• August 13th, 2011quarrygirlbarcelona, more restaurants (not LA)

    hey everyone! i’m very pleased and honored to report that today we have a guest post from one of my favorite bloggers, fat gay vegan. he usually writes about places in london where he lives, but today he has taken time from his relaxing spanish vacation to send us a review of a vegetarian restaurant in barcelona. my mouth is watering…enjoy!

    If you are ever fortunate enough to find yourself in the breathtaking city of Barcelona, you certainly will not go hungry. This world-class destination is packed solid with vegan dining and shopping options. There are at least two vegan grocery stores as well as a vegan deli, numerous restaurants, falafel merchants, juice stands, organic grocers and even Indian cuisine suitable for cruelty-free diners. I have taken leave from my own blog to wander across to talk to you about that last category… Indian food.

    Veg World India is situated in the historical inner-city neighbourhood of Gràcia that once stood alone from Barcelona as a separate village. This district is cluttered with bars, coffee shops, cinemas and boutiques. It delicately treads that fine line between local tradition and chic progress perfectly. Veg World India slots effortlessly into this bustling bohemia and offers a satisfying food experience.

    A sign outside reading “90% Vegan” was a lovely welcome on my visit and the knowledgable servers went out of their way to ensure all my vegan concerns were met. The starter plate for two was modified to remove paneer and we were informed our choices would be cooked in separate oil.

    Everything on the plate was fabulous with special mention going to the outstanding onion bhajis.

    My main meal was a stunning combination of lemon rice, cauliflower/potato curry as well as a spinach/tofu curry. A basket of naan bread was supplied with the meal and refilled as quickly as I could empty it.

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  • Well, I’ve been living more or less permanently in Barcelona for 9 months now, and had stopped checking out Happy Cow etc, as new places get passed round by word of mouth quicker than they get published. But one thing I missed out on last summer was ice cream. In a hot climate, that’s not clever. Well, I corrected that recently after a Dia Sin Carne demo. I’d heard about how good Gelaaati was, but for some reason never got round to it. I am glad I did is all I can say (dumb ass Monkey I am for waiting so long).

    Nice clean frontage, but no sign of vegan goodies just yet!

    The shop is just off Pl Jaume, just minutes walk from Las Ramblas along from Ferran. The shop front is simple enough, and the inside follows the same idea. Ice cream and fruit sorbets, to eat in or go. And a good selection for vegans.

    VEGANOS GELAATI!!

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  • Ok, so you all know how much I love the Cat Bar here in Barcelona. And by now you also know it is Vegan Pizza Day on Saturday. Well us Europeans couldn’t stand by and let you “expats,” have all the fun, so we’ve nicked the idea… And come up with… WORLD VEGAN PIZZA DAY. Innovative no? And get this. Cat Bar have been beavering away on their pizza dough skills and experimenting with different baking trays and toppings… And guess what? Yup. Cat Bar now has pizza on the menu. The launch will be this Saturday, but as I’m one lucky Monkey I’ve had the chance to give them a go first!

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  • September 16th, 2010quarrygirlbarcelona, more restaurants (not LA)

    hi everyone! time for another field report from our european correspondent, dadatamonkey! this one is about gopal, a small vegan deli in barcelona, spain that serves up burgers, cakes, and vegan salami! what?! yeah!

    Gateway to cake heaven!

    Gopal is hidden away behind Las Ramblas, in a rather less than celebrious square. The people are friendly enough round here, but they know you are a tourist and have money, so take care. If you take a nice expensive camera down here put it in a rucksack in front of you!! Despite that, I’ve eaten here plenty of times without any trouble, and it´s defo worth the experience as the food is good! Make sure you visit the toilet prior to Gopal, as they don’t have one, but the bars around there do. If needs must just walk into a bar and use the toilet. Most of the time no one will mind.

    I love the feel of this place. Barcelona all over.

    This place is really clean and everything is kept in a massive chiller so you can munch without worrying about it later! Some of the burgers can look a bit weary though so look well! As you can see there aren´t many seats, but loads of people just grab a take-away so you wont normally have a problem getting a seat. If you are feeling brave, or are like me and don´t worry overly, go sit on the square with a beer. It’s interesting and fun. Oh yeah, beer. Gopal don’t do alcohol. They have a shitty alcohol free one but its foul. They do have bottled juices, water and fizzy drinks though. Haven´t tried taking a beer with me but reckon they wouldn’t mind, it’s a pretty laid back place. Very friendly too.

    How big is the fridge? Vegan delights a plenty.

