Eating well in London (and still eating out)
Kirk Haworth's Plates in Shoreditch is entirely plant-based and holds one Michelin star in the 2026 guide, which says a lot about how far healthy eating in London has moved on from the salad bar. On a stay it comes down to knowing which restaurants near you cook vegetables properly, and using the kitchen for breakfasts and the odd simple supper.
Restaurants that cook vegetables properly
At Plates, the tasting menu is built on British vegetables cooked with the precision of any starred kitchen, and nobody at the table will miss the meat. The menu is set, so mention allergies when you book, and book well ahead. From Mayfair or Chelsea it's a trek east, so make an evening of it.
Mildreds has been cooking vegetarian food in Soho since 1988 and is now fully plant-based, with five London branches in Soho, Covent Garden, Victoria, King's Cross and Camden. The menu borrows from everywhere and changes with the seasons, and the onion-free and garlic-free options help anyone on a restricted diet. It's relaxed and busy, a good place to take teenagers after a matinee. Covent Garden is the easiest area for this sort of spur-of-the-moment meal, with dozens and dozens of places to eat within a few minutes' walk, most of them rated 5 for hygiene by the Food Standards Agency.
For a sit-down dinner, ROVI on Wells Street in Fitzrovia puts vegetables and fermentation at the centre of the menu, and NOPI on Warwick Street in Soho does the sharing plates the Ottolenghi cookbooks are known for. If you're working in the City all week, Malibu Kitchen inside The Ned does Californian food, from superfood salads, raw vegetables and cured fish and meat to flatbreads, juices and smoothies, and it's quick enough for a working lunch that's a long way from a sandwich at your desk.
Staying in London?
Search 155 serviced apartments, or ask a residence for its private direct rate.
Get the direct rate → or call 020 3790 7766
Delis, farmshops and a grocer that delivers
For a vegetable-heavy lunch you can take home, Yotam Ottolenghi's delis are the best in London. The central ones are on Marylebone Lane, Pavilion Road in Chelsea and Ledbury Road in Notting Hill, and the salads are sold by the portion, ready for the fridge. Ottolenghi also delivers across London through its website, which is handy on the first night when nobody can face going out.
Daylesford's farmshops sell Soil Association certified produce from its Cotswold farm, and each has a restaurant doing breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea. The three London shops are at Brompton Cross on Sloane Avenue, on Pimlico Road in Belgravia and on Westbourne Grove in Notting Hill. Have eggs upstairs at Brompton Cross, then fill a bag with vegetables, bread and yoghurt for the week.
A kitchen does more for a healthy stay than any restaurant. Partridges, the family-run grocer with a royal warrant, has moved after more than half a century in Chelsea to 17 to 19 Gloucester Road, and delivers free on orders over £50 as well as through Deliveroo and Uber Eats. Between Partridges, Daylesford and an Ottolenghi deli you can fill a fridge in an afternoon, and Marylebone is well set up too, with no shortage of food shops and cafés and the Marylebone Lane Ottolenghi among them.
A pattern that works on most trips is breakfast cooked at home, one proper meal out and the other kept light, with a walk wherever you can manage one, since most central addresses are close enough to a park or a canal towpath to make a morning loop part of the routine. Book Plates and ROVI before you arrive, while the delis and Mildreds need no planning. If you're choosing where to stay with all this in mind, check the kitchen, because a two-ring hob and a full oven make for very different weeks.
Food hygiene ratings for the places in this guide
Official fact Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, checked 23 September 2026. 5 is the top rating.
| Name | Registered address | Rating | Inspected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mildreds Soho | 45 Lexington Street, W1F 9AN | 5 | Jun 2024 |
| Mildreds Covent Garden | 79 St Martin's Lane, WC2N 4AA | 5 | Mar 2026 |
| Mildreds Victoria | 128 Wilton Road, SW1V 1JZ | 5 | May 2024 |
| Mildreds King's Cross | Unit 3, N1 9JY | 5 | Apr 2025 |
| Mildreds Camden | 9-11 Jamestown Road, NW1 7BW | 5 | Aug 2022 |
| Ottolenghi Marylebone | 63-65 Marylebone Lane, W1U 2RA | 5 | Aug 2024 |
| Ottolenghi Chelsea | 13 Motcomb Street, SW1X 8LB | 5 | Feb 2020 |
| Ottolenghi Notting Hill | 63 Ledbury Road, W11 2AD | 4 | Jul 2026 |
| ROVI | 59 Wells Street, W1T 3PT | 5 | Oct 2025 |
| NOPI | 21-22 Warwick Street, W1B 5NE | 5 | Oct 2025 |
| Daylesford Brompton Cross | 76-82 Sloane Avenue, SW3 3DZ | 5 | Jan 2026 |
| Daylesford Pimlico | 44 Pimlico Road, SW1W 8LP | 4 | Jan 2026 |
| Daylesford Notting Hill | 208-212 Westbourne Grove, W11 2RH | 5 | Sep 2025 |
| Partridges | 17-19 Gloucester Road, SW7 4PL | 5 | Jan 2026 |