Margate goes Vegan in 2020

As we enter 2020, Beet Bar, currently located in Margate Old Town’s Market Street will not only be relocating to Margate high street but will also be opening the UK’s first ever vegan hotel, BeetBeds.

Described as the hub of health and wellness in the heart of Margate, Beet Bar provides beautiful and delicious plant based food, juices and smoothies.  CommunityAd caught up with Pete from Beet Bar to find out more…

Where did the inspiration behind Beet Bar come from?

Beet Bar was born of my desire to eat healthier; I didn’t know the difference between a vegan or a vegetarian and was, maybe intentionally, ignorant to animal suffering and having lived in Margate for the last fifteen years, I was always going to open here.

As well as a bar you will be the UK’S first vegan hotel, can you inform readers on what a vegan hotel is?

The hotel, BeetBeds. was a natural expansion into the rest of the buildings that were either derelict of in need of complete refurbishment. We opened the first two rooms last summer and have been working towards starting on the main building by the end of this year.

I’ve always worked in property so designing the rooms and how the parts of the three buildings of 21, 23 & 25 High Street will come together is what I enjoy most. The first rooms are the smallest but since opening on booking.com we’ve already become Margate’s highest rated hotel.

It’s been a gentle introduction to becoming a hotelier having just the two rooms and these have aided me in working a strategy to the finished article which will hopefully result in nine luxury rooms which include luxury suites, all of course vegan. Having a vegan café was the hardest part, the rooms merely needed to use no animal products in either the bedding nor toiletries we provide and all cleaning products are certified vegan too.

In terms of veganism, how do you see it evolving over the next few years and from a personal point of view have you noticed more people becoming vegan?

The vegan market has grown incredibly even since we’ve opened, Margate is lucky with the current choice and we’re seeing non-plant food eateries expanding their vegan choices to meet the growing demand. We’ve learnt that there’s no standing still, every day we’re thinking of new adaptations to both the food we serve and the surroundings we serve it in. I think if were not moving forwards,  were moving backwards. We’re pretty much at capacity at our current cafe but must still continue to evolve. Plant based eating will without doubt continue to grow and no doubt overtake non plant-based fares and eateries within a generation, as a business we’re fortunate to be nearer to the start than finish of the trend.

How are preparations going for the opening?

The move to the high street can’t come soon enough, though the extent of the works means realistically it’ll be autumn 2020 before that happens. We’ve got so many new ideas, the space is very different and we’re planning to adapt our business to the new setting rather than simply move what we have, though there will be a familiarity and our current garden will be accessible from the new restaurant, plus a terrace doubling our outside capacity. 

How can readers stay up to date with the latest news on your opening?

All new developments can be found on our Instagram and Facebook pages where we’ll also be looking to add to our team.

Facebook- @beetbaruk

Instagram– @beetbar

www.beet.bar

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