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English Seaside I’ve always found it curious that chickentikka masala is considered the nationaldish of England. If you know the historybetween Great Britain and India, it makessense. However, I find it very surprisingthat England is more known for Indianfood then seafood.

When I discovered the restaurant NextDoor, I was reassured. Robin Moxon, along-time fishmonger, has set out to takethe freshest fish that comes through hisstores and highlight them in his restaurantjust ‘next door’. As a result, the menuchanges regularly based on what fish is inseason and available. You will find an arrayof small and thoughtful sharing plates,whole roasted fish and raw or smokedseafood platters.

Next Door has become my favorite placefor oysters as well as seafood risotto. ecooking techniques exhibited are as stun-ning as the fish is fresh. ey smoke all oftheir fish in-house and you can taste thecare. ey have a lovely sommelier that hasput together a great wine list that pairsperfectly with the ever-changing menu.

Next Door is worth the trek down toEast Dulwich whether it is for a date nightor a party. It would be worth going earlyand walking around, as Dulwich is a lovelyarea. If it’s not possible to get there beforedinner, and weather permitting, take yourcoffee and dessert outside.

For people like me that find it hard tofind great English food outside of themodern British Michelin-starred restau-rants and St John’s of course, Next Doorexhibits great English seafood simply.

Name Next Door. Neighbourhood Dulwich.Offering English seafood.Price ££ Tips Save room for dessert!Reservation Walk-ins welcome.

Indiane first time I had Indian food was on a

first date with my husband in Chicago. Asa result, dishes like chicken tikka masala,slow cooked lentils, naan and curries havea special place in my heart. ere is noshortage of great Indian restaurants inLondon, but Dishoom is my favorite. I amas much of a fan of the décor as I am thefood. Dishoom pays homage to the oldIrani cafés that were once a part of the

fabric of Mumbai. If there is a wait on acold day, you may be surprised with acomplimentary glass of hot chai, just asaromatic as it is delicious. Since the dayDishoom opened, guests are met with longqueues if they don’t have a reservation inthe evening; dare I say it’s worth it.

e cocktail list is fun and inspired.From the BollyBellini with raspberry, ly-chee, rose and cardamom, to an espressomartini with a chili liqueur kick. e rangeof mocktails, also known as Copy Tipples,is just as thoughtful and inspired as theirlist of lassis, coolers and chai. By the timeyou get to the eating part of the evening,you have already settled into the range ofIndian spices and are ready to jumpstraight in.

If you only get one starter, the okra friesmust be it. As one who spent most of herlife avoiding okra like the plague, unless ingumbo of course, I say this dish is foreveryone. Lightly battered, crispy and witha slight spice. From there, you really can’tgo wrong. I worked my way through themenu and if there for the first time or10th, the house black daal with garlic orcheese naan is stunning. In fact, you couldstop there, but then you would miss thesali boti: braised lamb served with butteredroomali roti.

Whether you are vegetarian or a carnivore like myself,Dishoom offers a variety of flavorfuldishes. If youfind yourself inneed of abreakfast

Eating around the world in LondonThe proximity to so many countries makes London a beautiful melting pot. As a result, you can eat your way around the worldwithout ever leaving London. On any given night, you could have Michelin-starred West African food elevating traditionaldishes like moin-moin to a whole new level, or salivating over the most satisfying bowl of black daal. The next night you can sitdown to traditional Eritrean coffee roasted for you at your table, or inventive and awe-provoking Middle Eastern food.

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Dishoom

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place, Dishoom’s naan rolls for breakfastare delicious.

Name Dishoom.Offering Indian – Mumbai Café.Price ££ Tips Sharing is caring!

East AfricanOne of my favorite places in London is aplace called Mosob. It is a family runrestaurant known for its authentic Eritreanfood and warm service. When you walk in,you will be immediately greeted by afriendly face, beautiful pictures, art workand artifacts that exhibit a sense of prideand authenticity. If you have never hadEritrean food before, the staff will happilyguide you through the menu based on anydietary requirements and spice tolerance.To get the perfect picture from start to fin-ish, I recommend getting one of the setmenus. My favorite is the Massawa. Your

meal will start off with spinach and lentilrolls, made with traditional Eritrean breadcalled injera. Injera is a spongy sourdoughflatbread – unlike any western bread, itadds a great balance of sourness and tex-ture throughout your entire meal. You willalso get a few falafels and two dips (yo-ghurt and chili). Next, a large plate will ar-rive for your viewing pleasure. At the base,a large piece of injera for you to eat with.On top, spiced lamb stew, cubes ofchicken with peppers and onions, amixture of spiced cabbage, carrotsonions and split beans, and last butnot least, spicy stewed lentils. If youare feeling cheeky, add the Mosob spe-cial: marinated and grilled lamb chopswith spinach and lentils. It is my ab-solute favorite thing on the menu.Everything is full of flavor and colour.

