Vegan à Montréal

Every year’s Vegan MoFo alerts me to a number of new/established blogs I immediately become obsessed with, but I think this year’s was extra-special. You might know that one half (if you don’t count Buhbah) of us VOTMers is Canadian, and I am particularly fond of French Canada since I spent thirteen years in French Immersion. Tragically, my French isn’t anywhere near it should be, but after visiting my little sister, who is a resident of Montréal, and applying for a couple of jobs in the city that gave rise to Leonard Cohen, I’m pretty stoked on Montréal, and French.

The author of Vegan à Montréal, Babette, is a native Quebecer whose French language blog is full of vegan recipe reviews, vegan food, guides to the vegan goodness to be found in Montréal, and much more. Luckily for us, Babette is also fluent in English, and graciously answered some questions about her blog and vegan life in French Canada.

Veganomicon's Penne Vodka, made by Babette.

VOTM: When and why did you start your blog?

Babette: I started my blog two years ago, in October of 2009. I had been reading vegan blogs for a couple of years, and these blogs were mostly written by Americans and other English-speaking people. There were very few vegan blogs from Montreal and elsewhere in Québec, and most of them were in English. I thought I could create a French blog that could be used as a reference for aspiring vegans who speak French. It sometimes can be a hassle, when it is at all possible, to look up information in English, and I feel this might discourage people who want to embrace veganism. I didn’t want to publish a blog without pictures, so as soon as I got a digital camera, I started Vegan à Montréal. At first, it was really mostly to help people know veganism, but as time passed, I came to enjoy writing my blog more and more. Sometimes I even feel like I am a little obsessed with it.

VOTM: What is it like being a vegan in Montreal? How has the vegan scene evolved?

Montreal is great for vegans. Since 1997, we have an all-vegan restaurant called Aux Vivres, and a couple of other vegan restaurants have opened since then. Unfortunately, most of them are located downtown or in the Plateau (Montreal’s trendy neighbourhood)… I wish they were spread all over the city, or just around the corner of my house, but hey, I am not going to complain! We also have a lot of vegetarian places, and they all offer vegan options. Other than that, there are standard restaurants that offer decent vegan options, but there are also places where you have to settle for a green salad or pasta with tomato sauce. Nothing’s perfect.

And I have to mention the opening of Viva Vegan a couple of years ago. This online store carries all sorts of vegan goodies (pizzas, cheeses, candies, beauty products, marshmallows, etc.), and last winter, they opened a physical store in the city. How cool is that! They even have a selection of baked goods like vegan croissants, vegan cupcakes, vegan baklavas, etc. The vegan scene has been evolving in the right direction, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for Montrealers.

Greek Tofu Benedict from Vegan Brunch, made by Babette

VOTM: Since your blog is written in French, where do the majority of your readers come from? Have you made any connections through the French-speaking blogging world?

Most of my readers come from Quebec. But there are also French readers in other parts of the country, as well as readers from France. A few people also told me they read my blog to practice their French. Many people have started their own vegan or vegetarian blog since I started mine, and I hope it sets a trend. I wish there were so many vegan blogs in French that it’d be hard to keep track of them.

VOTM: Why are you vegan? Are you involved in any vegan outreach activities (other than the blog, of course)?

I’m vegan for the ethical reasons—the environment, the animals, etc. I remember when I was 17, I thought being vegan could absolutely not be healthy, even though I had been vegetarian for a couple of years and was open to new information. That’s when I got a computer and Internet access—well, that was more than 10 years ago! I started posting in a vegetarian forum, and there was some guy there who had just turned vegan and he pointed to websites where people could learn the reasons behind veganism. I read about factory farming and learned, among other things, that the hens and cows who produced the eggs and milk I was consuming were not ethically treated, and were eventually killed and transformed into meat. Most importantly, I saw how veganism was totally healthy, and this just confirmed that I had to be vegan, that there was nothing crazy about it. Less than one or two weeks later, I was vegan, and I never turned back. Veganism defines who I am and it really became an integral part of my identity.

As for activism, I go to protests a couple of times a year and I also do outreach activities with animal rights organizations.

VOTM: What is your favourite vegan restaurant option in Montreal?

