A London Food Tour: Flavors of the East End

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In my first trip to Italy, I learned that food tours could be a wonderful addition to a vacation. Each food tour we joined became a highlight of our trip. One of those food tours in Italy was provided by Eating Italy, which has expanded into other European cities. I was happy to book another tour with them when I ventured back to Europe. And so it was that we spent one Saturday in London on the East End Food Tour with Eating Europe.

We arrived a bit late to Old Spitalfields Market. I was concerned that we had missed our group, as we had looked a while with no success. We did end up spotting them without any problem, and our guide – and fellow food fans – were friendly and forgiving of our delay.

Whetting the Appetite

Some food tours are structured to be more like workshops, where more intensive experiences are spread between a limited number of settings. Others provide more of a sampling experience through an area. Sometimes the area might be very specific – like a particular, popular city market. But often, there are options that provide an overview of a neighborhood with a particularly interesting food culture.

The Eating Europe tours are usually structured as walking tours in specified neighborhoods. In the East End tour, we would be walking through the Old Spitalfields area before heading over to Brick Lane and beyond.

We quickly ventured out of the market to begin our tour.

St. JOHN Bread and Wine, our first stop, was a nice spot just across the street from Spitalfields Market. It seemed very light inside and seems almost intentionally non-pretentious. Checking out the menu after our stop was a bit surprising! There was a table reserved for our group, and the place was clearly popular with the locals. Our sample at this restaurant was a bacon sandwich. It was fairly simple in execution, but had great flavor and the bread was quite good. It was served with a tomato sauce and was salty, buttery goodness.

I do believe timing was key here – this item is not on the typical lunch menu and instead is part of their brief window of breakfast service. Although I probably wouldn’t travel to the East End solely to seek out this sammie, it would absolutely be worth trying if in the area.

St. JOHN has a couple locations, although none are exact clones. The bread offerings here looked very tempting. Alas, we did not get to sample those wares, as there were many more sites to visit. But for future reference or carb cravings, there is a St. JOHN Bakery in Neal’s Yard, one of the most photogenic spots in the city!

Dessert: It’s What’s for Lunch?

Next up was another local establishment, just about a block or so away and across from the south end of the market. We ducked into a somewhat unassuming restaurant with a clapboard sign out front.

This restaurant had a nice interior that we were allowed to explore. Aptly named The English, it felt as British as you might expect. Dark paneling and lots of wood. There was a cozy atmosphere, although we were there early in the day while only a few other customers dined. This is a “don’t judge a book by its cover” situation. The menu for this restaurant also suggests they know a thing or two about good food.

And while I know nothing about their savory foods, I do know one thing. I know this pudding.

This pudding and I had a fling. We fell for each other in a dramatic fashion. It wrapped me in its tempting, sweet embrace. I would absolutely have another tryst with this pudding if I ever again crossed its path.

I loved you, pudding.

Ahem. Moving on…

After the pudding, we walked into the neighborhood for a little more information about the history of the East End. Although it certainly has trendy elements and an artistic reputation, it also has roots as a community of the impoverished. We stopped by buildings that had once acted as soup kitchens for the area. Another stop is currently a dorm for students, but in a prior life it was a refuge for homeless women and children.

After these stops for local context, we headed back to the Spitalfields Market to try some fine cheese samples. This Stilton was quite nice and is, of course, a very fitting cheese to try in London!

Isn’t the choice of a fancy cheese plate a weird contrast to conversations about poverty and homelessness? Only now as I think about the sequence of these experiences do I realize how disconnected this feels. Strange.

Mushy Peas, Please!

Leaving the market again, we head to one of the prime destinations for a food tour in the area. Having never been to London, these are some of the many (many, seemingly endless) google searches to prepare for our trip:

“Best Fish and Chips London”

“Top Fish and Chips in London”

“London Fish and Chips Recommendations”

“How can I get the most fried fish and potatoes in my belly??? in London”

You get the idea.

Well, one of the frequent recommendations is Poppie’s. It’s an institution. It’s a local landmark in the East End. There are a few locations now, but here we’re at the original.

Now the really fun benefit of this stop is that “Pop”, the eponymous man himself, came out to greet us. And it was adorable, because he seemed genuinely engaging and welcoming and happy. So it’s pretty difficult to say anything negative about this place.

The fish and chips were hot and crispy. I tried mine with vinegar, as suggested. Not bad. With tartar sauce. Yum.

I did try the mushy peas, I swear. They were – there’s no way around it, because it’s the most apt description – mushy peas. So. Expectations met, I guess? Something I wouldn’t avoid but wouldn’t seek out.

Can I say what the best of London is? Certainly not, because my knowledge is limited to 3 restaurants in all of London. All were good, but this spot was probably the best. I won’t pretend that I’m terribly discriminating about this menu item, but Poppie’s has some pretty darned good fish and chips.

