London’s tradition of mid-20th-century diners, or “caffs,” is quickly being gentrified into nostalgia, but this fry-up on deeply authentic and unflashy Bethnal Green Road has been run by the affable Nevio family since 1900. Some of them were born upstairs, and the matriarch of the family has commanded the kitchen since 1961. The Deco interior, a greasy spoon fantasia of sunburst icons, chrome, and primrose, was carved by a regular in 1946 and is now protected by law. You’ll be boisterously welcomed with open arms—Mama, cooking Italian specialties such as cannelloni, may wave to you from the kitchen—and you’ll spend a happy meal sharing a table with locals (“Where are you from?” “Looks like rain tomorrow”), sipping the best cuppa 70p tea you ever had. As proof of your acceptance by the regulars, after you’re done you may be sent out with a parting gift of homemade cake. There’s no more iconic “caff” in town, certainly none happier.