Really lovely friendly staff who welcomed me and my daughter.
Raw vegan is very new to me I ate the raw vegan sushi express, raw brownie, and banana pancakes from the lunch menu, The food was delicious,I will be back to try the dinner menu
Thank you great place
I've never imagined vegan food can be such a visually pleasing, complete tastegasam of flavours experience! My tummy is still singing of joy! We started of with hummus and essence salad, shared an essence bowl, lasagna and raw pad thai. Yum yum yum and more yum! A friend highly recommended we try the nut cheese board - wow cashew nut cheese! Also, make sure you leave room for dessert: lime cheese cake that tastes as good as the best ice cold lemonade on a hot sunny day and chocolate brownie with coconut flakes.....mmmmmmouthwatering!
Topping these meals with same vegan wine, a FUNtastic atmosphere and lovely staff to explain each dish the only thing left to say is - Congratulations Essence! Cannot wait to be back.
Tasty raw food presented beautifully with great flavours. Portion sizes appear small but are actually quite filling. The desserts were the highlight (as is often the case with raw food in my opinion) - we had the cheesecake and brownie which were both delicious.
Favourite main was Pad Thai though would try lasagne next time as it looked great.
Only drawback is the seating which fits aesthetically in the environment but isn’t that comfy. Staff friendly and prices as expected for raw food.
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I have my ear pretty closely pressed to the ground when it comes to new vegan restaurants, which is why I was so surprised to stumble across this place in Shoreditch only in passing. Hadn't heard about it at all, which given the work that has clearly gone into making it extraordinary I found quite surprising. First things first, the food. JUST WOW. So delicious. I had their take on scrambled eggs - obviously egg free. The flavours and textures were beautiful. I also had the raw pancakes, and again, I've never had anything like it. I've had vegan pancakes in a few places, but not with the decadent firm texture and sweetness of these. They have takeaway as well so naturally I felt inclined to buy lunch in advance. They have a wonderful raw Thai green curry, and I also bought a raw caramel brownie - that just finished me off - so good. The food really is something special. Prices are what you expect for the quality, but it's all reflected in what you get, and to be honest I've eaten from places that would charge far more for food that was anything like this good. Staff were very friendly and helpful. The place itself looks amazing - futuristic and shiny interior that's really pleasing on the eye. Mostly small tables with one large table. Will return very soon. Probably sooner than intended if |I don't stop thinking about that brownie.
After reading about Essence and then perusing the google reviews it was on my list of places to dine at. If you also keep such a list, move Essence to the top. Now. It has mastered presentation, affordability, service and food with panache. My burger loving husband could not stop talking about it after we left and remarked three times how he could eat their carrot sushi every meal.
How can raw vegan food taste this good?! I'm a carnivore but my partner's a vegan so I surprised her with a trip to Essence while secretly planning to pop to the nearest burger bar as soon as we'd finish. I was the one left surprised. I can honestly say it's some of the tastiest food I've ever experienced (and the brownie points from my partner are an added bonus). Talking of brownie (points), the chocolate caramel brownie was delicious. Only surpassed by the heirloom tomato lasagna which has to be tried to be believed; phenomenal. I'm shocked that I'm being this passionate about vegan raw food but Essence is as good as it gets. Cannot recommend enough.
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I almost don’t want to write this review because I don’t want this place to get too busy for me to come back!
I went last week with my girlfriend, who had found a review of it online. It’s quite an unusual space, slightly narrow, with small, but cute expandable tables along each side for people to sit at. The place was really well designed, with cool chilled out club music playing - I’d say it was one of those places where you instantly feel 10% cooler on entry, but not in a ‘wanna be’ way!
I strolled through the place but couldn’t see a table, other than one large shared table near the entrance, where we joined three others who were already sat there about to eat. Then you go to the front and order, we ordered the bangers and mash, lasagna and the green curry (they do a deal for three dishes for two people to try)... IOn arriving back to the table my girlfriend had started chatting to the others s at the table and it turned out one of them was the owner, and his background was running music festivals and bars in Belgium - all of a sudden things made sense!
I won’t bore you with how nice they were, when really, all you want to know about is the food. It. Was. Incredible. Honestly, we simply couldn’t believe how good. Everything from the Kale chips, to the three mains, and then (oh gawd) THE CHEESE BOARD. They make it all on the premises, the waiters really take the time to talk you through the various ingredients, and they’re really care about the menu - focussing on offering things that people simply wouldn’t ever put together at home.
We ended up staying for 3 hours. Honestly, go there, now. But if I arrive and there are no tables, would you mind shuffling up a little?
Some photos to whet your appetite :)
Exceptional raw and vegan food! I had their kelp noodles "cacio & pepe" which was creamy with just the right amount of spice. It's rare to find something I can eat out while on this strict raw veg and fruit cleanse! The courgette hummus was also fantastic.
Matthew Kenney is somewhat of a pioneer when it comes to both plant-based and raw cuisine. So glad he finally has an outpost in London. Taco Tuesday every week! Cant get enough
Loved the Heirloom Tomato Lasagna and Green Curry. Will definitely be back to sample more of the menu. Highly recommend.
I'm not vegan but I'm adventurous with food. Having in mind that it's a vegan place the food was very good even for non-vegans. My favourite dish was pad thai. Service was great. Nice people work there. Food is by far the most important factor for which I give stars therefore I'm still giving this place 5 stars for food and service but I didn't like decor and the way tables work. Seating was weird and uncomfortable. Hopefully they will redecorate one day and get 5 stars if i comes to that too.
That was absolutely fantastic... Entire menu of stunning vegan food.. We loved it. Anjali the head chef is clearly a master of her craft. Coming from New Zealand this was the best food we have had in England. The Scandinavian looking Scot was a delight as well 🙂
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