There are some who proudly proclaim that Chicken Tikka Masala is the UK’s national dish, substantiating this argument by putting particular emphasis on UK now exporting the dish to India. There are, according to the multiple tour guides who have taken me around Brick Lane, more curry houses in London than there are in Mumbai. The entire nation is obsessed – and with good reason.
If you have never had any Indian cuisine before in your life, it doesn’t get much better than London for it to be your first time (well, other than actually being in sub-continent Asia). It has become as quintessential to the British experience as that old stalwart, Fish and Chips.
However, as appetizing and delicious as that may seem, sometimes you just get a craving for a little more flavor in your food. This is where the East End comes in.
London’s East End, in Victorian times, was a neighborhood of poverty, crime, and depravity. No one respectable dared wander past Aldgate, too afraid of never returning from what they considered a cesspit of humanity. In recent decades, however, the tides have changed. Historically home to the working poor and the newly-arrived immigrants, the East End is a mixture of cultures, religions, and cuisines. The area is experiencing regeneration, as hipsters flock to the area and open Organic Cereal Bars.
Regardless, Brick Lane retains the charm of the immigrant East End of decades past. Currently housing a thriving community of Bengalis, the lane (adjacent to Aldgate East Tube station) is still populated by small shops advertising spicy curries or sweet, flaky baklavas. Here you can still bear witness to the advantages and delights of living in a multicultural city.
So, when CAPA offers the Brick Lane Curry Night – do not hesitate to sign up. It is entirely worth it. (And afterwards, if you are brave, you can take the Jack the Ripper tour).
