.

Favourite Veggie Places: San Francisco

I have had so much fun travelling. I have now been in Australia for two and a half months after spending a month in the US! I am finally getting around to doing some posts... FINALLY!! So despite this being a long time a go I am now posting about San Francisco where I had some fab veggie food experiences. Sorry about the photos again, got to invest in a better travel camera!

Taqueria Cancun

Located in San Francisco's colourful Mission district Taqueria Cancun, is not a vegetarian restaurant, but they do an amazing Vegetarian Burrito! Not only is it delicious, but the portions are huge and this little lot below cost less than $10 (USD). Yes! $10 for a burrito, nachos with salsa & guacamole and a coke. I felt so stuffed after, I recommend cutting the burrito in half and saving some for later. Not only a thumbs up for the food but also fantastic for backpackers on a budget!

Loving Hut

Featuring 3 restaurants in San Francisco alone- Loving Hut is a real favourite to vego's around the world. This was my first try though and I really loved it. I went for a lunch offer where I got two dishes, a fantastic mushroom dish which I couldn't resist with mushrooms being my fave food and a delicious spicy green bean and soy meat dish, served with yummy veggie rice! I really enjoyed this and there will be another visit when I come across Loving Hut again.

Favourite Veggie Places on the East Coast (USA)

I have finally got around to blogging- yay! This has been a culmination of problems, including that I tried to post earlier but the hostel's computer wouldn't help me get my photos off my camera to post. Now I am officially in San Francisco, so I'd thought I'd do some reflective posts on my time on the East Coast starting with my favourite veggie restaurants that I visited. (Apologies in advanced for the photography- I don't have my good camera with me!)


Vegetarian Dim Sum House, New York
on 24 Pell Street in China Town

I visited the Vegetarian Dim Sum House last year and I was so impressed that I thought it deserved another visited! It is really good value and this little lot below, which was more than enough for one, came to less than $10 and included free green tea. All the food was absolutely delicious! I tried the fried mushroom dumplings in chili sauce (far left) for the first time and they were amazing! They do more than just Dim Sum though, with a whole menu of great veggie Chinese food!

Clover, Cambridge

at Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA

This was a recommendation from a person I was staying with off CouchSurfing (more about how brilliant that organisation is later). It has a simple menu with different sandwiches- I opted for the Falafel Sandwich and Rosemary Fries. It was really fresh and so so tasty! The rosemary really added the fries and I loved all the funky different salads on the sandwich too. The place also had such character with a communal table and having your name shouted every time something was freshly made for you.

HipCityVeg, Philadelphia
by Rittenhouse Square (127 S.18th Street)

I discovered HipCityVeg by accident, as during my time in Philadelphia I fell in love with Rittenhouse Square and wanted to sit and eat my lunch there. I went in to ask about vegetarian options and it turned out all the food is 100% Vegan. As I was in Philly, the home of the infamous Philly Cheese Steak, I thought I'd opt for the Philly "Steak" Sandwich. They also did Sweet Potato Fries, which looked great but the sandwich was so big it was more than enough on its own! It was such a delicious sandwich, packed with flavours from the mushrooms, onions and fresh tomato ketchup. The inside is small, but go eat on Rittenhouse Square, it's really beautiful and interesting!

Afterwards, go get some Yogorino, the tastiest frozen yoghurt I have ever tried with delicious toppings!

Toscanini's, Cambridge
889 Main Street, Cambridge, MA

So this is an ice cream place, I don't think they do vegan options, but they do they best homemade ice cream and apparently very good espresso. Toscanini's was another recommendation from the CouchSurfing Host I was staying with. The ice cream is made right there and they have some really interesting flavours. I opted for a Sundae with Mocha ice cream, whipped cream, hot fudge sauce and nuts- it was really indulgent and delicious.

Yaffle Cafe Meal Night, Derby

I have been a happy customer of Sound Bites, a small independent wholefoods shop in Derby for many years. Some time after the shop opened, a small vegetarian cafe opened above Sound Bites called the Yaffle Cafe & Bookshop. For a long time now I have been meaning to go here as it is local to me now I have moved back to Derbyshire and it is the only solely vegetarian cafe in Derby.

Yaffle Cafe & Bookshop is open during the daytime and serves cakes, light snacks, coffee, etc, all of the vegetarian and vegan variety. However, on a Thursday and Friday evening, Yaffle Cafe hosts a meal night with a different country theme each week and all of the food is vegan-friendly. This is what I have been particularly excited to go to.

Enjoying the food and atmosphere. Organic Cotton Shirt- H&M.

Yaffle Cafe is small and cosy, seating around 12 people. It's decorated in sunny yellow and is full of books, flyers and magazines, so there is plenty to read. I was really impressed with my surroundings, it had a great atmosphere, a very relaxed bohemian sort of feel. I like that the books were available to borrow and that it was encouraged that you could look at books, I had a nosey through quite a few magazines, which is unlike some cafe/bookshops where this is discouraged as the books are all new and are for buying.

The theme on the night we went was Sri Lanka. I read the menu before going and was particularly excited for the vegetable and cashew nut curry, I was not disappointed! The menu (printed on used paper, which I personally loved) had a choice of soup to start and a couple of options for pudding, the main being a plate with small amounts of a variety of dishes for you to try.

Having seen the big portions someone else had, we decided to just opt with the main and I was very pleased with what I received. The dishes were bursting with different flavours, even the rice which was flavoured with coconut. It was nice to eat somewhere serving different dishes, as vegetarian options in a lot of places in Derby tend to be a bit samey, serving the standard fare of vegetarian lasagne or veggie burgers.