    The food is mainly burgers (about 8 types including Redwoods ¼ pounder to homemade ones such as an orange one (no, not eating it) and spicy red pepper one. You can also buy loads of vegan goodies to take home and munch! Cheese, charcuturie, redwoods bacon etc etc! See, heaven. They also do special deals and a menu of the day. Prices vary but expect to pay 5-50 EUR for a deal (includes a patty eg chicken, salad, fried potatoes or nachos) or the meal of the day which changes daily at 6-50. Both include a drink so great value. But… I WANT BURGER!

    Boy, did I ever get burgered. The beast is unleashed! 4-50 EURO

    THE BURGER! This is sooo good! The bread is made on the premises, a big ol´ 1/4 pounder from Redwoods , toffuti cheese slice, fresh salad and a creamy Romesco dressing (that tends to dribble on you, in a nice friendly way!). Ketchup and mustard are available if you want them. All this for 4-50 EUR!! When I first ate here, I askled the main lady what she would recommend to try first? She asked if I was really hungry, er yup, always am. Thank you, you were right! You do need to be hungry to eat all of this.

    What can I say except, yummy, & in my tummy in no time!

    This burger is a meal in itself. I find the Redwoods ¼ pounder can be a bit tooo much if you aren’t careful. But these guys have got the cooking down. But what I really really want is cake. The best cake. I get it here…

    Vegan Heaven on Earth! Lujuria knows his stuff, and now I know his secret ingredient too!

    Maybe the best thing about Gopal is the desserts, boy they are stunningly good, best cakes (vegan or not) I have EVER eaten, bar none. And I’ve eaten a lot over the last 40 odd years!! Each time I’ve been in (quite a few..) THE SELECTION IS DIFFERENT. That’s good coz you know they are always fresh and also you get to try different ones each time. Oh, and they have cupcakes too. Wimmins food, bah. 😉 The mega selection is from Lujuria Vegana, and yes I have contacted him directly!

    Chocotorture cake (my name). OMFG ONLY 3-50 EUR for your own stairway to heaven...

    OK no BS, this is the best thing since I found out about ladies. If you don´t get to eat this before you die, you have not lived. No kidding, it’s the nuts. The chocolate torte part is soo smooth, thick, tastiest bit of anything I have ever put in my mouth. The hard really dark chocolate coating just finishes it off perfectly. I nearly bought the rest of the cake…

    Various salami – This damn good stuff. One is even a bit like black pudding!

    All gorgeous, all keep well and beat the pants off any other similar products – did I say similar – nothing I´ve had is similar to how good these are. The dogs bits they are!! 5 EUR upwards
    So, got the idea? Yup, I really like this place. It’s good, honest vegan fast food combined with the best cakes possible. If you get to Barca and don’t go here then you are brainless, coz this place is a no-brainer! 10/10!!

    Gopal
    Location:
    C/ Escudellers 42 – Plaza George Orwell (Plaça del Tripi)
    Barcelona, Spain
    Phone:
    933 189 215
    Cash only. Open Tue-Sun 12:00-23:00 NO TOILETS!
    www:
    Gopal’s Facebook Page

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  • September 10th, 2010quarrygirlbarcelona, more restaurants (not LA)

    hey everyone! time for another barcelona vegan field report by dadatamonkey. i gotta say, this is by far my favorite one yet…and it seems too good to be true. it’s about an ALL VEGAN CAT -THEMED BAR that serves fast food-style cuisine! go on, read all about cat bar!

    Good British food and cold beer. What more could a man want?

    Strolling around Barca, I came across a bar with a sign outside saying vegano. And its called.. The Cat Bar! Given I love beer, food and cats I kinda had to go in! It’s a normal bar that just happens to serve vegan food! Here’s what they say about the food: “All the food made in the kitchen is 100% vegan. Any food not made by us, ketchup, mustard etc., is served in the original package with the list of ingredients which can be read by most under 30 years olds but few older than that..” So add in a sense of humour and this place is well worth a visit!

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  • August 21st, 2010quarrygirlbarcelona, more restaurants (not LA)

    heyo! time for another vegan field report from barcelona, spain by dadatamonkey! this one is pretty awesome, if i do say so myself. not only does the food sound amazing, but this post will give you some serious ethiopian food education. read up!

    Having spent some time here in BCN (Barcelona) I was getting a tad bored of the usual vegan places here, and decided to try out a few non-vegan places and see how I got on. The power of google led me to Abissínia. Which is cool as I spent time in Ethiopia as a kid! I had not found it reviewed on any of the usual suspects (yes it’s there now!) etc, but know Ethiopian food fairly well so knew I would be able to eat there. A number of traditional review sites seemed to rave about it so I popped along! It’s to be found within a 5min stroll of the metro in the Bohemian area of BCN, Gracia. This area used to be the main place for the large anarchist community here but less so now.

    This tiny frontage is like the opening to the Doctors Tardis. With foodie heaven hidden inside!