To end your meal, the menu comes withmint tea. e tea is lovely, but I recom-mend upgrading to the traditional coffeeservice. ey roast the coffee beans in asmall pot table-side for you to see and in-hale the incredibly aromatic beans. ecoffee is then brewed in a traditionalEritrean coffee pot, and served with pop-corn. e coffee looks like it will be in-credibly strong but it is actually quitesmooth and mellow. I normally drink cof-fee with milk, however this is perfect justblack or with a touch of sugar.

Name Mosob.Neighborhood Kensington.Offering Authentic Eritrean.Reservations Walk-ins welcome.Price £ Tip Eat with your hands; vegan friendly.Fun Fact Eritrea was colonized by Italy,resulting in the use of tomatoes in most oftheir staple dishes.

West AfricanGrowing up in Houston, I was exposed toWest African cuisine at a very young age.ere is a large Nigerian population, so Igrew up eating traditional things like fishstew and moin-moin, a steamed bean pud-ding. It wasn’t until I went to Ikoyi in St.James Market that I was exposed to a morerefined and intricate rendition. I first heardabout Ikoyi because of a charity brunchthat was being held there. I wasn’t able toattend, so it remained on my radar. efirst time I went was for after-dinnerdrinks to check the place out. It is small

with a few statement pieces of art. Itlacked the immediate feeling of authen-ticity but the wine list is impeccable, sowe stayed for a little longer. Eventuallythe chef came out to talk to us and of-fered a dessert. To entice us, he offeredthe groundnut and zobo (hibiscus)dessert. It was the best thing he could’vedone. It consisted of a beautifulmeringue, a light and airy groundnut icecream and a zobo jelly. Take a momentto imagine a peanut butter and jam

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Israelie next stop on our journey around theworld takes us to Jerusalem. YotamOttolenghi is well known for highlightingMiddle Eastern flavours and dishes. A fewyears ago, I was teaching cooking classes atSur La Table and we had a class dedicatedto him. I was in awe of how beautiful hiscookbook was, but also how approachableit was for everyone. Ottolenghi and hispartner Sami Tamimi represent thePalestinian–Israeli divide, having grown upjust miles from each other on oppositesides of the conflict. ey combine thesubtle differences in their cooking in amagical way.

Ottolenghi now has three cookbooksand five delis and restaurants, each withamazing reviews. His most recent restau-rant opening is Rovi, which has a focus onvegetables, fermentation and open fire. AsI mentioned before, I am a true carnivoreso I am always skeptical about restaurantsthat hold vegetables as the highlight. Myfirst bite of the crumpet lobster toast withkumquat and chili, completely changedmy expectations. In fact, not all of thedishes on the menu are vegetarian, how-ever there is a great amount of effort putinto making sure that each dish is balancedand each vegetable is anything but an af-terthought.

e corn ribs were fun and playful, cutoff the cob but still attached in one piece,they were then grilled and served withsmoked salt and an apricot puree. e beefcarpaccio had great flavour with raw andcooked beets as well as homemade softgoat’s cheese. e most surprising andpleasant part of the night was the celeriacshawarma. Grilled celeriac served with fer-mented tomatoes and Tunisian pkaila on ahomemade roll. I was meant to share it butcouldn’t stop eating it. It was so meatywithout having any meat in it. In fact, I’mdrooling as I write about it.

While the menu does change regularly,luckily the crumpet and the celeriacshawarma are always on the menu. ecocktails are also something to experience.e Tutti Frutti Tommy is a little too easyto drink and the Lucky Dip with vodka in-fused with oranges in-house is refreshingand tasty. Next time you are in Fitzrovia,make sure to stop in.

Name RoviCuisine Middle EasternNeighborhood FitzroviaReservation Yes but walk-ins welcomePrice $$Tip e celeriac shawarma is a must.

