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street food at this brightly colored Covent Garden favorite. Mud walls and bench seats make for buzzy basement surroundings, but it’s the cheap £3.85–£8.95 tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas, and burritos that pull in the student crowds. A £19.95 spread for two will produce a feast of broad bean quesadillas, pork tacos, slaw, green rice, black beans, and guacamole, but note that reservations aren’t taken and that it’s often full by 6:30 pm. | 66 Chandos Pl., Covent Garden | WC2N 4HG | 020/7240–1883 | www.wahaca.co.uk | Reservations not accepted | AE, MC, V | Charing Cross

BLOOMSBURY AND LEGAL LONDON

North Sea Fish Restaurant.

£ | SEAFOOD | Come here for the British national dish of fish-and-chips—battered cod, thick fries with salt and malt vinegar, and a dollop of homemade tartar sauce. Note that the restaurant is tricky to find: Head three blocks south of St. Pancras station and the British Library, then down Judd Street. It has net curtains, velvet seats, and worn carpet, and it’s filled with students, pensioners, and academics from the Library’s Reading Room. There’s freshly caught cod, plaice, haddock, sea bass, and salmon, with mushy peas, as well as dishes like breaded scampi or chicken salad. | 7–8 Leigh St., Bloomsbury | WC1H 9EW | 020/7387–5892 | MC, V | Closed Sun. | Russell Sq.

THE CITY

Boundary.

£££ | FRENCH | Design guru and restaurateur Sir Terence Conran scores a bull’s-eye at Boundary in über-fashionable Hoxton–Shoreditch. A theatrical glass-fronted open kitchen and sparkling lighting, acoustics, and Technicolor seats, make this plush 100-plus seat basement French brasserie the glamorati’s east-end destination of choice. The menu’s a wish list of crowd-pleasers designed to impress: shellfish bisque, escargots à la Bourguignonne, cassoulet Toulousain (haricot bean stew with pork, lamb, duck, and garlic sausage), lapin à la moutarde (rabbit with mustard), and roast Les Landes chicken. Desserts like the tarte au citron (a classic lemon tart) are tasty and reasonably priced. | 2–4 Boundary St., entrance at 9 Redchurch St., The City | E2 7DD | 020/7729–1051 | www.theboundary.co.uk | Reservations essential | AE, MC, V | No lunch Mon. | Station: Liverpool St. .

E Pellicci.

£ | CAFÉ | It’s Cockney chitchat and all-day English breakfast at this 1900 family-run listed landmark café near Brick Lane and Columbia Road markets. With stained glass, Art Deco marquetry, and pics autographed by East Enders TV soap stars, it’s the hole-in-the-wall for the fry-ups that Londoners love: eggs, bacon, beans, toast, tomato, black pudding, and bubble ’n’ squeak (cabbage and mash potatoes). Your arteries may clog up, but at least the wallet survives: Everything’s less than £8, but remember it’s cash-only. | 332 Bethnal Green Rd., The City | E2 0AG | 020/7739–4873 | No credit cards | Closed Sun. | Bethnal Green

L’Anima.

£££ | ITALIAN | Brilliant Southern Italian cuisine in a love-it-or-loathe-it modern glass-fronted box of a restaurant characterizes the scene at L’Anima. Chef Francesco Mazzei draws inspiration from Sicily, Sardinia, and Calabria, and works the floor, bar, and clear-fronted kitchen like the proud owner he is. Simple, modern dishes like wild mushroom and black truffle tagliolini are near perfection, as is the wood-roasted turbot with clams—as succulent as you could wish. Dessert puddings, like cappuchino tiramisu, are belissimo; the wines are mainly Italian. | 1 Snowden St., The City | EC2A 2DQ | 020/7422–7000 | www.lanima.co.uk | AE, DC, MC, V | Closed Sun. | Liverpool St.

Lahore Kebab House.

£ | PAKISTANI | Best budget curries in London is the mantra at the Lahore Kebab House in Whitechapel. It may be no-frills and free BYO, but the Pakistani home-style cooking is cheap and brilliant—popular with locals. Tandoor-grilled mutton tikka, grilled lamb chops, creamy tarka daal lentils, masala fish curry, and karahi chicken are all super-spiced and fiery. A £15-a-head spread knocks spots off anything on offer in nearby Brick Lane’s so-called curry mile. | 2 Umberston St., The City | E1 | 020/7481–9737 | www.lahore-kebabhouse.com