Lomography

Eat your soul out!

Many posts on Brick Lane do already exist. Many words were said about its famous Sunday Market. But I would like to talk about the food here. Since construction work on east London Overground are over, the food stalls are taking over the street.

Now, not only there is the UpMarket’s famous indoor food area and food stalls at Backyard Market nearby, the whole street is a festival of food now. Coconut man, smoothies paradise, fish grills, Caribbean food, Asian pancakes and spring rolls, salads of all types and curries, curries, curries.

Curry street is actually an alternative name for Brick Lane due to its multitude of curry houses. In the 20th century the Brick Lane area was important in the second wave of development of Anglo-Indian cuisine, as families from countries such as Bangladesh migrated to London to look for work. They mostly worked at the docks and they wanted some places to stop for their usual food. Humble beginnings such as this gave birth to Brick Lane as the famous curry capital of the UK. Every year in September the Curry Festival takes place here. There are plenty of small coffee shops, providing free WiFi access, so many people spent all their days here navigating the web on their laptops.

And, don’t forget about the famous bagel shops which works 24/7! Known for the best salt beef bakery in the UK. Classic smoked salmon and cream cheese option is also available. The snack stop of choice for clubbers, imbibers, taxi drivers and anyone on a budget.

Address: 159 Brick Lane, London, E1 6SB

My favorite though is Clifton Restaurant on the further side of Brick Lane, near Algate. Simply the best! There is an open kitchen, so you can admire the chefs in action, with their pans flying in the air above the huge open fire. It’s mesmerizing to see how smoothly four men can be in the kitchen: one oil man, one spice man, one cooking man, one stirring man, and so it goes. I always go for Mango Lasse, Mattar paneer (an Indian dish consisting of paneer (cheese) and peas in a sweet and spicy sauce) or Massala paneer. Masala dosa is another dish in my top 10 (made by stuffing a dosa with a lightly-cooked filling of potatoes, fried onions, and spices. It wraps the dosa around an onion and potato curry). I could go on, but better try it for yourself – and, it’s cheap!

1 Whitechapel Road, Brick Lane,
London,
E1 6TY