Plant Club Italian Vegan & Gluten-Free Restaurant

 

If you still don’t know, I am Italian and I like my food. I am very partial to traditional products and to be honest when someone mentions “vegan cheese” or “vegan something else” I am a bit dubious because how can another product substitute the creaminess of a burrata or the flavour of a specific dish? Well after a dinner at Plant Club, 49 Green Lanes, Newington Green, N16 9BU, London,  guided by award winning Italian chef Antonio Alderuccio, as well as his delicious dishes I had to eat a slice of humble pie. I have never tasted so many vegan and gluten-free options, all so flavoursome and beautiful to look at too. In the next pictures I will try to describe what my taste buds felt when hit by that amazing food.

 

First of all, I had a cheese board with a selection of vegan cheese, and I swear, you wouldn’t see the difference. The Veganzola had the right flavour, as well as the brie and the camembert. The Superstraccia was a plant-based cheese, creamy and indulgent. All cheese was served with organic Sicilian jams, chosen to be perfectly paired with the selection on the tray. 

This beautiful presentation didn’t stop me to sink my fork in this Burrella, which is a plant-based burrata served over a pepper sauce, with balsamic vinegar, pesto and crunchy noodles on top. Honestly it has nothing to envy to the original burrata, same creamy effect, perfect taste and balanced flavours. If I didn’t know that I was in a vegan restaurant I would have never guessed that it was a plant-based cheese.

 

To mop the juices of the pepper sauce and the stracciata, as well as spreading brie and camembert, I had the Indulgent Garlic Bread, gluten-free with a topping of Sicilian raw macerated datterini tomatoes, pesto, Superstraccia, balsamic vinegar and oregano. The crunchiness of the bread was perfect.

Now moving on with pasta, the first one was delicious gnocchi made with cauliflowers instead of potatoes and served with a lovage pesto. Gnocchi were supplied by Sunny & Luna and I will look for them even if I won’t manage to replicate the sauce created by chef Alderuccio.

I could not miss the Cacio e Pepe gnocchi, this time made in a traditional way with potatoes. No difference from the original dish despite the fact that the pecorino cheese was plant based. I am not just Italian, but I am from Rome so I feel very strongly for this dish, and here again I couldn’t say anything apart from “Wow!”

Last pasta dish was a generous plate of Casarecce with a sauce made with Jerusalem Artichokes, kale, pomegranate and plant-based cheese grated on top. All pasta is either freshly made or it is dry gluten-free so perfect for some dietary requirements.

I have left a small space for the dessert which blown me away. It was a “Memories of Croccantino” an ice cream we had in Italy, but maybe Wall’s was selling it here too. The dessert was panna cotta with Amarena Fabbri syrup and pistachio granella. This time I won’t tell you how the panna cotta was made even if I know it, but I can assure you that the taste was exactly as a traditional panna cotta, creamy and indulgent. To try these and other dishes, you can book from Thursday to Sunday. www.plantclub.uk