The best vegan restaurants London has to offer

How to embrace the vegan diet in London: plant-based dining that carnivores will love too

There's no better time to embrace veganism. Whether it is on a full-time, part-time or 'flexitarian' veg-curious basis, plant-forward eating is going mainstream. What's more, with some of the most exciting vegan restaurants on this planet, we are proud to say that London is putting itself at the forefront of this food revolution.

Over the past few years there has been a collective rallying of the conscience: veganism is no longer seen purely as a militant movement, and a creative wave of new restaurants has appeared to satisfy an increased appetite for conscientious plant-based cooking.

Why all the hype?

It's now hard to avoid the torrent of delectable plant-based dishes on Instagram. But with growing evidence of the skin-glowing, energy-boosting, planet-saving benefits of an animal- and dairy-free lifestyle, we think this is one trend that is more than worth paying attention to. To help you out, here is our list of top London spots that are making veganism interesting.

VEGAN FINE DINING

Gauthier
21 Romilly Street, Soho, London W1D 5AF

Soho hotspot Gauthier became the first Michelin-starred restaurant in Britain to offer a vegan tasting menu in 2015. The offering here is seasonal small plates which, at the time of writing, include truffle tortellini, rainbow Swiss chard parcels and plum opaline. This is vegan dining at its most exquisite and while you probably won't fancy attempting to recreate Gauthier’s dishes at home, you’ll be tempted to book a table again when the menu changes.

Price: £140+ for dinner for two excluding drinks
Click here to book

Wild Food Café
1st floor, 14 Neal's Yard, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9DP

Although not strictly vegan, Wild Food Café’s colourful, creative and mostly plant-based food is so joyful and uplifting, and served with such passion that we couldn't overlook it. The location overlooking lively, ultra-foodie Neal’s Yard is delightful too. Founded back in the 70s, the Café sources only from local, independent, ethical suppliers and uses plenty of wild foods (as the name suggests). Everything sounds appetising, from the barbecue jackfruit burger to the ‘forgotten ecstasy’ smoothie: cacao, dates, he-shou-wu, algarroba and salt.

Price: £60+ for dinner for two with drinks
Click here to book

Itadaki Zen
139 King's Cross Road, London WC1X 9BJ

Europe’s first organic and vegan Japanese restaurant, Itadaki Zen is a quirky eatery serving classic dishes from spring rolls and sushi to tempura made with seaweed and hotpots that use plenty of fashion-forward fermented products.

Price: £40+ for dinner for two including drinks
Click here to book

Manna
4 Erskine Road, Primrose Hill, London NW3 3AJ

Strewn with pretty fairy lights and gorgeous plant-inspired wallpaper, Manna looks like a recent addition to London’s vegan scene but it has in fact been around for 50 years – a real trailblazer. The most famous dish speaks for itself: 'fennel and pumpkin seed sausages on a bed of parsnip & carrot mash served with cavolo nero on a red wine, leek & thyme jus'. Salivating yet?

Price: £70+ for dinner for two including drinks
Click here to book

VEGAN COMFORT FOOD

By Chloe.
Locations in Covent Garden, Tower Bridge, Oxford Circus and Greenwich

Everything about By Chloe. screams NYC cool, from the full stop in its name to the fact it was a pioneer of calling food ‘plant-based’ rather than simply ‘vegan’. But aside from that, there’s more than enough to draw in animal-loving punters – from its vegan mac and cheese to its quinoa taco salad.

On the entirely vegan menu, there’s also a guac burger, matcha kelp noodles and even a section dedicated to treats for your pooch, too. Desserts meanwhile, are largely of the cupcake and cookie variety.

The original London branch of the US chain in Covent Garden has since been joined by three more: in Tower Bridge, Oxford Circus and at the O2 in Greenwich.

Price: £20+ for lunch
Click here to book

Cook Daily
Dalston Boxpark 8, 2-4 Bethnal Green Road, London E1 6GY

At Cook Daily, you can expect highly nutritious and delicious plant-based ‘bowls’ (served in recycled cardboard), each as colourful as a rainbow and rammed with vegetables that pack a punch. Order the full English with tofu scramble, mushrooms and non-bacon, or the jerk: vegan jerk ‘chicken’ stir-fry topped with coleslaw. This is top-grade rustic vegan food served in a shipping container, and one of the most satisfying and unpretentious places in town.

Price: £20 for two
Click here for more

Mildred’s
Locations in Soho, King’s Cross, Camden and Dalston

While not strictly vegan, Mildred’s is a vegetarian restaurant with a simple, healthy and wide-ranging menu, with lots of choice for vegans. Taking inspiration from across the globe – dishes from Sri Lanka, Thailand, China and Mexico all feature, along with some modern British favourites – Mildred’s was ahead of the vegetarian game when it opened in 1988. Today, each of its four outlets are almost always busy with diners chasing the now popular plant-based diet.

Price: around £35 for three courses
Click here to book

Wulf & Lamb
243 Pavilion Road, Chelsea, London SW1X 0BP

In the smart foodie enclave of Pavilion Road, sleek, buzzy Scandi-style Wulf & Lamb is setting new standards for plant-led comfort food.
Standout dishes include the well-spiced Thai green curry and the incredibly moreish vegan mac 'n' cheese made with cashew cream, turmeric and mustard. There are also burgers, open burritos and other guilt-free versions of comfort-food classics. Superb desserts include the coconut rum cake and warm peanut butter brownie with cashew-based honeycomb & toasted pine nut ice cream, dipped in coffee caramel. Heaven.

