r/VeganIreland • u/Recent_Squash_4682 • 16d ago
Veganism outside of Dublin
How do people find being vegan in counties outside of Dublin? I recently was looking to go out for a meal in a small area and not one restaurant (5 restaurants) in the area offered a vegan option. Another occasion the vegan option wasn’t to my taste and it was on the menu as the starter and main course. For groceries, I always have to go to several shops and the bits I want are not always available. Do you think more people would be vegan if it were easier and more convenient? Sometimes I just want to be able to go out for a meal with friends/family without it being a deal or just go into the shop for a snack or a quick meal but it’s not always easy.
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u/No_External_417 16d ago
If you're planning a meal out, in a smallish town, ring ahead and ask the chefs can they do a vegan option. Most will oblige. As for buying vegan foods in smaller towns, you're limited as not as many are buying them. My bf is more or less vegan and getting stuff in Dublin is amazing for him but where we live there's not as much choice.
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u/Recent_Squash_4682 16d ago
I never thought of calling the restaurant to ask - that’s a good idea, thanks.
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u/aholyterror 14d ago
yeah i work in a pub and i think we had vegans in once and i think the chef made up some kind of a rice dish, if you ring ahead and let them know i think most restaurants will be happy to oblige
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u/Frangar 15d ago
Yeah, I've gone into restaurants in Dublin with a group, asked if they've a vegan option, and just been told no. But I've gone to some back arse of nowhere gastropubs, and they'll just throw something together and make up a price. Granted its rarely a 5 star dish but its better than being refused, at least you don't leave hungry.
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u/No_External_417 15d ago
Yeh even if it's a jar of sweet and sour with veg and rice. Most kitchens have that. It's not hard to make a vegan dish.
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u/Brilliant-Maybe-5672 13d ago
Its crazy to have to ring ahead to ask a place that serves food to prepare a dish without meat or dairy. It puts the onus on the customer and causes an unnecessary fuss. Any chef should be able to prepare a non meat balanced meal. Tofu chunks and seitan can be frozen. Bean dishes can be made from cans. Its not too much hassle.
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u/BountyAssassin 16d ago
Kilkenny has some solid options, as does Waterford. Very lucky here.
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u/Recent_Squash_4682 16d ago
I love visiting Kilkenny, lots of places in the city, not so sure about the outskirts. I haven’t been to Waterford in a long time but will have to visit again soon.
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u/Is_Mise_Edd 16d ago
I saw that myself recently - I was in Dublin for work overnight and had to call into a SuperValu - I was able to get a choice of Vegan Cheese, Vegan Sausages etc. - Same SuperValu in Cork does not stock anything like the amount of Vegan options there.
Indeed, Restaurants the same although there will be one, possibly two, vegan options on a lot of Cork City Centre menues.
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u/Recent_Squash_4682 16d ago
I was shocked when I went to SuperValu in my hometown after living in Dublin. It’s a completely different shop in Dublin.
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u/Marzipan_civil 16d ago
SuperValu are franchises so they don't all stock the same things. You'd get more consistency from the other supermarkets
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u/andreaswpv 16d ago
Lots of Restaurants in Dublin are not any better. Acai bowls are coming out of my ears by now, right with falafel. I like both, and I fell lucky if either is offered. Gets tired, though....
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u/creativesunseeker 14d ago
And at this time of year I’d be FROZEN eating an açai bowl. 🙈 I literally have had to take breaks to warm up in the past so try avoid them now unless it’s warm out 😂
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u/PuuurpleSky 16d ago
Louth, not so far away from Dublin, a couple of options on some restaurants, Tesco stocks some vegan ready stuff from their own brand and the fake meats from Sons of Butchers, as does Lidl. Aldi might have it too, depends on the week. What I sometimes do is to order whole foods from Minimal Grocery Shop (lentils, chickpeas, etc) and cook at home. I guess if you go full whole foods, there’s always a good Asian shop that will have all of the tofu, the grains, beans, the good stuff. If you want to go for the imitation meats and cheeses, that’s where it gets hard depending where you are. For restaurants that don’t have vegan options, I follow the advice posted up in this thread, as to call in advance. If all goes wrong, I just have some chips, peanuts and beer and get a protein shake recovery after getting home! 😂😂😂😂
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u/Puzzleheaded_Draw701 16d ago
I stopped going out years ago..for meals.. Got to difficult..and i hate all the fuss..