JapaneseOur last stop on this leg around this worldbrings us to one of my favorites… Japan.After working at Morimoto, my standardsare high as I came to understand and ap-preciate the skill and craftmanship thatgoes in to being a great Japanese chef. A lot of our fish was shipped over night as soon as it was caught from Japan toPhiladelphia. Sushi chefs are trained bybeing given only a few tasks to completeday in and day out until they have shownperfection and efficiency. In many cases,only two people are allowed to make thesushi rice. You are likely to start with justchopping herbs, then promoted to justbeing allowed to scale the fish, then clean-ing oysters and scallops. Eventually, youare allowed to cut fish once your knifeskills are at a certain level. In ramen restau-rants, the time and effort put into makingthe perfect broth and noodles is immense.Roka is the best Japanese restaurant I havebeen to in London so far.

Like many restaurants in Mayfair, Rokais a place to be seen. It is a very busyrestaurant, so if you are looking for a quietand intimate dinner, this is not the place.

sandwich, times that by 100 and add all ofthe beautiful childhood memories that co-incide and you have an idea of what ittasted like. Needless to say, I made reserva-tions right away.

By my next visit, I was ready to try any-thing and everything. at’s exactly whatwe did. We started off with their interpre-tation of moin-moin with red prawns andblack garlic, dambu nama (shredded andfried beef ) with whipped bone marrowand fried plantains with a scotch bonnetemulsion. For my main dish, I had theirWagyu beef served with broccoli rabe,glazed with a reduction of smoked eelbones and a side of smoked crab jollof rice.

Every part of my meal was better thenthe last. If you are looking for a traditionalWest African meal, this isn’t the place.Ikoyi is more a celebration and expressionof West African cuisine. Awarded their firstMichelin star last autumn, within the firstyear of opening, I think it is safe to say thisis a place worth trying.

Name Ikoyi.Neighbourhood Mayfair.Cuisine West African.Reservations Needed.Price £££ Tip Don’t skip the starters.

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However, the décor is elegant with an opengrill in the middle of the room. You can sitat a table or at the sushi bar. e seatingwill be tight, but in the end, you will enjoyyour meal.

I recommend having some tempura, oneorder of gyozas, one hot fish item, one hotmeat item and the sashimi platter for awell-rounded experience. e menu is a bitconfusing, so if you are not sure which di-rection to go, the staff are very helpful andattentive. e black cod marinated in yuzumiso is a must, as you can only get blackcod in Japanese restaurants in London. eskin is charred and the flesh is extremelytender. e yellowtail sashimi with truffleyuzu dressing is to die for. Chances are youwill want to order another round. e gy-ozas are made in-house, steamed and thenfried crispy. I had the beef and was sadonce they were gone. e sashimi is in-credibly fresh.

Like most good Japanese restaurants inLondon, it is an expensive night out butwell worth it. You will leave happy.

Name Roka.Cuisine Japanese.Reservations A must!Neighbohood Mayfair.Price ££££ Tip Make a reservation as soon as you can.

Italiane more I dine around London, thefonder I become of Clapham. ere is ahost of restaurants run by chefs who havetrained in Michelin-starred kitchens. eyhave taken a more casual and natural ap-proach to décor and atmosphere, but thesame level of integrity with their ingredi-ents, local sourcing and technique. eDairy was one of the first restaurants to dothis very thing in Clapham. Sorella is itsItalian sister. Previously known as eManor, the restaurant was closed down, re-vamped and now run by a South Africanchef. Sorella is known to use every part oftheir ingredients, resulting in tasty dessertslike fig leaf ice cream. ey focus onAmalfi-style cooking and they also maketheir charcuterie in-house.

Often, when people think of Italianrestaurants, they think about pasta. Sorellais no different. All of their pasta is madein-house and seasonally. You won’t find redsauce or traditional lasagna on the menu,rather dishes like pig cheek and squash ag-nolotti or truffle and mushroom tagliatelle.

However, one of the best things I had therewas the charred leeks with a ClarenceCourt egg. Clarence Court eggs are knownfor having very large and deep orangeyolks, resulting in a creamy consistency.e Yorkshire venison chop that followedwas cooked perfectly and paired withroasted beetroot and wilted kale.

For £45 you can have a five-course mealincluding: cicchetti, antipasti, primi, sec-ondi and dolci. e entire wine list is madeup of great Italian wines like the NicolaBergaglio La Minaia Gavi di Gavi. eonly thing that upsets me about Sorella isthat it is not in my neighborhood.

Name Sorella.Cuisine Italian.Neighborhood Clapham.Price ££ Tips Lunch deal is £18 for a big bowl ofpasta and a glass of wine.

Ashley James is the executive chef of Laura’s Kitchen catering and Lil Laura’s Condiments, and is currently working to open anew Southern restaurant, Laura’s. For more information go to www.Ashleysonedish.com