Willesden, in London's north west, has quietly become one of the best places in the capital to eat Brazilian food — no flight to São Paulo required. Secret London rounds up the area's Brazilian restaurants and food shops, a cluster that has grown around the community that settled here over recent decades and turned streets off the High Road into a de facto Brazilian quarter.
What makes Willesden interesting for food lovers is the range. There are rodízio-style grill houses where waiters bring skewers of picanha, sausage and chicken hearts to the table until you surrender, plus casual spots doing feijoada — the black bean and pork stew considered Brazil's national dish — and salgados like coxinha (teardrop-shaped chicken croquettes) and pão de queijo, the chewy cheese bread that goes with everything. You'll also find starters like pão de alho, creamy garlic bread grilled at the churrasco, and desserts such as brigadeiros, the dense chocolate truffles rolled in sprinkles.
The Brazilian shops and delis scattered around the neighbourhood are half the fun. They stock ingredients most supermarkets don't carry: farofa (toasted cassava flour), guaraná soda, cachaca for caipirinhas, cassava flour, tamarind, and a wall of Brazilian sweets and snacks. Even if you're not cooking, they're great for picking up picnic supplies before heading to nearby Gladstone Park or Queen's Park.
Prices are refreshingly reasonable compared to central London's Brazilian offerings. A generous plate food lunch or a grill dinner typically lands well under what you'd pay in Soho or Covent Garden, and portions lean towards enormous — going hungry is not a risk here.
Getting there is easy: Willesden Green and Willesden Junction sit on the Jubilee line and Bakerloo/Overground respectively, roughly 20-30 minutes from central London. For anyone who has been priced out of Rio or São Paulo trips this year — or simply curious about one of London's most under-the-radar food neighbourhoods — a self-guided crawl of Willesden's Brazilian kitchens and shops is a cheap, satisfying day out.
This round-up comes courtesy of Secret London.
