Monday, November 10, 2008

May Wah Station at the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival 2008







With over 10 different May Wah products to sample, ours was one of the busiest station. Customers pouring from the entrance to our station with questionable reactions asking us what are the vegan salmon made from? How is it possible that the vegan citrus spare ribs taste just like meat?

Some of the products that were sampled are the following:

Vegan SW Ham (VIP)
Vegan Chicken Nuggets (VIP)
Vegan Meat Steak with Pepper (VIP)
Vegan Roasted Salt Chicken
Vegan Chicken Leg (VIP)
Vegan Beef Chunks
Vegan Tuna (VIP)
Vegan Citrus Spare Ribs (VIP)
Vegan Chicken Nuggets (Ginger) (VIP)
Vegan Black Pepper Beef Steak
Vegan Fish Ham
Vegan BBQ Pork (VIP)
Vegan Salty Salmon Slices (VIP)
Vegan Teriyaki Beef (VIP)
Vegan Teriyaki Chicken (VIP)
Vegan Smoked Turkey
Vegan Pepper Steak (VIP)
Vegan Healthy Chicken (VIP)
Vegan Bacon (VIP)
Vegan Delicious Steak Meal
Vegan Sashimi (VIP)
Vegan Ham - Red Yeast Flavor
Vegan Ham - Original Flavor (VIP)

(VIP) - Very Important Product (ALL SOLD OUT DURING SHOW)

With questions thrown at us and hungry people to be fed, the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival was a success!

Wan

Thursday, October 23, 2008

13th Annual Boston Vegetarian Food Festival

We are so excited to be part of the annual Boston Vegetarian Food Festival. This year should be our 4th year attending as exhibitors and we are anxious to see our Boston customers again. It's like an early Thanksgiving reunion for our May Wah family.

Please feel free to join us for free samples and discounted products.

Its takes place on Saturday, November 1, 2008
10 AM – 6 PM
Reggie Lewis Athletic Center
1350 Tremont Street, Boston Massachusetts
Free admission • Free food sampling
Free parking • Subway stop across the street

Not only will we bring our best sellers (vegan citrus spare ribs, vegan chicken nuggets, vegan chicken drumsticks, vegan gong bao chicken, and vegan ham), we also got new VEGAN products for your holiday dinners!

Vegan Special Flavor Smoked Chicken (A011)
Slice it up and stiry fry with vegetables

Vegan Special Flavor Smoked Meat (A012)
Defrost it and enjoy it as salad toppings or even in sandwiches

Vegan Crystal Meatball (C028)
Enjoy a taiwanese delicancy

Vegan Delicious Steak Meal (N001)
Vegan steak, vegetables, sauce, and rice....in 5 MINUTES!

Vegan Royal Shark's Fin Dish (N004)
Vegan shark's fin...unbelievable...i know!

Vegan Curry Dish (N005)
Mix our curry with our veggie lamb and vegetables to create a winter hopping stew

Vegan Sashimi (N006)
This is a holiday present for our pesce-vegetarians! Eat it cold with wasabi or create vegetarian sushi rolls!

Vegan Ham (Red Yeast) (N007)
Slice it up and eat it as a snack

Vegan Ham (Original) (N008)
Stir fry with noodles and your favorite vegetables

Hopefully we'll see u there!

Also, take a look at what we did with our vegetarian sushi...


Wan.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

First Annual Vegetarian BBQ at May Wah

A successful first annual vegetarian bbq at may wah!















Don't forget to join us next year!
Wan.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Vegetarian BarBeQue

Due to the upcoming fourth of July, I've decided to see if a vegetarian barbeque was possible. I gathered all the vegetarian bbq items I thought of and decided to share the experience with some of kids from our temple.






















Some of the items we used included:
A010 Vegetarian Hot Dogs
D003 Vegan Cocktail Sausages
E003 Vegan Honey BBQ Pork
H022 Vegetarian Corn Burger
H023 Vegetarian Vegetable Burger
L002 Vegetarian Crab Balls
L007 Vegetarian Sunny Side Up Eggs
M001 Vegan Chicken Wings

We had vegetarian burgers, hot dogs, chicken wings, chicken legs, sausage, and much more! It was the perfect vegetarian bbq to start the summer off!

