Ice-Cream and Giggles

"Combustion Tofu" burger (vegan) from Burger Fuel

I know I have mentioned this before, but I just want to reiterate how difficult it can be to eat out as a vegan with people that still eat meat and dairy, such as my boyfriend. For a long time, we rarely ate out because it was so difficult to find places that would cater for both our needs. Trust me when I say my home town has no vegan options to eat, like at all. Unless you count the fruit shop! This is where Newtown comes in. I rarely went to Newtown in High School, but now I find myself going there every few weeks because of the huge varieties of vegan food that makes eating out so damn easy and hassle-free. After the popularity of my last food guide to Sydney, I thought I would do one just for Newtown, because there are so many options, probably more than even in Sydney itself. If you are from overseas, and plan on visiting Sydney, Newtown is key for all vegan noms! It is only a 10 minutes train trip or less from the CBD, so it's not difficult to get to at all.

Main Meals:

• Atom Thai (includes vegan options)
• Basil's Pizza (includes vegan and gluten free options)
• Thai Potong (includes a separate vegan menu!)
• Burger Fuel (includes vegan and gluten free options)
• Sadhana Kitchen (just vegan food, all gluten free)
• Green Gourmet (vegan, vegetarian)
• Suzy Spoon's Vegetarian Butcher (vegetarian, vegan options)

Desserts:

• Sadhana Kitchen (think raw cheezecakes, wagon wheels, and tim tams!)
• Gelato Blue (they have a whole section for just vegan gelato! They also sell vegan chocolates!)
• Vegan's Choice (takeaway ice-cream, cakes and cheezecakes, including oreo cakes! There is also numerous gluten free options)

Vegan groceries:

•  Vegan's Choice (find all your vegan "meat", sprinkles, cream, ice-cream, marshmallows, and chocolate here!)
• Suzy Spoon's Vegetarian Butcher (find your vegan bacon and sausages here! Some gluten free options).

Eating out is probably the biggest issue I face as a vegan. However, there are a few cafes that I love, and keep going back to, and after my Melbourne Food Diary, I thought it was about time I did a Sydney one! Again, these photographs are merely from my iPhone, so I apologize for the quality!

1. Sadhana Kitchen, Newtown

Sadhana Kitchen is an organic raw vegan, refined sugar free and gluten free heaven. Everything typically contains some form of superfood (acai, cacao), so really you are getting more bang for your buck. It is incredibly delicious, though the mix of flavours can sometimes be a bit intense, as a friend of mine pointed out. Nevertheless, I love their food, and wish I could eat there daily! My favourite dishes include the raw lasagna and tacos for meals, and tim tams, white chocolate cheezecake and wagon wheels for treats. They also have a variety of cold pressed juices and smoothies! My friend Angela did a review, combined with beautiful photos from her DLSR. See them here.

A series of desserts from Sadhana Kitchen: including a wagon wheel, mango cheezecake and raspberry cheezecake.

2. Heart and Soul Cafe, Cronulla

Cronulla is a bit out of the city, but it is a beautiful location. Heart and Soul is definitely worth the trip too if you can make it. It is an organic vegetarian cafe, but they do have vegan options, you just have to ask at the counter to make sure. I have eaten there twice (both within 4 days of each other!), trying a three-salad wrap with quinoa, beetroot and pumpkin (super delicious), and an acai bowl (equally delicious, if not more so!). For the acai bowl, just make sure you say vegan so that they don't serve it with honey! I also had it with a mango frappe, which went down so well with the scorching heat (34 degrees in September? What is this madness!). You can eat in or takeaway, and everything is reasonably priced (acai bowl was $9.50, triple salad wrap was $11).

Acai bowl (without honey) at Heart and Soul cafe, with a mango mint frappe.

Triple Salad Wrap from Heart and Soul Cafe. I got mine as a takeaway to eat it on Cronulla beach with my boyfriend.

