What Am I Eating?

Halloween saw the return of my British Life and Culture class after two weeks off for the semester break. This week we discussed immigration and visited East London, more specifically Brick Lane. Over the course of history, the east side of London is where the newest wave of immigrants lived. The wind normally blows west to east, so in the days of the Industrial Revolution the smells would blow in the direction of the immigrants/poor and not the rich on the west side. In the 1600s it was the Huguenots, the 1800s saw the Irish, and the early 1900s Jewish immigrants from the Slavic nations moved in. Now it is populated by Middle Eastern and Indian immigrants.

First we did a walking tour of the area. Throughout the different occupants, the area has a history of garment making. Many of the items created here would show up on the west end for the rich to buy. Walking through the area reminded me of the garment district in LA. After the tour we ended up at a Pakistani restaurant. I had never had Pakistani food before (shocker, I know) nor have I ever had any Middle Eastern or Indian food so I did not know what to expect but I was willing to try. First came a sort of salad: cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, etc. Then came the starter. Lamb kebabs, lamb chops, and chicken shish all cooked tandoori style. Nan (a sort of pita) came out with it along with a rice similar to that of fried or Cantonese. It was delicious. The main meal came along with a mango smoothie that was similar to that of eggnog. I did not like it very much. I did like the main meal though. More chicken and lamb each in a curry/stew type sauce and some sort of lentil dish. It was all very good and I would be more than willing to have a similar meal again.

Until we (m)eat again,

-Maggie the traveler