London's Plates Becomes the UK's First Vegan Restaurant to Win a Michelin Star

Plates, a 100% plant-based restaurant in Shoreditch, London, has become the first vegan restaurant in the UK to be awarded a Michelin star.

Run by chef Kirk Haworth and his sister Keeley, Plates was one of 22 restaurants across Great Britain and Ireland to win a first star at last night's 2025 Michelin Guide ceremony in Glasgow. It only opened at its current site in July 2024, shortly after Haworth won BBC's Great British Menu.

Haworth is classically trained and has cooked at The French Laundry, Pied à Terre, The Square and Quay Sydney. He switched to a plant-based diet after being diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2016. Now the £75 seven-course menu features barbecued maitake mushrooms with black bean mole, a mung and urad bean lasagna, and a raw cacao gateau.

In a joint statement, Kirk and Keeley said:

We've always believed in pushing boundaries and this achievement proves that plant-based dining can stand proudly at the highest level of gastronomy.

The Michelin inspectors clearly agreed. Here is what one of them wrote about who actually eats there:

Since it opened, Plates London has been permanently packed, and not just with vegans. The restaurant is full of curious and discerning diners, who are here not because of their diets but because they've heard it's one of the most exciting new restaurants around. Yes, this is a groundbreaking, unique establishment within the UK's dining scene. But more than that, it's just a wonderful restaurant with Michelin-star cooking that could convince the most committed of carnivores.

Haworth himself isn't fussed about labels. “I'm trying to get rid of the word 'vegan', really. It's all about flavour, excitement, and innovation,” he says. Fine by us, chef. We'll keep using it for you.

The award is rare. By Green Queen's count, only five entirely vegan restaurants anywhere in the world had been awarded a star before Plates.

Food this good is healthy too. The American College of Cardiology has recommended plant protein for a healthier heart, and it turns out you don't have to give up fine dining to get it.

Plates follows in some impressive footsteps. In 2021 ONA became the first vegan restaurant in France to win a Michelin star, the same year that three-star Eleven Madison Park ditched meat and then kept all three of its stars. And it was in London that a popular cafe completely ditched dairy back in 2017.

The plant-based revolution has reached the top table.