3. Earth to Table, Bondi

Like Sadhana, Earth to Table is an organic raw vegan cafe, sugar free and with gluten free options. I tried the felafel salad, which I found rather bland: a few felafel's amongst a sea of lettuce (nothing else) which was covered in a weird oil and made me feel gross after. My friend tried the chili, which was really delicious! I have also tried a caramel cheezecake, which was extremely yummy. Most people I have spoken to agree that the desserts are the best part about Earth to Table. Angela also did a review of Earth to Table (with much better photos) see them here!

Earth to Table: top, felafel salad, and bottom is the chilli.

Other vegan friendly places:

• China Lane at Angel Place (just ask for the vegan options).
• Amigos Mexican Restaurant in Wollongong. I know this is wayy out of the city, but it is my favourite restaurant. Hands down. My family loves it, and we typically go here for birthdays and special occasions. For vegan options, just ask! The vegetarian options without dairy are usually vegan. It is typically very popular, so I suggest you book! You can book online too, which is super convenient. 
• Atom Thai in Newtown. Just ask for vegan options! 
• Lord of the Fries in Sydney City (near Town Hall station). Again, just ask for your burger/chips to be vegan! They have vegan cheese and mayo alternatives etc.

"Original Mini Burger" from Lord of the Fries

Though this blog is an ice-cream blog, last week I spent four days in Melbourne and I decided to share my findings here. I was a little anxious at first, wondering what on earth I was going to eat (I have come to dread eating out because of the difficulties of finding vegan options on a typical menu), but I did manage to find some cute and delicious places! I apologize for the quality of the images, all photos were taken with my iPhone.

1. Lord of the Fries.

This is a fast food vegetarian restaurant, with numerous gluten-free and vegan options available, including such things as cheese and mayonnaise. With numerous locations across Melbourne (and one in Sydney!), and the ease of ordering a delicious vegan meal with no fuss, I found myself eating here no less than five times. The burgers come in two sizes (mini and large) and are so delicious, especially the "Original Burger" (see top photo), that no words can describe it, except for perhaps "mmmmmm" and "oh my god this is so delicious." I also tried the vegan "Chicken Burger" and "Coney Island Hotdog", but the "Original Burger" still remains my favourite. If you are ordering fries, the London Sauce and French Canadian with Vegan Cheese are well worth a try.

2. Dymocks Cafe on Collins Street

Originally I went to the Dymocks Cafe because I knew they had vegan cupcakes. However, when I got there, asking which were the vegan options, they had vegan pies and so many other delicious meal options, that I ended up ordering a vegan "cheesy" pie with salad, as well as a cupcake. The pie was by far the best vegan pie I have ever had, with a creamy sauce and chunks of marinated tofu, and the salad was pretty damn good as well. The cupcakes were a little crumby, but still so yummy! I had a peanut butter cupcake on the first day, and I came back the next day to get a apple pie cupcake! So delicious. The cafe itself is situated in a little corner of the bookshop, which is cute and adorable, away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

"Mister Nice Guy" Peanut Butter cupcake from the Dymocks Cafe.

Vegan "Cheesy" Pie from the Dymocks Cafe.

"Mister Nice Guy" vegan apple pie cupcake from the Dymocks cafe.

3. Queen Victoria Markets

I was a little disappointed with the vegan options here. I ordered a soy cap, only to be told they had no soy milk (and it was only 9am in the morning), and when I ordered the black coffee, the beans had been burnt. Even in the food hall, with all delicious baked goods around me, I couldn't find anything that was vegan, even the bagels had milk powder in it, and I felt quite rude asking sellers if their products contained dairy. However, there was a great selection of cheap fresh fruit and produce, and yummy fresh market juices which I would highly recommend. I stocked up on bananas, strawberries and fresh juices which I saved for easy healthy breakfasts. Flowers were also cheap: I got a bunch of roses for only $3.50!

My breakfast with produce from the markets: banana on peanut butter toast, strawberries and watermelon juice.

$3.50 flowers and burnt coffee from the Markets.