Randomness Guide to London - Differences between Version 10 and Version 5 of Cafe Below, EC2V 6AU

Version 10 Version 5
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Cafe/restaurant in the crypt of St Mary Le Bow church on Cheapside in [[Locale City|the City]].
 The Place Below is a totally vegetarian cafe in the crypt of St Mary Le Bow church on Cheapside. Being in [[Locale City|the City]], it's mostly geared towards breakfast and lunches, and indeed doesn't open at all in the evenings or on weekends.
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It used to be called The Place Below <small>[https://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/2594643381/ photo]</small>, and was totally vegetarian for the first two decades of its life, but in autumn 2009 it started serving meat and fish dishes as well, and relaunched as the Cafe Below. It's still vegetarian friendly; about half of the lunch options are usually vegetarian, though there's less choice in the evenings. The (fairly substantial) salads are usually the only vegan option.
 The menu is small, and changes daily: one soup, one hot dish, one quiche, and one salad. (As Charles Campion points out in the review linked below, this is a good sign. The website mentions that they've been in existence for nearly 20 years — another good sign.)
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As befits its location beneath a church, the seating area is quite atmospheric, with stone-flagged floor and arched ceiling. Stone pillars break up the space and offer extra privacy. The tables are a mix of small ones for 2-4 diners and larger communal ones.
 The location means that it gets very very busy at peak times; they recognise this, and go some way towards alleviating it by [http://www.theplacebelow.co.uk/Bill-P-greatdeals.htm offering] &pound;2 off the hot dish, quiche, and salad of the day if you eat in at off-peak times (11:30am-noon and 1:30pm-2:30pm). Also, everything is available as takeaway.
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[[Kake]] visited on a Monday lunchtime in December 2014. It was quite full at 12:45pm, but I didn't have to wait for a seat. No music was playing, but there was plenty of conversational background sound.
 [[Kake]] last visited around 2004, when I was still vegan. I called in on a Friday morning at about 11am, and it was completely empty, unsurprisingly, although a few besuited types wandered in later for takeaway coffees.
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I went for the four salads of the day with hummous and olives (&pound;8.75) <small>[https://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/15371418183/ photo]</small>. The dressings were light, and enhanced rather than masked the flavour of the ingredients. The four different salads &#8212; one based on giant couscous, another on puy lentils and brown rice, another on beetroot, and another on carrots &#8212; all had distinct flavours and textures. The hummous was light and flavourful and the olives added a good salty contrast. Overall, it was a nicely filling but non-stodgy lunch.
 Most of the breakfasty options were pastries and things, and not vegan, so I had the "Healthbowl", a concoction of short-grain brown rice, lentils, and various vegetables, served on a sheet of nori (price as of 2007 is &pound;5.65 eat-in, &pound;4.45 takeaway). I wasn't convinced by the raw mushrooms or almost-raw sugar snap peas in this; but I suppose that's what you get if you order something with "Health" in the name, and I did really like the lentil and rice bit. (Note that the Healthbowl isn't usually available until lunchtime, which begins at 11:30am, but they took pity on a hungry vegan and got the kitchen to do me one a bit early.)
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Service was efficient without being abrupt. My salads arrived very quickly, as did my requested tap water &#8212; in a generously-sized carafe, not just a small glass. A 12.5% service charge was added to the bill.
 Lunchtime is potentially better for vegans; the healthbowl is always vegan, and there's always a vegan soup. The hot dish is vegan on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the salad is often vegan too. It's worth noting that "dairy free" on the menu actually means vegan. (Everything in this paragraph confirmed by email, September 2007.)
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[[Kake]]'s verdict: I'd come back if I was looking for lunch in the City.
 They certainly used to have soya milk available for tea and coffee, and I expect they probably still do.
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Accessibility: Many mandatory steps to get in, as it's in a basement with no lift.
 They also do fresh juices (the apple is really good, tastes of apples, unlike the stuff you buy in cartons from the supermarket) and what I hear is some very good home-made lemonade — in 2004, these were all &pound;1.70 eat-in and &pound;1.40 takeaway, not sure of current prices.
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* Photos of the menu as of December 2014: [https://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/15991041615/ lunch], [https://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/15805319147/ drinks]
* [http://www.timeout.com/london/restaurants/cafe-below Time Out review]
 * [http://www.timeout.com/london/restaurants/reviews/4624.html Time Out review]
* [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/restaurants/restaurant-183573-details/The+Place+Below/restaurantReview.do?reviewId=23368721 Charles Campion review]
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<div class="last_verified">Last visited by [[Kake]], December 2014.</div>
 <div class="last_verified">Last visited by [[Kake]], some time in 2004; though continued existence verified in June 2008, again by [[Kake]]. Opening hours, details of &pound;2 off offer, and up-to-date prices taken from The Place Below website, September 2007.</div>
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category='Breakfast,Cafes,Featured Article,Restaurants,Vegan Friendly,Vegetarian Friendly'
edit_type='Minor tidying'
fax='CafeBelow'
formatted_website_text='cafebelow.co.uk/" class="external">cafebelow.co.uk'
host='2a00:1098:86:4d:c0ff:ee:15:900d'
hours_text=''
latitude='51.513701'
 category='Breakfast,Cafes,Sandwich Shops,Takeaway,Totally Vegetarian,Vegan Friendly,Vegetarian Friendly'
edit_type='Normal edit'
fax=''
formatted_website_text='theplacebelow.co.uk/">http://www.theplacebelow.co.uk/ '
host='213.165.225.132'
hours_text='7:30am–3pm Mon–Fri (lunch 11:30am–2:30pm); closed Sat–Sun'
latitude='51.513189'
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longitude='-0.093514'
major_change='0'
 longitude='-0.091929'
major_change='1'
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node_image='https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7485/15371414953_0680a1ebbb_m_d.jpg'
 node_image='https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3185/2594643381_f2ee04256c_m.jpg'
== Line 36 == == Line 37 ==
node_image_url='https://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/15371414953/'
opening_hours_text=''
 node_image_url='https://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/2594643381/'
opening_hours_text='7:30am–3pm Mon–Fri (lunch 11:30am–2:30pm); closed Sat–Sun'
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summary='Cafe/restaurant in the crypt of St Mary le Bow on Cheapside.'
website='http://www.theplacebelow.co.uk/' website='http://www.cafebelow.co.uk/'		 summary='Vegetarian cafe of long standing, in the crypt of St Mary le Bow on Cheapside.'
website='http://www.theplacebelow.co.uk/' website='http://www.cafebelow.co.uk/'

