After working for Abdul Solak for 7 months as Head Chef of Candela, of which he was a business partner, I can confidently say as I'm sure will any other members of my staff who went unpaid over Xmas 2014 and still haven't been paid up to date, that Abdul Solak and the businesses he is involved in,Palm2, Organic & Natural and unfortunately Baobab Cafe are all sham as heck. The site at 159 Lower Clapton Road, currently, Baobab Cafe, being the most unfortunate for many employees in my experience. With Abdul Solak's signature on the lease agreement any partners or business collaborators have pretty much zero rights in the case of problems arising. Ask the previous employees of Candela if in any doubt as to the truth herein. You can't liquidate a business without the signature of the leaseholder apparently so Candela never really closed, it's just a ghost of Clapton. The same as Riley's Bar before it and I'm sure Baobab Cafe will be. So the next time you think of renting the space above Palm 2 or buying any overpriced and out of date fruit and veg downstairs or fancy a crap coffee or some unsustainable organic produce, spare a thought for the unpaid proletariat that Abdul Solak builds his empire on. Surely sustainability should extend to sustaining the people who do the work to make things happen, rather than just the man who cracks the whip with a greedy look in his eye. All the best with the whole Clapton Village aesthetic Abdul Solak, because that's all it is. Peace
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