Lennies Snack Bar

Wonderful people, ambience and food — a 20-​strong group of us devoured an awesome combo of beef, chicken and fish curries, brought our own booze, stayed all night, and were even treated to a birthday cake from the lovely owners, all for only 15 quid a head! Thoroughly recommend and will be heading back again soon — thank you!

I went here with a friend to try some of Mama Irene’s amazing thai food. We had beef with green curry (and loads of fresh vegetables) and fried fish with mango and mushrooms. Amazing. We were silent as we ate — except for a few «mmm’s» and «mhmm’s». You can taste the love that goes into the food. Everything was superb, fresh and rich with flavour. This is my new favourite restaurant.

What an endearingly delicious place! Calling the shots at this little slice of London life is the adorable Irene, whose Southeast Asian yummies prepared in British comfort food fashion are the delight of a very savvy set of appreciative East End diners.
As the steamroller of gentrification and hipster insistence burns its way through Shoreditch, the presence of Lennie’s Snack Bar becomes ever more relevant and imperative. Come here for a real home cooked meal at an affordable price served up with a healthy dose of kindness (and feist) and more than a dash of quirk.
A lot of the veggies come from Irene’s allotment. If there’s fish or seafood, it’s probably freshly caught on the day.
This is one of the most characterful restaurants you’ll come across in London. Irene and crew more than deserve your patronage.

I have come here once for Sunday breakfast, though I hear it also becomes a Thai restaurant at night. Hey, its an authentic little snack bar which is cheap and tasty, and has some of the best service I have gotten in London. Mama Irene seems to have a personal relationship with all of the regulars. Too… cute…

Mama Irene @ Lennies Snack Bar
Pics at the London Foodie
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One of my favourite restaurants in London, Irene is a true pioneer of what today is a well known and much loved cuisine in the UK. She has been cooking Thai food in London’s East End for over 20 years and her restaurant is a real institution in the Shoreditch food scene.
I have been coming to Mama Irene’s for the last two years and have, since then, introduced some of my dearest friends to her. It took me a few visits until Irene decided I could have one of her tables today, I am lucky enough to have her mobile number and am able to enjoy her cooking frequently.
Her menu is very limited, which is an excellent sign for an Asian restaurant. On every visit she will, if you allow her, sit at your table and run through the various food options she will serve you whatever is freshest and has just been bought at her local market on the day. I remember using the menu only on my first visit, and have since then let her choose all my dishes.
On my last visit, we were served another great meal we started the evening with her homemade spring rolls, followed by deep fried pork ribs. The spring rolls had a real kick to them because of the spices in the filling, while the ribs were crisp and deliciously meaty.
There are always two amazing dishes I ask her to prepare whenever I call to book and which I truly recommend her sea bream steamed with Asian herbs, mushrooms and black bean sauce, and her roasted pork belly on a bed of wilted lettuce. These recipes are not set in stone and every time I visit Irene’s and try them, they taste slightly different but equally delicious.
She also cooked us Thai green curry chicken, prawns & squid with green beans in a spicy sauce, and stir fried pork belly with spring onions. All three dishes tasted fresh and authentic, but I particularly enjoyed the pork belly. For dessert, we were served banana fritters with crème fraiche which ended the evening on an excellent note.
Other amazing dishes tried in earlier visits include her Seafood Laksa, other scrumptious variations of her steamed sea bream, and her green papaya salad. I doubt that you will find any of these dishes in her printed menu so I would recommend you letting her do most of your ordering.
We were in a group of 6 and the meal was exceptionally good value under £15 per person. The fact that Mama Irene is also a BYOB venue is an added bonus, making this an excellent choice in terms of food and value for money.
Coming to Mama Irene feels more like visiting an old friend’s kitchen than a restaurant her food is homely and uncomplicated, and the setting is simple, café style and unpretentious. Irene hires Lennies Snack Bar from Wednesday to Saturday evenings from 6pm, and Sundays for breakfast only. I strongly recommend an advance booking.
Verdict a real Shoreditch institution serving excellent value and delicious, homely Thai food in simple surroundings. Personable service. BYOB. Highly recommended.

Lennies is a hidden Gem.
This place is run by Irene, and named after her daughter. Irine is an amazing chef. Food here is excellent in evenings — the breakfasts are fairly standard greasy spoon affairs, but done with care — there is an enormous range of thai delights and the owner is happy to talk you through and thing that is on the menu and much of what isn’t. What’s more this personable lady goes out of her way to play mother to her visitors, and seems to be on first name terms with all her guests.
Kitchen is in the same room as the dining area so the smell of food can permeate a little. there’s a bottle-​o nearby to cope with the places byob policy.
Only strange thing is the amount of nude female couples featured in the paintings on the walls!

This notorious eatery has an excellent reputation with locals, and it’s certainly not unsubstantiated. Open Wed-​Fri day and evening, Saturday evening and Sunday day (confused?!), Lennie’s offers a day menu of tasty treats including lasagne, chilli, pies and a wide selection of vegetables (including mashed suede which is just Divine) that are all sitting on the open counter for you to choose, which means of you’re especially hungry you can ask for more! Prices on the day menu are around £5.50 (£6 with a cup of tea or coffee), the home cooked quality of the food really shines through and there is always at least two decent vegetarian options available. Come evening the menu changes to Thai, with delicious meat, fish and veggie dishes available. The café is transformed with table cloths, the best element being that for the evening Lennie’s is a BYO, and with meals costing £6 for a veggie option and £8 for fish or meat this is a very cheap way to eat some really decent Thai food. As if that wasn’t enough, Sunday’s day menu offers a huge selection of all day breakfasts, including an amazing vegetarian option. This really is the café that does it all!

Just down the road from Lennies Larder this is a larger café. Like the larder it sells very much home-​made stuff, but in this case it’s traditional English hot food. At dinner time that means stuff like shepherd’s pie and chicken casserole. Big trays full of the stuff ready to fill you up! If you want something fancy go elsewhere. But for good basic nosh this could be your place.
There’s a good amount of seating at clean wooden tables. Walls are brightly painted. It is a little cluttered, but that makes it homely. There’s even a piano in the corner, though I don’t know if that gets used! Plenty of people in, can’t be bad!