The chef behind London’s “mostly vegan” restaurant Tendril is to launch a new plant-first concept at Somerset House next month.
Rishim Sachdeva will open the 27-seater Café Petiole off Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court, joining Skye Gyngell’s restaurant Spring and the coffee shop WatchHouse.
Named after the connecting stalk that attaches a plant step to its leaf, Café Petiole will serve an all-day menu, with both dine-in and takeaway dishes, as well as a range of home condiments such as white bean spread and his much-enjoyed “Chinatown soy glaze”.
Sachdeva has designed the menu alongside Tendril’s head of pastry Tarryn Williams. Breakfast items will include toasted banana bread and baked courgette, feta and honey swirls, while coffee will come from Climpson & Sons.
Lunch dishes will include the likes of mushroom focaccia with daikon pickle, blue corn tostadas with smoked artichoke and lime, and Sachdeva’s famous Tendril Tiramisu, a vegan version of the Italian classic. To drink, various kombuchas and low-intervention European wines.
Sachdeva said: "We’ve been working on this project behind the scenes for some time now.
“This is a whole new concept and brand for me and to be launching at a venue I’ve loved since my first visit to London all those years ago is an incredible honour. We are super grateful to our friends at Somerset House for the opportunity.
“Café Petiole takes the same plant-first approach and ethos of our restaurant menu, but offers a host of new dishes and baked goods to eat in or take out, ideal for lunch on the go, or meeting up with friends over the summer in the beautiful Somerset House courtyard surrounds.”
Williams added: “Petiole is such an exciting new chapter for us and for plant-based food in London and I’m so proud to be collaborating on this project.
“From my perspective, a platform in London for incredible vegan baking and desserts is a space that still needs filling.”
