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A vegan kebab chain has been named as London’s best takeaway.

What The Pitta, who have sites in Croydon, Camden and Shoreditch, with another outpost in Brighton, picked up the award last night at the surprisingly prestigious British Kebab Awards, which are now in their eighth year.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan presented co-founders Cem Yildiz and Rojdan Gul with their plaque at the Park Plaza hotel by Westminster Bridge, in front of an audience of an estimated 1200. Guests included more than a hundred MPs, among them Jeremy Corbyn, who was booed and cheered in equal measure when he stood to present an award.

What The Pitta offer an entirely vegan menu, offering plant-based takes on kebab shop classics, including a meat-free doner kebab, soya gyros and vegan nuggets. The chain started after co-founder Yildiz, on holiday in Turkey, heard from his uncle of a vegan kebab shop in Germany and decided to give the idea a go in London. The chain quickly picked up traction across Instagram and Twitter.

The best vegan junk food in London 7 show all The best vegan junk food in London 1/7 What the Pitta Let’s start with perhaps the guiltiest of all pleasures. There’s nothing quite like carrying away a warm takeout box of pitta and meat – except for cradling a box of What The Pitta’s vegan doner kebab. These totally vegan kebab purveyors wrap their freshly made bread around spiced soya chunks, soya tzatziki, homemade hummus, chilli sauce and salad. They currently have outlets in the Boxpark food markets in both Croydon and Shoreditch and will soon be opening up in Camden too. To indulge moments of peak lethargy, they even deliver too. 2/7 Biff's Jack Shack Sometimes, you just want deep fried something. If you’re a vegan who has ever looked into a fried chicken shop and wished it just had, well, less chicken, then Biff’s Jack Shack is for you. Biff deals in jackfruit, arguably one of nature’s more peculiar offerings. It is a fruit and looks very like fruit when raw, but when cooked, it has a taste and texture more akin to pulled pork. At vegan markets and residencies around the capital, pick up jackfruit “wingz” on a sugar cane spear, drenched in the likes of bourbon BBQ sauce, blue “cheese” and cinnamon sweet chilli or go for a full jack burger like the “The Samuel Hell Jackson” – a jack patty with chipotle slaw, jalapenos burger cheese and two types of sauce. 3/7 The Full Nelson When you’ve got a big craving for a vegan Big Mac, London has your back. There’s no need to hold back at The Full Nelson, where their range of burgers come fully stacked with a few tons of topping – just specify whether you want to eat veggie or vegan and they will point you in the right direction, as vegan alternatives are available for everything. Go for crunch with the Colonel and try their super crispy coated “chicken”, smothered with garlic buffalo sauce, lemon and black pepper mayo. Lee Pyefinch 4/7 Temple of Seitan The website of this Hackney fast food joint sports a very important FAQ: “Are you a cult? No.” Seitan may sound like it has macabre intents, but it is in fact merely a meat substitute made from wheat – no soul-stealing here, we’re happy to report. This high protein food stuff has been compared to chicken or Portobello mushroom when left to its own devices, making it perfect for deep frying and decking with goodies. Temple of Seitan specialises in just this, with a menu featuring crispy fillet burgers, hot wings and twist wraps, as well as vegan mac and cheese, popcorn bites and lots of chips. They currently have a wildly popular location in Hackney and are soon to be opening one in Camden too. Felix Dickinson 5/7 Young Vegans For all the thriving foodie variety to be found in the capital, Brits still can’t resist good old pie and mash. Camden Market outfit Young Vegans are no exception, serving up meat and dairy free takes on the national treasure. Pick from seitan and ale pie, curry pie, sweet potato pie and a very British all day breakfast pie and enjoy them with a decent squelch of creamy mash. Your winter just got a whole lot warmer. 6/7 Purezza Food is usually better when it’s pizza. This totally vegan pizzeria has travelled from Brighton to Camden, bringing with it lots of cheese, but not as you know it. Purezza makes its own mozzarella in-house with fermented brown rice milk. Inventive toppings range from shaved seitan with roasted aubergine and potatoes, to a luxurious black truffle base with wood smoked tofu and wild forest mushrooms. If you're looking for something with a significant kick, try the Vulcano, which tops roasted vegetables with green chillies, chilli flakes and sriracha sauce. 