London: Tea Time in Wonderland

A stroll in Southall (zone 4, get a train from Paddington Station) is like stepping in another country altogether. This, my friends, is Little India. You will glimpse saris, sikh and buddhist temples, silky fabric in stores, entire aisles filled with dozens of varieties and shapes of peas and lentils, flashy coloured treats, extra-sugary but absolutly irresistible like the very orange jalebis, rainbow ranges of bracelets, sun filled guavas and mangos, refined necklaces of gold, street food, shelves curving under the weight of spices, let alone the terribly exotic vegetables that you have never encountered before…

I barely dared to take pictures – it seemed to break the charm of this neighbourhood so community-linked. I spent however, a good hour Quality Food  collecting the ingredients for the most amazing dahl, finding amazing squashes, discovering a box of Thums up, the Indian cola, adding a bottle of pure cinnamon syrup, masala mix to flavour tea… I could not leave without trying the panipuri, crunchy  cup of bread filled with chick peas, potatoes and spices and of course stopping at the pan shop to have one of those funny leaves filled with all kind of contents and meant to have digestive vertues. Mine was sweet themed with sugar coated fennel seeds, rose petal jam, coconut… A fireworks of flavours.

Look out Tastour for culinary walks in that neighbourhood – an excellent introduction to the culture, history, food of Southall. Ideal when you have a thousand questions and no idea where to start.

4 Responses to “Southall – Little India in London ”