2012 Print Editon has been launched!

I'm thrilled (and a bit exhausted!) to say that the new print edition of the Toronto Vegetarian Directory launched successfully at the annual Vegetarian Food Festival!

I just got word that we handed out over EIGHT THOUSAND copies in that one weekend (a new record!) and of course we'll be continuing to distribute them throughout the year.  If you are interested in volunteering  either in a little or a big way to get these directories out there... please email us at directory(at)veg.ca  We need help at universities, in neighbourhoods in Toronto and beyond.

- Angela Del Buono, Directory Coordinator

You can download a PDF of the print edition here. 

New Web Edition Features

We are very pleased to  announce unique webpages for each listing in the directory. On this page you will see a map to their location, their own description, icons that represent their veg-status, organic usage and discount card details as they apply. Just click on the company name from any the category pages to check this feature out! 

New listings!

Here is a list of companies who are debuting in the Vegetarian Directory for the first time:
Bakeries  : APieCalypse Now!, bloomer's bakery, Cakes By Jill,  Live On Chocolate

Beauty & Spas : Arbonne International - Independant Consultant, Pretty Funky,  Sage Wellness Moksha

Books & Media : Vegetarian Detective – On the Case of Good Food

Catering : Make It Raw

Cooking Classes : Chili and Fennel Culinary , Know Thy Food

Food Products :  Best Cooking Pulses, Daiya Foods Inc, Di Martino Organic Imports, Noan Foods, YOSO

Natural Food Stores :  Nature's Emporium, Nuthouse Quality Edible Goods, Villa Bulk Foods, Wanigan Fresh Market,

Nutrion and Wellness : Vegandie

Onilne Shopping : Nice Shoes

Organic Delivery : Green Grocer Organics, Wanigan Fresh Market

Professional Services : Authentic Thai Tattoo, Laugh Along Entertainment

Raw Foods : Earth & City, nūd fūd

Restaurants & Cafés : Belmonte Raw, Hearty Catering, Hogtown , Hotel Gelato, Hot Yam!, Jean's Vegetarian Kitchen , Lick’s,  Mylk Uncookies, The Naked Sprout, Nzyme,  Rawlicious (Barrie, Markham, Bloor Street,) Soup 'n Such Café, Snakes & Lattes, Saravanaa Bhavan (Brampton), Sadie's Juice Bar & ice Creem, Urban Herbivore (Eaton Centre , College Street), Zen Gardens (Cambridge, Guelph, London)

Vegetarian Events :  Toronto Raw / Vegan Festival, Toronto Veggie Pride Parade

Thanksgiving!

Click here for our updated annual Vegetarian Thanksgiving Specials page.

After a long absence, the podcast has returned! Liam and Lisa O. discuss the recent Food Festival, which was a great success. During their time away from the podcast, Lisa went to California and had some great meals at the restaurants Gracias Madre and Cafe Gratitude, among others. Liam went to Montreal and enjoyed food from Aux Vivres, ChuChai, and Yuan. He also discovered a vegan-friendly ice cream shop called Cremerie Meu Meu.  

A lot of other veg-related items have recently popped up in the news lately: The Star positively reviewed brunch at Hibiscus, Now Magazine highlighted vegan restaurants in their Cheap Eats section, The Star published a piece on the new upscale food court in the Eaton Centre, which features Urban Herbivore's newest location, and also published a piece on tattooed chefs, which features vegan chef Doug McNish.

In other local food news, Hot Yam! (a volunteer-run vegan food collective on the UofT campus) will soon be open daily. Hot Beans and The Hogtown Vegan have made some changes to their menus - Hot Beans will now be serving gluten-free and somewhat healthier dessert items, though their popular donuts will be available at The Hogtown Vegan (which now serves brunch). Lisa recently discovered that Dvine Gelato Cafe in the Beaches area has a number of vegan dessert items available on a daily basis. This is good news for those wanting to avoid all the nasty things that scientists have just discovered in commercial cow's milk. 

