Vegitalian started in 2020 in Utrecht by a few entrepreneurs in hospitality. Their concept is vegetarian Mediterranean food with a twist, casual dining style. According to their mission statement they want to make it easier to make sustainable choices. In 2022 they opened a second location in Utrecht, then in October 2023 it was time for Amsterdam! Read more
Common in China, malatang is a streetfood consisting of a spicy broth to which ingredients of your own choice are added. Traditionally the broth has Sichuan pepper and dried chili peppers as key ingredients.
When Guus Rodermans was studying in China (ended up there while travelling in Asia) he used to eat malatang several times a week. During the harsh covid lockdown in China he returned to the Netherlands, but was missing the food in China a lot. That’s when he started dreaming of opening up a malatang restaurant in Amsterdam. He had an outdoor sports company at the time, but believed he could make a bigger impact on one’s mental and physical health as well as the environment, with a healthy and cosy food location!
And so with the support of his partner Dana and cousin Niek they started out to make it happen. Though in China most malatang places offer meat as well, they chose for a vegetarian concept. Mogu Malatang opened in May 2023. And the name? Mogu is Chinese for mushroom, in Japanese it’s the word for the sounds one makes while eating! Read more
Their main location is in Eindhoven, but they recently opened a pop-up location in the Jordaan to touch ground in Amsterdam. Calling themselves a vegan bubble tea brand, but really Tea Stories has much more to offer than just that!
It started by Italian expat Lucia Parlanti. Initially she moved to Eindhoven to work at Philips. Not quite happy with her job there she wanted to do something more creative. Inspired after a trip to China (where her husband is from) she decided to open up her own teabar. Mid 2019 she opened Tea Stories in the Strijp S area, Eindhoven.
Now a few years later she wants to introduce people in Amsterdam to their concept and to explore the options here. Read more
They are two Italian cousins, who grew up in Germany. Being vegan/vegetarian and passionate about food, Marco and Moris developed an idea to start a vegan restaurant together. “We want to modernise Italian cuisine, and show that you can make delicious things completely vegan,” says Marco. Initially he went vegan just to try it after his girlfriend started eating that way. It made him feel better and he realised: “This is the way forward, not just for me, but for the whole world.”
So they veganised Italian classics, but also created completely new dishes with their own shapes and fillings. All the pasta they use is made by themselves in a production kitchen elsewhere. They opened the restaurant in November 2023. Read more
For various reasons the first half of the year saw quite a few vegan restaurants closing! The aftermath of corona, staff shortage as well as increased costs of energy and supplies took its toll, and perhaps vegan restaurants are more vulnerable for that. But still eleven new vegan places opened up. Happy Cow currently lists 574 vegan and vegan-friendly locations in Amsterdam, of which 67 are fully vegan.
Furthermore we see an ongoing presence of vegan products in the supermarket. Attention for the interests of animals in media and exhibitions. Dedicated activists allover the country continuously spending their time for the freedom of other animals. Still relatively small in numbers, but veganism and animal rights are no longer a fringe issue. Read more