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.