Cabot Square, Canary Wharf ‘world-first’ Yummzy cafe opens

Yummzy opened its doors in Cabot Square earlier this month and owner Jolie Pascu spoke to this paper about what’s on offer.

“Everything we serve is keto, low carb, sugar free, gluten free and vegan,” said Jolie, who birthed the idea of Yummzy alongside her husband Adrian in 2017.

Yummzy was created by the couple as a result of Jolie’s personal experience of being type one diabetic since a young age and struggling to find sweet treats that were suitable for her dietary needs.

Yummzy has opened in Cabot Square (Image: Alex Coman) Jolie and Adrian opened the first Yummzy store in 2018 in Greenwich. 

“It was a very small café and unfortunately we had issues with the building so we had to shut down just as Covid started,” said Jolie.

“We stayed online for three to four years before deciding that the world needs a Yummzy store.

“We’re the only place in the world that combines keto, vegan and gluten free foods.”

Jolie left a 23 year career in IT consulting to pursue Yummzy.

“It has to be successful,” she said.

“We have put everything into it and the world needs it.

“When we found a place in Canary Wharf, we were very happy – we were even happier that Canary Wharf said they wanted an independent business rather than another franchise or chain.”

The Canary Wharf site is the Adrian and Jolie Pascu’s second attempt at opening a Yummzy cafe (Image: Adrian and Jolie Pascu) The cafe has very strict rules on contamination and food safety.

“We use very clean ingredients, we’re very careful about contamination,” Jolie explained.

“A lot of products say keto on them but they actually use ingredients which aren’t keto and for a diabetic person, these ingredients can be just as bad as sugar.

“Contamination for gluten is non-existent because our whole place is gluten free.

“If you walk in with a gluten product then someone will ask you to stay outside until you’re finished.”

Yummzy operates using strict anti-contamination rules to keep products suitable for dietary requirements (Image: Allegorical Studio) Jolie also explained Yummzy’s policy on milk prices to promote vegan decision making.

“We sell cow’s milk as well as plant-based milk for coffees but some places charge you more for vegan milk.

“We do the opposite – we charge more for cow’s milk.”

Jolie said the taste of Yummzy’s products are not compromised with the choice of ingredients.

“We serve everyone – from people with dietary issues to people who simply want a good dessert.

“We have something for everyone.

“People who try us for the first time always end up coming back – but the not-so-good thing is that not many people know we exist at the moment.”