Vegan Amsterdam (2024)

05/11/2024

Straight outta Belgium - these thin chocolate slices to put on bread! Made of dark chocolate, 60% cocoa. Now available in Dutch supermarkets as well! At Albert Heijn and Jumbo.

21/10/2024

Relatively new at Albert Heijn, this savoury puff pastry pie filled with masala spiced vegetables (carrot, pea, green bean, tomato, onion).

They also have empanadas 'Surinaamse Masala' with a similar filling - masala spiced pumpkin, yardlong bean, carrot, pea, onion.

Both make for a fast lunch or snack!

13/10/2024

ANIMAL RIGHTS BOOKS AT THE OBA 📖 The public library in Amsterdam has a bunch of interesting books worth checking out! Animal rights philosophy CLASSICS from the OG's Tom Regan and Peter Singer, but also the more recent groundbreaking work Zoopolis (Sue Donaldson & Will Kymlicka).

Various vegan cookbooks from long time ago to more recent, like Taart ende Koeck (Maartje Borst), Patisserie Coucou (Enzo Pérès-Labourdette) and currently on display Het Korean Vegan kookboek (Joanne Lee Molinaro).

Also the novel De Instructies (2024) from journalist/author Carolina Trujillo, which is about animal rights activism. From writer Jeroen Siebelink they have his recent book De Dierenbevrijders, about the history of the Dierenbevrijdingsfront (Dutch ALF). Aaand much more! Some of the books are to be found on the shelf, others are available from other branches or from the depot.

07/10/2024

Indian streetfood take-away but completely vegetarian and with many vegan options! Sab Di Hatti combines tropical grocery store with take-away. There's a vegan section on the menu with complete meals (Vegan Butter Chicken, Chana Bhatura, Soya Chaap Masala etc.). Also several other snacks and dishes on the menu are vegan and clearly marked as such (Samosa, Pani Puri, Aloo Paratha, Jalebi etc.).

Sab Di Hatti is located near metro Ganzenhoef, Amsterdam Zuid-Oost. Open every day.

https://www.veganamsterdam.org/sab-di-hatti/

29/09/2024

10 YEARS OF VEGAN AMSTERDAM! 🙌 First post in 2014 on this very same day. 🙏 Let me take you back to how it started... At the time I was working at restaurant De Bolhoed (RIP) and from time to time I would be called out of the kitchen to write down some tips about vegan stuff in Amsterdam for some customers. This led to the idea for a website providing all such useful info. Information which I was equally looking for when travelling. Not just restaurant information but also info about any vegan / animal rights related stuff going on! From a strong local perspective, because for most of us that's how we experience our day to day lives (especially in Amsterdam!). I'm proud of the platform I eventually created, balancing between being a journalist and hype man of the vegan scene. 🙌😂 Always non-commercial and bu****it free.

Over the years a lot has changed in Amsterdam, veganism is much more known and much more accessible to people. Something we could forget when we hear about yet another vegan place closing. I remember years ago Viva Las Vega's (now Pro-Veg) published a paper map, which indicated not only vegan-friendly restaurants, but also the few places in town which would offer plant-based milk for your coffee (and back then the default vegan milk was soy milk!). Nowadays it's rare if a place doesn't have plant-based milk. That is just one example and I'm sure you've witnessed the changes too.

But ultimately it's not about the products and the restaurants. It's about creating meaningful change for the animals, for veganism is not just a diet. It's a liberation struggle, a movement for social justice. This is a long-term game and me personally, I'm in it for that. This year also marks my 20 year vegan anniversary. Which doesn't mean too much for me. I just went vegan (best decision of my life) and stayed vegan. 🤷‍♂️

For the coming months I have some exciting additions to the website planned, I will keep you posted at the time! In the meanwhile don't hesitate to get in touch about any vegan scoops, tips on how to go vegan, link you to activist groups, cooking advice (10 years later I'm still a chef 🫡) or ideas to help veganism in Amsterdam grow. Grateful for this community, thank you to anybody who helped me out! I hope to inspire you to find your own way to make a change for the animals. 🔥 Armain

Photo: https://dop-art.com/

26/09/2024

They veganised slachtafval (offal)! 🙏😂 This vegan spam from US vegan brand Unmeat is actually not so bad! Three year expiry date, perfect for trips and kitchen pantry.

Available at supermarket Dirk. Price €2,49

24/09/2024

V E G A N C H E E S E 🌿 Ever since the closure of both the Vegabond and Willicroft store, there are few places to find quality vegan cheese in town. Recently VEGA-LIFE decided to fill that gap so now they have a whole fridge packed with different artisanal brands from Germany, Switzerland, France, Italy and Spain!

🧀 Vegan brie, blue cheese, smoked ricotta, 'goat' cheese, aged cheese with plant-based chorizo and a lot more!

They also stocked up on other vegan food products, like the chocolates from Booja Booja and other sweets.

19/09/2024

🌈 At this smoothiebowl and juice bar everything is vegan! Rainbowls is located in De Pijp in the quiet and pretty Frans Halsstraat. They exist now for six years. They are specialised in smoothiebowls in all colours of the rainbow, but also offer chia pudding, cakes, cold-pressed juices, ginger shots, coffees etc.

Open every day of the week, during daytime.

https://www.veganamsterdam.org/rainbowls/

15/09/2024

👀 All vegan fastfood place Karma Kebab is coming to Amsterdam! They are already located in Utrecht and will now open at this spot close to Leidseplein. You might recognise the location - vegan burgerbar The Sunny Burger Co. used to be here before.

