Review – Cape Town Vegan in Greyton

I went to Greyton! I went to Greyton and had such a great time in Greyton that I FORGOT (!!!) to go to the Greyton Farm Animal Sanctuary. WHAT. AN. IDIOT.

The “plan” was to stay in Greyton for three nights and to go to the sanctuary, but then, I fell in love with Greyton and forgot about the reason for going. And then it was too late.

This just means I will need to go back to Greyton again some other time (and remember my reason for going!).

So… “What’s in Greyton?” you may ask… A whole lot more than you realise! This little town is far more progressive than one would think (even in terms of racial and sexual orientation inclusivity). Turns out the history of Greyton is a fascinating one, and totally worth checking out if you are into that – but that’s for some other person’s blog. Onto the food…

GREYTON SATURDAY MARKET

Sadly nothing worth mentioning really – unless vegan soap is your thing. I bought some soap.

HEART & SOUL VEGETARIAN

You have to make sure your timing is perfect for two reasons: Firstly, the food will disappear quickly because this little place is POPULAR! And secondly, Heart & Soul is only open on a Friday and Saturday for lunch (11:30am-3pm).

Their food is described as being delivered straight from the earth to your plate, and this is no lie! I decided to do the takeaway thing and piled a (recyclable) takeout box with a rainbow assortment from the buffet spread.

All of their food is grown on the property in veggie boxes, so this is literally the best of the best.

Bursting with flavour, I ate as much as I could, but ended up saving a lot of it for a picnic the next day. Talk about nutrient-dense food!

Go visit Karen and Steve Jossel on the corner of Main and West Street (no. 18) on a Friday or Saturday and prepare to have your mind (and tastebuds) blown when you taste a little piece of heaven in Greyton.

THE HUNGRY MONK

This popular open-seven-days-a-week restaurant is as popular with passers by as it is with the Greyton locals. outdoor

What sets this eatery apart from others in Greyton (besides the fact that it was the only place open on a Sunday night #clever) is the fact that that they have an exclusively vegan page in their menu with a great array to choose from depending on your mood. This is, therefore, the kind of place that you can take your half senile, meat-eating racist grandfather who thinks that veganism is a sexual perversion.

As with most of the food prepared in Greyton, all of the ingredients are sourced locally, so the Aromatic Roast Pumking (sic) Curry (R145) that I delved into was bloody good, even if it was a tad on the expensive side. Which brings me to my only real gripe which is the cost of the mains: at R145 per (medium-sized portion) curry it is rather expensive. Add a cocktail and a tip and you are easily looking at almost R250 per head without dessert and only one drink.

Pros:

• a dedicated number of dishes on the menu prepared especially for vegans
• vegan mains as well as tapas/starters
• freshly prepared food with locally sourced ingredients
• their vegan menus is varied with influences from Spanish, Asian, Anglo Indian and South African cuisines

Cons:

• rather pricey for what you get even though the quality is superb
• we waited FOREVER for our food both times we went which was odd considering that the first time we went we were the only table
• it was rather quiet, so there was no real ambiance or buzz to create a “foody” atmosphere

The Thai Green Curry, Massaman Potato & Aubergine Curry, and the aforementioned Aromatic Roast Pumking Curry are all winners that definitely hit the spot.

Find The Hungry Monk at No. 5 Main Road and have a chat to owners, Rodney and Robert while you eat dinner and sip wine outside under the Greyton stars!

PURE CAFE

Pure Cafe is a vegan and vegetarian coffee shop that is open Tues-Sat 8am-5pm and Sun 8am-3pm that serves pure and organic food!

All hope was lost at the Saturday Morning Market when there was only one (rather uninspiring) vegan option on offer. Luckily we stumbled across Pure Cafe and were not disappointed.

This little eatery offers healthy smoothies, juices, home-baked cakes and pies, light lunches, winter soups and summer salads. I tucked into a full on English Breakfast and a vegan hot chocolate which were both winners.

I also walked away with some vegan toothpaste and some organic matcha powder, because… why not.

Situated at Unit 3, Greyt Oak Centre, 41 Main Road, Pure Cafe is the perfect little place for a quick getaway and a cup of coffee.

Is Greyton good for vegans? Damn straight! (… well… sometimes a bit gay too depending on my mood.)

Peace xx

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