We've had some updates on the What's New section of the website, so take a look if you haven't already, and come visit us during RC hours (1-4pm) next Saturday for a book sale in honour of World Vegetarian Day!

Listen Now!

Celebrate World Vegetarian Day by coming out to our special "Food Festival Themed" book sale at the TVA Resource Centre!

Missed a talk at the 27th Vegetarian Food Festival that you wanted to attend? Or were you inspired by a speaker and want more, more, more? Re-live the Festival by picking up a copy of books from speakers Melanie Joy, Jack Norris and jae steele, which will all have special discounted prices just for World Vegetarian Day!

Other specials for World Vegetarian Day will include:

* Both jae steele cookbooks for $45 (normally $25 each)
* The Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen: $5 off (normally $35, on sale for $30)
* Veganist by Kathy Freston on sale for $25
* Buy ANY two books and get your choice of hardcover copies of Dog by the Cradle, the Serpent Beneath or Eating Animals for only $10 (while supplies last)

Thanks to all those who helped make our 27th Annual Vegetarian Food Festival our biggest yet!

The Toronto Vegetarian Association is grateful to the thousands of people who came out to this years event, as well as more than 150 event volunteers, over 100 exhibitors, our festival sponsors, and to Harbourfront Centre for their support.

Check-out the flickr group for this year's festival, here.

ISSUE 4: The "Musts"

• Introduction: The Must-Haves, the Must-Sees, the Must-Dos
• Speaker Highlights
• Vegucated
  
• Cooking Demonstrations
• In the Next Issue
  
  

Introduction: The Must-Haves, the Must-Sees, the Must-Dos

Speaker Highlights

Sarah Taylor

Join Sarah Taylor, author of Vegan in 30 Days, as she gives incredible insight and practical advice for all types of lifestyles on how to go vegan.  Whether you're a parent, travel extensively for work or pleasure, like to entertain, eat at restaurants, or have other challenges you are concerned about, Sarah will show you how to navigate those situations so that you can maintain a vegan lifestyle anywhere.  Sarah has a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from Cornell University, is on faculty at the Nutrition Education Institute, and has been interviewed on PBS, NPR, and dozens of other shows.

Erika Ritter

Author of The Dog by the Cradle, the Serpent Beneath: Some Paradoxes of Human-Animal Relationships, Erika Ritter touches everything from ancient religious rites, to the messages about animals in children's literature, to "colourful-critter" features on the TV news, human beings cultivate the notion that non-humans actually consent to human control over their lives and deaths.  Starting with an ancient and true story about a dog whoh suffered a wrongful death, Erika Ritter looks at how art, science and psychology have long served the meat industry, pharmaceutical companies, advertising agencies and the public at large by presenting animals as volunteers rather than victims.

Get Vegucated, Saturday After the Food Festival

Synopsis: Vegucated is a feature-length documentary that follows three meat- and cheese-loving New Yorkers who agree to adopt a vegan diet for six weeks. There’s Brian, the bacon-loving bachelor who eats out all the time, Ellen, the single mom who prefers comedy to cooking, and Tesla, the college student who avoids vegetables and bans beans. They have no idea that so much more than steak is at stake and that the fate of the world may fall on their plates. Lured with true tales of weight lost and health regained, they begin to uncover hidden sides of animal agriculture and soon start to wonder whether solutions offered in films like Food, Inc. go far enough. Before long, they find themselves risking everything to expose an industry they supported just weeks before.

Premiere:  World premiere is on Saturday, September 10th at 9:30 pm at the Toronto Independent Film Festival. Vegucated has a prime slot at the 700+-seat Underground Cinema theater during the festival’s opening weekend.

 Cooking Demonstrations

Terry Hope Romero

Alan Roettinger

Private Chef Alan Roettinger will demonstrate fast, simple, yet unusually flavorful recipes that anyone can make at home in thirty minutes or less. his speciality is bringing health and pleasure together, in order to maximize the joy of life.

