The Warwick Student’s Guide to Veganuary

After weeks of over-indulgence during the festive period, for many people New Year’s resolutions will involve cutting back on the sweet treats and eating a few more greens (excluding Quality Street green triangles). However, some people are going one step further by signing up for Veganuary, a campaign which encourages people to adopt a vegan diet throughout January.  By New Year’s Eve, 52,000 people in the UK had signed up for the challenge.

Whether for health reasons, ethical concerns, or a fondness for falafels, there’s no better opportunity for the veggie-curious to give veganism a spin and Warwick is an excellent place to do so, especially with the Boar Lifestyle’s handy guide, packed full of info on the best places to eat on campus and in Leamington, with recommendations from some of Warwick’s wisest vegan students.

Campus

With every campus outlet now providing delicious vegan options, there is an abundance of choice for those following a vegan diet, making dining on campus easier than ever.

When it comes to lunch, the cafes have you covered. The Humanities Café, Social Sciences Cafe, and Café Library offer at least one vegan sandwich, including my personal favourite, the vegan sausage. If I’m lucky enough to spot one of these on the shelf all other lunch plans are abandoned.

However, the shining star for vegans is without doubt the Oculus Café which has become a veggie haven. From its ‘falafelicious sandwich’ to its vegan hot dogs, the Oculus has countless vegan options which are far from restrictive. Maya Kokerov, a second-year Philosophy and Literature student who serves as Warwick Vegetarian and Vegan Society’s Campaigns Manager, comments: “The new Oculus Café is a fantastic improvement since last year for vegans to frequent; it’s almost purely vegetarian and has a wide range of filling food to choose from- not just salad or fruit.” All warm drinks can also be made vegan with a choice of milk alternatives including soya and almond.

On the subject of warm drinks, it would be rude not to mention Curiositea. Each of its standard drinks can be made vegan upon request, as well as the majority of their wacky and wonderful weekly specials. It also serves as a perfect vegan lunch spot as they offer a hummus and chutney bagel and regularly stock vegan cakes; recent sweet offerings include a vegan chocolate orange cake – what more could you ask for?

As for campus restaurants, the vegan options are also abundant. The Dirty Duck offers a mushroom and spinach rogan josh and a falafel wrap, as well as their first vegan dessert, a raspberry sorbet. In Bar Fusion, vegans can tuck into a sweet potato & white bean chilli and in Xananas, vegans can feast on a spicy bean burger. Xananas’ full English breakfast can also be made vegan (hungover post-Pop! breakfast, anyone?). Jill Lupupa, also a second-year Philosophy and Literature student, comments: “For me the best place to eat on campus is Bar Fusion if you’re looking for a great aesthetic environment with a good view and location, my friends and I always eat here.”

Leamington Spa

After the tragic closure of The Coffee Box, the ethically-sourced jewel in Leamington’s culinary crown, one may think that eating out has become a chore for vegans. However, fear not Leam-dwellers, for this is certainly not the case.

Tucked away on Regent’s Place (just a stone’s throw from Iceland) is The Garden Shed Café. The first wholly vegan café in Warwickshire, Coventry and Birmingham when it opened in 2009, the café serves a huge selection of vegan soups and sandwiches as well as a mouth-watering selection of cakes and pastries. Fourth-year Physics student Lucy Holland, who is the President of Warwick’s Vegetarian and Vegan Society, cites this café as her favourite haunt in town: “In Leamington my favourite place to eat is the Garden Shed Café. Everything there is vegan so there is loads of choice and it’s all delicious.”

If you’re after something a little more substantial, Basement Browns is a Mecca for vegans. Think vegans are deprived of the joy of pizza? Think again. Basement Browns offers pizzas made with vegan mozzarella and even vegan meat. I doubt omnivores would even know the difference. Second-year Global Sustainable Development and Sociology student Grace-Emily Kelsey comments: “In Basement Browns the pizza place they have vegan chorizo which tastes like the real thing…and you get three free dipping sauces! Very yum.”

Additionally, we all know and love Leamington’s array of independent coffee shops, and the vast majority of these are home to vegan delights. Notably, Coffee Architects strives to provide vegan alternatives to nearly all the items on its menu and ZouBisou serves scrumptious vegan cakes.

Also worth a mention are the numerous restaurant chains that feature in Leamington, the majority of which offer delicious options for vegans. For example, Wetherspoons’ sweet potato, chickpea, and spinach curry and Zizzi’s vegan pizza. Lucy Holland recommends Zizzi’s to anyone participating in Veganuary, stating: “The cheese is really good and there’s a nice range of toppings. Plus it’s super easy to order off the vegan menu and your plate comes out with a “vegan” sticker on so you know you’ve got the right thing.”

With 542,000 vegans in the UK, and an additional 52,000 people participating in Veganuary, the vegan diet is more popular than ever, and for Warwick students it’s easier than ever too.

So go on, treat yourself to a soya hot chocolate or a vegan pizza to combat those January blues, it’ll be almost guilt free.