Eat and Two Veg

My partner and I had a very disappointing meal here a couple of sundays ago. Normally we find the food at Eat and two veg really good but this wasn't the case on our last visit. Firstly there wasn't the Luck and pancakes for a starter, we were informed that they hadn't had it for four days. I know these things happen but that started it all off on a bad note as we were both looking forward to it. We had the deep fried dumplings instead which were very nice. We both had the Sunday roast as our main and that had to be the most disgusting meal that I had had the misfortune to have eaten in years. My partner felt the same, everything was so dry that you needed a gallon of water to wash it all down. The nut roast was ultra dry even with the gravy applied, the roast potatoes were cardboard like as was the the cauliflower and the yorkshire pudding, well that was just simply dry and burnt!

We didn't complain mainly because you just get to the point were you can't believe that they would have the cheek to serve such muck up. It looked like what it tasted. Prison food on death row I would imagine would have been nicer than this muck. Why do places like this feel that they can do this and get away with it. I only ate a couple of mouthfuls to be polite but really couldn't even pretend to eat anymore.

We would go back but would never have the sunday roast again.
Comment on this reader review

Hector John Ktorides
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 5
Tuesday, April 08, 2008

A really disapointing lunch with 5 friends. None of us enjoyed the food, salad drenced in a think dressing that made it uneatable, a nut roast that was inedible, cold chips. Even thought we booked a table we had to wait ages to be seated. There are far nicer places to eat in Marylebone High Street.
Comment on this reader review

Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 1
Sunday, March 09, 2008

I truly supported this restaurant when it first opened - great food, great service and great ambiance. NOT ANY MORE. Dreadful food, even more dreadful service - very slow, rude, inefficient, disorganized - no team working so bad all around
Comment on this reader review

Laura, London
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 2
Sunday, March 02, 2008

My husband went to Eat and Two Veg a couple months ago to test their well reviewed vegetarian dishes. We ordered two vege burger and fries.

They were absolutely disgusting as the onion topping of my burger was so thick and hard that I couldn't even chew, the vegetable burger was burnt like a piece of charcoal and tasted bitter.

Of course we both stop eating the food after the initial 2minutes.

They also totally forgot our order of side salad.

It wasn't just a case of my dish and so was his (his burger was very cold inside).

Additionally they took a long time to serve our drink and finally brought a banana smoothy ( or something like that) instead of my cranberry juice.

When the waitress brought the bill we found our missing side salad was listed, so we asked another waiter to take it off from the bill.

Then he was so rude and aggressively snatched the bill from my husband's hand ran away from our table without any apology.

In the end we received a revised bill and apology from the general manager (although she didn’t look sincerely sorry as she was trying to explain by saying 'But...' all the way through)

We both thought our entire dish was horrible and the whole experience of being in the restaurant was so unpleasant and upsetting, we promised ourselves not to go there and mention that evening.

This nightmarish experience with Eat and Two Veg traumatised us so bad that we won't be going to eat in any vegetarian restaurant for a long time ahead.
Comment on this reader review

MH - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Monday, February 04, 2008

Great place for vegetarians (and vegans) to bring their omnivorous friends. We both had the Chinese dumplings to start, which were delicious. I had the Marylebone hotpot - very filling and perfectly seasoned. My husband had the lasagne, again very tasty and nicely presented. Desserts were also delicious and I was impressed at the number of vegan wines of their list.

I've read a few negative reviews about dietary requirements, and was unlucky enough to sit next to a load complainer who was short on explanation of what he needed when ordering. If you have a specific dietry requirement other than vegetarian it really is your responsibility to communicate this effectively. Many dishes are marked as having a vegan option, if that's what you want you must make sure you tell your waiter. If you are a vegetarian who eats dairy but not eggs, then stick to the vegan options! (the table next to me refused their meal as they ordered a cheese burger, telling the waiter they were lactose eating vegetarians. When the burger came with mayo (containing eggs) they sent it back. Life's too short, if you're complicated, stick to vegan or explain your requirements to the letter...
Comment on this reader review

CG
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 8
Monday, January 21, 2008

As a non-vegetarian I was a bit wary, but this place was fantastic. Its 'diner' style interior is just perfect for a chilled out weekend lunch, and the staff are really friendly and helpful.

My group all played it safe with various versions of the veggie burger/mushroom burger etc, but they were all nice, and well presented with salad and coleslaw. Great smoothies/juices were also available. It is nice to leave a restaurant feeling stuffed but knowing you have eaten pretty healthily!

