Review: The Gate Restaurant Islington

Recently we were invited to a fantastic Vegetarian restaurant – The Gate in Islington. Obviously a very popular place, booking is essential as there wasn’t a table free in the restaurant when we went.. It looks like The Gate does a great pre-theatre trade and so if you want to eat in the evening, it may be useful to take this into consideration.

Upon arrival, there was a bit of a lengthy wait until we were shown to a table, however, I didn't feel that it detracted too much from our overall experience. The warm glow of the lights from the restaurant was welcome as we entered. The ambiance of this restaurant is really lovely. The owners have tucked in as many tables as possible, and so whilst it can feel a little cramped, the closeness of the table to other diners makes for a cosy and intimate feel.

I have to say, having eaten at a lot of restaurants recently, the service at The Gate was excellent. The attention and effectiveness of the waiting staff at The Gate far surpassed any we have received elsewhere. Our waiter was unaware that we were reviewing the restaurant, and so the experience we had was that of any of regular diner. His attention to detail was brilliant – even simple things like keeping the table topped up with drinks, and providing fresh cutlery and napkins for each course which is often overlooked by other eateries. He gave us time to choose our courses, without having to wait too long for our food.

There was lots on offer on the varied menu .We started with the bread basket, which included some really interesting varieties of bread with seeds, olives, and other wonderful fillings. For starter, hubby chose the Halloumi which he said was absolutely amazing. I had artichoke, and fennel in batter with bean salad, again which was fantastic.



For main course, I had the Tortilla, As a big fan of Mexican food, I was not disappointed, I preferred the butternut squash and goats cheese tortilla over the beetroot, and spinach tortilla, but both tasted absolutely lovely. Hubby had the Thai Green Curry which was really creamy and delicious. The dish was presented really well, and a the pickled green papaya was a fantastic accompaniment to the dish.The only thing that was slightly disappointing was the tofu as hubby is not a big fan. He would have preferred just vegetables.




For Dessert, we chose the Incredible Sharing Platter for £15 between the two of us. This dish really is a show-stopper indeed, and was the perfect end to the meal. I also again, loved eating desserts which were completely Vegetarian, without worrying whether there was gelatin or other non-veggie ingredients in them. The chocolate mousse was so chocolaty and you could tell that it was good quality.The range of desserts was fantastic.





For a London restaurant, this establishment is very affordable. When you take into consideration that for a reasonable price, you get freshly prepared food rather than a pre-packed microwavable meal, it is also another reason to give this restaurant a try.

I would wholeheartedly recommend a trip to this restaurant – whether you are Vegetarian or not. With Angel as the nearest tube station, it is pretty easy to get to from most routes in London. It is a fantastic eatery serving freshly prepared flavour-filed dishes containing interesting ingredients and flavor combinations. They also have a fantastic new Autumn Menu which we can't wait to try.

We will definitely be going back to sample the brunch menu as it looks amazing, and I’m sure the kids will love it also. The Gate also has a great new recipe book out if you want to try cooking the recipes at home.

Disclosure: We received a Free Meal in consideration for review