Suggestions for good food

I guess you will have to tell us what you consider "good food". I love mussels, shrimp, rare filet mignon, muffins, poached eggs and grapes, to begin with. What say you?

Salut Norma,

You wet my appetite already with this scrumptious breakfast menu you listed. That is truly an English breakfast.

No, this is an English Breakfast.:-)

https://www.google.com/search?q=english+breakfast&client=tablet-android-samsung&prmd=imvn&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiT98_KqPbiAhUUiVwKHV6OAOEQ_AUoAXoECBEQAQ&biw=962&bih=601#imgrc=V6ayg2MS-598qM:

Good food by local standards without taking into account my personal preferences. Wanting to eat like the locals do.

"Wanting to eat like the locals do."

I'm afraid you'll have to give us a little more to go on. London being a city of about 8 million very diverse people, the "locals" eat all kinds of foods, from lots of different cuisines, at all price points.

Since Clapham is not tourist central, most places there will be "local" places by default.

One thing I wasn't prepared for was the dense prevalence of chain restaurants; it's even more intense than in New York City. Rick has a two page listing of British chains in his books, and even then he missed at least one (Leon). There's quite a range of these too, from fancier sit down (Cote Brasserie) to Portuguese chicken (Nandos) to quick Japanese (Itsu) to the ubiquitous sandwich/soup/salad place Pret a Manger (these are so dense, they can be almost across the street from each other). I don't know about Clapham, but in more central locations, these chains will often predominate (they can afford the rents). Again, these places are filled with locals, but may not conform to your ideas of a "local food experience." If you miss American chains, look for Shake Shack or Five Guys (yes really).

I got a lot of food from supermarkets. Even here, there's a range. Whole Foods and Waitrose and M&S are more upscale, Tesco's is more basic, and Sainsbury's is in the middle. They often have meal deals for a few pounds, and they have discounts toward the end of the day on fresh made items that didn't sell (so they don't have to throw them away).

Well locals eat at McDonald's, Bill's Restaurants, Dishoom, Nandos, in Pubs, from food stalls at outdoor markets, Pret a Mangers,
Wahaca, Pizza Express, Burger and Lobster, Pauls, and at any of the countless restaurants one will find in a major metropolitan city.
Not knowing what cheap is to you here's a link to Timeouts Cheap Eats: https://www.timeout.com/london/food-drink/londons-best-cheap-eats

FYI Timeout London is available on line and is a must read for all the intel it has about restaurants, events, galleries, dance, theatre, music, etc.

Another vote for Dishoom!
They have multiple locations...

For everyday eats on the go, Pret is hard to beat. Itsu or Wasabi has many branches and is also a good choice, Japanese, not just sushi. I like Carluccios for inexpensive Italian; their version of a ‘full english’ breakfast is wonderful.

You have many street food markets to choose from Borough Market, Vinegar Yard, Old Spitalfields Market and Brick Lane, Maltby Street Market, Boxpark, Camden Market, National Gallery food market. Also foodie areas like Soho.

Most weekends i’m in Zone 1 wandering about trying street food. If i see somewhere that looks interesting, and i’m in the mood for that cuisine, i’ll check the place out on Tripadvisor, and if the place has 4+ stars, plentiful reviews and the recent reviews are positive... i’ll give it a go.

No disrespect to Emma who i greatly respect, i’d avoid Nando's at all costs, overpriced and substandard.

Its easy to eat well in London for sensible prices, use Tripadvisor.

M&S is also good for food, not cheap compared to other supermarkets, but cheaper than eating in.

London has lots of chain restaurants but many are good. Pret is high up in quality, EATS is close, Gregg's is their poor first cousin. Nando's is something to try....once. (Which was enough for me.)

London is the home of numerous ethnic cuisines so seek them out.

And of course, a good pub meal can't be beat.

Sometimes just wandering around where you are will allow you to discover a good place.

No disrespect to Emma who i greatly respect, i’d avoid Nando's at all costs, overpriced and substandard.

Mike, I'm afraid I'm with Emma on this one. Nando's is popular primarily with young people becaue you order at the counter and pay for your order there and then, there's not the hassle of splitting the bill or feeling that you're paying extra from your limited funds for someone who maybe ordered something more expensive. Granted, the food isn't exactly haute cuisine but it isn't expensive. It's not somewhere I'd recommend two adults to dine out at but with a family with children, especially non adventurous eaters then it's pretty much a guaranteed winner.

