London Halal Dining
If you are visiting London and you love Marry Poppins then this themed afternoon tea will be perfect for you. This post will give you a full review on the food, the Aqua shard views and how Muslim friendly it is
Read MoreYou will probably find me in one of these! These are the places I choose from when I go out for food in London. These are purely based on my taste and what I like to eat. Thankfully, my friends love them as much as I do. I surly need to expand the list. I tried loads more, but I only put the ones I really enjoyed here.
For Arabic food: you are really spoiled for choice. There are so many options in Edgware Road and I only tried a few. I like Beirut Express for breakfast. I love the Green Valley to get some fresh or frozen Arabic special food. Maroush and Abu Zaad are also yummy!
For Burgers: Stax, Burgista Bros and Guanabana for chicken burgers: GBK.
For Indian: Hands down Dishoom. It's just so so good! There is also Roti Chai. It's in a similar goodness range.
For Turkish: Iskele (Barbican area) and Babaji Pide.
For Mexican: I still haven't found the prefect Mexican place in London, but Wahaca is nice. It's not halal, but I get their veggie or fish tacos.
For Pizza: Homeslice and Zizzi
For Noodles: Shoryu Ramen (be careful though. About 95% of their menu is pork. I go for the one vegetarian noodles that they have. It is so good!)
For Sushi: Sticks n Sushi (beware! It's really pricey, but so yummy!)
For Persian: There are so many amazing Persian restaurants in London. These are my favourite. I really enjoyed eating in all four: Behesht (Kensal Green), Alounak (Bayswater), Kish (Maida Vale) and Kabab Mahdi (Hammersmith).
For Stake: Steak and Co (they have a special halal stake) I haven't found another good halal stake in London, but the search continues.
For General/Please everyone classics: Jamie's Italian. It's not halal, but their prawns linguine and vegetarian dishes are nice.
More favourites on the London map:
Happy September everyone!
During the long bank holiday weekend, I got to try Sketch, one of the nicest afternoon tea experiences in London! I have been wanting to go for the longest time and I am so glad I finally did. I had afternoon tea at the gallery. The space was mostly pink with pink chairs and pink walls. It was so girly and dreamy. I liked that they covered the walls with sketches. Some were funny and others were a bit strange.
The afternoon tea was unlimited, which was something I did not expect and really loved! I was full from the first serving, but had a bit more because they kept offering so nicely. It was pure indulgence. It included a choice of tea, vegetarian finger sandwiches, traditional scones, pastries. There were two choices for pastries ones with beef gelatine and vegan ones. I went with the vegan ones and was pleasantly surprised of how yummy they were. I liked that we were able to try more than one kind of tea. I tried the oolong and the rose teas. Overall, the food was nice but nothing out of the extraordinary. The lovely tea selection, the interiors and the amazing service made it all so worth it. To top it off, they had MAD bathrooms that looked like they landed right out of space. It just added a fun twist to the space.
I will definitely be going there again. Keep in mind you need to reserve a table in advance because it gets booked up really fast.
Happy Thursday all!
Last month, I was taking daily classes at the Prince's School of Traditional Arts. It's located in Shoreditch, which meant having lunch that area daily. The longer I stayed there, the more places I discovered. From the places I found, were these little hidden gems that I wanted to share with you all
#1 Ruby. Be prepared to queue, but the Italian food is SO worth it! The staff are super friendly and very accommodating as well. It's very affordable. You can get something for a fiver or less. Ps. Chicken is halal! :D
Address: 8-9 Hoxton Square, London, United Kingdom
#2 The little indian cafe. I am not really sure what it's called, but it's really hidden. It's between Pod and Itsu on Eastern St. It's a corner shop, but with hot food inside. A plate of rice and three sides is around 3-4 pounds. It's also really yummy! Ps. Chicken is Halal.
#3 Apostrophe Cafe I love this little cafe and they have fresh vegetarian sandwiches, farm pressed juices and really nice desserts. It's also affordable.
Address: Great Eastern Street EC2 42 Great Eastern Street London EC2A 3EP
#4 Box Park. I only went there quickly and I didn't even get to eat there, but they got a number of pop up shops and restaurants upstairs with a number of affordable eateries. It's super cool and the way they made a quirky use of the containers is brilliant.
Address: 2-10 Bethnal Green Rd, London, E1 6GY, UK
This is a post of my top four favourite breakfast restaurants in Shoreditch, London!
Read MoreHappy Sunday everyone!
It's getting so close to winter these days and with this cold weather all I can do is indulge in really good warming food. Yesterday, I found my new favourite halal burger joint in London by accident. It was so good that it's all I can think of today! :D It was located in Kingly Court, which is proving to be a really nice place to eat, although with Christmas coming really soon, it's crazy crowded there.
