Turnips

Beneath the arches of Borough Market, you’ll find Turnips: long-established and well-loved stall and wholesaler by day, and now one of the coolest new celebrations of all things plant-based you’ll find in South London by night.

The aesthetic of this open-air restaurant errs on the industrial side of chic - festoon lights with generously-sized bulbs hang overhead, while metal seating is softened with cosy fur throws. The star of the show remains the produce, which is still on display in crates dotted around the space when dining is in session, and this is reflected in both the tasting menu and small plates offering, which are designed to showcase the very best of the season.

The kitchen, headed up by Tomas Lidakevicius (previously executive chef of Jason Atherton’s City Social), turns out an array of impossibly fresh and delicate dishes that rotate with the months. During our early June visit, we managed to enjoy the last of spring’s asparagus, served atop a rich parmesan crumble, and Mara de Bois strawberries, possibly the sweetest and most flavourful we've ever had.

As you’d expect from a restaurant which celebrates vegetables with reverence, vegetarians are very well catered for - while the main line-up includes the likes of oysters and lamb, there is still a full and equally creative meat-free tasting menu that showcases the best ingredients. Think buratta served with Lincolnshire peas and Sicilian lemon, and golden ear mushrooms transformed so convincingly into something akin to pork belly our taste buds did a double take.

Service is warm and attentive without being overbearing - dishes are explained in detail, which is a lovely touch that demonstrates the pride and passion the team takes in their food, but you’re otherwise left to your own devices unless your glass is running dry. Speaking of glasses, don’t miss the equally novel cocktail menu, which takes much of the same fruit and veg that forms your meal and turns it into something really rather special. Pea negroni, anyone?

In London, diners are used to coming across restaurants with obscure names or venues that have been titled in a foreign tongue (don’t even get us started on how to pronounce Clos Maggiore), but Borough based restaurant Turnips though should roll easily off the tongue for most, and the name is also a pretty heavy-handed hint as to what you can expect from the restaurant - namely vegetables, and lots of them.

Found under the historic arches of Borough Market, Turnips with Tomas Lidakevicius (the restaurant’s full name) pitches itself as a fine dining restaurant which celebrates quality, fastidiously-sourced produce. Previously the executive chef of Jason Atherton’s popular Square Mile haunt City Social, Lidakevicius knows a thing or two about high-end dining and at Turnips, he offers an ever evolving five-course tasting menu, which champions the finest of fruits and vegetables, sourced from the restaurant’s very own stall at Borough Market.

Although the menu changes often, diners can expect to come across exciting combinations, in which meat and fish are often the support act to the starring role of the vegetables. While dining here, you may well tuck into the likes of gnocchi with mushroom and truffle, Brittany leeks served alongside halibut and XO sauce, or leafy celeriac with venison sourced from Dorset. Guests are also able to take advantage of a carefully curated cocktail pairing and a wine flight for a supplement.

On warmer days and evenings, Turnips also offers an intimate outdoor seating area where you can soak up the bustling views of Borough Market, while if you don’t fancy going the whole hog with a tasting menu, there is also a snappy selection of small plates to choose from - think black garlic croquettes with mozzarella and seasonal mushrooms or lentils, pickled onion and mackerel fashioned into a skewer.