Smith & Deli-cious: Food From Our Deli (That Happens to be Vegan)

Description

You know it's good when there's always a line around the block. Smith & Deli is a trailblazing vegan deli, a Melbourne gem that outgrew its bricks from day one. Fortunately for you, these pages help you skip the queue and go right to the good stuff: mac and cheese, spanakopita, meat pies, doughnuts and more. From the creatives who brought you the innovative Smith & Daughters: A Cookbook (That Happens to be Vegan), Shannon Martinez and Mo Wyse are proud to present: Smith & Deli-cious: Food From Our Deli (That Happens to be Vegan) - an insight into the hundreds of DELIcious dishes they turn out regularly as well as a sneak peek into their thriving community. Ditch your bland, preconceived notions. This is DELIcious food. Vegan or not.

Mo Wyse is a Seattle and New York expat. She studied journalism and has a background in production, but dedicated her passion for creative, plant-based food to creating Smith & Daughters and Smith & Deli, where she is the logistical, front-of-house and marketing brains behind this gun team. Mo has now woven herself into the hospitality industry fabric, where she has spoken on a variety of panels pertaining to both business as well as plant-based dining. People are waking up to the relevance of veganism and considering both Mo and Shannon to be outspoken advocates for expanding the plant-based foodscape. Shannon Martinez has cooked since she can remember, and her innovative, outside-the-square talents have contributed to kitchens across Melbourne for around 20 years. Shannon is an unlikely candidate to be the poster girl for plant-based dining, as she eats meat - but she is and she's unstoppable. Her unique perspective gives this mega talented chef the capability to create perfect tastes and textures, rather than pumping out bland and predictable vegan food. Armed with a strong hospitality network and industry tenure, Shannon has taken on some of Australia's most meat-driven kitchens and veganised them, convincing her peers there's something to this plant-based 'trend'. Working some of the nations largest food events, with some of Australia's greatest chefs, Shannon's next stop is TV and world domination. Smith & Daughters on Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, opened in 2014. An instant success (both in a full dining room and media attention), almost immediately the restaurant grew to 40 staff and was doing 400 covers a night. In July 2015, Shannon and Mo opened Smith & Deli, the world's first all-vegan deli, in nearby Moor Street. Their shop offers up a carefully curated selection of all-vegan groceries, freshly made pastries, salads and take-home meals as well as a long list of made-to-order sandwiches - and has queues out the door. Their need to expand is verging on desperate, and the next locations are in the works with big, big dreams for the 'Smith & ...' enterprise to expand.

'Smith Daughters is one of the most enjoyable dining experiences in Melbourne-and arguably one of the coolest vegan restaurants in the world.' -Conde Nast Traveler