Nue Ground’s brunch is as good for your health as it is for your tastebuds

It seems that every man and his dog has some kind of winter lurgy. Damp days, dull weather and the post Christmas come-down has well and truly got London in its germy grips. But not us, Clapham. We say reject the germs! Grab January by the health horns and head down to Nue Ground for the colourful, fresh antidote to winter you need.

Nue Ground really is one of our favourite cafes in the area. It oozes good vibes; the interior is always sparkling clean and feels bright and modern. Plus, the back wall is covered in greenery which, for some reason, makes it seem all the more healthy. The good vibes continue oozing beyond the decor; ingredients are ethically sourced, the menu is healthy and colourful, there’s a mindful approach to food waste, and all cooking is ‘root to stem’. It’s these careful details that makes this place unique to the dozens of other brunch spots in Clapham. 

Whenever there’s an opportunity to try out the ever changing menu at Nue Ground, we always jump at the chance. We also always have high expectations for the food… and they’re always exceeded. It’s an exquisite offering. And for us, getting over excited and ordering the majority of the menu to taste is a prerequisite. So that’s exactly what we did.

Starting with the more breakfast-y options, we tried out the savoury waffles, which are made with chickpea and courgette, and topped with creamy labneh, avocado, kale, a crunchy hazelnut dukkah and drippy poached eggs. This is such a flavour and texture bomb. There’s the cooling labneh and avocado, richness from the egg yolks, a bit of freshness from the leaves and bite with the dukkah. We’d not had anything like it before but really loved the variety going on in each mouthful. The ‘Scandi’ is a stack of smoked salmon, avocado, cucumber, labneh, a poached egg on top of some really seedy rye bread. This is presented really beautifully and hits the spot if you’re after something light and fresh.

For those of you doing veganuary, the vegan breakfast here is strong. There’s no plasticky vegan-meat alternatives to speak of and it’s good, hearty grub. You get a plant sausage, jackfruit hash, tofu scrambled with red onion, red pepper and mushrooms for a kind of ‘bubble and squeak’ vegan take, the house beans and sourdough. Savoury, filling and comforting, it’s everything you could want to scare away a hangover. If you’d rather something sweet then there’s no question in our minds; you’ve got to go for the buckwheat pancakes. They come with maca cream, tahini caramel, glazed bananas and pecan crumble and they taste even better than they sound. Every time we’ve had this delightful dish we’ve had huge smile on our face and we bet they’ll have the same effect on you too. Oh, and they’re vegan.

For the lunch-ier part of the menu we tried out the salmon poke bowl which was a zingy number filled with turmeric and chilli spiked pineapple chunks, tart pickled carrot, avocado, a punchy wasabi cream, brown rice and salmon. It’s the kind of food that you can almost feel your cells thanking you for as you’re eating it. The Tagine bowl was a celebration of grains; chickpea falafels, herby cous cous lots of sesame seeds and a wonderfully rich tagine which- even though was probably all of our 5-a-day in two mouthfuls- was extremely tasty and comforting.

Of course, you can’t visit Nue Ground without getting one of their wellness lattes. We tried the ‘glowing’ latte (a fruity açai, baobab, beetroot and oat milk latte that has an extra hit of collagen) and mindful latte (this one was striking in it’s blue colour from the blue pea flower and was made with ashwaganda, maca, tahini, oat milk and CBD). These are always big standouts for us- they taste like a treat despite being oh so virtuous and there’ll be a drink on the menu to suit whatever mood you might be in.

Start the year bold and healthy. If you’re doing veganuary and don’t know where to start then this is the perfect place to eat vegan whilst not compromising on taste or health. And even if you’re not, Nue Ground is going to give your winter-tired body all the nutrients it needs to bounce your way into 2024. If you need us this year, you’ll find us eating those pancakes. We hope we see you there.