Various places: Little Venice, Camden Locks, Urban Food Fest @ Shoreditch, London

Date of Visit: 21^st September 2013

A day out in London led to strolls around the canalside, walks through the markets and plenty of food.  We started the day with Brunch at Café Laville in the Little Venice region.  Whilst the view was nice (we were sat outside, overlooking the canal where you could boat and people watch), I thought the food was mediocre.  I opted for egg benedict which was ok but really nothing special.  The others had different forms of big breakfast.  I tried the grilled mushrooms and it was super salty and the saltyness continued through to the bacon etc.

After taking the boat (aka, the scenic route) to Camden locks, we had dessert in the form of Dutch pancakes with Nutella – it reminded me very much of ‘gay dan jai’ in HK but I prefer the Chinese version since it doesn’t require any sauce, making them less sweet.  Oh and the Dutch turns the pancakes over manually one by one – business opportunity to sell them the ‘gai dan jai’ turners? Hehe

Anyway, the next food stop was Shoreditch for the Urban food festival.  We were disappointed with the size of the “festival” when we arrived as it was set up in a car park area with about 15-20 stalls but we were thankful for proper tables and stools in the middle of the area and we were lucky to bag a table space at the beginning.  Despite the small area, we managed to find some tasty food as we made our way round the stalls.  First up was the Jerk Chicken stall where we tried a quarter chicken served with plantains (unfortunately with no fries as their fryer was playing up) and a Jerk Chicken wrap.  The Jerk chicken was tender and the outside was tasty but I don’t think it was marinated long enough as the inner parts were lacking some flavour. 

Next up was a fire stoned pizza (pepperoni and jalapeno) from StreetZza– the thin base was crispy and it had a nice sharp kick to it – a pretty good pizza I must say.  We then tried Korean burgers in the form of rice burgers and noodle burgers.  They were a strange concept but it was quite tasty, especially with the kimchi sandwiched in between the rice or noodle and the meat.  Next, we tried the Argentine style steak sandwich and a couple of Empanadas (half moon of pastry puffed with savoury filling) from Portena – we tried the beef filling and the spinach filling.  None of these were great… the pitta style bread for the steak sandwich was cold and the meat quite chewy and there wasn’t much flavour to the meat.  The Empanadas were dry and again, lacking some flavour.

There were a couple next to us who tried the frog legs and whilst I’ve had frog legs before, these looked awesome as the legs were still very much attached to the main body so you could still make out it was a frog.  We decided to give it a go too and the verdict was that it was quite fleshy and the taste was very peppery - for those who have not tried frog legs, the texture is in between chicken and cooked white fish.  The strips of sweet potato it was served with was a nice bonus.

So, with all the savouries out of the way, we ventured into Portuguese desserts which consisted of Nata (Portuguese egg tart), Orange Cheesecake and a Coconut based dessert – I can’t remember the name so I’m going to call it a coconut bomb!  All three were rather sweet and we weren’t keen on the orange cheesecake – it did not resemble a cheesecake at all (e.g. no crumbly biscuit base and no cheesecake filling).  Instead it was like a tangerine sugar sponge like dessert.  The coconut bomb was also very sweet but you could taste the coconut bits which added a nice texture.

To end, I took home some macaroons since some weird and wonderful flavours were on offer.  I opted for the following flavours:

-          Strawberry Milkshake

-          Margarita

-          Cosmopolitan

-          Apple Pie

-          Bacon (yes, it has real bacon bits in it)

-          Mint Chocolate  

BANK: Brindley Place, Birmingham

BANK

Date of Visit: 14^th September 2013

Ambience

Firstly, this restaurant is in a great area, close to the NIA and Broad Street.  We had no issues in getting a table despite not having booked on a Saturday night (probably because we arrived for early dinner about half 5). As we were shown to our table, we passed the bar along a long corridor which was fairly dark but the seating area for food was bright with large side windows offering views of the canal.  We were seated at the end of the restaurant on a half booth table overlooking the canal.

