Vegan in Manchester: The Allotment (Afternoon Tea)

Posted on August 12, 2024 by Jenny
A three tiered afternoon tea stand filled with food

I can’t get enough of afternoon teas, as regular readers may know, so when I was back in the UK for my birthday this year, I couldn’t resist finding another one. I’ve been to The Allotment various times during its existence in Manchester, but the afternoon tea is a fairly new offering, just in the last year or so, and I hadn’t tried it before. I’ve found that The Allotment has changed quite a lot as there have been some significant changes in the kitchen, and it is no longer a must-visit for me when I’m back in Manchester – it started out as quite fine dining with a really innovative chef, but has become a bit more of a regular restaurant to me with a bit less creativity in the dishes (I’m not blaming them for changing their approach, it’s a tough industry). But I was feeling optimistic about the afternoon tea…until I read the reviews on Happy Cow, which were generally not glowing. I’m glad I hadn’t read the reviews before I booked, as they might have deterred me, and we would have missed out on a real treat!

As you can see above, it’s arranged slightly differently than a typical afternoon tea as there are two savoury plates and just one sweet, which was not the best omen for somebody as sweet-toothed as me. But again, I needn’t have worried!

Three finger sandwiches on white bread, one with salad leaves poking out and the other with visible avocado and tomato

The bottom tier was all sandwiches, which were regrettably very dull – there was a cream cheese one, a hummus one, and an avocado one. They didn’t taste bad, but it was a shame not to see a bit more innovation and flavour. They looked a little rustic too, not quite the elegant bites you might get at a fancier (and admittedly more expensive) spot. There is a lot of scope for creativity in the savoury plate, and I’m always disappointed when it doesn’t come to fruition.

A bowl of cauliflower coated in a crisp looking batter and a small pot of orange dipping sauce

However, there was one very exciting savoury element, which was the cauliflower wings. These are a staple on the menu at The Allotment and we’d all tried them before at least once, so we knew this was going to be a winner. It was absolutely delicious. The cauliflower was really tender, the batter was crispy and well-seasoned, and the sriracha mayo was perfect. I was thrilled that we each got our own little bowl – I was expecting it to be a really small portion, and this exceeded my expectations.

A plate containing two scones, a pot of cream, a pot of jam, two slices of brownies, and two red velvet cakes.

Because the cauliflower wings got their own tier, all the sweets and scones were crammed onto one plate.

Two halves of a scone spread with cream and jam

There was one scone each, and they were generously sized. The cream was high quality, not too coconutty or greasy as they sometimes are, and the jam was simple and fruity. The scones were a really good bake.

A triangular slice of brownie and an individual red velvet cake which is sandwiched and topped with a white cream.

The cakes, a brownie and a red velvet, were also well baked. I don’t think the menu specified what the cakes would be, but it looks like these are the regular ones, from other reviews. The brownie did not have the perfect texture, but it was decent, and good and chocolatey. The red velvet cake was top notch. The sponge was really light and moist, and the amount of icing was just the right balance. I’ve not had a lot of red velvet cakes since going vegan, and this was a good one.

It was £16 for this spread, which feels pretty good to me after forking out a lot for some in London in recent years.

I will say though that, even though we had booked in advance, service was quite slow and it took us a long time to get our afternoon tea. It seemed like they were a little understaffed, so I can believe it was just a bad day. But when the food did arrive, it looked and tasted impressive.

Overall, I found it good value for money and mostly a real treat. If they livened up the sandwiches, this would be a total winner!

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Vegan in Prague: Linh’s Vegan Corner (Ramen Quest)

Posted on August 5, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl of watery looking brother topped with mushrooms, beansprouts, red onion, sweetcorn, tofu, and half of a vegan hard boiled egg

Linh’s Vegan Corner has rave reviews, but the dishes I’ve tried there haven’t really worked for me – and unfortuantely, that includes the ramen.

Vegan Egg-no-egg Ramen

Broth: 1/5. It was extremely bland, and looked totally insipid too, like murky water. There’s no creaminess, no depth of flavour, nothing going for it.

