restaurant review

Las Iguanas Vegan Menu

April 15, 2016Jade Green VeganLeave a comment

Las Iguanas is an awesome chain restaurant that serves deliciously authentic South American food. A friend recently told me about their extensive vegetarian and vegan menu, and after having a read through I knew I had to check it out!

The vegetarian menu has lots of vegan options (marked with a v), as well as dishes that can be made vegan upon request (marked ‘ask for v’); so if you order one of the veggie dishes, be sure to ask for the vegan version.

Our waiter Tony was super friendly and happily chatted us through the veggie menu, as well as letting us know that Las Iguanas currently has an all day, every day happy hour to celebrate their 25th anniversary, which meant 2 for 1 cocktails all night long! As if 2 for 1 cocktails aren’t enough to make for a fun evening, Tony also showed us some pretty cool magic tricks, like how to balance a spoon, fork and toothpick on the tip of another tooth pick stuck in a pepper shaker (wow that was a mouthful!). I won’t show you how it’s done as I don’t want to ruin the magic, but needless to say our attempt wasn’t exactly magical…

STARTERS ▽▼▽▼▽

Matt and I are both big nacho fans, so to start we ordered two of the corn chip side dishes to share – holy guacamole and totopos.

The totopos (aka salsa dip) was delicious but holy guacamole was the guacamole amazing!! It was creamy, flavourful, and tasted amazing alongside some onions, tomato and salsa on a corn chip!

MAINS ▽▼▽▼▽

For main, we were torn between all of the vegan options but finally decided to share the three mushroom fajita and the veggie chilli.

The veggie chilli is made up of sweet potato, butternut squash and chickpeas, and is served with spring onion rice and tortilla wraps. It was absolutely delicious; however, the three mushroom fajita was a definite favourite for both of us! It is cooked with onions and peppers in a delicious sauce that is the perfect amount of spicy and tastes amazing wrapped up in a tortilla with some guacamole and salsa.

DESSERTS ▽▼▽▼▽

Dessert was definitely my favourite part of the meal, as I ordered the tembleque and it was one of the best desserts I’ve ever eaten! The creamy set coconut pudding is topped with mixed berries and a mango purée and tastes heavenly!

Matt ordered the mango sorbet and judging by the fact that there was none left by the end of the meal, I’d say he was a big fan!

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The restaurant’s fun and friendly atmosphere coupled with amazing food and lovely staff meant we had a great evening! I will definitely be heading back soon for some more of that delicious guacamole and one (or maybe two!) of the coconut puddings!

Fortify Café Maidstone

April 9, 2016Jade Green VeganLeave a comment

After finding this list of six great vegan/vegan-friendly restaurants to visit in Kent, I checked out Fortify Café‘s extensive menu and instantly knew we had to check it out!

My mum and I visited the Café for lunch earlier this week and were warmly welcomed by James, the lovely owner, and his friendly staff. The restaurant, situated in Maidstone, has a great, cosy atmosphere and was full of packed full of customers throughout the afternoon – a testament to how delicious the food is!

The entire menu is 100% vegan and is an amazing example of how varied vegan food can be. Whether you fancy a toastie, a kebab, a burger, or a quiche – Fortify Café has got you covered! Needless to say, we were spoiled for choice but eventually managed to decide on what to order and everything was absolutely delicious!

DRINKS ▽▼▽▼▽

My mum ordered a freshly squeezed orange juice which she enjoyed so much that I didn’t even have a chance to snap a picture before it disappeared! I decided to go for a chocolate milkshake, which was creamy and delicious.

MAINS ▽▼▽▼▽

It was so hard to chose between all of the main course options but I finally decided on the falafel burger, whilst my mum went for the frittata. Both dishes were absolutely delicious and were served with huge, refreshing salads – the potato salad in particular was amazing!

DESSERT ▽▼▽▼▽

For dessert we shared the rocky road with vanilla ice-cream, which was honestly the best, creamiest ice-cream I have ever eaten! My mum also took advantage of the huge variety of dairy-free milks on offer and ordered an oat milk latte which she enjoyed very much!

Side note: How cute of an idea is ‘The Happy News’ newspaper?!

My mum and I absolutely loved everything we ate/drank at Fortify Café and fully intend to work our way through the rest of the menu! Thank you so much to James and his lovely team for a delicious meal.

