Inexpensive London restaurants
Sep 24th, 2007 by dave
Charles Campion - the Evening Standard’s always excellent food critic - has published his Top 10 Cheap Eats in London. Here’s 3 of them that we can personally endorse.
A whole network of Lebanese restaurants scattered throughout London - sub-brand include Ranoush, Beirut Express, & Randa. Simple and successful formula, very fresh juices, packed kebabs, a wide selection of meze. Best of the best is the Beauchamp Place branch ( right round the corner from Parkes Hotel ), open til 4am which makes it a popular place for sexy clubbers to rehydrate and take on board much needed vitamins during a big night out.
The key elements are sound Turkish food, a lively atmosphere, and exceptionally tolerant staff. All this adds up to a great place for a party and you will almost certainly share the dining room with a stag or hen group, particularly if you visit at the weekend. For the casual diner this chain has cornered the market in easy-going, good-humoured places with good, inexpensive food.
When Alan Yau started Wagamama, with what was for most of us a new kind of dish — the meal in a bowl whether soup, noodles or rice — it caused plenty of ripples. You had to dine at refectory tables; there were the first electronic order pads; dishes arrived in the order they were cooked rather than observing petty distinctions such as ’starters’ and ‘mains’. Dining at Wagamama still means a good, simple, cheap meal. Minimum fuss and a distinctive style.