Mild, Medium, and DEATH TO TASTEBUDS!!!

We walked through local streets a bit more, including some more stops to discuss local history and current population dynamics. But generally our guide kept us walking north.

We had finally left the area of the Old Spitalfields Market, and we were moving toward Brick Lane.

We stopped in a local curry house on Brick Lane. Although this stop felt the most lunch-like in service, it was a tight squeeze. They did not seem entirely prepared for the size of our group.

Brick Lane is an eccentric, artsy area, but it is also a very diverse communities. London is more than mushy peas and clotted cream! Note: do not eat these two things together. Please, I beg you.

And so we were here to sample some curries. Well, to attempt to sample some curries.

Here’s the deal: I’m a wimp. I can’t adequately evaluate the curries, because one was a mild vegetable option that wasn’t my favorite. Another was a chicken option that was pretty good but not entirely memorable.

And then there was the lamb dish. That tasted absolutely awesome until my mouth exploded into a fiery ball of flames.

I drank a lot of water and ate rice, staring at the lamb dish with a mix of longing and intense resentment.

The Multi-colored Brick Lane

I’d known about the street art of Brick Lane for years. As a Terry Pratchett fan, I was excited to hear that an homage to Sir Terry was created in Brick Lane shortly after his passing. Of course, most street art is ephemeral in nature. The mural of Terry was long gone.

But it seems the neighborhood is embracing its own eccentricities. Some local shops have employed artists to create commissioned murals. Strange broccoli florets, multi-colored and randomly placed, might be spotted as you pass through the area. And some street art is literally on the street. It is a fun, dynamic mix of realistic and quirky and absurd. I like it.

Genuinely, this is a fun neighborhood to walk through. It could lead to some crazy rounds of “I Spy”, if you got really bored and needed something to do.

And all the way down the lane, you’ll find a remarkably popular bagel spot known for its salted beef bagel sammie. The bagels there were nicely chewy, but not overly remarkable. I do not partake of the cow, but my smoked salmon option was tasty enough instead.

A Sweet Finish

Before finishing our food tour with a delightful dessert, we walked down the length of Brick Lane, passing more local sites. Truman’s Brewery is one example of a historic business in the area, and our guide did a good job of providing context as we moved along the streets.

Our final destination was a pizza shop, which was a bit unexpected. The sample here was a chocolate caramel tart. I’m not sure that this was in any way a local or traditional selection? But it was rich and delicious, I will admit that.

Indeed, Pizza East does a darned good pie. Like, chocolate pie. Not pizza pie. Actually, I dunno. I’ve not tried their pizza. Maybe they do an awesome pizza pie, too? But I doubt it is as remarkable as this dessert. Because if you like rich chocolate treats, you will undoubtable enjoy this tart.

Final Thoughts

In terms of the Eating Europe brand, I can only compare my experience here to their tour in Rome. And in that way, it might have felt like the history was a little less engaging than my other tour. It was Rome, after all.

In terms of food, each tour provided a restaurant experience that might have equated to a lunch sample. In Rome, it was a significant meal of pastas with wine, whereas in London the curries were not as plentiful (and too spicy for me to eat) and in a less comfortable setting. So the London experience doesn’t fare well in that direct comparison. Although, honestly, the Rome tour probably left us overly full. And the London food tour was probably still an excessive substitution for a normal lunch.

I find, though, that comparing any tour to a food tour in Italy might be inherently unfair. Italy is my favorite.

On its own merits, this is still a very nice food tour in London. The historic content about the neighborhood was sufficient; the guide was lovely and competent. The tour was comfortably paced. In all instances where special considerations were brought to her attention, our guide instantly responded in a way that accommodated the guests. Samples were switched or cancelled altogether with little notice.

Eating Europe provides a really high quality food tour. The guide was friendly and engaging, but kept us on target. The restaurant selections were fine to excellent, in terms of quality. All samples were generous quantities. And the most important note, for me, is that I tried a great variety of high quality foods that I simply would not have tried otherwise.

I wouldn’t have known about the bacon sandwich, would not have pursued the immaculately gooey pudding, and probably would have been satisfied with inferior fish and chips. London is sprawling. It’s huge. I tried to map out the restaurants I’d like to try, and it turns out that they might not overlap with the days and times we’d be in the area – if we’d be in that area at all. Taking a food tour gave us a chance to try some highlights without needing infinite days, and expensive meals, to sample it all.

And without having to prioritize foodie desires over actual cultural or historic sites. Or birds.

Because ya always gotta find the birds….

Basically, if this sounds like your cup of tea, you should give it a whirl. Particularly if the price point is in your budget. It is not the cheapest option in town, but it adds new flavor and perspective to the typical tourist experience. Most of my non-wildlife vacations will probably continue to include food tours. And if in a major European city, I am sure I will go back to Eating Europe when I can. So far, I am pretty happy with their product and their service.