August is National Sandwich Month and there are three hearty sandwiches to celebrate all month, from NBA legend Mitch Richmond’s meaty collab with Ike’s Love & Sandwiches to plant-based pastrami at one of New York City’s top delis.
Plus, Barnes & Noble is stepping up its breakfast sandwich game with the help of Just Egg and Violife provolone. Read on for more.
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Food news
With summer travel in full swing, you’ll be happy to know that JetBlue flights now offer oat milk on board. The airline recently introduced Lakeland Dairies’ Oat in a Stick milk alternative as part of its complimentary beverage options, perfect for coffee and tea drinkers.
In addition to this, JetBlue offers a variety of free vegan snacks, including Popchips Sea Salt, Partake Classic Grahams, Safe + Fair Everything Bagel Pretzels, and Chifles Plantain Chips.
Lucy-Schaeffer
If you’re on the search for the perfect dairy-free cheese, California-based startup Plonts is emerging from stealth mode with a vegan cheese that stinks (in a good way).
Founded in 2019 by Nathaniel Chu and Josh Moser, Plonts recently announced a $12 million seed round to fund its mission of reducing the environmental impact of the dairy industry with its innovative products, starting with a bold cheddar. Using ancient fermentation techniques, Plonts transforms soy milk into a funky cheddar that slices, shreds, and melts like dairy cheese.
Initially, Plonts cheddar is rolling out in tailor-made dishes at select restaurants in New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Erin Ng
“As a chef, I believe it is increasingly important to understand how and when meat and dairy alternatives can supplement your menu,” Brandon Jew, Moongate Lounge & Mister Jiu’s Founder and Executive Chef, said in a statement. “Plonts is a new product with old-world sensibilities, providing yet another way to enjoy soy milk.”
“It maintains the cheesy, melty properties of a cheddar and compels you to consider it in place of dairy cheese,” Jew said.
You can try Plonts at Court Street Grocers in New York City in the Veggie Classic Sandwich and at S&P Lunch in the Classic Grilled Cheese. In San Francisco, head to Shuggie’s for “Pizza Puffs” filled with Plonts plant-based cheddar, mushrooms, and pesto, or visit Moongate Lounge for a Grilled Cheese with bok choy and Fresno chili mornay sauce. Also, Lovely’s in Oakland will feature Plonts cheddar in its burgers.
Additional Plonts products and partners are in the works.
Ripple Foods
With back-to-school season around the corner, keeping kids satiated is a top concern. Luckily, Ripple Foods has just launched Ripple Shake Ups Protein Shakes, a new line designed specifically for hungry kids. These shakes pack 13 grams of plant-based protein into each serving, helping to keep kids full and energized throughout their busy days.
“We understand the challenges parents face with hangry kids, and Ripple Shake Ups are here to provide a tasty, nutritious solution,” Laura Flanagan, CEO of Ripple Foods, said in a statement. “Our mission is to create products that offer both great taste and superior nutrition, and Shake Ups are the perfect example of this commitment.”
“We’re excited to help parents keep their kids satisfied and happy with a protein shake they can feel good about,” Flanagan said.
Ripple Shake Ups are now available in Viva Vanilla and Chocolatta flavors on Amazon and through the Ripple Foods website, just in time for the school year.
Event news
Wisconsin’s love of cheese is a major part of the state’s identity. This year, Cheeseheads welcomed a dairy-free cheese vendor to the Wisconsin State Fair with open arms. Daiya Foods took on the challenge of winning over fairgoers by offering free samples of grilled cheese and quesadillas made with their dairy-free cheese. The booth, strategically located at the intersection of Main Street and Dairy Lane, drew significant attention.
Daiya Foods
Daiya has been in the plant-based cheese business since 2008, innovating its offerings to be more dairy-like to attract cheese-loving consumers. In its newest iteration, the company uses fermentation techniques to achieve a plant-based cheese that melts and stretches like dairy cheese, making it suitable for popular dishes such as quesadillas and grilled cheese sandwiches.
What did Cheeseheads think of Daiya? Despite initial skepticism, many attendees were pleasantly surprised by the taste and texture of the plant-based cheese.
