Dine on the go with a wrap at Leadenhall Market, London
Dining in London
Steve Martin, a historian of the Black experience in London, highly recommends Bamboula, Brixton, 020-7737-6633 for reasonably priced down-home Caribbean fare. He also suggests the Brixtonian Havana Club, 020-7924-9262 which is more upscale with a huge array of rums and cuisine from a different island every month.
A local Brixton website provides a comprehensive guide to great food in Brixton, where there’s a large concentration of West Indian eateries. If you are missing cuisine from home, go to Planet Hollywood, Hard Rock Cafe, Trader Vic’s or Cheers, a replica of the bar in the long-running NBC television series of the same name.
Find the nearest grocery store. Take advantage of supermarket chains like Mark and Spencer’s and Safeway to purchase fruits, snacks, and water at reasonable prices. Stock up on your favorite drinks, so that you don’t need to buy the expensive drinks in your hotel’s mini-bar. London has a large East Indian population, and Indian restaurants are plentiful and relatively inexpensive.
The spicy curries and gravies of Indian cuisine nicely complement the chill of London during the winter months. Two highly recommended restaurants are Gaylord and Mela.
In London, Fish and Chips are very good and cheap on the regular. You can choose from Rock, Cod, etc. Don’t be surprised if they wrap it in newspaper because that is their tradition. Also, they may put vinegar and salt on your Chips (French Fries).
An English breakfast consists of Pork and Beans, Meat, Toast, and perhaps eggs. Brits love Pork and Beans for breakfast so you may want to customize your breakfast when you order if you don’t want beans. One very cheap place to eat a sandwich that you can find all over the place is Benjys. The food is fresh and tastes good, so it is a nice quick meal during your tour of London.
Check out the cafes and restaurants of Leadenhall Market. Many restaurants in London have smoking and non-smoking sections. Because the sections often are right next to one another, non-smokers may have to endure wafts of cigarette smoke unless they request to be moved.
However, all Starbucks locations, seemingly one on every block of the main touristy areas, are smoke-free.