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One of the things I love most about London is making chance discoveries. That’s how I came upon Ben’s House, a tiny corner venue with huge windows in that patch where Fitzrovia fades out into Marylebone Road.
Ben’s is one of very few delis where all the food and drink on sale has been made in London. After working for food companies such as Ginger Pig and Hotel Chocolat, proprietor Ben Leask realised that what he liked doing best was introducing consumers to the products of small, high-quality producers.
That’s exactly what Ben’s House does. There are sauces from Dalston Chillies, superb salami from Cobble Lane Cured in Islington, doughnuts from Crosstown Doughnuts in Clapham, Hackney’s own Butler’s Gin, and so forth. They’re available to take away or eat in.
The front room has a long wooden table of extreme loveliness, while the more secluded room at the back can be hired for small meetings.
Cheese and charcuterie plates cost £7.50, or a sharing-sized London Ploughman’s costs £11.50. To quench your thirst there are cold soft drinks, coffee and glasses of wine or G&Ts (double measure) for £7.
Ben is always on the premises, and his enthusiasm for what he sells is palpable. It’s a limited range, sure. But it’s of high quality, and the championing of London is just great. I’d love to make Ben’s House my house.