Vanilla Black

This isn’t a great *vegetarian* restaurant. It’s one of the best restaurants I’ve eaten at… Ever… (And I’m not a vegetarian).
We’re talking flavour combinations that shouldn’t be possible — but taste delicious. Textures, temperatures, colours that are perfectly combined to have you perplexing over ever mouthful trying to work out what is going on on your tongue.
One desert we shared paired espresso, sweet potato and blue cheese — separately these elements belong more on a savoury plate than a pudding but combined together… they rewrite the rule book for what does and doesn’t make a desert.
I’ve eaten here twice and it one of my favourite places in London for a more special dinner.
Go for three courses, they’re all pretty light and both starters and deserts are equally incredible.

Yes Yes Yes.
Michelin star AND vegetarian!!!
I only found out about this place thanks to fabulous friends who treated me to a fantastic birthday dinner here.
Right, let’s go: Ambiance: Hotxon Hotel meets Pennsylvania Shaker.
Food: You could say it’s a bit poncey but I like that. Very creatively designed dishes. All were served in good sized portions. I had a starter of grapefruit gel with some sort of lovely foam — it was a perfect, exotic tasting palate cleanser.
Next up, Butternut squash soup which was utterly sublime. A friend had the beetroot with soya curd and pineapple — great textures and tastes.
Seaweed and samphire potatoes: delicious, deep flavours. The beetroot and artichoke main simply swam head and shoulders about so many other similar main dishes I’ve had.
Service: Very good. I was treated to a lovely sweet and fruity happy birthday dessert dish, and was sung to by the staff.
So many times vegetarian places get short shrift. I beg you, all vegans (particularly) and vegetarians… swim on by and dip yourself into the delicious lake of unique and meat free food on offer here.

Outstanding!
What a treat for vegetarians — all the dishes are inventive, beautiful and full of flavour.
I especially liked the started of Grilled Carrot Cake with Sheeps Yoghurt, Ginger Carrots and Orange Oil and the main of seared Seaweed and Cabbage with Pickled Potatoes, Soda Bread Sauce, Pickled Mustard Seeds and Foraged Seaside Vegetables
The desert was divine too — milk chocolate mouse with lime mirangue and bees pollen. YUM is all I can say

As a vegetarian foodie, I love the new movement of vegetarian fine dining (have been to Achatz’s Next Vegan & Vedge in Philadelphia). Vanilla Black didn’t disappoint — with a mix of bright flavors with a dash of molecular gastronomy. It was as interesting as it was delicious. I would happily go back.

This is an outstanding vegetarian restaurant, proof that vegetarian food can be very creative, tasty and upscale.
The location of the restaurant is odd and it took a little bit of effort to find it. The restaurant itself is quite understated and I wish there were just a little bit more character. However, what the restaurant lacks in charm, it more than makes up with delicious food.
For starter, I had the Brie Ice Cream and Poached Blackberries. It was simply amazing! Needless to say the ice cream form brie brought a cool surprise and a different type of creamy texture than what you are used to when eating brie. I could eat this starter everyday!
For main, I had the Roast Salsify, Jerusalem Artichokes and Iced Verbena. It was not only delicious, but satisfying.
And for dessert, it was Milk Chocolate and Walnut Oil Pâté with Avocado Ice Cream for me. I liked it overall, but I thought I’d love the avocado ice cream, but it didn’t have as strong of a flavor as I had hoped for.
The plating of each dish was beautiful and I really appreciate the effort. For such a wonderful 3-​course meal, it was only 39.5 pounds, which was a bargain. They also have vegan options. Even if you are not a vegetarian, this restaurant is worthy of a visit, because the food is simply good.

Very impressive vegetarian restaurant down a bizarre little back alley in the heart of London (think Diagon Alley in Harry Potter).
The service and ambience is very pleasant. Definitely 5 star.
The food is very good, and, well, special to the point of being contrived. Not just posh, but poncey. So, I had roasted salsify, jerusalem artichokes and iced verbena. No real problem except that the salsify was liquidised to a green sauce, which didn’t taste much of salsify to be honest. The iced verbena was frankly unnecessary.
Don’t get me wrong. This was impressive and very pleasant, but it felt a bit like it was trying too hard. Maybe it’s because I’m a Northerner, and not a native Londoner. The other thing is that it’s £30 for two courses, which feels a bit steep. So 4 stars for me.
See what you think.

Very experimental menu in a modestly experimentally decorated venue. Four of us went and had the set menu (which seems to be the only option at dinner), and played pass-​the-​plate to try All Of The Things.
The service was excellent, the food extraordinary (brie ice cream, as mentioned by another reviewer, was quite divisive in my group — I loved it though), and the ambiance pleasant. Ask what you’re getting yourself in for with each dish, as it’s unlikely you’ll have heard of everything being served. Make no mistake, this definitely isn’t a problem!
Pros: good quality, interesting (no pasta or rice-​based dishes!), filling. Cons: very LLP prices.
Definitely one to experience and go back to in a different season, but not a weekly habit (unless you have a deep expenses account).