The servers were smartly dressed and as it got darker, small tea lights were placed on each table.  The overall atmosphere and the view was quite appealing – even the toilets are worth a mention here… the entrance is along the corridor opposite the bar but it blended in with the rest of the wall but what was notable is that each cubicle (at least in the ladies) had its own sink and hand dryer so you can top up make-up etc. without prying eyes.

Food

The food here is excellent.  For starters, I tried the scallops which were served in a shell (3 pieces) on a bed of mashed potato.  The scallops were cooked to perfection and tasted fresh albeit, a little on the small side (but adequate for starters).  We also tried a tart which we expected to be a caramelised onion and goats cheese tart from the Daily Special menu but as it was ordered, the waiter advised that the tart was quite big, given it was a main – this we were surprised about since the price indicated it was a starter (a little over £6) but it didn’t faze us since we said we’d all try a bit.  When it arrived, it was huge but very tasty.  We assumed we had got what we asked for as the tart was topped with caramelised onions, cheese which didn’t taste as strong as Goats cheese and butternut squash.  We didn’t remember seeing butternut squash on the description but we shrugged it off as it was very tasty indeed.  The tart based was very light as it was filo pastry instead of a short-crust base as we had all expected.  Anyway, it turned out that the tart was a Butternut squash, Spinach and Devonshire cheese tart from the a la carte menu under mains.

For mains, we had a Haddock and leek risotto, fish and chips and a Malayan Chicken.  I didn’t try the battered fish but the batter looked slightly overdone and a little oily but apparently the fish itself was good.  The leek in the risotto was too overwhelming for my liking but it was smooth and creamy.   The Malayan chicken appeared to be the best dish as the chicken breast was soft and very nicely marinated.  You could taste the spices with every mouthful and the thin green coconut curry like sauce it was served on helped to create flavour on parts where the spices could not reach (i.e. the inner parts of the chicken).  The sweet potato cubes it was served with was nice but my only complaint is that it contained small amounts of coriander which was not mentioned on the menu – I’m biased since coriander is my pet hate but given it’s quite a strong spice, I would have expected it to be mentioned.  Anyway, since the amount was very small, it didn’t spoil my dish but it did mean I had to be careful with every bite.

Service

The service was good and our waiter was informative and helpful.  When the bill arrived and we noticed the tart costing over £12, we queried it, showing the price of the tart on the Daily special menu and he immediately corrected it without question.  It was only when we left the restaurant that we confirmed there was a Main tart on the a la carte menu.

Summary

I really enjoyed dinner at BANK – it was great food at reasonable prices with good service and a nice view.. what more can you ask for?  Good drinks? I heard cocktails at this place is really good too so that will be something to try next time if I ever return.  

Shanghai Blue: Arcadian, Birmingham

Shanghai Blue

Date of Visit: 14^th September 2013

Ambience

It had been a few years since I last ate in the Arcadian but for dim sum, I remembered the place upstairs to be decent but as we entered, I realised it had changed names, design and possibly management too.  The interior was a lot darker, with solid looking dark tables and matching coloured chairs – it felt like the revamp was aiming for a more modernised feel, as opposed to traditional Chinese which is fine but it makes me wonder if it is more catered to the Western audience.

Food

We sampled a number of dishes: Prawn and chive dumplings, shanghai pork sil lung bao, Schezuan spicy dumplings, prawn cheung fun, fish congee, vegetable spring rolls and steamed custard sponge.  The prawn dumpling skin was a little dense but otherwise the filling was good, the shanghai dumplings were a flop – I clearly wanted to compare it to the ones from Beijing Dumpling and to prove my theory correct and I wasn’t wrong… the ones here at Shanghai Blue were a disappointment since the inside juice left the dumpling before you even picked it up and the skin was thick so double flop in my eyes. 

On the other hand, the Schezuan dumplings were tasty and had a good kick to it – they were basically pork wonton in a spicy broth served with pak choi.  I hadn’t realised how big of a portion this dish was until near the end as there were only two of us eating it and I had at least 5 pieces so at a guess, there must have been about 10 pieces in a portion.  Thumbs up!

