Holland and Barrett has now agreed to produce its own-brand Flaxseed Oil capsules without gelatin.The starsCafe Maitreya, Bristol* The name maitreya is derived from Sanskrit, meaning universal love or loving kindness* Diners can start with a session of shiatsu or body realignment* Dinner menu is £15.50 for two courses. Dishes include celeriac, caper and shallot schnitzel; leek and fennel gougere and black olive, pine and butternut brioche* All wines and beers are organicRainbow Cafe, Cambridge* The only vegetarian caf?n Cambridge, it opened 21 years ago* All wines, beers and ciders are vegan and organic* Ice-cream is made from soy so is vegan* Main courses cost £7.25 and include Peshwari curry, Flageolet tagine and Gado Gado* The chef Nigel Slater is a big fan of their desserts. Two years ago Walkers crisps were spurred into producing vegetarian-friendly cheese and onion crisps. It is a matter of shaking off the hippie image of vegetarian restaurants."Derek Bulmer, editor of the Michelin guide, said yesterday that vegetarian restaurants were so few in number that it was simply less statistically likely they would gain a star But he offered some hope: "L'Arp? in Paris has three stars.
While it is not exclusively vegetarian it focuses on cuisine l?mi?. There is no reason why a vegetarian restaurant cannot aspire to be the very best."Lunchtime eateries that were awarded runner-up in the awards were: Plant Caf?eli, in Exeter, Devon; The Fieldgate Centre, Doncaster, South Yorkshire; The Bean Inn, of Carbis Bay, Cornwall and Plymouth Arts Centre Vegetarian Restaurant, in Plymouth, Devon.There was also praise last night for a "sinner" in the food industry who has repented - Holland and Barrett.Each year the society hands out an "Imperfect World Award" in order to prompt manufacturers to alter goods which use animal products such as gelatin. The Bristol chef aspires to be the first to be so honoured: "The Michelin organisation has a pretty carnivorous history. It is all about good food," he explained.Mr Evans has spent time working alongside David Everitt-Matthias in his Michelin-starred Cheltenham restaurant - Le Champignon Sauvage. While his menu does offer gluten-free or vegan options along with a promise to support fair trade and environmental issues, the food is paramount."I think a lot of places put ethics before quality We want to appeal to vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. But despite this, his menu of wild mushroom and pecan ravioli, or baked basil and lemon cheesecake, has met with admiration from a far wider audience. Last night he collected The Vegetarian Society's best restaurant award for the second year in a row. Twelve months ago the society focused on the evening menu.
In 2005, the focus was on lunch - the best bistro or caf?and again the Bristol eatery has been honoured alongside joint winner, the Rainbow Caf?n Cambridge.At the awards last night, attended by well-known vegetarians such as former MP Tony Banks - now Lord Stratford, a variety of categories were honoured.Best provision for vegetarians in a pub or pub chain went to the Marble Brewery in Manchester; best retailer for vegetarian ready-meals to Cook; best meat or fish substitute to Quorn Mince; best 100 per cent vegetarian chocolates to Booja Booja Gourmet Truffle Selection Box; best range for vegetarian soup to New Covent Garden Food Company; and best entirely vegetarian, cruelty-free body and skincare range to Living Nature.Ironically, unlike most of the people dining on sweet pimento and caramelised onion crostini canap?at the award ceremony at The Cutty Sark in London last night, Mr Evans of Caf?aitreya is not vegetarian.Nevertheless, his passion for food has led him to wander the Wye Valley and Somerset fields picking wild mushrooms, nettles, garlic, quinces and berries for his customers' delectation. A customer recently walked into the Caf?aitreya, a vegetarian restaurant in Bristol, and asked for a gluten-free, sugar-free and dairy-free dessert For once, head chef Mark Evans was stumped. You can see it with what he's done last summer and the last two weeks. "He's already proved himself and I think he's going to be around for a long time so long as, touch wood, he stays healthy. That's the key thing for him for the rest of his career really." Rusedski, who defeated the home favourite Dmitry Tursunov in his first-round match on Wednesday, will now face the second seed, Sweden's Thomas Johansson, in the quarter-finals.. You've got to be impressed with what Andy did, because he lost his serve in the second set and came back and won in three sets in a tie-breaker." Asked if playing the 31-year-old Henman for the first time was a mental test for Murray, Rusedski said: "I think he passed the mental test months before that match with Tim I think he's just got it.