I would have to say Aux Vivres—they make killer sandwiches like the BLT. Their brunches are wonderful. So are their desserts. I love it! I’m also a big fan of La Panthère verte, an all vegan sandwich joint. I really like their tempeh sandwich and they also sell homemade vegan kefir. And Viva Vegan sells great sandwiches, grilled-cheeze sandwiches, pizza rolls and wonderful pastries. I can’t go there without sampling something.

The amazing chapatis au végépâté from Montreal's Aux Vivres

Thank you so much, Babette!

And with that, happy holidays and thank you for reading our wee blog. We look forward to bring you some exciting content in 2012. 2011 was an amazing year for veganism, and it can only get better. We want to remind you guys that we are dying to hear about your small- or large-scale vegan advocacy/projects where you live! Please email us at vegansonthemove@gmail.com so we can feature you and inspire vegans everywhere.

Go Lightly in New Jersey

Today’s vegan on the move is Jen Chaky, the owner of the Go Lightly store located in Montclair, New Jersey. In addition to a newly expanded cafe, Go Lightly also sells products that are sustainable and green and has played host to a number of bake sales and speakers.

You can get a wide variety of items in the store including baby essentials, handbags, silverware, books or bedding. You can browse the online shop to decide which type of half gallon compost container you need. Jen does a lot of work researching her merchandise so you can be assured there are no PVC or petroleum based products. Many items are made from upcycled materials as well, such as Cagoule mittens made from recycled plastic bottles.

The newly opened cafe has lunch seven days a week and has a rotating menu which can be found on the website. Juices and smoothies are also available and of course the ice cream that has caused such a buzz in the area. The ice creams are hemp or soy based  and flavours rotate. Word on the street is that they have “the fudgiest peanutbutter fudge you’ve ever tried”. With many raw and soy- and gluten- free options Go Lightly is the perfect place to pop in for a snack.

Go Lightly has also hosted the local Montclair Vegans group for their twice yearly bake sales that have raised money for a number of causes including for the Animals sanctuary, Sea Shepherd, Jersey Cats and PawPAC. The store also serves as a meeting space for the group for such events as their regular book club get togethers.

To quote Jen, “In a nutshell, I am here to show people that vegan and green can be the norm!” If you are in the area, take a trip over to Go Lightly and you’ll find how easy it is.

The Dancing Vegans

The Dancing Vegans are two vegans in my frequent home(ish)town of Victoria, BC. One day several of weeks ago, I was perusing the grocery store Market On Yates (it’s a rad store that sells vegan cookbooks at the tills—you’ll often have a Sarah Kramer sighting (I’m so creepy!), and I used to live around the corner from the store in a horrible silverfish-infested apartment with my little sister, and I designed the organic produce department for MOY’s sister store the Market on Millstream and….oh, this isn’t about me. Sorry! Anyway, I came across some spicy sauces in cute little mason jars labelled The Dancing Vegans and duh, I knew I had to track down these (dancing) vegans on the move. Here they are. Thanks so much Bronwynne and Yogev for this extra special vegan MoFo interview! Be inspired! I know I am. And I still have to track down some Dancing Vegans mayo.

VOTM: Who are you, how long have you been vegan, and why did you decide to start the Dancing Vegans?

The Dancing Vegans: We are Bronwynne and Yogev. We met in Thailand at a home for refugee children on the border of Burma and Thailand. The home (Baan Dada Children’s Home) is vegan. I (Bronwynne) have been vegetarian almost my whole life, and vegan on and off over the years. Yogev became vegetarian after staying at Baan Dada Children’s Home. We moved to Canada together (I am from Canada and he is from Israel), got married in March and became vegan together last April.

We started the Dancing Vegans because we want to offer delicious, cheap options to people looking to refrain from consuming any animal products. We noticed that there are not a lot of options for vegans looking for sauces here in Victoria, so we decided to try to make a few different things.

VOTM: What products does your business offer?

TDV: We offer vegan mayo, dips, sauces, pasta, and baked goods. We are always trying new recipes and creating new dishes. People in the Victoria area can email or call us to place an order, which will be delivered (by bicycle) to them.

VOTM: What has the response been? What are your plans for the future of the business?

