"I can make aubergine taste better than steak, and cauliflower taste better than chicken."

Matthew Nutter, owner of The Allotment Vegan Restaurant, is talking with the kind of confidence and persuasion he'll need to successfully launch his first permanent venture.

The Vernon Street restaurant will be the first permanent project from Nutter, who earned his stripes working in France.

Nutter has spent the past few years running a pop-up vegan restaurant in Liverpool, gaining a loyal fanbase across the North West.

"It was as fine dining as it could be with only one chef," says Nutter. "But now I've got two other chefs and a professional kitchen."

But is Stockport ready for vegan fine dining?

"It's going to be more of a destination restaurant," says the plant-powered chef, who says nearly 60% of his previous customers were meat-eaters looking for something different.

"Come down, and expect more flavours and textures on one plate than you'd get in a standard three course meal in your local restaurant," he adds.

Based near Stockport Market, visitors to The Allotment Vegan Restaurant can expect a tranquil space, packed with fresh herbs growing in pallets and oak flooring.

It's going to be pared back to allow the food to speak for itself, explains Nutter.

Diners can choose from starters (£6-7), mains (£12-16) and desserts (£5-7), and all meals will come with a hummus and raw veg pre-starter, amuse bouche and pre-dessert as standard, meaning most people will enjoy a six-course vegan meal.

According to Nutter, most vegan restaurants are staffed by home-cooks. He hopes to lead the way for vegan chefs in the North.

"It's giving vegan food a bad name," says Nutter of traditional vegan restaurants. "People seem to think of vegan food as just falafel and salad, but when you restrict yourself there's a massive world out there.

"It's a chance to really show off the cuisine and the potential ingredients have."

Bookings are now being taken for the restaurant via Bookings@theallotmentrestaurant.co.uk. It opens on August 18.

It's another triumph for Stockport's fledgling food scene, as fine dining restaurant Where The Light Gets In recently announced it was opening nearby.

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