Just in time for those New Year’s resolutions to eat less meat, Greggs has launched a vegan steak bake.
The new pastry costs £1.55,5p more than the regular version. It looks almost identical but the puff pastry in the vegan version is glazed without egg.
The filling is meat substitute Quorn, plus diced onions and meat-free gravy.
It was greeted with enthusiasm in Glasgow’s Shawlands. By 12.20pm yesterday, the first batch had sold out and there were more coming from the oven.
One bearded vegan, suffering from a brutal hangover, popped in to buy four. He also picked up two of last year’s runaway success, the vegan sausage roll, but denied he was stockpiling!
In George Square, shoppers and people on their way to Queen Street railway station hadn’t noticed the new pasty on the shelf but assistant Yaman Kabbani, a Muslim, had tried one.
“I eat halal so these are perfect for me,” he said. “It’s quite nice.”
Stefan Deacon, heading for the London train, agreed to try the vegan steak bake even though he thought it “looks like dog food”. He added: “No discernible smell. There is gravy but no meaty goodness. It’s like chewing a gravy pasty.”
John Marshall was enjoying a regular steak bake but agreed to try the vegan version. He said: “It’s different. Smoother. Not so chunky. But it’s OK.”
Calum Simpson, who buys a steak bake as an occasional treat, would not have identified the new version as vegan. “If you hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known. But I’ll still stick to steak,” he said.
Back in Shawlands, Matthew Gardner is trying to cut down on meat. He identified the filling as Quorn and added: “The pastry is the same and it smells the same. I can tell this isn’t steak but it’s not that different.”
Alex Wilson thought the vegan version was good but lacked the meaty chunkiness of the steak version. He also dabbles with meat-free eating and would “alternate between the two – but it’s not better than the original”.
Australian student Eevee Patterson had been anxiously awaiting the product’s arrival.
She said: “I have the vegan sausage roll multiple times a week. I’ve lived here for five years and have always wanted to try a steak bake but I’ve been a vegetarian or a vegan for most of that time.”
She said: “Wow, that’s really good. A lot of fake meat has a weird rubbery texture but this has a similar texture to Australian meat pies.
“All my vegan friends love that Greggs are doing this. It means we can eat something comforting, filling and tasty, and now have more options than salad for lunch.”