ISSUE 3: Healthy Happenings

• Introduction: À Votre Santé
• Speaker Highlights
• Exhibitors Spotlight
  
• Cooking Demonstrations
• In the Next Issue
  
  

Introduction: À Votre Santé

Speaker Highlights

So, most people have accepted that it is possible to be healthy on a vegetarian diet, despite what some scraggling skeptics say. It seems the hottest topics in veg nutrition have evolved to more complex questions about Iodine levels, Omega-3s, and a whole host of other things.  Luckily, we've worked hard to bring in lots of doctors and registered dieticians to the Festival this year to answer all your questions about veg nutrition.  

Jack Norris 

Jack Norrris, RD will discuss the published research on vegetarian and vegan diets. He will also cover the nutrients of concern in plant-based diets such as protein, vitamin B12, calcium, iodine, vitamin D, and omega-3 fats.

Dr. Michael Greger 

Every year Dr. Greger scours the world's scholarly literature on clinical nutrition and develops an new annual presentation to present the latest in cutting-edge research. Dr. Greger offers practical advice on how best to feed ourselves and our families to prevent, treat, and even reverse chronic disease In an engaging interactive quiz show format.

Julieanna Hever

Julieanna Hever, RD, provides a plant-based nutrition plan that will help you win the weight-loss war.  Learn why following a whole food, plant-based diet is optimal for easy and permanent weight loss. Science has confirmed that herbivores are leaner than their omnivorous counterparts. Learn how to maximize eating strategies to your advantage so you never have to worry about your weight again.

Exhibitor Spotlight: Meet Girlnola Girl

 In an effort to help consumers discover delicious, clean eating loaded with power foods, Stephanie Bonetta has launched Girnola, a line of vegan organic, gluten-free healthy granolas, trail mixes and raw vegan energy truffles. Girlnola's goal is to help Canadians achieve optimal health through creative nutrition. Girlnola's products are gluten-free, organic, high in iron and protein, and infused with power foods, making them filling and perfect for a healthy diet.

Girlnola includes hemp and chia seeds, quinoa and goji berries. Their products are low in sodium and naturally sweetened with agave and fruit juice, a definite plus for health-concious individuals and families. Girlnola is a supporter of the 27th Annual Vegetarian Food Festival, and an exhibitor to look out for! 

 Cooking Demonstrations

Jae Steele

Upcoming in the Next Issue

• 1 More Day Until the Food Festival!
  
• The Festival Must-Haves and Must-Sees
• Vegucated!

ISSUE 2: Rawesome!

• Introduction: Rawesome?
• Exhibitors Spotlight
  
• Cooking Demonstrations
• In the Next Issue
  
  

Introduction: Rawesome?

Exhibitor Spotlight

These exhibitors boast so many raw treats, they'll have you speaking like Scooby Doo in no time: "This Rawsagna is Rawesome, Shaggy!"

Nzyme - World Café

Nyzme is a Living Foods Bistro and Juice Bar that provides food as nature intended: fresh, ripe, raw and live. Nzyme's gluten, wheat, and dairy free creations are delicious, unique and enzyme rich like you've never experienced before! With a restaurant that boasts tasty treats like "Rawsagna" and "FAB-ouli" (you guessed it, a fabulous tabouli), Nzyme is sure to be a crowd-pleaser at the Festival. 

Nūd Fūd  

If you're well versed with the macron, you'll probably already know that Nūd Fūd is actually pronounced like Nude Food.  And that's exactly what Nūd Fūd is about: food stripped down to its bare essentials, not dressed up in fancy perservatives or filled with added sugars.  Nūd Fūd produces high quality raw/vegan snacks from chips to cereals, where the ingredients just speak for themselves: YUM! 

 Cooking Demonstrations

Raw food has always been about celebration, not depravation.  Luckily, that's what the Food Festival has always been about too - celebrating food and flavour! We've lined up some great cooking demonstrations for you that do just that.

