TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei-based vegan establishment Green Bakery opened a new store in Songshan District on Tuesday (Feb. 15), which features a wide variety of desserts and quiches made from fresh fruits and vegetables.

Founded in 2013, the bakery provides delectable treats for vegans, animal lovers, gourmands, health-conscious people, and those who are allergic to eggs and milk. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, sales went up by 45% because of its convenient home delivery service.

Taiwan’s giant food corporation Wowprime (王品) began investing in Green Bakery in 2021 after the shop won a gold medal at a venture capital competition and beat out 70 other restaurants.

According to the chef and owner of Green Bakery, Isabella Tsao (曹思蓓), she decided to become a vegan after watching the American documentary film “Earthlings,” which talks about people’s use of animals for food, clothing, and entertainment. The film turned her world upside down because she was astonished by how selfish humans can be and decided to respond positively by delivering vegan desserts.

Isabella said the most challenging part of starting the business was that she had to learn everything on her own from the Internet because there were not many people making vegan food. “I spent nearly two years developing a decent cake,” the chef said.

She now uses pumpkin, coconut oil, and pistachios to make tasty cupcakes that have remained bestsellers for years.

When Isabella opened her first shop nearly a decade ago, most of her customers were foreigners, but now more Taiwanese are willing to give vegan food a go. She said she expects maintaining a healthy diet will eventually become a common lifestyle choice.

Isabella and her popular cupcakes. (Taiwan News, Lyla Liu photo)

Chestnut tieguanyin tea cheesecake made from pistachios. (Facebook, Green Bakery photo)

(Taiwan News, Lyla Liu photo)