Afghan Caravan

Here’s a little tale about a Friday lunchtime at Afghan Caravan.

It isn’t every day that one gets a charming experience in Croydon. Crackheads foaming at the mouth, Deliveroo drivers riding those motorised bicycles on the pavement towards you at 30mph, minutes spent walking past the giant tombstone that is the Nestle building.

If you want it to be, Croydon can be a depressing place.

But also, if you want it enough, you can seek out the charming experiences that are hidden away in Croydon.

This time in BoxPark.

Yep. Charming experiences in…BoxPark.

BoxPark – the cultural home of throwing beer in the air, but it isn’t like that on a Friday lunchtime.

Caravan Of Charm

Are Afghans some of the nicest people in the world?

Well, I haven’t met many and those running the country clearly aren’t “nice”, but the few I have met, including the family running Afghan Caravan, have been sooooo friendly.

Inside feels so homely, as least as much as you can in a little kiosk.

The young lady serving was really friendly, her baby waved to me, her mother in the kitchen complimented my hair – gosh I hoped I’d enjoy the food and be writing something complimentary.

A few things were tempting on the menu, including the chapli kebab, crispy bolani and the chicken wrap – but I decided to go for the mantu, ordering the lamb version.

It seemed like the most interesting place to eat in BoxPark, as I wandered around waiting for my food – though I’d already ordered at literally the first place I saw.

Afghan Caravan

So in terms of what was in the box, there were multiple dumplings underneath what you can see, the pastry used was sweet to taste and gooey to texture – sure a couple of them had fallen apart, but that didn’t matter in the context here.

The lamb itself seemed earthy, though that could have been the chickpeas being mixed in too, which were delightfully orange.

The garlic sauce along with the mint, sumac – possibly crushed chillies, not sure, all gave it a fragrant and warming sensation.

Criticisms? Not really. I kind of wish it was on a plate in a proper restaurant, with actual cutlery, but then again – maybe I should instead be impressed that Croydon BoxPark offers something that isn’t a burger or fried chicken. As per many things in life, and in Croydon, you can take the positives, or you can wish for something that isn’t reality.

Suitably charmed, I took a piece of saffron cake home.

This was moist and juicy in the centre, verging on an orange flavour though not orange, with hints of rose.

I probably wouldn’t order another as I’m not a massive cake person – but it should be tried.

Overall, it was a really rather charming lunchtime. I really quite fell for Afghan Caravan, and it will be difficult to try somewhere new next time I’m in BoxPark.

So next time you are at BoxPark for a beer throwing ceremony, or even any other time – do step out of your comfort zone and be comforted by Afghan Caravan.

Rating of 8.0 out of 10.