Again, I don't understand this insistence on eating where the locals eat. What is the definition of a local and why are they considered the font of all knowledge and guidance? I have a neighbour who eats crap, he and many other people local to me love to eat at Poppins, a franchised cafe which offers crap food. As a visitor you'll see one packed full of locals but that's no indication that the food is any good just like a packed Applebees doesn't mean that you'll enjoy great food.

Tastes are subjective and we've already seen two opposing views on one place already in this thread. London is chock full of good places to eat, far too many to list, just go with your gut instinct or read up on a proper guide to food in London written by people who are acknowledged as knowing what consitutes good food and where to find it. Asking a bunch of strangers on a forum is an exercise in futility in my opinion.

Also, for what people would think of as "traditional British" food there's not much between pubs and a few extremely expensive upmarket restaurants.

Comments accepted on Nando’s lol. I must maintain i think they are eye wateringly overpriced though, and i’m not shy about spending on food. Chicken wings and chips for nearly £15? KFC would be half that... they are not strictly like for like i grant you.

Plenty of other choices of sides in Nando's than chips, and it is possible easily to eat keto or vegetarian there (but not vegan). Drinks are expensive but the iced water is free ...

Dishoom! I ate at the one in Shoreditch (twice). Going back to London in the autumn and plan on going again (might try a different location this time). Best Indian I've ever had. And get the daal - lentils sound modest, but the dish is amazing.

One of my favorite UK chains is Wagamama. I think it would be your splurge here or there.

From my first visits to London I was struck by the good restaurants serving Italian and other 'non-local' types of food. I'd heard of the awfulness of English cooking. However, my local Brit ex-pat aunt always served up some fine dishes including Yorkshire pud, thus assuring me it's not the food that's inherently bad but it's how it's cooked that can ruin it. I've enjoyed French, Italian, Indian, and yes, British, dishes in Britain over the years. I have no clue how many "locals" were on the premises at any given time.

I agree with the warning above - there are "locals" with crap eating habits who keep crappy eating places in business. So you could end up with a disappointing meal in a local joint; OTOH one or two such meals won't kill you and if your attitude is that it's travel and an adventure, it could turn into one of those funny stories that you tell for years. I'm a little biased in favor of looking for local eating places and local shops and other things that are different from what's back home.

That said, I like Nando's. I've never tried chicken wings, but I had dinner at the Nando's in York maybe three nights in a row a few years ago. I was traveling solo, had been sight-seeing all day, was tired and hungry, and knew I could get a decent chicken + veg meal there. No muss, no fuss, and a table at which to dine. When traveling solo I am never interested in fancy sit-down restaurants with fancy prices for fancy food, or in tourist-packed noisy pubs. When traveling with companions I will accede to some degree of fanciness, but as a non-foodie I have limits on that. I eat to live, not vice versa, and when I find something that works I tend to stick with it.

I first found Nando's in London and have also eaten at Nando's in Glasgow. Although I only had one meal there on my more recent trips to London, come to think of it. If they've become keto-friendly I'll have to check them out again if I ever have the chance.

Thanks for all the feedback everyone, I will check some of these out. Again I know we all have different tastes but I am thinking if you were asking me where you should eat if you came to where I live that I would have a few recommendations based on what I think is good and probably what others would agree with me about.

Britain does great:

Fish and Chips
Lamb Stew
Cornish meat pies
Indian food
Italian food (don't order Italian food unless in an Italian restaurant). Order Lasagne at a pub and you will likely get a meat pie with melted cheese on top.

Breakfast is usually nice, but I am not fond of English bacon, which is like over salted low quality ham, but some B&Bs will give you great omelets or Eggs Benedict.

Over salted low quality ham! I’m speechless, lol.

but I am not fond of English bacon, which is like over salted low quality ham

Bacon, adored by both sides of the Atlantic yet so very different.

American bacon is primarily from the belly and is often nothing more than crispy fat when cooked, I find it quite unappealing. British bacon taken from the belly is referred to as streaky bacon, still reasonably fatty but sliced thicker and more meat to fat ration. The other bacon is called back bacon and is taken from the loin. This is very lean and is nothing like American bacon (this bacon is referred to Canadian bacon in the US) and I can understand why some Americans would consider it ham like.

