I clambered out of the cab onto
the quiet London side street in Primrose Hill and it felt as though all of my
worries and stresses from the day remained in that taxi as I began my serene
and blissful evening at Manna. The ambience of the restaurant is divine with
quirky yet calming decoration that sets the tone for the combined joyful &
relaxing evening which this restaurant is so skilled at creating. For a vegan
the menu was more than just a breath of fresh air, each description of every
dish enticed me to a degree where I wasn’t in a position where I could choose
what I was going to order. Each dish sounded impeccable to the point where I was
forced to regress back many years and leave it to my Mum to decide what I was
going to eat. It was just so refreshing to look at a menu and
know that I could eat all of it, the
inevitable problem being that I was then strongly inclined to eat all of it (self-restraint isn’t my strong
point!). The range of dishes that Manna offers spans to cater for every
possible need and desire whether you’re a person who wants to try a unique and
‘never tasted before’ dish or go back to the classics like ‘Bangers and Mash’.
I had a colourful start to the
night as I ordered their milkshake that was made up of coconut milk with
flavours of strawberry and mango. My Mum and I ended up sharing a combination
of three starters as a mezze consisting of the cannellini bean
slider, an Indian pizza and the raw spicy almond & date falafel. By
the end I was a fully converted fan of unhealthy dishes made healthy. The
accumulation of spices and flavours made me feel exceedingly excited (maybe
verging on the edge of being too
happy!). Within 5 minutes the plate was
licked clean, I shan’t attempt to describe the dishes in copious detail as it
would only fatally do them injustice; you just simply have to try them for yourself!
For mains Mum and I shared the smoked cashew cheese fajitas, the different sauces worked so well together
and didn’t overpower the flavours of the pinto beans & corn filling instead everything just complimented each other perfectly. By this
point I’d probably eaten enough, so I knew it was time to go that step further
and order pudding. I had a raw dish that had only just been added to the menu
that day; raw chocolate hazelnut tart. I think that’s enough said. If the sound
of that doesn’t physically excite you then I’ll push it over edge and inform
you of the raspberry coulis and coconut ice-cream served with it. Boom; heaven
on a plate. I finished the last mouthful and I wondered how food could get much
better than that. To round the occasion off I had the ‘manna mint magic’, a
refreshing hot drink filled with ginger, lemon, lime and other wonderful ‘feel
good’ ingredients, it also helped my digestion that evening as an added bonus.
I would call it ‘feel good food’
as I couldn’t help but feel really happy eating it, yet it wasn’t the type of
meal that left me feeling stodgy or regretful about the quantities that I
indulged. The presentation of the food was beautiful and, to me, looked like a
work of art, yet another positive factor that added to the whole Manna
experience. I felt slightly guilty not
savouring the moment before eating, instead I dove straight into each course as
if I hadn’t eaten in weeks, but it all just tasted so good! Needless to say
that the service was quick and efficient and all of the staff were friendly and
cheerful. Celebrity fans of the restaurant include Anne Hathaway, Russell
Brand, Mila Kunis and Chris Martin; well if it’s good enough for them I suppose
it’ll do for me! I think it’s safe to say that they couldn’t have chosen a
better suited adjective to name the restaurant after. ‘Manna’, meaning ‘food of
the God’s’, is the most articulate description of exactly what
this restaurant provides.
No comments:
Post a Comment