What to do in London? Eat!
My wonderful adventure in London has come to its end, and even though I had the most amazing time here, and learned so much interning at Mary Katrantzou, I look forward spending the summer back in Belgium with my family and friends whom I've all missed so much, as I've been living abroad for a year and a half now. My internship was so interesting, and learned me so much about so many things, and I couldn't be more lucky and grateful to have been able to do this. It also allowed me to spend 6 months in a city I literally dreamed of when I was younger. I could never have imagined actually living and working here, but still, this dream came true, and it's something I will carry with me forever.
After living in the UK's capital for six months, here's my to-go spots in London. Some you might already know, some you might never have heard of. If you're going to London anytime soon, I hope this post will help you, and feel free to send me some tips too, as I'm not planning on turning my back on this city completely. London, you've been wonderful, and remember, "When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life".
To make this post not endlessly long, I'm going to split this up in different categories and spread the posts a bit - even though London is amazing, overload is too much, so here we go for category one: FOOD. Because you literally can't go without, so why not go to a nice place instead of quick bite at McDonald's or Prêt-A-Manger? Here's my food recommandations! Let me know if you have more!
Camden Lock Market
For a quick bite in dodgy, yet trendy Camden, go to the food part of the famous Camden Lock Market. I promise you you won't be dissappointed for the massive range of food offered there, literally from all over the world. Name it, they have it. It tends to get massively crowded, so I recommend you to take your food with you to Regent's Canal and have an improvised pick-nick by the water. And do go for lunch to avoid dissappointment because the nice food part closes around five. There's always another food court, but it's only not-so-amazing Asian food and one pizza place, so try going there around lunchtime.
Meat Mission
They have several locations throughout London, with different names, but
meat is the keyword here. be prepared for one of the biggest and best burgers of your life in a very cool atmosphere. And share a side of fries, because honestly, they're amazing - and being Belgian, I can know! I had the bacon & cheese meat burger (it was 4 o'clock, hadn't had lunch and breakfast was a yoghurt, so you can guess I was up for a big fat burger), and my friend went for chicken & cheese. Honestly one of the best burger's I've had, at a very fair price! Must-go if you're on a meat mission and craving something good, big and heavy!
Franco Manca
When your Italian flatmate says "This place has the best pizza in town!", you believe him, because Italians know best when it comes to pizza. The staff is Italian too, and so are their espressos and amazing sourdough pizza. Trust me, you can't go wrong with this one - the queue is totally worth it! With different locations throughout London, this is my favourite place for a good, big, fresh and tasty pizza at a very good price! Pretend to be Italian, and have an espresso after - they're very strong but very good! I let my Italian friend order my pizza when going there for lunch, most of the time I didn't have a clue what was going on with all the Italian chattering between my friend and the staff, but I've never been disappointed. Close your eyes and it's almost like you're in Italy.
Honest Burgers
No-one loves queuing as much as the English. Any trendy place you go in Soho, no matter whether it's a working day or the weekend, there will be a queue. Some places aren't worth the wait, but Honest Burgers is. Honestly. Amazing burgers, served with rosemary chips, which on its own are worth a trip down Soho/Portobello/Camden/Brixton/many more. You see, they're spread across London, so no excuses for not going down there for an amazing burger experience. Whereas famous burger joint Byron is spread across London too (they seem to be popping up everywhere), this one doesn't have that we're-a-chain-so-hurry-up-we-need-your-table vibe Byron has. Defenitely one of my favourite places for a filling dinner before going to the pub!
The Breakfast Club
For those who love breakfast as much as I do, this is the place to go - they serve breakfast all day every day, and offer a wide range, for those who can't digest full English in the morning. If you can, go during the week, and don't go to late, otherwise you'll find yourself in a huge queue which takes about 2 hours, and you could faint by the time you can finally have your amazing brunch. And remember, if Russell Brand can go there to cure his hang-over, so can you.
picture: not mine
Tonkotsu
Let's end with a healthy one. If you're up for amazing ramen (which is Japanese noodles soup) at a fair price, go to Tonkotsu. I went to the one on Dean Street (click
here for other locations), and I really enjoyed it. My Asian friend recommended the traditional Tonkotsu Ramen, with a side of Edamame beans. Honestly, it's
delicious - filling, healthy and simply yummy.
So, you hungry yet? Please let me know if you have any other recommendations!
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