A great experimentation of flavors from nature’s laboratory. The starters and mains are unique combos so if you’re looking for vegetarian dining «experience» I would highly recommend.

London has not let us down on the vegetarian restaurants! The service and creative dishes are fantastic. The atmosphere lends to a relaxed culinary experience to remember. The simple wine list makes for easy selections.

A vegetarian restaurant? Really? The last time I was forced into such a place was in New York where I ended up eating «nut cheese», which is actually even slightly less delicious than it sounds.
None of that nonsense here — I was blown away by the food. I had what was basically mashed potato to start with, but it had cheese, caramelized onions and garlic micro leaves in it and was bowl lickingly lovely. My friends had the carrot cake with yoghurt and ginger, which was probably the most interesting starter I have had in a long time! We also tried the Brie ice cream, that just didn’t do it for me — too sharp for its texture.
We all had the soufflé for the main course, which was actually loads of different things on a plate — including a poached egg. It was delicious and I didn’t miss the meat at all.
Would I go back? Hmmm, it was great to try, but it is expensive and quite frankly, I fancy a big juicy steak…

I’ve been to Vanilla Black a few years back with a friend and nothing much has changed. The food is great and the service is first class.
We went for the two course option, which costs £28 and a glass of wine each as we like different grapes. I can remember my friends dishes better than mine … I think it’s a form of food envy. I really need to work on that. She had puréed jacked potatoes and I had gears cheese. Both dishes were delicious and rather heavy for a starter. We also got a little extra and fresh bread before that, so we already stuffed our faces at that point! The main for me had cauliflower and more cheese, which was rather fine as well. I know … Most people will now think: «Cauliflower. Really?», but they made it work.

Lunch was a very good deal with the price fixe menu. The food is quite inventive and very tasty. Portions are fine if you appreciate quality more than quantity. The «English food» inspiration is perhaps my least favorite feature of Vanilla Black. But this is my own personal bias against English food in general (i.e. biscuits, pies, fried foods). I should acknowledge, however, that the way they conceive it in Vanilla Black is the single way I could ever enjoy such thing as English food.

I try to live and eat healthy and this is one of my favorite places to do that. The restaurants has big menu, full of delicious, yet healthy dishes. The food is always fresh and the service is excellent. I like it.

When you think of vegetarian restaurants, you usually think of crunchy granola like places and at least for me first heard of a fine dining vegetarian place. I was really impressed when I first walked it as it has a nice, serene feel.
I had the whipped jacket potatoes which was delicious. Whipped to perfection and the accompanying tomato syrup complimented it perfectly. For my main, I had the goats cheese and cauliflower mille feuille. It was nice but a bit on the heavy side for me. The cauliflower does help balance out the strong flavor from the goats cheese. We had the smoked paprika fudge and I didn’t enjoy it very much but it was interesting mix of flavors.
When I have a veggie meal, it’s usually quite bland — steamed veggies, lightly seasoned tofu which I really enjoy. Your expectations of vegetarian food will completely change after trying this place.

Great service and food. Really enjoyed dining here.

A very pleasant lunch, nice décor & helpful staff. Inventive cooking, nearly all of which was just right, with only a couple of ‘not for me but great just the same’ combos. Visually stunning food.
Will have to try it a couple more times.
Reasonable wine list and we drank well.

I went here for a work lunch the other day and was really looking forward to it, but I don’t think I’ll return any time soon.
The service was attentive and friendly, and the atmosphere was nice — though a bit on the cold side. The food was very well presented, but I can’t say I was overwhelmed by either flavour or creativity. Ok, but nothing to rave about. Also, after two courses I definitely still felt slightly hungry. Overall, I was slightly disappointed.
I should also add that they have a separate vegan menu, which has a lot fewer options than the vegetarian one. They also clearly label themselves as a vegetarian restaurant, and you should let them know in advance if you’re vegan — and I must say I find it slightly bizarre in itself that they make such a fuss about veganism when in this day and age it really shouldn’t be a big deal to cook delicious, creative vegan food (especially not for a vegetarian restaurant). Why they don’t have vegan options available as part of the standard menu is beyond me, frankly.

The good: I found the ambiance to be elegant, simple, and comfortable. The food was innovatively designed and plated. It was lovely to eat in a restaurant that treats vegetarian cuisine as a worthy culinary experience on its own. My potato cake appetizer was smokey and delicious while my main of goat cheese and toasted cauliflower had delicate flavors that complimented nicely. I think the highlight of the meal was my date’s Fried Mushroom Mouse and Pernod pancakes. This dish was spectacular and the fennel was the perfect compliment to the mushroom.
The not so good: Innovation and creativity is great, but sometimes it can result in some odd food. Case in point: Brie icecream appetizer… couldn’t get into that. Also, the service was a bit cold (but maybe because I’m American, I expect more chit chat).
Overall, a lovely evening spent.

