Eating London: An East London Food Tour Experience

One of the highlights of my London trip two weeks ago is the food tour in the East End with Eating London. Although I’ve been staying in England for a couple of months now, I have to admit that I haven’t done any foodie trail that focuses on British cuisine.

Catherine of Seeking Felicity and I had a fun night prior to the tour because of the iTunes Festival gig featuring Jessie J and Lawson. We woke up early the next day and tok the underground train trip to Liverpool New Street. Ah, we’re ready for some food invasion!

It was my first time in East London. While walking towards the meeting place (Spitalfields Market), I couldn’t stop staring at some of the old and new buildings.

Nicole, our official tour leader welcomed us with a big smile despite the fact that we were a few minutes late (sorry!). I felt at ease right away because she was approachable and her bubbly personality brightens up the morning!

First Stop: St. John Bread and Wine! For early morning wine? Nope. We’re here for the Bacon Sandwiches!

The British Bacon is different from the American style, which I am more familiar with. Bacon sandwiches were strategically placed on the left part of the vicinity and we were all excited to take our first bite!

The Bacon Sandwich of St. John Bread and Wine didn’t disappoint. The ¼ slice is already packed and the special ketchup sauce made it more special.

I love the simplicity of the place and I would love to go there again soon for lunch or dinner. They’re quite known for accommodating guests who would love to feast on pork. The logo reminds me of my favorite –  lechon 😛

Our next destination is The English Restaurant. It is the oldest building in Spitalfields and is one of the most loved pubs in the area. In fact, a Hollywood actor is a frequent visitor. Clue? HG.

What I love about The English Restaurant is the ambiance. I automatically imagined myself in one corner sipping coffee while working on blog backlogs (such as this one lol).

We’re here for something sweet – Banana Bread Pudding. What’s so special with that? Add the Vanilla Rum Cream and you’ll know #nomnomnom

We did a bit of history trail and I guess it deserves a separate post. Let’s focus on food first, shall we?

Are you in love? Yes? No? Feel cheesy? Eat Cheese! #cheesytagline

The third stop is for the cheese lovers out there! Androuet is a French cheese company with an impressive record. They also have a wide variety of cheese – hundreds to choose from!

Foodies of the day were given the opportunity to taste three types: Waterloo, Cheddar and Stilton. Loved the first one. I can’t help but remember my grandfather who loves cheese. If only I can hoard all the contents of the store and send it to Manila! #cheesyfamilythoughts

A UK Food Tour will never be complete without any Fish and Chips place on it. Get ready for POPPIES!

POPPIES is the most colorful Fish and Chips place I’ve seen. I love the 50’s Diner vibe when we entered the place. I also liked the uniform of the female staff… it reminded me of Christina Aguilera’s Back to Basics album 😛 Sorry, just had to express what was going through my head that time.

There’s also a wall with Hollywood celebrity photographs on it. The owner’s passion to make this business work is truly felt by the clients. He also printed custom-made newspapers so that the customers get to experience the traditional way of preparing and eating Fish and Chips.

We tried the Fish and Chips with mushy pees. Not really a fan of the mushy pees, but that didn’t stop me from eating my share. Pass the vinegar, please!

Drinks, anyone? Let’s go to The Pride of Spitalfields!

We were welcomed by Lenny, the boss of the pub who is a blogger too! Meow!

I can say that it is one of the coziest pubs I’ve been to. We were able to drink a shot of beer and cider. I’m not really a drinker, but I enjoyed drinking and staying there.

Brick Lane is the Curry Capital of East London. Nicole mentioned that the area can be chaotic at night because of business owners convincing possible customers to dine in their restaurant. Some can even offer big discounts. Woot Woot!

Our next stop is ALADIN, which was visited by lots of famous personalities in the past. It’s been in the area for the past 25 years.

We were given three types of curries to try (arranged according to spice). I love Indian food and I was really looking forward to this part of the tour.

The Beigel Bake is the most memorable discovery for me. The exterior reminds me of an old Filipino paninderia set-up, which was a bit weird for me since I am in London.

Nicole shared some trivias about the place: the owner treats his beigels as his ‘mistress’ as he works there most of the time and the place is in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Hmmm… what’s so special about this simple but jam-packed place?

So we were given the beigels and oh my… it is so delicious! The meat melts in my mouth, but the mustard kind of ruined it a bit for me. I realized that mustard is not really for me (whether that is the American or British version lol). Anyway, I’d  still travel to East London just for these beigels!

Our last stop is Pizza East. Nah, we didn’t feast on pepperoni or Hawaiian pizza. We went there for the Salted Caramel Tart and a cup of tea. What a good way to end the tour!

I really enjoyed the Eating London East End Food Tour! Nicole did a great job in entertaining and answering our queries. It made my first East London trip special.

Isn’t it nice to gather interesting facts about a place while eating different types of food? The diversity of immigrants residing in this part of London makes it more appealing. Add the quirky street art that you’d see in almost every corner. Food + History + Arts = Epic Tour!

Special thanks to Eating London for the wonderful experience! I highly recommend it! Interested? Visit the Eating London Tours website. Follow them on Twitter and Facebook!