7 Spots to Try This Vegetarian Week

16th May 2016

All hail Vegetarian Week – the perfect excuse to give our guts a good rest from the tiresome work of digesting all that deep-fried chicken and heavy red meat. However, our cooking skills probably won’t quite cut it and so we’re venturing out to let London’s talented restaurateurs seal the deal and mushroom risotto isn’t going to cut it! Check out our 7 places to go for great vegetarian dishes: 

Carousel

‘Wordly’ restaurant

Carousel’s head chef Ollie Templeton is not only tasked with securing excellent talent from around the globe to work alongside at the restaurant’s series of pop-up dining experiences, but he is also challenged with running Carousel’s own kitchen day-in, day-out. His gorgeous lunchtime menu features a variety of elegant vegetarian dishes – think Jersey Royals with wild sorrel and horseradish, Watermelon and tomato tartare with basil, and Salmorejo with avocado, chopped egg and breadcrumbs.

Where: 71 Blandford Street, Marylebone, W1U 8AB
Website: http://www.carousel-london.com/home.html

Grain Store

Vegetable-led dishes

At Grain Store, the vegetable takes center stage. Each dish is packed with beautiful flavor combinations of meat-free goodness from chef Bruno Loubet – the concept has gone down so well, he opened a second branch at the Zetter Hotel in Marylebone not too long ago. The Handbook recommends venturing there for brunch during vegetarian week – tuck into the moreish Toasted banana loaf with vanilla ricotta and a comforting warm passionfruit sauce or for something a little more lunchy, the Red lentil and chickpea hummus, sprinkled with dressed sprouting beans, spicy labneh and Baghdad egg flatbread.

Where: Granary Square, 1-3 Stable Street, King’s Cross, N1C 4AB
Website: http://www.grainstore.com

Gymkhana

Indian veg in Mayfair

Gymkhana’s vegetarian menu offers up seven courses of simply stunning meat-free cuisine. For £65 (or £120 with a wine pairing – this may sway your meat-loving friend to give it a go!), you can enjoy Cassava, lentil and rice papads with a refreshing mint and tangy mango chutney to start, Tandoori gobhi with a green chilli raita, Asparagus, broccoli and pea pilau with cucumber and cumin raita, and a delicate Rose and raspberry falooda with rabri kulfi to finish.

Where: 42 Albermarle Street, Mayfair, W1S 5JH
Website: http://www.gymkhanalondon.com

Berber & Q

Middle Eastern BBQ veg

The team at Berber & Q grill over charcoal and for an ultimate charred, smoky flavor. The Mezze section of the menu is where the veggie dishes are listed – think Beets with whipped feta and saffron candied orange, Urfa roasted pumpkin with green harissa, yogurt and pecan, and the glorious, Instagram-sensation, the Cauliflower shawarma, served by the quarter, half or whole, blacked by the grill and dotted with tahini. The ‘Bits & Dips’ are also great if you don’t want to go the whole – hog doesn’t seem quite right here… Try the Butternut square tahini with dukkah with a Gal Gadot cocktail: cucumber-infused gin with watermelon, mint and rose syrup.

Where: Arch 338 Acton Mews, London, E8 4EA
Website: http://www.berberandq.com

Farmstand

Healthy, wholesome cafe

Great for a healthy, bespoke lunch or dinner, Farmstand lets you ‘build your own box’ of different vegetarian salads and stews. There are meaty options, but the Split fava beans with butternut square and pumpkin seeds are a hearty alternative. They come served with a choice of vegetarian sides – think Quinoa with candied beetroot, black beans and herbs, Roasted Jerusalem artichokes with capers and parsley, and Raw kohlrabi with pear, daikon and lemon. There’s even veggie-friendly sweet treats – The Handbook recommends the Farmstand brownie, which is gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free. Yum.

Where: 42 Drury Lane, Covent Garden, WC2B 5AJ
Website: http://www.farmstand.co.uk/how-it-works

Ceviche

Peruvian vegetables

The latest addition to the Ceviche group, Ceviche Old Street serves a menu inspired by the coast, Andes and Amazon of Peru, with influences from Nikkei to criolla, Chifa to fusion, using Peruvian superfood ingredients. The Handbook recommends trying the veggie roast on a Sunday – the Seco de Berenjena offers braised aubergine in place of the classic beef, with a panca-huacatag sauce, feta cheese and coriander. Like the other roasts, it comes served with quinoa Yorkshire pudding, Uchucuta Andean herb gravy, yucas, spicy amarillo chilli, coriander corn tamales and green sprouting broccoli with a cheesy amarillo Huancaina sauce.

Where: 2 Baldwin Street, London, EC1V 9NU
Website: http://www.cevicheuk.com/soho

Chinese Laundry

Alternative veggie dishes

Critically acclaimed 1980s-inspired Chinese restaurant, Chinese Laundry, has introduced a selection of new dinner menu dishes paying homage to plates best remembered from the owners childhoods. Appetisers such as the Smashed cucumber with fried peanuts and the Century egg and tofu are great veggie options that you’ll struggle to find anywhere else, while for breakfast the Crispy scallion pancake is an interesting and unusual vegetarian option, a bit like an Indian paratha with a fried egg inside, spring onions and Chinese Laundry’s homemade red pepper sauce.

Where: 107 Upper Street, Islington, N1 1QN
Website: http://www.chineselaundryroom.co.uk

Looking for more? Check out our guide to 5 of the best vegetarian restaurants