Wan.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

First Annual Veggie Parade in New York City

The first Veggie Pride Parade in American took place in Greenwich Village, New York City, on Sunday. The parade went from the area of Meat Packaging District to Washington Square Park.
Along with a festival of rock music, speakers and exhibitors, the Veggie Pride Parade also sponsored a costume and poster contest with great prizes. Luckily May Wah was able to participate in the contest. The winner of the contests was able to win great prizes including $50 gift certificate for purchases at our store front, 213 Hester Street, New York, NY 10013

Although we were not able to participate as exhitbitors this year, we still went to the parade to support vegetarianism. Take a look at our pictures:
Our dear Susana hugged a tree to represent her love for the green world.
Here's Stephanie with the star of the day, Penelo Pea Pod.
Hopefully we will be able to participate in more activities for next year's veggie parade.

Wan.

Monday, April 28, 2008

What is the Secret?

Recently one of my usual customers asked me how is it possible to create products that taste so similar to meat but do not contain any animals. “What is the secret?” he questioned me. I told him that the Asian culture have become extremely creative in imitating meat using prepared wheat gluten, agar, yam flour, and soybean. Because these ingredients are very flexible materials, they can be shaped into different textures and have the ability to absorb many flavors.

Let us focus on another main ingredient, Konjac 蒟蒻/菎蒻, aside from the wonderful and healthy soybean.

Konjac is a perennial plant, growing from a large corm up to 25 cm in diameter. Konjac is grown in China, Japan and Korea for its large starchy corm, used to create a flour and jelly. Many consumers also uses konjac as a vegan substitute for gelatin. This ingredient is found in our seafood products to provide a chewy texture resembling seafood.

In 1977, American Senate nourishment committee published a report that states the shortage of fiber in eating habits is one of the reason that adult diseases (obesity, constipation, arteriosclerosis, heart sickness, diabetes, cancer, gallstone, and hemorrhoids) have gradullay increased. For example, dietary fiber activates the function of intestines and let the harmful things go quickly out of your body. As a result, it defends you from intestine cancer. Konnyaku contains much fiber in it and keep you away from such diseases.

When taken with foods, it reduces speed of sugar intake which prevent rapid blood sugar level jump. Instead, it gives graduale increment. Study not only indicates that Konnyaku lowers Choresterol level, it also cleans the digestive tract of toxins. Most recently, the food industry is paying attention to the Konnayku flour to replace conventional starch formulations since the Konnyaku is lower in calories and lower in fat without sacrificing texture and taste.

Therefore if you are interested in creating a new dish with a unique flavor, visit our store or site, www.maywahnyc.com, for our Konnyaku selections.

Recommened Konnyaku selections

C004 Vegan Codfish Balls
C005 Vegan Shrimp Balls
C010 Vegan Prawns
C012 Vegan Beef Balls
P003 Vegan Seaweed Strips

Wan.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Asian Vegetarian Meal Without Garlic, Scallion, Onion, or Leeks PLEASE...

Growing up in Taiwan as a Taoist, our owner, was provided with plenty of delicious vegetarian food, but when she moved to New York, the cultural environment lacked many of the foods she grew up with, and it affected her traditional eating habits. As time passed, she realized there were a growing number of vegetarians, not just among the Asian-American community. She then decided to start a business to introduce new styles and provide a greater selection to the vegetarian community. Thus the beginning of us...

Since the establishment of May Wah, many other health food retailers have slowly noticed the trend of vegetarian consumers as well. So how do we differentiate May Wah from other health food stores? We have mock chicken, mock beef, vegan seafood, texturized soybean, and natural seasonings just like any other stores. We may have a larger variety for our consumers but that is not our only appeal.

So here it is...

OUR PRODUCTS DO NOT CONTAIN GARLIC, SCALLION, ONION, OR LEEK!

What is the reason behind this idea? It is proven by statistics that we should consume garlic and onion for the benefits of our heart and health. However as a Taoist, one does not only consume a vegetarian diet, he/she also does not consume vegetables that are considered as strong-smelling plants, traditionally also referred as 五荤 Five Acrid And Strong Smelling Vegetables' or 五辛 'Five Spices' as they tend to excite senses. This idea is very similar to the idea of being a vegan. Vegans do not believe in the consumption or use of animal products of any kind, which excludes drinking milk and consuming eggs. But in the Asian community, we excludes the addictive ingredients instead.

So definitely check out the ingredients of your favorite products the next time you drop by the store!

