Quick Review
Ethos
48 Eastcastle St,
Fitzrovia,
London
W1W 8DX
Phone: 020 3581 1538
Split the Bill paid an on the spur of the moment visit to the new veggie restaurant just off Oxford street - Ethos. There are plenty of eateries around this bit of Fitzrovia but this one has a rather different feel. The decor is whitewashed walls and multi-level tables and chairs, booths and pedestals of food. The vista is punctuated with a birch wood that has been incorporated into the centre of the space.
Foodwise - it's a rather marvellous buffet of veggie gems all on display at the right temperature and with enticing labels - simply pick up a plate or bowl, load it up and go get it weighed and paid.
SN: The process of choosing is in truth the hardest bit only because of the mouth-watering dishes before you. As you spin round the tables you also get scents and sights that you bookmark for return on a subsequent course or indeed day. The meal is entirely your own making.
I loved it and had far too much first time round - and second time round and then had a lovely slice of pecan pie. I think I spent around £25 - but I ate like a king.
Our Petit Chablis was very reasonable £28 though it needed 20 minutes of breathing to lose its edge
SN: I'd particularly recommend the BBQ "spare ribs" which are actually wheat gluten, the "Scotch eggs" made with aloo coating and perhaps most memorable in joint first place (though I didn't try everything) the Courgette with Feta - which was light and delicate but not lacking taste and the Risotto balls - crispy on the outside and mouth watering on the inside.
LM: The dishes are sensibly arranged in a suggestion of what would pair well together but I largely ignored this in favour of heaping my plate. Particular favourites for me were a beautifully marinated aubergine steak and the aforementioned courgette and feta salad - the quality of the ingredients they use is clear. Sadly I didn't have room for dessert but the selection of cakes, pies and pastries looked appetising. They also have an 'all you can eat' brunch option on weekends with or without booze which I can imagine being great fun (and enough calories for a weekend!)
The real beauty of this concept of course is that it encourages you to try new things - as it happened I didn't enjoy the BBQ seitan ribs but as I only had one it was no loss. The only downside was that on occasion when certain dishes ran out they weren't replaced very quickly so you can end up missing dishes you want to try (or repeat)
We may return sooner than we would to any other venue - not least because although there were queues at 8pm at 6:30 it was easy to get a table.
As long as they continue to use good quality, fresh ingredients it's hard to see how Ethos won't be a roaring success. Get in while they've still got space!
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