Toppings: 3/5. There was lots of tofu, which I loved, and loads of mushrooms too, which helped to give it some flavour. The egg looked like it would be a fun twist and it had the texture right, but it did not have the flavour of an egg at all. Not even a hint of black salt. I may be wrong, but I assume the purpose of an egg on a ramen is for the yolk to run into the broth and enhance the flavour. This egg did not enhance the dish at all. It looks like a fun novelty, but was style over substance.

Noodles: 3.5/5. Dr HH thought they were a wee bit underdone, but they were fine for me, so I’m splitting the difference.

Overall: 7.5/15. There are presumably much better dishes on the Linh’s menu than this, so I’d encourage visitors to explore the wider menu and go elsewhere for a ramen.

This is the final post in the Prague Ramen Quest series – for now! Hopefully ramen options will continue to appear in the future. Pastva was my winner, though I’m looking forward to doing more research at Miska Ramen too. And if you are looking for a good bowl of noodles and broth in Prague, Chi Xiao Mian is probably still your best bet!

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Vegan in Prague: Takumi (Ramen Quest)

Posted on July 29, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl of almost orange broth topped with bok choy, tomato wedges, sugar snap peas, two fried croquettes, and various other garnishes

Takumi is a chain which has two vegan ramens in its Prague branch – the menu differs in other countries though. Dr HH and I each tried one of them.

A bowl of almost orange broth topped with bok choy, tomato wedges, sugar snap peas, two fried croquettes, and various other garnishes

Vegan Signature Tan Tan Ramen

Broth: 5/5. It was creamy and flavoursome, with a nice bit of heat to it. Really delicious.

Toppings: 2/5. I had been very excited about the croquettes on top, but unfortunately they just did not work for me. The filling reminded me of bland veggie fingers from the 1990s, mushy morsels with no texture or flavour. And of course, they were really soggy from sitting in the broth, which reduced the texture even more. The other toppings were the classic bok choy, bamboo, and bean sprouts, which were all fine. But I did not appreciate the sliced raw tomato at all, it felt very uninspired.

Noodles: 3/5. They were good, but the portion was possibly a little too large for me. I never though I’d say it!

Overall: 10/15. It’s such a shame about the toppings, because the broth was spectacular.

A bowl of beige broth topped with four crispy fried gyoza, two big chunks of fried tofu, lots of sweetcorn, and various other garnishes

Vegan Gyoza Miso Ramen

Broth: 3/5. This was a different broth from the one above, and it was not so mind-blowing, unfortunately. Generally quite unremarkable. (Is this typical of all miso ramens?)

Toppings: 3/5. The gyoza were nice, but were not well suited to being a topping – they got a bit soggy, much like the croquettes above. The tofu was excellent and the sugar snap peas added a nice crunch, but there was a lot of sweetcorn which was a shame.

Noodles: 4/5. Plentiful and tasty.

Overall: 10/15. It needed a bit more flavour and excitement.

Takumi was quite a small and crowded restaurant – the tables all seemed very close together. On all their social media and websites they claim not to take reservations, but this turned out to be false. We were asked on arrival if we had a reservation, and other tables had been reserved. I would recommend a reservation if you plan to visit, because it was jumping on a Friday evening.

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Vegan in Prague: Pastva (Ramen Quest)

Posted on July 22, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl of dark brown broth topped with tofu cubes, sweetcorn, enoki mushrooms, chilli, a wedge of lime, lots of beansprouts, and various other garnishes

Pastva is one of the few all-vegan restaurants that was open when I moved here 9 years ago and is still going strong now. Their evening menu includes a ramen, and it’s a good one!

Ramen

Broth: 5/5. It was a really flavoursome broth, with some depth to it and some Japanese flavours (which have not been present in all the others).

Toppings: 3/5. There were no big pieces of bok choy, which is always a positive for me. It was quite heavy on sweetcorn, but generally there was a good mix of toppings and some mushrooms. There was chilli on the top, but it was easy to remove if you prefered. There was a lot of cubed tofu, which is good, but it all seemed unseasoned, which is a shame.