Wan.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Strange Vegetarian Food

The Chinese word for vegetarian food, SU SHIH, suggets a cuisine that is pure, simple, and plain. Despite the word, Taiwan's vegetarian cuisine can be considered plain but is often more refined and elegant than any other cuisine.

Nowadays visitors come into our store and discover products such as vegan squid, vegan pig's belly, vegan ears, vegan pig's shank, vegan flitch, and much more! And how exactly do these products come about?

For thousand of years, vegetarian chefs have become extremely creative in imitating meat using prepared wheat gluten, also known as seitan or temph, agar, yam flour, and soybean. Because these imgredients are very flexible materials, they can be shaped into different textures and have the ability to absorb many flavors.

Thus arrive the creation of mock chicken and mock seafood!

(Take a look at our Stephanie enjoying a vegan chicken drumstick, with an actual stick!)




Wan.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Vegetarian Shipments from Taiwan

I can't believe it's already March. Spring is going to hit me in the face any second now. Hopefully Spring will come along gently, slowing pushing the winter cold away. And I could finally stop shivering at the store. 

Speaking of moving the winter wind out of the way, we definitely did some moving this week. We received a new vegetarian shipment from Taipei, Taiwan. With our bare hands and the wind hitting our face early in the morning, we moved 2000 plus boxes into our store. We had mock chicken and mock seafood falling out of the container. Not only did we enjoy the view of moving all the cases, we had a couple of comments from our bystanders. Our neighbors cheered us on by the sidelines, motivating us with words of encouragement. We finished moving the container in 3 hours. It was a hard task but we did it!




    








Just to give our regular customers an update, we have the products you've been asking for!

Some of available products include:
Vegan Chicken Steak
Vegan Spiced Chicken Leg 
Vegan Lotus Seed Chicken
Vegetarian Coal Roasted Sausage 
Vegan Tuna Mackaral 
Vegan Bean Bread
Vegan Wheat Gluten Roll
and much more!

Unfortunely it seems this shipment did not include the following:

Vegan Bacon
Vegan Prawns
Vegan Beef Ball
Vegetarian Corn Burger
Vegetarian Vegetable Burger
Vegan Mushroom Balls
Vegan Lobster

but if you come early, there maybe one or two left......

Wan. 

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Honey, I'm Bringing Home the Vegan Bacon Tonight!

Business at the store didn't seem to be blooming today. Maybe the reason why was because everybody was startled from yesterday's counterfeit bust couple blocks from us. The police seized more than $1 million in counterfeit items and temporarily close 32 illegal Chinatown stores. Customers would probably prefer to avoid the mess for the timebeing.

From opening to the afternoon, there were ten customers. Although there were not large purchases, 8 out of 10 customers had one thing in common; they purchased our vegan bacon strips. It started off with one of our regular customer purchasing two pieces and she introduced to the next customer. Somehow the bacon message spreaded throughout the neighborhood and by noon time we had to restock the shelves again.

But that is not the end of the story. By the time I awarded the bacon as our best seller of the day, one of my VIP customer came into the store and asked to exchange 7 pieces of the bacon she purchased a hour ago. There went my motivation for the hot seller of the day. Her reason for the exchange was because she was not able to read the Chinese ingredients and did not trust that there were completely vegan. Good thing I was able to read and translate all the ingredients (soybean protein, mushroom stem, salt, sugar, and vegetarian seasoning) for her. She called her husband and announced that she'll be bringing the VEGAN bacon home tonight. Without any hesitation, she took the bacons and said goodbye.

You always hear people in movies say "Honey, I'm bringing home the bacon tonight!" But at the vegetarian store, you hear customers say "I'm bringing home the VEGAN bacon tonight!" It seems like strange statement, but it's definitely something I won't get tired of hearing.

Wan.

Monday, February 25, 2008

What is timeless about May Wah Healthy Vegetarian Food?

What do I want my customers, staff, distributors, and partners to understand about the company's identity? 

I've been catching up on my readings regarding brand identity. What does May Wah Vegetarian Food brand stand for? I've been thinking about this question for the last few days. It's definitely taken a lot of my sleeping time away. There's so many topics flowing all over the place that I can't seem to grasp all of them and turn them into one idea. 
  • Established as the first vegetarian retailer in New York in 1995 
  • First to introduce Asian vegetarian/vegan options into the restaurants
  • Familiarized the local health food markets with the upcoming trend of a healthier alternative
  • Specialized in creating meat alternatives
  • Largest vegetarian distributor in New York 
So what is timeless about it and what is not? 

