Where to try going #veganish in London this #veganuary

Image courtesy of Counter Culture X Alter

Ditching animal products and making January ‘Veganuary’ is becoming an increasingly popular practise for the first month of the year. Even if you’re not going one hundred per cent plant based for the month and instead choosing to go vegan’ish’ it couldn’t be easier. Whether it be vegan during the week or just on Mondays London is bursting with places to try, places to learn and even seriously good vegan food delivered to your door. I’ve rounded up a few of the best spots.

Serious porridge at Stoney Street.

The newest opening from my hugely talented friend Alex Hely Hutchinson and the genius behind Neals Yard’s 26 Grains. Stoney Street is the slightly more grown up sister to the covent garden hotspot. Still centred around traditional and ancient grains the chef is headed up by the glorious Henrietta Inman. With a rotating menu in chime with the seasons theirs is not a breakfast to miss. This month they have a malted six grain porridge with apple and pear compote, almond butter, quinoa seed crumble, apple crisps and maple oat cream. Divine and it just happens to be vegan. Stoney street

Short ‘ribs’ at Club Mexicana

Their cult taco’s have caught the hearts of many plant based puritan, flexitarian and omnivores alike and for an extra special Veganuary Club Mexicana at The Spread Eagle pub in Homerton have a special Veganuary feasting menu, centred around their irresistibly sticky glazed short ‘ribs’ accompanied by tasty sauces and ides including annato mayo and beer battered pickled and stacks of fluffy corn tacos. You can enjoy their Veganuary Feasting menu for £15 per person

Plant based sourdough pizza at Radio Alice

I loved creating last years Veganuary pizza for Radio Alice. Charred onion squash with roasted broccoli, pickled onions and cashew tarragon pesto. This year they’ve teamed up with the wonderful Meriel Armitage (Club Mexicana founder) to create a delicious pizza with Al Pastor seitan, red onion salsa, pineapple, pickled cauliflower, salsa verde, and lashings of hot sauce. The Club Mexicana X Radio Alice pizza - £10

Flavourful Curries from Spice Box

A slap up takeaway but not as you know it. Grace Regan (founder of Spice Box) spent months perfecting the spices and flvour combinations in her recipes and the result is seriously good. Even the most carnivorous of my friends have claimed it as one of the best curries they’ve eaten. The key is fresh spices ground daily by the spice box chefs. Do not miss the fiery jackfruit jalfrezi or the loaded onion bhaji complete with pink pickled onions, date and tamarind chutney, raita and crispy onions. Orders are available for delivery or collection or if you fancy a night out book a table at their Walthamstow curry house. More at Spice Box

Flavour explosive Chinese inspired plates at Mao Chow

I first went to Mao Chow on a restaurant crawl (yes that’s a thing) back in 2019) and was completely blown away with the menu. The dishes are packed full of flavour with incredible attention to detail on flavour and technique. Favourites were the Mapo Doufu – a seriously heated Sichuan braised tofu dish with steamed jasmin rice and the meaty veg and Chinese chive dumplings. There are about 10 seats in the whole place so get there early to make sure you get a spot. Mao Chow.

Plant based baking courses at Dusty Knuckle

Makers of arguably London’s best sandwiches thanks to their perfectly chewy potato sourdough and bubble focaccia East London based sourdough bakery are now offering baking courses to teach some of their tricks. Even better they’ve just launched a plant based baking course. Learn how to master a wonderfully chewy chai spiced rye loaf and perfect the art of dairy and egg free sea salt and dark chocolate cookies. A plant based dinner and drinks are also provided. Tickets at £86.83

Counter Culture X Alter

Between the 7th January - 28th March Robin Gill (The Dairy), founder of Counter Culture and Andy Hogben of Alter come together for Counter Culture’s first all-vegan takeover. With a focus on small plates and a nightly changing vegan menu, dishes will celebrate seasonal ingredients and pan-asian and thai inspired flavour. Expect bold, bright beautiful food. Andy will also be cooking Sunday night feasts with chefs from Root and Som Saa. Bookings and more info here.

Zero waste dishes at LINO

LINO have launched a new plant-based menu just in time for Veganuary. Dishes have thoughtful approach upholding their ethos of re-loving, re-using and re-purposing otherwise unwanted produce. Enjoy plates such as Tempura broccoli stems, vegan mayo, ‘Wonky’ butternut squash noodles, seaweed broth, seasonal greens and cashew and iced cashew parfait with apple jam and blackberry.

Poké with a conscience

In celebration of Veganuary, poké experts Island Poké have launched a fully vegan breakfast menu at their Southbank site. Pick and choose how you fill one of their signature biodegradable bowls with porridge, yoghurt, Açai and fresh fruit. From 13th - 18th January, they are also teaming up with charity Magic Breakfast to donate proceeds from the new breakfast menu to support the provision of up to 1,000 healthy breakfasts to children in schools in disadvantaged areas of London and the UK. Island Poké.

Bitter chocolate sorbetti at Gelupo

Dairy free ice cream can often be a far cry from joy but by some magic chocolate sorbet is no short of a lick of heaven. Jacob Kennedy’s ice cream parlour Gelupo uses traditional Italian techniques to whip us fresh gelato daily. A scoop of their bitter chocolate sorbet is my favourite frozen treat in London and the good news is that it is on the menu all year round. You’ll usually find one or two other vegan options too such as coconut, raspberry and mulled wine. Gelupo.