Veganism is slowly but surely catching up in the city of Hyderabad.

A vegan diet means no dairy, eggs, honey, meat, poultry or fish -- abstinence from all animal products. People turn vegans for reasons of health, prevention of animal cruelty and for environmental protection.

Vegan diet definitely reduces the carbon footprint by saving water, by reducing harmful emissions. There is so much cruelty in commercial animal rearing for food and dairy.

Artificial insemination, hormonal injections, unhealthy feeds to boost growth/ milk production, inhuman breeding methods -- all make even vegetarian diets cruel.

Milk is surely not the way to increase calcium in the body. It is often a hindrance to detoxification and holistic health.

Excessive milk consumption in the form of various products like cheese, paneer, butter, yoghurt and ghee has resulted in adulteration of the same.

Pasteurized milk seldom has any beneficial properties. When production has to match unreasonable levels of demand, then quality suffers.

What was earlier considered healthy in small quantities becomes unhealthy.

Therefore for many vegan diets are a healthier option.

Here is a dekko of 2 places in Hyderabad which offer vegan foods --

#Terrasen Cafe
8-2-418, Road no. 4,
Near Mount Kailash Apartment,
Banjara Hills,
Hyderabad, Telangana -
Website: http://www.terrassencafe.in/

This cozy joint is known for the freshness of food, purity of the ingredients and delicious out of the box meals.

Dhanesh Sharma, started the Terrassen cafe in March 2015. He turned vegan in 2013. At that time Hyderabad had no vegan places and he wanted to bridge the gap. "I have been conscious of what I eat , vegan and healthy eating were both absent from Hyderabad food scene.

So I felt the need to start one for people with similar bent of mind . Since then , whenever we come up with a new item on the menu we work on it being vegan, healthy and Unique.

This is our USP as our menu had developed to be one of its kind."

"We bake our own bread which is free from maida, dough conditioners, additives and preservatives. We believe in making everything fresh. We believe in making everything from scratch. So if we go about making a sandwich we will makes our own sauces, spreads, filling and the bread !!"

Understanding the needs of people who are on a gluten free diet for health or allergy reasons, they have incorporated a lot of Gluten free options in their menu including breads and cakes.

Their clientele are people who appreciate food which does not compromise with the health aspect.

Thus vegan and non vegans both form their clientele. "Young crowd who are looking for something new also appreciate our effort.

We deliver online through swiggy and Zomato." adds Dhanesh before rushing off into his kitchen!!

Gluten Free Black Rice Pudding with Vegan IceCream

 Gluten Free Black Rice Pudding with Vegan IceCream

Gluten Free Pizza

 Gluten Free Pizza

Gluten Free Noodles

 Gluten Free Noodles

# Smart Alec - Alternative Deli
910 - C, Road no. 46, Silent Valley Hills, Jubilee Hills,
Hyderabad, Telangan - 500033
09871066677
Google Business: http://g.co/kgs/AGp9EJ
Facebook: http://m.facebook.com/smartalecdeli/
Instagram : @smartalecalternativedeli

 Smart Alec - Alternative Deli

 Smart Alec - Alternative Deli

Smart Alec Alternative Deli, run by Mansi Virmani and Sanjna Muttreja is Hyderabad’s full fledged vegan restaurant that opened November of last year.

Both partners who are also school friends turned vegan about two years ago for ethical reasons once they learned more about the cruelty in the animal agriculture industry. Both have been interested in food and cooking since they were teenagers and turning vegan reignited the passion for cooking since options in the market were limited.

Paying attention, baffled them about just how many “vegetarian” items in restaurants and supermarkets contained animal ingredients.

They decided to take up the challenge and showcase how pizzas, burgers, sandwiches, decadent desserts, and so much more could taste just as delicious when made with plant based ingredients.

It’s also their way of furthering and promoting the cause of veganism; after all the way to many hearts is through food!

From old time vegans, to travellers and expats, curious minds, health and fitness enthusiasts, and others come by to have a meal or snack.

They are currently delivering food through Swiggy and Zomato. They have also recently started delivering their confectionery items like vegan cheeses, butters, mayonnaise, cakes and breads on a pre-order basis.

As for future plans, they now, have two other vegan businesses that have just started operating from the same premises. They hope to become India’s First vegan hub. They plan to have more events, talks and cooking demos in the future.

Vegan Pizza 

 Vegan Delicacies

 Baked Potato with Herbs

Vegan Chocolate Cake 

 Vegan Delicacies 

 Vegan Delicacies

Some facts

Conservation of Water

It takes 100 to 200 times more water to raise a pound of beef than it does to raise a pound of plant foods. Cutting down on just one kilo of beef saves 15,000 litres of water; replacing a roast chicken with a vegetable bean (which has similar protein levels) saves 4,325 litres of water."

Soil Protection

Livestock also erode and weaken soil. This is partly because raising livestock usually leads to deforestation, which clears huge areas of land of the different elements such as trees, rocks etc that provide nutrients and resilience, in order to make room for the livestock to roam.

Reduces Energy Consumption

Meat, poultry and fish production requires more energy and resources to produce, preserve, ship and package. Vegan diets would greatly reduce all this wastage.

Air Pollution

Livestock in the world cause a lot of air pollution by emission of harmful gases and reduction of plants by way of their consumption. Planting more plants for consumption means more oxygen in the world and reduction of carbon emissions.

Moreover it is # Healthy # Delicious # Not Difficult

Easy Substitutes for Dairy Products

• Dairy Milk can be substituted with nut milk such as coconut, almond etc. These are cheaper and healthier than dairy milk.
• Cheese can be made out of cashew paste and seasonings
• Curd and Buttermilk can be made with nutmilks
• Butter can be substituted with Tahini
• Ghee can be substitued with Vegetable/ seed oils

Here's hoping many more such ethical and sustainable eating options mushroom in the city!