London, Bethnal GreenCarmel By The Green bringing California cool to London

By Sarah Malcolm @@sarahmalcs
3 December '17

Carmel by the Green, is a Californian inspired healthy eatery with a laid-back beach vibe. Its focus is on clean, healthy, simple eating – combining superfoods and organic produce.

The inspiration for the café came to the owner, Saida, in the seaside town of Carmel-by-the-Sea during a road trip along the Californian coastline. Leaving her job of 10 years in London’s financial industry, Saida set up Carmel by the Green to bring the fresh eating habits of California to Bethnal Green.

The Setting

The decor inside is fabulous! It’s bright and light, decorated in uplifting white and turquoise and has a relaxing seaside vibe.

There are endless plants and even enviable toilet wallpaper – seriously it’s so nice!.

Carmel By The Green has an inviting atmosphere with wonderfully welcoming staff.  Choose from sitting on stools at individual counters or one of the driftwood style tables. It’s near the V&A Museum of Childhood and not far from Columbia Rd Flower Market. Carmel By The Green is closed on Sundays.

The little things

We loved the fact that the walls featured a fantastic selection of local art for sale

The green juice test

There were two green juices on the menu and I chose the slightly less intense one ‘Green Thumb’ which was apple, spinach and mint. It was actually one of the best green juices I’ve had in a while and freshly juiced in front of me.

My friend had the ‘Buzz’ juice a combination of carrot, apple and ginger.

What we ate

We ordered the Acai bowl, with an array of gorgeous toppings (including homemade granola) which were all absolutely delicious. Then we moved on to the sautéed mushrooms with truffle oil on sourdough with fried eggs plus the cajun tacos with spiced halloumi cheese, avocado, kale, crispy onion, spicy salsa and siracha mayo which honestly was the real show stopper for me. It was also easy to make vegan by choosing the jackfruit instead of halloumi.

And even though we were sufficiently satisfied, we couldn’t help but order the Toasted Banana Loaf.

It was made with buckwheat flour and hazelnut chocolate chips and topped with the most heavenly espresso butter (which is actually vegan)! All accompanied by a delicious Turmeric Latte with coconut milk and a Rose Latte with Oat milk.

What else?

It wasn’t until I’d left that I actually found out about the ethos of the cafe, which made me love it even more! They aim to support small businesses, local partners, and up and coming artists. The cafe has a small gallery space where art is rotated periodically and all commissions from art sales go to charities for under-privileged women in South Asia.

The bill

Green Thumb Juice £3.90
Buzz juice £3.90
Acai Bowl £6.50
Mushrooms and eggs on sourdough toast £6.20
Cajun Tacos £6.50
Toasted Banana Loaf with espresso butter £4.60
Turmeric Latte £3.60
Rose Latte £3.60

What made us glow?

Definitely the Cajun tacos and the Banana bread with espresso butter…

I even took extra home and had it for breakfast the next day!

The guy serving us was also so lovely and friendly and keen to chat about the food and other places to visit in the area.

Carmel by the Green

287A Cambridge Heath Road,
London E2 0EL

+44 9353582764
@carmelbythegreen
visit website
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