Feroz Gajia, owner of Bake St in East London might just be Instagram’s best kept secret for food lovers who want the down low on where to eat right. If you follow Feroz you can expect weekly story dumps of his travels all over the city, half the time you’re stuck guessing the meaning behind the cryptic captions and the other half you’ll be envying his life. It’s full of what looks like, delicious food.

For the Countertalk relaunch we were lucky enough to get Feroz’s take on some of the best spots to grab a bite (T/A) if you find yourself in the city.

Take it away Feroz!

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Over the past year of varying restrictions I’ve visited many iterations of beloved places, here are my favourite takeaway/delivery spots to eat from if they are within reach.

• Fantastic Syrian chicken and souffled potatoes fried to order at The Best Broasted.
• Real deal Iraqi style shawarma, lamb neck rice and grilled fish from Al Enam.
• Grilled chicken with a touch of the Med and supreme chicken fat potatoes from Arrosto (aka Quality Wines).
• Daily specials and warm made to order onigiri from Moko Made.
• Oren in Dalston offer their pitas as sabich (fried aubergine, boiled egg and tahini) or filled with grilled chicken offal with amba and tahini.
• Order a whole roast duck from Four Seasons or Gold Mine and then stop off at Normah’s for Assam Pedas and beef rendang.
• There are many great mangals in London but grabbing some ribs and a wrap from umut 2000 and then perhaps a stew from Somine opposite for balance.
• Netil market has suddenly become the meeting place for food satisfaction with the return of Sonora Taqueria, Sourdough bagels from the bagel guys, falafel from Pockets and the nearby bonus of burgers from Hill & Szrok Butchers (all the best aged bits going into each one), fried squid sandwiches by Bright and Vegan chinese food from Mao Chow.
• If you happen to be just south of the river then having access to beef & mustard green rice from Hoa Phuong, pizza from ASAP Pizza, daily specials from Kaieteur Kitchen and the ever changing weekly lunch menu from 40 Maltby Street means you are spoilt for choice.
• For the pastry and bakes fiends the most consistently underrated trio in the past year were surely Philippe Conticini, Bageriet and Patisserie Saint Anne all producing joyous seasonal treats alongside their usual delights.

Checking out some of these places? Let us know and tag us on socials using the #countertalk

Photo credits:

Jessica Wang 

Feroz Gajia

Follow Feroz here