Ashtead, Vegetarian Restaurant Guide

“Wonderful fine dining but with the feel of a small local eatery” is both the blessing and the challenge for this Chiswick destination which is “trying very hard to be great, succeeding, and so much better than the location makes you think”. Chef Nathan Cornwell was recruited in 2023 to up the ante here, and his “carefully thought-out” cuisine is “just getting better and better”: it’s a serious rival to nearby Trompette in terms of its “exceptional” quality, with “a fabulous tasting menu which gets it just right and doesn’t overwhelm you”. But while its reputation is generating ever-more feedback in our poll as a “classy” and also a “romantic” destination, it is ever-so slightly constrained by its (albeit posh) “caff-like” premises on the High Street, with the least kind view that you are “crammed in, while the waiters try to deliver to you a fine-dining experience”.

If you’re veggie, impecunious or both, this sweet, bargain-basement café of over twenty years’ standing is worth discovering, despite its trafficky location (by the gyratory where the Lillie Road and North End Road cross one another): all dishes are 100% vegan and clearly labelled for allergens too.

“A real treat for vegetarians”, this Hammersmith institution was “opened by Michael and Adrian Daniel in 1989 and has been at the top of its game for years” – “many’s the friend brought along here who hasn’t noticed there’s no meat on the menu, and that’s because the food is good, well cooked, and interesting”. (An intriguing space in the eves of a church – “the dining room is housed in what was the studio of artist Frank Brangwyn, and the name comes from the wrought-iron gate he made for the entrance”). Top Menu Tip – “lean into the mushroom dishes in autumn”… “leek and trompette tart with shortcrust pastry is simply delicious”.

If you’re looking for a “good pitstop in the West End”, this trio (also with an offshoot in Hammersmith) offers “tasty vegan and veggie Indian food” at “very reasonable prices” – nothing fancy, but “good basic cooking” of “South Indian staples”. Pickier diners can feel that some sauces are “rather watery”, or that the filling food can come “with no stand-out flavours”. Practically all agree, however, that “a great Masala Dosa and beer makes a very affordable meal in Central London”. Top Tip – “good choice to take a crowd: they’re not fazed by large tables”.

For many local curryphiles, this inconspicuous and anodyne-looking Hammersmith Keralan is “still a favourite Indian”, with plenty of “very tasty” fish and vegetarian dishes on its “excellent value” menu. The masala dosa is highly recommended.

A “very impressive all-plant-based menu” explains why this fashionable veggie pair in Chelsea and Marylebone are “always a bit too crowded and noisy” for some reporters. Their signature vegan burgers and mac’n’cheese make it “easy to forget the absence of meat”.

“This old favourite” serving South Indian food “remains a pleasure” and remains a model of consistency under founder Claire Fisher, as it has been for more than 20 years. Top Menu Tips – “the homemade paratha is heaven on a plate and the spinach dal the stuff of dreams”.

“Authentic dosas”, idlis, vadas and uttapams are on the menu at this “welcoming” three-year-old South Indian vegetarian restaurant with a “lovely local feel and super food”. A spin-off branch opened in Milton Keynes branch in late 2025.

This highly rated curry house just north of Richmond town centre (on the way to Kew), from Goa-born chef Sunil D’Souza (ex-Trishna and Kutir), is notable for its range of classic and more unusual dishes, and a particularly “good choice of vegan and vegetarian options”. Top Menu Tip – try the super-hot ‘Sexy Chicken’ starter (move over, Richard Caring).

“As falafel goes, this is probably the best I’ve ever tasted!” – This Palestinian-run café “at the edge of Shepherd’s Bush Market doesn’t look special, but the falafel and all the trimmings is a very tasty snack” and you can order it in the style of any Arab World country. “The flow of customers shows that I’m not alone in relishing a hearty lunch at a very reasonable price!”

“Flavoursome and well-executed vegetarian Sri Lankan cuisine” is the draw to this East Dulwich two-year-old: a sweet, simple neighbourhood café, where “thali-style eating allows you to taste a good variety of the food – including different curries or sambals – washed down with innovative cocktails and pleasing desserts”.

“Very clever cooking – far more satisfying than a carnivore might expect” – is the reason for the ongoing success of this vegetarian group, founded in Soho almost 40 years ago and expanded into a modern chain over the last ten years. “Is it vegan? Yes”, fully plant-based since 2001. “Do you have to be vegan to enjoy it? No” – “the quality and intensity of the flavours” wins over many omnivores, while “the extremely friendly service and full-to-the-gills interior creates an ambience that is conducive to enjoyment”.

“So delicious, meat is not missed” – this ‘vegetable forward’ yearling on Notting Hill’s Portobello Road inspires nothing but praise for ‘unfailingly good food that’s so healthy’. Indeed, owners Irina Linovich and ACME Fire Cult’s Daniel Watkins have already lined up site No. 2 with a late 2025 opening in Old Spitalfields Market. In both spots seasonal produce is cooked over fire with fermentation to boost flavour and ‘celebrate vegetables in unique and innovative ways’.