London Conversation with Jennifer Earle

is host of the podcast @thenextdeliciousthing founder of @chocolatetours and all around lovely person. Her passion for food shines through and when you talk with you it is hard to not get excited about your next bakery or chocolate shop visit. Jennifer’s podcast, The Next Delicious Thing, is packed full of great food recommendations, and her chocolate tours are incredible. During the early days of the pandemic she started an online mystery chocolate tasting class that was hugely popular. She is an expert when it comes to all things delicious and this conversation is packed full of great recommendations. I’d grab a pencil to take notes if I were you. How would you spend a free Saturday in London? Visiting a food market or a new bakery. I typically travel by public transport to visit any new bakery or food spot with baked goods to check it out. Or revisit one I love that I know well! My daughter asks each day if we’re going to go on a train and go to a bakery.  Current favourite Local cafe/restaurant? It’s not that local to me but I’ll never tire of Dusty Knuckle sandwiches. Is there a hidden food gem you’re willing to share with us? There’s a café in Stratford in an industrial estate that makes excellent pizza and salad. It’s open on weekdays only, but they do occasional supper clubs, too.  It’s called Polentina. If you go you will definitely think you’re going in the wrong direction. I talk about it on the second episode of my podcast where I try to share these kinds of places. Do you have a place you take all your visitors? If they eat meat, Smokestak. If they don’t, Delamina / Delamina East. Can you tell Liverpool Street is easy for me to get to? Favourite restaurant for a family dinner? What’s your go-to order? We haven’t gone out to dinner much with my daughter, but we have a Sunday morning tradition of breakfasts and two we return to a lot (partly because they open at 9am!) are the vegetarian café Buhler and Co in Walthamstow where I love the vegan gado gado dish and the French toast is great, too, and also Brunswick East where their menu changes more regularly but the pastries are excellent, there are always vegan savoury plates and my toddler loves the vegan sausage roll. They have two locations, both in East London.  What is the best dessert you’ve had in London? I feel like I’ve barely been out for proper meals in the past few years! Now that Maya’s bedtime is easier, and we’re no longer under stay-at-home orders, I am hoping to change that! I remember having excellent desserts at Tredwell’s (chef/co-owner Chantelle Nicolson has now opened Apricity which I can’t wait to visit), The Ninth in Fitzrovia (the French toast), St John’s Bread & Wine, and more recently at Galvin La Chapelle. I cannot wait to try the Fried Bread & Butter Pudding at Café Cecilia which friends rave about. I’m also really keen to try the dessert trolley at La Maison Francois in St James’. Do you have a favourite place for afternoon tea? The best one I had was a few years ago at the Park Lane Four Seasons. Favourite walk in London?  I’m happy walking almost anywhere in London! We’re blessed with beautiful green spaces but the buildings are all so captivating, too. I love walking through the City of London and my head spinning to all the architecture and history. Especially when it’s quiet on the weekends. I love walking across Waterloo Bridge – how you can see so many sights. I love walking along the canals, too.  Especially if I can go past Towpath Café and get one of their walnut, oat and chocolate cookies. Favourite cheap eat? I really like the Ethiopian food stall at Borough market and the one in Old Spitalfields. To sit in: Roti King or Kanada Ya, probably. Where do you like to splurge on chocolate? There are many outside of London I order by post, but the chocolate sandwich bars in Harrods (the ones made by the in-house team) or William Curley (also in Harrods or by Piccadilly). In both cases it’s the chunky chocolate bars I tend to buy. There’s something so satisfying about them. Favourite market to wander through? A new one! I will always love the buzz of Borough and Maltby Street markets but I find them a bit busy on weekends so if I go then I go early. You just started a podcast, can you tell us about it? It’s a bite-sized weekly update of things worth eating in London (and sometimes beyond, or for things available by post) alongside some food geekery – either history or science facts connected to the food I’m recommending. Some of the episodes include interviews. It’s called The Next Delicious Thing and has an accompanying newsletter where I email the list of the things I’ve tried and recommend. There’s a definite sweet slant to it, but some savoury options and restaurant recommendations too! Check out Jennifer’s website , podcast, and instagram