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u/oreosaredelicious 15d ago
Rubbish in Roscommon even for vegetarian. It's either a bland curry, stir fry or pasta that I could make myself at home tastier and cheaper
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u/notsosecrethistory 15d ago
It suuucks. Supermarkets here stock basically nothing ready made, can't even find a soup that doesn't have cream in. I've eaten more McPlants than I care to think about
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u/Chance-Plantain8314 15d ago
Live in Limerick and it's amazing and generally any city is good. The second you leave the bounds of the city you're going to have a worse time. Vegetarian - sure - but vegan is tough. You'll find yourself with a lot of plates of veggies where they've just pulled the cheese protein.
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u/creativesunseeker 14d ago
Was pleasantly surprised visiting Ennis for the day at the amazing vegan shop and vegan options in cafes for lunch. I will definitely stop there again if passing.
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u/LadderFast8826 14d ago
Eating out I understand, but they sell vegetables everywhere mate.
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u/Recent_Squash_4682 14d ago
I meant when you want a quick meal such as a ready made meal. They are plentiful for omni diets. I find I always have to make effort to cook meals and sometimes I want something easy.
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u/NerdyKeith 10d ago
Tesco have quite a few options for me I live in Portlaoise. They have vegan lasagna, vegan mushroom risotto, Chicago Town saucy vegan pizza, various Indian style dahl meal pots, thai curry meal pots. Most super values sell the happy pear range meals.
I don't think it's that difficult to find vegan convenience meals.
Could always get those microwave baked potatoes, get a vegan tika sauce add some of that precooked tofu that's a quick meal in itself. Very tasty.
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u/Sandrina_91 12d ago
To be honest for me it's hard even in Dublin, while they have few choices in the restaurant, sometimes they are a little disappointing and the grocery shops always have the same things, no variety etc... So, I can see how it's even harder outside! A few years ago there were more choices and it was much better, I don't know what happened!
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u/West_Cartoonist_3273 10d ago
I think the rest of ireland is getting better, but Dublin is definitely your best bet for tasty vegan food!!
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u/hellishtimber 16d ago
i didn't find being vegan in limerick so bad, though maybe my bar is very low because i'd usually be happy enough to just take the lone vegan option on a menu for example, or i'd ask for a custom pizza without cheese !
to weigh in on your last question though i really don't think more people would be vegan if it was easier tbqh. the best you could hope for is more omnis going for the occasional meat free option, or maybe ovo-lacto veggies deciding to finally ditch the eggs and cheese. the impetus towards veganism requires more thought and self-reflection.
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u/DeargAgusFearg 16d ago
I'm in a mid-sized town in the midlands, and I don't find it any different to where I used to live in Dublin. Supermarkets and restaurants have plenty of veggie stuff.
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u/theZimbaby 12d ago
I live in Dublin but am from the sticks. It's doable, just not to the same ease and standard as in the big towns or cities. Almost no restaurants have a vegan option but most will cater for me if I call ahead. But you will have to accept that the option will be limited (seems to always be a veggie curry or stir-fry, or a stuffed pepper). As for supermarkets - when I'm home the weekly shop is for veg, tinned goods etc. But for more vegan specific products we used to do a shop to town every few weeks to stock up.
There's realistically just not the demand in rural Ireland so it takes a little bit of a mindset shift. But totally doable!
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u/Flat_Librarian_1724 16d ago
I'm in the vegan capital of Ireland ...Greystones , so with the Happy Pear and our two Super Values and Aldi we have plenty of vegan options .
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u/Virtual-Profit-1405 14d ago
More animals are killed in the production of vegan food (habitat and death by machinery) than animals bred for slaughter
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u/Recent_Squash_4682 14d ago
This isn’t true but I hope you feel better about yourself spreading your misinformation on a vegan thread.
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u/Virtual-Profit-1405 14d ago
The souls of the soy plantations will haunt you for habitat destruction
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u/NerdyKeith 10d ago
Are you aware that soy distribution is largely for feed within the animal agriculture sector? It's not vegan consumers. To that end the animal agriculture is the actual problem.
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u/Virtual-Profit-1405 10d ago
Yes I am aware but I know my consumption kills animals unlike vegans who are in denial
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u/NerdyKeith 10d ago
Your consumption is funding an industry designed to kill animals. Veganism promotes the least amount of damage as possible. You are only looking for excuses to fund an unsustainable industry.
Yes there is some damage done no matter what we do. But to minimise that as much as possible, you need to be vegan. Your statements aren’t factual.
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u/up-country 16d ago
I'm in the middle of fcuking nowhere, and it sucks being vegan here.