On Sunday Leicester welcomed its very first vegan market, held in the historic covered market in the city center. So how was it? In a word: awesome. I was completely bowled over by the vast offerings of all the different stalls, and seriously impressed by the large turnout. Who knew there were that many vegans in Leicester?! I can honestly say, I felt very proud of my adopted hometown this weekend.
Very frustratingly for me, I forgot to charge my nice camera before I left the house so all photos were taken on my iphone. Either way, you should get an idea of the scale and variety on show from the market.
First up – hot food! I made sure to hit up as many of the hot food stalls as I could. I had been juicing and eating really healthy all week in anticipation for this blowout, and it did not disappoint. Ok, maybe except for the fact that The Vegan Grindhouse sold out before 1pm. But they’ll be back in Leicester in a few weeks, so I can’t grumble too much. Besides, I was pretty full after having southern fried seitan (Temple of Seitan), a pesto veggie quesadilla (Mex it up) and a garlic mushroom pizza (Vegan Pizza Co). Each dish I tried was amazing – these guys really know what they’re doing and I’d be hardpressed to find a meat eater who wouldn’t be happy to scarf down one of their plates of food.
Annie Mae Cheezie spread
Rawbites
Willow & Dove
Lettices vegan cheese and meats
Currant Affairs
I also made sure to stock up on snacks for later while we were there, including various mock meats and some of the best vegan cheese I’ve ever tasted from both Annie Mae’s and Lettices. And can I just give a very special mention to Currant Affairs who made the best chocolate brownies I’ve ever eaten? Seriously well done guys, you have outdone yourselves.*
*edit: the brownies were actually a contribution from Chocoholic in Leicester. You seriously need to get on these.
There were so many great stalls selling a variety of non-food items as well, such as clothing, candles, art and more. There were also several charities set up, happy to talk to anyone about the work they’re doing to help animals in Leicester and further afield.
The only thing missing was a beer stall. Or any beverage stalls for that matter. It took ages to hunt down a stand that was selling drinks. So next year let’s get one beer stall and one coffee stall and I’ll be happy.
In all, it was a great day even despite the cold and damp weather. The Leicester Vegan Community have said they would like to make this a recurring event, but there aren’t any solid plans at the moment. As soon as there are, you can be sure I’ll be shouting about it!
Did you go to the vegan market? What did you think?
For a list of all the vendors, check out my previous blog post here.
Wish I’d have known about this event as I would have been there as well, being a vegan. But I hadn’t seen anything to promote it at all – maybe I missed info on the event?
I was shopping in Leicester Market Sat morning and didn’t see any notices.
Also how does one join The Leicester Vegan Group – any info would be appreciated.
Thanks
Vance
Hi Vance – sorry to hear that! There was a fair bit of advertising on Twitter and Facebook, but I agree, I didn’t see much around town. I would suggest visiting the Group’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lvf2015/timeline or drop them an email at leicesterveganfair@gmail.com
Hi Lindsay…. thanks for your reply and note of the links; have been on their FB page and ‘liked’ it, so assume I will get updates etc as they add new items.
Are you aware of the Forks over Knives site – it’s all to do with a vegan lifestyle and they get lots of good news items on; it’s in the USA and run by Dr Ethelstyne and Dr Colin Campbell – famous as the author of The China Diet; http://www.forksoverknives.com/
Vance
I am very familiar with Forks over Knives – it was one of the first movies I watched that made me think about going vegan! 🙂 Thanks!
Hi Vance they meet the first Thursday evening of every month here is there FB page you will always be welcome https://www.facebook.com/LeicesterVeggies/?fref=ts
Hi Sue, thanks for your reply, appreciated. I joined your FB group a few days ago after seeing the link on the list of links that Lindsay put on this blog.
Can I assume that you meet at the Good Earth in Leicester, as your group is standing outside the restaurant? If so what time do you meet and do you eat at the restaurant as well?
Best….. Vance
I was very jealous seeing all the pics on social media from this event! I’m glad it was such a success!
it was a really fantastic event – hope my pictures did it some justice!
I was sorry to miss out on the Grindhouse (huge queue by the time I got there, even though it was only about half 12, and they’d already sold out of one thing so we didn’t bother in case they’d sold out of more by the time we got to the front), but everything else was great. My partner and I shared a quesadilla, chickn salad and a slice of cheesecake from Mex it up, had one of those space ball things from Vork Pie and got to try vegan meringues for the first time! All in all I thought it went really well, though I would have liked to see the food stalls spaced out better so the queues weren’t so confusing.
Yep – missed out on TVG too unfortunately but made up for it in all the other things we consumed. Those vegan scotch eggs from Vork Pie were delicious!
Great blog, really captured the buzz in the market. Hope it becomes a regular feature. We had a great time scoffing, sniffing and chatting. I hit TVG for a burger and they are coming to Brewdog Leicester again…yay! We also sampled raw food wrap, Piri piri Vork (hot mamma!) and raw cheesecake.
Thanks for your comment – glad to hear others enjoyed the market as well! I also really hope it becomes a regular event as well. It was so popular, it would be a shame not to do it again!
Great post
[…] you know, the first ever vegan market came to Leicester back in June and was a huge success. So much so that the Leicester Vegan Community have organized another vegan market for […]