They specialise in their homemade kebab, made from wheat protein and celeriac. On the menu they have several pita dishes and loaded fries dishes with it. Besides that they also offer side snacks, like bitterballen and rendang croquettes.

Karma Kebab started originally as a foodtruck at festivals. In 2022 they opened their own restaurant (aka ‘festival food bar’) in the south of Utrecht.

📍 Karma Kebab
Leidsekruisstraat 10
Official opening: Thursday September 26

13/09/2024

S E I T A N P O W D E R You can make seitan totally from scratch, just with wheat flour. A time consuming process but quite satisfying, and handy if you're somewhere with few vegan options, like abroad. A nice shortcut however is to just use seitan powder aka gluten powder (because that's what seitan is, wheat protein = gluten).

🧑‍🍳 The nice thing about making your own is you can give it any flavour you like. Recommended are ingredients rich in flavour (and umami) like fried onion and garlic, roasted shiitake, tomato paste, nutritional yeast, soy sauce, spices like smoked paprika powder etc. For a more tender texture many recipes add tofu or chickpea flour to the mix. One recommended way to prepare it is to roll the dough into little sausages in aluminium foil. Steam these for 30 minutes and you're good to go!

This brand of seitan powder is available in the vegan section of some bigger Jumbo supermarkets. Price €2,89
(If you know any other stores in Amsterdam which are selling it let us know!)

12/09/2024

National demonstration against bullfighting, Amsterdam last Saturday! It was organised by Vegan Strike Group, and participated by CAS International. The march went from Central Station to the Spanish Consulate at Frederiksplein, where several speeches were given.

Apart from in Spain, bullfighting also still happens in several other countries: Portugal, France, Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela and Peru. Colombia recently banned bullfighting, the new law will come into effect from 2027.

(Photos: Willemien van de Stouwe, Peter Janssen, CAS International)

08/09/2024

🇮🇹 Italian wholesale foodstore NOVITALIA recently moved to a new location, still at Houthavens. They are open not just for companies but also for private individuals! You'll find plenty of products that are hard to find in supermarkets or Italian foodstores because the assortment is pretty big.

Obviously a lot of pasta including more rare ones (e.g. toasted fregola, 50 cm long 'candele' pasta, delicately shaped 'chicche di patate' type gnocchi). Typical Italian vegetables like cicoria or friarielli/cime di rapa (unfortunately not fresh though). Flours, beans, condiments, olive oil, softdrinks (Chinotto!), alcohol, sweets. Even pizza shovels and gastro trays for if you actually have an Italian restaurant! 👨‍🍳

📍 Novitalia
Nieuwe Hemweg 1
Open:
Mon-Sat 09:30 - 18:00

03/09/2024

Open since July - the second location of Margo’s Amsterdam! Owners Margo and Ayden started their vegan pastry shop in 2021 in the Jordaan. Specialising in viennoiserie but also offering sub sandwiches (from homemade bread rolls) and specialty coffee. They got so popular they started looking for an additional and bigger location!

The second Margo's is located on a corner at Bellamyplein, Oud-West. Here they're still offering the full range of laminated baked goods, plus a savoury 'croissant sandwich', more coffee options as well as some merchandise. But the biggest difference is that there's much more space to sit inside! From there you can get a sneak peek into the new bakery kitchen, which is located in the back.

The square in front of the store has a small park with lovely seating (especially in summer).

📍 Margo's Bellamy
Bellamyplein 18 HS
Open: Mon-Fri 08:00 - 16:00
Sat-Sun 09:00 - 17:00

01/09/2024

Bastani but make it vegan! 🇮🇷 This famous traditional Persian icecream is made with saffron and rosewater, topped with pistachio nuts.

It’s also often used in Iran to make an icecream float, by simply putting a scoop of the icecream in a glass of carrot juice! 😮🤩

Available at nightstore Sterk.
Price €6,95

29/08/2024

New! 'Drop & Mint ballen' from Wilhelmina. Soft from the inside, slight crunch on the outside. Half of the bag are liquorice balls, the other half peppermint balls. Also available in the flavour 'Fruit & Mint ballen'.

Famous Dutch peppermint brand Wilhelmina decided a few years ago to make their classic peppermints vegan! Most if not all of their products are vegan nowadays. You can find them in most regular supermarkets.

25/08/2024

👀 Coming soon - Amsterdam franchise of Paris based vegan burger joint Greenfarmersvegan! In Paris they have just one location (near Montmartre). They have plans to open up more restaurants and Amsterdam will be the next!

Their menu offers fastfood like various burgers, fries, nuggets etc. But also a chili sin carne, green curry, vegetable soup and many salads.

https://greenfarmers-vegan.com/en/

24/08/2024

This week in Het Parool - spotlight on the new location of Margo’s Amsterdam at Bellamyplein! "Ons doel is om dingen te maken die zo lekker zijn dat wel of niet vegan er niet toe doet."

Also at this second location they're open every day of the week. New here is that there's much more place to sit down.

20/08/2024

New recipe - 'Lay's Patatje Joppie' chips are vegan now! 'Joppiesaus' is a Dutch sauce (originally from Twente) you can find in many snackbars as a condiment for potato fries.

Available ribbed or normal. At Albert Heijn and Jumbo.

Vegan Amsterdam