London's best vegetarian dishes

Frankie McCoy and Susannah Butter pick where to veg out and what to order
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Watch out vegetarians, carnivores are encroaching on your territory. Across London, those in the know are passing up burgers for roast cauliflower and corn fritters — dishes that were once the preserve of those with exclusively leaf and grain-based diets.

The boring mixed-leaf salad is (thankfully) long gone, and in its place are swaths of specialist vegetarian dishes from restaurants determined that meat-free doesn't have to be flavour free.

The gallery above details the best of what London's vibrant veggie scene has to offer: no longer need you resort to mushroom risotto. There wasn't room to include all our favourites, though, so have a read below for some alternatives:

Tiny Leaf: Rice cake and kimchi

One place you’re not going to have #meatenvy is at “London’s first and only organic, zero waste, vegetarian restaurant”: kale is the order of the day. It’s everywhere including in the rice cakes and kimchi, served with a jazzy tomato chilli sambal to spruce up the green.

Info: £12, tinyleaflondon.com

Black Axe Mangal: Falafel kebab

Ordering falafel in famous vegetarian Jeremy Corbyn’s consituency is a safe bet and the chickpea and broad bean balls here are brillaint. They come in homemade flatbread, with plenty of tarragon. This might officially be a kebab shop but it’s worth coming just for former St John chef Lee Tiernan’s vegetarian flatbreads — he does incredible things with pumpkins.

Info: £10, blackaxemangal.com

Brunswick House: Rye & Walnut porridge with artichoke, cauliflower and egg yolk

An event porridge featuring delicate slices of spiced cauliflower with a cheery egg yolk in the middle and cheese that has been blowtorched to the perfect ooziness.

Info: £14.60, brunswickhouse.co

The best restaurants for vegetarians in London

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Nanban: Mojiko Yaki-Curry

At his Brixton restaurant, Masterchef winner Tim Anderson makes a mean vegetable curry with melted cheese, onsen egg, pickled ginger, and crispy shallots. If it’s good enough for Gregg Wallace, it’s worth a try.

Info: £9, nanban.co.uk

Pharmacy 2: Brik à l’oeuf de carnard

It’s an egg pie. Except it’s from a restaurant attached to Damien Hirst’s gallery, so there’s a twist: duck egg is wrapped into filo pastry, then fried into what the Standard’s critic Fay Maschler called a “frangible golden envelope”, enlivened by a punchy rose harissa.

The best restaurants for healthy eating in London

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Tonkotsu: Shimeji, Shiitake & Miso Ramen

Tonkotsu has spread its noodley tendrils all over London — the latest in Notting Hill. Its hearty veggie-friendly ramen is better than anything else on the menu: miso-based, konbu and shiitake stock with shimeji mushrooms, noodles, bean sprouts, bamboo shoots and half a seasoned, soft-boiled egg.

Info: £9, tonkotsu.co.uk

Lucky Chip Burgers and Wine Woody Harrelson

He might have won PETA’s Sexiest Vegetarian award in 2012, but that’s nothing compared to having a Lucky Chip burger named after you. This is a belter: Portobello mushroom, aubergine, roasted pepper, cheddar, ginger sweet chilli and aioli. Who needs meat juice when you have red wine?

Info: £7.50, luckychip.co.uk

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