Maryland Vegan Eats Restaurant Month Celebrates Plant-Based Cuisines with a Proclamation from Baltimore City Mayor Scott

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, USA, August 3, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- This Summer, Maryland Vegan Eats continues its ever-popular Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month in the month of August, from August 4th-August 27th. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott signed a proclamation for the month-long celebration of plant-based eating that provides the opportunity for vegan as well as omnivorous eaters to try plant-based dishes from eateries across the Baltimore/DC Metro area from a wide array of new and past participating restaurants. While satisfying the growing demand for more plant-based options in restaurants, it also creates a testing ground for omnivorous eateries that may not have otherwise been considered veg-friendly to introduce new plant-based offerings into their menus.

As the public looks forward to Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month, the organizers, Samantha Claassen of Golden West Café and Naijha Wright-Brown of The Land of Kush, will kick off the celebration with a plant-based party at The Lord Baltimore Hotel on Thursday, August 3rd from 5:30pm-8:30pm featuring vegan bites from some of the restaurants participating, drinks, and good vibes all around.

Begun in 2017, Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month was a brand new idea, not only in the DMV, but also in the country. Since starting the concept, cities like Philadelphia, Colorado Springs, and others have reached out to Claassen and Wright-Brown to help replicate the concept in their own communities. “We’re just excited to promote plant-based eating however we can,” the two restaurant owners comment, “We started it because we wanted a way to highlight all of the veg-friendly restaurants in our area and it’s since grown to incorporate omni restaurants, who are now seeing that there’s a huge demand for plant-based dishes on their menu. The more we can influence restaurants to have a good variety of vegan dishes, beyond just a salad, the better.” And due to that demand, the organizers have since extended Vegan Restaurant Month to span the time frame of a whole month to allow participants to get to an ever-expanding number of restaurants participating.

Unlike a traditional restaurant week that provides a prix fixe menu, participating restaurants are encouraged to create a selection of plant-based items to be offered throughout the celebration – with the understanding that inclusivity also means affordability. Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month allows for restaurants to be more creative with their cuisines using plant-based and vegan ingredients while at the same time expanding their reach into the plant-based market. Part of their success is the liberty that vegan, plant-based, and even veg-curious patrons have in choosing these options over meat-centric dishes because of increased availability at more restaurant locations. Additionally, vegan customers no longer have to ask for a meal catered to their dietary restrictions which can leave some feeling embarrassed and awkward.

During the month, restaurant chefs are given the opportunity to show off their true culinary skills by creating their best and most appealing plant-based cuisine with the hope that people will vote for their dish as the best. Restaurants wishing to sign up for this month-long celebration of plant-based eating can go to www.mdveganeats.com for more information on how to register and participate. The list of current participating restaurants and eateries currently includes:

Golden West Cafe, The Land of Kush, Miss Shirley’s Cafe, Towson Hot Bagels, Cafe Fili, Ammoora Restaurant, Harmony Bakery, Woodberry Kitchen, Rasa, Apple Core Bakes, Soultarian, The Real Food Studio, The Lord Baltimore Hotel & LB Tavern, Hue Cafe & Apothecary, and more to come!

Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month’s presenting sponsor this year is DefaultVeg, a campaign through the Better Food Foundation. This year's inclusion of DefaultVeg allows restaurants to offer plant-based food or drinks as the default, a powerful and inclusive behavioral nudge that normalizes vegan options without taking away anyone's choices. A recent Better Food Foundation study at three Sodexo-run universities found that when used effectively, plant-based defaults increased the uptake of vegan options from about 30 to over 80 percent. Participating restaurants will be using DefaultVeg strategies, including defaulting to plant-based milk, highlighting their vegan offerings, and educating their staff on plant-based eating for this year's Vegan Restaurant Month.

Other sponsors include Black Veg Society (co-founder of the annual Vegan SoulFest which is scheduled this year for Saturday, 8/19, and Sunday, 8/20), A Well-Fed World, VegFund, Eat The Change, Mercy for Animals, Midday Maryland, and the Straydog Institute.

Since its inception by Land of Kush and the Golden West Cafe in Baltimore, the mission of Vegan Restaurant Month continues to be to bridge the omnivorous gap by increasing the awareness, benefits, and accessibility of a plant-based diet through a fun, innovative, and community-based experience.

At Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month, everyone is welcome at the table. Join in.

Visit www.mdveganeats.com for links to menus, locations, and more info.

Naijha Wright-Brown
Black Veg Society
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