Quality dining in London for an affordable price? Ask Thirty One Seventy Five
Today we’re introducing another guest blogger- Tim Chester, who is the founder of http://thirtyoneseventyfive.com/. Tim is an experienced foodie; read his tips on London’s best cheap quality dining and learn what 31.75 actually stands for.
Meet Tim!
The idea for Thirty One Seventy Five came to me in an Aberdeen Angus Steak House. As any Londoner will know, these horrible places sit across from the capital’s major tube stations luring in innocent tourists, feeding them rubbery slabs of cheap meat and revolting chips in oppresively tacky surroundings and charging a premium for the privilege, before disgorging them back out into the city ready to go home and tell their friends how overpriced and tasteless London food is. When you are literally feet away from a tasty alternative.
So, on my visit back in December, halfway through the mangy flesh of the main course I decided to start a blog on the good places to eat in the city. I was dining alone at the Aberdeen Angus Steak House that night. I ordered a steak, chips, some bread and two beers and my bill came to £31.75. The point of the blog is to see what else you can get in the capital for that much money, to unearth places where your thirty one pounds and seventy five pence will be much better spent. The budget end of the spectrum but allowing for some amazingly decent places if you look hard enough and maybe keep an eye on the booze. These are my top five tips right now for London eating and drinking under £31.75.
http://thirtyoneseventyfive.com/
At Towpath
Towpath
One of the best ways to experience London is through its canals, those watery arteries that dissect east, north and west London. Situated on a barren stretch of towpath (hence the name) between Victoria Park and Camden, Towpath is essentially a couple of knackered tables and chairs protruding out of a garage space, but the coffees, flaky pastries and people-watching potential make it an essential stop.
The Spaniards Inn
I’ve proably tried more Sunday roasts than any other food type in the capital, and while Paradise By Way Of Kensal Green offers the best food and Camden’s Crown and Goose the best ambience, The Spaniards Inn is my favourite all-rounder. Hidden away across Hampstead Heath it’s the ideal place to end up after a bracing walk – all creaking wood, roaring fires and sleeping dogs plus of course brilliant ales and top notch hearty roasts. I always feel like I’m outside London at the Spaniards which can often be a good thing.
Food at Mangal II
Mangal II
Round my neck of the woods (Dalston/Stoke Newington) is Turkish mecca; there’s so many great ocakbasi (charcoal grill) restaurants it’s hard to know where to begin. I suggest Mangal II, widely-regarded as one of the best and rightly so. It will redefine your idea of kebabs – this is a place where you don’t need to be hammered to enjoy the food.
Koya
One of the capital’s newest ventures, Koya specialises in those thick gelatinous udon noodles that everyone finds so hard to eat. They serve them up hot or cold, with hot or cold sauce and their pork with miso is unbelievable.
Pizza East / Polpo
These two places are so neck and neck in my book they’re going to have to share the last spot. Both Italian and both under a year old, they offer different but equally brilliant takes on the country’s cuisine. The former is housed in the first floor of Shoreditch House (along with its sister venue Soho House the best member’s club in the city) and is a huge, spectacularly designed space, all wooden beams and steel rivets, among which hungry diners congregate on communal tables. Hams hang from the cental bar and cheeses lurk in big boxes while a crack team of chefs manipulate a huge wood fired oven and create pizza magic. I usually get the spicy sausage and broccoli. Read more on the place on my blog.
Polpo meanwhile offers Italian tapas: small, reasonably priced plates of such good quality they’ve got food bloggers across the capital drowning in their own saliva. They just opened a sister restaurant called Polpetto above the French House in Soho. You can’t book but both places are worth the wait.
Head over to my blog and let me know what you think of them. Also, I’m looking for the best and worst Italian restaurant in London – so feel free to hit me up with your suggestions!
Photography: Tim Chester and Mangal II’s website
That sounds fantastic – especially the Hampstead Heath one – you r blog will be fantastic for the people that belong to Supper Clubs and always looking for new places to go. Thank You