Lisa Pitman & Nicole Axworthy

Doug McNish

Upcoming in the Next Issue

• What attending the Food Festival can help you achieve for your health
• Weight and Wellness: speakers to look out for
• Healthy Recipes!
• New, Nutrient-Rich Products

The countdown is on! I’m very excited to say that the 2012 edition of the Vegetarian Directory is at the printers! You can pick up your hot-off-the-press copy at the Vegetarian Food Festival next weekend.

New to our Vegetarian Discount Card program

Looking for an exciting vacation retreat that also caterers to you your appetite? Colombia World Tours offers "All-inclusive eco-adventure tours in Colombia's stunning coffee region, tropical coast, and Andean mountains. Visit historic colonial towns, picturesque coffee haciendas, pristine beaches, snowy glaciers, and soak in hot springs. Gluten-free, vegan & vegetarian meal plans available."  They offer 5% off select tours with your Vegetarian Discount Card, contact them for details. 

As we mentioned previously, there is a new Sadie’s location opening up in Kensington... and now it is open! Sadie’s Juice Bar and Ice Creem Parlour offers Tofutti ice cream (soon to be handmade), lots of frozen novelties, floats and milkshakes and of course fresh juices....AND it’s all VEGAN! Read a bit from BlogTO.  Save 10% with your Vegetarian Discount Card.

New Hours

Teatree Cafe on the Danforth is now open Monday to Saturday 10am-8pm and Sunday 10am-6pm.

New Eats!

Tiger Tail Ice Creem

Boardwalk Chocolates knows that even though Summer is coming to an end, any time is a good time for vegan ice cream. Get in touch with them to make your own creation. I personally just picked up my Tiger Tail today. They write: "it's a mix of orange sherbet, rice/coconut vanilla and "black" licorice flavours. So far I've also made Peanut Butter with Justin's Peanut Butter Cup Candies, Salty Peanut Butter/Banana/Chocolate - a chocolate ice cream with gobs of salty peanut butter and slivers of fresh banana and Xylitol Chocolate Mint Chip. Up next is butter pecan with pieces of butterscotch candy. Consulting is available for those who don't know where to start!" Contact them for your ice-creem fantasy at siue[at]boardwalkchocolates[dot]com

New additions to the East of Toronto page!

Sally, our "roving Eastern reporter" writes: "Just to let you know that I've been branching out a bit further East to assist vegetarians and vegans who are out on day trips or visiting a cottage and looking for food. Happy Cow and other resources don't even list some of these smaller towns. I've had many pleasant encounters with new restaurant and cafe owners who are happy to cater to us, even though in cottage country, we are still a silent minority."  For recommendations and reviews of restaurants, cafés and other items of interest to vegetarians in Durham, as recommended by our Durham Lakeside Group, click here.

Mylk Uncookies

In the news

The Eaton Centre spent $48 million on their new Urban Eatery. It features reusable plate-settings, and the best news (in my opinion) is that Urban Herbivore has set up shop! Read more about it via the Star, and BlogTO.

Big news from our favourite volunteer-run collective up at U of T. Hot Yam! announces that their proposal has been approved to run daily instead of just once a week. They have sent out a call to the community for the help they need to get this big undertaking off the ground. Read more about it here. For now, starting September 21st you can enjoy a vegan meal for $4 on Wenesdays from 12-2pm.

Torontosist wrote up a lovely piece called “Finding Raw and Vegan Comfort in Mylk Uncookies” where you can learn how they came to be.

Now magazine put togerther ther annual student guide and had a whole page on cheap vegan eats.  Hot Beans, Hibiscus, Camros, One Love and Hot Yam! were all mentioned.

The Hog Town Vegan was named one of VegNews' Hot New Vegan restaurants.

Back to school supplies

Grassroots has all you need for eco-friendly back to school supplies like stainless steel water bottles, insulated lunch bags, reusable sandwich wraps, stone paper notebooks, recycled paper pencils, and also tips on packing litterless lunches.

Birthday Celebrations!

Snakes and Lattes

Happy First birthday to Snakes and Lattes! They are a board game cafe serving vegetarian and vegan treats.

Delivery service

Sick? Tired? Just want to stay in? Udupi Palace (details) and Hot Beans (details) are now available by delivery!

