Happy Monday…and good morning if you’re on this side of the world! Since I’ve arrived in London, it’s been one big food fest – I mean, what better way to catch up with friends/family than over good food! I’ve felt so overwhelmed (in a good way) by the increasing amount of restaurant choices and quality of food over here – you can literally taste the freshness of the ingredients. Although I had a different post planned for today, I just had to share some of my weekend eats in London:
1) Lunch at Le Pain Quotidien: Despite being a Belgian-based chain restaurant, LPQ’s menu continues to amaze me- I love their focus on seasonal, fresh ingredients. Although vegetarian options tend to be quite limited in most restaurants, the number of vegan options on LPQ’s menu is MASSIVE- you can only imagine what a dilemma ordering turns into! Luckily my fellow lunchers were on the same wavelength as me, so we ordered a bunch of stuff to share including:
Organic Hummus Menage A Trois: Sweet potato, beetroot and chickpea hummus; served with vegetable crudités
Avocado Toast: Mashed avocado, super seeds, citrus cumin salt, lemon juice and olive oil
Savory Quinoa Cake – unpictured
Chilli Sin Carne: Organic three bean chilli with fresh guacamole, soya sour cream, diced tomatoes and spring onions
As much as I enjoyed all of the dishes above, the avocado toast was my favorite- typical!
2) Dinner at Tombo: If there’s one cuisine I could eat daily, that would be Japanese. Beyond the usual sushi/sashimi duo, I’m a sucker for just about anything glazed in miso or teriyaki sauce. After walking around South Kensington for ages, a friend & I came across this hidden gem on Thurloe Place. Aside from the authentic Japanese vibe, I was blown away by Tombo’s focus on quality ingredients & healthy options. Rather than the usual white rice, mains were served with a blend of multigrain rice, amaranth, quinoa & millet and for those who are following a low-carb diet, no-carb bento boxes are an option too. As the night was pretty chilly, I vetoed sushi & opted for a warmer & more comforting dish:
Miso soup & Seaweed Salad of the Day to start
Followed by the Miso Salmon Donburi Bowl
Even though it’s located slightly out of the way for me, I am almost certain I’ll be back sooner rather than later.
And finally:
3) Brunch at Bill’s: I might be biased because a branch recently opened opposite from my building but this place is my JAM! I lunched there last Wednesday, brunched there on Saturday and will be breaking the fast at Bill’s tomorrow – it’s safe to say that I will be besties with the waiter at Bill’s by the end of my meal tomorrow.
Wednesday’s lunch resembled my ideal meal when I want the deliciousness of a burger without feeling weighed down post-consumption i.e. their Naked Burger: Our usual burger but no bun and a large mixed salad and tzatziki.
*I asked for guac instead of the tzatziki to keep it dairy-free. Obviously copious amounts of ketchup & mustard were added in post-photo ;)!
At brunch on Saturday, I ordered all my favorites on one plate a.k.a Bill’s Vegetarian Breakfast: Poached free range eggs, tomatoes, hummus, mushrooms & guacamole, sweet chilli sauce, basil & granary toast
Breakfast tomorrow will definitely be a repeat!
Good food needs to be shared- tell me what the best thing you ate this weekend…
Yummmm that avocado toast sounds so good! And so does the three bean chili!
Both tasted fabulous!!
Oh dear!!! I thought I reading your post after breakfast would keep my stomach from grumbling – but boyoboy was I wrong! I wouldn’t mind sharing in that Menage A Trois – and that Chilli Sin Carne is aptly named! This weekend I ran around so much – and don’t remember much of my eats – but yesterday’s hodgepodge at my mom’s was the most memorable! I made some seared scallops and we had those with a kale and cauli salad my mom made and some harissa sardines and horseradish hummus with GF Chips! YUM!
Mmm your eats at your mom’s place sound fabulous- love me some scallops!
LOVE the avocado toasts at LPQ! I’ll be heading to London at the end of the month so def. bookmarking your list of restaurants!
And the best thing I ate this weekend was my friend’s mom’s dosas. They hit the spot and then some!
NO WAY- let me know your dates…I’m here till end July so we must meet up 🙂
OMG I love PDQ and Bill’s! I’m dying to check out Granger and Co before I leave. It’s in Clerkenwell and is the fancier sister restaurant to Bill’s. Their pancakes look to die for! Keep these posts coming before I move haha
OMG even me- I tried going on Sunday but the queue was so freakin’ long!
I went to LPQ when I was in London the other week – we only went to a coffee but the menu looked fantastic! I was so excited to find somewhere that served almond milk so went for an almond milk mocha – it was amazing!!!
Ooh wow I must try their almond milk mocha next time!
your post is making me hungry..i did not know LPQ was based in Belgium, I love their decor when i was in NY this past Xmas.
It’s too fabulous- is there a branch in Houston?
That avocado toast looks delicious and Bill’s. Oh Bill’s. We waited 2 hours for the Sydney one and it wasn’t even that good! Yours however, looks delicious!
Ah I can only imagine what Bill’s in Australia would taste like – yum!
Man I wish I had gone to all of these places when I was in London! Guess that means I just need to go back sometime. 😉
Best thing I ate this weekend was coconut butter granola I made from the blog How Sweet It Is. So delicious!
Mmm that granola sounds delicious- I’ll have to google it!
You’ve basically just planned my first few meals when I’m back in a couple of weeks! Thanks – they look & sound divine!! I’m a huge fan of Bills & can’t wait to get there…
Have you tried Obica?
Haha amazing- let me know what you think! I haven’t tried Obica- off to google it!
cannot wait to come and try out these restaurants – save some new ones for me and skimps!! xx
You guys need to hurry and come ASAP- counting down now!!!
Oh wow. I had no lunch yet so this post is killing me!! I looove the look of this hummus platter and avocado toast!! What a feast.
I had Pizza and Italian appetizers on Sunday – it was delicious!!
Mmmm can’t go wrong with pizza ;)!
Oh man, I wan to brunch at Bills! Poached eggs are the best.
The runnier the better!
This post needs to come with a warning. Do not read or view on an empty stomach. Excuse me while I go stuff my face now. 🙂
Haha MY BAD- even I am getting hungry just thinking about some of those meals, let alone looking at the pics ;)!
Oooh.. so jelly of your London trip! That avocado toast looks amaze balls. I had an amazing brunch recently … baked eggs with mushroom and Brussels sprouts.
Oh wow- that brunch sounds delish…love the addition of brussels sprouts!!