Mallow
I’ve tried a few vegetarian places in my life. It takes quite a bit of prodding, pulling and sometimes more violent means of persuasion to get me to assent to attend such places. Even though I did spend almost a month being vegetarian, that was driven much by local hygiene concerns, so should be seen as an exception.
I find that most vegetarian restaurants seem to fit into different categories. Some are good but take shortcuts to making taste fine (too much salt), go the other way (don’t taste of anything) or are actually alright and go to show that a herbivore lifestyle isn’t really that bad.
This is my prelude to let you understand why I was at Mallow, in the new Canary Wharf residential district of Wood Wharf,
The restaurant is decorated with various knick-knacks. Some tasteful (plants) and some showing things which are rather more eclectic (is that a toilet plunger?). In any case, in our hunger, we quickly skipped over potential issues.
Virgin bloody Mary. Juicy, rich, and rather salty and filling. My dining companion loved me. I less so. Don’t like savory being in my drinks like this but perhaps that is just personal taste.
Oat milk seseme latte. Excellent deep sesame flavour. The oat went especially well with this nut-based latte.
Morello cherry pancakes, double stack buttermilk pancakes, sour cherry compote. pistachio quinoa, vanilla cream. The berries were juicy, the nuts added needed bite, the pancakes fairly airy although I would preferred fluffier versions.
Kim chi croque, pan toasted brioche, filled with house kim chi, gochugaru bechamel, gochujang sweet chilli sauce. Excellent, heavy ummai flavour set off with sharp tangy kimchi. With some spring onions to set it all off.
As I tend to wake up unseasonably early on Saturdays, hence our arrival before the brunch crowd, it was an airy, light and delightful place to be. It may become noisier at later times but if anything, that is probably as this is a place worth coming back to. Even if vegetables are no necessarily your thing.
A quiet eating 8.5/10.
Brunch (1 dish) was about GBP13 excluding drinks and service.
12 Park Drive, Wood Wharf
London E14 0ZE