Occasionally I?ll be reading this or that about London and will come across mention of smoked or pickled eels and/or elvers. From what I gather street vendors were common years ago, particularly in the East End. I?ve been to London several times and have never noticed eel on any menu. For a number of reasons I don?t hang out much in the East End, but when I?ve been there I've never noticed shops or vendors featuring eel. Is this a thing entirely of the past or have any of you eaten eel/elvers in London? If so, any recommendations as to where it can be found?
(East Ealing, I suppose...)

Is there another dish you can compare it to, is it ?fishy? or, like so many other things, does it ?taste just like chicken??

Enquiring minds want to know?

Here's an old thread on this subject:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...mp;tid=1405466

I haven't tried them myself, since the traditional preparation is jellied, and I have a textural aversion to that sort of thing....

Lesli-perfect choice of words!
Textural Aversion!! Ditto

Hi
Fresh cooked eel or smoked eel is not uncommon.

Jellied eel is an acquired taste, which IMHO is not worth acquiring.

Funnily enough I had just read an article earlier about the resurgence of interest in eel!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Print/0,3858,4691167,00.html

I've swallowed it twice and it came back up about 6 times!!

Lets not beat around the bush with talk of textural aversion ? eels, especially jellied eels are gross.

I am London born and bred, and although both my parents and grandparents swear that jellied eels are the food of the gods, there is no way on earth that anyone is going to get me to eat that ****.

However, if you are visiting London and you really truly want to eat ethnic, then you have three choices:

1) Buy some from a sidewalk stall. Be warned, these are not found in tourist hotspots, you are going to have to travel - and lets be honest, none of them are going to look like obvious contenders for the ?most outstanding contribution to food hygiene? of the year award. Tubby Isaacs near Aldgate/Aldgate East Tube, is probably the most famous ? you get a mix of City types, east end builders, winos from the local hostel and students from the local university.

2) Eat at a high-class restaurant. Be warned, we are talking expensive ? we are talking expensive by London standards. If you can afford this sort of bill, then you don?t need to be trawling Fodors to be told where to go.

3) Visit a pie and mash shop. There are a few left in London ? but in very out of the way places (aka not in areas where you?ll find a hotel you would want to stay in). They have incredibly distinctive green and white tiled interiors, it?s a bit like stepping back into the 1940s; you wont see anything else like it in London today, it is a miracle that they have survived at all.

http://www.viewlondon.co.uk/home_fea...ockneygrub.asp

- will tell you where to find them.

Me, I?m off to Burger King.