Prizes!

Gardein has a new free recipe app for your smartphone, so they are having a contest and giving away an iPad!

 Join the Toronto Vegetarian Association for our first-ever Veggie Drinks. Veggie Drinks is an opportunity for vegetarians and vegans to meet, talk advocacy, and network with other members of Toronto's veg community. For our inaugural event, we'll feature short presentations from Toronto Loves Sharks, the beveg.ca TTC campaign, and more.

When: Wednesday, Sept 7
Drinks from 7 - 10pm
Presentations from 8 - 8:30pm

Where: Disgraceland (965 Bloor St W)
Suggested $10 donation to the Be Veg TTC campaign

RVSP: veggiedrinks@veg.ca

ISSUE 1: Attention Activists!

• Introduction: What's in a Name?
• Speaker Highlights
• Exhibitors Spotlight
  
• Cooking Demonstrations
• In the Next Issue
  
  

Introduction: What's in a Name?

September is the best month of the year in Toronto, food-wise. First off, September is great for seasonal veggies and farmers markets - most of the tasty summer fruits and vegetables are still in season, plus lots of early winter and fall produce too! September is also the month you can look forward to the annual Vegetarian Food Festival, presented to you by us - the Toronto Vegetarian Association!  

This year's festival is bigger and better than ever. We've been working hard to present to you tonnes of awesome speakers, cooking demonstrations, exhibitors and musical entertainment, though that much you've come to expect from us. A difference you might notice is the name of the event: the Vegetarian Food Festival. In year's past, we've always been called the "Vegetarian Food Fair", which of course conjures thoughts of Science Fairs, County Fairs, or Trade Fairs. None of these has ever really fit what the Vegetarian Food Festival is about: celebrating all things veg! Calling it a festival is just, well, more festive.

A name change isn't the only new thing you can expect for this year's festival, we also have some exciting activists and social-benefit organizations to showcase. The Lakeside Tent at Harbourfront Centre, where in previous years you could have found lots of non-profits, no longer exists!  You can now find these exhibitors in the Boulevard Tent, South Orchard, and the International Marketplace. Visit the Exhibitors page, under "Social-Benefit Organizations" to check them all out. We've also added an Activist Panel this year, featuring Jack Norris and Melanie Joy. The rest of this newsletter is dedicated to displaying all the folks that are out there making a difference, whether it be through filmmaking, traditional outreach, or just making tasty (plant-based) treats that prove you can be socially responsible and fully satisfied at the same time.

Speaker Highlights

Two awesome advocates this year are: Melanie Joy and Nadia Masoudi. Interested in seeing their presentations and others? Check out our Schedule page for up-to-date times and other information on speakers!

Melanie Joy

In her presentation, Melanie Joy will be exploring the ways in which the psychology of meat can be used for effective vegan advocacy. This presentation is based on Joy's new book Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows: an Introduction to Carnism.  Joy explains carnism, the invisible belief system that shapes our perception of animals and meat, so that we learn to love some species and eat others without knowing why. Joy explains how carnism is sustained by complex, hidden social and psychological mechanisms and it conditions people to act against their core values, their own interest, and the interest of others. Joy then discusses how vegans can apply their understanding of carnism to communicate more effectively with meat eaters, advocate more strategically, navigate “mixed” (veg/meat eater) relationships, feel more grounded in and better able to articulate their own ethical choices, and feel more empowered living in a dominant meat-eating culture. Interested in hearing more from Melanie? Check out her other book: Strategic Action for Animals, which we will have available for purchase at the Festival!

Nadia Masoudi

Nadia Masoudi is an 18 year old filmmaker and activist. Born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada she has always had a true passion for helping animals, humans and the environment. Nadia became a vegetarian when she was 12 years old and has been a vegan since the age of 16. With the help of her father, she is trying very hard to promote her cause. It is her goal to become an advocate leader for animal rights and she is consistently working to improve the welfare of all living creatures. Nadia is the founder of Animal Freedom Day, and is awaiting the release of her first film Don't Eat Me.

