Review: Tanya's Cafe, Chelsea

Tanya's Cafe in Chelsea is gorgeous. Filled the brim with flowers, greenery and positive affirmations (from the plants) if that's the sort of boost you're looking for. Everything on the menu is raw and ethically sourced. Sounds good, right?

I popped over for a sunny afternoon with Emily for a catchup. First up, we both ordered a matcha latte (£8.95) - my first ever! Honestly, I wasn't convinced. It tasted fatty and had bits in. I wouldn't have minded if it was dry lumps of matcha powder that hadn't fully mixed, but it seemed to have more woody pieces in. I made an initial attempt at drinking through my teeth (given the price tag, I thought I needed to give it a fair chance). But I gave up shortly, the meaty taste wasn't worth it.

For food, Emily went for the California Rolls, a raw version of her sushi favourite - nori roll, sunflower rice, avocado, cucumber, carrot, walnut meat, sprouts and a tahini dip. They looked seriously impressive; bright and colourful and a good size for lunch/light dinner.

I went for the Superfood Salad - broccoli, grapefruit and watermelon with a creamy lemon dressing. The menu has changed since our visit, I seem to remember this being around £13. It was nice, particularly the dressing, but for me I don't think a plate of leaves and raw veggies is quite worth the money.

To finish, we both opted for a chocolate hazelnut tart from the fridge of dairy, gluten and refined sugar free fridge. A nutty base, nutella-esque middle and crumbly topping. Its not overly sweet but definitely nice to have something almost guilt free for dessert. They do homemade peanut butter cups too, which are great to take away and keep in your bag for snacking.

Curious to try as much as possible, we also ordered a juice to takeaway (£6.35) - I was still a little hungry so this helped to fill me up on the train home (more due to my incredibly large appetite!). I'm going to be honest and say that I was perhaps a little disappointed to see that these are pre-made, bottled up and sitting in a fridge. I'd perhaps prefer something freshly made with a few add-ins if needed.

In total, everything totted up to £32 each (plus service). 

You know what? It is expensive for a lunch. But we'd both seen the menu and decided we were still up for trying it as something a little different. 

So yes, I'll pay £13 for a salad and £6 for a juice from time to time. But I was a little disappointed to see that their smaller café in Parsons Green has slightly different prices. A matcha latte is £4.35 instead of £8.95 and salads £6-7 instead of £11-13. Juices and smoothies are still the same.

I think Tanya's is a great place for those with limited diets/allergies; somewhere perhaps where you don't have to worry about the menu and whether there's going to be something you can eat or not. 

I'm not ruling out going back again for a regular latte and some peanut butter cups. But, can someone could explain why the prices differ between cafés? 

Find Emily's thoughts on our lunch, here.

Find out more on Tanya's Cafe on their beautiful webstite, here.

All views are my own. Emily and I paid for our lunches and were not asked to write this.