Vegan Eats Nottingham Part 2

During the trip to Nottingham we managed to fit in visits to Alley Cafe bar on both the Friday and the Sunday! I'd had the breakfast on my last visit there and great as it was (the scrambled tofu is really amazing, I think they use smoked tofu), whilst Matt opted for that again I went for the sausage sandwich. They use good quality sausages (Redwood's Sage and Marjoram) with vegan mayo, caramelized onions and salad on thick, soft, granary bread. The perfect thing to enjoy whilst  huddled inside from the torrential downpours that were engulfing the East Midlands.


Once we finished our brunch we were joined by friends Jeff and Jane for a cake off! Starting from 12 o'clock and moving clockwise - Jeff choose Chai Lemon Sponge with icecream, Matt had Chocolate Torte, I had Chocolate Biscuit Cake with icecream and Jane went for Peach Cheesecake. Whilst the menu at Alley Cafe is vegetarian and vegan, ALL of the cakes are vegan so I got to try a bit of each. They were all good but it was decided that the guys just edged in front with their choices. The Chai Lemon being my favourite.


We headed back on Sunday before catching our train, excited at the thought of the Vegan Sunday lunch. To our disappointment it wasn't being served that Sunday though. The disappointment didn't last long though as we had two excellent sandwiches. At the back is the Smokey Tempeh burger and at the forefront of the picture is a Smoked Tofu and roasted pepper bagel.


The burger came with some wedges and we ordered an extra portion as the bagel came with salad. When I saw this huge bowl I was a bit worried we'd ordered too much but they soon went and were seriously some of the nicest wedges I've had.


There was just enough room to squeeze in soy lattes and a shared cake. I'm not gluten free but I try to not too eat too much and I've been enjoying exploring gluten free baking recently. This is a rich, dense chocolate brownie that was packed with hazelnuts and served with icecream. It definitely held it's own against the non gluten free cakes we tried on Friday.


I really like Alley Cafe. The atmosphere is relaxed, food lovely and fresh and customer service is good. In fact I am dreaming of that Tempeh burger as I write. I wish they would open a branch in Manchester!

Comments

  1. omgoshimvegan14 July 2012 at 18:08

    I love the idea of a cake off. Think I see one in my future.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Joey15 July 2012 at 18:56

    OK, you work on getting them to open a branch in Manchester, I'll do the same for London! There can never be enough cafes serving good vegan cake in the world - am really impressed that even though they're a veggie cafe, they do al vegan puddings. It's a tough choice, but I think I'd go for the Chai Lemon...

    I rarely eat tempeh and I enjoy eating it even less - do you make it at home? If so, what's the secret to good tempeh? I feel like I'm lacking some special vegan powers by not getting it...!

    ReplyDelete
  3. vegan.in.brighton16 July 2012 at 14:53

    I really need to visit Nottingham! Those cakes look amazing & I could devour that bowl of wedges right now.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tea and Sympatico16 July 2012 at 20:54

    Joey, I think the secret to good tempeh is liquid smoke, at least my favourite way to eat is as tempeh rashers using the recipes in Vegan with a Vengeance or Vegan Brunch either in a breakfast, TLT or chopped up in potato salad. I've been eaking out my supply I brought back from New York a few years ago and it's running outalthough I think it is possible to buy it online these days

    ReplyDelete

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