Why vegetarian dining is on the rise
Two Chaps is a Marrickville cafe that doesn't hype the fact that it's a meat-free venue.
"We're not righteous about it." says owner Piero Pignatti Morano. "It's not an anti-meat thing, it's a pro-veg thing."
The majority of Two Chaps' diners aren't vegetarians or vegans. And his head chef, Kim Douglas, previously worked at Rockpool Bar & Grill, which had its own butcher. For Pignatti Morano, Two Chaps' focus is great food, not diet.
"Kim made 10 million wagyu burgers at Rockpool Bar and Grill, so she knows how to make a killer burger. The fact that there's no meat in [our charcoal burger], whatever – don't get hung up on it. It's a good burger."
Two Chaps' wide appeal means that since opening last January, the eatery has become increasingly popular, with expanded dinner services and a nearby spin-off venue called El Chapel. It's also a finalist as SMH Good Food Guide Awards 2017: Cafe of the Year.
And even though Two Chaps isn't explicit in spruiking its vego-friendly status, it seems that Meat Free Monday is taking over the week, with more Australians adopting vegetarian diets.
Roy Morgan polling shows that the number of Australian adults who eat "all or almost all vegetarian" foods has leapt from 1.7 million to 2.1 million in the last four years.
Online booking service Dimmi has recorded a 76 per cent increase in searches for vegan and vegetarian restaurant options from 2015-2016.
"There is clearly a movement towards a more health-conscious and planet-conscious diet," says Dimmi CEO, Stevan Premutico.
"Australia topped global Google Trends data for 'vegan' searches and was listed as the third-fastest growing vegan market in the world by Euromonitor International," says PETA Australia's associate director Ashley Fruno. "You can find vegan options everywhere, from fast-food chains to chef-hat award-winning restaurants."
Yellow, a hatted Potts Point restaurant, switched to a vegetarian dinner menu in February and is busier than ever. "Our old regulars have commented that they 'don't even miss the meat'," says executive chef Brent Savage.
Like Newtown's Gigi pizzeria, Randwick's Soul Burger went vegan last year – with positive results. "Our sales have almost doubled," says owner Amit Tewari.
Two Chaps' Pignatti Morano disputes the idea that meat-free dining is restrictive – or a bad business move.
"The most egalitarian thing you can cook is a vegan thing," he says. "Everybody can eat it. Surely that makes my market bigger than the next person's."
The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide award night, presented by Citi and Vittoria, is on September 5. The Guide will be on sale in newsagents and bookstores from September 6, with all book purchases receiving free access to the new Good Food app.
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