The most defining dish of the past decade, hitting every brunch menu and blogger’s Instagrams: avocado toast. From being basic to massively overpriced and stopping millennials from buying houses – there’s a lot to be said about avocado on toast. While simple at its core, there are so many ways to do the healthy fat favourite: sliced, chunky, or smashed like guacamole, mixed with lemon, seeds or covered in toppings from feta to dukkah. This means your go-to order can either be exciting, or just ok – 2020 is not for settling so here’s a guide to London’s top 8 avocado toasts.
Avocado on sourdough: Crispin
Using only a handful of ingredients, Crispin creates an avocado toast that looks simple. A big slab of sourdough bread from E5 Bakehouse, crunchy on the edges and drizzled in olive oil for softness within, a whole avocado, perfectly sliced, ripe and creamy, plus lots of chives, lime and chilli salt for a fiery kick – it’s actually far from simple, and hugely satisfying.
Address: Pavilion on The Corner, White’s Row, London E1 7NF
Avocado smash: Urban Pantry
Urban Pantry puts a whole lot of effort into avocado toast, elevating avocado smash with feta before adding a mad amount of toppings. Poached eggs, green leaves, halloumi that isn’t chewy but sumptuously soft, and bacon (optional), all the breakfast essentials are there, but it’s the addition of dukkah that does something different here. Urban Pantry’s homemade mix of seeds and nuts, dukkah makes this avocado toast extra crunchy, hearty and filling.
Address: 15 Devonshire Rd, London W4 2EU
Smashing avo: Farmer’s Mistress
Smashed avocado on charcoal sourdough might sound like a destined-to-fail health trend, but Farmer’s Mistress makes sure it isn’t. The farm-loving founder takes pride in selecting fresh produce and top-quality ingredients, so the black-looking toast doesn’t taste bitter at all and avocado smash is full of flavour, elevated with roasted seeds and a so-called green oil that we all need the recipe off.
Address: 300 Battersea Park Rd, London SW11 3BU
Avo smash: Social Brew
With so many avocado toasts in London, Australian café Social Brew takes on the classic with a secret layer sitting beneath all the essentials. Besides go-to toppings of feta, baby spinach, cherry tomatoes and seeds, this avo smash sits on a lovely spread of almond butter, which adds a warming, nutty twist to the familiar refreshing flavours.
Address: 38-40 Lower Richmond Rd, London SW15 1JP
Avocado on toast: Ask for Janice
Allowing you to choose from three small plates, Ask for Janice does avocado toast similar to breakfast in Copenhagen. Served on a thin slice of dark rye bread, the avocado smash is topped with cucumber shavings, feta and lots of poppy seeds, which complement the lemony flavours throughout. Did I order this twice in one sitting? Yes.
Address: 50-52 Long Ln, London EC1A 9EJ
Smashed chilli avo: Avo Bar
A destination dedicated to avocado, from the dishes to the design, Avobar shows how functional the fruit can be. Millennial madness and (avocado) flowers aside, the smashed chilli avo is more than just a pretty sight, serving it all on a massive wedge of sweet potato toast, which is just as soft and sweet as the dollop of coconut labneh on top.
Address: 24 Henrietta St, London WC2E 8ND
Smashed avo: Daisy Green
Two trends that make a great addition to the already-trendy avocado toast: charcoal sourdough and labneh. Daisy Green gives you both, serving an Aussie-approved avocado smash that melts in your mouth and comes sprinkled with Aleppo chilli for a spicy finish.
Address: multiple locations
Smashed avo toast: Angie’s Little Food Shop
Inspired by South Africa and seeking out seasonal ingredients freshly each day, there’s nothing little about Angie’s Little Food Shop. The smashed avo toast is big on bold flavours, with a spicy-sweet chilli jam stealing the show amongst crumbled feta, herb salad, sunflower sprouts and a perfectly poached egg – a crowd-pleasing combination that makes this Chiswick café packed at all times.
Address: 114 Chiswick High Rd, London W4 1PU
