For those of you who are unfamiliar with The Fish and the Chip, it’s a new(ish) restaurant taking up the old Maiyango space in the Leicester city centre, run by the same team behind Maiyango. According to the website, the restaurant offers a mix of old school classics and street food inspired dishes, as well as a full bar offering beer, wine and inventive and classic cocktails. They also happen to have several vegan dishes on the menu including vegan tikka fish & chips (!), but I have to admit I’m yet to try their full menu. That said, when I heard about the vegan takeover I couldn’t book my table quick enough. For 3 full days, The Fish and the Chip turned into the Plant & Bean, offering a vegan-only menu with starters, mains, salads, sides, desserts and even a full vegan cocktail, beer and wine menu.
The restaurant itself is beautiful inside. I was worried it would feel far too casual – like a coffee shop or café – but in fact the layout made it feel like a nice, contemporary restaurant that works for a quick lunch or a longer, more intimate dinner. When we arrived, there was also a DJ mixing tracks which I loved – the music was fantastic and lifted your mood as soon as you stepped inside.
Andrew and I sat at a two-person table along the wall and ordered our drinks – prosecco for me, cider for Andrew. We then decided to share the cauliflower nachos to start, and my god, how can a (usually) boring vegetable possibly taste so good?! The cauliflower was lightly dusted in a cornmeal coating and fried, then topped with a cacao and black bean tomato salsa, smashed avocado, vegan cheese and pickled chillies. They were just divine, and my only gripe was I wish we’d ordered two!
After much deliberation, I finally settled on the Sicilian sub for my main, along with a side of skinny fries. This dish was, again, so delicious. The meatballs were handmade from mushrooms, aubergine and olive oil, and smothered in a lovely, authentic Italian tomato sauce, basil pesto, toasted pine nuts and almond parm cheese, then served over spinach on a crusty roll that was light and fluffy on the inside. The chips were great too, but the sub was outstanding.
Andrew on the other hand went for the Asian hot vog – a grilled, seasoned homemade sausage with kimchi, gochujang sauce and spring onions served with a ginger and miso slaw. The flavours worked so well together, and it was another really delicious meal. We also ordered a side of perfectly ripe crushed avocado, Asian slaw, and sriracha mayo.
We had a chat with the person behind the Plant & Bean after our meal, and he said this vegan takeover was something he had been working on for a while, as he has always had an interest in vegan food. Everything was made by the usual Fish & Chip kitchen staff – and you could really tell that the dishes were from a professional team as they were so inventive, flavourful and beautifully presented. They did say they may look into doing more vegan things (and maybe a vegan only restaurant??) in the future, so keep your eyes peeled.