The Place Below is a totally vegetarian cafe in the crypt of St Mary Le Bow church on Cheapside. Being in the City, it's mostly geared towards breakfast and lunches, and indeed doesn't open at all in the evenings or on weekends.

The menu is small, and changes daily: one soup, one hot dish, one quiche, and one salad. (As Charles Campion points out in the review linked below, this is a good sign. The website mentions that they've been in existence for nearly 20 years — another good sign.)

The location means that it gets very very busy at peak times; they recognise this, and go some way towards alleviating it by offering £2 off the hot dish, quiche, and salad of the day if you eat in at off-peak times (11:30am-noon and 1:30pm-2:30pm). Also, everything is available as takeaway.

Kake last visited around 2004, when I was still vegan. I called in on a Friday morning at about 11am, and it was completely empty, unsurprisingly, although a few besuited types wandered in later for takeaway coffees.

Most of the breakfasty options were pastries and things, and not vegan, so I had the "Healthbowl", a concoction of short-grain brown rice, lentils, and various vegetables, served on a sheet of nori (price as of 2007 is £5.65 eat-in, £4.45 takeaway). I wasn't convinced by the raw mushrooms or almost-raw sugar snap peas in this; but I suppose that's what you get if you order something with "Health" in the name, and I did really like the lentil and rice bit. (Note that the Healthbowl isn't usually available until lunchtime, which begins at 11:30am, but they took pity on a hungry vegan and got the kitchen to do me one a bit early.)

Lunchtime is potentially better for vegans; the healthbowl is always vegan, and there's always a vegan soup. The hot dish is vegan on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the salad is often vegan too. It's worth noting that "dairy free" on the menu actually means vegan. (Everything in this paragraph confirmed by email, September 2007.)

They certainly used to have soya milk available for tea and coffee, and I expect they probably still do.

They also do fresh juices (the apple is really good, tastes of apples, unlike the stuff you buy in cartons from the supermarket) and what I hear is some very good home-made lemonade — in 2004, these were all £1.70 eat-in and £1.40 takeaway, not sure of current prices.

See also:

Last visited by Kake, some time in 2004; though continued existence verified in June 2008, again by Kake. Opening hours, details of £2 off offer, and up-to-date prices taken from The Place Below website, September 2007.

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