Take a Bite and Smile Review: A Vegan Italian Bakery in London
I’ve wanted to write a proper Take a Bite and Smile review for a long time. Before Chiara opened her permanent vegan café near Clapham Old Town, I was already a regular at her Northcote Road cart. Sometimes visiting almost every weekend for pastries, cakes and our usual chats.
Take a Bite and Smile is, and I do not say this lightly, one of the best reasons for a vegan to visit this corner of South London. The 100% plant-based Italian bakery and café is the creation of Chiara, a pastry chef who is truly a master of her craft.
So when she opened her first café, it felt like a very well-deserved next step for one of London’s most talented vegan bakers.
Take a Bite and Smile at a Glance
What we ordered:
Pain au chocolat
Mr Pistachio
Pizza Bianca to take away (not pictured)
I Would Go Here For
✔ Weekend breakfast
✔ A quick takeaway treat
✔ Traditional Italian cakes and savoury bakes in London
✔ Unique vegan seasonal specials
✔ Supporting the London vegan community
✔ Non-vegan approved
My non-vegan husband is a fan too. He says the flavours are delicious, everything tastes really fresh and, compared with other vegan pastries he’s tried, the lamination is genuinely impressive. His favourites are always the custard-filled pastries.
Cuisine:
100% plant-based Italian pastries, cakes and savoury bakes
Opening Hours:
Every day (check the current opening hours before visiting)
Location:
516 Wandsworth Road, London, SW8 3JX, at the edge of Clapham Old Town.
From the Northcote Road Cart to a Vegan Café
Before visiting the Take a Bite and Smile café, I already knew just how good Chiara’s baking was.
Her Northcote Road cart has been one of my regular weekend stops for a long time. My usual order is one pain au chocolat and one savoury salami pastry. The perfect sweet-and-savoury combination.
At this point, I’ve probably tried every item on the regular menu at least once, as well as plenty of the rotating specials. The Bananas Foster pastry has been my absolute favourite so far, but I also love the fruit custard tarts and Chiara’s vaganised Italian cakes she usually makes to celebrate seasonal moments. You truly cannot go wrong.
Take a Bite and Smile takes traditional Italian pastries and makes them completely plant-based. And honestly, they’re some of the best pastries I’ve had anywhere in London or across Europe.
More Than Just a Vegan Bakery
As talented as Chiara is, the food is only part of what makes Take a Bite and Smile so special.
She is incredibly warm and friendly, and I always looked forward to our chats at the Northcote Road cart. She remembers her regular customers, and you can tell how much care she puts into both her baking and the community she has created around it.
Seeing her move from a much-loved pastry cart into her own café feels like a win for the entire London vegan community.
Is Take a Bite and Smile Worth Visiting?
(My honest Take a Bite and Smile review...)
Absolutely.
Whether you visit for a pain au chocolat, a savoury pastry or one of Chiara’s traditional Italian specials, My official Take a Bite and Smile review is that Take a Bite and Smile deserves a place on your London vegan food list.
Just be prepared to find your regular order—and start craving it every weekend.
