#ad – Our meal was provided on a complimentary basis in exchange for providing an honest review
The Queen’s Head pub in Peterborough recently got in touch to let me know about the vegan options on their menu. They invited Oliver and I to pop in and share our thoughts, so a few weeks back we headed there for the evening.
The Queen’s Head is in an old building situated just outside of Queensgate Shopping centre and a stone’s throw from the cathedral. The outside gives very little away. You really do have to step through the door to get a true feel for the place.
The entrance quickly opens out into a modern and spacious downstairs seating area with exposed brick walls and reclaimed wood. The décor has what I call the ‘quirky factor’ with lots of interesting items around the space to catch your eye. Oliver and I immediately felt at home as we settled into a comfy corner to peruse the menu.
There is a large L shaped bar which boasts a huge wood fired artisan pizza oven at the end. We enjoyed watching as the chefs tossed the fresh dough into shape and shovelled them into the oven, transforming them into bubbling hot pizzas.
That wasn’t the only thing of interest. The pub is dog friendly and I was in my element watching the pups chill out .
Oliver’s not adverse to vegan food “as long as it tastes good”, so we ordered a sharing platter to start. Full of italian style goodies, we enjoyed roasted peppers and sun blushed tomatoes, wild mushrooms and olives on fresh made focaccia.
The star of the show, however was the smoked harissa houmous; utterly moorish and flavoursome. I ended up polishing off all of the focaccia just so that I could mop up every last morsel.
Onto mains and the menu is split into pizzas and pots. I was very happy to find the two things that every vegan foodie wants to see when they pick up a menu: clear labelling and choice!
First, there was a Wakeling salad with pickled rainbow beets, fennel, pomegranate, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. It sounded healthy and delicious but that night I fancied something a bit more hearty!
That left three options. Did I go for the Mexican inspired vegan Pasada pizza with spiced beans and red onions, soured soy cream and tortilla chips? Or the five bean chilli tacos? Whilst both were tempting, I went for the dish that intrigued me. Tahini spiced cauliflower.
I’ve had a cauliflower steak at another establishment and wasn’t particularly impressed. It was literally a slice of cauliflower sold at the price of a sirloin. At the Queen’s Head however I got something much more substantial.
It arrived beautifully presented with wisps of pickled fennel and vegetable crisps sitting atop the whole roasted cauliflower. Underneath I found a butterbean and pea crush, which had a delicate flavour that worked well against the spices. Finally, I found little dollops of that gorgeous houmous that I’d enjoyed in our starter. It worked just as well in the main.
My only criticism is that the pea crush felt a little out of proportion to the rest of the dish. There was a lot of it and I ended up admitting defeat and leaving some. Perhaps a little less would have provided a better balance.
Oliver thoroughly enjoyed his freshly made pizza with a pint crafted from their Charles Wells brewery in Bedford. They do artisan coffees too, but by this point I was too full to manage one.
I helped Oliver to finish his palate cleansing duo of sorbets for dessert though, which was totally vegan. The lemon sorbet was especially good with its tangy sweet and sour notes.
This place had such a friendly and relaxed vibe. It’s going straight onto my list of favourite places to eat in Peterborough with vegan menu options.
Thank you for the invite Queen’s Head and the wonderful hospitality!
More ideas for places to eat in Peterborough with vegan menu options:
