Revisiting London

After a two-year delay due to the global pandemic, our family was finally able to get over the Pond and visit London, my childhood home, and the site of my dad’s posting at the U.S. Embassy during my formative years. I can’t really describe my joy at not only traveling overseas again after one of the longest periods I can remember, but also introducing my kids to a place that is very special to me personally.

I have been on numerous trips over the years, but this time, I admit I looked at everything with fresh eyes and a different perspective. Things certainly seemed spiffed up. Maybe this was because of the Queen’s Jubilee which took place only a few weeks before. But also, everything seemed a bit more familiar. There were more Mexican restaurants than I could ever recall from years past. And it seemed everywhere we went burgers were on the menu and pizza. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, I would have killed to have a good slice of pizza. I remember the only thing close to home my dad was able to find was the Chicago Pizza Pie Factory, which apparently no longer exists. We were fortunate to have the Hard Rock Café (the first!) on Park Lane. That was always a special place for us to visit and my parents always made sure we had a hot fudge sundae, just like the ones we remembered from home.

On this trip though, I was seeking the things I can’t get at home and on that note, there is quite a long list. To be honest, I don’t even know where to start. I felt like a kid in a candy shop trying to make sure my kids did it all and it was impossible. To start, everyone should experience a formal tea just once in England. I agonized over where to go since I have been to many of the best places with my parents, but in the end, I chose to go back to the Savoy which I enjoyed on my last visit. It has the right mix of formality with delicious food and wonderful service. On this occasion, we were celebrating my son Ryan’s graduation from high school and the team made sure he received a special celebratory cake with a note from the staff.

In choosing what sights to visit, there was no question that the Tower of London had to be on the list. My parents made countless trips there with many of our visiting family and friends during the time we lived there, and I was always along for the ride. The thing that struck me is how much they have expanded what is on display. The White Tower now has armor and a great deal of historic artifacts. We spent about 3 hours there, and honestly, we could have stayed longer if we weren’t feeling so fatigued! I did enjoy my chat with one of the Beefeaters and of course visiting the Ravens who were very cheeky – sharing their displeasure with everyone by appropriately cawing at us and making shrill alarm sounds anytime we got too close!

Three other places we visited included the Imperial War Museum, primarily for John who is very knowledgeable and interested in conflicts around the world, the Victoria & Albert Museum, which features a number of rare textiles and ceramics, and finally the British Museum, one of my personal favorites and truly amazing. In the time we visited these institutions, we didn’t really even scratch the surface as each museum was chock full of items to view. We averaged about 20,000 steps a day and our feet would tire after a while from so much walking. I have visited all of these places previously, but realize I learned something new on every occasion.

What about the food though? What did we eat? Well, it was more like, what didn’t we eat! I did feel like I didn’t do the food justice because of all of the running around, so the kids didn’t get to go to all of my favorites, but convenience ruled, and we only had so many days to squeeze everything in and we did our best. Here are a few of the highlights:

Food Markets and Shops

Borough Market – Everyone it seems knows Borough and it was absolutely packed with all kinds of people on a Friday afternoon! We loved the bakery, Bread Ahead, which is known for their doughnuts and adored our sandwich from Tapas Brindisa, which is filled to the brim with chorizo, roasted red peppers and rocket. Our other stops included Pieminister, where we picked up a steak and ale pie with stilton to try and Ginger Pig for sausage rolls and scotch eggs. These items were just okay, but the real winner was Kappacasein, which serves cheese toasted sandwiches made with gruyere cheese on Poilane bread. I wish we could have tried the raclette, but there was a strange line that required you to stand in one line or the other to be served. The other annoyance? No cash at most of the stalls, which was not very convenient, but was excused as “safer” for Covid. In any event, it was a whirlwind trip. I always make time to stop at Wright Brothers for seafood, Neal’s Yard for cheese, and Monmouth for coffee – all are excellent and worth the time in queues!

La Fromagerie – This beautiful, quaint shop located on Moxon Street, steps away from Marylebone High Street, is delightful and creates a sense of jealousy that is so hard to shake when I visit London, as I would absolutely love to have such a shop in the U.S. But no such luck! Given some of our laws, some of the cheeses cannot be sold in our country due to certain requirements for pasteurization. You will never find some of the items we sampled and that’s a terrible shame, but all the better for the point in visiting! This is the place I dream about where you can find freshly picked lavender, honey from France, and cheeses from around the world. They have a special fridge where you walk inside, and everything is temperature controlled and you feel like you are in a special place designed just for your enjoyment.

M&S Simply Food – This is yet another place that I wish could be replicated in the U.S., although I’m not sure how popular it would be with most people. We visited one of the locations that was right next to Hampstead Heath and picked up some of the most amazing strawberries I have had in years. My son Luke, who is an aficionado, was particularly happy. They were sold right next to cream and splits of champagne as picnic offerings. Even more amazing was the array of salads. Lentils with curry and butternut squash. A wrap with roasted duck and hoisin. A coronation chicken sandwich. Not to mention the foods that can be prepared at home. I could not believe the selection. One example were scallops in the shell with delicious flavorings in a tray ready to be popped into the oven. Marinated steak ready to throw on the grill. Just stunning selections. I would never cook! I mean, I would. But I might cook less!

Fortnum & Mason – Since 1707, this world-famous shop has been a place of delicate foods and pastries and exquisite teas and biscuits. Admittedly, I wish I had bought more tea and biscuits while there, but I used my smallest suitcase, so it wasn’t an option with all of the other things I had to bring home. We explored the many floors of perfumes, picnic baskets and other delightful items for purchase. We couldn’t resist buying some of the chocolates, macarons, and other French pastries available on the main floor and my son Luke ended up buying the Royal Blend of tea! It’s well worth checking out if you are in the area on your way to seeing Buckingham Palace or walking over to Burlington Arcade to imagine how the other half lives!

Places We Ate

Savoy Hotel – Thames Foyer – The Savoy has a stunning room to enjoy high tea, with a glass domed atrium and a pianist tickling the keys. The service and the tea components are beautiful, and you are treated like a member of royalty, which is always a nice thing. For our tea, we started with a glass of champagne in celebration of Ryan’s recent high school graduation and had the traditional tea, which consisted of tea sandwiches, including smoked salmon, cucumber, and coronation chicken on charcoal bread. The pastries included the Queen’s favorite chocolate cake, a strawberry and cream pastry that was delicious and delicate, and two types of scones with clotted cream, lemon curd and strawberry jam. There are 30 different varieties of tea to choose from and we attempted to try as many different kinds as we could. I still think in the end that my favorite is traditional Earl Grey, but we had fun trying everything!

Punjab Restaurant – This is reported to be one of the oldest Indian restaurants in London from the 1940s. It’s located in the theater district close to Leicester Square. It was clear we were not the only international guests who had received the memo, as many other languages could be heard throughout the restaurant. The food was solid, and the menu had many offerings. My sons both liked their rose flavored lassis. The rest of the meal was pretty standard and included chicken tikka masala, lamb chops and palek paneer. We eat a fair amount of Indian food as we enjoy it and would rate this as above average, but not exceptional.

Oliver’s Fish & Chips – This was a local spot close to where we were staying in Belsize Park on Haverstock Hill. A bit fancier than what I have been used to in the past, but the drill was the same. You simply order the type of fish you want which includes Plaice, Cod, Haddock or Skate and it is fried fresh and delivered to you with a generous amount of chips. Sometimes, mushy peas are fun to have on the side, but for this particular outing we stayed traditional and simply went for the tried and true!

Granary Square Brasserie – Strangely, we weren’t intending to make this stop, but thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, the boys stated it was one of their favorite places on the trip. Located in the Granary Wharf section of King’s Cross, this restaurant was packed to the hilt on a warm summer day with many locals and tourists alike enjoying a delicious brunch on the terrace. Fortunately for us, my husband was able to sweet talk a hostess into seating us and we had a lovely, relaxing time with a delicious cocktail and a perfect lunch. The boys tried eggs benedict and were very impressed with the dark orange yolks that are common in British eggs, while I opted for a crispy duck salad. I had wanted to go to Dishoom, which I have visited on previous trips, but this fit the bill nicely and we came away happy after the pit stop!

