Oklahoma, Northern Quarter, Manchester. Indie sarnies

Oklahoma is hidden away in the back streets of Manchester's creative, cultural, artsy Northern Quarter. It's a super indie cafe, come querky gift shop, come foreign film rental. Full of vintage, kitsch charm the cafe is full of mismatched retro furniture and old fashioned plates and cups. Oklahoma serves a nice selection sandwiches, jacket potatoes, cakes and teas, perfect for a lunch or late afternoon snack. The food is mostly vegetarian apart from the odd slice of salami here and there. I went for the Mozzarella, red pepper and rocket toasted sandwich. The crunchy toasted bread perfectly contrasted the lovely smooth, melted mozzarella, while the sweet peppers, still with a nice bit of crunch, worked beautifully with the salty cheese and peppery rocket. Very nice indeed!

BagelMan, The Lanes, Brighton. You can keep your bagels, sir!

BagelMan is situated on Bond Street, one of the streets that makes up Brighton's fantastic, uber trendy 'lanes'. After a morning perusing the record shops and vintage stores (or not), BagelMan makes a great lunch spot. But as you may have gathered, I was not there for a bagel. I had heard that word on the street (or should that be lane) is that Bagelman makes a mean falafel - so naturally this had to be investigated. The street did not lie, this was a falafel and a half. Lovingly crafted, the falafel balls were carefully arranged with the tomato and cucumber inside a soft, slightly toasted pitta, and covered with just the right amount of chilli sauce and tahini. The careful arrangement ensured every bite was a treat; the perfectly cooked falafel (crispy on the outside, nice and soft in the middle) made spicy by the chilli sauce, was deliciously cooled down by the fresh tomato, cucumber and the cool savoury tang of the tahini. And for around £3 it's also a bargain. So Mr Bagelman can keep his bagels, the falafel is king!

Husk, Melbourne, Australia. A Rather Fancy Affair

For those of you who aren’t in the know (or more so for those of you who don’t hail from Melbourne, Australia) Husk is a rather trendy/overpriced clothing and homewares store favoured by affluent thirty-something ladies who lunch. Now, while it may not be such an obvious choice for those of us with rather less disposable incomes, there is indeed a saving grace. That being the “Famous” Husk Chicken Sandwich, from the stores self-titled cafe. Although this fame may be self-anointed, it is deservedly so, for this is one delicious sandwich. Finely poached chicken, seasoned liberally with cracked black pepper and the most gourmet of sea salts, sits atop delectable multi-grain bread with lashings of avocado, rocket and finally, a scintillating squeeze of lemon juice. A rather simple affair it may be, but that is where its beauty lies. And beauty is indeed in the details. The bread is firm and crusty, the chicken seasoned to perfection, the rocket crisp and fresh with the lemon juice adding a welcomed zing to the whole affair. However, the perfection of this sandwich lies in the generous application of avo. Nothing is worse, in my eyes, then a sandwhich-hand who is stingy with their avo and thankfully the lovely café staff at Husk are anything but. So while it may be completely overpriced at $9.50 (around £ 6 apparently), go ahead and treat yourself, sit back and relax amongst Husk’s luxe Moroccan inspired décor. After all, that chicken sandwich is “famous” for a reason.

By Foreign Correspondent Sophie Lamell