You Wanna Pizza This? Vegan, Vegetarian, Halal, and Gluten-Free Options at This Weekend's Festival
Food festivals like this weekend's 2019 Beijing Pizza Festival are a lot of fun: you get to sample tons of different kinds of pizza and pizza-inspired food, hang out and chill with your friends, and even sample libations from some of Beijing's many craft beer, cider, and cocktail options. However, if you're among the growing number of us that eschew meat or all animal products, things get a little trickier. Even more so if you eat halal, or are gluten-free.
Therefore, we're very happy to share the following options with you: these are the vendors, and dishes, that will specifically cater to your dietary needs.
We're heartened to see that the list of vegan, vegetarian, and alternative-diet options just keeps growing every year, a trend that we are sure will continue. So please join us, and support these vendors so that we'll have even more options in events to come!
It would be remiss of us if we didn't remind you to always double-check with each of these vendors before you order. This is China, after all, the land of "it's not meat, it's chicken."
Vegetarian
Baozza - Our favorite purveyors of hybrid food is serving up margherita Baozza, which feature a classic Italian tomato sauce made from scratch along with real imported mozzarella cheese. It's a tasty meatless option, and a great choice for kids.
La Costeña - The Mexican chili and condiment kings have designed a delicious mushroom tlayuda, a kind of flatbread dish from traditional Oaxacan cuisine, prepared just for our festival.
Ummm Kitchen - These newcomers to the scene are offering a very tasty truffle mushroom pizza, and we tell ya, we're not going to be 'umming and ahhing' over it! This one may actually also be vegan, so be sure to ask.
Q Mex Bar & Grill - The Tex-Mex favorite recently opened their latest pizza-focused venue at The Place, and are bringing us some of that vegetarian flavor with their "Three Tomato Pizza."
Turkish Feast and Georgia's Feast - The two Beijing Feasts join forces to offer two mouthwatering vegetarian options: Adjarian khachapuri, traditional Georgian bread loaded with cheese and an egg, and a spinach and feta pide.
Vegan
Gung Ho! - No surprises here, Gung-Ho! are offering a very solid vegan option, their smoked “tricken” and basil pizza. With smoked plant-based "chicken" (which you may recognize from their vegan chicken burger) and fresh basil, it's sure to be a hit.
Oh Yeah! Brewing Co. - The new Guomao mega-brewery just keeps on impressing, this time with their vegan "King of Mushrooms Truffle" pizza, served with black truffle sauce, fresh boletus, and other seasonal fungi.
Halal
Turkish Feast and Georgia's Feast - Yet again, this duo has you covered, offering their halal Turkish beef and cheese pide, and lahmacun, a delicious Turkish flatbread with minced meat.
Gluten-Free
Gung-Ho! - Gung-Ho! will have a variety of gluten-free pizza options - bases and toppings - so you can happily munch on their slices without a worry.
Did we miss anything? Do you have any advice for others with dietary restrictions? Tell us in the comments! Otherwise, see you this weekend!
READ: Warm Weather and Blue Skies Await: How to Get to Galaxy Soho and This Weekend's Pizza Fest
Images courtesy of vendors
