All posts tagged: vegan blog

#324 A piece of vegan cake at Vero Caffè, Brugge (2)

restaurant review #324 – Vero Vaffè is a coffee and lunch house in Bruges. It is located in the heart of the city, but nonetheless on a very quiet square, away from the crowded masses on the market and other busy streets. It had been a couple of years since I visited Vero Caffè in Brugge (see review here) and there weren’t that many vegan options then. This review is from a visit in 2021 (Yes, I know I’m late with posting this – I’m still catching up on many restaurant reviews 😉

#321 Nice salad and pasta, Eetcafé ‘t Folk, Dranouter

restaurant review #321 – Eetcafé ‘t Folk is part of Muziekcentrum Dranouter, where concerts and other music events are organised. Dranouter is well known for its yearly Folk festival, which takes place just around the corner. We were at Eetcafé ‘t Folk for lunch a couple of weeks ago, and went for a bikeride in the beautiful area. This part of Flanders is more sloped, with small hills, which are very popular with cyclists and also feature in cycling races.

#320 Nice fast lunch at Loving Hut, Louvain La Neuve

restaurant review #320 – Loving Hut is worldwide chain of vegan restaurants. They can either be small lunch places, take away restos or full size restaurants, depending on the local manager. We have visited many branches of Loving Hut restaurants over the years, in Leuven, Brighton, New York, Maastricht, … What they all have in common is they don’t serve any alcohol, and they follow or are inspired by ‘Supreme Master’ Ching Hai. We have no interest in the latter, but only go for the vegan food!

#303 Traditional vegan dishes and dame blanche! Groenendijk Weert, Bornem

restaurant review #303 – Groenendijk Weert is a traditional restaurant/brasserie along the river Scheldt, in Weert/Bornem. There is a seperate vegan menu of the month with traditional vegan dishes like vegan vol au vent and vegan stew (stoverij). We had made a reservation this Summer on the Belgian national holiday (July 21) and that seemed really necessary. It was fully booked for lunch and several patrons were turned a way.

#212 Disappointing fastfood at vegan hipster place By Chloe, London

restaurant review #212 – By Chloe is an American chain of vegan fastfood restaurants. It has two locations in London. We went to the one in the Theater district (Covent Garden) during our last London trip (to visit VegfestUK). By Chloe is selfservice (order at counter, go pick your food up at counter, and clean up yourself). People at the counter were very friendly. We had the meat balls with pesto (£9,60), and toast with smashed avocado, cauliflower and radish (£8,40). That was a very awkward tasting combination. Fries on the side were airfried (£4). I was amazed by the amount of waste that was produced in the restaurant (also a lot of plastic). Not really big portions too, and all in all quite expensive. We found the seatings to be very uncomfortable, and there was loud music. Nice 70’s-80’s music though, I think we were the only ones at the restaurant who were actually around when this music was aired on the radio (lots of millenials on the tables around us) 😉. The place …

#197 Loved it! Lunch (twice!) at vegan resto Wulf & Lamb, London

restaurant review #197 – Wulf & Lamb is a vegan restaurant in the city center of London. It is located south of Hyde park, about a 10 minute walk south from shopping gigant Harrods and west from Buckingham Palace (just mentionning these as a geographical reference, not as an endorsement of any kind 😉 ). We went here twice during our trip to London a couple of months ago (Spring 2018). There are only a handfull of places downstairs (some tables, and a bar-like area with higher chairs). There’s also an upstairs area, but that was not accessible (did not see an elevator, only stairs). The interior is bright and stylish, very modern and everything seemed new. The menu is noted on the large boards above the counter. When we arrived for lunch the first time, the breakfast menu was still up, but was soon changed into the lunch menu. One goes up to the counter to place an order, pays at the counter, and then the food is served at your table. So much …

#196 Will not visit again. A vegan bite at pub The Lab, Maastricht

restaurant review #196 – The Lab is a restaurant in the city center of Maastricht, with some vegan options. Actually, it is more a pub/cocktail bar, than a real restaurant, with loud music and a dark, hipster pub atmosphere. It seemed very popular with students. We visited at the end of June, when we were on a holiday in the area. I doubted whether I would post this review on my blog, as The Lab is not a place that I recommend. But then again, I think it is also important to share less favourable experiences (see this blogpost: a critical note on vegan friendly places? don’t you dare) It is very rare that I am thoroughly disappointed about a place. As is the case here. When we came in, the first thing we noticed was a very strong ‘toilet’ odour (and not in a favourable way). There were still plenty of tables available and we could choose a table to sit. You can compose your bowl or choose from one of the available options. The …

#110 Wok with vegs and seitan at De Twijfelaar, Bruges

restaurant review #110 – De Twijfelaar is a bistro in the city center of Bruges, near the Dyver. It is a family run bistro: the lady of the house serves the restaurant and her partner operates the kitchen. De Twijfelaar literally means ‘a person who is always in doubt’. It can also refer to a type of bed that is a bit larger than a one person bed, but too small for two persons. Maybe that refers to the size of the restaurant, as it is (as is the case with so many old buildings in Bruges) a bit of a peculiar shape, wider in front and more narrow in the back (not really a small dining room, but not really a big space too). We went here for dinner a couple of weeks ago. I had e-mailed them some months ago and had gotten confirmation that they have a dish with vegetables that can be made vegan. I asked again for vegan when making the reservation and it was said to be no problem. De …

Adding stars to my restaurant reviews

I have been contemplating this for a while, but decided to finally add stars to the restaurant reviews on The Bruges Vegan. (update Fall 2017: I stopped doing this – see below). In favour of adding stars: It is an easy way to give an ‘overall’ impression of a restaurant I can add it to the title of the restaurant review, so that immediately gives you an indication of our experience (either good or bad). Against adding stars: I find it difficult to score on a 5 star scale (but halves would complicate it too much) I feel al lot of places will fall in the 3 to 4 category People might only judge by the given star, and not read the review anymore (if they ever did 😉 ) A score is a medium of different aspects: food, comfort, service, hygiene, opening hours, etc. Foodwise it might be a 5 star, but comfortwise it might only be a 1 star, so that levels the score. My rating may change over time, as my assessment also evolves the more …