Vegan food in London (2019)

Was in London last weekend for a little getaway. And naturally I planned everything around breakfast, lunch and dinner ;)

There's so many great vegan spots in London, so I wanted to try as much as possible. Still, there remains a lot more to discover.

Purezza, Camden

Best pizzas everrr at Purezza, Camden.

On the right is Purezza's "Parmigiano Party" and on the left is their "Here Comes Truffle". 😋

Apparently we chose well: I later found out that the Parmigiana Party won 'Best Pizza' at the UK's National Pizza Awards last year, and this year they're entering "Here Comes Truffle" as their new contender!

For the Parmigiana Party pizza "the wood-fired dough is topped with house-made dairy-free smoked mozzarella, fried aubergine, seitan sausage, fresh basil, and a dusting of nutritional yeast."

Here Comes Truffle is a black truffle base with mozzarella, wood smoked tofu, mixed wild forest mushrooms and finished with micro herbs.

Although I ordered the Parmigiana Party (which was incredibly good), my fave of the two was actually the truffle one! And I don't usually go wild for truffle. So I'd say they have a great chance of winning that top pizza prize once again!

I'd love to try all their other pizzas.. but I'd also love to try their lasagna and desserts. Next time I go it will be a nightmare to choose!

Delicious cheese platter at Purezza, served with garlic aioli and what I presume was agave syrup.

We also had this amazing cheese board (curiosity fattened these cats) at Purezza as a starter. Was served with crackers, a delicious garlicky sauce and some agave nectar. Beware, the chili cheese (bottom, middle) is super spicy!

Sutton & Sons

Vegan fish cakes and calamari at Sutton & Sons, London.

They have three branches in London, including one all-vegan shop.

However, we decided to just go to the closest one, which was not the all-vegan one, since I read on their site that they have a vegan menu at all of them.

I was very keen to try their vegan fish made out of banana blossom, which I had seen in a video online.

Unfortunately this branch was already sold out of their vegan fish, so we settled for the calamari and fish cakes.

Still, these were really tasty!

The calamari was really remarkable... tasted just like I remember, and with the same texture. They said theirs is made with seitan.

The fish cakes were really nice too, with a herbal freshness from dill and other seasonings (might be too much for some but I loved it).

Café Forty One

Vegan high tea! Café Forty One, London.

High tea at Café Forty One.

On the bottom are savoury sandwiches such as 'cornonation jackfruit' (chicken-style seasoning) and vegan egg salad.

In the middle layer was a deliciously crumbly almond and chocolate biscuit, chocolate banana cakes with cream and raspberries, and another little biscuit with some kind of chocolate ganache on top.. Sorry for my vague descriptions, I didn't take any notes ;)

On top were some scones, to be eaten with the coconut cream and jam on the bottom layer.

Coffee or tea of your choice is included, as well a sparkling drink (was too sweet for my taste).

This was a unique experience and a traditional London treat. Had to be done! The staff were friendly, the environment cosy, and the food was a lot of fun.

Although there were some really nice things in the selection, there were also some strange anomalies: the scones were a bit dense and doughy, and one of the sandwich fillings seemed wildly oversalted (and I am not shy of salt at all).

Still, the overall experience was great and I'm still dreaming about those crumbly almond-chocolate biscuits.

Harry Potter Studio Tour

A dry burger at Harry Potter Studio Tour, London. Did they simply forget the sauce? No time to ask.

Here's a sad chickpea burger from the Harry Potter Studio Tour.

We paid for the full guided tour (not cheap omg), which started in the mid-morning and had just a measly 30 minute lunch break in the middle. The Studios were so packed by midday that the cafetaria was very busy. It took us about 20 minutes just to get the food and find a free table to sit at.

The burger itself was disappointing. At first we were impressed when we saw they had vegan options. We ordered this expensive (for what it is) burger, which cost 8.50 pounds, almost ten euro.

The patty itself is not bad, but the bun was super dry... and there was no sauce of any kind in the middle.

I don't know if this was a mistake, or if it's just their idea of a joke at the expense of vegans. :p

Well, no time to complain or tackle the crowds to try and find some sauce for the burger, since our tour's short break was almost over already.

Later we saw that another vegan burger on the menu is described as having a "tomato relish" in it. So just be careful when you order, if you order.

The HP Studio Tour itself was fantastic though, recommended if you're a fan.

Itadakizen London

Vegan sushi at Itadakizen, London.

Last but not least, we had dinner at the fully-vegan Japanese restaurant Itadakizen London, very near King's Cross Station.

I had been there before (with omnis, who loved it) and wanted to try some more things on the menu. This time we had sushi as a starter and followed this with their udon noodle soup topped with tempura veggies.

I've never had such beautiful sushi before! And it was as tasty as it looks.

That salmon-looking one is actually roasted red pepper. And on the right that's tofu, my fave of the six.

Forgot to take a pic of the udon noodle soup with tempura, but it was also delicious and well seasoned. Never would have thought to serve tempura with a soup, but it works, adds a lot of flavour.