Visiting VegFest London: Scrumptious Vegan Food

Jess writes: Last year, mum, dad, and Robert visited London VegFest, a vegan event in Olympia with loads of different vegan companies selling and giving out tasters of their products. Naturally, after reading the post that mum wrote about it and seeing the bags and bags of delicious vegan food that they brought back, I knew that I wanted to go.

Our family has a strange relationship with food. While mum, dad, and I love cheese, butter, and soya sauce, my brother Robert is allergic to dairy, soya, and eggs. This means that our house is full of vegan cookbooks, and we often have trouble trying to find places to eat when we are out on public. Therefore, VegFest is like heaven to Robert - it is the one place in London where he can eat almost everything, and there is a lot to eat!

 

[caption id="attachment_1866" align="alignnone" width="1200"] There was lots of delicious chocolate on offer, and we had loads of tasters![/caption]

VegFest takes part in different venues across the UK, with Scotland next to host in December this year. It is held over two floors in Olympia London, and is absolutely massive. There are companies selling things from vegan steaks to delicious chocolate, and we absolutely gorged ourselves on tasters of vegan chocolate, cupcakes, sausages, cheesecakes and puddings. Even though we eat meat and I definitely do not want to go vegan, the fact that the products didn't contain dairy, meat, or eggs didn't faze me - it was all delicious and a lot of things were free.

[caption id="attachment_1865" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Robert loved his bars from Moo Free - they tasted like real milk chocolate![/caption]

As soon as we stepped out of the lift, we were greeted with the stall from Moo Free Chocolates. Moo Free makes vegan, gluten free, wheat free, and soya free chocolates that taste exactly like milk chocolate. Many products were soya free and gluten free at VegFest.  After taking a lot (and I mean a lot) of tasters, we ended up buying enough chocolate to fill up half of a paper bag - quite an impressive feat when you consider the fact that they were only intended for one person...

[caption id="attachment_1867" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Scrumptious bubble tea from Nosteagia![/caption]

My favourite stall in the entire festival was Nosteagia, incredible bubble tea based in Shoreditch. I tried peach and green tea flavour and Robert had blackcurrant, and both were utterly delicious. We had lychee flavoured balls inside called "poppings", and they explode on your tongue when you bit into them. I'm going to have to go to their stall in East London with my friends now!

[caption id="attachment_1869" align="alignnone" width="1200"] The vegan pizza from the Venice Bakery tasted like the real thing[/caption]

Although there were loads of delicious cakes and puddings (such as a cookie from Ms Cupcake and puddings from Pudology), there was also loads of savoury food to try. We bought pizza slices from the Venice Bakery, tried delectable falafel and spicy bites from Great Food and Robert had a spring roll from Loving Hut.

[caption id="attachment_1871" align="alignnone" width="1200"] We loved the massive, delectable cookies from Ms Cupcake[/caption]

We also loved the chocolate and strawberry milk from Koko, salted caramel ice cream from The Nude Spoon, pecan ice cream from Jollyum, peanut butter cups from eat chic, and rose lemonade and cherry cola from Fentimans. However, a particular highlight of the day was the different scented candles from Harper's Bizarre Candles. We ended up buying four: Jaffa Cake, Black Vanilla, Pear Drops, and Fresh Air. Everything smelt incredible, and there were some funny names (I Love You But You Smell was a particular favourite of ours).

[caption id="attachment_1872" align="alignnone" width="1200"] The candles from Harper's Candles smelt amazing[/caption]

Aside from the scrumptious food, there were lots of other types of stalls at VegFest. There were ethically made shoes, essential oils, lots of make up, very soft bamboo pillows and some petitions to sign.

There were some demonstrations, debates, and talks to go and see, and we ended up going to a demonstration of how to make vegan sweets. However, it was really busy and noisy, and you couldn't hear much of what she was saying. It seemed as though most people were just there to get a seat. Mum and dad say that it was much busier than last year.

Apart from the queues, I had a really great time at VegFest. We left with full stomachs and bags full of goodies, and had a really nice time. There was a lot to do, and we spent about three hours walking around. I definitely recommend visiting next year!

Tickets to VegFest are £10 for adults and £6 for concessions in advance, and £12 and £8 on the door. Kids under 16 are free. There was a long queue of people waiting outside, so we recommend getting there early. There was a section for smaller children and a place for teenagers, but we didn't go to either of these. If you are bringing young children, be aware that it was very busy. 

 

Cupcakes and the Queen at the Rubens Hotel in London!

Jess (aged 13) writes: Over the years, our family has stayed in some beautiful places. We spent the weekend in an old prison, experienced a Disney hotel and stayed in a room where Queen Elizabeth I is said to have slept, but it was a first to go to a hotel right on the doorstep of an iconic British landmark - Buckingham Palace.

[caption id="attachment_1433" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Me and Robert outside the hotel[/caption]

The Rubens Hotel is right opposite the Royal Mews of Buckingham Palace and minutes away from Victoria station, making it a prime location for sightseeing. Robert and I were really excited to stay, as we had been told that it was a fantastic hotel for families with young children (and we couldn't wait for a delicious breakfast!)

