The Lowdown: By Chloe
By Timothy! Is this an exclamation from a 1930s crime drama?
No. It’s the popular US vegan restaurant that takes its name from lifelong vegetarian, chef and cookbook author Chloe Coscarelli.
Popular? It’s not a household name...
Not over here it’s not, but in The States it has quickly built a reputation for itself despite being only two years old and now operates seven sites across the US. The restaurant is part of ESquared Hospitality, an internationally recognised group of more than 30 restaurants worldwide.
So what’s the deal?
The brand is now coming over here, with the opening of a restaurant just off Covent Garden Piazza this autumn - its first overseas site. The restaurant will be its UK flagship and will have 70 covers and also a grab and go offer.
What can we expect?
The menu is likely to be very similar to that in the States, meaning that it will be serving dishes such as its classic burger (a tempeh-lentil-chia-walnut patty in a potato bun), and smashed avocado toast as well as its range of salads.
Vegan restaurants are booming. It’s picked a good time
It sure has. In America the brand has been at the forefront of the current vegan movement and its numbers speak for themselves. According to the PR blurb, 100,000 guests dine at one of the seven US restaurants every month with a whopping 610,000 burgers sold since July 2015. Moreover, its tiny 10-seat Manhattan original routinely serves 1,000 customers a day and has a monthly turnover of $500,000.
Phew. So what’s its USP?
Although its food is 100% vegan, By Chloe makes a point of not being worthy, with indulgent dishes such as pancakes with whipped maple butter and mac n’ cheese (made with cashew cheese sauce and shitake bacon) on offer.
Bring it on
There’s more to come, too. Two more London restaurants are being planned, with the company rumoured to be in talks on taking a site in the new One Tower Bridge development.
By Jove!
Quite.
