Last autumn we spent a nice, long veganific weekend in Manhattan. Despite our penchant for fine dining on that trip, we saved the best for last and paid another visit to Maoz at its Union Square location. Located right in the heart of Sunday-farmers-market-urban-chic on the cusp of Chelsea and Greenwich Village, and a few blocks north of Soho, Maoz is very well located for a lot of foot traffic. And, with the Union Square Park literally over the street there’s somewhere pleasant to eat your food – weather permitting.

Of course, on our recent London trip, we had to re-visit the Maoz location on Old Compton Street in Old Soho (where you drink champagne and it tastes just like cherry cola). This outlet is sandwiched (no pun intended) right in between an adult book store (of the most racy kind!) and an exotic lingerie shop – of equally (of not more) raciness, but to be expected in Soho. It’s just seconds away from Piccadilly Circus, Carnaby Street and the West End Theater District, but as there’s no picturesque park outside I’m glad it has some inside seating — unlike the Manhattan outlet.

maoz in london

I can report that the food experience is almost entirely the same in London as it is in Manhattan. Omnivores tell me that they enjoy ordering a Big Mac in different cities around the world as they taste the same. With Maoz (already crowned as a potential MacDonald’s of vegetarian food) the same holds true.

maoz falafel sandwich with hummus and unlimited salad bar. ...before going back for more toppings!

The premise is pretty straightforward: you get a warm, fresh pita pocket, and they put hummus, falafel or both into it. From there you can help yourself to an array of incredible vegetables – from the exotic (curried cauliflower) to the mundane (shredded carrots) as many times as you like (that’s another advantage of the London location – you can go back and grab more toppings without walking back into the store and feeling like a thief!). You can add on a range of condiments (mostly vegan) including spicy sauces, tahini, vinegars etc. for a truly healthy and personalized treat.

maoz refillable salad bar

Maoz is a great invention indeed, I’m glad they have outlets centrally located in two of my favorite cities, and it’s funny that I used to chill in London during the eary 80s, right in Soho, and then a few years later I spent a lot of time in Manhattan in the late 80s, right in the Gamercy Park/Union Square district. Of course, there were no Maoz there then. Bummer.

If you plough your way through the world’s MOST FUCKING ANNOYING WEBSITE EVER to find the locations, you’ll see that more are planned to open in the near future. Sadly nothing obvious on the West Coast or in LA, but I live in hope as there’s a franchise application on the site! Hopefully somebody will drop a few bucks to open an outlet in LA. I was thinking Westwood, 3rd St. in Santa Monica or even The Grove would be great locations.

maoz vegetarian
43 Old Compton St
London, W1D 6HG, United Kingdom
+44 20 78511586