A few weeks ago I heard rumors of a vegan bakery planned for the new storefronts on Bogart and Moore. The other day, I got a tip:
“One of the vans moving things in was from ‘Red Mango Bakery,’ and even the van smelled like a delicious coconut treat. I really hope they’re setting up a shop. I could go for some baked goods RIGHT NOW.”
I saw the van, too, but thought maybe they were delivering to Roberta’s or the Archive. It turns out that a new place called CakeWalk will be opening in the middle storefront. It is billed as a “a vegan pastry bar and vegetarian cafe.” Angela Pickman of Red Mango assures me that all the products taste just like the animal product-packed confections us traditionalists crave. “If you ate it without knowing its vegan, you’d never know!”
The cafe menu will definitely be meatless. It will take an artist to create a selection varied enough for everyone to enjoy, but CakeWalk seems up to the test.
There’s no exact opening date as it depends on completion of renovations. Stay tuned!
CakeWalk, 43 Bogart
Jimmy Legs April 29th, 2008 at 11:25 am
i didn’t see that coming so soon! looks like i’ll be taking the L train more often.
bambina April 29th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
This is so exciting! Kind of far from me but I will take my bike. I try to be vegetarian lol
JorgeRB April 29th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Wow! Times are changing. I never thought I would see a Vegan bakery in Bushwick of all places
JorgeRB
mike April 29th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
crap! just as I’m movin outta the hood
how exciting!
justin April 29th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
gross
Eccentric Vegan April 29th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
This is exciting news for New Yorkers. I’m sure the veg*ns will be all over it :)
splutters April 29th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
That is an ugly logo, but it will be nice to have another food/snack option off of the Morgan L.
Bushwick Dill April 29th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
i’m psyched.
Tony T April 30th, 2008 at 6:12 am
Why is it that all of the vegan places I’ve visited in NY go out of their way to assure customers that some of their dishes taste just like meat, or sell this or that “meatless stake or burger”? I’m not a vegan, but here in the far east, I eat lots of “vegan” food that never tries to be “like meat”. I think if you need your vegan food to taste like meat you might as well drop this silly phase and eat meat!
AndreasNYC April 30th, 2008 at 6:32 am
I’m psyched for CakeWalk to open – hopefully soon! From the comments here, looks like they could bring-in a good mixed (veg/non-veg) crowd. Great!
Andreas
petebfd April 30th, 2008 at 9:05 am
“if you need your vegan food to taste like meat you might as well drop this silly phase and eat meat!”
that doesn’t make any sense. the whole point of eating a vegan diet for most people is not causing harm to animals. so what does it matter if it tastes like meat, as long as its not? if you’re not eating vegan food that tastes like meat you might as well go back on your tenet of not harming living things and just eat dead things? that logic doesn’t even approach making sense.
the reason they tout their food as tasting like meat is to attract non-vegan customers and show them there is a tasty alternative to their carnivorous diets.
Bett April 30th, 2008 at 9:31 am
Exactly, petebfd.
Tony T voices a sentiment I have heard all too often from both vegetarians and omnivores alike; the bottom line is that people who say this are trying to push you around. It’s a form of bullying. (As is calling vegetarianism a “silly phase.”)
Step back, Tony T! I don’t eat meat or animal products because I do not wish to hurt animals, not because I don’t like the way those things taste. I’d be a vegetarian whether or not I had substitutes for animal products I learned to like as a child, but having these delicious substitutes makes it more pleasant.
As for silly, I think it is far more silly to attempt to sit in judgement of people who are changing their lives to create change in the world. People like you who do nothing but snipe from the sidelines are irritating, but luckily most committed vegetarians won’t listen to you.
As to petebfd’s last statement, I am guessing that the main reason they advertise their food as tasting as delicious as that made with animal products is to attract vegetarian customers. I’m quite sure that they are also hoping to attract omnivores who wish to eat a healthier diet, as well as the merely curious, but any vegetarian eatery I’ve ever known of has mainly been sustained by vegetarian customers. Luckily, more and more people are becoming vegetarian as the dangers – both to human health and to the environment – are becoming clearer.
Jimmy Legs April 30th, 2008 at 11:07 am
way to not further stigmatize vegans with a sanctimonious post, brett! TonyT wasn’t trying to be abusive, he was just pointing out something that all of us have probably noticed about fake meat and the like. it is kind of funny when you think about it.
anyway, the good thing about a vegan bakery is that they can come up with a million things that will taste awesome without making a big deal of its lack of animal parts.
