the greatest vegan destination you've never heard of.

read on if you're intrigued...

still can’t believe I did this - snorkelled with seals in the wild! a screenshot from the amazing video Blake took <3

Admin I guess??

Hello all! How are you? If you’re still here, thank you for your patience. In the last month, I went snorkelling with seals, moved out of my place and went home, to Phuket. It’s been so much fun (not the moving bit), and the excitement continues today, as I sit here in Changi airport, awaiting my flight to Athens. Yep, like everyone else in the world, I’m going to Europe. It’ll be a half-year adventure - I’ll be travelling & eating my way through the continent, and of course doing some hostel cooking too.

That said, my content is going to change a little - it may be less frequent, and some of my posts will discuss vegan spots at different destinations rather than recipes. If that sounds like you, I can’t wait for you to come with me to Europe and find the best vegan fare. Plus, the content I intend to write might be useful for any loved ones looking for places to eat in certain cities, so please let them know!

I’ve been lucky enough to travel all over the world from a young age, but I have never done a long term trip that doesn’t involve work, uni, or volunteering - so I’m excited to just “be” for a few months. Ok — let’s get on with it!

Get ready for your mind to be blown - Phuket’s Vegetarian Festival is no joke!

If you’ve heard much about Thailand, you’d be correct in thinking a great deal of meat and seafood make up a large part of the cuisine, depending on the region. But what you may not know is that it is one of the most vegan-friendly countries in the world - you just need to know what to look for!

Although I can’t speak for the whole country, in Phuket, you will be able to find amazing vegan food year-round. Just look for the red and yellow sign for vegan in Thai - it looks like the number “17”. Food cooked in the “เจ” (pronounced like “jay”) tradition is always vegan. Although sometimes it’ll indicate vegetarian, if you see a yellow “jae” flag, it will mean there are no animal products served at the restaurant or stall. This is such a relief for anyone who has had to explain what “vegan” is in a country whose language you don’t speak, and risk looking like a dumb tourist. I’m sure we’ve all had an experience where we ask for something vegan and we get given chicken clear soup (no chicken pieces so MUST be vegan), cheese, or eggs.

You will always be able to find “jae” food near Taoist or Buddhist temples. In Phuket, some of my favourite areas for vegan food are Cheong Tale (Thanon Si Suthon Rd), Phuket Old Town (Ranong Rd) and Talat Nuea (Thalang Rd, Near Bangkok Hospital). They are usually on the same street as the temples - all lined up. It’s vegan paradise.

Yes, that is vegan SPAM!

The other amazing thing is, it’s so cheap. Most meals at simple Jae restaurants will cost up to 100THB per person, and that’s if you pile it on (4.17 AUD/ 2.66 USD).

The dishes are mostly made that morning and served in bain-maries, on top of scoops taken from giant rice cookers. Some restaurants have proper menus as well, but I advise you to try all the random stuff! I usually just point and say “ka”/ please. You can also ask for rice by saying “raat khaao”, which means “over rice.”

The Vegetarian Festival

The Vegetarian Festival, also known as the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, falls on the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar year, and lasts for nine days. The festival is Taoist, and comes from Thailand’s heavy Chinese heritage, encouraging believers to live harmoniously by not eating animal products.

There’s another thing too. Some people feel the spirit of the Ma Song, which stops them from feeling pain when they feel called to - um - offer themselves up. In Phuket especially, there are lots of rituals going on during the week - some more innocent - lion dances, parades, and eating vegan food. But there’s also painful practices like fire walking, throwing firecrackers at people, and also skin puncturing. People will stab themselves with massive rods, sticks, guns, or knives - often right through their mouths and walk in the parade. I’m not going to show pictures - safe to say there are some people that walk straight from the parade into the ambulance. It’s a very interesting ritual. I watched a few of the parades and did fear for their lives as they marched proudly in the rain, skewered. The final night’s parade was also something to behold. I was glad it was raining because it was truly feral (but fun!).

The best thing about the festival is undoubtedly the food. As well as the usual restaurants and stalls open for business, there are temporary stalls lined up as far as the eye can see with vegan food - noodles, beautifully coloured rice dishes, stews, curries, fake meat, deep fried things, desserts, candy, fruit, sandwiches and so much more. I visited stalls around the island every day and was so overwhelmed by the choices I had. I ate this food for breakfast, lunch and dinner because it was so amazingly cheap and so delicious that I didn’t want to eat anything else.

Not only will you find vegan food by the temples, but you’ll also find it in 7-11s, supermarkets, restaurants, bubble tea stalls, and in food courts. In fact, some of the best food I had was inside what my mum tells me is a pretty local mall - a “Super C” centre. You got to choose things to “hotpot” and deep fry. It was insane.

It’s a tough act to follow. I have never experienced such “vegan joy” like I have at the Vegetarian Festival, and I promise you will too.

So, moral of the story is: what’s the worst time to visit Phuket for food? Right after the Vegetarian Festival. ;)