“The incredible thing about London is the diversity of the people, and that’s also reflected in the food scene,” says the Indonesia-born and Singapore-raised chef Rahel Stephanie. But when she first moved to the capital, in 2013, to pursue a degree in fashion, she found it lacking in Indonesian options. To cook the food she wanted to eat in the city, Stephanie began hosting dinner parties for her friends and sharing dishes she grew up with, such as nasi campur (rice with meats and veggies), as well as innovative recipes of her own creation, like pandan blackberry blondies. Eventually these feasts evolved into the Indonesian supper club Spoons, launched in 2019, which has branched out into culinary residencies and pop-ups throughout London at esteemed restaurants including Orasay in Notting Hill and The Sea, The Sea in Chelsea. When she’s not cooking, Stephanie pursues the less touristed sides of London, away from the city center: mom-and-pop shops, avant-garde music venues, and a bar that serves her favorite tomato-flavored tipple.
Where to go in London for good food
In a city with endless dining options, Stephanie says the best food is at Singburi: “It’s run by a Thai couple and their son. I want more of these small family-owned businesses to be preserved. That’s where London’s culture shines most vibrantly.” She’s also a regular at Viet Rest, an unpretentious Vietnamese spot in southeast London where she always orders the vermicelli fish soup and the lemongrass chicken. There’s also a hot culinary scene at The Standard, London, near King’s Cross, Stephanie says, which hosts events like a barbecue series with a lineup of rising South Asian chefs. “I did a barbecue there last year too,” she says. “Being culturally relevant is what keeps that place cool.”
Where to go in London for avant-garde culture
To get her film fix, Stephanie goes to Atlas Cinema, an experimental cooperative that runs screenings in a disused railway arch at Loughborough Junction near Brixton. “The community curates screening series, like an Indonesian-cinema season or movies about food and the diaspora experience,” she says. For music, she enjoys the shows at Cafe OTO, a spacious coffee shop on Ashwin Street that hosts mini concerts. “They champion left-field, up-and-coming acts,” she says, such as the Danish composer ML Buch, “who does dreamy, gorgeous experimental pop.”