Noodles: 4/5. Good generous portion.

Overall: 12/15.

This is not an all-ramen spot, or even all-Asian spot, like some of the other places I’ve reviewed, so it’s perhaps a good option if your dining companions don’t all necessarily want ramen and are happy to visit an all-vegan place.

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Vegan in Prague: Veganio (Ramen Quest)

Posted on July 15, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl of vivid yellow broth garnished with seaweed, bamboo, mushroom, red onion, chilli, and lots of coriander

Veganio is mostly a Loving Hut-style buffet restaurant, but also has a few items on its fixed menu, including a ramen which lured us over. You need to order at the counter. We didn’t see an English menu there, I think it’s just the menu board in Czech that you can refer to. If in doubt, you can check on the Wolt delivery app for the English menu options, because they’re always translated there.

A bowl of vivid yellow broth garnished with seaweed, bamboo, mushroom, red onion, chilli, and lots of coriander

Curry Coco Ramen

Broth: 4/5. It was a really tasty broth with lots of flavour and good chilli warmth. The flavours were predominantly lime and coriander (with some coconut, but not overpoweringly so – we’d expected from the name that it might be more coconutty), which made for a tasty broth…but it didn’t feel very Japanese to us.

Toppings: 3.5. I gave this 4/5 because there was a really generous portion of tofu and mushrooms. However, there was a lot of bamboo in it, and Dr HH marked it 3/5 because he got some bamboo that was too tough to chew through. Generally, we liked the variety of toppings. For me, the seaweed was a bit out of place.

Noodles: 4/5. Good portion size, no complaints.

Overall: 11.5/15

Four crispy tempura prawns with a wedge of lime and a pot of sweet chilli dipping sauce

It’s an all vegan restaurant, so there are plenty of other things you can try here too. We shared the tempura prawns which were very slow to arrive (we were halfway through the ramen already), but were absolutely fantastic.

It’s not a huge spot, but it was efficient and pleasant. If you want a tasty bowl of broth and noodles, this is a good option. But I’m not sure it’s really a ramen per se.

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Vegan in Prague: Miska Ramen (Ramen Quest)

Posted on July 8, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl of light brown broth filled with thin noodles, sweetcorn, tofu, beansprouts, and other garnishes

Prague Ramen Quest continues! Miska Ramen Bar specialises in ramen and has four vegan options on the menu, all clearly labelled. We tried two of them.

Vegan Miso Ramen

Broth: 3/5. It had a nice creamy texture with a pleasant hint of miso wafting through it. It wasn’t particularly complex, though I think that’s the general problem of ordering a miso ramen.

Toppings: 3/5. There was lots of corn (boo!), bean sprouts, and greens. I was pleased that there were no giant bok choy, because I always find them tricky to eat. There were four pieces of tofu, which is good, but it seemed to be unseasoned, which is a real shame.

Noodles: 4/5. Good and plentiful.

Overall: 10/15. It was a promising dish, but I think I choose poorly and should have gone for one of the more exciting ramens. Such as…

A bowl of brown broth filled with thin noodles, sweetcorn, tofu, bamboo, beansprouts, and other garnishes

Vegan Tan Tan Ramen

Broth: 4/5. It had a good heat to it, though it actually smelled a bit more flavoursome than it was, somehow.

Toppings: 3/5. Unexciting tofu and vegetables. There were enjoyable elements, especially the bamboo and beansprouts, but nothing really wild.

Noodles: 4/5. A good amount of noodles.

Overall: 11/15. It was a good spicy broth with hearty noodles, slightly let down by the unexciting toppings.

Five fried gyoza with a small pot o dark dipping sauce

There are also vegan gyoza on the menu, which we found to be very good indeed. There was lots of tofu and vegetables in them, and they were cooked really nicely – to be honest, I find a lot of the gyoza in Prague quite bland, so these are a cut above.

