If you are a vegan foodie or just a food lover, you need to try Mildreds!
As I’m sure all of you are aware, veganism is at an all-time high at the moment. Whether it be athletes, celebrities or everyday people, the rise of eating plant based diets has become a common trend. I would personally consider it a very mainstream, although that may be due to the fact I am a Millennial. If you are not familiar with who a millennial is, researchers Neil Howe and William Strauss suggested millennials are “those born in 1982 and approximately the 20 years thereafter”. It has been discovered that Millennials are central drivers of veganism and therefore, is why I can personally see the plant-based movement so prevalent amongst my peers. A brief overview of the increasing popularity of veganism shows that between 2004 to 2018 the number of people in the UK who identify as vegan has increased by 350%.
It is easy to see the integration of plant-based cuisine within supermarkets, who have recently begun offering a larger selection of ready-to-eat vegan cookery. Moreover, many chains such as Pret a Manger have opened ‘Veggie Pret’ where they specialise in vegetarian but also vegan recipes, such as vegan macaroni and brownies. As the stigma amongst vegan cuisine being boring and bland has been well abolished, consumers are far more likely to visit vegan restaurants than prior to the rise in veganism. On top of that many trend savvy entrepreneurs have launched their own businesses along the plant-based movement.
Although one business who have been in the industry for more than 30 years, have fine-tuned their vegan and veggie menu. Mildreds initial aim was “To open a restaurant serving good value, fresh and colourful international vegetarian food”. They Launched their first café in Soho and were told they would last six months’ maximum, obviously people were ignorant to the new wave of clean eaters, Mildreds proved the sceptics wrong and now have four restaurants including their Soho branch, as well as Camden, Kings Cross and Dalston.
I recently visited the Camden restraint which is perfectly located on the peak of Camden lock. After the busy chaos of the area this restaurant was a pleasant surprise, the atmosphere within the eatery was calm, clean and cosy. As Mildreds work on a no reservations policy it took a few minutes to be seated which was another surprise as I presumed it would take much longer.
Mildreds website helped me navigate the best location for me to eat as the menus differ slightly between branches. Ultimately, I decided to go for the Southern Fried mock chicken strips with sweet potato fries. While their menu has a lot of variety from Asian and Middle Eastern dishes which sound delicious, I have never tried vegan mock chicken and was intrigued to see if It was better than it sounds. Needless to say I was not disappointed, not only were the chicken strips delectable but the side salad that is served with it was glazed with the most beautiful dressing and consisted of a mass of shredded vegetables unlike the usual bland leafy foliage that is usually served in most restaurants. As well as polishing off a massive plate of food I also had one of their fresh organic juices which are a must have!
On the contrary to this Vegan themed feature, I personally am a pescetarian, I would love to give up all products that are derived from animals but I am not that devoted at this point in my life. Although, I thoroughly enjoy vegan cuisine and eat it as regularly as possible I would definitely recommend Mildreds as it without a doubt my new favourite vegan restaurant and I can’t wait to try the rest of the menu.
