Vegans in Hamburg?

Apparently the German city whose very name calls to mind a thick, juicy beef patty has got a decent number of vegans living in its domain. This is not a scientific observation (surprise) but simply a personal one--in every restaurant and grocery store I found myself in this past weekend, there were both vegetarian and vegan options. I was impressed. I decided to do a little taste-testing in preparation for the TDC (Thirty Day Challenge, see earlier post), just to get an idea of what's out there. My guidebook (which was basically the German version of the Frommer's Day-by-Day mini-guides that are my absolute travel obsession) listed the BioKonditerei Eichel as a good option for vegan baked goods, so I put my map skills and knowledge of the German public transportation system to good use and made my way over there on Friday afternoon. Here are a few photos from the excursion:

The cake I chose was Vegan Rasperry Torte, and it was pretty good. The "creamy filling" definitely tasted like soy, but I like soy so this really wasn't a problem. I also bought a small package of homemade Vegan chocolate cookies there that I was planning on saving as a treat for during the Challenge, but then it turns out that we didn't really have dinner that night so the cookies came in handy. They were much better than the cake (I really wish I'd bought another pack or tried the vanilla-ginger version). 

For lunch the next day we went to a Döner-Kebap place that the German guy I was staying with really likes. If you don't know what a Döner is (and you probably don't, unless you've spent time in Germany or perhaps London), definitely check out this link. I got hungry just looking at it, which is not a good sign considering there are approximately zero Döners in my vegan-y foreseeable future. Anyway, this place was definitely classier than most of the ones in Regensburg, and it had a much larger menu, which included organic vegan falafel as an alternative to the typical shredded mystery meat. I promptly selected the yogurt sauce to go with it, realizing as I sat down that my meal was no longer vegan. I have a lot to learn. . .

Over lunch, I tried to explain to my companion what I was doing with the TDC. I knew this attempt at an explanation would be met with obstinacy, and boy was I right. You can hardly blame the guy--a life without meat and dairy products is pretty much absurd to most German men. But he seemed to be legitimately concerned for my health (which I thought was very silly, seeing as his eating habits were centered around fast food, much to my dismay/disgust). Among his concerns were that I would not be getting the right vitamins ("Some vitamins can only be found in meat!" and my personal favorite "If you don't eat meat, your skin will get really bad!" That is just silly. Meat in no way improves the complexion.) As for the vitamins remark, it's true that vitamin B-12 can only be found in meat, but it's easily replaced with supplements. If I decide to continue past the thirty days, I'll get myself some supplements when I'm back in the US. Until then, I'm not going to sweat it. And I'm certainly not going to worry about my skin of all things being negatively affected by my new dietary laws.