    Abissínia opened in 2006 I think, and is headed up by the brothers Behe. Ethiopian food is often vegan by default, due to the Coptic and Orthodox religions practiced by most people requiring avoidance of animal products at certain times of the year. Be aware though that butter is also widely used in cooking so check first in any other place. Meat is prepared and cooked totally separately so you have no issues with cross contamination in this kitchen!

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  • August 15th, 2010quarrygirlbarcelona, more restaurants (not LA)

    hey, friends! time for yet another vegan field report from barcelona, spain (often referred to as BCN in this post). this comes to us from our resident operative in europe, dadatamonkey. so sit back, relax, and enjoy his review of pizza paco

    Out on a little adventure in Barcelona, my esfuerzos took me to a pizza joint. Having asked at numerous pizza joints in BCN for vegan pizza – and found they all add milk powder to the bread base – I’d given up all hope of finding a half decent pizza to eat in BCN. How wrong can this old man be!! You know those nights where you go with the flow, trust the man, and end up doing something you never expected but will always remember? Yup. Pizza Paco was one of those. A massive thanks to Baba for this blessing. Believe me, it is a blessing. REAL pizza that’s vegan by nature and fucking gorgeous too!

    Barcelona always has hidden gems on each turn it seems. This ones a tiny place hidden away in a small square in El Born. But as is so often the case, the tiny ones pack the best punch! I cannot speak highly enough about this place. When we got there (my friend Baba knows the owners, which helps!) I was “no worries I’ll have a BEER.” But… Asked the waiter about the various ingredients.. And yes…vegan was an option without cheese!!. They have one pizza on the menu that is vegan by its very nature, and a couple of others that without the cheese are too. I went inside and had a quick look just to make sure. OMFG. 00 flour. Proper stone oven. OK, lets do it. And… Boy did they do it.

    La Marinara: Tomato, oregano, olive oil… AND.. Shedloads of fresh GARLIC! Simples. But the best pizza ever! As it should be. 7Euro for 13inches of heaven!

    The first thing I noticed was the only instant vegan pizza on the small menu. The Marinara IS the original pizza. No cheese. But fuck me, this went beyond the normal level. Either they read minds or they love garlic. It was loaded. I am in love with this pizza. The base is perfect (a handmade stone oven at circa 500C really helps too), the sauce was made with fresh tomatoes, the oregano fresh and tasty and the garlic. Well. If you don’t like garlic. You are mad, but avoid this. Seriously. This is my new love.

    La Vegetariana: Red Pepper (shush now QG), fresh mushrooms, spinach, onions, roasted baby aubergines with the tomato sauce. 9 Euro

    So could the Veggie pizza from the menu be that good too you say? Oh yeah. Oh freakin yeah! To be honest I placed it second. But I’m just an old traditionalist at heart. Suffice to say the veg were cooked to pefection. This is the kind of pizza you can lift a whole slice and it stays as it should. That crust is sooo good. 00 flour and the stone oven work their magic. Also massive respect to chef because its how you work the dough that makes a pizza like this possible.

    As ever, we come to my conclusion. Lets just say. Pizza Pan. As in I’m like a kid in a toy shop here… I am now PIzza Paco’d up and will be a fan as long as I live, or they are open, which I suspect will both be a very, very long time. Points out of 10? 00. 😉 Simples. Get yer ass there ass sooon ass possible, you don’t need Daiya or whatever with this quality of pizza. Just a mouth with an ever windening smile. But I’d love to try it with cheese… Let it be so.

    Ps They also do a takeaway service for those lazy nights on the sofa… Just sayin..

    Paco Pizza
    Allada Vermell, 11, Barcelona, 08003
    Open: 13:00 a 03:00
    Metro: L4 Jaume I
    Tel@ 93 268 2514

    Like most places here, no website!

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  • June 22nd, 2010quarrygirlbarcelona

    hi quarrygirl readers, time for yet another international post from field reporter dadatamonkey! up until now his posts have been from london, england…but today’s comes all the way from barcelona, spain! check out this awesome review of maoz vegetarian, our favorite restaurant chain ever.

    Hello peeps the Monkey is back! In Barcelona, Spain (BCN) for a couple of weeks and feasting like I never have here. I´ve even found a vegan bar with a classic Brit menu… Oh yeah, Barca is really rockin with vegan food… But for now, let us deal with of one of my all time faves: FALAFEL!!!

    What can I say? Maoz Vegetarian BCN… I LOVE YOU! How much? 5 times in 7 days so far, so go figure. 😉 Yup. You guessed it, I´m a Maoz fan of old, and have eaten their superb Falafel in 3 different cities for years. All have been superb! This really is the ULTIMATE in (healthy) vegan fast food! QG has already sung their praises so I´ll just re-iterate how lucky I am that this venue serves the best version I´ve had the pleasure to devour…

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