This is a small, pleasant restaurant that was doing very good trade on a Friday evening, so I’d recommend booking, and I’d definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a good vegan ramen. The staff didn’t speak much English, but there’s an English menu so you can easily muddle through with a bit of pointing. And they serve meat dishes as well, so it is potentially a good option if you’re dining with omnis.

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Vegan in Prague: Bon (Ramen Quest)

Posted on July 1, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl of ramen with a creamy yellowish broth topped with bok choy, sweetcorn, mushroom, aubergine, tomato, beansprouts, and spring onion

Over the last year, Dr HH and I have been undertaking an important quest: to try even vegan ramen dish in Prague, and rank them all. In this groundbreaking study, I’m going to report each week on one of the spots we tried, and give the ramen a rating. I’m reviewing them in the order we visited them, so this was the first one we tried when we committed to this mission. There aren’t loads of vegan ramen spots in Prague, but there are more than we initially suspected when we started out – so this is definitely a piece of research that was worth doing. I will say that I’ve had better ramen elsewhere, and I wouldn’t recommend that anyone visits Prague especially to try ramen. But if you love ramen as much as I do and you live here, then this is the info that you need!

Bon Fresh Ramen and Soba has a few branches in Prague, all with the same menu. They only have one ramen (veggie ramen), which I tried, but we’re also reviewing the kitsune udon, which Dr HH tried.

Veggies Ramen

Broth: 3/5. It was quite tasty, but not especially rich or deep, and there were no little pockets of flavour or surprise.

Toppings: 2/5. All the topping were vegetables, there was no tofu or anything like that, which was a shame. The mushrooms looked inviting, but were actually a bit too sweet, like there was too much mirin on them. I’m not crazy about bok choy because it’s such a huge item to maneuver, especially when it’s got hot broth all over it, so this was not the perfect match for me.

Noodles: 4/5. Quite a generous portion.

Overall: 9/15. It was solid, but not particularly exciting – there were no elements that I love on a ramen, and the broth wasn’t as tasty as I’d hoped.

A bowl or clear dark brown broth with thick udon noodles, three big slices of fried tofu covered in sauce, grated radish, tomtato, spring onions, and greenery

Kitsune Udon (Vegan)

Broth: 3/5. It was pleasant, a nice savoury broth with an occasional hint of sweetness.

Toppings: 3/5. The tofu was not as exciting as expected, and was quite difficult to bite through, which makes for a messy eating experience. Dr HH was not convinced by the texture of the grated radish, and would have preferred plain old slices instead.

Noodles: 5/5. Well, they’re udon noodles, so they’re going to get top marks. Slippery and chunky!

Overall: 11/15. Quite fun, but not mindblowing.

Six fried gyoza with a bowl of dipping sauce

And beyond the essential ramen information – there are also vegan gyoza on the menu, which had a fairly bland filling but were well cooked.

I’ve been two two branches so far and found them to have friendly and efficient service, and popular with omni friends. The menus clearly label the vegan options. I don’t think I’ve ever had a chair to sit on though – stools only, alas.

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Vegan in Prague: InDelicious

Posted on June 24, 2024 by Jenny
Four quarters of a paratha, looking well fried, with a small pot of chutney.

InDelicious has become possibly my favourite spot in Prague, and it is disappointingly under the radar here. It’s rarely reviewed on Happy Cow or mentioned in vegan groups, but everyone should be going there because it is fantastic. It’s off the beaten track, so it doesn’t lure in many tourists or get much foot traffic, but it’s well served by public transport and well worth a trip. They serve Indian street food. It’s a vegetarian restaurant with lots of labelled vegan options, and the owner is very open to feedback and making it more vegan friendly, which I love to see. It’s a great restaurant to support, and every dish we’ve tried there has been a hit – and we’ve tried plenty.

Five pieces of sev puri on a plate - a kind of cracker topped with little mounds of chutney, all buried under crispy sev

The menu is so good that it’s one of the rare places where neither of us has a favourite dish that we order every time. The sev puri is pretty close to that, as we almost always get it for our shared starter. I’d never even heard of this dish before trying it here, and now I heartily recommend it to anyone. You get five in a portion, and each one is kind of a fried cracker, topped with some chutneys and onion (they ask about your preferred spice level when you order), and lots of crispy sev. They’re a bit too big to eat in one bite, and crunching into them makes quite a mess, so be prepared for that. It’s worth the mess though, they are just the perfect texture and taste combo.