TDV: The response has been good so far. The first time we sold any thing was in Fernfest, a celebration of the Fernwood community here in Victoria. The response there was amazing, everyone asked where they could get our products. Now we have our chili sauces at the Market on Yates. Our ultimate goal is to sell our products to people directly, that way we can offer an affordable price as well as recipes so that the people can make it for themselves in the future. Eventually (after traveling for a little while) we want to open a vegan café, maybe here in Victoria or somewhere else on the west coast of BC.

VOTM: What advice do you have for other “vegans on the move” hoping to launch their own startup and offer great vegan products?

TDV: Don’t try to fill your food with imitation meat products. Nature offers us everything we need to stay healthy and create amazing food! Use natural ingredients and people will always love your products.

VOTM: Finally (a random), what’s your favourite vegan meal?

TDV: Something that we love making is a dish we also loved eating in Thailand. It’s called Som Tam (green papaya salad). It’s spicy, fresh and makes a great side or main dish.

Panda With Cookie

Panda Cookie came up with the idea for Vegans on the Move, but she herself has long been a model vegan moving. Maybe you’ve noticed our plush vegan stir-fry monster ambassadors on the blog’s background? Those are Panda creations.

If Oprah had been smart enough to give these out to her lucky audience members, cats would have already taken over the world. Meet "The Buhbah".

The history of my friendship with Panda Cookie goes like this: We meet on the PPK, and she amuses me with her wonderful humour (with a U) and raps. Then I hear about her Panda With Cookie Etsy shop, and my life is never the same. Suddenly, I own multiple monsters, several hilarious zines, an Asparagarr, and Panda sends Buhbah his very own (first) catnip carrot. The catnip carrot, now named The Buhbah, is probably one of the best things to enter my life. I’m not even kidding. You can hear Buhbah talk about it (among a great many other things) here.

Yes, your couch is sad that it is not home to a giant tofu pirate.

My little sister now has a giant tofu monster pillow to snuggle with. A wonderful friend ordered some Rocky Road brownies (from Panda’s bake shop) and more Panda Cookie plushes for my birthday. When I see a package from Asheville in the mail, I know my days is about to rule. We have a duck (Quackers), a horse (Figgles), a wizard (CaDaBra), two wee monsters (It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue; and Hot Chocolate), a little green monster (Mossy), and more.

Peter! He is mine!

Panda brought her business to Vida Vegan Con this past summer (where I won a bid on Peter the Pig, who Panda donated for a silent auction benefiting Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary), and after that, she drove up with me to Salt Spring Island where she presented Buhbah with his second, freshly catnipped carrot.

My yet-to-be-born niece or nephew will be wearing a monster onesie, oh yes.

I can’t guarantee you’ll get that kind of unrivaled customer service, but I can easily say that Panda With Cookie products are lovingly sewed and uniquely designed plushies, delicious baked goods, humourous zines, and whatever new creations Panda has up her black and white furry sleeves. My sister and one of my closest friends are pregnant, and I’m impatiently waiting for them to pop so I can order up some PWC onesies and t-shirts.

Who doesn't need a candy corn plush in his/her life?

Halloween is around the corner and all of those other holidays soon to follow, so this is the best time to order some mellowcreme candy pumpkins, pirate ghosts, aprons, onesies and maybe a giant pirate tofu block of your own. I can’t even begin to tell you how passionate I am about supporting wonderful, creative, independent, talented artists, and fortunately, all PWC products are Buhbah-approved.

I asked Panda if she wanted to include any brilliant quotes for my write-up, and she provided two cracker quotes (Masterchef Australia has me calling everything a cracker): 1) ”chops cabbage thinly, yes I do” (Panda is an expert cabbage chopper. I went out to pick up my boyfriend while we were making dinner together and when I came back the cabbage was shredded perfectly and uniformly. It was magnificent.) and 2) “5 out of 5 cats like panda with cookie best! They know she’s a sucker who will pet them for hours on end.” (It’s true!).

Buhbah endorses Panda With Cookie Products.

Crystal, Vegan on the Move

Crystal is our featured Mofo Vegan on the Move today. She has a relatively new blog this year and decided to join the Mofo ranks with Naked Vegan Lunch. Crystal and her partner Trevor live in London, Ontario, with their two cats and fully vegan fridge. She agreed to answer a few of our questions about blogging, shelter cats and cooking for the non-vegan.