Outside Kingly Court
Stax Diner is in the first floor and it was SO crowded.
Hello Stax!
The place is really small, which means the queue is outside, which is a little awkward.
The menu had American choices from fried chicken and waffles to great burgers and shakes.
The Menu was like a cute little fan
To be honest, I wasn't a big fan of the interior space. The light fixtures were really cool but the tables and the chairs weren't comfortable, but I guess that's because of the very tiny space.
The food was AMAZING and did I mention Halal. The burgers were so fresh and delicious. SUPER GOOD. Will surly come back for the burgers.
My Boston Float, which is ginger bear and ice cream. It went so well with the burger
Meet my beautiful meat!
up close
Loved the burgers. Go try them and let me know what you think when you try it! :D
Happy sunday beautiful people!
This is my favourite day of the week when I am in London. The atmosphere is so relaxed and everyone is taking it easy. Plus, it's quiet in the morning. This day is appreciated by the whole nation I think.
This week I finally went to the famous Dishoom for breakfast, so if you are looking for a place for today's breakfast or brunch then look no further! By the way, this place gets crazy busy, so I would advice you to book in advance. I went during a weekday's morning. That's why it was quiet and just amazing.
Entrance
The Shoerditch brand is where I went. They have a main resturant hall + bar that has a contemporary industrial look with a funky geometric floor pattern. It's louder there and very lively. The designers of the space wanted to tell a story with the details they chose, a story inspired by Iranian cafés that took a place in India in the 1960s and mix it with the current atmosphere of London. Read more on the design process in Dishoom's journal. I loved the fact they wrote about it.
Main resturant + bar
Geometric floor pattern
Part of Dishoom is the veranda. I loved the design so much. I can see myself there daily just drinking their delicious chai, writing and enjoying the coziness of the space. The design is indoors because of the London weather conditions, but has an outdoors feel. It's shabby chic with a rustic feel that makes you feel comfortable at once.
Spot the beautiful pattern
Another thing I liked about the space is the different light choices, the artwork that tells a number of stories and the green plants.
Lights and plants
Comfy seats and a very homey atmosphere
Enough design talk! I know you are dying to know about the food! It was ready in empakisble timing and tasted amazing! You can tell how yummy the food is from the photos alone. Something I liked in the menu is that it tells you the farms where food come from, which gives a sense of community.
Simple menu full of delicious choices
We got the Aukri eggs, fire-y toasts, house porridge topped with dates and bananas, egg naan roll, fruit juice and chocolate chai. The naan roll was so good. The thought is just mouthwatering. The naan was very fresh, the eggs were tasty. The chocolate chai made it on my very favourite beverages list. It was the right level of sweet. I highly recommend their food. Note, the menu serves ham, but there are plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. Their dinner menu includes halal choices as well.
Their tables are great for food photos!
Even their plates were gorgeous!
On one of the plates, the sweetest story was written. I forgot to take a picture, but I will just share it from memory: once in Bombay, I went to a cafe. The nicest girl greeted me and talked to me for half an hour before I realized that she worked there. I went there every day for the remaining time of the trip and now the girl and I got engaged, moved to London to open our Bombay cafe and soon to be married.
That adorable romantic story was surly a plus!
If you go there based on this recommendation, please comment and tell me all about your experience.
Enjoy the rest of the day!
When I was younger the only hot drink I liked was hot chocolate and as I grew older, my taste buds enjoyed tea and with being in the UK -Tea Capital of the world- my love for tea has been growing. Now, everyone who tries a new tea place tells me about it and even suggests meeting up in tea shops! win win. Few weeks ago, my classmate tried Yumchaa tea shop in Camden and instead that I go with her. She didn't have to ask twice!
What I found different in Yumchaa is they have all the types they offer laid out in lovely small cups with the names, so you can smell the tea and see it before choosing it. I thought it was cool and it gives each person a more hands on approach to tea. It was a good way to start a conversation as well. My classmates and I, compared the different types, laughed at the names and enjoyed that experience.
The teas were also catgrorized and separated based on their types in a lovely way. Instead of having it written in menu pages.
There was a good selection of deserts as well, which is always needed with a good cuppa!
The interior space was quirky, cozy and casual.
In the center of the cafe, they had an glass ceiling that allowed access to natural light in the cafe, which brightened up the space. There were different chairs and sofas around. The mix was fun. Overall, it's a nice place to have tea, read a book or meet friends. Check it out when you are in Camden next. They have other locations as well. Details on their website.
