In the Kitchen with Holy Carrot

Inside Holy Carrot's Produce-Led Kitchen

 

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In the Kitchen With is an original series from Honest Toil exploring the chefs, kitchens and restaurants using our extra virgin olive oil every day. Through conversations, dishes and behind-the-scenes moments, the series captures the people shaping thoughtful, ingredient-led cooking and the role olive oil plays in restaurant kitchens across London.

Fresh off the success of Holy Carrot’s established Portobello restaurant, chef Daniel Watkins has brought the restaurant’s produce-first philosophy to a newly opened second site in Spitalfields – an entirely vegetarian space built around bold flavour, fire cooking and hyper-seasonal ingredients.

The approach is intentionally fluid. Rather than large seasonal menu overhauls, dishes evolve constantly depending on what is in season. “We’re very micro-seasonal,” Daniel explains. “I won’t do huge menu changes. I’ll just swap dishes in and out as produce hits its peak or starts to fade.”

That spontaneity shapes the cooking. Some dishes come together the same day they appear on the menu – inspired entirely by the produce itself. A courgette flower dish built around freshly delivered blossoms. A pizzetta designed, in Daniel’s words, to “soak up the olive oil.” Simple ideas, led by ingredients rather than overworked technique.

“I try not to mess around with it too much,” he says. “Just good produce, good olive oil and see where it goes.”

That ingredient-led approach is also why Honest Toil has remained a staple in Daniel’s kitchens for years, dating back to his previous restaurant in Dalston. “It’s versatile,” he explains. “There’s a nice grassiness to it, but it doesn’t become overpowering. It’s well rounded.”

The menu reflects that same balance: vegetable-forward but never restrictive, refined without feeling complicated. While much of the food naturally leans plant-based, Daniel has intentionally moved away from labels. “I never wanted to pigeonhole it,” he says. “As soon as you put yourself into one little box, it becomes limiting. I just want people to come here and have a good time.”

Across the menu, that philosophy carries through everything from devilled eggs and British king oyster mushroom vol-au-vent with peppercorn and dulse sauce, to sharp citrus possets made using cocktail byproducts from the bar team. Nothing feels excessive or overthought – just thoughtful cooking that lets ingredients speak for themselves.

At Holy Carrot, seasonality isn’t treated as a trend or a fixed menu change. It’s something happening every day, plate by plate.

Visit Holy Carrot in Portobello or Spitalfields for hyper-seasonal dishes built around seriously good produce!