Greenhouse - a funky, sustainable vegan friendly experience

When I first went to Greenhouse I was impressed by the concept - it aims to be part of a considerate and non-destructive lifestyle. Made from mostly recycled materials, with a rooftop veggie garden, worm compost and a water recycling system, Greenhouse lives up to its aim. Perhaps one of the best features is that the outside wall is covered in potted plants! 

I went to Greenhouse with a couple of mates before heading to the theatre. It's a tapas style dining experience so we decided to share. Well, mostly, I was the only vegan. But that wasn't a problem for the waitstaff. She knew the menu and came up with options for some of the dishes so that they could be vegan friendly. We shared the veggies and hummus; bruschetta; wood roasted heirloom carrots, fennel seed, labne (on the side); and a vegetarian wood-fired pizza without the cheese. Did I mention that they mill their own stone-ground whole wheat flour for the pizza? Delicious!

 

The staff were really helpful with ensuring that the food came quickly and that we were able to leave in time for our show. Although this is definitely one place you could linger. We did have some issues with the correct bill, but the friendly staff sorted it out without too much difficulty.

 

I would definitely go again, even though it is a tad on the pricey side. But this is Perth so more or less expected. And the atmosphere inside is lively and chic, perfect for after work drinks, a date, or a meal with friends. The menu is often changing but as the staff are amenable to making vegan options, it's well worth a visit. Especially as there are funky cocktails and a good selection of wines, beer, and cider, including locally sourced options.

http://www.greenhouseperth.com/food/greenhouse/

The Little Concept - Rawsome cafe in Freo

 A relatively new addition to Wray Ave in Freo (7 Wray Ave, near corner of South Terrace) is The Little Concept. I was pretty excited when it opened as it had the potential to be my new local cafe. And I wasn't disappointed! This local cosy coffee shop stocks amazing raw desserts (with raw cheesecakes coming soon!) to go along with your Red Espresso (rooibos tea espresso), delicious Mork chocolate or more traditional espresso bevvie of choice.

Once you've had your espresso, you can purchase all the fixings to make one at home too, stocking a plethora of non-dairy milk options, along with yummy chai tea and all the usual suspects.
The owners and staff are extra friendly and I highly recommend having a coffee (or two!) at The Little Concept.

http://www.facebook.com/TheLittleConcept

Lotus Vegetarian Northbridge

Recently, I visited Lotus restaurant in Northbridge for a dinner with MatKat (i.e. Matt and Kat). I was under the illusion I had never been to this restaurent so I wanted to try it. When I arrived I had flash backs to when I first visited Perth in 2007 for a conference, and most nights we went for eats in Northbridge, since it was a conference I am sure we were a little drunk at the time, hence the hazy memory. The owner told me the restaurant has been there for 15 years.  The menu contains the typical asian mock meat meals, except in comparison to Utopia which is just up the street all the meals are vegan. For this reason, I definately prefer Lotus, but it does have less ambience than Utopia. I had read some reviews about this place, that described the boss as a real 'boss', and this was true there was no point arguing about where you wanted to sit, and if she recommends the special you'd better take it! No I am kidding a bit, I didnt find her grumpy at all, I just probably wouldnt have ordered the special fried mushrooms but it appears she does have that power over some people (i.e. Matt). The only problem with this restaurant is the atmosphere, I wouldnt recommend going here on a date. We had trouble getting a ice bucket for the wine, and the glasses were, well not very clean. Besides that the food was nice, and I would definately go back. Adjacent to the restaurant is a store crowded with freezers containing mock meat goodies. For some reason, I bought popcorn chicken - I dont even know what popcorn chicken is, I often buy this stuff for the freezer then hardly ever cook it. I will eat that chicken soon I promise. Not all the goods in the store are vegan so read the ingredients.

