Update: i’klectik remains open as an arts and events space with a bar serving drinks and snacks, but they no longer serve meals from the kitchen

At the centre of Old Paradise Yard is i’klectik, an “art lab” and cafe that hosts everything from free jazz to life drawing to visual art shows to DJs, along with tasty vegetarian food. They have a friendly vibe, and a great building, so forgive them their cringeworthy name and get along there.

We went along for the weekend veggie brunch, served from 11am-4pm, accompanied by a DJ playing funk classics:

The menu is short but good, and there are plenty of snacks, teas and beers to choose from, as you can see here:

This is their root veggie, millet and seeds burger with roasted sweet potatoes and coleslaw. Yes, we got overexcited again and started eating before taking the photo:

It wasn’t on the menu when we visited but this veggie rainbow tart they posted on Twitter looks amazing:

It’s a nice bright space with high ceilings, and a diverse clientele:

Some of the food is grown on site and you can taste the freshness:

They’re open Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm and Saturday and Sunday 10am to 6pm, unless there’s an event on, in which case they stay open until 10.30pm.

Their website is not up to date so head to their Twitter or Facebook for more info.

Old Paradise Yard is at 20 Carlisle Lane, SE1 7LG, on the north side of Archibishop’s Park, yards from St Thomas’s Hospital.