A plate with six puri pieces, crispy hollow balls, a little mound of potato mix, and a bowl of greenish sauce

The pani puri are also a winner. We’ve had them with the potato filling separate as shown above, but we’ll also had them with the holes already poked through and the filling inside. The sauce is quite spicy, but it makes a beautifully balanced dish. It’s always such a fun explosion of flavours.

A large plate containing five onion pakora, dark brown in colour and wild shapes, and five potato pakora, uniform round shapes in golden batter. There's also a pot of green dipping sauce.

I can rarely resist a pakora plate, and this is a very good version of it. The potato pakoras are the neater ones on the left, and they’re good, but the onion ones on the right are absolutely sensational. The texture is excellent from the onion slices, and the batter is perfect. The plate is dusted with a really tasty spice which makes everything sing even more.

Four quarters of a paratha, looking well fried, with a small pot of chutney.

Onto the main dishes, we’ve tried quite a few. The aloo paratha itself is vegan, and the non-vegan order simply comes with dairy yoghurt whereas the vegan order comes with pickles instead – and the staff will happily top up the pickles if you run out. In truth, the potato filling doesn’t always get the seasoning perfect – it sometimes tastes mostly of chilli rather than any of the other tasty spices you might want. But the bread is always great, and the pickles are a fun accompaniment. It would be great to get a non-dairy yoghurt on the side to help with that chilli heat.

A bowl with flour fluffy white savoury cakes, accompanied by a little pot of soup and two dipping sauces.

Dr HH has also tried the idli, which are fairly bland rice dumplings that drink in the flavours of the accompaniments. The dumplings were good at soaking up the tastiness of the sambar.

A dish containing a yellowy broth with two big potato cakes just about visible, topped with vegetable and herb garnishes

This is the vadha sambar, which is two big potato cakes sitting in that spicy sambar. Obviously the potato cakes lose that fried crispiness to them, but you probably know that when you order – I wouldn’t order this dish because I wouldn’t want to lose that texture. Again, the sambar is always good and flavoursome. Dr HH considers that the potato cakes are superior to the rice cakes above, making this the better of these two options.

Two potato cakes, a pot of rice, a yellow soup, and three dipping sauces

Another one that Dr HH has tried is the ragace pattice with rice. This time the potato cakes are on the side, which I’m always in favour of! It was less cohesive for Dr HH though, I suppose more of a deconstructed take on the two dishes above.

Two pancakes with tomato slices cooked into them, a small pot of soup, and two dipping sauces

I’m a huge fan of the uttapam, which is these two pancakes with tomato slices cooked into them. They are quite thin, which gives a very pleasant texture, and the accompanying sauces bring a lot of flavour. I love the rare occasions when I get a vegan coconut chutney, so I’m always happy to make the most of that!

A crispy looking dosa with a small pot of soup and two dipping sauces

And I can’t get enough of masala dosas. I love how crisp this one is, and the potato filling is always just right, not too greasy. It can be quite hard to resist ordering this…but then, the uttapam is so tasty! And the paratha!

InDelicious is the best vegan Indian food we’ve found in Prague, and the most clearly labelled – there are lots of restaurants here that have vegan labels and allergen labels that totally contradict each other. It’s also one of the most enticing menus in the city, where it’s not just one dish I always order but a whole host of them to choose between. It’s pretty small, but you can reserve a table in advance to make sure you get in. They also have a masala chai with oat milk, which always hits the spot!

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Vegan in Figueres: Integral Figueres

Posted on June 17, 2024 by Jenny
A large artwork at the Dali museum

One of our day trips from Barcelona in November 2022 was to nearby Figueres, which is mostly famous as the hometown of Salvador Dali and the site of his museum. He designed the museum himself, so it’s not just a posthumous tribute – the building is quite the work of art too. Mother HH and I do not have very wild taste in art, so I was a bit worried that this trip would fall flat – but it was a huge hit!

