Interview with Flip Grater

My interview with musician Flip Grater, published in V Mag Autumn 2012 as Ethical Reasons and Healthy Choices: an interview with vegan foodie musician and author Flip Grater for V Mag at Raw Power on 12/12/11 I was lucky to meet up with Flip in town as she is about to begin a brief wind down from a busy year of touring. We met at Raw Power on Vulcan Lane on a busy rainy summer afternoon in December. Flip has written two cookbooks which also record her touring firstly in NZ and then in Europe. I have reviewed the recent book in this issue of V Mag (Autumn 2012) also. I asked Flip about her experience of being vegan in Europe. She’s travelled in Italy, France and Portugal on and off for three years now. In that time she’s noticed an increase in the number of vegetarian restaurants, particularly in Italy. Flip says the Italians love their food and can speak at length about their tomatoes. Flip finds it easy to be vegan in Italy. Flip also found plenty of vegan food in Portugal. She found the Portuguese food to be more complex than the Italian. In Portugal they serve lots of small dishes, like tapas. She found the French vegetarians to be keen on their seitan: French vegetarian food is quite heavy, like their meat meals. Flip still eats the odd egg, eggs that have been produced ethically. She explains the need to constantly assess the boundaries of what we eat. Things change as to what we feel is appropriate, and we need to respond to this change. Although Flip would never actively promote dairy, while on tour in Italy she ate a piece of cheese for the first time in fifteen years. The cheese was produced by a person who looks after his own animals. Flip says she couldn’t come up with an ethical reason for not eating this particular piece of dairy. She explains she is a foodie and loves the experience of food. Flip is spending most of next year in Europe. In January she’s staying in Auckland, in March she goes on tour in Italy and Portugal. In April she’s moving to Paris where she plans to record her new album, funds permitting. The album should be released in September 2012 and then she’ll return to NZ for the summer. I asked Flip about her plans for Christmas. Her father owns an organic vegetable farm in Canterbury and she is planning a relaxing two weeks there, meditating and writing songs. Flips dad and his wife are both vegan. In a previous issue of V Mag, Flip explained her veganism and how she was influenced by her dad who had become vegetarian. Her dad became vegan shortly after she did, and his wife is vegan too. Flip is having three different meals for Christmas lunch this year. The most fun one for her will be on her dads’ farm: his vegan wife is a great cook. They have eleven children and ten grandchildren combined. The meal Flip most looks forward to will be 100% vegan, on her dads farm with her siblings. They’ll have vegan walnut roast with vegan gravy, and vegan chicken with cranberry sauce. After that it’s off to her mums for a more traditional meal which will include meat for the other guests. Flip prepares the salads and wants to purchase some vegan chicken to take along too. The third Christmas dinner will be on Boxing Day with friends. This will be all vegetarian, mainly kebabs and mushroom dishes. Flip is currently passionate, and writing a book, about mushrooms. Flips been touring all year promoting and selling her books and CD’s. I asked her where she is based and she replied “nowhere”. She relies on house-sitting and being a house-guest as she fundraises to produce her next album. Next year she’ll be staying with her French manager in France. Her manager is moving to the USA so Flip might have to find an apartment in France. Before she goes she’ll be house-sitting in Auckland in the New Year and playing in Matakana with Fly my Pretties at the end of January. Over Christmas she looks forward to selling her books and CD’s at farmers markets in Canterbury. Flip finds being vegan is getting easier in NZ. Being on the road a lot means eating in restaurants or as a house-guest almost all the time. Flip looks after her health and makes sure she doesn’t go too long between meals, to avoid making unhealthy food choices. For a 30 something muso with a heavy tour schedule she certainly looks a picture of good health.