The prawn cheung fun and the fish congee were good but the congee would have been tastier if it was served with cut up doughsticks (as opposed to crispy wonton skin which lost the crispiness as soon as it was soaked up by the congee).  Apparently, congee looks and tastes like GRITS in the US – never heard of it in all my adventures to the US so will keep my eyes peeled on the next trip.

I didn’t try the spring rolls since I wouldn’t choose fried food for dim sum but apparently it was good.  As for the steamed custard sponge (a bit like ma lai goa but with thin layers of custard resembling layered cake), it was nice but we waited until the end to eat it and unfortunately by then it was already cold but it would have been great if eaten whilst hot.  School boy error on our part!

Service

It was pretty quiet when we entered since it was pre-noon so we got served drinks promptly.  Towards the end of the meal, it got busy but service was not affected as they had a fair few servers.  Food arrived pretty quickly and more or less all at once so there were no long delays as you sometimes can get during the peak of dim sum time.  One small thing was that we felt eyes constantly on us from the servers waiting near the kitchen entrance which so happened to be by our table.

Summary

Food was fine here and reasonably priced (total meal was about £34 for three of us) – the only real disappointment was the Shanghai dumplings – everything else was decent.  You don’t really have too much of a choice for dim sum in Birmingham so perhaps the standard is good for the area but I have friends who are regulars to Chung Ying Garden so that might be worth a try too.

Beijing Dumpling: China Town, London

Beijing Dumpling

Date of Visit: 8^th September 2013

Ambience

What attracts customers into this small restaurant is the chefs making the dumplings are on show to the outside world via the shop front.  You can see that everything is freshly made and the hygiene must be at a good level when everything is on show to the public.  At least this is what lured us in the first time we visited and ever since, we’ve not hesitated in returning.

Don’t expect fancy décor at this place or much of a great atmosphere; go here for the cheap and cheerful food.

Food

We’ve been to this place several times before and we know the siu lung bao is always good here so we opted for the original pork ones as well as a spicy pork portion (8 in each portion).  As usual, they were exactly as siu lung baos should be.. full of juice once you bite into the dumpling but watch you don’t burn yourself when it explodes in your mouth!  Most Chinese restaurants offering this dish as a dim sum do not prepare it well – the common problems being that all the juice leaks out as soon as you pick it up (i.e. before it even goes near your mouth) or if the dumpling skin is too thick.

In the past, we’ve also tried the crab siu lung boas as well as the chicken ones and whilst they are nice, the original pork ones are best.  The dumplings in soup is also worth trying.

What we had for mains: Fried Ho fun with beef and Zha jiang Sauce with noodle. We’ve had the latter before and I remembered it to be yummy but this time, it lacked spiciness so was plain sweet and some of the noodles were clumped together.  On the other hand, the beef Ho fun was pretty good – sure it was oily but it wasn’t drenched like you get in most places AND it didn’t have the burnt taste that you can sometimes get too (Ho fun is arguably the hardest type of noodles to stir fry as you need a lot of oil to prevent it from burning).

Service

It was a very busy lunchtime and we had to wait a bit for a table but once we were sat down, the service was pretty swift.  The great thing is that they served some of the dumplings in two lots (4 and 4 later) – probably because they didn’t have enough in the steamer but it worked well for us as dumplings are best served smoking hot and it would have proved a challenge for two people to finish 16 dumplings before it got cold!

Summary

Tasty dumplings at Beijing Dumpling is well worth a visit in itself – meals here are always cheap, cheerful and satisfying and service is always quick.  What more can you ask for in a casual meal?  We will be back!

They need to open something similar in the city instead of the pontsy dumplings at Now near Liverpool St station.  If anybody can recommend good dumplings in the City, let me know…

Maxwell’s: City Centre, Oxford

Maxwell’s

Date of Visit: 7^th September 2013

Ambience

This restaurant is located in the heart of the city, in between shops on the main stretch of shopping ville.  We didn’t quite know what we were letting ourselves in for since you had to walk up a flight of stairs before you reach the restaurant.  As soon as we entered, the first impression was “student dig” – it reminded me a lot of Belushi’s in London.  It had very dim lighting and the whole place was set out like a student hide out: big serving area in the bar with shoulder height walls separating the bar area from the rest of the venue and tables dotted around the side.