7/7 Club Mexicana Meriel Armitage has been working on turning vegan eating from disaster to fiesta for Londoners. At Club Mexicana’s various locations, she’s been serving up meat-free, dairy-free tacos and other Mexican-inspired treats to hungry punters since 2013. Now, the South American eatery boasts three locations in Shoreditch, Camden and Homerton – the latter of which is based in London’s very first entirely vegan pub. Head to The Spread Eagle for jackfruit carnitas and baja tofish tacos, or feast on loaded cheezy nachos, “chorizo” quesadillas, pan seared “scallops” with corn esquites, all accompanied with lashings of vegan beer. 1/7 What the Pitta Let’s start with perhaps the guiltiest of all pleasures. There’s nothing quite like carrying away a warm takeout box of pitta and meat – except for cradling a box of What The Pitta’s vegan doner kebab. These totally vegan kebab purveyors wrap their freshly made bread around spiced soya chunks, soya tzatziki, homemade hummus, chilli sauce and salad. They currently have outlets in the Boxpark food markets in both Croydon and Shoreditch and will soon be opening up in Camden too. To indulge moments of peak lethargy, they even deliver too. 2/7 Biff's Jack Shack Sometimes, you just want deep fried something. If you’re a vegan who has ever looked into a fried chicken shop and wished it just had, well, less chicken, then Biff’s Jack Shack is for you. Biff deals in jackfruit, arguably one of nature’s more peculiar offerings. It is a fruit and looks very like fruit when raw, but when cooked, it has a taste and texture more akin to pulled pork. At vegan markets and residencies around the capital, pick up jackfruit “wingz” on a sugar cane spear, drenched in the likes of bourbon BBQ sauce, blue “cheese” and cinnamon sweet chilli or go for a full jack burger like the “The Samuel Hell Jackson” – a jack patty with chipotle slaw, jalapenos burger cheese and two types of sauce. 3/7 The Full Nelson When you’ve got a big craving for a vegan Big Mac, London has your back. There’s no need to hold back at The Full Nelson, where their range of burgers come fully stacked with a few tons of topping – just specify whether you want to eat veggie or vegan and they will point you in the right direction, as vegan alternatives are available for everything. Go for crunch with the Colonel and try their super crispy coated “chicken”, smothered with garlic buffalo sauce, lemon and black pepper mayo. Lee Pyefinch 4/7 Temple of Seitan The website of this Hackney fast food joint sports a very important FAQ: “Are you a cult? No.” Seitan may sound like it has macabre intents, but it is in fact merely a meat substitute made from wheat – no soul-stealing here, we’re happy to report. This high protein food stuff has been compared to chicken or Portobello mushroom when left to its own devices, making it perfect for deep frying and decking with goodies. Temple of Seitan specialises in just this, with a menu featuring crispy fillet burgers, hot wings and twist wraps, as well as vegan mac and cheese, popcorn bites and lots of chips. They currently have a wildly popular location in Hackney and are soon to be opening one in Camden too. Felix Dickinson 5/7 Young Vegans For all the thriving foodie variety to be found in the capital, Brits still can’t resist good old pie and mash. Camden Market outfit Young Vegans are no exception, serving up meat and dairy free takes on the national treasure. Pick from seitan and ale pie, curry pie, sweet potato pie and a very British all day breakfast pie and enjoy them with a decent squelch of creamy mash. Your winter just got a whole lot warmer. 6/7 Purezza Food is usually better when it’s pizza. This totally vegan pizzeria has travelled from Brighton to Camden, bringing with it lots of cheese, but not as you know it. Purezza makes its own mozzarella in-house with fermented brown rice milk. Inventive toppings range from shaved seitan with roasted aubergine and potatoes, to a luxurious black truffle base with wood smoked tofu and wild forest mushrooms. If you're looking for something with a significant kick, try the Vulcano, which tops roasted vegetables with green chillies, chilli flakes and sriracha sauce. 7/7 Club Mexicana Meriel Armitage has been working on turning vegan eating from disaster to fiesta for Londoners. At Club Mexicana’s various locations, she’s been serving up meat-free, dairy-free tacos and other Mexican-inspired treats to hungry punters since 2013. Now, the South American eatery boasts three locations in Shoreditch, Camden and Homerton – the latter of which is based in London’s very first entirely vegan pub. Head to The Spread Eagle for jackfruit carnitas and baja tofish tacos, or feast on loaded cheezy nachos, “chorizo” quesadillas, pan seared “scallops” with corn esquites, all accompanied with lashings of vegan beer.

Judges included Mazlum Demir, chef-patron of Skewd in Cockfosters, My Million Pound Menu investor Maurice Abboudi and, curiously, Daily Telegraph political pundit Asa Bennett, who described the gig as “a life dream I never knew I had.”

What The Pitta will open their next site in Manchester, expected later this year.