The all-you-can-eat lunchtime buffet, available from midday to 3.30pm, is good value for money: £7.50 to eat-in or £5.50 for a takeaway box. There’s a selection of tasty raw salads and hot dishes to choose from.

The evening à la carte service starts at 6pm, when the small restaurant fills up quickly. With its minimal decor and candlelit tables, 222 Vegan Cuisine has a cosy, unpretentious atmosphere. The menu is equally down to earth. Starters include homemade soup, a bean and tofu pancake, and pitta bread with dips. The hearty mains include a roast, pasta basilico, pumpkin and pine nut risotto, a tofu veggie burger and the customers’ favourite, seitan stroganoff. Simple dishes, but full of flavour. There are also salads and a couple of raw dishes, if you fancy something lighter. Desserts include tofu cheesecake, ice cream and raw chocolate torte. To quench your thirst: hot drinks, fresh juices and smoothies, and wine and beer with affordable organic options.

The wholesome, satisfying food at 222 Vegan Cuisine is no doubt what makes the restaurant so popular among vegans and non-vegans alike. It’s a big hit with families too. Make sure you book ahead for dinner – the word is definitely out.

The cafe’s popular all-day breakfast menu is extensive, with options to suit all appetites – from porridge to large cooked breakfasts complete with homemade baked beans. The chalkboard lunch menu offers a soup of the day, three sizeable salads and four hearty mains – usually a spicy chickpea stew, an expertly flavoured curry, a more traditional pasta dish and savoury pancakes. There are also tempting daily specials. And if you fancy something sweet, you have the choice of an old-school dessert like banoffee pie or fruit crumble, or one of the delicious cakes. All of the dishes are beautifully presented – the salads are topped with dainty fresh flowers – and they taste as good as they look.

There are several vegan options on the menu, including half of the cakes, and the majority of dishes can be made vegan on request. To drink, there’s tea, coffee, fresh juices and smoothies. The cafe also offers half-size, half-price food and drink for children, so it’s a great choice for families. It’s also a perfect place for catch ups with friends or quiet time with a coffee and a book, but not for working – laptops aren’t allowed at weekends or between 12pm and 3pm on weekdays, which helps to keep the atmosphere convivial.

East Dulwich is now one of the most popular places to eat out in South London, and the friendly Blue Brick Café continues to hold its own. Just to remember to bring cash as cards aren’t accepted.

The cafe isn’t run by a single person but a collective of member cooks who also maintain the space. While some of the cooks do have recurring shifts, the arrangement means no two days are the same and what’s on offer is truly international.

There’s always a starter (£3), a main (£8) and a dessert (£3). Each usually has two options to choose between, and will likely include a vegan and gluten-free dish. At least one night a week, the menu is entirely vegan. The cafe is unlicensed, but you’re encouraged to bring your own alcohol. There’s no corkage fee, but there is a 50p charge for a glass.

The bohemian spirit of the cafe is squarely linked to the history of Bonnington Square, in which it sits. In the 1980s, the square was left vacant. Houses were scheduled for demolition, but squatters moved in, occupied the buildings and, over time, came to own them. The squatters formed a housing collective and established a community garden. They set up Bonnington Centre and, inside, a vegetarian cafe providing a good, cheap meal for the community.

Today, the centre offers yoga and pilates classes, provides counselling and hosts film nights and community events. And, after more than 30 years, Bonnington Café remains one of south London’s unique treasures. It’s popular and busy, so book a table in advance by contacting the chef through the cafe’s website.

Don’t forget to bring cash — cards aren’t accepted.

The lunch and dinner menus change every week, but you’ll find creative dishes such as a beetroot burger served with beetroot chips and slaw; jackfruit and aubergine shawarma; vegan mac ‘n’ cheese; lentil bolognese on penne; and jerk plantain with mango salsa and turmeric cous cous.

On the tantalising Saturday brunch menu: huevos rancheros with homefries and smoky black beans; jerk plantain with scrambled tofu; a full vegan ‘traditional’ cooked breakfast, and more. The Sunday menu holds its own too, with a nut roast wellington served with roast vegetables and gravy. The food is always tasty and the portions generous.

When you enter the cafe, vibrant Van Gogh prints and impressionist murals welcome you into an airy room that opens up onto a large courtyard with seating. Colourful fairy lights lead the way up a spiral staircase to a charming room with many angles, many small windows and ‘The Starry Night’ painted on the ceiling.

There’s nothing pretentious about Café Van Gogh – with its chequered tablecloths and bric-a-brac on the shelves – and that’s probably why it attracts a good mix of people. It’s the type of relaxed place you can enjoy with a group or on your own. It’s the norm to see people reading the weekend papers or working with a coffee. So, if you’re looking for a quirky, arty cafe with great food and friendly staff, you’ve found it.

Galettes are Maloko’s raison d’être. Made from buckwheat – which is neither a grain nor related to wheat, but a distant relative of rhubarb – the galettes are gluten-free. There’s a range of vegetarian or vegan fillings to choose from, including sweet potato, spinach, asparagus, mushrooms, goats cheese, beetroot and jerk tofu. Served with a fresh side salad, the galettes are crispy on the outside and bursting with flavour on the inside. Size-wise, galette can be a substantial lunch or a more-than-adequate dinner.

Also on the menu are traditional crêpes with sweet fillings, and teas, coffees and reasonably priced fresh juices.

If you’re looking for somewhere south of the river that’s informal, friendly and a little bit different, Maloko’s the place.

Inside, tables for two or four sit beneath dimmed pendant lights, creating a cosy, if simple, interior. Near the back, a spiral staircase leads upstairs to more seating. Enclaves in the wall house small statues and icons, and several gold-coloured textiles hang from the wood-panelled walls. If the surroundings are modest, the menu is a blazing contrast: a wide-ranging list of over 50 individual options.

