Berlin’s Technical University has opened the city first vegan canteen for students in response to growing demands for plant-based food options. Nearly 15% of students in the city say they are vegan.
The new canteen – known in Germany as a ‘mensa’ – expects to serve around 500 customers a day (around 4,500 people use the existing canteen upstairs, which serves meat and fish dishes such as schnitzel, sausage and meatballs). The new canteen will also be open to the public.
Prices at the new Veggie 2.0 canteen start at at €1.45 (£1.25) a dish and go up to €3.80. A second, slightly higher price category applies to university staff, while members of the public not connected to the university pay the third category.
Veggie 2.0’s head chef, Nicole Graf, says she will be creating vegan versions of student classics. Her own favourite is a reinterpretation of spaghetti carbonara – with oat cream and smoked tofu instead of whipped cream and bacon.
Photo: Studierendenwerk Berlin, via facebook