This didn’t put us off as I had missed lunch and was starving by 5pm so it was intended for a quick snack before heading back to London.

Food

I tried a cocktail called “kiss me quick” which was essentially Malibu and apple juice and an oreo milkshake – both were ok but Malibu and pineapple is much better :)

As for food, all I had was half a rack of BBQ ribs which was served with coleslaw and Cajun chips.  I didn’t have high expectations at all but I had a feeling I made the right choice when two tables near us was served ribs too (I figured it was a popular choice as there were plenty of other things on the menu for people to choose from).  Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised that the meat was soft and almost fell off the bone with ease.  The Cajun spice sprinkled on the fries made a difference and overall, it was pretty good.

Service

No issues at all; service was quick, responsive and friendly.

Summary

Well, it has to be a thumbs down for ambience but a thumbs up for the food.  With that said, I’d say it’s ok for a casual meet-up but I would avoid it if you wanted a “nice meal out”.  I think that says it all really.

Ketterner’s: Soho, London

Ketterner’s

Date of Visit: 6^th September 2013

Ambience

As you enter the restaurant, there is a bar on the left which was very busy even about 6ish and as we were shown to our seats, we passed a grand white piano which was used later in the evening for live music.

The surrounding was chic but not over-dressed and the tables were all laid out nicely with cutlery and wine glasses.

As the night went on, the restaurant became noisier as a result of a full capacity room and the live music but it wasn’t troublesome at all – if anything, it added to the buzzing atmosphere.

Food

The drinks menu inspired us to try various cocktails and all were worth a try, especially the St Germain Fizz (St Germain Elderflower Liqueur, Raspberry and Prosecco).

We were served some bread & butter (which wasn’t warm) to start and we shared a couple of starters: oysters and mussels.  The Oysters were fresh but on the small side and the mussels weren’t bad but I couldn’t really taste the garlic or parsley in the sauce.

For mains, the most popular dishes around the table were the Duck Confit, the Crab Linguini and the Steak.  The Chicken Paillard was also on the table.  Personally, I opted for the Duck which I found was soft but it was a little dry.  The fondant potato on the other hand was savoured and the stack of onions in the middle of the potato added texture and flavour to the side.

The crab linguini was nice but I thought it could have done with more of a spicy kick (i.e. more chilli).  I didn’t try the chicken myself but apparently it was uber dry and did not taste like free range chicken at all.  Speaking of meat being dry, the birthday boy ordered a medium-well steak but it was over-cooked and very dry and chewy… to the point of which it left a dry flossed meat texture in the mouth even after you’ve chewed the meat to death.  On top of that, the peppercorn sauce it was served with was strange – it was slightly sour and tasted funny.  However, the medium cooked steak and Bearnaise sauce appeared to be fine.  The chips served with the steak were in mini fryers which were cute.

We skipped dessert as we had cake awaiting us at Patisserie Valerie’s but Ketterner’s brought this on themselves.  When I asked if I could bring a cake into the restaurant, they advised we could but there would be a “cakeage fee” of £6 per person unless if we ALL ordered a dessert each.  Since there were quite a few of us (8 in total), I did not want to commit everybody to having to order a dessert so I ordered a cake elsewhere instead.  What does that mean for Ketterner’s?  Well, they missed out on tea/coffee for all 8 of us for starters!

Service

The service was good as the servers were quick to take our drink orders when more guests arrived and they made a note of who ordered what so they didn’t have to shout the dishes across the table or relied on us to remember what had been ordered.  Starters were served very quickly but there was a bit of a delay between starters and mains but this wasn’t an issue as we were in no rush and appreciated the time to catch up with friends.

Summary

Some of the food was a little disappointing but it’s a nice little restaurant which caters for a lot of functions (given the various sizes of private rooms available).  I’d say it’s worth going to for a few drinks but I wouldn’t recommend it for the food as such since there are plenty of better restaurants in bustling Soho. 