This is $$$ food. Rich and expensive.
And obviously they paid someone a lot of money to sit and think hard about how to make dishes pop, visually both on the menu and on the plate, as well as in your mouth.
It was hard to find the place, as it is tucked away on one of those London streets that even black cabs may find hard to reach. Once we were there though, we were given quite the warm welcome. Literally. Our server offered to turn the airconditioner off because she noticed I was cold.
We decided to go with the 3 course menu. The watermelon strawberry shot with the black pepper studded turkish delight as the amuse bouche was quite nice, but I would have liked more heat or acidity in it. It’s fine — can’t complain about free food :)
For the appetizer, I chose the cold poached duck egg simply because I have never eaten it before. It was well, a funny dish. Hard to say that I liked it, but it was surely the most unique egg preparation I have eaten. Served chilled, the yolk was the consistency of lemon curd and the white was a translucent jelly. I did like the touch of mustard oil in the dish.
Let me take a moment here to talk about my husband’s appetizer. The brie ice cream with some hazelnut crumble and some plum chutney. That ice cream, so creamy. That sauce, so tangy, that crumble, so crumbly. Just fabulous. This is the dish I dreamed about creating but never did.
As usual, my husband had better luck with me in the main course, as he greedily lapped up his fried mushroom mousse. Now that’s what you call umami — that mousse was simply perfect in texture and taste. The tarragon waffles, however, I could have done without. My dish was the warm celery panna cotta with the blue cheese profiteroles. Well conceived, but at that point I was just so full from eating all these rich dishes.
That wasn’t going to stop me from ordering dessert though. We shared the caramelised custard (a-​okay) with this beautiful, beautiful, creamy bramble ice cream. I’m not the biggest fan of ice cream in fall but this was dreamy. And creamy.
If I find myself back in London — I think I will surely go back to Vanilla Black for dinner — but I’ll skip lunch and wear my stretchy pants, if they will let me.

…ein vegetarisches Restaurant auf höchstem Niveau.

How much?: £30 for three courses or £24 for two courses
Hidden away on a tiny cobbled street behind Holborn’s bustle, Vanilla Black is a cultish vegetarian oasis more in the mould of laid back Michelin starred food emporia Arbutus than the often holier than thou High Veg of somewhere like Saf. There are no opinions shoved at you, and no ethos that you have to subscribe to, they just want to serve you good ingredients, cooked well, in a calm friendly atmosphere. That those ingredients happen to all be vegetables, seems a coincidence.
This approach is unlike San Francisco’s Ubuntu or New York’s Dirt Candy, two other great, high end, vegetarian experiences this committed carnivore places in his top dining experiences of recent years. Both of them celebrate individual, specific veg in their dishes, with Ubuntu (where all of the food is grown within 20k of the kitchen) offering Cauliflower cooked four ways and a wonderful Carrot Gnocci and Dirt Candy (an all together grittier, East Village experience) presenting Corn, Mushroom and Pumpkin as the stars of their own dishes. I digress.
One chatty server took pity on me while waiting for the Vole (once again…) The friendly staff are a contrast to their severe black uniforms but fit nicely in with the clean grey-​green and white walls. When she finally arrived, we settled down in the quieter front section of the restaurant — the fact that someone called Dharma was enjoying their birthday revels in the rear section was the only hint of hippie that we saw all night — the rest of the clientele were smart, though not overly dressy and given it’s location, there were more than a few suits floating through the celebratory groups.
An amuse of ‘fresh tomato with celery salt’ was as nice a shot of Virgin Mary as I’ve had and a good palate cleanser. If I admit to not being overly impressed with a starter of Sweet & Sour Glazed Beetroot with Wasabi Cream it was only due to a severe food envy. This was suffered from my (single, solitary!) taste of The Vole’s Puy Lentil Dhal braised in red wine and served with a potato purée, curry oil and a crunchy moorish spice mix — one of the best variants on a, quite frankly often plain, dish I’ve tasted.
A perfectly subtle and lovely Ozzie gewurztraminer (from a little boutique producer in Clare Valley called Skillogalee if you’re interested…) perfectly chimed with our mains. It was now The Vole’s turn to suffer food envy. Her Asparagus and Chervil Pesto Crumpet with a leek tagliatelle was perfectly executed but my Ribblesdale cheese pudding was one of the tastiest dishes I’ve eaten this year. It arrived with a side of tart pineapple purée that seemed initially incongruous, but set off the creamy soft set cheese pudding perfectly. A dish of two halves, it came paired with a poached ducks egg sitting resplendent on a stout and expertly prepared smoked potato cake. The two worked together well. Too well for me to let the Vole have more than a morsel.
If the deconstructed carrot cake I had to finish had a flaw, it was only in it’s size. The elements all came together as expected, though the carrot ‘halwa’ was more of a purée.
We were pretty much the last to leave at 10 and while the restaurant had been full during it’s 8pm sitting, I definitely thought they could, and should, have been busier. Every now and then remember that it’s not all about the steak or the burger and give Vanilla Black a go. You won’t miss the meat (for a night anyway).