It’s no secret that Brighton’s uniqueness in its food culture is unlike any other city, being one of the most vegan and vegetarian friendly cities in the country (if not the world). And one thing it does remarkably well is vegan-friendly pizza.
Deemed by many as food of the gods, pizza is so widely adored that it seems criminal to exclude vegans from the fun. The latest of the city’s abundance in pizza shacks to get involved sees a new kitchen pop up at the West Hill Tavern: Cosmic Pizza Co. Just what we needed, right? However, what makes this pop up pizzeria stand out is their dedicated menu of vegetarian and vegan pizzas, which are each an experience that’s out of this world (excuse the pun).
With a clever use of puns and word play, it’s difficult to forget the names of the pizzas, making ordering all the more fun. Try singing Sorry Miss Jackfruit to the tune of Outkast’s Ms Jackson – it makes it taste better, we promise – or saying Baa-Baa-Rella without giggling. Whether for the intention of making their customers laugh or ponder over the pun or not, they’ve done a great job in ensuring diners won’t forget their menu in a hurry.
As for the flavours, just one slice is more than enough to get the idea of the flavours – but you’ll struggle to stop there. Sorry Miss Jackfruit is a vegan meat alternative and one of the first to taste during BN1’s visit. With the smoky BBQ taste as well as the sweetness from the jackfruit, you’d be mistaken for thinking this was pulled pork. It’s accompanied with charred sweetcorn, vegan mozzarella and seitan, the mixture of sweet and savoury serving to surprise taste buds in only a good way. Next up was Avocuddle, a seafood-inspired pizza with salmon, avocado, capers with a cream base (see, meat-eaters – they do carnivore-friendly pizza too). Now I’m not a massive lover of seafood, yet this pizza was a pleasant surprise. The salmon complimented everything perfectly, but it was a little too salty for my liking.
Sgt Pepperoni’s Heart Club was the last pizza we got to try, and despite its name was completely meat free. It may taste like pepperoni, and look like it too – but this pizza comes without animal cruelty. Go figure!
Overall, the food at the Cosmic Pizza Co is well worth a try, and proves that one small step in the direction of vegan pizza can be one giant leap for this little Seven Dials pub.
