London is home to many restaurants, many of them serving cuisine from different cultures across the world. Alongside the more typical Indian and Japanese restaurants, visitors can find establishments that focus on tastes closer to the equator. Below, we shine a spotlight on some of the capital’s most popular Caribbean, Brazilian and Indonesian restaurants.
Caribbean Cuisine
When someone thinks of the tropics, the white beaches of the Caribbean are probably the first thing that comes to mind. There are many reasons for that – it’s close to the US and is represented in media as a popular holiday destination. The appeal of the Caribbean countries also goes beyond holidaymaking or finding a place to eat. For example, online industries like iGaming (who are no strangers to using delicious food for marketing purposes) use Caribbean settings in their games to make them even more appealing. The result is games like the Paradise Reels Slot, set on a desert island filled with palm trees and exotic fruits, including a cocktail made from a coconut shell.
Caribbean cuisine has a lot more to offer than coconuts, however. Since the UK welcomed the Windrush generation, London is home to many restaurants serving Caribbean food. Turtle Bay has become the biggest name in British-Caribbean cuisine with over 50 locations up and down the country, with highly rated locations at Brixton, Hammersmith and Ealing. Dishes use Caribbean greens like callaloo and fruits like ackee or jackfruit, while chef Collin Brown’s jerk marinade is used on everything from chicken to salmon or cheese.
As for independent restaurants, Ma Petite Jamaica was one of London’s first Caribbean diners and reggae bars. It prides itself on its simple menu, offering just the staples of Jamaican food to those who are trying it for the first time.
Brazilian Cuisine
Further south of the Caribbean, there’s also Brazilian cuisine which offers a unique mix of European and indigenous influences. Brazil is a big place with many cuisine styles, though it’s the tastes of the urban east coast around Rio de Janeiro that tend to be on offer. It combines old Spanish and Portuguese recipes with a love of red meat, while integrating the continent’s unique ingredients, from cashews to manioc and more familiar fruits like mango, passionfruit and papaya.
In London, Brazilian steakhouse chain Fogo De Chão can be found in Soho serving picanha and seafood with a Latin twist. There’s also Las Iguanas, a British chain of restaurants that make Latin American cuisine including Brazilian recipes. They have a spot at the O2, as well as the Royal Festival Hall.
Indonesian Cuisine
Lastly, there is a whole expansive culture of tropical Asia that can be explored through some of London’s restaurants. Indonesian cuisine, often mixed with other East Asian cuisine from Malaysia and Thailand, can be found in London too.
Bali Bali in Soho is one of London’s biggest restaurants specialising in Indonesian and Malaysian food. It serves Indonesian staples like nasi goreng, essentially stir-fried rice made with a choice of meat or seafood and added shredded omelette. They also have a wide selection of sate – often written as satay when served in many other Asian restaurants – but it was Indonesia that first brought sate to the table.