A painting comprised of some blocks of colour at the Dali museum

There was lots of really weird stuff, but also some much simpler art that we could both grasp. And this kind of eased us into the stranger items as well – it was a really interesting museum to wander around.

An artwork at the Dali museum

You will probably want to book in advance – we were there on a week day in November and it was absolutely packed. Be warned that they really do keep to the timings on your ticket, there’s no sneaking in early.

There’s only one all-vegan restaurant in Figueres, and it is just a few minutes away from the museum, so it’s very easy to pop in and get some sustenance before or after your wander around the museum. Again, reservations might be wise, as Integral Figueres is such a small place.

A small bowl of miso soup

At lunch time it serves a menu of the day. I don’t think we had any choice for our main but there may have been two choices of soup, and we both went for the miso soup. I love miso and this was fine but unremarkable.

A big plate of various salad items and a piece of tart

The main consisted of a kind of onion tart and a mixed salad plate with rice, lentils, sweet potato slices, and lots of vegetables. To be honest, this is not my kind of meal – I like a lot of control over different elements, and significantly smaller portions of salad. But it was all fine, plus good fuel after the museum, and Mother HH really enjoyed it (she loves a salad). So it’s definitely worth a visit if you’re in Figueres for the museum and want a guaranteed vegan meal. Even though the vegan options in Figueres don’t look wild at first glance, if you’re interested in seeing the Dali museum it’s still definitely worthwhile to go.

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Vegan in Barcelona: Velada

Posted on June 10, 2024 by Jenny
A bowl piled with small, well cooked potatoes and blobs of white cream dusted with spice and chives

Velada is a quite fancy vegan spot not far from La Rambla. The restaurant itself looks a bit fancier than the food was, in my opinion – it’s not style over substance, but it definitely wasn’t quite as good as it looked. Still, the food was nice, service was really friendly, and I’m always excited to have a tapas menu to dig into! It was really busy when we visited, and we just managed to squeeze in without a reservation, so if you have your heart set on it then definitely make sure to reserve.

Above you can see the Velada bravas, which were beautifully cooked little potatoes with plenty of aioli. Patatas bravas is one of my favourite Spanish dishes, so I definitely enjoyed this.

A plate with chunks of tomatoes and creamy white cheese on top of red sauce, scattered with micro greens and seeds

This dish is regrettably no longer on the menu and I can’t remember what it was called – I just know that it was tomatoes and cheese. The cheese was very creamy and the tomatoes were so fresh and flavoursome. This is not the kind of dish I usually order (I always prefer something fried and mock meaty), but it was really refreshing and lovely.

A long plate containing three artichoke halves filled with sundried tomatoes alongside green pistachio crumbs

These artichoke flowers are one of the specialties of the restaurant, but neither Mother HH nor I really enjoyed them. Maybe we were unlucky that the artichokes we got weren’t especially flavourful, which meant that the sundried tomatoes had to do a lot of heavy lifting. I’m not sure, but it didn’t quite work for us and was our least favourite dish of the evening.

A scoop of ice cream and browned figs with hazelnuts

We split the savouries between us, but each chose our own desserts. Mother HH went for the candied figs with hazelnut ice cream, and liked the figs more than the ice cream.

A perfect looking crème brulee with a few blueberries on top

Whenever I see a crème brulee, I have to order it. This one was very good – it had the perfect top, ready to be cracked, and a nice smooth consistency below. It’s not the best I’ve ever had (that’s still Japan), but it was very enjoyable.

The buildings of Montserrat high up in the mountains

We were tucking into this meal after our day trip to Montserrat, up in the hills. It was a bit of a trek to get there, but well worth it – as you can see, we were there on a really clear day, so the views were spectacular. There’s not loads to see and do there, and certainly nowhere to get vegan food, so we visited the basilica, walked around, had a little picnic, drank in the views, and then headed back. It was well worth a trip, and nice to get away from the cities and see something a bit different.

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