π Let's Eat Out: Plant-based Menus In London (March 2023)
Restaurant Highlights featuring Galvin La Chapelle, Tofu Vegan, and The Vurger Co.
Are you looking for a great plant-based dining experience in London? Weβve got your back. Each month, we highlight the best spots with creative and delicious plant-based options. Whether you're in the mood for fine dining or a casual bite, there's something for everyone. And don't worry about salad and chips as your only option - these restaurants take plant-based seriously.
We understand that different people define plant-based differently, so we've chosen places that offer a wide variety of options, including both vegan and vegetarian. This is to encourage a wider audience and restaurants to try new plant-based dishes and make new choices for themselves.
Disclosure: none of the content below is sponsored.
Galvin La Chapelle
Address: 35 Spital Square, London E1 6DY
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Galvin La Chapelle is a cosy yet elegant restaurant nestled in a Grade II listed building with large arched windows and high stone ceilings. Serving up classic French cuisine with a modern twist, you'll find bold, sophisticated flavours that are nothing if not familiar. The evening atmosphere is buzzy without being overwhelming, with a family vibe.
Galvin La Chapelle offers both vegan and vegetarian menus. The Tasting Menus for both are Β£85 pp for 5 Courses and Β£100 pp for 7 Courses.
When the Plantwise team visited last year for a celebration, our table was luckily just by the kitchen, where we spotted Jeff Galvin. We enjoyed a great conversation with Jeff, telling him that we visited specifically for the vegan menu. Jeff commented that a lot of customers request the vegan and vegetarian menus and his team is keen to make sure they create great dishes with plant-based proteins.
Since our visit, the menu has evolved. Arturo Granato has been appointed as the Head Chef, with a strong focus on seasonality.
From the current menu, the first course jumps out straight away:
Kohlrabi
green apple, vanilla, kimchi dressing
This dish is a unique take that combines sweet and savoury flavours. Kohlrabi (also known as German turnip) is a Brassica vegetable that has a mild, sweet flavour and crunchy texture. It is combined with the tartness of green apples, the sweetness of vanilla, and the spicy kick of kimchi dressing for a flavourful start to the meal.
Another interesting dish from the current menu is Fondant celeriac.
Fondant celeriac
BBQ sauce, Trevisan radicchio, plankton vinaigrette
Celeriac is a root vegetable that belongs to the same family as celery. Some people may find it βugly, knobbly, funny-shapedβ. It has a mild and nutty flavour that resembles celery but is smoother and creamier. The fondant celeriac is complemented by the sweet and smoky BBQ sauce and the crisp Trevisan radicchio. The plankton vinaigrette adds a salty and umami flavour to the dish.
βWill I be full?β you may wonder.
An honest view is that from the volumes of the dishes alone, you might desire more food, as the dishes focus more on the flavours, artisanship, and creativity. However, on our visit, we did not leave hungry, as there was a constant supply of the best wholemeal bread Iβd ever had.
A couple of photos from our visit - note that the current menus differ.
Tofu Vegan
Islington: 105 Upper St, London N1 1QN / Golders Green: 28 N End Rd, London NW11 7PT / Spitalfields: 54 Commercial Street, E1 6LT
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Menu π
Tofu Vegan is a Chinese vegan restaurant that celebrates the country's rich tradition of plant-based eating. Their menu features a variety of delicious vegetable dishes, some of which cleverly imitate the taste, texture and appearance of meat and fish. Tofu Vegan dishes cover regional favourites from Sichuan, Guangdong, and the North East of China.
For starters, I recommend this famous Sichuan dish:
Mouthwatering chickβn
with celery in a chilli oil dressing
This spicy Sichuan dish tantalises your taste buds. It features imitation chicken paired with crunchy celery, all coated in an irresistible chilli oil dressing. The combination of savoury and spicy flavours is addictive and pairs perfectly with white rice, over a beer.
For the mains, I love Mapo Tofu, which is a popular spicy Chinese dish that features silken tofu simmered in a hot sauce made from fermented bean paste, chilli oil, and Sichuan peppercorns.
Finally, you could try the βTwice-cooked βfishββ. The dish features imitation fish cooked twice in a flavorful sauce. The βfishβ is first cooked in a fragrant combination of garlic, ginger, and chilli, and then cooked again in a sweet and spicy sauce.
You can find their branches in Islington, Spitalfields, and Golders Green. The branch I visited was in Islington, with outdoor seating. Due to their huge popularity, Tofu Vegan is always very busy, so it may be best to book in advance in order to avoid disappointment!
The Vurger Co
Shoreditch: 6 Richmix Square, Cygnet Street, Shoreditch, London E1 6LD / Canary Wharf: Lower Mall -2, Canary Wharf, London E14 5NY
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Menu π
The Vurger Co is a vegan burger restaurant in Shoreditch that has won the Marie Claire Sustainability Award for βBest Sustainable Fast Food Brandβ. They have a delicious plant-based menu with vegan burgers, fries, mac n cheese, and shakes. In 2019 alone, they saved βthe equivalent of 15 tons of beef, 500,000 grams of CO2 and 140 million litres of waterβ through their vegan burgers. Today, The Vurger Co boasts restaurant locations in Shoreditch, Canary Wharf, Manchester, and Brighton.
I typically order them online and have tried the New York Melt, Hunny βChickenβ, and Buffalo Vurger. Their burgers are so good that at one point I ordered two just for me.
New York Melt
Beyond Meat patty topped with double vegan cheese, gherkins, tomato, and housemade burger sauce.
If you are greedy like me, you could choose to double up on the patty for New York Melt. What I like about the burger are two things: a great brioche bun and the really cheesy melt.
Hunny 'Chicken'
Crispy 'chicken' patty, coated in our housemade sweet vegan honey glaze, honey mustard aioli, tangy pink slaw and gherkins.
The Hunny βChickenβ is probably my favourite of them all, because of its house-made vegan honey glaze and mustard aioli. I seriously cannot get enough. Plus, I love slaw and gherkins as toppings.
Buffalo Vurger
Crispy βchickenβ patty dipped in buffalo hot sauce, topped with vegan mozzarella slice, gherkins, crispy onions and housemade baconnaise.
Finally, the Buffalo Vurger is a βchickenβ burger with buffalo hot sauce. Seriously finger-licking stuff.
I recommend trying the Crispy Dippers sides too, with the Hunny Mustard and Garlic Parm sauce.
What do you prefer?
I have been thinking about increasing the regularity of our articles on Plantwise. Currently, I write 4-6 articles a month, covering plant-based trends, products, restaurants, and businesses (for paid subscribers). Would you like me to write more? Let me know your thoughts below!
From Plantwise
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π« Tasty Plant-based Finds - March 2023 edition. We will highlight the plant-based products we have come across and really like.