Something else that is really great about Yaffle though is the price, it is such good value, with a main costing only around £5, which is what attracted my diners for the evening who are poor hungry students.

My dining companions for the evening were my sister Vicky (Girl about Scarborough) and her friend who was visiting, Jo, both of whom eat meat. They were looking forward to coming to the meal night as it is something a bit different from when they would usually go out to eat. Both were very happy with what they received. Vicky really love the atmosphere of the place, commenting that she would definitely come back in the daytime as she felt this is a relaxed place where she could enjoy a cup of tea and read a book. Jo was taken with the entertainment options, particularly the felt tip pens, getting to do a bit of colouring while waiting for our mains.

Vicky & Jo

Yaffle Cafe & Bookshop is great! It is definitely worth visiting! If your a vegetarian/vegan in Derby or visiting Derby, it is going to be one of the best options of somewhere to eat. This is also a great option to try something new. If you do go, I would recommend nipping into Sound Bites (which opens late on a Thursday) to stock up on a few vegetarian goodies too!

Goji, York

I have been to Goji in York before, but only for take-away food from their deli at the front of the cafe. It is exclusively vegetarian, with lots of vegan options! RB & I were having a couple of 'holiday' days in York before I had to get on to writing essays and he had to go back to work, so we went here for lunch and enjoyed their cafe menu.

We were really hungry so chose three dishes between the two of us. We were so ravenous that the first dish that came (a tofu hot dog with onions and gherkins, which was personally my favourite dish) we ate straight away and did not take a photo. We also had (seen below) an Indian Platter, which had samosas, a dahl, mango chutney and mint yoghurt, and a mushroom & halloumi burger, which came with sweet potato wedges.

They were all very yummy! So I definitely definitely recommend it and will be going back lots in the future!

We also had another flowering tea as we are real lovers of beautiful tea now. They also sold the buds in the deli, so I bought three and now I just need to get a glass mug for them.

Eating Out in Cardiff

I'm back from my recent trip to Cardiff and I thought I would share with you what I ate while I was there. Sometimes it can feel difficult in a new city, you don't really know where is good to eat vegetarian. So I am trying to record wherever I eat when I go away in hope that this will help people if they visit the same place.

One of the main places I wanted to check out after a bit of research into vegetarian restaurants was the Vegetarian Food Studio.

It is outside of Cardiff and we struggled to find it. It had this great offer if you are a student in Cardiff, you can good loads of home cooked Indian food, delivered to you door for only £3.50! It is like a little cafe/shop and looks very pleasant.
This is an example of a Thali. I had never had one before so I was excited to try it. It included 2 starters, rice, a spiced yoghurt dish, green bean curry, rotli, a roasted popadum and a sweet dish. It was lovely, but unlike anything I have had before. Some of it was very hot for me and I like quite spicy food.
I had a lovely glass of Mango Lassi with the Thali.

This is my traditional Welsh Breakfast from a little arcade eatery called Garlands. It consisted of egg, beans, mushrooms, tomatoes and traditional welsh favourites: Glamorgan Sausages and Laverbread Pancakes.

We saw this on the street and it was busy as we were passing: Wok Your Way.
They had a 3-step menu where you chose your base, additional things like vegetables and tofu, then you chose a sauce.

This is the veggie. Mixed veg with tofu and garlic & black pepper sauce. It came in lovely boxes like on films and we ate with chop sticks.

This is such a good place to grab something to eat on the go.

El Piano, York

El Piano is a little vegetarian restaurant in York on Grape Lane. I have been quite a few times to El Piano since I have lived in York and I thought it was about time I added it on!

There are various rooms that you can eat in at El Piano, at this time only the downstairs restaurant was open, but my favourite room to eat is the Moroccan room where you sit on cushions on the floor around a huge table.

El Piano offer a tapas style meal and all the food is presented in bamboo 'boats' which come in two sizes. It's reasonably priced and yummy! On this visit we had a Mixed Fried Boat with onion bhajis, falafel and sweetcorn fritters, Dhal which came with rice, Albondigas which are soya balls with a rich tomato sauce and Sweet Potato Mousse served with corn chips. They also do fantastic coffee there which comes 'cowboy style'.

So, if your in York sightseeing or on holiday, then El Piano is definitely a place to visit, I think it is especially good for lunch or coffee & cake.

Demuths, Bath

I have just recently come back from Bath, where I went away to for New Years. I would absolutely recommend visiting! It is a beautiful city with loads of history and lots of nice shops!

While we were there, we wanted to go for a nice meal and online we found a lovely vegetarian restaurant called Demuths and went for Sunday lunch.

Once we found the restaurant (it was tucked away down a little alleyway) we were greeted by lovely smells, a peaceful atmosphere and friendly staff. After looking at the menu we decided to share a plate of the Eastern Wraps (centre), which were so lovely, that if we hadn't already ordered mains, then we would have ordered more. For main course I had the Date & Chickpea Tagine, which came with couscous, harissa and yoghurt, and my dining partner had the Christmas Roast, which came with veg, root mash and gravy. We shared each others dishes and found both of them to be delicious, we especially liked the roast. Demuths is an absolute gem and definitely worth visiting if you go to Bath.


While walking around we also found The Porter, which is a vegetarian pub in Bath. We didn't stop for food, but nipped in for a drink and also found it very pleasant. It's vegetarian pub food menu looked really good and if I was to go back to Bath (which I think is almost definite), then I would go there to try it out.