“I am a cheese person, plus I’m cool to try anything new,” Nichole Kiern, a fairgoer, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “This tastes just like regular cheese.”
To keep the plant-based party going, we turn to the 4th annual Bizerkeley Food Festival set to take place on September 1 in Berkeley, CA.
Visionary Media Collective
Hosted by Erika Hazel (also known as “The Bizerkeley Vegan”), this year’s festival will feature San Francisco-based rapper and health enthusiast StunnaMan02 as the celebrity guest and headliner.
He will perform two hit songs, including “Eat A Salad,” and participate in a Q&A session discussing his journey in entertainment and advocacy for plant-based eating.
“StunnaMan02 will bring a fresh energy as our featured headliner at this year’s Bizerkeley Food Festival,” Hazel said in a statement. “His passion for health, fitness, and community perfectly aligns with our festival’s mission.”
Visionary Media Collective
The festival promises over 100 vendors offering plant-based cuisine and drinks, live entertainment by Audiopharmacy, African and Hawaiian dance performances, a kids’ zone, and a silent auction market benefiting Herd & Flock Animal Sanctuary.
Restaurant news
To kick off National Sandwich Month, this week’s restaurant news is dominated by three major meatless sandwich announcements. First up, NBA legend Mitch Richmond has teamed up with the San Francisco Bay Area chain Ike’s Love & Sandwiches to create a new vegan sandwich with a meaty bite.
Ikes Love & Sandwiches
Dubbed the “Mitch The Rock Richmond,” this sandwich features savory vegan meatballs, mushrooms, marinara sauce, BBQ sauce, and avocado, all served on Ike’s famous Dutch Crunch bread.
“Teaming up with Ike to create my own sandwich has been an amazing ride,” Richmond said. “I’m vegan and wanted to create a vegan sandwich for anyone who loves great barbecue. I’m excited for everyone to try it.”
The sandwich is available at participating Ike’s locations, including its 100th store in San Francisco’s Mission Rock neighborhood.
Just Egg
Next, bookworms get a new handheld at Barnes & Noble with the addition of the Just Egg Bagel Sandwich which comes with fluffy Just Egg, Violife’s smoked provolone cheese, and a spicy harissa spread.
Available for a limited time, this new bagel sandwich follows last year’s launch of a similar Just Egg breakfast sandwich at 500 Barnes & Noble café locations. This one, however, was served on a ciabatta bread and featured a plant-based aioli instead of the spicy spread.
“Expanding our menu to incorporate more vegan-friendly options for our customers has been a priority for our team, but equally important has been finding the right plant-based alternative to offer,” Jason Arthur, Senior Café Buyer at Barnes & Noble, told VegNews at the time.
“We’ve been incredibly impressed by the flavor and quality of Just Egg products and know that this breakfast sandwich is going to quickly become a customer-favorite of both vegans and non-vegans alike,” Arthur said.
Chunk Foods
And lastly, New York City’s Pastrami Queen has an exciting new meatless deli sandwich on its menu courtesy of Chunk Foods. A beloved eatery of the late Anthony Bourdain, Pastrami Queen is now offering “The Prince powered by Chunk,” a plant-based pastrami sandwich at its Moynihan Food Hall location.
This new addition stacks Chunk Foods’ plant-based pastrami with traditional flavors such as deli mustard, rye bread, and a pickle.
“We’re thrilled about this partnership with Pastrami Queen, a beloved NYC institution,” Amos Golan, founder and CEO of Chunk Foods, said in a statement. “We can’t wait for New Yorkers to try this innovative and exclusive menu item.”
Established on Manhattan’s Lower East Side in 1956, Pastrami Queen is known for its hand-carved pastrami and traditional Jewish deli fare. The partnership with Chunk Foods marks the first time a traditional NYC Jewish deli has offered a plant-based pastrami option.
For more plant-based stories like this, read:
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.
Here at VegNews, we live and breathe the vegan lifestyle, and only recommend products we feel make our lives amazing. Occasionally, articles may include shopping links where we might earn a small commission. In no way does this effect the editorial integrity of VegNews.
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