Gallipoli Cafe Bistro

102 Upper Street
London

N1 1QN

I haven't seen E in almost two years - she's a friend from Austin but she's been living in Berlin recently and then let me know she was in London for a few days, so we met up for lunch at Gallipoli Cafe Bistro. There's another one just a few doors down the street called Gallipoli Again, and I think there's one called Gallipoli Bazaar close by as well? Anyway, the lunch special was a good deal - 7.95 for 2 courses - so we both chose the red lentil soup and the seafood paella. The lentil soup was really nice - a little lemony and perfect for an autumn day. It was served with a generous basket of Turkish bread. Then the seafood paella came out and it was huge! I counted at least three big prawns, four mussels, and about four substantial chunks of various kinds of fish (I spotted tuna, salmon and swordfish). Lots of nice bits of vegetables in there as well, and the rice was deliciously flavored. There was also a side salad of rocket and cucumber that went really well with the savory paella. Service was friendly and there was a nice atmosphere inside - not too lively but not too quiet either. I'd definitely go back.