Erpingham House, the UK’s largest vegan restaurant, has its sights set on heading from the UK’s most vegan-friendly city, Norwich, to the dubbed Vegan Capital of the UK, Brighton.
A cornerstone of the vegan community in Norwich, Erpingham house specialises in spectacular vegan food in its restaurant and cafe, from Insta-friendly lattes and smoothies, to Build Your Own Buddha Bowls to vegan cheese boards and even spectacular desserts.
Now, Loui Blake, Managing Director of Erpingham House, has set his sights on Brighton. This August, Epringham House will begin its Crowdfunding venture, with the aim of raising £250k or 15% of the overall funds needed to launch the new project, as well as make improvements to the existing Norwich site.
The Crowdfunding will initially open to private investors on 1 August 2019, before opening to the public on 1 September 2019 until the end of the month, via Crowdcube.
The new Erpingham House, while still specialising in vegan foods, will have a refined offer which appeals to a more general audience, including those looking to incorporate more healthy dishes, organic produce and plant-based foods into their diets, rather than exclusively those who consider themselves to be vegan.
What’s more, like its inaugural site, the new Erpingham House will be entirely free from single-use plastics – using alternatives such as a paper or Vegware – as well as almost 100% carbon-neutral once operational.
Blake said, “Five years ago, I was working in the city in a fast-paced marketing role, always on the go, when I suffered what many people in a similar situation do – Burn Out. It was then that I decided to adopt a plant-based diet, and travel the world, before bringing the foods and drinks I fell in love with to my home city.
“Since opening in early 2018, the response has been phenomenal, which is why we feel there is an appetite to take it further and look to pastures new. While our Norwich site will always be close to my heart, we have big plans for the Erpingham House brand, and I’m excited to see what the future brings.”
Shareholder Russell Martin,commented, “I’ve known Loui for many years, and was incredibly excited when he came to me with the idea of opening a vegan restaurant in Norwich. Now, I have the opportunity to help take the fantastic plant-based food that the team at Erpingham House create to my home city of Brighton, and I can’t wait to share it with everyone.”
Once the funds have been raised, building work on the new Erpingham House Brighton will begin, with the aim of opening in early 2020.