Ah, Veganuary. You again. While our thoughts on going vegan for a month (and in January, no less, when the vegetable selection isn’t exactly rich and varied) are complicated, the movement continues to gain traction: over 629,000 people participated last year, with more predicted to sign up in 2023.
At Foodism, we tend to be supporters of Regenuary instead – but we’re not here to judge, simply help, and if you have chosen to start your year on the meatless foot, you may as well eat well as you do so. Because, really, there’s nothing worse than going out for dinner with your pals and only being able to order one dry, over-cooked portobello mushroom. Some restaurants are, admittedly, a little loath to hop aboard the plant-based train, but London is undeniably full of places that cater to those more keen to see their lamb in a field than on their plate. We’ve sifted through those portobello mushrooms to find you places doing things so good with vegetables you might just be able to gloat to your carnivorous comrades – and, yes, a few mushrooms too, but ones that put all other fungi to shame.
Acme Fire Cult
Abbot St, E8 2LX
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While a fire-cooking restaurant may not initially scream ‘vegan’ Acme Fire Cult tends to tip these stereotypes on their heads, highlighting vegetables throughout the menu. With vegan alternatives to ingredients like butter and creme fraiche used as standard, there are multiple dishes on the menu every day of the year that cater to plant-based diners. Not only that, but they incorporate bold flavours and a a lick of smoke so often lacking from vegan menus – think dishes like coal roast celeriac with mushroom-kelp XO, white bean miso and grilled leeks with pistachio romesco, as well as fermented squash hummus with macadamia.
Pastaio
Various locations
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Pastaio offers a dedicated vegan menu year-round, serving up plant-based takes on the Italian classics throughout January and beyond. Incorporating bold flavours and taking full advantage of the Mediterranean, veg-centric approach to cooking, the menu features everything from courgette and chilli-packed rigatoni to vegan meatballs in a tomato sauce with mafaldine and even a chocolate mousse for dessert.
Tendril
5 Princes St, W1B 2LQ
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Billing itself as a mostly vegan kitchen, Tendril is a go-to throughout the year for a meat-free meal, but is the perfect spot for first-timers who want to get a feel for the breadth and variety a vegan diet can offer. Their ‘discovery’ tasting menu will serve to convince even the most steadfast of carnivores, and to celebrate Veganuary they’re opening for brunch every Saturday and Sunday from midday.
Tofu Vegan
105 Upper St, N1 1QN
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Ask any Londoner their favourite Chinese restaurant and it’s likely Xi’an Impression will be thrown into the mix. Recognising the opportunity in offering up their cult-classic favourites and punchy flavours for an entirely plant-based audience, they opened Tofu Vegan – transforming dishes from the original without any skerrick of an animal product, and a hell of a lot of bean curd and tofu to boot. And yet, nothing feels like a sad replica of its meat or fish containing sibling, but rather a just as delicious cousin.
Bubala
Various locations
You’ll never find meat on the menu at Bubala, and you probably won’t miss it either. The Middle Eastern restaurant is entirely vegetarian, and largely vegan, too, with a number of dishes on the menu being entirely plant based. Eschewing processed and often environmentally-questionable meat alternatives, Bubala instead highlights seasonal and high-quality vegetables, like chinese cabbage with preserved lime and cardamom and charred oyster mushroom skewers with tamari, coriander seed and agave – a dish so moreish and gratifying that it would win out against many carnivorous alternatives.
Indian Veg
92-93 Chapel Market, N1 9EX
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We feel it is our duty to include Indian Veg on this list with a bit of a prior warning: just because it's all-you-can-eat doesn't mean you should eat everything you physically can. Equally, just because this restaurant is BYO, doesn't mean you should drink a whole bottle of corner shop sauvignon blanc alongside funneling inhuman amounts of ridiculously good vegan curry down your throat because, well, you can see where a problem might be encountered (and the toilet bowl may become a little stained). Learn from our mistakes: take a couple of great beers, and indulge in what is a ridiculously good value buffet with some of the best vegan food in town. Oh, and should you be wavering from your vegan commitments, the decor (which features a range of articles, posters and general paraphernalia promoting a vegetarian diet) is sure to set you back on the right track.