You can also check out my short video about great vegan restaurants to visit in Kent here (featuring Fortify Café and Singh’s):

Singh’s Vegetarian Restaurant Gravesend

April 6, 2016Jade Green VeganLeave a comment

I recently came across this list of six restaurants to get great vegan food in Kent, and one of them was Singh’s Indian Restaurant in Gravesend. As it is located really near my house and has a delicious looking menu, we decided we had to check it out asap!

Singh’s is a 100% vegetarian restaurant, with most items on the menu being vegan or easily veganisable (is that even a word?! If not it should be!). As if that’s not cool enough, the restaurant also offers an entirely vegan buffet every Saturday lunch time.

Last weekend, Matt and I headed to Singh’s for dinner, where we were warmly welcomed by the super friendly staff. They were more than happy to chat us through which menu items were vegan/could be veganised, and also made some excellent dish recommendations!

DRINKS ▽▼▽▼▽

Usually I’m not a big fan of tea; however Jaspreet – the lovely restaurant manager – recommended we try the masala tea with soy milk and I’m so glad we did as it was absolutely delicious! The tea is perfectly creamy and infused with mild spices making it both flavourful and refreshing.

STARTERS ▽▼▽▼▽

To start we ordered the snack platter so we could try out as many of the starters as possible. It includes samosas, a selection of pakoras and delicious potato fritters (both mine and Matt’s favourite) served with a tamarind chutney dip.

MAINS ▽▼▽▼▽

For main, we shared the sag aloo (a spinach and potato dish), veganised malai kofta (veggie dumplings with an onion and tomato curry), plain rice and garlic naan.

When Jaspreet explained that the naan bread was vegan, to say I was excited would be an understatement as naan bread isn’t typically vegan so I haven’t eaten it in a very long time! It definitely lived up to my expectations as it was fluffy, delicious and full of flavour! Matt and I also really enjoyed both of the main dishes, especially the malai kofta. This dumpling curry was unlike anything I’d ever tried before and I will definitely be ordering it next time we visit.

With a friendly atmosphere, lovely staff and absolutely delicious food, Singh’s is definitely somewhere we will be heading back to very often and I highly recommend you all try it out too! Thank you so much to Jaspreet and her wonderful team for a lovely evening.

PS – look out for a vlog of our visit coming to my youtube channel later this week!

Vegan Meatballs at Ikea

March 15, 2016Jade Green VeganLeave a comment

As a big Ikea fan, I was extremely excited to hear on the Peta blog that Ikea are now offering a vegan alternative to their traditional meatballs!

When we visited the Lakeside store last week to pick up my new desk (which btw I absolutely love), we headed straight to the canteen to check the veggie balls out.

I ordered the Veggie balls and warm summer salad, and at only £3.50 I was very impressed!!

So, next time you’re in the mood to shop for some flat packed furniture, be sure to head to the canteen and grab yourself a portion of delicious veggie balls!

Funky Pies | Bondi Beach

October 30, 2015Jade Green Vegan2 Comments

Hey guys!

I’m coming at you today with my first (of many) travel posts from Australia. To start off this travel series, I wanted to share with you one of my favourite places that we’ve eaten at on this trip:

▹▸▹▸ FUNKY PIES AT BONDI BEACH

This cute little café is just a short walk from the beach front and serves 100% plant-based pies that are 100% delicious! The pies can be served with mash potato, peas and gravy or a healthier alternative of side salad.

Matt and I both opted for the Funky Chunky pie which is made of shiitake mushroom chunks in a rich gravy with a touch of creamy mash, and of course, we opted for more creamy mash, peas and gravy on the side. We both agreed that the meal was absolutely delicious, so delicious in fact that we decided to go back to Funky Pies for round 2 at dinner time (where Matt ordered not one but two pies #bigfan)!!

For dessert, we shared a slice of mint chocolate cake and a caramel slice that were both deliciously sweet and the perfect way to finish off an incredible lunch.

Funky Pies is by far my favourite restaurant that we visited in Sydney, not only because of the amazing food but also due to the friendly and helpful staff and the cool vibe of the café itself. If you’re planning on visiting Bondi Beach soon and you love eating wholesome, delicious food, visiting Funky Pies is a must!

I filmed a little vlog of our day in Bondi Beach and our meal at Funky Pies, you can check that out here:

FED by water review

September 30, 2015Jade Green Vegan6 Comments

Ever since we got back from New York & Las Vegas where we had some incredible vegan pizzas, Matt and I have been on the hunt for a reeeally good vegan pizza restaurant. When Matt heard that FED by water serves ‘the best vegan pizza in London’, we knew we had to check it out.

