London<\/a>. On her list were the bakeries Jolene and Gail\u2019s, and the De Beauvoir Deli.<\/p>\nThe reaction, however, was anything but. Many locals commented that they had never heard of the businesses she mentioned. One north Londoner, Moses Combe, 21, was equally incredulous. \u201cIf this is where all the north London girlies come in the morning, I\u2019d be a bit surprised,\u201d he said in a viral video.<\/p>\nCombe dubbed his reviews the \u2018Endz Department for Research\u2019.<\/span> Photograph: tiktok\/m.combe07<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nHe set out on a mission to visit the establishments and see for himself what the fuss was about, heading into Jolene and buying a hot chocolate, sausage roll and his very first tiramisu cake, which he described as \u201cbloody lovely\u201d.<\/p>\n
So began a series of videos that the young Londoner has named the \u201cEndz Department for Research\u201d, in which he reviews upmarket caf\u00e9s that he wouldn\u2019t otherwise visit in his local area.<\/strong> A crowdfunder to continue the series, and \u201cinvestigate the change going on in our own back yards\u201d, has already raised \u00a32,566 of its \u00a33,000 target.<\/p>\nThe bill from Combe\u2019s trip to Jolene \u2013 which he describes as \u201cgiving Gail\u2019s Pro Max\u201d \u2013 comes to \u00a314.20. <\/strong>He tells his followers it\u2019s \u201cnot quite Greggs\u201d, but he enjoys the sausage roll. \u201cThey did not skimp out with that sausage, bro,\u201d he said. \u201cThat, I put my hands up, is pretty decent.\u201d<\/p>\nCombe isn\u2019t alone. Kobi Coker, a 27-year-old comedian and educator, said his videos exploring so-called \u201cgentrified\u201d spaces had not initially been intentional. He said he would notice new, upmarket establishments opening up on his road during his cycle to work and post about trying them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve always got a queue outside,\u201d he said, which left him wondering: \u201cWhat makes this place so popular?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just someone who likes exploring and doing new things,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019d pop into these places here and there, but I didn\u2019t really think anything of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Coker, who runs the comedy night Unruly Comedy, has reviewed the Dusty Knuckle bakery, Jolene, Gails and Pret. In one review, he jokes about the way he pronounces pain au chocolat<\/em>. \u201cAllow me please. I\u2019m not French, I\u2019m from Hackney.\u201d<\/p>\nKobi Coker says the problem with gentrification is that people who made the area what is is \u2018aren\u2019t necessarily able to participate\u2019 in it.<\/span> Photograph: Linda Nylind\/The Guardian<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nHis haul from the Dusty Knuckle sets him back \u00a317.30 \u2013 which he confesses to his audience with a sound effect of glass shattering \u2013 but he describes the egg and bacon hot cross buns as \u201cabsolutely sensational \u2026 I can\u2019t think of many better sandwiches I\u2019ve had in my life.\u201d Ultimately, he encourages his followers to visit, citing the work the company does with at-risk young people in the area.<\/p>\n
On the question of gentrification, Coker said he had mixed feelings. \u201cOne half of me feels it\u2019s good that we\u2019re getting a new influx of things \u2013 some new people to bring new ideas.\u201d But the problem, he added, was that \u201cpeople that made the community what it is aren\u2019t necessarily able to participate in it\u201d.<\/p>\n
Matthew Roberts, operations manager at Jolene, has welcomed the attention their bakeries have got. \u201cIt\u2019s all very positive. It\u2019s really nice for people to be talking about us,\u201d he said, adding in good spirit: \u201cEven if we don\u2019t necessarily measure up to Greggs in everyone\u2019s view.\u201d<\/p>\nJolene competes with national chains such as Gail\u2019s.<\/span> Photograph: Steve Tulley\/Alamy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nConversations around gentrification could flatten businesses that operated on vastly different scales, he added. The Dusty Knuckle is a social enterprise with two sites; Jolene an independent bakery and restaurant that has expanded to four sites across the capital. They compete with national chains with hundreds of outlets across the UK, such as Gail\u2019s, Pret and even Greggs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would hate to think our space is seen as exclusive in any way, because that\u2019s really not how we see ourselves,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cWe really do want to welcome absolutely everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harry Davies, from De Beauvoir Deli, said the recent attention had not led to any noticeable surge in customers, but acknowledged the videos were very funny.<\/p>\nIn one video, Daniel Poon reviewed Pret\u2019s ube drink, which did not feel authentic.<\/span> Photograph: tiktok\/@danknowzbest<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nHe described the comparisons of the prices of their sandwiches to supermarket meal deals as unfair. \u201cWe take a lot of pride in our sustainability, using good ingredients and paying people properly,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re a London living wage employer, and we use free-range meat in our sandwiches.\u201d<\/p>\n
Davies added that the deli had always attracted a broad mix of customers. \u201cPeople assume it\u2019s full of people with \u00a33m houses, but that\u2019s not the case,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone likes nice food.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Daniel Poon, a 27-year-old content creator, the trend for local people reviewing businesses they wouldn\u2019t normally go to was also just about trying something new.<\/p>\n
\u201cI grew up in Woolwich and many of my friends were African, but I never actually got to eat African food,\u201d he said. He set out to do so with his now viral format \u2013 stopping strangers to ask for recommendations \u2013 which has led him to a mix of neighbourhood staples, hidden gems and more upmarket cafes, such as Farmer J and Blank Street.<\/p>\n
He sometimes ends up reviewing mainstream chains when they release viral products drawn from other cuisines. In one video, he reviewed Pret\u2019s ube drink, which he said did not feel authentic to the original Filipino flavour. Chains, he said, often \u201ctry to make it very western\u201d, adapting products to their core customer base rather than the communities they borrowed from, though he does appreciate their efforts to branch out.<\/p>\n
\u201cI actually quite like that people try different cuisines. I think it shows that they\u2019re open, and London is all about diversity,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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