The pie and mash crisis: can the original fast food be saved?

"The pavement along Barking Road in Plaistow is a blur through the front windows and deserted, and there are only two customers in the shop. Another sign this one on the counter says CASH ONLY. Card machine companies often tell proprietor Nathan Jacobi that he's missing out by not catering to customers who favour cashless transactions. They're the ones missing out, he says. Cos they ain't getting pie and mash."

"London's pie and mash shops, once threatened with extinction, seem to be experiencing a kind of resurgence. London's original fast food, pie and mash' is making a surprise comeback in the British capital announced the Washington Post in a recent article. This renewed demand for hearty cockney cuisine', so-called for its working-class East End roots, has been observed across the city. The revival is said in part to be down to the TikTok generation's fascination with these bygone establishments and their obscure customs."

"But behind this flurry of enthusiasm is a backstory of unrelenting decline. There are now just more than 30 pie and mash shops in London, where once there were hundreds. On its website the Pie and Mash Club lists five closures in Greater London in 2025 alone, including another Manze's in Deptford High Street, which shut this time last year after more than a century in business."

BJ's Pie and Mash in Plaistow operates cash-only, and proprietor Nathan Jacobi says cashless customers are missing out on pie and mash. Card machine companies tell him he is missing business from cashless patrons. London's original pie and mash cuisine has seen renewed popularity, with M Manze's in Bermondsey busier than ever and queues at Goddards in Greenwich on weekends. The revival links to younger generations' fascination with cockney food and its obscure customs. The sector remains much diminished, with just over 30 shops now versus hundreds historically, and several century-old venues have closed. A handful of new shops, such as Barney's in Walthamstow (opened 2018), have also appeared.

Read at www.theguardian.com