Vegan London- must eats
Quite a lot has been written about the London vegan scene already, so this is just a brief list of recommendations. During my 2 years as a resident in this beautiful and awesome city I made it my mission to try to eat at as many of the vegan/ vegetarian restaurants as I possibly could. Whilst I didn’t make it to all of them I certainly managed to cross the majority off my list. Of course though, quite a few new places have appeared on the scene since my departure so I made sure I went to check some of them out on this trip as well as revisiting all of my old favourites. Below is a list of my top recommendations, for a more extensive one visit www.happycow.net where you’ll find a fairly accurate and up to date list.
222 VEGGIE VEGAN
222 North End Road, West Kensington
http://www.222veggievegan.com/
I’ve only ever gone to this restaurant for their all you can eat lunch buffet, but their dinner menu looks absolutely amazing too. Their lunch buffet is 100% vegan and consists off a selection of around 10 or so hot and cold dishes that change each day. While 7.50 pounds may sound like a lot of money it is well worth every penny, everything is organic and very fresh, the salads are far beyond just a pile of lettuce leaves and some dressing, they are creative and delicious as are all the hot dishes which range from curries to savoury tofu and carrot tarts.
Buffet lunch @222
Crepe from 222
222 is a great place to take non vegans/ vegetarians or for a special occasion, it’s a little more classy than most of the vegan restaurants in London but not as snobby and pretentious as the others in that price range.
POGO CAFE
76 Clarence Rd, Hackney E5
Pogo may not be everyone’s cup of tea but I for one am a big fan, in fact I’d say this is my favourite vegan hang out spot in London. Pogo is 100% volunteer run and not for profit , not only is it a vegan cafe, but it’s also a community centre and social network at the heart of the vegan squatting community in Hackney, they hold a lot of social events such as movie nights and pizza parties and is a great place to chill out and make some new vegan friends.
It doesn’t look like much from the outside, the first time I went there I actually mistook it for an abandoned warehouse, (they’ve done it up a little since then) once inside though it looks and feels just like the living room of your cool arty friends share house. The basic menu consists of burgers, salads and various hot and cold drinks including shakes, lassis and tea and coffee. There are usually a few specials on the board of which vary depending on what food is in season and what that days volunteers feel like making.
punk cheese burger
The punk cheese burger tends to be my staple if none of the specials take my fancy. Like everything here it various a lot depending on who makes it, sometimes there’s a side salad and sometimes you get steamed veggies instead. The burger patties are made from scratch so sometimes they are plain and sometimes they are spicy.
Carrot and ginger soup
The only real consistent things at Pogo are the extremely generous portion sizes and the tiny prices, a burger with sides costs just 5 pounds and is more than enough food to fill you up for the day. If you’ve still got some room left afterwards and feel like something sweet the Knickerbocker glory is my personal favourite dessert. An important thing to keep in mind if you go to Pogo is that because it is entirely staffed by volunteers, and they are often under staffed meaning it can sometimes take a while to get your food. New volunteers are always welcome, and if you feel inclined you can sign up for a shift while you’re there.
PEKING PALACE (LOVING HUT)
669 Holloway Road, Archway, London, N19
http://www.thepekingpalace.com/
It was just Peking Palace when I lived in London, but they have since officially become a Loving Hut. Aside from the sign the inside and the menu are still pretty much the same. I’ve only ever ordered off the menu once, preferring usually to have the lunchtime buffet instead. For 6 pounds eat in or around 4.50 to take away, there are about 10-15 different dishes ranging from several different kinds of rice, noodles, vegetable curries and some battered and deep-fried fruits and vegetables. They also have a large range of drinks including shakes, fresh juices, smoothies, tea etc. I used to eat here regularly as I lived a 10 minute bike ride away so it was a cheap and convenient place to eat if I didn’t feel like cooking.
JAI KRISHNA
161 Stroud Green Road London N4
Jai Krishna is a pure vegetarian north Indian restaurant just around the corner from Finsbury Park. Being north Indian the curries here are fairly mild, but you can request to make yours spicier if you prefer. The way you order is a bit weird, you get a pen and piece of paper and you need to write what you want on it then take it up to the counter. This restaurant is one of the most vegan friendly Indian restaurants in London as they don’t cook with ghee, except for the naan which they are happy to make with oil instead upon request.
Jai Krishna curries
I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve eaten here, the pumpkin curry being particularly nice, they are always fresh and not too oily like a lot of Indian food can be.
INSPRILLED LOUNGE AND CAFE
250 Camden High Street, Camden Lock, London – NW1
Situated right next to Camden Lock in the midst of the market, Inspiralled is a very picturesque and atmospheric spot for a bite to eat while wandering around the markets. There are often bands or DJ’s providing some background noise in the evenings. It’s all vegetarian but there are plenty of vegan options, including a large selection of homemade raw chocolates and vegan cheese cakes.
