When Ly was dealing with general bad health and overweight a few years ago, he stumbled upon the teachings of a Dr. Sebi. By following his dietary guidelines Ly was able to heal himself two years ago. Being convinced of the benefits of the diet, he decided to open up I Can Do Better together with a partner. “If I can heal myself, you can do it, that’s why we’re called I Can Do Better.”

Herbalist Sebi (1933-2016) advocated the alkaline diet, which basically holds that by correcting the pH balance from the body from acid to alkaline, we can improve our health and reverse many diseases. Note, these claims are disputed by traditional medicine.

Ly differentiates between plantbased food made by man, and plantbased food made by nature. We should eat the latter he tells me, clean foods, instead of the processed foods one can find in most stores. “The supermarket isn’t there to promote your health.” Back to the basics in a radical way: even some vegetables such as broccoli or carrots are to be avoided, as they are hybrids, created by man. Read more

They met at a restaurant where they both worked at the time. Maurice ‘Morris’ in the kitchen, Annebel ‘Bella’ serving. Bella was vegan but the restaurant not exactly vegan-friendly, so Morris would cook her a vegan meal every day. They fell in love with eachother and eventually decided to start a restaurant together!

Morris & Bella opened in 2017 as a plant-forward restaurant, meaning the menu is vegan, but you can order non-vegan supplement dishes if desired. One of the reasons for this choice was so also people hesitant about vegan food would be tempted to come in.

Then when corona happened, they reflected more on their concept and felt the time was there to make a clear statement, so since June 2021 they are a completely vegan restaurant. “Because the pandemic is forcing us to make more sustainable choices, but also because customers are now more used to vegan food,” says Bella. Morris adds, it was also harder and harder for him to come up with the non-vegan supplements as they were not what his menu was about. Read more

Two years ago some friends wanted to open up a cafe, and decided to combine that with a furniture store (which was already an occupation of one of them). They found a temporary location at Purmerplein (Amsterdam Noord) and called it Purmer.

When they had to move, they found a new place in a former church building. Vegan chef Sam joined forces and so their own menu is now fully vegan. The new name Cometa refers to the name of the street: Kometensingel. They opened May 2021, and here they are now also open during the evening. And another improvement, this location is not a temporary one anymore! Read more

While corona has shattered a good amount of plans and dreams, it led to the materialisation of others. When the careers of Margo (styling/make-up) and her partner Ayden (photography) came to a pause, they decided to pursue her long-felt dream of opening up her own vegan take-away place.

So now every morning Margo bakes homemade vegan croissants, pain au chocolat, madeleines and what not! She loves working with dough, some recipes are the result of years of continuously improving them at home.

The savoury options include American style sub sandwiches – oblong bread rolls. This is the passion of Ayden, since they are also common in his homeland Cyprus and nearby Greece. Since they couldn’t find them in Amsterdam with the quality and properties they desired, Margo is also baking these bread rolls herself! The sandwich options are always changing, but current options are one with crispy tofu, chili mayo and veggies. The other one Caprese style with vegan mozarella and more. Read more

Right at the time when corona started, Irene was looking for a place to start her own vegan caterer business. She had to abandon the original plans, but by chance got the opportunity to start out from an already existing kitchen. The beginning of Peach Plantbased Kitchen, operating since November 2020 out of the kitchen of Robin Food. She’s running it with two others.

Before this she was working in disability care and part-time studying, which she gave up to pursue her dream of setting up her own kitchen.
Irene grew up as a vegetarian but was eating practically vegan already. The meals she creates for Peach are fully vegan, as well as whole foods, meaning she avoids using processed foods. “I always start from vegetables,” she tells. Using seasonal vegetables, preferably local, and sometimes even picked in the wild! Read more

Vegan Fresco opened February 2021 after a successful crowdfunding campaign. With according to them 4% of the Dutch eating vegan/plant-based and 55% being flexitarian, owner James Fresco suggested it was about time for a specialised vegan supermarket.

Being the first vegan supermarket in the Netherlands/Amsterdam got them quite some attention, from the world of retail (veganism is hot) and obviously from vegans as well. Read more