Interview with Souls Cph

We sat down with one of the founders, Jason Renwick, to talk about his perspective on veganism and about how the plant-based diet is guiding his business. Read along to find out what Souls’ customer favourites are and which value bread has for his restaurant offering.

Lantmännen: "How did you translate the vegan/plant-based trend to your restaurant?"

Jason Renwick: "The old trend was very hippy and boring, we made a new trend which is a lot more work but something everyday people can relate to. We did this by making nice cool restaurants with quality food in an environment which didn’t seem strange."

LM: "How do you translate vegan components to existing menus?"

JR: "Lots of sampling, trying and mistakes :) Some things are easy such as substituting egg whites with chickpea water or regular milk to coconut or soy, others take time and is a lot of work."

LM: "What are the biggest advantages of offering vegan recipes/offers?"

JR: "It helps more people to understand that going vegan isn’t always that hard, people just need the know-how and sharing some simple ideas can help people in everyday life. "

LM: "How has it affected your business?"

JR: "I think the easier it is to know how to make vegan products, the more people will adjust to a vegan diet and thus eat out at good vegan restaurants."

LM: "What is the most challenging with vegan food offerings? "

JR: "Trying to make something similar to what people are already used to. People are scared to try new things and if you can make a product that is very similar to what they have already, then the battle is much easier. "

LM: "What have you learned from working with vegan dishes?"

JR: "There is so much flavour in using only vegetables, it’s generally much healthier and cleaner."

LM: "What are favourite vegan dishes amongst your customers?"

JR: "Burgers and brunch."

LM: "Do you have favourite ingredients to work with?"

JR: "We like to use lots of different nuts to make different creams, cheese and dressings."

LM: "If there were one ingredient that makes every vegan dish perfect, which one would it be?"

JR: "There definitely isn’t one but i think mushrooms can be used everywhere."

LM: "What has been the most surprising since offering vegan dishes?"

JR: "As long as you make it good, people are happy to not have the meat on the plate."

LM: "Which type of bread do you work with most with vegan dishes?"

JR: "Sourdough."

LM: "In your opinion / in your restaurant, what role does bread play with vegan dishes? "

JR: "Huge part! It’s not worth making anything good if you serve it on a crap piece of bread."

LM:  "Where do you see the future of vegan go? How do you think will it affect fast food / gastronomy?"

JR: "Vegan is the future. It’s not a fad and it’s here to stay. It will only become more and more popular and easier and easier; the easier it is for the consumer, the bigger it will get."

LM: "Thank you, Jason, for sharing your thoughts and insights! We look forward to following Souls journey."