By Michelle Lin

I always thought that California had the most diverse array of food, but it pales in comparison to London. This city is filled with so many amazing restaurants with many different types of food, from traditional English to Lao to Scandinavian. Here are some of my favorite restaurants that I’ve tried in London.  

Regency Cafe 

This is a classic British greasy spoon spot, which is a must-go to experience a classic full English breakfast. It’s pretty cheap- around 7 euros for a full English breakfast, which includes British bacon, sausage, tomatoes, black pudding, mushrooms, beans, toast, and coffee or tea. It’s also pretty popular, so you may need to wait, but service is super quick. Part of the experience is seeing the workers multi-task. It truly is an amazing feat to take orders, make toast, and make mugs of tea at the same time, and there is one lady who yells out the order in the loudest voice that I have ever heard. Two important pieces of information to know is that this is a cash only restaurant, and also does not have a toilet.  

Dishoom 

Dishoom is an Indian restaurant in London, and arguably one of the most famous restaurants in the city, where two hour waits for dinner is normal. There’s multiple locations throughout London. I’ve tried both lunch and breakfast here, and breakfast is most definitely worth it- Dishoom’s breakfast is one of the best breakfasts that I’ve ever had in my entire life. Breakfast is served until 11:45, which makes it the perfect brunch option as well. In addition, it’s less crowded during breakfast, and you will probably never encounter a wait in the morning. Dishoom’s breakfast is more fusion, with their famous naans filled with bacon, sweet chili jam, and cream cheese. This is an absolutely amazing combination, and super filling as well. One of my other favorite dishes are the spiced eggs that come with Iranian buns. Dishoom also serves the best chai tea that has free refills!  

 

Punjab 

While Dishoom is the best Indian breakfast/brunch spot, Punjab is the best place for traditional Indian dishes for lunch and dinner. It is the oldest Northern Indian restaurant in the UK, and its dishes reflect the amount of technique, work, care, and love that goes into cooking them. Their chicken tikka masala is absolutely amazing, with a very flavorful and balanced sauce. I also love their garlic naan, and their pumpkin curry, which is the perfect balance of sweet, spicy, and salty. Punjab has the best Indian food that I’ve ever tasted, and while it’s a bit on the pricier side, it’s definitely worth it! London is famous for its Indian food, and it doesn’t really get better than Punjab.

Four Seasons  

This is one of my favorite restaurants in Chinatown, which is right next to Soho. Four Seasons has really good Cantonese food, and is known for their barbecued meat of duck, chasu, pork belly, and spare ribs. The one, two, or three barbecued meats on rice is a pretty good deal at 8, 9, or 10 pounds respectively. This restaurant is so popular that even though they now have 3 different locations in Chinatown, they still have lines. However, there never seems to be a line if you get there at 5:00 pm. My favorites are the duck and the pork belly; although the pork belly looks super fatty, it actually is really delicious with a crunchy sugar crusted top.  

Cafe de Nata 

Cafe de Nata bakes Portuguese egg tarts of many different flavors: original, coconut, raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, and chocolate. My personal favorites are blueberry and chocolate. Portuguese egg tarts are creamier and more custard-like than Chinese egg tarts. While a lot of coffee shops and restaurants including Nando’s sells these, this cafe has the best Portuguese tarts, especially considering the fact that these tarts are a bit on the expensive side. You can smell these tarts before you can even see the store, and is a must if you’re in the Soho area!  

Michelle Lin studied in London, England in 2018: http://eap.ucop.edu/OurPrograms/united_kingdom_england/Pages/default.aspx