Park Royal is a bit of a shit hole but it’s actually an amazing area for food. There are so many gems hidden among a the industrial trading estates. Here’s where I’ve been so far.
1. Awafi Foods
Awafi Foods is a Lebanese takeaway and catering business at the front of Cumberland Business Park. If you ask most Park Royal regulars where their favourite place to eat is, it’s likely they’d say here. Everything is made fresh each morning. The owners and staff are super friendly too. It’s more of a takeaway spot so there’s only a small table and few stools for eating in. Watch my reel here.
2. Kamil Bakery
This Lebanese bakery has been a Park Royal institution for over twenty years. They used to have a sign on the wall saying ‘no politics or religion allowed’. They’re famous for their manakish and lahm bi ajeen (also known as Lebanese pizza). My go-to is the meat & cheese lahm bi ajeen and the spinach and cheese manakish. They’re both only £3.25 each. The kibbeh aren’t good here so don’t bother.
3. Seng Cafe at Hoo Hing
Hoo Hing is one of London’s most well-known Chinese supermarkets and food suppliers. On the top floor you’ll find a Malaysian-Chinese restaurant called Seng Cafe. The menu is mix of Cantonese and Chinese-Malaysian dishes. My favourite dish so far has been the sambal fried pork chops with rice. Watch my reel here.
4. Lorenzo’s Kusina
Lorenzo’s Kusina is a modern Filipino takeaway at the back of Cumberland Business Park run by three brothers. It’s popular with a number of UK rappers such as Tion Wayne and Central Cee. Park Royal was the original location but they now have spots in Notting Hill, Richmond, Hammersmith, Hendon and Bristol. My go-to dish is the King L which includes two pieces of short rib, two wings, plantain, slaw and garlic rice. The ube waffles to finish are great too. The food here isn’t cheap but it’s very delicious.
5. Al Enam
Al Enam is one of the most popular Iraqi restaurants in London. They’re open for breakfast, lunch and diner. They have a wall of fame which includes Bradley Cooper. Ive been for breakfast and tried the Bagila bil Dihin which is pita soaked with oil topped with broad beans, omelette and crispy onions. For lunch I’ve tried the lamb shank and okra which were great too.
6. Dong Yuan
Dong Yuan is a Chinese restaurant that serve food from Hunan. They have a 3.9 on Google so slightly higher than 3.7 golden rating for Chinese restaurants. Hunan cuisine is known for being even spicier Szechuan. I went for the spicy chilli beef and pork mince with chilli. Both dishes were spicy but very tasty and addictive. Watch my reel here.
7. Levant Book Cafe
There are few Middle Eastern dessert spots in Park Royal but my favourite is probably Levant Book Cafe. They serve a wide variety of Syrian desserts and make everything the old fashioned way. Watch my reel here.
8. Lebanese Centre
Lebanese Centre is a Lebanese supermarket with a coal fired chicken rotisserie out front. I’ve only seen on other place in London with the same contraption. A whole rotisserie chicken is £9 and comes with flat bread, pickles and toum. The chicken skin is salty and has a light smoky flavour from the charcoal. The meat comes clean off the bone. It’s a small chicken so if you were hungry you could easily demolish this in your car by yourself. You can usually pick up some pretty good drinks here too. In the past I’ve got Arabic Pepsi and more recently I got Nigerian Coke.
9. Goodies
Goodies is a popular Syrian-run supermarket. In terms of Syrian supermarkets in the area it’s one of the biggest and best but service in the cooked food section is a little chaotic and rude. As well as rotisserie chicken they also sell a £3 chicken shawarma and £5 lamb shawarma – I actually preferred the chicken. It’s £9.99 for a whole rotisserie chicken with a flatbread and fries. The skin wasn’t crispy but it tasted amazing. The meat was moist and I was getting strong hints of cinnamon.
10. Cafe Royal
One of the strangest caf set-ups I’ve seen – In one corner there’s a couple of fruit machines, in the other there appears to be some kind of make-shift office with a man hunched over his desk (the owner apparently). Yes, an office inside a greasy spoon. On top of this, when you order you’re given a raffle ticket with your number which is called out when your breakfast is ready, as if it gets so busy that remembering who ordered what, or just shouting out the order is too big a task. Now for the breakfast – The plating was all off. The way the beans were placed at the bottom of plate, then everything else on top, had me thinking this breakfast was put together by a psycho. Beautiful crispy bacon right on top of the wet beans… The bacon, mushrooms and hash browns were on point. The sausage was cheap, the ketchup and brown sauce were runny, the tomatoes were barely cooked. This cost £10.20 with tea and one slice of toast. Watch reel here.
11. Dark
Looking for a good burger or Nashville hot chicken sandwich? Dark have you got covered. They’re prominently a takeaway but they do have a few tables for eating in. The burger patty has nice crispy edges but still remains pink in the middle. It was a little heavy on the sauce but a very delicious burger. For the bun they use a potato roll. The Nashville hot chicken sandwich can come in the same potato roll or Texas toast. I went for the Texas toast. The batter was well seasoned and nice and crispy. They use the breast here and it’s marinaded for 24-hours in buttermilk which makes it super moist. The Texas toast is great too.
12. Patisserie Patchi
Patisserie Patchi is another great spot for Middle Eastern deserts. The variety here is pretty insane.
13. Hamadia
Hamadia a Syrian restaurant next door to Levant Book Cafe. They serve some pretty good broasted chicken here. If you didn’t know that’s chicken that’s battered and deep fried in a pressure cooker.
14. Park Cafe
Park Cafe is another greasy spoon cafe in Park Royal. I prefer Cafe Royal as I think the breakfast is better there and it has better atmosphere too.
15. Hot Grubz
Hot Grubz is a Caribbean takeout on the North side of the River Brent. They’re open Monday to Friday lunchtimes only. The owners aren’t Jamaican but they serve predominately Jamaican food. The menu is pretty small. I tried the jerk chicken and curry goat. It’s £10 for a meat with some rice & peas and plantain. The food is ok but nothing is standout. The jerk chicken had a char and came off the bone nicely but it was served dry with no jerk sauce/oxtail gravy. The curry with the curry goat was a little thin. The patty was overcooked and incredibly dry.
16. Beit el Zaytoun
This is the substantially more elaborate option. The menu covers mezze, grilled meats, Lebanese breakfast, manakeesh, shawarma and other mains, with both indoor and outdoor seating. The restaurant describes itself as centred around Lebanese hospitality and also hosts live music evenings.
