Oh so tasty way to try out vegan food with new plant-based Kettering takeaway

A pair of friends who dreamt of setting up in business together have made it a reality after launching a vegan takeaway in Kettering.

Bucking the trend of pandemic closures, Olivia Mitchell and Sarah Wall united by their love of healthy cooking have opened OSO Vegan in Market Street.

The plant-based takeaway in the heart of the town offers a drop-in and pre-order service with a freshly cooked menu from the small, open kitchen.

Olivia said: "Our vision was always to have a place that would be an integral part of the community, where people drop in and have a chat whilst they wait for their food to be prepared.

"We are delighted to say that we already have regular, returning customers who include long-term, committed vegans to regular meat eaters and those who perhaps just want to increase the amount of plant-based foods they are consuming, or work towards a more sustainable lifestyle."

The two women had worked together in the same office for a decade and had often discussed becoming their own bosses.

When Sarah from Burton Latimer was made redundant at the start of the first lockdown, she contacted Olivia who had left to train as a Pilates teacher but whose classes had stopped and with their shared love of cookery they decided to try a new joint venture - a takeaway, with the option to expand to a cafe.

Together, Olivia, a vegan, and Sarah, a pescatarian, gained their food preparation qualifications and looked for premises to launch their new business.

Olivia from Orlingbury said: "I used to love meat but I decided to go vegan four years ago to help my husband Neil who had been a vegetarian for 30 years during Veganuary.

"I love it. It has made me be even more creative with my cooking and I enjoy cooking more."

Most of the OSO Vegan dishes are hand cooked from scratch with the menu changing weekly to provide new dishes for the customers.

To complete their sustainable credentials, all their packaging is fully compostable.

Sarah said: "We had spoken to a lot of people about what we were going to do and knew we were doing something different - there's no other takeaway like this in town.

"We would like to offer outside catering and have a sit-down bench inside the shop in the future."

OSO Vegan is open four days a week with extended hours for special events.

Olivia said: "We are going to evolve and continue to be creative in our work that is born out of a love of healthy and nutritious food and a passion for cooking.

"We recognise that some customers still want to eat burgers and pizzas, so this style of food is also available. We are already working with local partners, one who supplies us sourdough breads and doughs for our pizzas and another who is making us cupcakes, so our customers have some sweet treats.

"What we have on offer will continue to grow, but for the moment, we are happy to have arrived in Kettering and we look forward to meeting and serving more of our local community."

Takeaways can be ordered on 07745 237970 by text or WhatsApp with the menu posted to Instagram and Facebook.

The takeaway opens every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11am to 2pm.