I once overheard some terrible American backpackers on the tram in Prague discussing their recent European adventures thus:

A: I’m still mad we didn’t go to McDonald’s in London.

B: Hey, I wanted to go! Nobody goes to London for the food.

Well, let me tell you that every vegan goes to London for the food! I always agonise over how to squeeze as much food as possible into a short stay in the capital, and I have to say that I was very pleased with my most recent effort.

In May, Dr HH and I popped over to London to see the wonderful Trevor Noah on one of his few European dates. We filled in the rest of our time with food! We were staying near Brick Lane, which is a great area for vegans, and we found plenty of culinary delights there – including these two convenient spots for breakfast.

Regular readers will not be surprised to see this picture. Of course I found vegan donuts! These were from Crosstown Doughnuts, which has several locations in the city. This one was a nice little cafe with a reasonable amount of seating. The vegan options were clearly labelled, and there were some very exciting flavours. I love donuts with a custardy, creamy centre, so I was delighted with this coconut and lime with spirulina dough. The tropical flavours were lovely, and I enjoyed the texture of the crumb on top.

Dr HH was also impressed with his lemon-thyme with beetroot dough. Again, it was a great flavour combination, and the coloured dough was a fun twist. There are quite a few other flavours, so we’re keen to get back  and try some more – the dark chocolate truffle sounds right up my street!

Another breakfast option is Canvas Cafe, an all-vegan cafe and community centre which is apparently famous for its freakshakes, but we didn’t have chance to indulge in those. Not that it was an indulgence-free visit, though: I’m powerless to resist a French toast, and this one certainly exceeded my expectations! The slabs of homemade sourdough were about ten times bigger than I was expecting, and they  were sweet and delicious.

Dr HH kept it savoury, as is his wont, with the Full English. As you can see, he was also treated to some sourdough. He found two elements of the breakfast quite bland and disappointing: the scramble, which needed seasoning, and the spinach, which had just been wilted – he would have preferred it sauteed with garlic. However, he raved about the sage sausages, well-seasoned, spicy beans, and especially the roast potatoes.

This is another place we’d be happy to return to – ideally, with enough room for a freakshake too! I’ve never had one, but I assume they’re an acceptable breakfast dish?