It was 6:30 p.m. on a Tuesday. The right side of Pasche’s Lakeside was blocked off for an event. Most of the tables were full.

On the buffet, there were thick slices glistening with reddish barbecue glazes, creamy mac and cheese, chunky jambalaya and brightly colored coleslaw.

Typical enough for a barbecue. Except all of it was vegan.

It was a testament to both the possibilities of vegan food and to the way the vegan community is working to carve out a space for itself in Battle Creek.

“We don’t see restaurants have options for vegan people, so when we saw this on Facebook, we wanted to try it out,” said Alyssa Moody, who is transitioning to a fully vegan lifestyle and attended the event with her sister and a friend.

“It’s really hard,” she said. “When I go out with my friends, I have to get a salad and still pick things off, and it gets expensive, because you have to eat a lot to sustain yourself. Overall, people are just really negative to it. They think I do it to be skinny. ‘Oh, is that like a diet you’re trying?’”

The event, dubbed "A Vegan Taste of the South," was one of several organized by the animal rescue organization All Species Kinship as a way of expanding options for vegans in Battle Creek and reducing misconceptions about vegan eating.

Vegans not only do not eat meat, but avoid other animal products, such as eggs or milk. As a lifestyle, it also includes avoiding leather and wool.

There’s a misconception that eating vegan has to be healthy, said Sophia DiPietro, the executive director and a co-founder of All Species Kinship.

“No, we eat pizza, lasagna, fish sticks, veggie burgers, ice cream. Veggie burgers are no longer just kale.

All Species Kinship’s program, VegOut Battle Creek, reaches out to local restaurants and caterers to show that there is a demand for plant-based foods and assist those who are interested in developing vegan options.

“We guide them, give them menu feedback, product feedback," DiPietro said. "Tell them what works, what probably won’t work, and then we have these events that are 100% vegan, but anyone’s welcome to come to them and are encouraged to."

All Species Kinship often rescues farmed animals, which is why vegan eating is important to the cause. DiPietro grew up around farms and keeps a Bantam chicken, named Coralie, that she rescued from being abandoned in Kalamazoo.

She loves it when "omnivores" come, "because it’s an opportunity for them to try a bunch of food and not have to spend a whole bunch of money picking and choosing and getting confused at the grocery store.”

Providing a low-commitment introduction to vegan eating is the whole idea.

“(DiPietro) approached us to do something vegan, and it was a good tool to get our name out, and it was a challenge,” said Rick Pasche, the owner of Pasche’s. “You can see the amount of people here. We’re excited that the market has spawned for that type of food, and we’re excited to bring not another cuisine but something that Battle Creek doesn’t have at this point.”

The events are having an impact. Pasche’s is introducing a weekly “Meatless Tuesday”. Taste of India also plans to create a separate vegan menu alongside its regular one after the successful event All Species Kinship held with them in October.

Another vegan community group called Vegan Battle Creek has been holding regular potlucks since December of last year. Anyone is welcome to attend.

“I thought, well, if we get five people, I’ll be impressed,” said Debra McCulloch, who helps run Vegan Battle Creek and volunteers with All Species Kinship. “We had 68 people. Second one was over a hundred. We’ve had a cookout with well over a hundred.”

McCulloch, who is retired, used to run Rabbit Patch Vegan Snacks out of Ermisch Travel’s Buy Local Market. She started it in June 2015, but it got too much for her and she ended it in September of the following year.

But her son noticed that she seemed upset about no longer doing it and encouraged her, with her niece, to arrange Vegan Battle Creek’s first potluck.

And it's not just vegans who attend.

“Some are vegan-curious or maybe they have a dairy allergy,” McCulloch said. “Maybe they just want to see what the heck we’re talking about.

“Every event at least two people will say, ‘I thought it would be all salads,’ and there’ll only be one salad up there.”

Terry and Teri Gould, who are volunteers with All Species Kinship, brought Teri’s parents to the event at Pasche’s on Tuesday. None of them are vegan.

“We usually go to the potlucks, and this is our fourth or fifth go of it,” Terry Gould said.

A stray dog came by the Goulds' house years ago. They contacted All Species Kinship about finding a new home for him and started getting involved as they attended different events.

"I’m not apprehensive anymore of different food," Terry Gould said. "I like food, and I like to eat anyway.”

Calhoun County Commissioner Kathy-Sue Vette was at Pasche's with a group of friends.

“We’re all friends who want to support our community,” Vette said. “To have a local restaurant go all in into this, it’s great. Rick’s a great chef, and he made some very appetizing and good-looking food.”

And there are other chefs in town working to show people that vegan food can look and taste as good as more ordinary fare.

Paul Vugteveen lives in Kalamazoo but runs a vegan catering business out of Sprout Grocery + Kitchen’s incubator kitchen in Battle Creek.

Vugteveen became vegan more than two years ago, around the same time that he became head chef and hospitality coordinator at Piece Cedar Creek Institute in Hastings. In August, he left the institute, and he became a fully vegan chef, as well.

One of his favorite things to make is vegan cheeses, using soy or nuts as a base. Some are meant to be similar to ones most people know. He can make a brie-style semi-soft cheese with a dusting of tapioca flour on the outside to mimic the mold. However, he also loves creating his own cheeses that aren't just replications.

"I like to offer something you can’t necessarily buy at the store," Vugteveen said.

Despite the slowly growing range of vegan options in Battle Creek restaurants, however, going vegan still requires cooking a lot of your own food.

“As far as eating out, it’s not very accessible,” said Brandon Green, a Battle Creek resident who first went vegan for health reasons. “I go to Kalamazoo quite a bit when eating out, but in general I like to cook for myself anyway, and that’s easy. I go to Horrocks, and I get a Sprout Box. Shout out to Sprout. Produce is very accessible.”

That accessibility and cost is a matter of knowing what to buy and when. Buying produce seasonally can drastically reduce how much you’re paying, Vugteveen said.

“Me, I find it easy because I know what to look for,” DiPietro said. “This bag of beans represents lemon meringue pie, chickpea salad, different types of soups, stir-frys. With one bag of beans, I can do tons of recipes with that, so I think it depends on where you are in your journey.”

All Species Kinship is tentatively planning a grocery store tour in which staff would point out to participants all the commonly available foods that are vegan, even accidentally vegan items like Oreos and Fritos.

“It helps greatly if you have a mentor who can show you ‘Hey, look what you can do with chickpeas,’” DiPietro said. “Veganism is not about perfection. It’s about doing your best.”

Contact Natasha Blakely at (269) 223-0114 or nblakely@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow her on Twitter at @blakelynat.

Battle Creek vegan organizations

VegOut Battle Creek: www.facebook.com/veg49016/

Vegan Battle Creek: www.facebook.com/veganbattlecreek

Events to watch out for

On Monday, Jan. 15, All Species Kinship will also be holding a vegan spaghetti dinner with Barista Blues Cafe in downtown Battle Creek from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Chef Paul Vugteveen

(269) 220-0915

paul.vugteveen@gmail.com

www.facebook.com/chefpaulvugteveen