Jeremy April 30th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
I’m with Tony and Jimmy here: fake meat tastes like fake meat. Though I don’t think that’s what CakeWalk will have — I think their pastries will just taste like normal pastries, as opposed to serving gluten or TVP wraps or whatever.
What is it with vegans thinking they’re saving the world? You don’t like meat or want to harm animals, fine, leave it at that. I mean if vegetarianism was so all-curative, parts of India should be a utopia free from health problems or want.
Matt April 30th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
LOLz! I luv the innernets. There’s always something said that gets knickers bunched.
That being said, I will gladly try this vegan place. Sounds like a nice treat to wash down summertime bbq’d meat :p
Laura April 30th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
I don’t think the posts in defense of veganism or “fake meats” were sanctimonious – that label reeks of a double standard, when the idea of veganism is constantly attacked (though not always deliberately or maliciously) by the “mainstream,” whoever they are. Anyway, I think the whole faux meat thing is designed to win over people who are afraid of the transition to a plant based diet and can’t figure out how to make a balanced meal without meat. I agree that it doesn’t taste much like meat, but it can be nutritious and tasty in its own right. I don’t get the feeling fake meats are going to play a central role at this bakery, however, so it’s sort of an unusual forum for this discussion.
Places like this bakery are wonderful ambassadors to the non-veg crowd, because they help to broaden people’s horizons without trying to “convert” anyone; they merely to offer more healthful and humane choices without being preachy (a cardinal offense for veg*ns, it seems).
As for saving the world, Jeremy, there are plenty of things we can do to make our planet a better place. Your all-or-nothing implication that 1) if vegetarianism is good it must be accompanied by perfect health and social justice, or 2) if absolute perfection is not the result, vegetarianism cannot offer a remedy to any social ills, is puzzling and seems to be a deliberate simplification.
There’s lots to agree upon here. It’s great news that Cake Walk is opening, and I look forward to checking it out with my non-veg friends!
ricmac01 April 30th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
Is it ok to “eat meat” if you don’t swallow?
Mopar May 1st, 2008 at 12:58 am
Yuck. So many vegan bakeries selling overly sweet disgusting desserts that will cause heart disease. Where has all the lard gone?
Tony T May 1st, 2008 at 9:02 am
Hi Bett.
When I wrote my original “silly phase” comment, I had a slight feeling I was about to open a can of veggie worms but I had already hit the submit button. I was actually referring to faux vegans who feel they have to eat veggies just to fit in but need their food to still resemble meat. I think vegetarianism is a great idea for Americans (the majority are just too damn fat and unhealthy as my frequent trips back home proved to me). I was once a vegan myself, but came back to meat once I moved to Japan (not that we eat much of it here). I know vegans get a lot of shit from us meat-eaters, but you must admit that vegans can be extremely militant and a royal pain in the ass when they wish to. So it swings both ways..ok? I don’t want to get into a big vegan war here, but I do want to say that I think eating MORE veggies is a very good idea, but eliminating meats and fish protein may not be the best option. Would a vegan object to my meat-eating if I humanely bred my own animals and slaughtered them in a manner that limits their suffering? Probably not. Most vegans I know have an agenda that goes beyond the dietary. And it is that agenda that rubs so many carnivores the wrong way. Enough said. Now I order all vegans to relax and have a soy latte. I’ll try to be more careful with my selection of words next time.
Becky May 4th, 2008 at 6:34 pm
“Would a vegan object to my meat-eating if I humanely bred my own animals and slaughtered them in a manner that limits their suffering?”
uh, yeah.. a vegan wouldn’t suggest that you breed & slaughter them.
Dresden May 4th, 2008 at 10:04 pm
Dresden eat meat.
Good for body, mind and thing between legs.
Dresden think meat that not meat good on occasion, but Dresden also think Vegan culture – well, righteous head-up-ass weirdos should pull out canine teeth before judgement passed.
Dresden eat meat. Welcomes meatless meat. Dislikes eye-rolling.
Dresden also hate smell of cigarettes. Dresden think Vegan smokers need examine things.
Ja.
Dresden May 4th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
Dresden eat Vegan, possibly…
not eat Vegan food….
possibly eat Vegan. Period.
Mr. Pickle May 7th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
Yet another wonderful addition to MorganTown. I love my neighborhood.
Unit333 April 21st, 2009 at 9:12 pm
Well, they got stopped. No vegan bakery thank GOD!!!!! Give us something thats for everyone.