Our secret to eating better, tastier salads? Leave it to the professionals. Although salads can be easily made at home, if you’re still figuring out how to make a salad that really hits the spot, it’s better to spend some time discovering what you like. Otherwise you’ve spent an excess of time, energy and money cooking something you can barely look at – and that’s not even thinking about the leftover ingredients you’ve now got to use up.
Try out some of these top-tier salads from fantastic restaurants to discover what you like and how you like it prepared before you declare yourself London’s premiere salad-hater. Then maybe branch out a little – choose a build-your-own salad option so you can see how the professionals would put it together, and then you’ll feel confident enough in your salad choices to commit to the big shop.
No matter if you’re looking for something refreshing and super summery, something protein-packed for the gains or just your favourites made a little bit healthier, there’s a salad on this list that’ll keep you coming back for more.
The O.G of London big salads, the Salad Project started out with the aim to give London the salad bar it deserves, and boy did they deliver. They are really the salad experts in town, utilising the expertise of chef and nutritionist Clementine, to ensure each salad has a base, topping, headliner, crunch, premium and dressing. This system means every salad they create feels complex and hearty, offering a depth of flavour that your bagged salad could unfortunately only dream of.
Our go-to salad this summer is definitely their peaches and cream salad, featuring roasted peaches, smoked almonds and goats cheese, added to a kale, cucumber and mint base and finished with their delectable green goddess dressing. This is the salad that’ll truly convert any of you who are still wary of fruit in your salads. The sweetness of the slightly caramelised roasted peach, the tartness of the pickled onions and the savoury creaminess of the goat cheese create such a perfectly balanced bite, you’ll wonder why you haven’t been always eating peaches in your salad.
Urban Greens are dedicated to creating thoughtful salads that consider the whole experience from beginning to end. This starts with choosing locally sourced and sustainably grown ingredients that are then hand-selected, pickled, marinated and dressed with love by the team at Urban Greens. Then, they’re combined with fresh, vibrant greens and premium toppings to create a fully rounded meal that is packed with nutrition, just what you need to get through the day.
Try their fun variation of a salad we all know and love, their veggie caesar, with red rice, cajun spiced tempeh, shredded kale, cherry tomatoes, parmesan, pickled onions and toasted hazelnuts. For the traditionalists out there they also have an urban caesar with free-range british chicken and crispy turkey bacon.
At Choppaluna, chopping is the name of the game – they create all of their salads using a mezzaluna, a two-handled curved knife named after the Italian word for ‘half-moon’ which is rocked back and forth in order to finely mince ingredients. This chopping technique is key to creating salads that are easy-to-eat, chopping it down for easy consumption and to ensure that you can fit everything into a single, delicious, bite.
Choppaluna are dedicated to creating salads that are easy to eat – which is why you can choose between having your salad served up in either bowl form or roll, using their specialty breads. From beetroot tortillas to glass-noodle rolls, they have specially chosen wraps and rolls that perfectly compliment each salad. Check out their nut and berry roll, with walnuts, beetroot, cranberries, feta and apple, served with a pomegranate balsamic dressing and wrapped up in a beetroot tortilla.
Summer is not only a time for salads, but also the perfect time to travel – and where better to combine these two than at Acai Girls. The brand was started by two sisters, inspired by their travels around the world, and the incredible flavours, experiences and tastes that it brought them. The Acai Girls was born out of a love for the world and all it’s experiences – so they try their best to source locally grown, responsible ingredients, use biodegradable packaging and focus on issues such as waste management, all things that are as important as the food they make.
Try their Green Detox Buddha Bowl for a fresh and vibrant salad that’ll make you feel fantastic, full of health-giving ingredients like broccoli, kale, cucumber and sweet potato. They also have a range of additional toppings, from sticky sweet honey-glazed halloumi to deliciously moreish Mexican pulled chicken.
If you’re looking to have a top-tier salad for lunch today, check out Feedr today for any of these healthy office delivery options!