Story Deli, Spitalfields

Story Deli
3 Dray Walk
Old Truman Brewery
91 Brick Lane
Spitalfields
E1
020 7247 3137

by Eggatha Chrispie

I must admit that by the time this review was suggested to me I’d got to know Story Deli like the back of my fork. But frankly, any excuse to visit this haven is a worthwhile one. The marvellously flexible menu (handwritten, of course, in organic chalk on an organic chalkboard) is easily interpreted, and Beverley, ever-friendly, efficient and chatty took the order. My choice this visit was mackerel and poached egg with toast, plus a soya latte.

By the time I’d got half way through this latte, I was experiencing a familiar feeling of blood-loss in the lower part of my thighs – brought on by too-high cardboard stools (tall boxes, basically) combined with a too-low wooden table. But, hey, when a coffee’s that good, it’s not a problem. It wasn’t long before the food turned up, which was good, as the latte cups are not what one would describe as ‘over-generous’ - and in fact, the whole meal wouldn’t lend itself to that description, but there is something about Story Deli that makes one very content with one’s lot.

There's a delicious vinegar-y overtone that lingers around my perfectly poached eggs. The toast is sort of griddle-cooked, and though made from white flour (a pet hate of mine) the sin is excused in this instance. The mackerel, meanwhile, is oily but wholesome, perfectly golden and very, very tasty. I could actually eat it every day and not get tired of it.

On Dray Walk, anything goes (including, on one memorable visit, the staggering figure of Pete Doherty) and Story Deli has gone down very well.