Last night hubby and I went to Bull and Gate for dinner, it is one of our favourite places in London to go for date night as it has low lighting and the atmosphere is perfect for a romantic meal. This is our secret spot for a nice meal when we really want to catch up and actually be able to hear each other over the dinner table, as you have plenty of space around you which is not always guaranteed in a restaurant in London.
Starting with some awesome vegan starters the roasted flat mushroom, with perfectly cooked red peppers, braised leek, accompanied by a refreshing avocado mousse, served on a balsamic reduction. I have to say that every element of this dish was cooked just how I like it. The presentation was beautiful and the combination of flavours made for a very nice first dish.
To go with the mushroom dish we ordered the grilled aubergine wedges, which came with a tahini and pomegranate dressing, simple but delicious. We enjoyed this so much that I opted for the aubergine dish for my main too. The pomegranate was juicy, the tahini perfect balanced against the aubergine. We would order this dish over and over again.
For my main, as mentioned I ordered the aubergine dish, to be precise, the herb-infused warm quinoa and lentil salad, with crushed chickpeas and caramelised onion dip, kale and vegan halloumi bites, grilled aubergine wedges, tahini and pomegranate dressing. Breaking down the elements of the dish, the vegan halloumi bites were ridiculously delicious, kale and halloumi in balls of incredible flavour and texture, it was like a marriage made in (vegan) heaven, salty, crispy and totally tasty. The lentil mixture was tasty with a good amount of herbs running through it to give it plenty of depth and warmth, perfect for this time of year when you want a light, yet warming meal. The aubergine gave it the smokey flavours we loved so much from the starter and the pomegranate cut through all of it. It was such a sophisticated plate of flavour combinations and a textural pleasuredome.
This, of course, isn’t just a restaurant for vegans but it is a great place to take your non vegan friends to show them how diverse a vegan menu can be and how wonderfully colourful and delicious a plant based diet can be. The chef overheard me talking about his halloumi kale balls as he walked past us and came over for a chat about plant based food as he had been a vegan for many years himself. He was so passionate about food and showcasing vegetables in a healthy and delicious way. He also gave us a sneak peek of a curry that could potentially be on the menu, with my husband being half Vincentian we love Carribean flavours and this curry was very similar to one we would make at home, it was made with coconut milk to make it rich and creamy with sweet potato and chickpeas and a slight hint of spice running through it. This is a curry I could eat over and over again and I really hope to see it on the menu the next time I go as I know my friends would love it too, so keep your eyes peeled for that!
In regards to the burger, that hubby had this was a new one that is just on the menu, this burger is naturally gluten-free as this bunless burger is actually topped (and bottomed) by mushrooms, the burger patty is made from Beluga lentils and curry-spiced sweet potato, with smashed chickpeas, served with halloumi chips. This was more than just burger and chips it was a whole other level of a dish.
Moments prior to the dessert menus were presented to us we had both agreed we could not eat any more and in fact, would both be very happy to have a cup of tea instead, however, when we saw that there were an apple and fig crumble on the menu it was hard to resist and well, we didn’t very hard to.
We did decide to share it with a cup of tea each and we also opted for some Jude’s vegan vanilla ice cream to accompany it. A phenomenal way to end such a lovely meal. Feel as though we may explode on the tube journey home, we both agreed it had been the most perfect of date nights.
Plant Based Piglet 