Speaking of Greasy Spoons

London has some great greasy spoons and here are two of my favourites:

The Breakout Cafe & Sandwich Bar on the Caledonian Road, N7 9BQ. It is located opposite Pentonville Prison so great choice of name. If your travelling by car, there are a few pay & displays which I'd recommend you use - there are loads of traffic wardens hanging around to catch you out.

The Breakout Cafe & Sandwich Bar
Caledonian Road
London N7 9BQ


Terry's Cafe on Great Suffolk Street.
As you walk into this cafe it is like walking back in time. The cafe has a real old London charm about it, the staff are really friendly and there are old pictures of Southwark placed around the walls and other various nic-nacs. They do a great breakfast - just order whatever you fancy. You can usually grab a table and the regulars seem to be on first-name terms with the owners. If you're driving you can park for free in most of SE1 on Saturdays.

Terry's Cafe
158 Great Suffolk Street
London SE1 1PE
Tel: 020 7407 9358
Not open on Sundays

Nincomsoup - Old Street Station, London EC1Y

If you live / work / visiting the Old Street area and looking for something filling and healthy for lunch or dinner, there is a great soup place located in Old Street Tube Station, Central London called Nincomsoup. The decor is really interesting and minimalist which they won the Retail Interiors Award 2001.

The soups are made from scratch with natural ingredients and seasonal produce. They also serve a great coffee, smoothies, veggie juices, icecream shakes to name a few. I'm always running late for work so have never had a chance to stop for brekkie, which although is not as inviting as a greasy spoon, is a great healthy alternative if your watching those calories or fancying being healthy.

The soups are delicious and flavoursome, which you can sample before you buy and top it up with either a roll or corn muffin - eat-in or takeaway. Note: Eat-in is subject to VAT.

Location: Old Street Tube Station Concourse, on the Northern Line, Central London
Web address: http://www.nincomsoup.co.uk/
Daily Soup Menu website: http://nincomsoupoldstreet.blogspot.com/

New Tayyabs - Punjabi cuisine in the London east end

A friend recommended we try New Tayyabs. It is located at 83-89 Fieldgate Street, London E1 1JU, just off Whitechapel and not far from the hustle and bustle of Brick Lane (which, if you have not been to before, is well worth a visit on your next trip to London or fancy eating in a different part of the city).

New Tayyab has been established for over 30 years and started as a daytime cafe, it became very popular with the locals and folks from the city, families and East End creatives, so they expanded into the adjoining Victorian Pub. Their specialism is Punjabi dishes from Pakistan.

We rang ahead to order some take-away (full menu available on their website). Next time we'll stop and have our meal there - the atmosphere was vibrant, busy and full of buzz. Lots of good food and chat going on from very large to small groups of people enjoying their Saturday night meal. The place was full and people were happy to queue to wait for their table, they also had a few tables available outside.

The food was just simply delicious, we ordered a selection of vegetarian dishes, rices, naan breads and starters. What I love best about getting curries is you get to sample a range of different flavours, spices, textures and New Tayyabs didn't disappoint. Their menu has a great selection for both veggies and non-veggies. I am really looking forward to my next visit.

The Details:
New Tayyabs
12:00 - 11:30 pm (7 days a week)
83-89 Fieldgate Street
London E1
www.tayyabs.co.uk
020 7247 6400 | 020 7247 9543 | 020 7247 8521
info@tayyabs.co.uk

London Geek Dinner - 7 July 2006

I attended the London Geek dinner, organised by Ian Forrester in Central London last night.

Chris Anderson, the editor-in-chief for Wired Magazine gave a talk on his book The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More which was very interesting.

The event took place at Bottlescrue on Holburn Viaduct, which had a great outdoor space so we could enjoy the beautiful London evening. It is part of the Davy wine group, so the selection of wine was a winner. There was a great supply of nibbles, good company and chat.

The evening was a great success with about 90 people turning up. I was lucky to be sitting near the front so I could hear Chris talk.

A big thanks to Ian for organising it. You can read Ian's full report on the 7 July London Geek Dinner and Geek Dinner photos on flickr

Sol Campbell to leave Arsenal

Sol Campbell has decided to leave Arsenal to seek new challenges. The Arsenal centre back made 197 appearances for Arsenal and helped Arsenal win five major trophies.

He has not yet been linked with any club and commented that he would also be interested in moving abroad. He will be sadly missed and it was a pleasure watching him play at the old Highbury Stadium.

For the full article visit the Arsenal website.