Meatless steak is having a big food news moment. Questlove hosted a pop-up dinner dedicated to his meatless Questlove Philly Cheesesteaks. Beyond Steak finally made its debut in Canada. And new meaty chimichangas and birria tacos are on the menu this summer at Jajaja in New York City thanks to plant-based steak innovator Chunk Foods.
Plus, there’s so much more to celebrate, from National Doughnut Day to Pride. Read on for more.
Food news
Fluffier plant-based eggs is on the menu for breakfast because this week, Eat Just announced that it tweaked the recipe for its popular Just Egg to improve it in multiple ways.
Eat Just
How do we know these eggs are going to be great? The new formulation has already been approved by culinary icon Andrew Zimmern. “Well, over a decade ago, I became one of the first people in the world to try the very first version of Just Egg,” Zimmern said in a statement.
Zimmern describes the texture as “fluffier and lighter” and the flavor as “more eggy.”
In addition to a flavor and texture upgrade, the new Just Egg got a functionality boost, and the vegan egg now comes with better binding and aerating properties—making it even more perfect as a swap for animal-derived eggs in baked goods.
“I cannot tell the difference between this and a conventional scrambled egg,” Zimmern said. “Absolutely unbelievable.”
Keep an eye out for the mung bean-based eggs in stores—including Whole Foods Market, Sprouts, and Target—packed in Eat Just’s more eco-friendly carton .
Beyond Meat just made breakfast a little better for its Northern neighbors in Canada with the expansion of Beyond Steak—which makes for a hearty, and plant-based, steak and eggs breakfast when paired with Just Egg.
Now available in 2,000 Albertsons stores across Canada, Beyond Steak is made to mimic the taste and texture of steak but with just a few simple ingredients like fava beans.
Beyond Meat
The expansion comes at a time when, according to a recent survey, 67 percent of Canadians are considering reducing their red meat consumption, yet nearly half (49 percent) would rather give up social media for a month than red meat. Additionally, two-thirds believe steak is the hardest meat to replicate in a plant-based form.
“We know that when it comes to food, it’s all about taste, and our survey findings revealed 61 percent of Canadian respondents agree taste would be the number one thing they miss when it comes to reducing red meat consumption,” said Heena Verma, senior marketing director of Beyond Meat.
Reducing cholesterol is a top motivator for Canadians who are looking to ditch animal meat. Luckily, Beyond Steak—and all other plant-based meats—do not contain cholesterol.
For a sustainability minded summer treat, we’re turning to Juiced Generation, a cold-pressed juice company that is celebrating its 25th anniversary with an ingenious new product line: Juiced Gelato.
Juiced Generation
The company worked with Italian gelato expert Cristiano Rossi to create the new plant-based gelato which features a base of cold-pressed juice and just a touch of agave for sweetness. With pints in the works, Juiced Generation is now scooping its gelato at two outlets in New York City in seven flavors: Watermelon Dragon, Carrot-Apple-Ginger, Supa Dupa Greens, Get Your Green On, Citrus Super C, Spicy Lemon, and Celery.
“From our roots in making fresh, raw juices accessible to New Yorkers, we’ve continually sought out new ways to inspire healthier living,” Eric Helms, founder and CEO of Juiced Generation, said. “Juiced Gelato is the latest expression of that.”
And if getting your green juice in the form of a frozen treat isn’t exciting enough, Juiced Generation offers its gelato in a vegan crunch cone made from upcycled cold-pressed juice pulp fortified with chickpea and lentil flours.
And for more sweet food news, we head across the pond to the United Kingdom where OGGS Mini Vanilla Cupcakes have become the highest-selling branded cupcake in UK grocery stores.
OGGS
According to Nielsen data, these plant-based cupcakes have surpassed popular brands such as TGI Fridays, Cadbury, and Galaxy, achieving over £1 million ($1.3 million) in sales value.
“While consumers are always on the lookout for great tasting products, more and more are looking to ensure that their supermarket shop is as ethical as possible,” Hannah Carter, Founder and CEO at OGGS, said.
“Our range of cakes—the most ethical on shelf—prove that our favorite treats can be better for animals and the planet, without any compromise on quality and taste,” Carter said.
This milestone comes as OGGS rebrands its bakery range from “plant-based” to “cruelty-free,” aligning with the growing consumer demand for ethical products.
Restaurant news
If you find yourself dining out in New York City this summer, there are new meaty options to try at Jajaja Mexicana thanks to Chunk Foods, maker of plant-based steak.
Chunk Foods
At all four locations, the restaurant is offering Birria Tacos filled with Chunk Steak, coco queso, cilantro, and onion as well as Chimichangas stuffed with Chunk Steak, Spanish rice, black beans, coco queso, pico de gallo, lettuce, and sour cream.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Jajaja Mexicana to bring our steaks to even more New Yorkers,” Amos Golan, Founder and CEO of Chunk Foods, said.
“We’ve developed a unique fermentation technology to create whole cuts of meat that look, cook, and taste like beef. Our products are super easy to work with—if you can cook with beef, you can cook with Chunk,” Golan said.
If you’re looking for something new during Pride Month, both Next Level Burger and Veggie Grill have something new for June.
Next Level Burger is introducing the Peachy Passion Pride Shake, made with organic soy or coconut soft-serve, organic peaches, passionfruit, whipped cream, natural rainbow sugar, and a vegan rainbow gummy.
