Meet Danielle (Dani) from the Saskatoon Area. Once a dedicated “meatitarian,” Dani transitioned to vegetarianism in 2016 and then fully embraced a vegan lifestyle in 2017. At the time, dining out was a challenge, with limited and often disappointing options.
Undeterred, Dani channeled her efforts into researching and developing vegan recipes at home, gaining extensive knowledge of plant-based ingredients and gluten-free alternatives. Her passion now drives her to discover and promote restaurants that offer high-quality vegan options and help local businesses enhance their plant-based menus.
Dani views her journey as an opportunity to support others in their vegan transition and contribute positively to the community.
Meatless Movement recently had a chat with her.
Please tell us more about yourself
I have always eaten meat, dairy, eggs my whole life. But then watched documentaries in 2016 and I couldn’t stand it anymore
DW Vegan Consulting | Danielle Wrishko
My name is Danielle and I’m from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in Canada.
I’ve always been sensitive to animal welfare and how much I love animals, yet I still ate them, and I disassociated what I was doing eating them. In 2016 I watched some pretty intense documentaries such as Cowspiracy, and cold turkey went vegetarian. I was vegetarian for one year and then in 2017 became full vegan after watching more documentaries. I’ve never looked back!
I’m also gluten free (celiac) so it’s been challenging to go out to eat, traveling, hotels, have family meals, picnics and barbeques, everything revolves around food. Gluten free eating was just getting popular and then I went vegan as well, so I felt like a dining outcast yet again. To be vegan right now feels like how it felt back in 2009 being diagnosed celiac – isolating, not accommodating, not many knew about gluten free. There was a stigma to being gluten free, I felt it and lived it. Now it’s the rage. I believe vegan will be just as popular and acceptable as gluten free is now.
I love being a vegan. Now, my love for animals is aligned with the actions that I’m taking into not eating them, but also being an inspiration for others that there is another way other than the conditioned beliefs and habits most of us have formed all of our lives.
I’m definitely vegan for the animals, but I know it has a positive impact on many other things as well
DW Vegan Consulting | Danielle Wrishko
This may be controversial, but I’ve always believed that the way animals are treated right now feels like the Holocaust for animals. Even if they’re on “Happy Farms”, the intention is to raise them to kill them and use them. I’m not into any of it and the more years I’m a vegan, the more fragile I am by what happens to these poor creatures. Back when I wasn’t vegan, I disassociated and wanted to pretend it wasn’t happening. It was easy for me to pretend so I could continue eating that way.
As you may be able to tell, I’m vegan for the animals as my #1 reason. I do like that there are so many other benefits for the planet to be vegan. I can’t see any negative effect to it, just positivity.
If someone is curious about trying meatless food, I’d say there are so many replacements out there for just about everything when it comes to meat, dairy, egg replacements. The thing is, you can’t force opinions like these down peoples’ throats or be judgmental, it’ll turn them off, and they need to find inspiration in it themselves. I like to lead by inspiring and sharing how tasty recipes can be that are vegan and gluten free, and people get inspired to try them. I don’t typically share my views about things (except on this interview), and let food do the talking. There are many sources and documentaries who show the brutality of things. I like my channels to be light and inspiring. I’m also too sensitive to show or view those things, even though they are very effective at showing people who eat animals. It worked on me!
Meet the heart behind Vegan Saskatoon
DW Vegan Consulting | Danielle Wrishko
The city I’m in (Saskatoon) is very traditional, for the most part is behind the times. Meat and potatoes territory. In June 2024 I created a vegan city guide called www.vegansaskatoon.com and a coordinating Instagram account so that travelers who visit our city, or just people who live in the city can find new restaurants to go to. There is Happy Cow, however, I wanted my website to be more in depth as I chat with owners and chefs of restaurants and really dive in to the substitutions one can make as a vegan dining at a restaurant. I also want to share other places other than restaurants. For example, a bowling alley in our city accommodates and has vegan options which is so cool. It’s the unexpected places that are my favorite.
I think the biggest misconception about being vegan is that it’s just healthy salads, “twigs and berries” from what I’ve been teased about. There are so many creative ways to eat vegan that are so delicious. I think people also assume that vegan = health conscious. But to me, vegan eating means not eating animal products. It doesn’t automatically mean health conscious. I think that’s what a whole foods plant based diet is about. I love it all – the junky vegan, deep fried, delectable, and I also love healthy food too. I love balance. I’d prefer when I go out to a restaurant that the food is delectable and junky. I can make healthy at home. People are really intense about processed foods and meat alternatives. I can’t see my life without them. It helps jazz things up while eating vegan.
I took a 3 month certification course and am now a Certified Vegan Hospitality Consultant so that I can teach restaurants how to better label their menus, create vegan dishes, understand about vegan substitution products that taste just the same as the animal versions, attract vegans, get more business. Vegan/plant forward eating is coming just as quickly as gluten free, and I think restaurants should get prepared to welcome them. We want delicious meals too like the other diners. Not a garden salad. I think the biggest things restaurants are missing right now is breakfast dishes. I love to create pancakes, waffles, vegan eggs benny, hashbrowns, breakfast hash skillets, bagels, breakfast sandwiches. All vegan and gluten free and delicious! Especially to the vegan diner, it’s a real treat to enjoy these types of items again.
These days along with running my website and finding restaurants us vegans can go to in my city, I’m calling a lot of restaurant owners to see what their options are but ask if they need help with veganizing menus, etc. The thing that surprises me most in 2024 is how uninterested a lot of restaurants are right now. I think they see it as an annoyance, or low priority to add these types of items to their menus. But then there are some very open minded owners who see the logic and how important this is to their business future. I look forward to the day where many restaurants want to add more items to their menus. I hope soon that hotels, airlines, airports, everywhere in the world becomes more vegan friendly! I know it’ll happen and it’s starting to. But I look forward to when it’s mainstream.
I think the toughest thing I gave up when I went vegan was creamy sauces
DW Vegan Consulting | Danielle Wrishko
To someone who’s beginning to go meatless, I say – at first, use the faux and mock meats. Replicate what you used to eat – for example Hamburger Helper. Use these recipes and ‘veganize’ them. Use Beyond Ground for the meat, Violife shreds as the cheese, Silk Next Milk or homemade cashew cream/milk for the milk. Veganizing recipes is so fun. Once you get the hang of what you used to eat just without meat or animal products, you’ll become more adventurous in other areas and recipe creations.
You can find me on Instagram:
Or check out my website/vegan consulting services:
DW Vegan Consulting | Danielle Wrishko
Food Consultant
🌱Certified Vegan Consultant 🇨🇦
🌱Helping Restaurants & Cafes Be Vegan & GF Friendly
🌱Fave Food, Products, Inspo & Recipes
🌱Founder of @vegan_saskatoon
all images courtesy of DW Vegan Consulting | Danielle Wrishko