North London Food & Culture

Sik Faan, Kentish Town: ‘I missed the community we had at Carrots & Daikon’

David Chu's vision is a safe space where "everyone can enjoy delicious homecooked meals"

This new Cantonese restaurant has replaced Carrots & Daikon opposite the Forum. But did you know it’s the same owners?

“We had many great memories as Carrots & Daikon, we did it for eight and a half years,” says David Chu. “At the time, we had some family matters that needed attending too and for me personally, I wanted to take a much-needed break, find myself a little and to travel the world.”

After he closed the restaurant, Chu undertook a two-month solo trip to Asia earlier this year, and even although “it was enjoyable, I realized that the thing that brought me the most joy and happiness was the connection and bond that we had built up with the customers we had at Carrots & Daikon over the years. I really missed the sense of belonging and the community of people in Kentish Town.”


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And so he’s back in the fray, with a simple, pared-back dining room to sample a menu consisting of bao buns, rice bowls, healthy salads, pho noodle soups, wontons and spring rolls. To drink, there are quality Chinese teas, and crafty fruit and milk tea-based beverages.

Sik Faan Kentish Town
Sik Faan. Photo: PR
They’re serving the Cantonese and Vietnamese home comfort food David “grew up eating.” He uses the phrase “Wholesome Cantonese” because that was the homecooked style of food “my mum continues to cook and how I want other people to enjoy and experience it as well.”

But what does the name mean? “The literal translation of Sik Faan is ‘eat rice.’ It’s a phrase we continuously use to this day to call everyone to the dinner table (almost like a calling for ‘its dinner time’) or something we say at the start of every meal like cheers is for drinking.”

He shrugs. “Our vision is to create an inclusive and safe space where everyone can relax, enjoy delicious homecooked meals, and feel a sense of community and belonging.” Follow @sikfaanuk for more.

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The award-winning print and online title Kentishtowner was founded in 2010 and is part of London Belongs To Me, a citywide network of travel guides for locals. For more info on what we write about and why, see our About section.