LDNGuide
5 Meals For A Fiver: Shepherd’s Bush
A fiver, like Gary Lineker’s politics and 10pm bedtimes, tends to feel quite reasonable. Especially when it’s for a meal and not a sharing plate consisting of one borlotti bean that went to Steiner school. That’s why we’ve started 5 For A Fiver. Because there are plenty of brilliant and generous eating options within the realms of £5 across London, you just need to know about them.
These 5 spots are from Shepherd’s Bush. And by Shepherd’s Bush we mean from Goldhawk Road, and Shepherd’s Bush Market, all the way up to Westfield Shopping Centre. This patch in west London has everything from Lebanese restaurants, Syrian bakeries, to Algerian takeaways, and Caribbean grab and goes. And here are our top picks of the best things you can get for a fiver.
Your £5 Options
Your order: Jerk chicken dumpling burger (£4.95)
There’s one very important thing you need to know before continuing with your day. And that is that somewhere in W12, there is a dumpling burger, waiting to be eaten. Why does that affect your life? We’ll tell you why. At this spot on Goldhawk Road, you can get some great jerk chicken, and as if that wasn’t already enough, you can get it sandwiched inside a fried dumpling. The dumpling is fluffy, and we could eat a whole batch of them alone (which they do sell), but the Caribbean jerk spiced chicken inside is saucy and full of flavour. You can add things like fried plantain, avocado, and cheese, or you can keep it simple. Either way it’s excellent and it may well have ruined the average burger bun for us, because we’d love all our future chicken to come inside a dumpling.
Open for takeaway and delivery around W12.
Your order: Spinach and cheese man’oushe or lahm beajin (£3)
Shepherd’s Bush isn’t lacking options when it comes to Lebanese restaurants and bakeries. But if you’re only going to try one, it should be Zeit & Zaatar. This little spot on Uxbridge Road has been specialising in manakeesh for over a decade, and it shows. They’ve got all the classics like zaatar and labneh, and halloumi, as well as some Z&Z specialties like basterma with cheese, and cheese and honey. What’s more, most of them come within the £3 to £5 range. You can’t go wrong with a classic lahm beajin or spinach, and we like to ask for some cheese on them, because... well... melted cheese.
Open for takeaway and delivery around W12.
Your order: Any sandwich (£4-£5)
There’s tasty things between bread. There’s reallytasty things between bread. And then there’s Sam Sandwiches. This Algerian street food spot inside Shepherd’s Bush Market is making some of the best sandwiches around. There’s a simple menu with five meats to choose from, including lamb’s liver, merguez, marinated chicken, and a fish fillet. And while all of the sandwiches are great, our favourites are the chicken and the minced meat. You’ll find regulars appearing out of nowhere and leaving with hefty sandwiches to-go, and you can watch as your meat of choice is fried to order. Harissa and mayonnaise is brushed onto the bread, and each sandwich is topped off with chips, a fried egg, and salad. They’re generously filled, and make a great lunch. And once you try one, trust us, you’ll be back to taste everything else on the menu.
This spot is takeaway only.
Your order: Spinach borek (£3.50)
You can find pretty much anything inside Westfield. Mobile phones, jackets, soap from the Dead Sea (and people trying to convince you to buy it), and this Greek deli on the ground floor. It’s just a kiosk, and you can get everything from olives, to baklava, but what you should really be here for is the pastries. They’ve got boreks filled with lamb, cheese, potato, and more. The spinach rose-shaped borek is filled with spinach (duh) and cheese, in thin, flaky layers of pastry. It’s full of flavour, and filling enough that it’ll do well for a quick lunch. You can get it heated, which you most definitely should, and enjoy it for under a fiver knowing it’s one of the best snacks you can get inside Westfield.
Westfield is only open for essentials and a select few restaurants during lockdown/national restrictions.
Your order: Meat pattie (£2.50)
This spot on Uxbridge Road is apparently RiRi’s go-to Caribbean spot in Shepherd’s Bush. Although they’ve got a menu of things like curry goat and jerk chicken, they’ve also got some truly excellent Jamaican patties. The pastry is flaky and buttery, and there’s a choice between meat, chicken, fish, and vegetables for £2.50 a pop. Our favourite is the meat. It’s peppery, warming, and - surprise, surprise - meaty. But the chicken is also a great choice, and a little lighter. And the good news is that because they’re only £2.50, you can get both the chicken and the meat for £5.
Open for takeaway and delivery around W12.
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