To start, there are South Indian specialities such as: vada, a serving of lentil donuts soaked in warm soup or served on their own; samosas; and rice dumplings with spices, nuts and chutney. Along with other fried snacks and soups, you can find different types of puri, an unleavened bread served with vegetables or chutneys.

For mains, there’s a terrific choice of vegetable curries (over a dozen including bhindi bhaji, channa masala, saag paneer); thalis (huge platters of starters, sides, curries and desserts), and uttapams, a thick rice and lentil pancake similar to a dosa but topped, like a pizza, with vegetables and spices.

The dosa is perhaps Sagar’s signature offering; it’s stuffed with potato, onions and carrots, flavoured with different spices, and served with coconut chutney and soup. If you don’t mind upstaging those around you, try the impressive paper dosa, a table-sized crispy pancake.

Drinks-wise, you have the option of lassis (yoghurt and milk), soft drinks, vegan wine, beer and hot drinks. The dessert menu includes sweet puddings made with rice, raisins and nuts, and a selection of ice creams and sorbets.

Dishes on the menu are clearly labeled for allergies, and dedicated menus with lots of options are available for vegans and those wanting dishes free of onion and garlic. The standard menu doesn’t explicitly mention ghee (a dairy product), so ask your server if you’re unsure.

Its lively atmosphere, great food, and friendly, attentive staff, make Sagar the perfect spot for a relaxed lunch or dinner in central London, for tourists and Londoners alike.

The original restaurant is nestled in a small courtyard in Hammersmith. Inside, there’s an immediate intimacy and warmth, thanks to the low lighting, candles on tables and an eye-catching wall that’s covered in colourful, reclaimed planks of wood. While tables are set closely together, the room is quiet and it’s easy to relax and get lost in conversation. Staff are friendly and helpful. During the summer, tables are set up in the courtyard for those lucky enough to dine in the sun.

The seasonal à la carte menu is the same at all three restaurants; there’s no shortage of options to choose from, and special menus offer unique dishes dedicated to a theme, such as The Gate’s annual wild mushroom festival. From mizo glazed aubergine to Mediterranean tart, the starters neatly canvas The Gate’s mixed culinary influences. Mains are no different: rotolo, Malaysian curry, an aubergine schnitzel and what may be the most striking dish, a tower of sweet potato and blackbean tortillas. Salads and sides are also available. A wine rack near the kitchen is well stocked with a selection of organic, vegan options. Stay for a decadent dessert – a soft cappuccino cheesecake, perhaps, or a strawberry eaton mess.

The Gate prides itself on inventive food, combining ingredients in unexpected ways. With a separate menu for children, Sunday roasts and lunch options, there’s something for everyone. Book ahead – there’s rarely an empty table in sight.

With enormous bay windows that stretch to the high ceiling and an airy interior, the restaurant is surprisingly large in size. Tables are set closely together under low-hanging filament lights, and the arrangement generates a lively hum of conversation.

The seasonal à la carte menu acknowledges what the brothers describe as their ‘Indo-Iraqi Jewish’ heritage, threaded through Italian and French cuisine. The dishes are every bit as diverse as that implies. To start, you might find artichokes, halloumi, sesame-coated smoked tofu and a mezzo platter. The mains, to name a few: wild mushroom risotto cake, Malaysian curry and aubergine schnitzel. Make the most of the chunky polenta chips and other sides, and try a dessert if you can – they’re pretty special. There’s sticky toffee pudding, strawberry eaton mess, raw basil strawberry tart and more.

Alongside the à la carte menu, there are lunch options that celebrate Spanish and Arabic tastes, Sunday roasts and a children’s menu. Keep an eye out for special seasonal menus dedicated to a particular theme, such as The Gate’s annual wild mushroom festival.

There’s a good range of organic and vegan wines available, and a full cocktail menu.

On a typical weeknight, there’s rarely an empty table at The Gate. Book ahead to miss the waiting list and guarantee yourself a table at what is deservedly one of London’s most popular vegetarian restaurants.

What this means in practice is a self-service buffet with an abundance of cold fruit and vegetable salads, soups, hot mains and desserts. Food is priced by weight: all dishes cost the same and you only pay for as much as you have on your plate. The price per 100g changes throughout the day, providing more affordable options at lunchtime.

Like any buffet, the dishes – about 40 in total – vary based on the availability of ingredients and the season, but there are cuisines that carry through one day to the next. You might find influences from Asia (noodles, dumplings, stir fry), Italy (gnocchi, lasagna, frittata, risotto), the Middle East or the Americas (guacamole, jalapeño poppers), not to mention a tantalising selection of puddings and cakes. The buffet is topped up regularly and it’s rare to see an empty dish. You can order cocktails, beer and wine at the counter, along with other drinks like cold-pressed juice and coffee.

Tibits say that 80% of their food is vegan and that everything is local and organic where possible. Breakfast is served on weekday and Saturday mornings from 9am to 11.30am. Every Tuesday is ‘Vegan Tuesday’, offering an entirely vegan afternoon and evening buffet. An ingredient guide notes whether each dish contains allergens (eggs, nuts, celery, gluten) and onion or garlic.

The restaurant is large with an additional space downstairs for groups and busy evenings. Tables that seat four or more can be booked in advance. Many tables seat two people, which, when combined with the lighting and warm decor, creates a cosy, intimate setting.

In their words, Tibits have always strived to cater to vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike, and the number of customers bears this out. With a consistently impressive spread of dishes, it’s not hard to see why so many people are drawn here for a delicious meal.