Carnevale

Excellent meal. The vegan sausage was only sausage in shape. The ingredients are some kind of state secret. The one star downgrade was because the waitress didn’t have a clue about how the food is prepared.

I was delighted once again to have a fresh, delicious, vegan meal in London. Priced were very steep and the staff was not very pleasant for someone just walking in off the street, but they accommodated.

I was a vegetarian and pescatorian for nearly 8 years. This was one of my favourite restaurants in London when I had lived there from 2005 – 2010. The owner and staff were always extremely friendly, and this was my little safehaven in London which I used to go to after work at night for takeaway.
In 2009 I started eating meat again, but I never stopped eating at this place, because it’s truly one of the best restaurants in London, whether you’re a vegetarian or not. The ambiance and atmosphere feels like you’re in some secret garden, hidden away from all the chaos of the city.
In 2010 I took my sister here, and she said it was one of the best Italian-​Mediterranean meals she has ever eaten. Quite a statement considering she’s a real foodie and has been to hundreds if not thousands of different restaurants in Italy among other places.
If you don’t have the time or a date to eat at this quaint restaurant, I would highly suggest getting takeaway. This is what I did at least once or twice a week for five years (yes the food was that good). The takeaway was about half the price of eating in, although you only got the special of the day, which changed often.
The halloumi egg piadine is to die for, as is the risotto and pretty much everything they serve. The sandwiches they make at lunch are awesome such as the eggplant and mozzarella and the brownies and drinks are really good too.
This is one of the places I miss the most in London. I still crave that Halloumi and Egg sandwich almost on a daily basis, I hope I get to eat it again some day.

I love vegetarian restaurants — and love upscale ones even more.
This is a lame addition to the upscale vegetarian category.
Vegetarian cooking is British cooking taken to the highest level.
Good ingredients — Simply but Expertly Prepared.
Good ingredients are critical and flavor retention in the kitchen is life and death.
We did a mixed vegetable soup. (Fancy name — Tuscan soup .
Simpler reality — vegetables boiled in a stock and then pureed.)
Done right — this is one of the staples of vegetarian comfort food — and places like Planet Organic do terrific versions of the dish.
The Carnevale version was tasteless brown stuff with orange flecks.
A plate of artichokes
(not a fancy one drowning in flavored bread stuffing.
The pure up and simple — here is your artichoke — buy a good one and cook it to keep the taste.)
The artichokes came out small and tasteless.
Admittedly artichokes were not in season when I ate here …
but if this is the case — why are they on the menu?
Manchego with quince and biscuits were lovely — but then the kitchen did nothing here.
But at least they bought good cheese, quince and biscuits.
The room itself shows the same sloppiness of execution that is shown in the cooking.
On the night we were there one fluorescent like fixture was broken with the bulb stinking out of the fixture at a 30 degree angle. Packages of napkins were piled up in the dining room for storage as if we were eating in a cleaning goods closet.
Yes the place is small and storage is at a premium. But even if one must store goods in the dining room — can’t one at least cover it up so it doesn’t look like your paper depository?
Add to this that the place charges Barbican Banker prices.
If I am paying this much for vegetables, please buy good ones — and actually take some care in their preparation — rather than just blasting them through and covering up the results with sauce.

As a lifetime steak enthusiast it has taken me many years to reconcile with the idea of going to a vegetarian restaurant, and on the various occasions I have done it’s usually worked out pretty well, although with the thought, «Perhaps there’s still time to grab a burger on the way home» making its presence felt.
Carnevale on Whitecross Street is a different kettle of mung beans entirely.
Everything on the menu sounds tantalising, but without the normal sense of «ah, that’s a dish that normally has meat in it». The starters we had of Goats Cheese Parcels served with Orange and Almond Salad, and Pumpkin Gnocchi with Spinach in Roasted Garlic Cream were nothing short of spectacular, and the portions were just enough that you didn’t feel underserved or overstuffed.
The décor’s not going to win any awards, but the place displays no pretensions of any sort — it seems that the business of Carnevale is purely serving up amazing food. When we asked the host how long the restaurant had been open, he said «About 15 years», so clearly it’s an approach that works.
Sipping our very tasty Chianti & chatting away in the homey low-​key environment, I was delighted when my main course of Chickpea, lentil & spinach curry arrived, which comes served with halloumi & fig kebabs topped with a yogurt & mint dressing. WOW. I love halloumi, and I’ve had some really nice bits of it in the past. I’ve no idea what these people did to this halloumi, but it was the best I’ve ever had. In fact the whole dish was so spectacular that I had the same thing the next time we went back there.
It was so good it almost seemed a pity to dismiss the sumptuous aftertaste with the first mouthful of crème brûlée. Almost…

Pint sized vegetarian restaurant that serves up the goods!
Carnevale has a deli area out front, and a small but very adequate restaurant space out back. Tip: if you get there early enough you can sit at one of the tables at the very back in the sun room.
The menu features a solid selection of dishes and a good variety of drinks including wine, beer, and aperitifs. On our visit we eagerly tucked into the goat cheese and pumpkin ravioli (love the seasoned lentils!), and rice stuffed red pepper. Both dishes were wonderful and were readily scoffed by our toddler, who has previously repeatedly rejected rice…
My only disappointment was that I was too full for dessert! Oh, well, next time :)
Child friendly note: great food, but no high chair or baby change available.

This place is wonderful — I thought I’d already found every last vegetarian eaterie in town until I had a meeting in Barbican and discovered Carnevale lurking down a back street.
The restaurant itself is small and cosy, but there’s a lovely little covered courtyard at the back where you can sit come rain or shine. The food is imaginative, tasty and great value for money, and they have some pretty decent organic wines here, too. Will definitely be going back for more!

I love this tiny little vegetarian restaurant tucked away on Whitecross Street. It comes a close second after Rasa for my favourite veggie restaurant in London. But they definitely do the best salad boxes in town.
I always pop in for a takeaway lunch if I’m in the area. Try their homemade lemonade if it’s available. Their soups are good too and the sandwiches come in an imaginative variety of fillings and a choice of bread. But the salad boxes are my fave.
If you go in the evening, try to take advantage of the early evening menu set menu it’s much more affordable than the a la carte. They have a lovely English white wine on their wine list too.
It’s very handy for the Barbican, so it’s easy to combine a meal at Carnevale with a concert/​film there.

I have been going to this place for a few years now and it never disappoints. I am not veggie myself, but food here is very tasty. This is as far away from stodgy veggie food you can get. Changing menu, which always offers new flavours and ingredients I hadn’t come across. No music and nice atmosphere

If you’re a vegetarian, then this is THE place for you! Even if you’re not, it’s worth a trip. The restaurant itself is charming to say the least, and it’s difficult to describe why, except that there’s seating outside for about 4 people in a tiny little patio garden.
The food is ‘absolutely fabulous’ darling, with a wide range and seasoned to a tee. Having spent many a lunch here I can happily say that I never had an even close to bad experience.
The staff are friendly too, and it’s licenced which is always important!
And girls, the desserts are literally to die for!