5 places that a foodie in London really can’t miss

Someone once said, “London is like a miniature world in one city” (thinking about it, that was probably me!). There are two main reasons for this. London was once the capital of a global empire that stretched from the shores of Australia to the depths of Africa, and when that empire collapsed, many of its former subjects decided to come and live in its heart, giving the city a wonderful intercontinental feel.

London’s modern reputation as an exciting and vibrant cosmopolitan city has continued to attract migrants from across the globe. And all the wonderful people who now call London home also brought their wonderful food with them! This means you can now wander the streets of this truly global capital and grab an authentic Mexican taco, eat succulent Caribbean jerk chicken or indulge in a spicy Bangladeshi curry.

In this listicle, I’ll show you the places that have earned my hometown this amazing reputation.

1. HALAL FOODIE MARKETS

Foodie markets are all about having fun as you try the different freshly cooked platters on offer, from a spicy Thai red curry served with fragrant rice to a crunchy Moroccan falafel wrap with salad and hummus to a succulent beef steak Burrito bursting with sour cream and guacamole. It’s all about the joy of trying-before-buying at these places.

Traditionally, such markets were a frustrating experience for Muslim Londoners, as the more famous ones in places like Borough and Camden Town rarely served halal food. Not anymore! Almost every stall at the foodie market that pops up on Sundays inside the Truman Brewery serves halal food. With cuisines as wide-ranging as Eritrean and Vietnamese on offer, this buzzing little covered market is the ultimate halal foodie’s fix.

The Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, E1 (Sundays only). Station: Aldgate, Liverpool Street and Shoreditch.

2. NORTH EAST LONDON’S ANATOLIA

Stretching from the borough of Hackney all the way into the wilderness of North East London is a strip of restaurants boasting the cuisine of central Anatolia.

Connoisseurs of Turkish food will be spoilt for choice along the Stoke Newington High Road as they step into places such as The Cave, where you can eat a Sultan’s Kebab in a cave-like setting; or the Aziziye, deep in the belly of an Ottoman-style mosque designed with blue tiles imported from the city of Iznik; or they can go to Fore Street, where family favourites like the Capital Restaurant and Kervan Sofrasi serve up mountainous platters of grilled meat, bulgur wheat, rice and acres of salad. Your GBP will stretch that much further here.

If you love Turkish food, you’ll be bowled over by the array of halal choices that North East London has to offer. In fact, if you choose the right venue, you’ll be amazed at just how much it feels like being sat in a restaurant somewhere in Istanbul or Ankara as you tuck into your authentic Güveç, before tearing yourself a piece of oven-baked Lahmacun (Turkish pizza).

Stoke Newington High Road, Green Lane, Fore Street, N1-16. Station: Stoke Newington, Dalston and Edmonton Green.

3. THROUGH THE KHYBER PASS

An emerging new halal cuisine that’s fast establishing itself in greater London is Afghani food, and the best restaurants that serve it are found where the migrant Afghan community live, on the very eastern edges of the city.

Restaurants such as the Khyber Pass, Arianas and the Darbar are slowly putting Afghani cuisine on the London map. None, though, can quite compare to the Shinwari on Cranbrook Road, close to Ilford town centre. Inside this deceptively large restaurant, you have the option to sit at tables like a Westerner or ‘go native’ atop stunning woven rugs on raised platforms, and the more conservative can have curtains drawn around them.

The food here really is exquisite and leans heavily towards the staples of slow roasted succulent meat and huge flatbreads. Simple and delicious, with some variations that include rice, vegetables and soups. This part of London is quite a way from the centre, but you’ll be hard pressed to find anything as authentically Afghani closer to Big Ben.

Romford Road and Cranbrook Road, Ilford, IG8. Station: Ilford and Manor Park.

4. BRIXTON’S CARIBBEAN EATERIES

It is a little-known fact that many people from the Caribbean islands prefer to cook their food using halal meat. That’s why it’s always worth inquiring when you come across a Caribbean restaurant, even if there is no halal sign outside.

In deepest South London, however, there is no need. Brixton is home to one of the largest Caribbean black communities in London, and every restaurant there serves halal food, making it the ideal place for halal West Indian cuisine.

Caribbean food is essentially street food, so don’t expect neat, fine dining venues in Brixton; that’s just not how you eat jerk chicken or curry goat. It’s a cuisine that demands that you enjoy your food without any pretence or formality. This is why most Caribbean food places in and around Brixton town centre are eateries and cafes rather than restaurants.

Starting on the Brixton Road, where the station is, head for popular local streets like Coldharbour Lane and Electric Avenue to discover delightful spots like Fish, Wings and Tings, Ultimate Jerk Centre and my personal favourite, Caribbean Spice. Just don’t expect anyone to bring you a knife and fork when you sit down!

Brixton Road, Coldharbour Lane and Electric Avenue, SW9. Station: Brixton.

5. BANGLADESHI SPICE

A little-known fact is that Bangladeshi men who migrated to London in the 1960s and 1970s completely revolutionised the culinary landscape of Great Britain. In fact, during the 1990s, the late Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, famously declared that ‘Indian’ food was the nation’s most popular cuisine; all Bangladeshi-owned restaurants were branded ‘Indian’ when they first opened because that was what the British identified most with when it came to the subcontinent.

It will therefore come as no surprise that London’s most famous district for Indian food is in an area synonymous with the city’s Bangladeshi community. Brick Lane, in the East End of London, was where the earliest Indian restaurants were opened. These days, the Lane’s restaurants are jostling for space with hipster cafes, but they nevertheless still serve the finest food from the Indian subcontinent anywhere in the city.

The anglicised version of the cuisine can be found in such haunts as Gandhi’s and The Bengal Village, but for a taste of truly authentic Bangladeshi food, head for eateries like Amar Gaon and Gram Bangla. The food in these little cafe-cum-restaurants truly evoke the flavours of rural Bangladesh, heavy on spice and with a preference for fish.

Brick Lane, E1. Station: Whitechapel, Aldgate, Liverpool Street and Shoreditch.

(This article is written by Tharik Hussain. Tharik is a freelance British Muslim travel writer, journalist, broadcaster and photographer specialising in the Muslim stories of Europe. Hussain’s first ever radio documentary, America’s Mosques; A Story of Integration, has been declared one of the world’s best radio documentaries for 2016. All his work can be viewed at www.tharikhussain.co.uk)