We choose a range of things to share including the special fried mushrooms, note its always good to get a plate of greens to balance out all the fried gluten 'meats'

Some fried things to start, chicken drumsticks and samosa's

Szechuan chicken - I shouldnt have tried to eat one of these chillis. Was yummy though and I cannot go past a sizzling plate

Tofu claypot, this was a hit, claypot is always a winner

http://members.iinet.net.au/~yongcorp/

 

Vegan eats in Dunsborough, WA

Recently I had a birthday, and Jo's sister visited from Canada so we decided a weekend at the beach was in order.

This is not food! but just in case you need some encouragement to go. Ok now onto the food. I was very excited about checking out the food (mostly the desserts) at Samudra, a vegetarian restaurant, and yoga space in Dunsborough. We went for dinner and of course Jo and I ordered the same thing, because if you only have the opportunity to eat at a place once you have to eat the best thing on the menu. We decided this was the enchiladas, and we were spot on I think.

Enchiladas at Samudra

Emily ordered the Dahl, i didn' t try this but it looked good.

For dessert I had my eye what I thought was the last remaining lemon cheesecake, and argued with Jo a bit about who would get to eat it. We were so busy fighting amongst ourselves we didnt see some other people come in and order the cake. After some screaming and tears turns out there were lots more out the back (relieved). So I got my lemon cheesecake and it was worth the fight. All the desserts are raw.

Jo couldnt go past the chocolate tart - i tried a bit of this too and its was really good. Would I drive the 300 or so km back just for the desserts? probably

http://www.samudra.com.au/

One of my favourite places to eat in WA so far.

Vegan Hot Dogs

I have been vegan for a long time (over 20 yr) and have eaten food from all around the world in that time. Its not often I get excited - well maybe it is often but right now I am excited. We found a place in Fremantle that serves handmade vegan brats and serves them in a delicious range of meals. I like going out for fun food, stuff that you wouldn't make at home, and a change from the asian mock meat that is most common vego food in Perth. So when we heard about a place serving vegan hot dogs off we went. This place serves both meat and vegetarian brats - these are hand made in the restaurant. All meals can be ordered vegan but I suggest have a good look at the menu because many things are not substituted, i.e. they dont have vegan sour cream and cheese (bugger). I did suggest to them they could get vegan cheese - its fairly easy to get in Fremantle and keeps well so lets see.  You can chat with the waitors about your options or simply believe me when I tell you which is best.

I ordered the minx which comes with yummy vegan brat, guacamole, tomato relish, corn, capsicum, and mint salsa. We ordered a side of fries too, and this was great.

Jo had the Mischief which comes with brat, tomato relish, guacamole, spinach, tortilla chips and jalapenos. Personally, I think this was missing the cheese, but it was yummy too.

Really get down to Freo and eat these, you wont regret it. Wash it down with a homemade ginger lemonade

http://runamuk.com.au/

Ootong & Lincoln - Freo cafe

The Ootong & Lincoln is a tasty favourite Freo cafe, open for breakfast and lunch (6:30 am to 5:00 pm, 7 days).

 

 http://www.ootongandlincoln.com.au/

Although not completely vegan, the Ootong & Lincoln is vegan friendly and very accommodating. We went there for an early midweek breakfast and found it busy, per usuale. But well worth it as the avocado mash was yummy indeed. There are only a couple of vegan things on the menu but the staff was really helpful in suggesting what they could do to make other dishes vegan friendly.

Nice lunch at PAWs

A couple of weeks ago, we headed out to PAWs (People and Animal Welfare Society) for lunch (located at 120 Beaufort St, Perth, just a few minutes walk from Perth train station). I was super excited to not only visit the cafe but also the store to get my hands on the good vegan cheese, and other snack items. The lunch menu includes the raw plate (I think $10 for a medium), the hot food plate, and a selection of fun things like burgers, hot dogs and pies. We decided to both order the raw plate (so we had room for cake). I liked the lunch, i think its a bit nicer at the raw food cafe in Freo, but here its quite cheap and still a very yummy lunch. Soon I will return to try the burgers in my search for the best vegan burgers in Perth.

For dessert of course we had the raw chocolate cake. This was delicious, and was maybe even better than the raw food cafe in Fremantle.