[caption id="attachment_1434" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Everyone was kind and friendly, and made a big effort to involve the children.[/caption]

When we checked in, Robert was given a Rubens Passport and other pieces of paper to fill out. He had to write about himself and draw a picture, then get different members of staff to sign it! Robert really enjoyed this, as he enjoyed speaking to the staff. They were all exceptionally friendly, and smiled at me and Robert whenever we walked past; something that really brightened our day and does not usually happen at hotels. At the end of our stay we were given two bags of prizes containing bookmarks, jewellery, notebooks and more for completing the passport. Everything inside was lovely, and it was a nice surprise.

Our rooms were on the fourth floor, and were interconnecting. Upon entrance, we caught sight of some fresh, warm cookies which mum, dad and I devoured in seconds. There was also some delicious fruit and posh water which admittedly took longer to be finished, but were much appreciated. The rooms had large, comfy beds and massive TVs, and the bathrooms had coloured lights! There was just enough space (the rooms weren't huge), but everything was clean and appealing.

[caption id="attachment_1435" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Robert on one of the beds in our room. They were very soft and comfy![/caption]

Robert and I were both given a special kids' welcome pack, which consisted of lots of puzzle books, a map of London for kids and crayons. Although I had revision to get on with, Robert had fun completing the challenges and creating dot-to-dot pictures.

[caption id="attachment_1436" align="aligncenter" width="940"] We were given puzzle packs and maps of London to complete[/caption]

Dinner was a casual affair out of the hotel, although there was a place to eat inside of the Rubens. Soon, it was time to go to sleep, and I loved how soft our beds were.

We all had a great night's sleep, and lazily walked down to breakfast the next day. As I expected, the beautiful room was full of fruit, cereal, juice, hot food and - most importantly - pastries. I loaded my plate with blueberry and lemon muffins, pastries with custard in the middle, biscuits and fruit salad, grasped a glass of orange juice and made my way to our table; what a dream! I also enjoyed the mushrooms, hash browns and tomatoes, and was stuffed by the end of the meal. However, I know that mum was disappointed there weren't any vegetarian sausages on offer.

[caption id="attachment_1437" align="aligncenter" width="940"] I gorged on cakes, fruit and biscuits for breakfast![/caption]

As Robert is allergic to dairy, soya and eggs, it is usually difficult to find something for him to eat at hotels. However, all of the staff were really kind and friendly, by bringing him special bread, hash browns and porridge. Mum, dad and Robert really appreciated this.

Before we went back to our rooms, we decided to look out of the main window, onto Buckingham Palace. We quickly became confused, as the road was closed off and a small crowd was forming. After about five minutes of waiting, two royal carriages drove past. Someone said that one of the carriages contained Prince Phillip, but we were not sure. Mum and Robert decided to walk around to the front of the palace, where they eventually managed to see Queen Elizabeth II, Camilla and Prince Charles (I kind of regret staying inside the hotel!) Robert has written about what happened here.

[caption id="attachment_1365" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Mum and Rob saw the Queen![/caption]

We had one final thing to do before we left the hotel, and Robert and I were really excited about it. We were to take part in the Rubens Pastry Experience, which involved us putting on chef tops and hats, and going down into the kitchens below the hotel. We got to talk to the pastry chef, and found out that he had to create hundreds of pastries a day, which really surprised us. I had never considered how baking could be such a full on job before.

[caption id="attachment_1438" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Robert and I had a great time decorating cupcakes (and eating them after!)[/caption]

We got to ice chocolate cupcakes (which had been created especially so Robert could eat them) with a green frosting and to decorate them with berries, nuts and physalis - delicious! Next, we dipped strawberries in a special shiny chocolate, and left them to dry. We really enjoyed speaking to the chef and seeing what the hotel looked like from underground, and the food was obviously scrumptious. They made a really big effort with Robert's dietary needs, and he was really happy with all of the food. We also really liked the certificates they gave us, saying that we had completed the course.

Robert and I were both very disappointed to leave, as we had a fantastic time. Everyone was really friendly to us - they really take notice of kids here - and they tried to make us feel included the whole time. The food was mouth-watering and the rooms were lovely; if only we could go back for another stay...

Disclosure: We were offered a complimentary stay at the Rubens at the Palace, but all our views are very much our own.

A two night family package at The Rubens, based on two interconnecting rooms, costs from £287 per room per night, including breakfast on both mornings, the Master Chef experience, and dinner on one night in the Old Masters restaurant:

The "Kids stay eat for free" option is extended to children under 12, so for a child over 12, the breakfast and dinner are subject to a small supplement, both of which are discounted from menu price. Breakfast would be a £7.50 supplement, and the dinner which would normally be £19.50 would be £12.25.

More fabulous places to stay:

Staying in jail! The House of Correction in Folkingham

A delicious breakfast in Park Lane