Boxing clever
Written by Starvin Marvin @ East End Life Wednesday, 08 October 2008 18:37
THE new shopping mall at Cabot Place West has added a few more outlets to the growing list of retailers setting up shop in Canary Wharf.
Zara, Duchamps and Hugo Boss are just some of the firms occupying the newly-developed space, which is becoming quite a treat for shopaholics.
And, if after dragging yourself around the shops you are in need of a little refreshment, the restaurant chain Leon has opened an outlet, with its menu of seasonal produce and farm-fresh foods.
The restaurant, which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, sells very healthy fare – organic porridge for breakfast, flapjacks, brownies and cookies for elevensies and tangines, wraps and superfood salads for lunch. For those doing a late shift, Leon has hot mezze, soups and puddings on its dinner menu.
Opting for the relative calm of a Tuesday lunchtime, my friend and I were greeted at the door and given a menu. There were a limited number of tables and the chefs seemed to cater as much for takeaway customers as eat in diners.
From the stylishly-produced and informative menu, I picked roasted sweet potato falafel, with a nectarine, orange blossom and almond pie for afters, washed down with a lemon, ginger and mint quencher.
My friend chose the grilled freedom food chicken with Mexican salsa, pecan pie and a blackcurrant quencher.
Freedom chicken is a kind of poor man’s free range – the birds are reared with lots of space, light and straw, and their farming is RSPCA-approved.
Our meals were served in cardboard boxes – a practical and very trendy touch, with organic pilaff rice and coleslaw, or ‘slaw’ as they called it, on the side.
My falafels were a little on the bland side. Only after I’d finished did I notice they recommend you buy chilli sauce on the side, which would have livened things up a bit.
Coupled with organic brown rice and ‘slaw’, my lunch was nice if a little worthy. It could have done with some mayonnaise on the ‘slaw’ to make it feel less of a
chore.
And I say that as a life-long vegetarian, who’s not adversed to a bit of lentil munching. Good job I had a huge slice of cake for afters, which was scrummy.
My friend’s chicken, he said, was lovely and the rice and ‘slaw’ complimented it beautifully. And I would’ve given my opinion on the pecan pie but he wolfed the lot of it while I was still wading through my organic pilaff. But he said it was fab.
My only real complaint was that the waitress asked the couple sitting next to us if they could vacate their table, while they were still chewing the last mouthfuls of their food. And, with organic brown rice, the chewing can take a while...
Zara, Duchamps and Hugo Boss are just some of the firms occupying the newly-developed space, which is becoming quite a treat for shopaholics.
And, if after dragging yourself around the shops you are in need of a little refreshment, the restaurant chain Leon has opened an outlet, with its menu of seasonal produce and farm-fresh foods.
The restaurant, which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, sells very healthy fare – organic porridge for breakfast, flapjacks, brownies and cookies for elevensies and tangines, wraps and superfood salads for lunch. For those doing a late shift, Leon has hot mezze, soups and puddings on its dinner menu.
Opting for the relative calm of a Tuesday lunchtime, my friend and I were greeted at the door and given a menu. There were a limited number of tables and the chefs seemed to cater as much for takeaway customers as eat in diners.
From the stylishly-produced and informative menu, I picked roasted sweet potato falafel, with a nectarine, orange blossom and almond pie for afters, washed down with a lemon, ginger and mint quencher.
My friend chose the grilled freedom food chicken with Mexican salsa, pecan pie and a blackcurrant quencher.
Freedom chicken is a kind of poor man’s free range – the birds are reared with lots of space, light and straw, and their farming is RSPCA-approved.
Our meals were served in cardboard boxes – a practical and very trendy touch, with organic pilaff rice and coleslaw, or ‘slaw’ as they called it, on the side.
My falafels were a little on the bland side. Only after I’d finished did I notice they recommend you buy chilli sauce on the side, which would have livened things up a bit.
Coupled with organic brown rice and ‘slaw’, my lunch was nice if a little worthy. It could have done with some mayonnaise on the ‘slaw’ to make it feel less of a
chore.
And I say that as a life-long vegetarian, who’s not adversed to a bit of lentil munching. Good job I had a huge slice of cake for afters, which was scrummy.
My friend’s chicken, he said, was lovely and the rice and ‘slaw’ complimented it beautifully. And I would’ve given my opinion on the pecan pie but he wolfed the lot of it while I was still wading through my organic pilaff. But he said it was fab.
My only real complaint was that the waitress asked the couple sitting next to us if they could vacate their table, while they were still chewing the last mouthfuls of their food. And, with organic brown rice, the chewing can take a while...
The meal came to a reasonable £19.
Leon, Cabot Place West, Canary Wharf, E14. Tel: 7719 6200.
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