TGI Fridays: Croydon, London

TGI Fridays

Date of Visit: September 2013

Ambience

We went to TGI for lunch so it was pretty quiet but the interiors were dark and they appeared to have changed the theme to comic books with marvel stars appearing on walls etc.  The tables were sticky and the restaurant had a funny smell.  It wasn’t a pleasant ambience at all but we were hoping the food would be better.

Food

One reason why we opted for TGI was for the new Tapas menu which was only available on Fridays so we tried five dishes including Cajun shrimps served with Jack Daniels dipping sauce, pretzel bread served with a chilli and cheese dip, mini meatball sliders, BBQ chicken skewers and bacon taquitos.  The better dish was the shrimps which were crispy and the JD sauce is always good.  The pretzel were huge pieces of bread which resembled cut up French buns but it was soft and had the salty pretzel topping but I preferred dipping them in the JD sauce as opposed to the cheesy one.  The meatball sliders were just about warm but not particular tasty – it lacked flavour and oomph.  The BBQ chicken skewers were not served on skewers but as fillets of chicken breast which were dry and you could tell it had not been marinated but instead the BBQ sauce was slopped on the top.  As for the bacon t taquitos – what bacon?  We saw and tasted chopped up tomatoes and onions wrapped in tortilla (cut up in bite sizes) but where was the bacon?  I didn’t find these appetising at all.

Drinks wise we had a couple of non-alcoholic cocktails which were half filled with crushed ice… meaning you didn’t get much juice if you drank it slowly.

Service

There wasn’t many servers around but it was fine because it was quiet and we had no issues/delay with the service. 

Summary

It had been several years since I visited this TGI branch (the last time, a friend puked up after a birthday celebration so we avoided it for a while) but it became apparent why we were not regulars.  The food was neither disgusting nor delicious but it can definitely be improved on.  Surprisingly the portion sizes weren’t bad for “tapas” dishes but there is no use in bigger portions when the food is not up to scratch!  Two words: Disappointing experience.

Galvin La Chapelle: City, London

Galvin La Chapelle

Date of Visit: 27^th August 2013

Ambience

Galvin La Chapelle is a classy and sophisticated restaurant in a beautiful setting.  As I was seated, I noticed a couple of things: how comfortable the chair was and how quickly somebody came over to place our napkins on our lap.  As my eye wandered, I noticed a VIP area at the top of the stairs and draped curtains by a couple of larger tables.  I thought it was a great way to provide privacy for guests who required it without feeling cut out of the whole restaurant atmosphere.

The restaurant was surrounded by large windows which let in a natural daylight, fairy lights hanging from the ceiling and intricate detailing around the arches, like the outside of an old building.

Food

As the last guest arrived, we were served a glass of champagne each and presented with the menu. We were ordering from a set menu so we expected it to be as limited as Rhodes but we were pleasantly surprised that there were four choices of each course. 

For starters, we tried the smoked mackerel on a bed of salad with berries, the ham hock terrine and the Pollock served on a bed of salad and topped with a tiny egg (quail egg?).  My favourite was the Pollock as it resembled a flaky fish cake and the egg was nicely cooked, with the yolk being runny and the buttery sauce complemented the fish well.

For mains, we opted for the meaty dishes; ox cheeks with pak choi, baby corn served in a sweet broth and chicken topped with beans on a bed of mash potato.  The ox cheeks were soft and had quite a bit of flavour but it was rather meaty with very little veg.  I was expecting only two cheeks but we were surprised with three cheeks in a portion.  The chicken breast was unusually soft (i.e. not dry at all) and the way to describe the mash is “melt in the mouth smoothness”.  In my opinion, the presentation of the mains were a let down.

