I was very excited to hear that my favourite vegan restaurant, En Root, had found an extra home in Brixton to add to those already doing the business in Clapham and Peckham. Perhaps too excited for a carnivore, writes Michael Holland.
What I like about this local enterprise is that brothers Nish and Harsh Modasia started small, worked hard and their endeavours have paid off as they go from strength to strength. They consistently turn out good, wholesome, tasty food while keeping their prices at a very affordable level.
With an ethos that is based around seasonal produce combined with their South London roots and Gujarati cultural background, they can constantly tweak and fine-tune their menu so that in each restaurant there will be the firm favourites, but also new variations from site to site. Which meant that I could try something different from what I had when I visited their Peckham Rye shop last year.
And I knew I had not replicated my order because Nish came to the table to say hello and compliment me on my new choices – New dishes that have been added for their Ritzy venture. Plus, he remembered what I had the last time he cooked for me! That is a customer service to be admired.
I was with Ms Aitch, a go-getting fundraiser and managerial dynamo who is always up for veggie dining.
We shared Tandoori Wings(£6), which had all the subliminal messages needed to lure this meat eater in with its nod to chicken. They arrived looking like the tastiest fried bird in town, and that led to me thinking I was eating the schoolboys’ favourite takeaway for the first couple of mouthfuls while my mind was distracted by conversation. Checking the menu again I was amazed to see it was ‘Cauliflower and Oyster Mushrooms, Tandoori Batter fried to a crunchy finish. Served with Rajannaise.’ They were delicious. Exceptionally delicious.
En Root’s menu is great for tempting non-vegans in with buzz words they understand dotted around: taco, jerk, poppadom, masala, burger, kebab… It’s a clever ploy that works on me every time. But trickery is not what the brothers are about; it is a mere by-product of what they do well.
Next, we ordered En Root Thali, a platter inspired by both India and South London comprising of rice, coconut curry, dhal, plantain and mushroom, with raita and salad. This was a plate full of varying tastes and textures that could have fed two or free quite easily.
And I just had to have the Red, Gold and Green Pizza (£12), just to see what it was. And it was exactly as described with the peppers, sweetcorn and spinach creating the multi-coloured title – Plus, pasta, cashew creme, and plantain on a crispy gluten-free base.
Once again, I felt royally fed by the En Root team and a little bit closer to bringing vegan cuisine into my life more. En Root has proved that healthy, seasonal foods can be made exciting, on-trend and priced within the under-stress budgets of today’s Britain.
Today, for En Root, it is South London – tomorrow the world. Or perhaps North London…
Ritzy, Brixton Oval, Coldharbour Lane, London, SW2 1JG. Every day 12-9pm.
All you need to know about En Root: www.enrootldn.co.uk/
