High Culture on a Low Budget

Vitals
Mike Zealey, 33, Writer, Stoke Newington, London.

What do you do with £5.00 for dinner?
The Best Turkish Kebab on Kingsland Road, N16 North London. (It truly lives up to its name and is quite famous).

What about £10.00?
Testi–one of London’s first and finest Turkish restaurants offering a wide range of ockbasi dishes. Stoke Newington High Street, London, N16.

Who has the happiest happy hour?
The Griffin in Shoreditch. Frequented by Amy Winehouse and other wannabe hipsters but keeps a down-to-earth traditional London boozer vibe.

How much is too much to spend on transportation?
Buses are the way to go. Get an Oyster Card (from any newsagent) and it costs 90p (otherwise £2). If you are coming from outside of Zone 1 or 2 then you have to take the Underground (subway) always best to travel after 09:30 because you can buy a one-day travel card which gives you unlimited access. If you are just going one stop on the tube, it is so expensive you are better off hailing a black cab.

What are your top three free thrills?
Speakers Corner in Hyde Park (where free speech is still allowed). The view from the top of Hampstead Heath overlooking London. The Tate Modern art gallery on the Southbank.

My one big indulgence is…
Shopping for trinkets and antiques in Portebello Road Market.

If I had all the money in the world, I’d buy…
All the Beluga Caviar from Caviar House in Green Park and use it to smear over the London Underground Transport chiefs. Id then stick them in Trafalgar Square and watch all the pigeons and wild cats go crazy!