Namaaste Kitchen – My second trip to this restaurant located on Parkway in Camden Town. A notch above the typical curry purveyors, we had buttery naan hot out of the oven, spiced lamb chops, chicken biryani and my kids favorite butter chicken. Ryan enjoyed his first Kingfisher, the perfect beer to accompany such a meal. It was pretty crowded the evening we went and full of locals and families enjoying the delicious food and vibrant surroundings.

Franco Manca – Another repeat visit was to this UK-based pizza chain that offers sourdough pies freshly made on site with seasonal ingredients. On this particular trip, we visited the location in Belsize Park and tried a pie with salami, caramelized onions, and fresh basil; one with anchovies, olives, and capers; and another with ham and wild mushrooms. Everything is fresh, affordable, and tasty. Dare I say I wish we had one like it in our hometown?

Holly Bush – One of my favorite dinners during the trip was a visit to Hampstead up the street where we were staying to go to one of my favorite pubs, Holly Bush. It’s located down a quaint flower filled alley and is an 18th century wood-paneled pub serving cask ales with a fireplace and outdoor space. On this trip, it was warm, so we sat upstairs in the formal dining room. I had a glass of prosecco to start and the red mullet with potatoes for dinner. It was perfect and delicious. John had a half of a roast chicken and mashed potatoes. The setting was beautiful, the service exquisite and the locale was second to none. I can’t recommend it enough if you should find yourself in the vicinity and even if you aren’t planning on it, you should make the trip!

Tonkotsu Ramen – My kids were very amazed at the quality of the ramen offered in this location of Tonkotsu, a chain in the UK that was located in the Selfridges department store. Everything was made to order on the spot and with fresh ingredients and the service was excellent. In fact, at first in an effort to be healthy I wanted to have rice noodles and a mistake was made and wheat was offered as an alternative. When I said I was okay with it, the crew seemed to be quite happy with me and I had a water glass filled often after that!

And what about the bookstores? My love affair with bookstores is a well-known obsession in our family and although everyone was okay with me taking some time out to visit these esteemed establishments! I wanted to highlight some of the places we visited on this trip and what makes each one special.

Bookstores

Foyles – This is a lovely shop with a flagship location on Charing Cross Road, the traditional locale for bookstores in the capital city. It was famed in the past for its anachronistic, eccentric, and sometimes infuriating business practices. But that is no more. Now, you have four floors of modern displays of books and helpful staff who will be happy to help and answer questions. The only oddity? No magazines, due to the pandemic!

Daunt (in both Marylebone and Belsize Park) – I absolutely adore this shop. The location in Marylebone, down the street from where we lived when I was growing up in London, is perfection. It’s an original Edwardian bookshop with long oak galleries and graceful skylights and specializes in travel books. If you are interested in a region of France, for example, you will find countless books devoted to the topic. The other locations in Belsize Park and Hampstead to name a few are equally well curated and have many treasures within their walls.

Hatchard’s – This bookstore which sits right next to Fortnum and Mason’s is the oldest bookstore in the United Kingdom and was founded on Piccadilly in 1797. It has a reputation for attracting high-profile authors and holds three Royal Warrants granted by the Queen, the Prince of Wales, and the Duke of Edinburgh, respectively. It’s really beautiful inside with all of the dark wood paneling and the sections are very impressively laid out. In particular, I noticed that the cookbooks were beautifully displayed, and I really enjoyed browsing the selections. There was an even more impressive area devoted to Agatha Christie, which my older son Ryan thoroughly enjoyed.

To be honest, my other obsession as it turned out beyond buying a lot of books (gosh my bag was heavy!) was buying a lot of chocolate and crisps to bring home. There wasn’t a thing I didn’t grab it seemed. I had Cadbury buttons, Double Deckers, Walker’s Prawn Cocktail, and my favorite Hula Hoops. My sister might be on a gluten free diet, but even she didn’t turn away from these special treats when I brought them to her. Who could? And we did find the time to grab a soft ice cream with a flake because of course you have to!

I don’t know when I will get back to London. But I’m hoping it won’t be too long before my next trip. I love it so much and every time I’m there I feel a sense of peace and happiness that I don’t feel anywhere else in the world. Everyone should have a place that makes them feel that way. I just hope your place isn’t so far away!