My Review of All Bar One and their Nutritious Power-Foods Menu, featuring plant-based dishes that are full of nutrients and flavour. Where: Various Locations throughout the UK Website: http://www.allbarone.co.uk/ Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/allbarone/ Menu: http://www.allbarone.co.uk/foodmenu CHECKED OFF MY LIST: 16th August, 2018 OVERVIEW: All Bar …
My review of Perkier’s vegan, gluten-free, protein-packed, and fibre-rich Oaty Quinoa Porridge Pots. A Little Bit About Perkier Perkier is a young British company started by two passionate and innovative entrepreneurs who mashed up their surnames (Perkins and Turner) to create their brand. They …
My Review of The Birds Leytonstone – A pub in East London with a large vegan menu, cool vibes, and lots of events from quiz nights to film nights to party nights.
Where: 692 HIGH ROAD, LEYTONSTONE, LONDON, E11 3AA
Website: http://www.thebirds.pub/
Instagram: http://instagram.com/thebirdsleytonstone
Menu: http://www.thebirds.pub/main-menu/
CHECKED OFF MY LIST: 5th September, 2018
The whole atmosphere at The Birds Leytonstone is welcoming, spacious, and has a cool vibe from the onset. The strongly themed interior is decorated with fairy lights; there’s a bird cage right by the entrance, and you can even hear bird calls when you visit the toilet. The staff is also incredibly friendly and attentive. We were there on a Wednesday evening when they have their weekly quiz nights, and the whole atmosphere was very fun.
The Birds has loads going on, so it really depends on what you’re looking for. Being there on a quiz night, the pub was busy but not overly packed, and the quiz sounded very interesting (though I’m a bit hopeless at general knowledge trivia). If you check out their website, you’ll find there’s also much more going on – yoga on Monday evenings, music events with DJs, various film nights, and their weekend brunch spread looks absolutely epic as well.
Over half of the menu is vegan, so there are lots of delicious options to choose from.
This was delicious! The burger patty was hefty, crispy on the outside, and held together well. The sauce also added a perfect cheesy creaminess.
These were absolutely packed with flavour. I almost found the dish a bit too spicy at times, but we powered our way through and demolished the whole tray. The fakeon bits were definitely my favourite part – they were chewy and had a fantastic tangy sweet flavour.
I wasn’t the biggest fan of the mac ‘n’ cheese personally. But it had a nice creamy texture and pairing it with the dirty fries (which might sound strange, but bear with me) actually worked amazingly well. I found the mac ‘n’ cheese helped temper some of the spice from the dirty fries, while the dirty fries added extra flavour to the mac ‘n’ cheese – so they perfectly complemented each other.
I’m not even a massive chocolate fan, but this was so good! I haven’t had a snickers bar in years, but from what I remember this tasted very much like the real thing. The caramel sauce was perfectly sweet and balanced very nicely with the chocolate coating. Absolutely delectable!
I believe these bars are meant to be vegan versions of Crunchie bars, which are chocolate bars with a honeycomb toffee sugar centre. I’ve actually never tried a Crunchie bar, so I couldn’t tell you how they compare. But The Birds’ Crunchy Bar sure was tasty! It was a tad sweet for me, but the ‘honeycomb’ centre had a beautiful crunch and made for quite an indulgent treat to end an epic meal.
Have you been to the Birds Leytonstone? What were some of your favourite dishes to try?
My Review of The Gallery Cafe – A café in East London offering an all-vegan menu of breakfast and savoury staples, sweet treats, lattes and juices, as well as live events and art exhibitions. Where: St. Margarets House Settlement, 21 Old Ford Road, London …
A week ago I ran my very first 10K race! Even just a few weeks ago I never thought I would be able to run that long. Here’s some background on how I got there, a play-by-play of the 10K race day, and some final …
A one-bowl recipe using 6 simple ingredients to make a batch of vegan and gluten-free Banana Peanut Butter Flapjacks – a sweet treat that’s both fuelling and delicious!
This Banana Peanut Butter Flapjacks recipe has been an oldie but goodie in my baking repertoire over the past couple of years, so I figured it was about time I shared it!
I think flapjacks are quite a British thing. At least, I had never heard of them or tried them before I came to the UK five years ago. In the US the term ‘flapjacks’ brings up lots of images of pancakes, not oaty bars. I do love this British form of the flapjack, and hope it makes its way across the pond (if it hasn’t already), as they’re so easy to make, super tasty, and make a great snack, after-dinner treat, or on-the-go breakfast.
I made up a big batch of these beauties just last weekend because I was running my very first 10K! It was an absolutely brilliant race experience, and these Banana Peanut Butter Flapjacks actually played a big role in fueling those 10 kilometers. I had initially made them to be a post-race treat, but they ended up coming in handy much earlier than that.
