London has some great vegetarian and vegan cafes and restaurants, but we only got a chance to eat at a few of them. These were mostly my favorite places that I started eating at over 15 years ago. I’ve missed them all while I’ve been away in Asia for the last five years, so they were obviously top of my list of places to eat at. UPDATE June 2015 – Both Beatroot and Food For Thought have closed down for good.
Beatroot Vegetarian Cafe
UPDATE June 2015 – Beatroot has closed down after 18 years. This is because the area is being redeveloped.
I first ate at Beatroot over 15 years ago and ate there regular for over 10 years before moving to Bangkok. This was the place I was looking forward to eating at the most when we visited London. And I wasn’t disappointed. The food was a great as it always was.
The food is sold in boxes and you have a choice of small, medium and large. Just choose any of the 10 hot dishes or 10 salads. You can eat in or take away, but if you eat in you’ll get more food in your box.
There is also a good choice of cakes and desserts, all of which are usually vegan. The main dishes are almost all vegan, although there is cheese in one or two of them.
Beatroot has seating inside and out. You can usually find a seat even when it’s busy.
Beatroot Vegetarian Cafe Details
Address: Berwick Street Market, 92 Berwick Street (off Oxford Street)
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 09:00-21:00; Sat 11:00-21:00; Sun Closed
Nearest Underground Stations: Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road (closed until Dec 2015)
Website: beatroot.org.uk
UPDATE June 2015 – Beatroot has closed down after 18 years. This is because the area is being redeveloped.
The Grain Shop
This is another place that I’ve been eating at regularly since about 15 years ago. The Grain Shop has been serving yummy food on Portobello Road for decades. It still gets packed, especially on Saturdays. Nowadays it has some limited seating inside, but it’s mainly a take-away place.
The food here is served in either medium or large size containers. You choose what you want from around 15 hot dishes and 6-10 salads. The food here is excellent.
The Grain Shop also has a large selection of cakes, most of which are suitable for vegans.
If you visit Portobello Market, make sure you eat here. You won’t be disappointed.
The Grain Shop Details
Address: 269A Portobello Road
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 09:30-18:00; Sun Closed
Nearest Underground Stations: Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill Gate
Food For Thought
UPDATE June 2015 – Food For Thought has closed down.
This is another place that I’ve been eating at regularly since about 15 years ago. It seems that all the great veggie place have really stood the test of time.
The menu at Food For Thought changes daily, but follows a fairly similar format. Most of the food is suitable for vegans and these dishes are clearly marked on the menu. The menu is updated daily on their website, so you can check to see what sort of dishes they typically sell. See daily Food For Thought menu. The menu also shows which dishes are wheat-free, gluten-free and which contain nuts.
The meal shown in the image above is Hungarian Goulash and Salad. The goulash is made with red peppers, mushrooms, roasted potato and cabbage, in a rich tomato, caraway seeds and paprika sauce. The cost of a hot dish and salad is £8.70 to eat in and £8.50 to take away. This place gets packed at lunchtimes and people usually share tables.
Food For Thought Details
Address: 31 Neal Street, Covent Garden
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 12:00-20:30; Sun 12:00-17:30
Nearest Underground Station: Covent Garden
Website: foodforthought-london.co.uk
UPDATE June 2015 – Food For Thought has closed down.
Hotels In London
London is one of the world’s greatest cities and has some amazing hotels. We usually book our hotels with Agoda, as they have a fantastic selection and also a price match guarantee. Check out Agoda London to see what’s on offer.
For our first three nights in London we stayed at 73 Suites, which is an aparthotel in Bayswater. You can see our review at 73 Suites Aparthotel, London.