Spanakopita from Inspiralled
Inspiralled has changed drastically several times in the years I’ve been going there. Originally it had been a cheap, grungy hippyish joint, then it started to get a little more up market resulting in prices going up and portion sizes going down, but they seem to have levelled out a little more now with a good balance of all of the above. In the summer months they have a big range of ice vegan and sugar-free ice creams too.
Vegan breakfast
COOKIES AND SCREAM Unit L1, Dingwalls Gallery, Camden Lock Place NW1http://cookiesandscream.com/contact.html
Cookies and Scream is one of the newer places on the London vegan scene, I wish it had been around when I lived in London, but then again maybe it’s better that it wasn’t given how yummy and addictive their cookies and shakes are. Not only are they a 100% bakery located in one of my favourite parts of London, they are also gluten-free friendly. All of their freshly baked cookies are huge and extremely tasty and cheap, I tried a few different ones including the chocolate and macadamia and a nut and raisin one. I would also recommend the chocolate brownie shake which is just as the name suggests, an ice cream shake with crumbled up brownie in it that gets all melted and gooey, leaving a big mouthful of chocolate right at the bottom of the cup.
GREEN NOTE
106 Parkway, Camden Town, NW1
It’s mostly a music venue for blues, folk, jazz and acoustic artists, but they used to have a pretty awesome open mic night every Sunday that was open to all kinds of music which I used to attend and play at quite regularly. The also serve vegetarian and vegan tapas style finger food including humus and other dips, falafel, samosas and spring rolls. It has a very friendly, casual atmosphere and is a nice cosy place to spend an evening chilling out, listening to some good music.
INDIAN VEG BHELPURI HOUSE
92-93 Chapel Market Angel Islington, London N1
If you like classy or quality food then this isn’t the place for you, but they definitely win the contest for cheapest vegan meal in London hands down. For less than 5 pounds you can eat sit in there all day and eat till you vomit, the curries may be watered down to a runny slop and the walls completely covered with random health related facts about vegetarianism and picture of various Indian beauty queens and Bollywood stars that attribute their beauty and success to being vegetarian, but for that price who cares about the decor. They also make some pretty kick arse vegan lassis, which was usually my main reason for going there. For some reason my friends and I and everyone else I’ve spoken to that has eaten there have always felt “unnaturally high” after eating the food there, to the extend where I found it challenging to ride my bike in a straight line, not sure as to the reason for this, I can’t imagine they’d be putting any “extra goodies” in the food for that price so who knows, but hey it’s cheap, vegan and way less likely to give you food poisoning then the super dodgy vegan Asian buffet chain place around the corner.
BRICK LANE SUNDAY MARKET
There are countless places to find a cheap vegan meal all up Brick Lane and the surrounding streets any day of the week, but on Sundays this little cobble stone alleyway really comes alive. Traditionally the heart of London’s immigrant community, these days it’s an eclectic mix of shabby Indian take-outs and trendy hipster vintage clothing boutiques and record stores.
Vegan Ethiopian stall in Brick Lane
One of my favourite places for a bite to eat is the vegan Ethiopian stall in the main food hall next to rough Trade. No to be confused with the other Ethiopian stand in the same building, this one is the only 100% vegan one, you can usually tell it apart from the others by the very long line that at lunchtime, sometimes wraps around the corner.
VX
73 Caledonian Rd, King’s Cross, N1
No London vegan list is complete without mentioning VX, London’s one and only dedicated vegan shop. It may be tiny but it’s certainly packed with everything a vegan could want including cheeses, mock meats, shoes and other accessories and of course cake.
MILDRED’S
45 Lexington Street, London , W1
Lying in the heart of Soho, this popular vegetarian restaurant has always been packed every time I’ve gone there or have walked past, it’s not unusual to have to wait up to an hour for a table in the evenings. Whilst the food at Mildred’s is nice it’s by no means amazing and not really worth the price tag in my opinion, there are quite a few much better value places within a few blocks, but for a special occasion Mildred’s is a good place to go. The menu is pretty standard vegetarian cuisine consisting of pasta, stews, curries, burgers etc.
MAOZ
43 Old Compton Street London, W1
Another place in the heart of Soho right near Mildred’s and Wholefoods, this all vegetarian falafel chain was one of my most regularly visited for a quick and cheap vegan meal after a long shift at work. I always like how I could decide on which salads I wanted and the deep-fried cauliflower was always a favourite. It used to be all you can eat salads but they’ve since changed it to one visit per order. The meal deal is still good value though, for 7 pounds you get a falafel with aubergine (eggplant) and humus, chips and a drink.
STOKE NEWINGTON FARMERS MARKET
Every Saturday 10am-2pm
St Pauls Church
Stoke Newington High Street
Mainly just your average small farmer’s market,but there was one stall in particular that I always went there for called Global Fusion. They sell a wide range of freshly baked vegan breads and other baked goods such as tarts, cakes and some savoury items like quiche and mini pizzas.
Vegan travelling adventures 
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