How long have you been vegan?
3 years.  It feels like forever, though, because I can’t imagine being any other way.

What sort of vegan outreach do you participate in?    I believe that the most effective outreach is being a knowledgable and positive resource for people.  Everyone has known someone who knew some vegan who was a real downer to be around, or who was allegedly really unhealthy.  I think the best thing I can do is to help change that perception with the people around me and within my community.  I aim to be really passionate about that in a way that comes across to people as a really positive thing.  I want to show people that it’s not difficult or limiting to be vegan.  Oh, and that the perception of the sickly vegan who is barely surviving on twigs and berries is totally not the way things are.

Tell us about the blog you are mofoing at and what its focus is.     Naked Vegan Lunch started at the beginning of 2011.  I’ve been a reader of MoFo since 2008, but now that I’m a blogger, I wanted to participate.  Our ongoing theme throughout the weeks is veganizing traditional Hungarian dishes.  I’m half Hungarian and my love of cooking really started as a young girl in my grandma’s kitchen.  It seemed fitting to pay tribute to that for my first MoFo.

Why did you choose to do mofo this year?   It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.  I signed up last year but got cold feet last minute.  Cold feet over what?  I’m not really sure, but it seemed like a lot of work and more of a commitment than I could make with my then non-existent blog.  This year, I decided to just run towards the challenge, and just do it already.

What’s your favorite vegan thing to make for skeptical non-vegans?   Something sweet!  I think a lot of people have this idea that veganism doesn’t include things like brownies and cupcakes.  Presenting someone with a cupcake is about an unoffensive as it gets.  Once people start nomming, their response is usually “This is vegan?  Wow, you wouldn’t even know!  I thought vegans only ate salad.”

Are your cats from local animal shelters? Tell me about them.    My two kitties are indeed shelter kitties!  Gershwin has been part of our family since 2003.  Trevor and I had just moved to Toronto and I knew that I needed the companionship of a cat to help me settle in my new surroundings.  The shelter was filled with gorgeous cats and we really loved them all.  However, when we set eyes on Gershwin (that was his name in the shelter), it was like, “That’s our cat.”  It was love at first sight.  Same thing with Tristan (also his shelter name), my little ginger snuggler who came to live with us in May 2010 at just 6 weeks old.  He was in a local rescue foster home with other cats.  I saw him on Petfinder, and again it was like, “That’s my baby.”  So we went and picked him up, and now the 4 of us are inseperable.  I plan on getting a tattoo at some point to honour the impact that they’ve both had on my life.

Wingbean

Wingbean is a new all vegan food delivery service operating in Asheville, NC. Each week they have a new menu posted on their website and orders are accepted through Friday. Come Monday morning their delivery fleet heads out to drop off orders throughout the area. So when you come home that evening you have delicious, all vegan food waiting right on your doorstep. Food comes in insulated bags to ensure freshness for up to eight hours.

Wingbean is a collaboration between partners Pamela Lalik and Scott Myers. Pamela has been cooking and blogging in the vegan community for many years and Scott has been a small business owner for seven years.  The Asheville area has a great program through Blue Ridge Food Ventures that allows aspiring business owners use of an industrial kitchen and also advice for navigating the ins and outs of running a food centered venture.

Ginger cabbage deliciousness

In late July the Wingbean website went live and a week later the first orders went out. Menus rotate weekly and although some dishes repeat thus far most have been different. Each single order consists of 3 entrees, 4 side dishes, a large soup, and a small dessert. Pamela and Scott focus on using local and organic ingredients whenever possible and are able to offer orders that are gluten free.

Wingbean provides an excellent alternative to families or individuals who are trying to eat better and fresher food but may not have the time to get themselves in the kitchen. Check out their Facebook page to keep up with announcements and if you’re in the Asheville area you can order directly from their menu page.

Lou: Featured Vegan on the Move

Lou with Molly at for the Animals sanctuary in New Jersey

Lou is one of those people we love here at Vegans on the Move. She’s volunteered at Farm Sanctuary, currently volunteers at for the Animals Sanctuary, helps run her college veg group and regularly gets her bake on to help raise money for some worthy causes. All while being a full time student.

VOTM: How long did you volunteer at Farm Sanctuary and at which location?  Why did you decide to volunteer there?

