This review has been such a long time coming, I can't even tell you how many times I have planned to make a visit to The Spread Eagle and something has got in the way. The last time I actually made it to their front door only to find out that I had messed up the times and they were indeed closed. It almost started to feel as though we were destined to never meet! But finally last weekend I made it there, they were open and they had just launched their brand new brunch menu.
The Spread Eagle is impressively London's first 100% vegan pub and it's also a pub that holds a little history with me. I actually grew up just around the corner from it and My Dad used to drink in there when he was a youngster, a good fifty plus years ago. It's always so interesting for me to return to this area of Hackney and to see just how much things have changed. Once inside the pub I couldn't help but try to imagine what it was like all those years ago, which wasn't actually too hard as a lot of the original features appear to remain intact. It just blows my mind a little that this was your typical East London boozer back in the day and now it's a very popular vegan, dare I say 'hipster', hangout.
I probably don't need to tell any of you that it is very rare to find a completely vegan pub, let alone one which is serving up Mexican food. But that's exactly what you can find at The Spread Eagle who had the simply brilliant idea to combine forces with Club Mexicana who, in their own words, 'make 100% vegan and totally banging Mexican inspired street food'. Yes we're talking nachos, tacos, burritos and a whole lot more! I've followed The Spread Eagle on Instagram for quite a while now and the images of the food that's being served up there is what completely drew me in because it all looks insanely and unimaginably good.
It just so happened that the day we decided to make our visit they were launching their brand new weekend brunch menu and I was really excited to see what was on this, whilst also hoping to get a taste of some of the favourites I'd be lusting over online for so long! When the menu was presented to us I was not disappointed.
First of all there are some special brunch cocktails and I couldn't resist going in for one of their 'Avocado Colada's' which is a blend of pineapple, avocado, white rum, coconut milk and a squeeze of lime. I'm not usually a cocktails with brunch kinda girl but I just couldn't say no! Two of my favourite things in life are avocados and Pina colada's so this basically had my name on it. It was super refreshing, creamy and moreish! It also made our brunch feel like more of an event which I enjoyed and thought would be perfect if you're looking for somewhere to host a celebratory get together.
For my main I went for the 'Chilaquiles' which was a combo of tortilla chips, salsa, beans, avocado, sour cream, 'queso', pink onions and pickled chilli's. All I can say is this dish is epic! It was everything I had imagined it to be and more. I'd actually been craving nachos for days so these really hit the spot for me.
For his main, my husband decided to go for the 'Big Brunch Burrito' which was a big tortilla wrap filled with a combination of 'chorizo', tempah 'bacon', triple fried potatoes, back beans, queso, guacamole, salsa, slaw, pink onions and a hot sauce. It looked so substantial when it arrived and he was not disappointed with his choice at all. It was hearty, spicy, warming and the perfect burrito fix he needed!
We didn't really need any side dishes with the mains that we ordered but I'm so glad we just went with our bellies and not our head because the 'Triple Fried Potatoes' were seriously so amazing and the chipotle mayo dressing was just incredible. I could have easily eaten a lot of these! We also went for a side of the 'Al Pastor Cauliflower' which is cauliflower in a lightly spiced sauce with pineapple, sour cream and toasted cashews. This was also really nice but to me tasted more Indian than Mexican.
This is somewhere I'll definitely be recommending to everyone and somewhere I hope to re-visit again soon. I'd really like to give their evening menu a try next time as I was sad to have missed out on their infamous tacos. But this has provided me with the perfect excuse to make a return visit! I also really love what they've done with the place and how they've combined original features with a contemporary and arty twist. It's such a unique place but also warm and welcoming and has all the charm you would expect from an old East London pub.
Have you experienced The Spread Eagle yet!?
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