Saf - the first gourmet vegan restaurant in London

[twist]

Did anyone see the review in todays metro on Saf's- the first gourmet, raw vegan restaurant in London.
It got quite a good review, despite being tried out by a meat eater, who towards the end of the article came out with
"sending someone like me -whose last meal request will always be based on some kind of dead animal-to review saf might be a bit off, but the raw-food-eating vegans we know were too busy getting blood transfusions".

Anyway- has anyone tried this place yet?

Twist

[Stu]

I keep looking for an excuse to go. Let's have a veganforum no-meat-up there!

[bryzee86]

What's that sound?

Oh it's the money truck backing up!

[Gwydion]

I keep looking for an excuse to go. Let's have a veganforum no-meat-up there!

Weird, was thinking of suggesting some sort of meet-up there earlier.

I really want to try it out, and as much as don't mind booking a table for one *sob + sad face*, some sort of meet-up would be mucho's grand!

The menu on the website has now been updated, and includes prices by the way. http://www.safrestaurant.co.uk/

[Gorilla]

thanks for that link, nice website and the menu looks pretty good, if a tad on the pricy side. i'd be up for a no-meat-up there

[bryzee86]

maybe when I'm earning £20k+ i might consider going there.

[Gorilla]

ha, i don't earn anywhere near that much either, but i figure it'd be worth a try!

[Gwydion]

ha, i don't earn anywhere near that much either, but i figure it'd be worth a try!

Snap.... crackle and pop

[twist]

maybe we could all do a dine and dash??

[Sluggie]

Saf's had a very mixed review in The Observer a couple of weeks back:

http://browse.guardian.co.uk/search?...20rayner%20saf

[Gorilla]

that link doesn't work for me, Sluggie.

[Sluggie]

Odd. I've put a different link in. It's the second item, called "It's Grim Down Saf".

[Gorilla]

thanks. i still think a review by a non-vegan is going to be less complimentary than someone coming from a vegan point of view. i'm sick of reading reviews that say things like "some of the worst food I have ever endured has been in the name of veganism. It's not that I actively seek the death of an animal. But hell, a little light slaughter does seem to make things taste better".

but i guess he has a point when he says there were things on the menu that could've been nice and were just very poor. still sounds worth a try imo.

[Gwydion]

I know this is in the wrong place, but continuing from above...

So are we going to have a lirrrle meet-up here of some sort? If not, I was thinking of maybe popping in for a light luncheon or something this weekend. Anybody in the area and would like to join?

[twist]

hey saw your post about a meet-up at Saf's. The weekend luncheon thing sounded so good had it not been for work!!!
Maybe a meet up there would be good though at some point.
Anyone else interested?
x

[Gorilla]

i'd be interested in a meet-up there although am a bit short of cash to make it this weekend. lunch is a good idea because we're likely to eat less than we would at dinner, making it a slightly cheaper event

[whalespace]

maybe when I'm earning £20k+ i might consider going there.

I remember sitting in 'Beatroot' ..or something, in London, eating something which was purdy good; but gazing at the market stalls outside, I couldn't help feeling a bit of a plonka. I guess I'm so accustomed to scrimping, that a speed peeler seems easier than a note from the queen.

Maybe you could get a copy of the menu and make it yourselves. No cooking right, so just mixing then?

[Gwydion]

...lunch is a good idea because we're likely to eat less than we would at dinner, making it a slightly cheaper event

This was my thinking, but called them today and was told they aren't open at the moment during 'lunch hours', only evenings

[Gorilla]

nuts. well, we'll just have to be stingy about how much we eat

i'm certainly happy to pass on the 'cheese' course

[Gwydion]

Blasphemy!

On both points....

[Gorilla]

haha, well i wasn't all that impressed by the sound of the fake cheese course from that Observer review, even if the writer was biased.

[Gwydion]

Ahhh, haven't read that review.

I would like to try me some nutty 'cheese'! You can pinch some of mine to try if this meet-up ever happens

[Elahiya]

i would like to try it at saf´s. although it´s not that pricey it might be worth a shot. who´d like to join?

[bryzee86]

It is pricey!!

[twist]

i would like to try it at saf´s. although it´s not that pricey it might be worth a shot. who´d like to join?

I'm up for that- anyone else?
x

[Gwydion]

I'm still up for it. Was thinking of maybe going down to London at some point this weekend, while I've still got some money.

..although it´s not that pricey...

Sorry, what was that? Cocktails are on you? Awesome!

[Elahiya]

sorry, I meant the oppsite of "pricey", mistake on my side.... but I´d love to taste one of those cocktails, only one....

well, I´m also up for it. I´m new here in London, don´t know anyone at all, no plans for weekend except I´d like to go to the demo at Harrod´s. but that would be in the morning anyway. any one else?

[twist]

unfortunately can't do this weekend- only the Sunday evening really. Or was everyone thinking Saturday?
x

[Elahiya]

I don´t mind, doesn´t matter to me if sat or sun

[Gorilla]

i'm far too skint to make it there this weekend!

[Elahiya]

then maybe next weekend?

[Marrers]

My friends went to the opening 'taster' night at Saf where they had tray of lots of things to try and they raved about the food. Going anywhere with a group (of vegans) is great because you get to try a forkful of the things everyone else has ordered as well as your own dish!

I'm booked in to go in a couple of weeks and am really looking forward to it. The Metro review was great cos it got quite a few of my meat eating friends suggesting they should go there with me!

