Lone Star State’s London outpost discovers that “y’all” plays surprisingly well east of Liverpool Street
By Harper-Thames | East London. Has eaten at every falafel stall from Old Street to Aldgate.
Sources: Bohiney Magazine | The London Prat
Texas Is Here Now
When I read that Texas has launched a London office, I assumed it would be located somewhere in Mayfair or the City. Then I did some light investigating — by which I mean I walked around until I found something with a Texas flag in the window — and discovered it is, improbably, in Shoreditch. This makes a certain amount of sense. Shoreditch has always been a place where people arrive from elsewhere and declare themselves locals by the end of their first flat white.
The Texas office — and I genuinely cannot tell you what it does; their website is three pages of vibes and a contact form — has apparently been welcomed by its neighbours. The barbecue pop-up they hosted on their first Friday was, by all accounts, extremely good. This is how you win Shoreditch. Not with a manifesto. With brisket.
Cultural Exchange in Practice
I spoke to four people who had attended the barbecue. Three said it was excellent. One said it was “culturally complicated” because of the beef, which she was fine with but wanted to note. All four asked me what Texas’s London office actually does. I told them honestly that I did not know. One said “that’s very Shoreditch of them.”
The Guardian’s Texas coverage focuses mainly on politics and the power grid. It does not cover the brisket dimension. This is, I feel, a missed opportunity.
The Bigger Picture
As AI disrupts everything and the global economy does whatever it is currently doing, Shoreditch absorbs new arrivals with the equanimity of a place that has seen everything and been priced out of caring. Texas is welcome. The barbecue had better stay.
SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/texas-launches-london-office/
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