Price: £40+ for dinner for two including drinks
Click here to book

VEGAN DETOX

Kalifornia Kitchen
19 Percy Street, Bloomsbury, London W1T 1DY

2019 saw the opening of Kalifornia Kitchen in Fitzrovia which, for those unfamiliar, could be surmised as vegan dining for the Insta-crowd with its hot pink walls, petal-scattered bowls and motivational slogans. Open for brunch, lunch and dinner, Kalifornia Kitchen aims to serve food that not only looks beautiful, but makes the eater feel beautiful, too. From the top down: brunch includes an array of dishes featuring CBD-infused granola (if you don’t feel beautiful after eating it, at least you’ll feel calm). For lunch and dinner, plates progress into Buddha bowls, or vegan takes on fish and chips, chicken burgers and even lamb kebabs. Most desserts come with the restaurant’s signature raspberry chia jam. If you’re after something a bit different, try the matcha cheesecake.

Price: £60+ for dinner for two with drinks
Click here to book

Farmacy
74-76 Westbourne Grove, London W2 5SH

Farmacy in Westbourne Grove has proven a bit like Marmite since it opened: some love it, others deem it overpriced and pretentious. The ethos here is that the food we eat has the power to be transformational and, because of this, we should make a concerted effort to eat consciously. Whether or not you buy into its philosophy, Farmacy’s airy, foliage-adorned dining room – often populated with willowy, athleisure-wearing, yummy-mummy types – is the place to head for grainy salads, ‘earth bowls’ and a smattering of comfort-food classics (burgers, pad Thai and the chef’s special curry). Celebrating? You can follow up your juice with a cocktail from Farmacy’s extensive list.

Price: £70+ for dinner for two including drinks
Click here to book

Redemption
Locations in Notting Hill, Covent Garden and Shoreditch

Looking for a cleanse? You can do no better in London than at Redemption. Not only does the café-cum-bar serve entirely vegan produce, its menu is sugar-, wheat- and alcohol-free, too. Pop in here for a salad and a juice at lunch, or a delectable mocktail in the evening with a bowl of something nourishing on the side. Since opening in Notting Hill, Redemption has gone on to launch sister sites in Covent Garden and Shoreditch, spreading its goodness central and east.

Price: £15+ for a meal and drink
Click here to book

Tanya’s Café
35 Ixworth Place, Chelsea, London SW3 3QX

Part of Myhotel Chelsea, Tanya’s Café is a cosy restaurant with a highly nutritional raw, vegan, organic menu devised by wellness coach Tanya Maher. Expect a huge choice of interesting drinks, juices and homemade nut mylks with turmeric, plus unusual sharing plates from ‘active’ falafel with cashew tzatziki, kale and quinoa tabbouleh to coconut pumpkin wedges. Six choices of vegan cheesecake and truffles also await.

Price: £60+ for dinner for two including drinks
Click here for more details

VEGAN BRUNCH

Tell Your Friends
175 New King's Road, Fulham, London SW6 4SW

From Made in Chelsea’s Lucy Watson comes Tell Your Friends, a vegan bar and kitchen in Fulham serving up a top-notch brunch. Personally, we’re big fans of the scrambled tofu eggs and French toast with strawberries, bananas, custard and maple syrup. A trip to the pretty, pink space later in the day, though, could see you sipping vegan wines and cocktails, while digging into the likes of Moving Mountain burgers and hotdogs, or a seitan steak and ale pie.

Price: £60+ for dinner for two including drinks
Click here to book

VEGAN DESSERTS

Nama
110 Talbot Road, Notting Hill Gate, London W11 1JR

A favourite gem off Westbourne Grove, Nama specialises in raw vegan food and runs cookery courses as well. The philosophy behind going raw is that food cooked above 115°F begins to lose vital vitamins and minerals, and that just won't do. If you’re after something savoury, their ‘sushi’ has to be tried alongside courgette and cashew hummus. But the raw cakes are the main draw – Deliciously Ella is apparently obsessed with their salted caramel chocolate cake.

Price: £40+ for dinner for two with drinks
Click here to book

Ms Cupcake
408 Coldharbour Lane, Brixton, London SW9 8LF

London's first entirely vegan bakery whips up the kind of light fluffy treats that will make bakers everywhere think 'who needs butter?'. While not the only sweet treats on offer, the cupcakes are certainly a highlight. First timer? We recommend trying The Ambassador: Ms Cupcake's signature Ferrero Rocher-studded bake.

Price: £15 for two for a full splurge
Click here for more details

VEGAN TAKEAWAYS

The Brook
Home delivery only

The Brook started off as a pop-up in Hackney, recreating comfort food favourites, including quesadillas, skewers and deep-fried bites. It is now re-launching as a food box service, delivering frozen restaurant-quality meals to your door.

Price: Boxes from £4.80
Click here to read our full review and here to order a box

Temple of Seitan
Locations in Hackney and Camden

Temple of Seitan, Hackney

It's no surprise that vegans crave fast food too. Here to cater for their wants is Temple of Seitan in Hackney, a ‘vegan fried chicken shop’ (yes, really). The menu features typical end-of-night favourites, from burgers with all the toppings to ‘chicken’ pieces and chips, and popcorn bites. Sides of slaw and mac 'n' cheese also feature on the menu, completing the joint’s Southern vibe. The best bit? It really does look and taste like authentic fried chicken (especially after a few glasses of vegan wine). Proving a success with the local crowd of young, hip eco-warriors, Temple of Seitan has now opened a second outlet in Camden. The team certainly know where to find their market.