Vegan eatery winning fans with oat milk hot drinks
A vegan cafe focusing on South American food has a specialty milk that’s creating a following for its hot chocolate and coffee.
The Others Cafe has a secret weapon up its sleeve – it was formed under the umbrella of Serra, a local oat milk company.
The Others owner Oscar Godoy said that when he took on the Christchurch cafe recently, Serra founder Jim Small asked him to “tinker” with the recipe to bring the milk to barista quality.
“It doesn’t feel like water and oats, it feels thick,” he said of the milk.
“It’s tailored to be perfect with a hot drink. It’s not a milk you can find anywhere else.”
And it’s getting a following. “There’s a small fan base around it.” Godoy emigrated from Chile nine months ago and became a regular at the former Veg’n Friends cafe before it closed.
Taking on the cafe, he renamed it The Others due to an “inside joke”, he said.
When he arrived in Christchurch with his wife, “in every other place we went, we were the ‘other immigrants’ or ‘other Chileans’ ”, he said.
Godoy admits that he’s not vegan, but he does believe in eating healthy.
“I try to not eat fried things, things too processed. That’s why following vegan food is natural to me.”
And his ethos is echoed in the food served at The Others. There’s nothing processed, and it’s all made in-house, including muffins, brownies, buddha bowls, and nachos.
Godoy brings his traditional Latin American food to the menu, particularly empanadas, which were served at the former Veg’n Friends. The recipe has also been played with to create “new flavours and changing some ingredients”, but the filled pastry parcels are still “classic Latin American” – just without the meat.
Godoy said he aimed for The Others to be a place of inclusion in the community – “something for ... everyone”.
“Everything is plant-based, but even nonvegans like to come – they just like healthy food.”
He said he had made the most friends in New Zealand “by just talking with the people in the cafe”.
“It’s true what you say, New Zealanders are really good with people ... really friendly.”
The Others Cafe is at 314 Lincoln Rd, Addington, Christchurch.