The Veggie

We love this place fact it is the reason that we go to Ilkley. The food is wonderful and beautifully presented. The food is innovative, incredibly tasty and really healthy. It is delightful to go to the Veggie in the knowledge that you will be well fed and thank yourself for eating so well and healthily.

My first encounter with this vegetarian café was whilst sitting in a traffic jam on a sunny afternoon, the window wide open and the car stopped right outside the café. As we were in Ilkley we decided to sing the old folk song ‘On Ilkley moor bar tat’ and a Yorkshire family (mostly a loud old lady) joined in with the verses we didn’t quite remember! We had a nice chat about how good her food was and I had a long time to get a good look of the café inside. I decided to come back and try it out for myself on a later date and I’m very glad I did too. Vegetarian food, especially in this instance, is so much more imaginative than the meat-​based meal. Where else could you find koftas with almond and tomato sauce? Or celeriac, split pea and thyme soup? All the food is fresh and organic and you can certainly taste the difference.
There are also vegan options and I noticed one of the deserts is gluten free! On Friday nights they have a special menu where you can get 2 courses for £15 and bring your own wine. There is a selection of organic and fair trade things for sale such as tea and chocolates. By YUM! This is by far the cutest café in Ilkley.

This body of mine is fast falling apart. I’m in need of an MOT and some wholesome living. I’m thinking five hours at the gym is unlikely so it is time for some cleansing inside out. On colonic irrigation for me, it’s a stop at the Veggie.
Now I know the name kind of gives this away but it’s a vegetarian café. I know what a shocker. That doesn’t mean meat eaters will be shot on entrance. Well not on my visit anyway. What you’ll find is really tasty food and no Swampy in sight.
If you want a lunch time snack then no problem. Personally I’d go for the tapas though. It is a selection of home made dips served with a warm pita and various salads. Delicious. You can also get vegan food and the hummus is excellent. To wash it down the freshly extracted juices are beautiful and I’m already feeling like a new woman.
It’s also the place to go for a Sunday breakfast to fight away any hangover. Check out the full veggie English for size. It is stuff of legends. You’ll get two vegetarian sausages, fried egg, tomato, mushrooms, vegetarian black pudding, baked beans and two slices of buttered wholemeal toast served with freshly brewed filter coffee or tea. Wow. Now if that doesn’t cure you, nothing will.
On Friday nights they also open so if you fancy a tangy curry or something a little bit different then it is the place to go.
Great find this and not a dead cow in sight.

I am a bit of a meat lover. In fact, I think every meal I have involves meat in some form, so when I saw the words ‘organic vegetarian café’ on the side of this place last time I was in Ilkley I wasn’t initially drawn to it.
But I thought I should broaden my horizons and stepped on to the meat-​free premises to get something to take out. You can take out or eat in at the Veggie, and, seeing how nice it looked inside, I almost wished I’d eaten in.
Make no mistake, it’s a café, but the classiness of the interior makes it almost feel like a restaurant. The food wasn’t quite as good as the place that served it, but that’s probably ’cause there wasn’t any meat involved. The cheddar and pickle sarnie I had was OK, but it was really crying out for a slice of ham… and because of the location and the use of fairtrade products, it’s all rather overpriced.