FED is a cool little restaurant in Dalston that offers both vegan and non-vegan Italian cuisine, making it the perfect place to hang out with non-vegan friends/family. I love that this concept restaurant also aims to spread awareness about the nutritional importance of pure water because who doesn’t love chilled, clean water and all of the amazing things drinking it in abundance can do for our bodies?!

Now, onto the mouth-watering food…

▹▸▹▸ PIZZAS

I ordered a vegan cheese margherita with portobello mushrooms and red onions, whilst Matt ordered the ‘Silly’, a vegan cheese pizza topped with broccoli and soya sausage. We both agreed that the toppings and cheese were incredible and the crust was perfectly crispy.

▹▸▹▸ DESSERT

We managed to save a little bit of room for dessert and shared the chocolate mousse which was rich, creamy and just generally delicious!

We both really enjoyed the whole meal so next time we’re on that side of London, I’m sure we’ll be heading back to FED.

Manna restaurant review

September 15, 2015Jade Green Vegan1 Comment

I know I’m ridiculously late with this post, like over a month late, but there has been so much going on and it wasn’t until I was looking through photos on my phone the other day that I realised I still hadn’t told you guys about the insanely good birthday dinner Matt treated me to at Manna!

Manna is a beautifully elegant restaurant in Primrose Hill that offers a 100% vegan menu. How incredible is that?! As it was a birthday dinner, we decided to go all out and order starters, mains and desserts, and every single course was delicious.

Apologies in advance for the poor quality photos, Manna had some major mood lighting going on!

▹▸▹▸ STARTERS

The falafel slider starter was one of the best burgers I’ve ever had; it was so good that I could have eaten 3 or 4 okay 5 of these burgers for a main course! The burger was delicious and perfectly complemented by all of the toppings and the wholemeal bun. Matt was also obsessed with fluffy yet crispy potato wedges it was served with!

▹▸▹▸ MAINS

For main course, I ordered the spaghetti and veatballs and it was delicious! The spaghetti was cooked to perfection whilst the tomato sauce and veatballs were incredibly flavoursome.

Matt ordered the bangers and mash and judging by his entirely empty plate at the end of the meal, I’d say it was a big hit!

▹▸▹▸ DESSERT

Whilst the starters and mains were both delicious, the highlight of the meal was hands down the birthday cake dessert. The vice cream & cookie semi-freddo was honestly the best dessert I have ever eaten. EVER! We’re talking crumbly cookie dough filled with layers of ice cream topped with berries – OH MY GOSH! It was absolutely insane.

I can’t wait for our next trip to Manna, mainly but not exclusively so that I can order a vice cream & cookie semi-freddo all to myself!

Tibits vegetarian and vegan buffet, London

August 10, 2015Jade Green Vegan1 Comment

I absolutely love sharing all of my favourite places to eat out with you guys, as whenever I’m looking for a cool new place to eat out, I always check other bloggers recommendations. As well as reading a menu on line, I find it’s also so helpful to hear which places other people love and for what reasons! So, today I am gonna share with you guys one of my favourite places to eat in London ▷►▹▸

Tibits Veggie/Vegan buffet located just off of Regent Street

Ever since we discovered Tibits around 6 months ago, it has become mine and my BFF Alfia’s go to place to hang out and eat at after work. All of the food is veggie, most of it is vegan, and everything I’ve tried so far is delicious.

Tibits operates a pay by weight system, meaning that if you’re a big carb lover like Alfia and me, it can end up being fairly expensive but in my opinion, totally worth it!

Not only is the food delicious (the okra in breadcrumbs are my fave and we both love and tofu & sundried tomato pasta) but the atmosphere is also super chilled making it a really fun place to hang out. The outdoor seating area is surrounded by fairy lights which look SO pretty on a warm summer evening; whilst inside, the dimmed lighting and modern decor makes for a super cosy atmosphere.

For desert, we always share the lemon cake. And when I say share, I mean Alfia says she’s full but starts eyeing up my cake as soon as it arrives and inevitably ends up eating half of it, so now I always ask for two forks whether Alfia admits she’s gonna make room for some cake or not ;).

If you love great food and a cool atmosphere, I would definitely recommend checking out Tibits, it is one major party in your mouth!