If you're thinking about going vegan or just upping your fruit and veg intake in the new year ( and you happen to live in London), you're in for a huge treat. One of New York's coolest vegan cafés is launching in the heart of the capital in January and, after a cursory Instagram scroll, we're already salivating.
By Chloe, which also boasts branches in LA and Boston, will open its first international location in Covent Garden in 2018 and hopes to expand further across the capital. It will have about 70 seats and offer the option to both eat in and grab and go.
The plant-based, fast casual restaurant chain is a favourite among Instagram's coolest kids and has been described variously as "chic", "intensely hip" and "the best vegan restaurant in town, maybe the world" by one restaurant site.
Popular By Chloe dishes include a guacamole burger, quinoa taco salad, matcha kelp noodles and mac 'n' cheese made with sweet potato cashew cheese sauce, shiitake bacon and almond parmesan, and there will be a range of new dishes exclusive to the UK. In the States, it also serves such drool-worthy brunch options as scrambled tofu, quinoa hash browns and smoothie bowls.
It will also satisfy the sweet-toothed among us, serving plant-based treats including pastries, cookies, cupcakes and all-natural ice cream (think salted peanut butter, kale cookies and cream, matcha... the list goes on). Have a glance at some of the full US menus online for a clearer picture, although we wouldn't recommend doing it on an empty stomach.
You can also grab fresh juices, the usual tea and coffee, and – if the US menus are anything to go by – all-natural vegan pet treats, including doggie bones and "pupcakes". Because why should they be left out of the plant-based club? Veganism has exploded in the UK over the last decade, rising by 360%, and is now considered "cool", thanks to Instagram and the likes of JME and restaurants like Cook Daily.
Samantha Wasser, one of By Chloe's cofounders, said London was "a perfect fit" for the chain. “The thriving dining scene, the culture and the fashion all make London the ideal city filled with diners with a growing curiosity for vegan and plant-based cuisine," she told the Independent.
The first branch of the meat- and dairy-free joint was opened in 2015 by 30-year-old(!) vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli, who was a contestant on the US reality show Cupcake Wars, has written various plant-based cookbooks and was included in Forbes' 30 Under 30 list for 2017. Intimidating much? At least we'll be able to grab a slice of something similarly virtuous in the capital soon enough. See you in the queue.
Follow By Chloe's expertly curated Instagram and check out the café in the new year at Drury House, 34-43 Russell Street, London WC2B 5HA
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