BBQ buns

We can take the girl out of Chinatown, but we can not take Chinatown out of the girl.

The White House eats

During a June visit to London, the Obama girls, their mother, grandmother and the rest of the entourage reportedly ate at The Audley in Mayfair. The children, we understand, had fish and chips. When we explore the quiet tony neighborhood, we find the British pub for ourselves.

Humming along

Opened, as it turns out, by a friend of a friend, The Hummingbird Bakery sells American-style desserts aplenty. There are cupcakes, for instance. There are layer cakes, pies, cookies and brownies.

And, not surprisingly, there is a book: "The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook" from owner Tarek Malouf.

We opt for a red velvet cupcake with traditional cream cheese frosting. My sister takes a bite. I happily finish the rest.

Leave the rice, keep the soy

The store-bought sushi is convenient but mediocre. The rice is cold and hard, the fish nearly nonexistent. The soy sauce, however, is packaged in such a unique way we can not resist a photo.

Brick Lane beigels

Brick Lane in the East End is filled with curry houses, none of which, I am told, is any good. 'Tis a shame really.

What we do like on the street, however, are cheap and chewy beigels from Brick Lane Beigel Bake, a testament to the historically Jewish influences in the dynamic neighborhood.