The food writer and cook on her favourite Turkish restaurants, the special place she books when her mother comes to visit and her beloved local corner shop
EATING OUT
Hala
29 Grand Parade, Green Lanes, London N4 1LG; 020 8802 4883, www.halarestaurant.co.uk
Antepliler
46 Green Lanes, London N4 1AG; 020 8802 5588, www.anteplilerrestaurant.com
“There are a couple of Turkish restaurants on Green Lanes that I really love. Antepliler have amazing sweetbread kebabs. And Hala do incredible pomegranate barbeque quail: so good, so cheap.” – Olia
Bibendum
Michelin House, 81 Fulham Road, London SW3 6RD; 020 7581 5817, www.bibendum.co.uk
“I like taking my mum to Bibendum when she comes to visit. The seafood is good and I like the atmosphere. The building is gorgeous.”
Somsaa @ Climpson’s Arch
Arch 374, Helmsley Place, London E8 3SB; 020 7254 7199, www.climpsonsarch.com
The coffee roasters Climpson and Sons have an arch in London Fields where they host long-term pop-ups – the current occupant is the Thai restaurant Som Saa. “I really like going to Som Saa – those guys are killing it. They have this fermented pork dish that’s really really good and the papaya salad and nam tok are amazing.”
Rawduck
197 Richmond Road, London E8 3NJ; 020 8986 6534, www.rawduckhackney.co.uk
“I love Rawduck. All their ferments are really good.”
Autograf Grill
499 Green Lanes, London N4 1AL; 020 8347 7788, www.autografgrill.com
“I go here for pierogi and zurek.”
BUYING IN
Ser Aydin (pictured above)
280 Wightman Road Hornsey N8 0LT; 020 8348 7193
“This is my corner shop which is unexpectedly great and the food is so cheap. I can get sheep’s yoghurt here, and tamarind pods, Georgian plums, dill, okra, Himalayan salt, tomato plants. They’ve got pretty much everything I need.” – Olia
Alexandra Palace farmers’ market
7hl, 31A Redston Road, London N8 7HL (open Sundays)
“It’s really good, I go there all the time. There’s a guy with raw milk which I buy to make Ukrainian curd cheese. And there’s this other guy who turns up sometimes with stuff from his allotment – I really like that.”
Baldwins Butchers
469 Green Lanes, London N4 1AJ; 020 8340 5934, www.baldwinsbutchers.co.uk
“I always use this butchers on Green Lanes – that’s where I buy pork, because you won’t find it in most of the other places in the area.”
Walter Purkis & Sons
52 Muswell Hill Broadway, London N10 3RT; 020 8883 4355, www.walterpurkisandsons.com
“This is a really great fishmongers in Muswell Hill.”