Exhibitor Spotlight

 
This year, there will be lots of great non-profit and social-benefit organizations for you to check out at the Food Festival! From farm sanctuaries, cat rescues, to Toronto's very own Veggie Pride Parade, we will be showcasing organizations who are making a difference in the GTA and giving you an opportunity to get involved and make a difference too! Curious to see which organizations you can expect? Check out the Exhibitors page for more information! We'll be featuring Greenpeace Canada and Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals in this newsletter.

Greenpeace Canada

Who doesn't know Greenpeace? These Canadian veterans are celebrating their 40th Anniversary with us at the Food Festival, complete with the release of Amchitka, a never-before-released CD of the concert that launched Greenpeace. Of course, it doesn't hurt that the concert features Joni Mitchell and James Taylor, with rare performances of classic songs. All proceeds for the sale of Amchitka are going to Greenpeace, so this CD is a treat for your ears and your conscience.

Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals

Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals (CCFA) is dedicated to promoting the welfare of animals raised for food in Canada through public education, legislative change and consumer choice.  The inhumane treatment of factory-farmed animals is an issue that is gaining momentum within the public realm. CCFA members are concerned about the plight of these farm animals in Canada and worldwide, and are interested in affecting change. The CCFA tries to tackle issues such as: battery cages, sow stalls, and animal transportation.

 Cooking Demonstrations

What do you eat when you're committed to leading a greener, healthier, more peaceful lifestyle? Are you looking for proof that you don't have to sacrifice your tastebuds for your ethics? We've worked hard this year to bring you the leading plant-based chefs from all over to show you how delicious (not to mention healthy) going meat-free can be! Check out the Schedule, under Lakeside Terrace, for more information on cooking demonstrations.

Meghan Telpner

Marni Wasserman

If you're looking for new, exciting ways to get all your greens in, Marni's cooking demo is for you. With Marni's demonstration, you learn the amazing benefits of eating greens all year long! These nutrient-dense superfoods are nothing to shy away from at the farmers market.  You can have them at every meal (yes, even breakfast), and you'll never feel bad about going back for seconds. Increased energy, loads of minerals and vitamins, and variety are just a few of the perks.

Upcoming in the Next Issue

• What attending the Food Festival can help you achieve for your health
• Weight and Wellness: speakers to look out for
• Healthy Recipes!
• New, Nutrient-Rich Products

Today John and Lisa O. have some sad news articles to share, but they end on a happier note, discussing food (as usual).

Bear bile farms are horrifying places. Vegansaurus posted an article this week about a mother bear who killed her baby and then herself to escape. If you’d like to help the plight of other bears in China and help to end bear farming, Animals Asia is a worthy organization. In other bad news, there’s been an e. coli-driven beef recall in the US. Beef prices are on the rise, which is good in that there will be fewer cattle raised in the coming years, but bad in that the beef industry is doing everything it can to keep people buying meat. The USDA has “bailed out” the chicken industry with a $40 million emergency purchase.

On to the good news! Congratulations to Lisa P., whose recipe for Petit Fours won Yum Universe’s recent birthday contest! If you’d like to consume some sweets as well, you can head to the BeVeg.ca bake sale tomorrow afternoon at Panacea from 1-5pm. If you’re in the mood for something savoury instead, check out Noan “Meats” from BJ Supermarket in Little India, or try a veggie platter or a samosa from M&B Yummy. If you want both sweet and savoury, reserve a space for yourself at Doug McNish’s upcoming multi-course dinner at Didier on September 8th.

We received a nice response from Pho on 7 regarding a letter we’d sent on a TVA member’s behalf. The restaurant's staff has now been well educated on all of their vegetarian products, and a special code for all vegetarian orders has been added to prevent mishaps. For tips on how to approach restaurants about vegetarian and vegan menu options, you can check out this episode of Colleen Patrick-Goudreau’s Food for Thought podcast. We’re also happy to send letters on behalf of TVA members!

 This podcast is an all's well that ends well 33 minutes long.

Listen Now!