Lou: I was a shelter intern at Farm Sanctuary’s Watkins Glen, NY shelter for 3 months and on staff as a live-in caregiver for 4 more months until I left my job to move back home and start school.  I decided to volunteer there because I was taking a gap year after high school and wanted to spend it doing something worthwhile to help animals. I had done some things in high school to indirectly help animals, but wanted to experience what it was like to work with them directly.

VOTM: What sort of  jobs and chores did you have while there?

Lou: Typically, in the morning I would feed the animals, make sure the ruminants (goats, sheep, cows) had enough hay, give everyone fresh clean water, medicate some of the chickens and pigs… then I got a two-hour lunch break before going back in the afternoon to do it all over again, clean up/compost any leftover feed, top off waters, and as it started getting dark out help make sure everyone (birds and rabbits anyway) was in for the night to protect from any predators.

VOTM: What were your favorite things about being at Farm Sanctuary?

Lou: It was wonderful being able to directly work with animals and make bonds with them as friends, not as food. Every time I see a chicken stretch her wings out it looks like it feels so good, and I love watching it… then I am reminded that if she were still in the battery cage she was probably rescued from, she would not be able to have that simple pleasure. Even when things got rough, whether I was feeling too exhausted, homesick, or there was just a bit of drama with my housemates, all I had to do was go visit some of my favorite animals and feel the serenity of the farm.

VOTM: Can you tell me a bit about the college veg group you are involved with?

Lou: I am currently the vice president of the Vegetarian Education Group at Kutztown University. It had been an inactive group and got reactivated the semester before I started. The president, Letecia Garcia, and I were both instrumental in getting it back off the ground and doing things on campus. Right we can be found on Facebook.

VOTM: What sort of activities has the group focused on?

Lou: We’ve done a lot of bake sales, which serve both to raise money for the group and to raise awareness about vegan food on campus. We started selling on a donations basis, so students could try a vegan baked good for as little as one cent, to help entice them to try our delicious goodies. I’m a big fan of baketivism, because it’s such a positive form of activism! No one will hate you if you’re offering them cupcakes. We have also had movie nights, which we try to switch up between fiction films and documentaries… we’ve shown Frankenstein, I Am an Animal, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and Health with Humanity. We’d like to bring in more speakers and have cooking demos on campus as well. We try to keep the group’s activities positive, to show the campus that veganism is fun!

We have also been working with HSUS (Humane Society of the United States) and SHARK (SHowing Animals Respect and Kindness) to protest pigeon shoots, as there’s a gun club right in Berks County (where KU is located) that hosts them and PA is the last state to allow pigeon shoots.

VOTM: You’re also an ongoing volunteer at for the Animals Sanctuary. Are there a lot of differences between them and Farm Sanctuary?

Lou: I volunteer at ftAS  in Blairstown, NJ at least once a month, and have been doing so since November. They are a much smaller sanctuary than Farm Sanctuary, founded by a couple who both have full-time jobs on top of running the sanctuary, and have no full-time staff or anything so I’m always more than happy to drive out and lend my time and muscles to help them. It’s a very different feel from Farm Sanctuary… for example, FS has a full time cleaning/maintenance staff so I never had to muck out stalls but I do a lot of that at ftAS. Since it’s so much smaller, you get to know all the animals and their individual personalities really quickly which is nice. I think that everyone who is vegan should visit a sanctuary so they get to see the lives they’re saving by following a vegan diet… it’s extremely rewarding and a very positive experience, especially hearing where the animals came from before they were rescued and seeing how happy they are in their current situation.

VOTM: Do you have any advice for other vegans who want to get movin’ and start volunteering in some way?

Lou: I used to be afraid of talking in front of people, speaking up, being a leader, and doing half the things I do now as part of my vegan activism, but I’ve realized that the animals that are being tortured and losing their lives for the sake of people’s taste buds don’t have time for me to be afraid. I need to speak up for them, because they don’t have their own voice. If you want to get active but are afraid or intimidated, remember this and you’ll surprise yourself with what you can accomplish and the “fears” you’ll overcome. I’m constantly surprising myself. I’ve never been able to speak in front of people, but in September I’ll be presenting on the environmental impacts of animal agriculture at the PA Renewable Energy Festival in Kempton.