4 minutes read
With a lot of foodies looking to make up for lost time now the restaurant scene is up and running, here’s how you can eat out and hold onto your sustainable ethos.
Gooder for: zero waste from farm-to-fork
We’d say Silo is revolutionary, but as they make clear, they’re going for a pre-industrial revolutionary vibe.
Silo’s ‘thing’ is not having a bin on site. On top of local seasonal and sustainably sourced produce, Silo are known for their zero-waste ethos, with everything from farm to fork being carefully controlled to reduce any waste.
They’ve put on their ‘primitive’ chef hats, so only source produce which is harmonious to natural order and can be grown without processing. What’s more impressive is everything from their pumpkin seed ice cream to their aged butter is made on site. They even go full circle and compost any food scraps to grow more food.
And we haven’t even started on the food. Everything is beautifully fresh and plated up with care, and it shows. Restaurant critic, Marina O’Loughlin, described silo as “saving the planet with food that’s out of this world”.
Gooder for: Crafty cocktails
The name nine lives is a nod to giving items another lease of life; an ethos they’re committed to when it comes to cocktail ingredients. From championing a sustainable and seasonal menu, to repurposing squeezed lemons into liquors, everything at Nine lives is carefully curated with the planet in mind. Our compliments to the chef.
Gooder for: switching out single use and serving surplus
Cast your mind back to 2016, when few restaurants were shouting about sustainability. Spring was ahead of the game with their pioneering ‘Scratch Menu’ which champions the use of surplus ingredients to raise awareness of the problem of food waste. With menu named after ‘scratch tea’, an Aussie phrase for using up your leftovers, the daily menu is coordinated to save surplus, so you’ll be served the freshest veg in season.
They also went a step further and packed up plastic in 2019; they’ve pledged not to use anything single use since.
As if you need another reason to visit Spring, the setting is something of a bright dreamland. From dinner to décor, this spot is something special.
Gooder for: a planet-pleasing pitstop
In the buzz of London’s iconic borough market, this Cypriot restaurant uses only green ingredients, and definitely haven’t compromised on taste for their ethos. With a menu which preserves veg in pickles and accommodates the ‘under-appreciated’ meat cuts, this restaurant welcomes commonly wasted ingredients.
And there’s a reason they’ve got a few foodie awards up their sleeves (specifically, Time Out, Urban Food and London Slow Food), each colourful dish is bursting with succulent flavour. The perfect pitstop to for anyone refuelling amongst the Borough Market hustle and bustle.
Gooder for: environmental action inside and out
Think cosy traditional pubs meets environmental action charity. Hold on. That’s exactly what they are!
As member of the Sustainable Restaurant Association, Peach’s mission is to make things gooder inside their restaurant and out. Inside by reducing their carbon by 847 tonnes per year, and out by making life peachy for the environment and communities around them with their 2013 non-profit, The Peach Foundation. Aside from serving up fantastic food, there is a lot going on behind the scenes of this string of pubs.
Gooder for: making sustainability simple for a hungry diner
When it comes to burger diners, they bring something different to the table (and the clue is in the name). They’re totally transparent with their sourcing and sustainably, and we are here for it. The pioneering plant burger (ft. our very own mayo) is a game-changer if you’re looking for your meaty fix.
On top of leading by example with their applaudable ethos, they’re everything you could ask for in a burger: succulent, delicious, and oozing with flavour. We’ll drink to that.
