| Mark Senn Interview |
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From 'Wholistic I': Interview with Mark Senn, founder of 'Veginity'
Mark, first things first... thank you for taking the time to share your time, thoughts and tales with us …… Q. I simply adore the name ‘Veginity’ - very playful, very catchy, how did the whole concept arise?? I’ve always wanted to own my own restaurant; however I have recently caught the travel bug. I’d never left Australia till I was 27 and it has not only broadened my horizons but also made me appreciate where I grew up. Not knowing exactly where in this wide world I am going to end up its now hard for me to say, ok I’m going to live here for the next 5 years of my life and set up a restaurant and do it properly. So I figured it would be like an online restaurant where people from all over the world could come and try my food. This way I can share the knowledge I have gained over the years with a world wide audience, how can you beat that? Q. Absolutely! So who exactly have you catered for? Who is in your desired market?? I have tried to cater for anyone and everyone who wants to try and improve the types of food they eat. When I was growing up you wouldn’t really question what you ate or what you were feed. Probably the only time I question what I ate was when Mum used to send us off to school with cows tongue sandwiches. I would try and swap them for vegemite and cheese. What I have created is a series of cooking shows that a majority of people should be able to replicate in their own kitchen. I aim to help those who have just begun their veggie journey and also increase the repertoire of those who are experienced veggies. Q. Sounds brilliant Mark….. But honestly, I think that many of us reading this would not have the slightest clue about Veganism. Would you mind please taking the time to explain to us exactly what being vegan is and how you grew to become one ….. A vegan is someone who does not eat or use animal products or by products. Technically I don’t count myself as a vegan. This is because as a chef working in vegetarian restaurants I have an obligation to taste the food that I have made. I eat vegan at home. However I have not been fortunate enough to work in a restaurant that is exclusively vegan. I hate to put people in boxes so I always call myself a veggie. Q. Was it difficult becoming veggie? At first it was weird because I guess I was so ignorant about how to look after myself. I thought that I could just cut out meat and that would be it. But in reality that was far from the truth. Hopefully my website will help others from making the same mistakes that I did. Q. What was your deciding moment to quit animal products? I was halfway through Uni in a cooking class and was chewing on a rare lamb chop. And I can remember thinking ‘this is disgusting’. And from that day I went cold turkey … off meat - so to speak. Q. Did your lifestyle change dramatically?? I don’t think so. I still did all the things I used to do, I just felt better doing it. It probably changed lots of outcomes in my life as I believed it changed my focus on how I saw life. I definitely would not have ended up cooking for a living. Q. Hailing from Australia – ‘the land of barbeques’ (and the stereotypical tough Aussie sporting male) did friends and family support you during this change or did you have to fend off classic Aussie banter?? I guess laughter is the best response. I could have great in-depth discussions about my life style choices but I’d be barking up the wrong tree. I’ve always been a believer of leading by example than to shove my beliefs in someone else’s face. Sure, there have been times where I have been sucked in and taken the bait having lengthy debates of the positives of a veggie lifestyle, but it never changed anybodies mind on the subject, no-one saw eye to eye and no one gained a greater understanding of what the other saw. You can usually see who is trying to take the piss and who is genuinely interested. I normally only discuss it at length with those who seem generally interested. I think we will have to change the saying to ‘religion, politics and vegetarianism should not be discussed at BBQ’s’. Unless it’s a Veggie BBQ. Q. Do you think veganism is for everybody? It just comes down to what people believe in. If they constantly think that they are going to miss out then there will be something constantly missing in their life. If you have an open mind and you are constantly trying to improve yourself and see that all life is an experiment it’s interesting to try. You just have to find what fits. Eating meat is so ingrained in some people that it’s hard for them to understand the concept of not eating meat at all. There is a different reason for every person who becomes vegan/ vegetarian. It’s just what fits you best. Don’t be afraid to experiment! It’s your body, it will tell you what is best.
I guess it come back to me experimenting with life. I don’t have the belief that I am going to miss out on anything, but what can I create with what I’ve got and what I can find. Probably the best job I had was at a place called Vegetarian Orgasm. I was doing all the vegan desserts and chocolates. I was given free reign for what I created and that was very important for me as it gave me the opportunity to try things and make mistakes. If I was worried about making mistakes I just would not have pushed myself and tried the safe option. I guess it’s like a mind map. You branch off and try new things. You can see what works and what doesn’t, then you can bring elements of different branches to make a whole new branch. It feeds itself. The more you do the more you can be. As for the humour, its not really humour. If every joke contains an idea of the truth, then I’m just looking for a deeper meaning of the truth. Q. Where in London is there good Vegan/Vegetarian dining that you can recommend people to sample?? For London dining it’s always been a toss up between ‘Manna’, in North London and ‘Blah, Blah, Blah’ in Shepherds Bush. But the best veggie place I’ve eaten in the UK so far is ‘Terre a Terre’ in Brighton. The food was amazing! The chefs there definitely cooked like they weren’t missing out on anything. I loved it!! Q. In this technological age the sky is the limit with where you can go with your vision, being a Vegan internet pioneer how do you plan to shape and direct your talents harnessing the power of the World Wide Web? A-ha! You will just have to keep an eye on this rising star and checking my website regularly. On a more serious note, I am planning to release a book and some DVD’s. I will also have a members section where they can have unlimited access to all my videos and they will also receive updates as soon as more are ready and available on the internet. Kind of like a constantly updated vegan video library. When the members section launches there will be over 100 vegan cooking videos to watch, for starters. I’m also playing around at the moment with the ‘Veginity mobile’ concept, where people will be able to access ‘Veginity’ from their phones and ipods so that they can get their Veginity fix wherever they are. Q. I’ve seen the video of the gorgeous triple chocolate vegan cake, it looks scrumptious! What can people expect from signing up now to ‘Veginity.com’ ? First off they will get a special e-book bonus, called ‘The Ultimate Vegan Dinner Party’. Secondly they will receive my monthly newsletter keeping them up to date on where I am in the world and what I’ve been cooking, with a special bonus video from within the members section. Also there will be surprise offers and bonuses just for simply subscribing to ‘Veginity.com.’ Q. Lastly, I’ve heard a rumour that you are soon to be leaving London…….. where oh where will the wind take you??? I’ve been working here in London for over 2 and a half years now and I haven’t been home to Australia yet. I guess I’m a little homesick at the moment. Yes, I’ve just given notice for my job and for my lease, and gearing up for the Notting Hill Vegan Festival on the 19th of August. This will be my last official date in the UK. Then it’s off to Ireland for a little holiday and then off to La Rochelle to make a wedding cake for a couple of friends weddings. Should be interesting as I have not worked out where I am going to cook the cake, but I’m sure it will all be good. I might have a bit of a look around Europe or North Africa before slowly making my way back to Australia via Sri Lanka. Hopefully I will be able to do some regional cooking shows and gain a better understanding of cooking from all around the world. Mark, bless you! Thank you so very much for your time. Wishing you the world of success and looking very much forward to receiving updates and scrumptious recipes as you wander the kitchens of the globe!! |
