Self-taught baker fulfils dream by opening up all-vegan cafe in Jesmond
Written by Libby Seath on 22nd October 2025
A new all-vegan café, Layla’s Kitchen Café, has opened this month at Jesmond United Reformed Church.
The café serves a range of plant-based food and drink options — including teas, lattes, salads, and wholesome cookies — with some gluten-free choices available too.
The owner of Layla’s Kitchen Cafe, Yasmin Sayed Ahmed, had been running an independent catering business for over five years, including selling all-vegan options for three years at Jesmond’s food market. After successfully completing a pop-up at the Newcastle Piano Festival in March, she decided she wanted to take her business to the next level by opening up her own cafe.
Photo credits: Meahcreative
Yasmin said: “I’ve always dreamed of opening up a cafe, as I’ve always had the passion for baking and creating.”
Yasmin’s decision to make her catering business — and later her café — fully vegan stems from her own switch to a plant-based lifestyle in 2018. She chose to go vegan for ethical, environmental, and health reasons, and after being diagnosed with Polycystic Kidney Disease, she became especially motivated to avoid processed foods and focus on natural, plant-based ingredients.
Photo credit: Meahcreative
Yasmin said: “Other than having my food hygiene rating and certificates, I’m a self-taught baker — I’ve been practising since I was little.”
She added that much of her learning came from watching YouTube videos, and she enjoys the creative side of baking. Aside from recently hiring a barista for the café, Yasmin has managed the self-catering and market stalls entirely on her own.
Local resident Josey Grant, 36, said: “It feels like restaurants and cafés are starting to take vegan options off the menu or limit the choices. We usually go to the same places we know have a decent vegan range or are fully vegan.”
She welcomed the opening of another all-vegan café in Jesmond, saying it offers more variety for locals who follow a vegan lifestyle.
Her full menu, alongside details of opening times, can be viewed on her Facebook page.
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