Independent whole foods shop & a cafe which has vegan options on the buffet. Large range of products including snacks, chocolates, and supplements. Previously known as Alara Wholefoods Store. Open Mon-Fri 09:00-20:00, Sat 10:00-19:00, Sun 11:00-18:00.
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58-60 Marchmont Street (at near Russel Square tube station), London, England, WC1N 1AB
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- Outdoor seating
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Last update on 25 Jul 2024 by Guest
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Added by MrFalafel on 01 Aug 2007
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15 Reviews
First Review by Serval
marikaweinhardt
Points +5821
Good quick and healthy option - Edit
Friendly, old school whole food store with a mainly vegan hot and cold buffet. Three sizes are on offer, served to take away but there's a small skylit seating area at the back as well as outdoor seating at the front. You can help yourself to dressings and hot sauce 👍🏻
Read moreGuest
Meena_A
Points +17
Love this place! - Edit
Have been coming here for 20 years and always stop for lunch when I'm in the area. You can always be guaranteed to have a fulfilling and tasty lunch at a reasonable price. The staff are always very welcoming 😊
Read morePros: Beautiful food, Great value for money , Friendly staff
Cons: None
Guest
Poundie
Points +15409
Small store with cafe attached - Edit
This is not so much a cafe as a small health food store with a tiny cafe attached, along with a few seats/tables for you to eat your wares. Despite its size, Alara has a decent selection, better for food than the nearby Holland and Bartlett, for instance.
Read moreGuest
Harrie4
Points +53
Good selection - Edit
Really like their sandwich selection and their salad bar is mostly good. Good selection of snacks, health and beauty products and cupboard fillers. Price is ok.
Read moreGuest
SinzianaK
Points +304
Quick and easy but the food is a little bland - Edit
I wasn't particularly impressed with the food here as some dishes were bland. Some of the cold salads were really good but I really do not recommend the falafel or the spring rolls. Basically you fill a box with whatever takes your fancy and it is weighed. It all came to about £8. They have some seating outside which is nice when it is sunny.
Read morePros: friendly environment , quick, good cold salads
Cons: bland, expensive for what you are getting
Guest
ZannaStar
Points +176
Excellent lunch spot - Edit
I really like the food bar at Alara - the falafel and hummus are really good and the salad is always fresh and tasty, and their ready made salads, vegan sandwiches and tofu spinach bites are convenient and yummy. Prices and range of health food brands varies so much between stores - Alara seems to have good prices and ranges of some such as Yogitea and Of The Earth. I was working around the area for a while and I was really glad it was nearby. It's a shame they have stopped stocking Laura's idea sushi and replaced with their own white rice sushi (both vegan products) - it's so hard to get brown rice vegan sushi! I have to admit I'd like to see more vegan sweet treats too, but I suppose they are helping my health! And of course, the food bar should be all vegan, not just veggie ; )
Read morePros: loads of vegan takeout lunch options
Cons: no cards on small spends, lacto-ovo dishes on the buffet
Guest
TheHolyV
Points +258
They were so nice they rang me back! - Edit
I was after a vegan probiotic and multivitamin two in one for a trip I was about to do and I went in to Alara. I was stunned by all the info the staff knew about how these products are manufactured. They could so efficiently direct me towards vegan products and when a doubt sprang up, they took the bother to call the company and call me back at home to inform me that the product I had eyed up was not in fact vegan.
Read moreAlara is an independent health food shop with decent prices and a really good selection given their space. In the spirit of supporting independent businesses, this place really deserve your custom!
Pros: The staff knows everything!, They really care about customers, The selection of food is excellent
Guest
christopherjboyce
Points +984
Didn't inspire - Edit
I popped in here after getting a train to Euston to pickup some food, possibly would have eaten in there too but the shop just felt dead. Staff weren't particularly friendly. Well stocked though but expensive. Only take away foods were in standard plastic containers and I'm fed up with plastic.
Read morePros: Well stocked
Cons: Not welcoming, Unfriendly staff
Guest
Veganswife
Points +315
Great vege and vegan buffetf - Edit
Tasty and varied hot and cold buffet lunch within this health store. Excellent range of vegan options plus a few vegetarian. It's mainly vegan though. Definitely not bland - careful use of herbs and spices ensures food is interesting and varied. Cost is assessed by weight of plate. Only drawback is that only outdoor seating is available, so in wet weather backpackers and other itinerants might be deterred from going there.
Read morePros: Wide range of jot and cold dishes, Tasty use of ingredients, Price according to weight
Cons: No indoor seating, only outdoor
Guest
hokusai77
Points +13607
Delicious, yet inexpensive, buffet - Edit
In the heart of Bloomsbury, one of the oldest still running health stores in London. Offers a rich vegetarian and vegan buffet, mostly gluten-free, ranging from Mediterranean and Asian dishes to British reinterpretations. We had dolmades, falafel, hummmus and a delicious tofu and lentil stew.
Read morePros: delicious organic food, cheap
Cons: no seating inside
Guest
KatieBatty
Points +1497
Some good vegan products and food - Edit
I bought some vegan products here - there is a pretty good range. They also have a few vegan options at the cafe and it is all clearly marked. The smoothies all contain dairy but you can get some juices.
Read morePros: Vegan options marked
Guest
Miggi
Points +2681
Reasonable vegan selection - Edit
Was a bit worried by the description saying "sometimes has vegan options", but there was not need to be worried, over half the food was vegan.
Read moreEating here the first time is a bit difficult as the meals are priced by the weight, so unless you are good at "guess the weight" competitions you haven't got much of a clue as to how much you will be charged when you get to the counter.
All the food tasted good though and I'd be happy to return again if I'm in the area.
Pros: vegan options, good flavours
Cons: food priced by weight
Guest
sfio
Points +3220
Broad selection of products - Edit
This health food store near the Brunswick Center and close to Russell Square underground (a bit further from Euston or Kings Cross stations) offers a wide selection of health foods as well as cosmetics etc. I was particularly impressed that they stock some of the products within the Vega range including the bars, smoothie and protein powders that I haven't been able to find elsewhere in London. They also have a wide range of organic and many raw snack bars and I like their muesli range that you can choose by nutritional benefit if you wish. They offer food from 11:30am (this was at least the case in June 2010 when I last visited). Opens at 8am on weekdays.
Read morePros: Good product range, Friendly Staff
Cons: Bit pricey
Guest
nspanee
Points +251
nice vegan sandwiches - Edit
went there to buy some simple vegan foods before leaving england. bought some sandwiches which were really nice. asked for the vegan fudge from redwood. they said they could easily order them for me if theyd new before. so very kind and helpful staff.
Read morePros: friendly staff, ready to eat stuff.....
Guest
Serval
Points +89
Bloomsbury delicacies - Edit
This is a little-medium vegetarian shop, with good vegan choices: " Laura's ideas" fresh foods are mostly vegan, and absolutely great, like the Spanish bean salad, Deli Salad, Quinoa Salad, vegan " calzone" ( a type of italian pizza, which can be eaten also cold), the soya cheese cake, a good choice of wonderful fresh fruit juices named " Innocent". Actually I've never tried the food cooked at their desk. The staff is kind and helpful. There are also three little table outside where you can eat and drink. Mostly organic. A curiosity: it's near the gay bookshop named " Gay's the word" and in front of another indian vegetarian restaurant ( which I've never tried) " Vegetarian paradise". Russel Square tube is very near.
Read moreGuest
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