Veggie Grill is offering the Banana-licious Celebration Cake, a fluffy organic banana cake with vegan cream cheese frosting and rainbow sprinkles.
Both brands support local LGBTQ+ non-profits with donations throughout the month.
Additionally for World Ocean Day (June 8), Next Level Burger will launch the Ocean Blue Banana Shake, featuring organic soy or coconut soft serve, fresh organic bananas, whipped cream, and vegan gummy fishes.
For this holiday, Veggie Grill will highlight its plant-based Baja fish tacos with crispy fish, jalapeño slaw, and pico de gallo.
Next Level Burger
Each order of either the Ocean Blue Banana Shake or the Baja fish tacos will support the Ocean Blue Project in removing plastic from the ocean.
At VegNews, one of our favorite holidays is National Doughnut Day. And this year, PETA compiled a list of the top eateries across the US that are serving up the most delectable vegan doughnuts.
Standouts include Level 5 Donuts in Madison, WI which features treats such as Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp and custard-filled Boston Dream donuts; Yellow Rose Vegan Bakery & Cafe in Maplewood, NJ which rotates daily favorites such as “Krispy Kreme”–style glazed, Créme Brûlée, and Rosewater Pistachio; and Honolulu, Little Vessels Donut Co. in Honolulu, HI which offers flavors inspired by the owner’s childhood such as Guava Cookie Mac Nut, Lemon Black Sesame, and Miso Caramel Furikake.
Cloudy Donut Co
Combine this list with VegNews’ top doughnut shops, and can keep yourself busy with trying new treats until the next national doughnut day.
Event news
Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson is a Grammy-award-winning musical artist known best for his legendary band The Roots. But these days, Questlove is bringing his love of food into the spotlight—and, for the planet’s sake, a lot of it happens to be plant-based.
An early backer of Impossible Foods, Questlove is now on a mission to rethink the Philly Cheese Steak. In 2019, he began that journey by releasing Questlove’s Cheesesteak, made with Impossible’s plant-based meat, through Goldbelly. Last year, the music artist revealed he is looking for the perfect plant-based cheese to replace the dairy on his meatless cheese steak—and is still on the quest for the best.
Stella Artois
On June 1, Questlove kicked off the “Let’s do Dinner: Summer Series”—a multi-city event organized by Stella Artois—with his meatless Philly Cheesesteak. The sandwich was the focus of the first-ever Questlove’s Cheesesteak Diner, a pop-up dining experience at The Roots Picnic in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park.
Guests enjoyed his specially crafted cheesesteak, alongside lemon pepper popcorn, before ending the night with access to the festival’s headlining acts.
Stella Artois
If your travel plans take you to NYC this summer, be sure to stop by the Vegan Night Market which just returned for its second season to Central Park on the first Tuesday of every month through October.
Set against the stunning backdrop of Columbus Circle, the event offers a vibrant evening of plant-based food and community celebration where visitors can enjoy an impressive lineup of food vendors, including Gracey’s Culinary Specialties, Pinche Vegana, Emeye Ethiopian Cuisine, Passion Fusion NY, RastaRant, Well Charged NYC, Culiraw, Matcha n’ More, Veegmyeats, and Jugo Juice.
And another NYC mainstay, Cinnamon Snail, is back—well, sort of. Adam Sobel, the founder of the renowned vegan restaurant and food truck business, has launched a new venture: Galactic MegaStallion.
Sobel closed The Cinnamon Snail due to overwhelming challenges and the impact of the pandemic, which left him burnt out and creatively stifled. The lockdown forced him to shut down, sell assets, and settle debts, leaving him with valuable experiences but nothing material.
Adam Sobel
During the early months of the pandemic, Sobel took time to recharge mentally and spiritually, reflecting on his career and growing disillusionment with the modern food service industry. This led to the creation of Galactic MegaStallion, a seasonal pop-up eatery with a new theme each year and a new menu every week.
Using a repurposed falafel cart, Sobel designed a versatile mobile kitchen where he now serves sattvic vegan food.“Back when I used to do graffiti art as a kid, I always loved the freedom to do expressive things within the limits of typography, and this venture has a lot in common with that,” Sobel wrote in a blog post.
Sobel has operated the business in secret since 2023, choosing intentionally to avoid social media marketing. In fact, this pop-up eatery breaks all the rules of conventional restaurants by not accepting credit cards, delivery, or to-go packaging—all done to foster a community devoid of screens.
Adam Sobel
Inspired by Sobel’s travels to Southeast Asia, guests to the MegaStallion can expect creative takes on traditional dishes such as Malaysian spiced peanut French toast with clove ganache, whipped pandan butter, and lemongrass palm sugar syrup.
“This has been a bit of an experiment for me to answer one important existential question that was on my mind during the pandemic: can a food business thrive without playing by any of the rules of modern food service?” Sobel wrote. “Let’s find out.”
This summer, you can catch the MegaStallion, Sobel, and his daughters at the Red Bank, NY Farmer’s Market—where Cinnamon Snail first got its start back in 2008.
JUMP TO ... Latest News | Recipes | Guides | Health | Subscribe
Anna Starostinetskaya is the Senior News Editor at VegNews and is always keeping an eye on all things vegan in her home city of San Francisco, CA and everywhere else.