Then there's middle bacon but this is becoming increasingly difficult to find.

I don’t understand the obsession with eating where the locals eat nor all chains are evil.

My last trip, I was at Pret and texted my friend who lives in London. He was at a McDonald’s and he’s about as British as you can be.

I happen to really like Nandos and I’m far from a teen. We do have them in Chicago, so I don’t got to the UK ones often.

I really like Wahaca, it’s a chain of pretty good Mexican food, it’s sit down and table service. For a chipotle type restaurant, look at Barburrito or Tortilla.

Bills is another small chain with a wide variety of food. I’ve liked everything there.

On my last trip to London, one of my company’s suppliers introduced me to Pistachio and Pickle Dairy in Camden Passage. Their cheese toastie was unlike any grilled cheese I’ve ever had in the US. A perfect mound of British cheeses from their cheese case, over an inch thick, grilled between slices of really good sourdough. £5 Not diet food, but mmmm. Local workers queuing.

"American bacon is primarily from the belly and is often nothing more than crispy fat when cooked"

Absolutely, I stop eating bacon when I go to the US as I've never been keen on eating fat, that goes for pork crackling as well.

Many British have a thing for prepackaged sandwiches served on overly squishy bread that's like the island's equivalent of Wonderbread. (I'm told it's often a school lunch nostalgia thing) I'm not a fan, especially since there's often a panini version of the same fillings that'a often only a pound more and offers far better bread quality.

I do like Pizza Express a good deal, though they serve that standard European pizza size that seems like too big for one active adult but not quite big enough of two people. We usually end up with him getting 2/3rds of the pizza and I get 1/3 plus a nice side salad to satisfy my craving for leafy greens. And count me as another Wagamama fan as well- recently had a bunch of good lunches at their Amsterdam outposts.

What I don't like about Wagammama, Wahaca and all the other chains that are adopting the process is where you are unable to order a starter, all receive them at the same time followed, after a short break, by your mains. We are all told that the food comes out whenever it's cooked to ensure optimum frehsness and it's for the customer's benefit but it's not, it's to suit an inadequately staffed kitchen which benefits the restaurant financially.

I've been in Wahaca, had my starter and my main before the kids have even caught sight of theirs. Despite unsuccessful attempts to request that the children receive their food at the same time as the adults the restaurant continues this practice and is the sole reason I refuse to eat there. As for Wagammama, unless I'm on my own, and only going for a single dish I'll also give it a miss. What's the point in offering starters if halfway through they bring your main dish to you? It's ridiculous and penny pinching poorly disguised as being a benefit to the customer.

Good point JC. Back in the stone age when I worked in food service, we were taught that plating correctly, delivering correctly and politely, and most of all the right food at the right time, all to the same table together. In other words, all the drinks together, all the starters (appetisers) together, then at the right time all the mains together, and at the right temperature.

We didn't clear the table until the last person was finished, and even then not until they were relaxed (like resting a piece of meat, rushing doesn't work).

Standards have changed - or slipped so badly that we have become accustomed to getting whatever in whichever order.

I think rather than specific places, I urge coworkers travelling to London to try different experiences. Some of those would be:

• A Pub meal, not Fish and Chips, but Pies, Lamb, any other classic dish, many locals may not favor the average pub, but someone from the US enjoys it. If you find a higher end Gastropub, it might be better, I usually suggest looking up a Fuller's Pub, food tends to be higher quality in my opinion.
• Fish and chips in a proper shop, go deeper into the menu than Cod, try the oddest thing you can find (Yeah, do the Roe or the Skate)
• A good Quality, maybe even average by UK standards, Indian meal.
• If around on a Sunday, look for someplace serving a good Sunday Roast, just be aware that it is a Lunch time type meal.
• Markets are great places to get something quick and different, lots of options, all very tasty.
• Many of the chains mentioned and not(Wagamama, Nando's, Pret, YO Sushi, West Cornwall Pasty, Slug and Lettuce) are nice interludes, you may like them or not, but overall I enjoy them and they are a nice change, different than what you get in the US.
• Pass on Afternoon Tea, not sure the locals even go there, mainly a tourist passion/bucket list type thing.