Desserts consisted of Apple Tarte Tatin with Crème Fraiche and Varhona chocolate ganache, honeycomb & coconut sorbet.  The servers were happy to substitute crème fraiche for vanilla ice cream and when it got served, we were shocked by the size of the portion (it looked like a quarter of a whole cake)!  I wouldn’t say it was the best apple tart but it was adequate.  On the other hand, the coconut sorbet was refreshing and lovely but a bigger portion needed to be served with the rich and super-sweet chocolate ganache.  The honeycomb was interesting as it added texture to the dessert.  The desserts were nice but it definitely required a good cup of tea… why we waited until halfway through the dessert to order tea I’m not sure but it was very much needed.  It was pointed out that there were only two teabags in the teapot for 5 of us but that isn’t unheard of in my world – slightly skanky but it is probably the norm.  I guess it would have been nicer to have a teapot each but one cup was sufficient for me.

Shortly after dessert, we were served petit fours which consisted of baby macaroons and chocolate truffles.

Service

The service here was excellent; very professional and courteous.  Despite ordering from a set menu, I did not feel as though we got less attention or attentiveness from the servers.  We were not rushed to place orders even when one person was running late by half an hour but they were quick to offer drinks as and when people arrived (yes we arrived in dribs and drabs).

At the end of our meal, the ladies were given a small gift as we parted the restaurant which consisted of a couple of chocolate truffles in a small favour box.  I thought that was a nice touch which left a lasting impression on the restaurant. 

Summary

I would say this restaurant is worthy of a Michelin star based on the service, atmosphere and the food.  Whilst the food wasn’t amazing, at least it was more creative than what we experienced at Rhodes.   I would love to try some other dishes on the menu to see what other surprises there are.

The setting is great if you are out to impress, be it a date, a business meal or similar. Yes it is on the more expensive side but the set meals are reasonable value for money but bring deeper pockets if you like a good wine as they have some expensive drinks on their menu.

Mien Tay: Shoreditch, London

Mien Tay

Date of Visit: 26^th August 2013

We saw a small queue as we were about to enter Mien Tay but we wanted to try the food since it appeared to be one of the more popular Vietnamese restaurants along the “Pho Mile”.  Despite the queue, we did not have to wait as we were asked if we minded being seated next door by the window.  We didn’t mind at all but found it strange that the restaurant had two front doors but I guess what happened was Mien Tay started off as a tiny restaurant but due to its popularity, it had to extend to the premises adjacent to it but the owners hadn’t bothered to knock down the wall in between.  This wouldn’t have been a problem if the waiters didn’t constantly walk from one premises to the next (meaning there wasn’t necessarily anybody in sight when you needed attention). Tables are so tightly packed in that you might as well me dining with strangers… to put it into perspective, even I struggled to get pass the table next to us without knocking things down when I needed to get to my seat and when I need to leave the table at the end of the meal.

Anyway, in terms of décor, the restaurant is in desperate need of a lick of new paint and a bit of a clean around the edges.  Despite not much attention were paid to the wall décor, the tables were unique.  Each table had a glass see-through top which presented a nice display of hand-made straw/wooden items such as benches, carts, umbrellas etc. which created an olden day scene.  It was definitely a talking point.

Food

For starters, we shared a “chargrilled quail with honey, garlic and spices” which was tasty – the skin was crispy and the middle part was surprisingly meaty.  The garlic and spices were noticeable but it wasn’t overpowering when mixed with the sweetness of the honey.

For mains, we opted for a Pho with sliced beef and beef balls and a “chargrilled pork chop egg on rice”.  The latter did not sound enticing at all but we’ve had many great Vietnamese pork chop rice over our time to know the meat was likely to be marinated in lemon grass spices and sure thing it was.  The pork was tender and flavoursome and the egg with a runny yolk was a bonus.   The beef pho wasn’t bad either.  It was a big enough portion with quite a fair bit of meat and the beef balls were fairly big too.  However, I didn’t rate the soup base – I mean it was ok but it didn’t have the wow factor but I was thankful it wasn’t too salty (as I’ve experienced in local Vietnamese restaurants). 

Drinks wise, we had a hot soya milk drink which was clearly microwaved (not a problem if they bothered to remove the skin at the top of the milk).  It tasted home made in that it wasn’t overly sweet and weirdly, the drink stayed uber hot throughout the whole meal! As for the Vietnamese rainbow drink, it was a tad disappointing as it didn’t have the green jelly in it but it had mung bean in it instead which is not the norm – the norm being red beans, green jelly and coconut milk.

