Greasy Communities

 I got to admit that I am enjoying London in a way that I’ve never enjoyed it before. Now that I am coming back as an outsider, I can see and appreciate the vibe that London has, which was something I never fully appreciated whilst I was living there. You could say that what makes London so special is the fact that it seems to blend the dynamism of a big city with the quiet and cozy feeling of a small village.

The main reason is simple. London is not actually a “city” in the way that New York is. Nobody set out to build the city called London. If you travel by road, you’ll notice that they don’t have the order that New York’s has – ie no. 5^th Avenue or 10^th street etc. London is a collection of villages that melded together and merged into a huge entity called London. Hence, you’ll notice that different parts of London feel different and there’s no apparent logic. I take where I’m staying (at Baby Brother’s flat). I’m staying in the Brough of Tower Hamlets, which doesn’t have a reputation of being a nice place. Yet, I’m also five minutes-walk from Canary Wharf, which is futuristic and fancy (or as Baby Brother says “Just like Singapore.”)

 

 The View from Future World

For me, London can be summed up by two contrasting culinary experiences. My days have been spent with the boss. We’re meeting clients and prospects over a meal. The meals that we’ve had are the meals that you write novels about because everything from the quality of food to the service is that good. I’m writing this piece after wonderful Indian food in a place called Bombay Palace in the Hyde Park area.

Yet, when I start my day, the culinary experience is rather different. Breakfast for the past three days has been in what you call a “Greasy Spoon.” These places are known as “Greasy Spoons” for a good reason. The menu is not what you’d call a gourmet paradise. The menu is filled with “greasy” stuff – take the example of that wonderful classic of a good “full English Breakfast” – fried bread. Décor is, well, not exactly the type of thing that wins interior design awards and the people who enter greasy spoons aren’t exactly the prettiest on the planet.

Yet, there’s something very comforting about having a meal in a Greasy Spoon. It’s a strangely welcoming place and you’ll notice that the relationship between the proprietor and customers has a familiar feel to it.

 

 The view from the Unposh Part of Town

Let’s think back to the Archie Comics, where life in a small town evolved around a dinner. It’s the same thing in a Greasy Spoon. I mean, everything about a Greasy Spoon is not what you could call award winning but it’s as if you’re entering and becoming part of a community, which in its own way becomes one of the richer experiences that one can have.