Following a successful and surprisingly popular vegan week, the alternative Italian restaurant Sale Pepe recently announced the arrival of a specialised vegan menu.

The restaurant’s Sinead Corr told JesmondLocal how “the massive demand during vegan week showed the restaurant how important it is to welcome veganism to Jesmond”.

Though other restaurants in Jesmond, in particular Fat Hippo, have created specialised vegan menus, finding suitable ingredients can make the vegan adventure tricky.

“Sourcing products was definitely the biggest challenge,” Corr said of the change. “Ingredients that make the menu so special like the vegan cheeses and wine were incredibly difficult to find, but thankfully The Honey Tree in Heaton helped us out and we’ve managed to find our way into the world of vegan cuisine”.

Corr believes that by embracing consumer changes like vegan culture, Jesmond’s restaurants could increase demand and passing trade.

“There is a growing vegan culture in Newcastle and we’re aware of that,” she said. “As a restaurant we intend to deliver vegan cuisine that is as high in quality and innovation as the rest of our menu”.

The menu, which draws the same traditional Italian inspirations as the restaurant but “with a twist”, is intended to be a constant work in progress. “We want to update and reinvent the menu constantly, keeping it interesting for our customers as we experiment with an explore vegan cuisine,” Corr explained.

So what can diners expect to see on the new menu? “From soups to specials, the menu is really a case of working with our customers. We have our key components and a constant goal of delivering the same satisfying and filling food Sale Pepe is known for, we want the menu to stay as exciting as it is now.”