[flying plum]

bryzee - i wouldn't say it is 'cheap', but it's not that dear, given that it's a pretty classy place. i reckon you could eat for two there, if you shared a dessert perhaps, and didn't have every course (you don't need it), for £50 or so. it's not cheap, but i've spent as much at somewhere like Mildred's (which i always think is quite dear for what it is...), but it woudl have to be for an occasion o something i guess.

amanda

[Ames]

I wanna move to London dammit! Am turning green over here . . .

[Crafterga]

I had the good fortune to eat there last night with a group of vegan friends. It was fantastic!
The "cheese" course was absolutely amazing.
It was expensive (our bill came out at £40 a head including drinks), but definitely worth saving up for!

[nickysr]

Hi there - I went to Saf with my husband for my birthday in May - it's OK - some dishes were good - some so-so. It is not expensive - just London priced! I had a few amazing cocktails and the cheese course is just nut cheeses - think Borsin style soft cheese.
The crackers were dehydrated pulses - really nice in fact.
The mains are a let down though - my 'lasagne' was layers of raw veg so not really very interesting. The Beetroot ravioli was OK. The desserts were the best part - we had the cheesecake and the chocolate tart - both were fantastic. Jay Rayner's review in the Observer was actually very fair and I would agree with the majority of his points.

[bexi]

I'm going to London tomorrow & have managed to convince my omni family that they really want to go to a raw vegan restaurant. So we're going to Saf's for lunch. I'm quite impressed with my persuasive skills/ability to manipulate lol. And I'm pretty excited . Any recommendations about what to get?

[BlackCats]

Hi there - I went to Saf with my husband for my birthday in May - it's OK - some dishes were good - some so-so. It is not expensive - just London priced! I had a few amazing cocktails and the cheese course is just nut cheeses - think Borsin style soft cheese.
The crackers were dehydrated pulses - really nice in fact.

Uuurm yum! Why have I not gone to Saf's yet?

[Gwydion]

I'm going to London tomorrow & have managed to convince my omni family that they really want to go to a raw vegan restaurant. So we're going to Saf's for lunch. I'm quite impressed with my persuasive skills/ability to manipulate lol. And I'm pretty excited . Any recommendations about what to get?

Nice one bexi! If you could let us know your thoughts?

Still haven't been either

[Gorilla]

hope you all enjoy it Bexi. nickysr recommended some choices earlier on in the thread. i like the sound of the nearly all of the menu

[twinkle]

If we all ate something cheap but filling before going in there, and then we went as a big group but just ordered one thing each and had a bite of everything it would work out quite cheap

[twinkle]

Saf's had a very mixed review in The Observer a couple of weeks back:

http://browse.guardian.co.uk/search?...20rayner%20saf

What a wanky article. I've read several very similar ones and they make me sad, and annoyed that the journalists in question are so lazy and they just seem to be recycling each others tired points.

[nickysr]

Took an American client to Saf two weeks ago for a business dinner - they have changed the menu already! Now have cooked food too - kind of defeats the purpose of being a raw food restaurant but the gyosas and ravioli dishes were really good but not raw. My client loved it and said it was the best vegan place she had ever been to! As she is American, she has eaten in a lot of raw food kitchens and she loved this one.
They seem to be having specials every night - with cocktails for only 6 pounds on some nights.

[cedarblue]

Now have cooked food too - kind of defeats the purpose of being a raw food restaurant

that's disappointing do you think they hyped up the raw for the press attention initially? did you get a chance to ask them about the change of menu to some cooked?

edit; i just checked out the site; with ref to cooked, was the food fully cooked or warmed or dehydrated to the max acceptable to still call the food 'raw'?

[Marrers]

I ate there several weeks back and really enjoyed it, although I was not full afterwards so snacked when I got home .
There were 4 of us so I got to try quite a few dishes and quite a few cocktails (which are fab). Particularly enjoyed the cheese course and the beetroot salad.

[bexi]

Well, I really enjoyed my lunch at Saf. It's the first vegan restaurant I've ever been to. I too noticed that the menu had changed (it was different from what was listed on the website whenI checked). And yeah, my meal wasn't particularly raw... There were 7 of us all together and we got a few starters to share - olives, spring rolls, boursin cheeses, nachos, beetroot ravioli. All of these went down really well. They were yummy. The cheeses were a big hit with us all even though I'm the only vegan and my family seemed quite amazed at the concept of dehydrated raw crackers lol. I kinda agree that the mains aren't as impressive as the starters - I had a really nice hummous ciabatta sandwich. Not raw but good. Others tried out the "breakfast" which was scrambled tofu and stuff and the chickpea crepes. Everything looked good but I don't think anyone was particularly amazed by their food. However, my sisters & cousin got desserts and they were amazed by these lol. They were lovely raw cheesecakes and chocolate tarts and things... mm. A couple of family members moaned when they realised their coffees were made with (shock, horror ) soy milk! lol. But all in all we had a really good meal. Also, I loved the presentation of everything - saf is really stylish and cool. I will definitely try and go back sometime for an evening meal (when I'm feeling rich) and I reeeeally want to try out some of their cocktails.

[Korn]

[YOUTUBE]mux43qzWlK0[/YOUTUBE]

[nickysr]

The food I past had there was not raw - it was fully cooked - shame they have had to go down this route so soon...

[cedarblue]

good vid korn.

unless you are dehydrating to a specific temperature, how can you monitor a top temp of 48 degrees?

[flying plum]

re: the cooked food in saf, i went there at the end of april, and there was cooked stuff, so it's not a recent thing. plus, they have two other restaurants which i think employ a similar thing.

to be fair, a vegan restaurant is a challenge enough for a lot of people. completely raw might be stretching the old business plan too far, especially in winter in cold, grey london. at least they have a lot of raw things...

amanda