Hiya!
We are the women behind Pisces Rising Vegan + Seitan's Helper, two local Brooklyn businesses bringing beautiful, great tasting vegan food on an accessible level. Our main mission is to show everyone how easy it is to be vegan and that you don't need to give up delicious meats + pastries while saving the innocent lives of animals. We also love our community and want to do our best to support it. We decided to team up together to get a commercial kitchen space where both our businesses can thrive and grow.
Rosemary Chocolate Croissants by Pisces Rising, all vegan, baby!
Beautiful array of vegan meats by Seitan's Helper, getting some sun!
More Vegan Food?
Yes! It wasn't too long ago that finding quality vegan food was an impossible feat. Luckily, in 2019, there are many up-and-coming + successful vegan businesses. What makes us different? We take pride in being local and personalized. Seitan's Helper is one of the only vegan meat companies that is based in Brooklyn and makes everything from scratch. Pisces Rising Vegan is a one-woman business that loves to make every custom order truly customized, and is dedicated to bringing fine-dining level flavors on the more regular, affordable, and daily level.
Laura Varley of Pisces Rising having a good time with these cookies
Amanda Fox of Seitan's Helper, looking lovingly at her vegan bacon
Who are y'all?
My name is Laura Varley and I am the owner/chef of Pisces Rising Vegan. Being raised vegetarian + cooking from scratch my whole life, it was a no brainer for me to go into the culinary world. After becoming vegan 6 years ago, I decided my new mission was to show the world how easy it is to be vegan through food. I've worked through the NYC restaurant world, at places such as Avant Garden + Modern Love Brooklyn, and am now ready to venture out on my own. With Pisces Rising Vegan, I specialize in what I love most: cakes, breads, and savory pastries. I love being able to make your day special with a flakey croissant or a bright, delectable birthday cake. I hope to be able to supply local Brooklyn cafes with tasty goods to delight vegans and non-vegans alike.
My name is Amanda Fox, the owner of Seitan’s Helper, and I’ve been a vegan for the past sixteen years. Cooking has always been an important part of my life, starting in childhood. I grew up learning skills from the women around me. The Seitan’s Helper journey began a little over a year ago. My wife, Cheyanne, and I had a dream of bringing fresh, flavorful plant based deli meat to vegans everywhere. We continue to strive to create compassionate versions of food that we grew up enjoying.
A perfect vegan cubano sammy by Seitan's Helper... soon to be your favorite night time meal!
An earl grey + blueberry layer cake by Pisces Rising, all ready to go for your next birthday celebration!
What are y'alls plans for the future?
Well, over the past few years you've seen us both grow exponentially. Starting at Vegan Market (the monthly vegan popup in Brooklyn) we have both managed to start selling our products to well-known NYC business such as Orchard Grocer (Manhattan); Riverdel (Manhattan + Brooklyn); and Hartbreakers (Brooklyn). We've even been able to vend at larger events such as Vegan Shop-up and VegFest! With your support, we are able to grow even more and will be having a permanent nightly food stall at the bar Precious Metal located in Bushwick, Brooklyn. We will also be able to get our products in more places in Brooklyn + open up custom orders to take on larger amounts.
Seitan's Helper's bacon on a special sandwich at Orchard Grocer
Pisces Rising cake for sale at Riverdel
Why are y'all doing a crowd-funder?
We absolutely love our community and all the people we've met along the way over the past year. Many of you have started to reach out to us asking how you can help us. We decided to start a crowd funder as a way for all of our friends + family to support us in one place, as well as new friends + customers! We specifically chose iFundWomen as it aligns with many of our values as women entrepreneurs. We know 16K is a lot, but if we reach our goal we will be able to fully fund our new kitchen space. This means having a space to thrive in, as well as being able to open it up as an affordable, friendly kitchen space for other small up-and-coming businesses to rent. We will even be able to throw special popup dinners in the space + have cake pickups!
Our new space! Isn't she cute?
Where is the money going?
All the money we raise will be going straight to our beautiful new kitchen space, right in the heart of Bushwick, Brooklyn! As we both live in the area, it was a no brainer to choose this space as home. We had enough in our savings to pay for the deposit and first few months rent, however, we need a little help with equipment. Here is an outline of our expense report:
- Oven: $1800
- Fridges: $3800
- Freezer: $1600
- Tables + Supplies: $2000
- Induction Burners: $500
- Electrician: $1200
- Unforeseen expenses: $2000
- Inspection: $600
- and the rest of it will go towards iFundWomen fees, taxes, and our rewards!
Every contribution is greatly appreciated, whether it is $1, $100, or even $500, no amount is too small or too large. Every single penny is going towards making our dreams become reality and we really can't thank you enough!
The signature crag by Pisces Rising: bread stuffed with scalloped potatoes, bacon, caramelized onions, and cheese. All yours with a $10 donation! (photo cred: @capersandkindness ❤︎)
The ever-popular breakfast burrito by Seitan's Helper, all yours with a $15 donation! (photo cred: @capersandkindness ❤︎)
How about these rewards?
Yes! We've spent some time thinking of rewards that show you how much we love and appreciate you! They range from stickers + soap for smaller contributions, to free lunch stamp cards + cakes for larger contributions. We've even included a solo monetary contribution option for people who would just like to donate with nothing in exchange. Check out the whole list on the right!
*~*THANK YOU*~*
Seriously, we can't thank you enough! For your support, your thought, even just reading this campaign. We have 31 days to reach our goal but it the mean time feel free to check out our websites + Instagrams, all linked on the right. We hope you have a lovely day!