The Planet – a hidden gem in little ol’ Taunton.

After about twenty minutes of walking back and forth, I finally found The Planet, a rather small and quaint vegan café in Taunton, Somerset. I walked into a rather echo-y room which consisted of two large pro-vegan pictures, chairs and tables arranged for easy manoeuvre and an area towards the back adorned with rather attractive cakes where you can read the chalkboard menu, place your order and pick up some vegan pamphlets and VeganLife magazines to occupy you as you wait for your food. Although there were a lot of pro-vegan things around the place, I felt that the vegan message being portrayed was no “militant” or overpowering.

After meeting the lovely staff, I took a few minutes to decide what to order – everything looked pretty delicious. They offered various veggie burgers, a pasta dish, soup dish and a wide range of drinks. A few minutes went by and I decided on the spicy chickpea burger and a bottle of water which, together, cost about £7.

About ten to fifteen minutes went by before my food came out. I expected to receive just a chickpea burger, but that was not the case, I got a burger with four different cold salads perfect for this summer heat in Taunton. The salads were a lentil and brown rice salad, carrot salad, green and purple leaf salad and potato and her salad.

Everything tasted better than they looked! This is the second time I have been to a vegan cafe where the food hasn’t looked great but has tasted amazing. I started my meal by taking a bite out of everything. The spicy chickpea burger, as I expected, was not in the slightest bit spicy for my West African taste buds. It was served in a wholewheat bun with lettuce and tomatoes. Nothing fancy, yet it tasted so good! The salads each had their own unique flavours. However, they all seemed to work together, much to my surprise.

I went to The Planet expecting a conventional vegan breakfast of foods like oatmeal,  pancakes, waffles, toast, scrambled tofu, fruits, et cetera. Definitely not burgers, pastas and soup. Howbeit, I must say that eating there was an absolutely delicious way to start my day and I will be visiting again the next time I am in Taunton. I am really looking forward to The Planet expanding and moving to a less hidden location in Taunton.

LickYourPlate worthy? Definitely!