London – My Favourite Food Spots
I’ve been spending a bit more time recently traveling over to London for work. Every time I’m there I’m discovering a new part of the city and trying to uncover all the hidden gems.
When I’m travelling, I try my best to be somewhat prepared (which is sometimes challenging) and suss out the area I’m staying in to find out what gym facilities and foodies place are around me.
London is great in that there is so much on offer. The foodie scene is amazing and when you find glorious restaurants, your taste buds are left lingering for more long after you’ve left. For me, London has the perfect mix of delicious health food and places to eat when you want indulge a little (all of which is high quality food) for a reasonable price. The trick is just finding the right places because there is A LOT of restaurants/cafés and bars in London.
It can be expensive when eating out but I think I’ve found some great places to eat that won’t break the bank and you know you’re still getting great quality food.
The Natural Kitchen is a shop/ deli/ restaurant – they sell organic and local produce and also have a deli section with fresh food on the ground floor. There is plenty of seating on the ground floor and downstairs so it’s an ideal spot for grabbing lunch or a coffee.
I tried their salmon fillets and a selection of salads which was really tasty. You could instantly tell the salmon was fresh and the salads were healthy (not overdosed in dressing!).
This is a great spot for breakfast, lunch or supper. The portions are generous and all food is freshly prepared salads.
Caters for coeliacs and vegans.
There is also a restaurant upstairs and having looked at the menu seemed to serve a great selection of food also so one that is worth checking out.
Cuisine: Whole Foods
Price Range: £8-10 for protein and salads
Website: thenaturalkitchen.com
Location: Marylebone
Check out their Instagram
Photo Cred Natural Kitchen
I had to check Deliciously Ella’s place while I was in London after hearing about it. The Mae Deli serves all vegan food and offers breakfast, lunch and dessert options. I stopped by there during lunch hours and picked up a Broad Bean and Cauliflower Falafel, salad and a raw brownie. They were really tasty and filling which is perfect when you have a long day ahead and need something to sustain you. The deli has a great array of salads and treats to choose from.
Everything looked delicious and I would recommend adding this to your list of places for a healthy lunch option. The deli is small with limited seating available so best get there early!
Caters for coeliacs and vegans.
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Price Range: £10
Website: themaedeli.com
Location: 21 Seymour Place, London, W1H 5BH
Check out their Instagram
Photo cred: @MaeDeli Instagram
If you want to experience a truly amazing meal that will get your taste buds tingling, make sure this restaurant is on your list. This Middle Eastern restaurant has won numerous awards and is booked out for months ahead but they do take walk ins at the bar area which is small so you need to get lucky! We arrived 20 mins before the restaurant opened to book a seat at the bar later that evening just to ensure we got a space. Thankfully, we were second to arrive and within a few minutes there was a long line of people waiting for the restaurant to open.
This place isn’t necessarily healthy but I highly recommend adding it to your list, it was one of my most favourite meals ever!
At the bar you get a full view of all the food being prepared and cooked. We tried some of the cocktails – which I would highly recommend – and ordered some tapas to share. We got the Kubaneh, Polenta Jerusalem Style, Octo-hummous, calamari special and Shakshukit – all of which were amazing but in particular the Polenta Jerusalem Style and Octo-hummous were my favourites. All the staff are very friendly and will chat with everyone throughout the night. They also have amazing tunes playing giving the place a great atmosphere.
All night, people were coming trying to get a seat for dinner clearly showing this is a place definitely worth checking out.
You can’t leave without dessert in this place either, I would recommend the Jerusalem Mess for dessert 🙂
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Price Range: £10-15 per dish
Website: thepalomar.co.uk
Location: 34 Rupert Street, London W1
Check out their Instagram
The Palomar
I came across this place after I trained in Kobox as its pretty close by and I was so happy I stumbled across it. This place serves up juices, smoothies, soups, salads and more. Everything is full of fresh flavours and delicious dishes. I recommend the chestnut and almond waffles and so- fresh and so- clean dish which is poached eggs, quinoa, kale, roasted sweet potato, omega seeds and basil cashew cream – amazing!
The place is small so I would advise going early to get a seat.
I would recommend going here for breakfast or lunch. They have plenty of sweet and savory healthy options. The coffee was also good here if you fancy just stopping by for a morning drink. Caters for coeliacs and vegans.
Cuisine: Whole Food
Price range: £8 per dish
Website: goodlifeeatery.com
Location: 59 Sloane Avenue, London SW3 3DH UK
Check out their Instagram for some food porn
Good Life Eatery
Ottolenghi is one of my favourite chefs and I have been longing to try out one of his places. This is a great spot for lunch and offers both healthy and unhealthy options. I opted for some protein and salads (they have a wide selection of both available and freshly prepared).
Ottolenghi has a two restaurants in London which I am yet to try but they are on my list for my next visit. I went to one of the deli’s in Motocomb street. It’s a beautiful area and they have a space outside for people to sit when the weather is nice.
They serve breakfast and lunch here, as well as a wide variety of sweet treats.
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Price range: £15 for protein and 2 salads
Website: ottolenghi.co.uk
Location: 13 Motcomb Street, London SW1X 8LB
Photo cred ottolenghi
If you don’t have much time and want to grab something on the go, Joe & The Juice is great for smoothies and juices. They make everything fresh and you can tailor ingredients to suit your preferences.
Cuisine: Juice & Smoothie Bar
Price range: £6 juice/ smoothie
Website: joejuice.com
Location: Regent Street, London (multiple locations in the city)
Photo cred Joe & the Juice
Planet Organic is similar to Whole Foods and perfect for picking up healthy snacks to keep you going throughout the day. They have lots of healthy snacks from vegetable pots, organic fruit and vegetables, chia pudding to fresh salads. They also have a deli counter for hot food and soup.
They also have an organic fruit and vegetable section to pick up some items.
Caters for ceoliacs and vegans.
Leon (in Heathrow Airport)
If you’re flying out of Heathrow and want some healthy then go to Leon. I got a simple rice, green veg and chicken box. It was simple and filling. It was also really inexpensive. They have kids options available too to suit the whole family.
Photo cred Leon Restaurants