During my last reading, the author pointed out one point regarding how Asian companies tend to get distracted by short term goals and practices. Although the short term goals will move faster, that is the bottom line attraction for the company. I really hate to admit it but I feel like I fall right into that circle. I always tend to start projects and ending them right away without investigating the results and providing solutions. It's always been a big problem I had. 

Let's end by using one rubber band to sum everything up...

"May Wah Vegetarian Food"
  • Welcoming newcomers towards the new trend of Asian vegetarian lifestyle and diet
  • Educate ongoing consumers that are health and animal conscientious by providing the best products and services in terms of quality, taste, and price
  • Emphasizing the cultures of the Asian vegetarian communities
Wan. 

Thursday, February 21, 2008

What is tangyuan / 湯圓 ?

My mom brought me to the temple this morning and told me that today is the day of the Green Lantern Festival also known as 元宵節 in chinese. Apparently it is the last day of celebrating the Lunar New Year. People usually celebrate the holiday by carrying lanterns with messages of good fortune, family reunion, abundant harvest, prosperity and love.

To celebrate this holiday, the temple aunts decided to make something special and created tangyuan soup! Instead of making it as a desert, they added some vegetarian chicken, mushrooms, sea mosses, and taro and it was.....DELICIOUS!

Whoever heard of serving tangyuan as a meal instead of a desert?




White Balls: Tangyuan
Vegetables: Spinach
Bottom Cubes: Taro
Left Chunks: Vegetarian Chicken Bites

Note:
Growing up in Taiwan as a Taoist, my mom was always provided with delicious vegetarian food, but when she moved to New York, the cultural environment lacked many of the foods she grew up with, and it affected her traditional eating habits. And that's how she began the business of providing mock meat to newly vegetarians. Nowadays she's always lecturing me on how lucky I am that I am able to enjoy all these mock meat to help me with being a vegetarian and help balance my inner soul by not killing animals that may affect my karma in my future lifetimes... (exhale..) I tell her that she should not worry about me and think about spreading the message faster so more people could see try fake chicken or the fake duck that do not contain any animal products at all! (EXHALE...)

Wan.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

The Only Vegetarian Store in Chinatown

Recently I've been pondering on how to make consumers more aware of being or enjoying vegetarian. I've wondered how to make vegetarian products more acceptable in the society? Where should I start? What visions and goals do I have?

Yesterday I asked my friend for suggestions regarding awareness. He told me that my vegetarian store is very special. "You are the only vegetarian store in chinatown," he said. "Not only do you provide meat alternatives to having a healthier diet, you have great customer service. You should be proud." He went on telling me that if he was richer, he would open stores that will help influence the community in a good way.

Only vegetarian store in chinatown? Be proud being the only vegetarian store in chinatown? Spread the message of Asian vegetarian?

This will be a new beginning.

I never really had the habit of writing things down. This should be a good habit to start since I tend to forget a lot of things I say, giving myself a bad rep of not keeping anything in mind or not able to focus on one thing.

Let me reintroduce myself and the company. My name is LiLbluie and I am the official blogger of May Wah Vegetarian Food Inc. This blog is to let customers, staffs, and distributors understand the body, soul, and conscious of our brand. Not only will be discussing the foundation of May Wah, we will also be sharing our future cheers and tears with you.

May Wah Vegetarian Food Inc. was founded in 1995 as a small family business store located at the heart of Chinatown, New York City. Our mission is to serve health and happiness to customers with the best of Asian vegetarian foods in terms of nutrition and taste. Today, we have not only accomplished this goal, but our continuous commitments contribute to the cultural awareness of health benefits in consuming vegetarian foods.

Recently we have sucessfully launched the redesign of our site, www.maywahnyc.com. We welcome you to the online home of the only vegetarian specialty store in New York City. With our new features, you can now enjoy the following benefits:.

  • Search our website with ease to find vegan specialties, best sellers, or anything you want
  • Learn all about our products and prices available for retail and wholesale through listings
  • See the best of what we have to offer with our brochures!
  • Ship your orders all over USA within 7 to 10 business days!
  • Locate the nearest distributor with our products throughout New York, USA, and the world!

By the end of the year we will try to accomplish the following goals:

  • Past, Present, and Future of May Wah
  • Upward Flow of Our Company
  • Rethinking our Social Responsilibity
  • Emphasizing the cultures of the Asian vegetarian communities

This should be a good beginning.