Painted Elephant

I have to say, I didn’t expect a vegan restaurant in Newcastle. Perhaps it’s a growing community, but I am so glad that restaurants like this are starting to pop up. I love to eat food like this: light, fresh, healthy, and creative.
Painted Elephant is hard to find — it’s up a metal flight of stairs, it looks like there isn’t anything around at all, but trust me there is! Inside, the small number of tables were filled with happy patrons. The chalkboard menu offered a number of inviting options, which apparently change regularly if not daily. You can peer into the back and watch your food being cooked. Indeed, it all tastes completely homemade, as if your fancy vegetarian friend invited you round for a dinner party. They’re also BYOB with a low corkage fee — £1 each perhaps? This makes the whole evening very affordable! We were there for restaurant week so got three courses for £15, but honestly it doesn’t cost loads more than that (maybe three courses for £20 at regular price?)
I started with a glorious pea soup, which tasted like spring and was flavored with basil. Next was the hearty chickpea burger, filling and delicious with a herby avocado spread and served with sweet potato chips and salad. Everyone else had sweet potato dahl which they said was excellent. The desserts were hit or miss — the earl grey cake had good flavor but was so dense, it was hard to put it a spoon in it! The chocolate dessert was much nicer, very rich and decadent.
Please eat here, you won’t miss the meat! It just feels so good to eat this food. Your body will thank you. The environment is also very relaxing, and you might try some new flavors that you’ve never had before. I think they’re cash only, by the way. I’ll be back if I can convince my partner to eat vegan food!