I would recommend this as a great lunch place; not so much for evening meals as it is perhaps too casual.
Comment on this reader review

Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Saturday, November 10, 2007

I ate here several times in the past two years and everytime the food was good and the atmosphere nice. I think it's the better place for a veggie breakfast in London.
Comment on this reader review

francescabox - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Friday, September 21, 2007

As a vegan living in London, I thought Eat and Two Veg was the perfect choice for a recent special night out. I left disappointed. The food was somewhere between lukewarm and cold -- my Moroccan tajine and his veggie burger and fries all included. Seasoning was off and I found myself salting my bland dish far too much, before I finally gave up. Also, the tajine is labeled as "vegan" but is listed as being covered in a yogurt dressing; when I inquired (thinking perhaps this was a soya or other vegan-friendly yogurt), the waitress said they're have to leave the yogurt off. Good thing I asked. We had two mains and two soft drinks, and it came to about ₤22. Not outrageous, but far too much for a less than satisfactory meal. Food aside, the service was great and friendly, and the atmosphere was quite nice. We were there on a Saturday evening, at which time I expected it to be packed. We were the only diners. Perhaps people have caught on that the food is quite sub-par?
Comment on this reader review

Christopher Gohlke
Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 5
Sunday, September 09, 2007

As Eat and Two Veg is a well-known and prominent vegetarian restaurant, I really wanted to be able to give them a great review. The first time I ate here was a couple of years ago, and I have to say was disappointed. Most reviews of this place rate it very highly however, so I guessed I must have just made a bad choice.

We chose a vegetable mezze dish to share, containing a selection of veggie bites. Overall it was good, although the humous was relatively tasteless. The other starters also sounded good, and included grilled Thai soya with peanut sauce and asparagus. When it came to choosing a main however, the choice was harder. The only item which really stood out was the spinach-based Sunday roast, not available on a weekday. I was tempted by the veggie bangers and mash, but as I was eating in a vegetarian restaurant I felt obliged to order something more traditional and adventurous that was not simply a meat substitute. I opted for Moroccan tajine, described as cauliflower, fennel and pea tajine, served with organic walnut & sultana couscous and a yoghurt dressing. When it came however, it was disappointing. The walnuts gave the couscous a nice bite, but the tajine itself was bland and (like the humous) had very little flavour. As a meat-eater, my co-diner had chosen a protein schnitzel which was much nicer and came with garlicy spinach and a creamy wine and watercress sauce. Perhaps the sausage and mash would have been a better choice, but it seems silly that to get a decent tasty meal in a vegetarian restaurant, you have to order something like the schnitzel which is really a meat substitute and quite possibly only included in their menu so as to appeal to meat eaters. For dessert, we shared a seasonal fruit crumble with custard. This was tasty and satisfying, much better than my main.

The total bill came to £63.00 for a shared starter, two mains plus a side-dish of mash, a shared dessert, a bottle of wine, one beer, a sherry and one Irish coffee. Overall this is not a particularly cheap place with mains starting from about £9.00. There are however dishes to appeal to carnivores meaning this is somewhere you can take non-veggies, but they do need to try harder on some of their dishes. Even if it was just bad luck and I have twice ordered the wrong dishes, it does vegetarianism a disservice to offer such bland and tasteless items as the tajine and the humous.
Comment on this reader review

budget veggie reviews - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 5
Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Had a bit of difficulty finding a nice veggie restaurant open on Saturday lunchtime as a birthday treat for my dad. Whole family (or at least, my side) went - two carni/omnivores, three vegetarians, ages 6-70ish. All highly satisfied. The restaurant aims at a "tasty staples" market rather than haute cuisine, but this still required quite a bit of imagination translated for vegetarians. My veggy parents had not come across crispy fried "luck" (duck substitute) before and were thrilled at the whole concept. Two of us had the Lancashire Hot Pot, which was delicious. I'm not at all bothered by the "meat substitute" emphasis. Good to see somewhere try something different, in my view. Puddings were nice, and they had some super soft drinks. Half portions were available for children at half price (though there was nothing to tell you so) - so much better than a special - i.e super-dull - kids menu, in my experience. Noise levels weren't too bad, considering that it was a large and very busy restaurant. There was some music playing, but it was strictly background - not intrusive . Staff were helpful and pleasant. I also found the prices quite reasonable for a full meal on a very nice street in central London, where rents are probably sky-high.

Only criticism - my main course could have done with a good stir to even out slightly variable temperatures before serving. Didn't spoil the meal though.
Comment on this reader review

Lemur in the Sun
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Saturday, March 24, 2007