This restaurant had an extensive menu with a wide range of choices but they failed to offer one of our favourite Vietnamese starters (pork cheung fun often topped with fried shallots and Vietnamese pork cured slices).

Service

The service was a bit hit and miss… We were seated very quickly but getting the attention of waiters proved difficult.  It took a while to flag down somebody to order the food and whilst the food arrived very quickly, I had to bring it to their attention twice that my drink had failed to arrive.  As I mentioned earlier, there were times where no waiters were available as they had all gone next door.  That is one thing that needs to be addressed – they need to have at least one person on each side of the restaurant at all times.  It took a while for the table next to us to wave somebody down to bring the bill so as soon as they were paying, we also asked for the bill even though we hadn’t finished our drinks, in fear of waiting a long time if we missed that chance.  I give them the benefit of the doubt that it was a busy night.

Summary

It’s a shame that there were a couple of let downs because the food is actually quite good here and I can see why it’s popular.  Being in the hip part of town, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s constantly rammed but if that is the case, they need to hire more staff!

Would I return?  Quite possibly but I would be more likely to try some of the other restaurants along the Pho Mile first.

Real Food Festival: Southbank, London

Real Food Festival

Date of Visit: 23^rd August 2013

Ambience

We made a visit to the festival on the first day of opening so I was half expecting it to be heaving with people but the crowd was wieldy and we didn’t find it difficult finding a seat at the limited seating areas dotted around the stalls. 

One thing I will moan about is the lack of signage to point people in the right direction of the stalls.  As we exited Waterloo station, we were met with three rows of stalls and having done the canny thing of walking past every stall before deciding what looks/smells tempting, we wondered why some of the vendors mentioned on the website were not in sight.  We walked up the stairs to see if we could see further stalls but with no luck, we settled for what was available in sight but it was only towards the end that we discovered the main bulk of the vendors were set up along the river.  The atmosphere on that side was much livelier.

I liked the way that many vendors offered free tasters before you committed to parting your cash and it was indeed a smart move given all the competition around.  Be shameless and try a few things if you’re unsure.

Food

We started with a beef bulgogi burrito wrap (£6) which was fairly good but it could have done with a tad more flavouring.  This was washed down with real cider which was easy to go down and very reasonable priced (£1.50 for half pint, £3 for a pint).  Next up was a gourmet beef burger with cheese (£5) which was only ordered given we couldn’t see the other burger vendors we had eyed up on the website but when I asked the guy if there were other stalls around, he said “yeah up the stairs, and towards to the river front” – Damn why didn’t we ask the question before we ordered the burger?!  We were gutted as the burger we had ordered was pretty average and that was both in taste and appearance!

Venturing to the other side, we tried the Duck Confit burger from The Frenchie (£6) which was served with sweet onion chutney, smoked cheddar (or goats cheese if you preferred), all crammed in a toasted brioche bun.  It was tasty and the sweetness of the chutney worked well with the savoury-ness of the duck and cheese and for good measure, the bun was toasted unlike the gourmet beef burger place! We then tried a pork skewer from Pig a Chic served with a pot of sauce of your choice of hotness - we opted for the medium (£1.50 per skewer) and it was nice and succulent.

We passed The Bell & Brisket stall with envy as the burger looked as amazing and tasty as it was described but we were gutted that we couldn’t possibly stomach another burger so we had to sadly pass on it :(

Instead, we decided to try the Churros from Churros Garcia (£4 for a pot) which was served with a pot of hot chocolate dip.  It was freshly made which was great but it was too much for one to handle – at the end of the day, there is a lot of oil in Churros.. I say it’s best shared between 3-4 people.  Out of everything we ate, I thought this was the least value for money given the content of it.

Summary

I love going to food festivals or anywhere where you can choose food from the senses of smell and appearance (as opposed to relying on fancy, creative descriptions on a menu).  Best of all, there was no entrance fee to this one and I found food prices very reasonable, being in the heart of London and all. I will keep my eyes peeled for the next event and you should too :)