I woke up bright and early at 5:30am on race day, having planned on having a bowl of porridge to fuel my run. But I never eat so early in the morning – I usually eat breakfast quite late because I just wait until I’m hungry, which can take hours. That morning the thought of digging into an oatmeal bowl before I had to leave at 6:30am was really unappetizing (as much as I love my porridge!), and I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.
Then I saw these flapjacks on my kitchen counter – essentially a bowl of porridge baked into convenient packable portions! So I packed a bunch, and headed out the door. Over the hour-long trip to get to the race I snacked on a few bars and they really did the job! They weren’t too heavy, and gave me lots of energy to use on the run – I ended up running an even better time than I’d anticipated!
These flapjacks are not only good for pre-run (or post-run) fuel. In fact, I can tell you from experience that these bars are great any time of the day. I especially love them as an afternoon snack with a cup of tea – it’s a lovely way to get an extra burst of energy if I’m in an afternoon slump.
Probably my favourite way to have them is as an after-dinner treat. I’ll stick one or two in the microwave for 20-30 seconds to get warm and soft. That brings them to a whole ‘nother level! They’re gooey, chewy, sweet, and oh so delicious. And adding some frozen banana (nice cream) turns the dessert bowl into a healthy crumble and ice cream combo – highly recommend you giving it a try!
If you end up trying out these Banana Peanut Butter Flapjacks, let me know how you get on with it – take a photo and tag me on Instagram @bitesbybekah. I’d love to connect with you and it always makes me so happy to see your creations!
Preheat oven to 200°C/375°F.
Peel bananas and mash them until smooth with a fork.
Mix in all wet ingredients and then dry until well combined. Add to a baking dish.
Bake for 30-35mins or until golden brown on top.
Wait to cool, cut into slices, and enjoy! I personally enjoy these most warmed up (in the microwave for about 30 seconds).
* Will store in the fridge for up to five days
* Chia seeds work in place of ground flax to make 2 chia eggs.
* A combination of oat flour (I like 100g) and oats (50g) gives a more cake-like texture to the flapjacks. I make my own oat flour by grinding up oats in a coffee grinder.
* Feel free to swap out the peanut butter for any other nut or seed butter.
* Add in spices if you want – cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, ground cloves, etc.
My Review of Redemption – A café with vegan, wheat-free, and sugar-free food that is both nutritious and delicious; with fresh smoothies, health shots, an extensive brunch and mains menu, and sweet treats to satisfy any craving. Where: 320 Old Street, London, EC1V 9DR …
Quick and easy one-pot lentil bolognese recipe using cupboard and freezer ingredients – a delicious, hearty, and comforting bowl of pasta is only half an hour away! Let’s talk about pasta. As a gluten-free vegan, it has been amazing to see all kinds of pastas …
My Review of Tibits – An all-you-can-eat (pay-by-weight) open buffet restaurant offering veggie and vegan salads, hot dishes, soups, desserts, and freshly pressed juices; good for dining in or take-away, with 100% Vegan Tuesdays.
Where: 124 Southwark Street SE1 0SW
Other location: 12-14 Heddon Street (off Regent Street), London W1B 4DA
Website: http://www.tibits.co.uk/en/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/tibits
CHECKED OFF MY LIST: 14TH AUGUST, 2018
The environment in Tibits is buzzing, with a cool and sleek vibe. I was immediately struck by just how much food there was to pick from! There is a large buffet boat in the middle of the restaurant with a vast array of different foods, delicious aromas wafting from every dish. There’s a modern ambiance, with various areas upstairs and down to sit and eat, including the option to eat outside weather permitting.
Definitely go on a Tuesday if you can, when everything is Vegan! Tibits is a great option for a special dinner out, if you’re wanting to indulge a bit and go all out with the buffet; equally you could also grab a to-go box and get a fresh and varied dinner to take-away; or any variation in-between! It’s super tempting to pile your plate with every delicious item you see (aka everything) so it could get pricey – just something to keep in mind.
I was fortunate enough to attend an event to try out the Vegan Tuesday buffet at Tibits, which was a real treat! So I was able to indulge in a lot more food than I normally would have been able to afford, but can tell you that everything I tried was absolutely delicious!
I would recommend doing a lap of the whole food boat to see what catches your eye.
I decided to go for a global theme on my plate, and though it was quite a wide array of diverse foods, it all worked really well together:
Somehow I found room for pudding! I went for the:
Have you been to Tibits? What were some of your favourite dishes to try?
A simple baked tahini tempeh recipe served in a colourful and nutrient-dense stir-fry bowl. If you haven’t tried tempeh before, this is a quick and easy introduction! My Discovery If you’ve never heard of tempeh, you’re certainly not alone! It took me ages to finally …