The non-vegan restaurant that went vegan (for a day)

Raise your hand if you go to non-vegan restaurants and get offered salad and sorbet.

*All the vegans raised their hands*

I hear ya!

This is standard for us vegans, and despite my love for a good chip sandwich, it can become quite boring after a while.

Then came the light to my tunnel.

A local, very non-vegan restaurant decided to do the unthinkable and go vegan for a day. This wasn’t any old vegan for a day though, this was ultimate vegan for a day.

Marisela and Marc (and their rescue doggy Lady) own Black Market BBQ in Dénia, a restaurant known for their unique offering of American BBQ comfort food. Their menu features dishes such as very non-vegan macaroni cheese, ribs, burgers, tacos and much more… Everything I used to eat before I went veggie.

Marc, Marisela & Lady

Despite being one of the only restaurants in Dénia to already feature two vegan meals on their animal-heavy menu, I was very surprised when they got in touch about wanting to host a vegan night in their restaurant (that also acts as an art gallery by the way!). We got chatting and it turned out they’re both incredibly environmentally conscious and were super open to veganism.

Ahhhh a breath of fresh air.

After a discussion about what to offer on the vegan night, I somehow managed to talk them into cooking tasty vegan alternatives to their regular dishes. They liked the idea and prepped a ton. Fortunately for us vegans, Marc is a fantastic chef with a wealth of experience and whatever he makes becomes a tasty success, so I knew that we would be in for a treat.

And so the night came on…

If you’re a Leonard Cohen fan like me then you’ll totally be singing that last line.

We arrived at the restaurant to find all of the other tables booked out for the night. Once we sat down and were presented with a menu, the decisions became a lot more difficult as there were so many dishes to choose from. I could eat all of the foods I used to eat before going vegan but without harming any animals.

Then I stuffed myself.

It was amazing!

Rather than talk to you guys about the individual dishes, I thought it would it would be better to show you photos so you can bask in the glory of the vegan night.

Macaroni cheese

Hushpuppies

Black bean burger

Pulled pork

Zucchini sliders

Ribs

Chocolate chip cookie

Peach cobbler

I wouldn’t normally blog about an individual restaurant, especially a non-vegan one, but these guys definitely deserve a special mention. Not only did they do a super good vegan night, but they’re also keeping the most popular vegan items on their regular menu.

Overall, Marc cooked super tasty food and Marisela was such a wonderful host. On top of this, I’m so crazily grateful to have a nearby restaurant that is willing to try something new and stand out from the crowd. This was Black Market BBQ’s first vegan night of hopefully many more and I encourage vegans living or visiting Dénia to try out their food – it’s super impressive.

I am so happy to be living in a world where great non-vegan restaurants are serving amazing vegan food.

#Progress