Eating out for £7 or less
Ilford and Harlesden special
Hello and welcome to Wooden City, a newsletter about London.
If you haven’t come here via @caffs_not_cafes, I'm a writer called Isaac Rangaswami and this is my Substack.
Every other week I publish an article about everyday places in London with unusual staying power, like shops, buildings, restaurants and public spaces.
Wooden City is a reader-supported publication and paid subscribers get much more. This includes access to maps, full articles and an archive of material covering over 200 places so far.
Today’s newsletter is another list of four genuinely inexpensive restaurants. I’ve done a few pieces along these lines – such as this, this and this – but I’d still like to restate my aims for the benefit of newer subscribers.
My main goal is to describe the character of spaces where Londoners eat affordable food. Going to any type of restaurant costs more than it used to, particularly in the city’s exorbitant, homogenous centre. But there are many Londons beyond that, where it’s easy to find filling meals for well under £10.
Previous editions of this series have touched on a range of neighbourhoods, but its next instalments will focus on restaurants in the 20 boroughs that officially constitute outer London. This is not only because I want to get to know my city better, but also because I want to learn more about its food.
This edition features a Pakistani restaurant, a Portuguese deli, a Somali restaurant and a historical burger bar I’ve wanted to write about for years. One place does a massive meal deal for £7, while the others serve substantial dishes for less than that. All four are in Ilford and Harlesden.
Jake’s Hamburgers
Jake’s Hamburgers opened in 1973, so it predates the first McDonald’s in the UK by a year. Robert, the friendly guy who runs the place, started working for the original Jake in 1982 before eventually taking the business over in the early 2000s.
His restaurant is small, so eating there means having a chat with him. On most of my visits there’s been at least one other customer sitting at the counter, listening to Robert’s anecdotes as he works behind the grill.
He operates like a bartender, keeping himself busy until the next customer walks in, always primed to get a fresh conversation going with regulars and newcomers alike. Robert recently told me he’s been to Paris a lot to attend auctions as part of his other job as a wine merchant. Once, when I mentioned I was taking the Elizabeth line to Tottenham Court Road afterwards, he recommended me a French place on Dean Street.