Feast, 4th August

I was so determined to go to Feast that I bought two sets of tickets – one for Saturday and one for Sunday, in case I was too hungover to make it down there on Saturday.

Happily, after an extended slumber, I felt fairly normal, and couldn’t think of a better way to cope with hangover munchies than heading down to a festival of food. Feast was an event coordinated by the same people behind the Long Table in Dalston last year, which I didn’t get to. This time they were bringing together 30 purveyors of food and drink – both street food, and established restaurants, selling their wares. It was a bit like Taste London but with a DJ, more of a festival feel, and less expensive: entry was a mere £6 in advance.

We got there at about 7:30 and spent a good two hours there, browsing the stalls and sharing a few dishes between us, grabbing a drink every now and then to let ourselves digest and make room for more! The weather was luckily very balmy (it was an outdoor event in Guy’s Quadrangle) and the DJ was pretty good – he seemed to be playing all the songs I have on my Spotify playlists.

And so, to the food. Apologies for the lack of photos. I once again forgot at first, and then by the time I remembered it was too dark for my crappy phone.

I straight away went for a dish of spiced lamb, hoummus and chilli butter from Morito. I haven’t yet eaten at Morito, though my boyfriend has several times, so I was pleased to be able to sample their food. This was really good, though perhaps a tad oily, and they let you have as much bread with it as you wanted. For £2.50! I was really impressed with the pricing of all the dishes. The only thing that we thought was maybe a little too expensive were the burgers. The Hawksmoor burgers were going for £9.00, which is probably good value for anything from Hawksmoor, but was the most expensive dish there. The Patty and Bun cheeseburgers with bacon were £7.00 which seemed just that pound too costly. Everything else was around a fiver, or £2.50-£3.00 for smaller dishes. Even the cocktails were £5.00 – very conducive to trying lots of different things.

So, we shared a Patty and Bun burger, which made the cost more bearable. I am not a fan of burgers in general and even though this one didn’t quite convince me, it seemed good as far as burgers go! It had pickled onions, and some ‘P & B’ smoky mayo and I thought those flavour combinations were very good. Stephen’s verdict was that it was nice but the meat wasn’t as steaky as some other burgers he’s had.

I had had a craving for a Yum Bun the day before but they weren’t at Eat Street, so I took advantage of their presence here to have one and to introduce Stephen to them. Mine was as good as I remembered, and Stephen thought the Yum Bun was the best dish of the day. Our next favourite were the tacos from L.A. Sueno, a street food vendor I hadn’t tried before. We had two beef tacos and one pork. I thought the tortilla tacos were good – had a nice flavour to them and not too dry and the beef was delicious. However, the fuego salsa could have done with a bit more ‘fuego’. Didn't even make my nose run!

The only bum note of the day was our last dish, which was ceviche from The Last Days of Pisco. We both thought the leche de tigre that they marinate the fish in was overpoweringly limey. I got one faint taste of fish in my first bite and the rest was lime, lime and more lime. I actually really like lime, but I also like the other things that were supposed to be in the dish so it was a shame not to be able to taste them. Also, there was so much lime that it felt like I had acid burn in my mouth. Not pleasant.

With a couple of pleasing drinks – a spiced cider from the main bar, and then a very impressive rose and raspberry cocktail from the Hendrick’s bar (which mostly tasted of lychee but which I liked all the better for it) we had, I would say, a very impressive roster of consumption. I didn’t feel I could fit any more in, which was a shame as I had my eye on the Bread Street Kitchen chicken wings, and Platform’s pigs’ cheeks with chorizo also sounded very tempting. We mooted the idea of going back the next day, but the weather and feelings of guilt at over indulgence the previous two days prevented us.

Feast is over for now, but if they do something else, I’ll make sure to try it.

Lucky chip, 14th January

We headed out at what was already way past lunchtime, down to Broadway market. We thought a stop at yum bun for one each and then sharing a banh mi before taking a leisurely stroll home in the sun would be a good way to while away our Saturday. But the food gods were against us.

First, to the school yard where yum bun are normally located. They weren't there. Ok, so we'll just both get a banh mi. We brave the crowded gauntlet that is Broadway market to get right to the end where the vietnamese ladies set up. They weren't there either. That's when Stephen suggested we go to Lucky Chip. 

There was quite a queue but it was a Saturday afternoon, even though by this point it as well past lunchtime. We joined it. It completely obscured two other food stalls, and we felt a bit sorry for them as no one would really even know they were there if you weren't already in the queue for Lucky Chip. But the fish guy seemed to get the odd person in the queue who was hungry enough to want to have a quick oyster while they waited, and I daresay the cheesecake guy got a few people who'd noticed him and wanted dessert after their burgers.

It took no time at all for our extremities to become extremely cold. I had purposefully left my scarf and gloves behind, thinking that if we were walking back, I'd warm up in no time and wouldn't have a need for them. I did not expect to be spending over an hour queuing for a burger. And when I say 'a burger' I do not mean one apiece because I do not even like burgers. This was part of Stephen's quest to find the best burger in London. While we waited, people kept going past with stupendous-looking onion rings and I decided that's what I wanted in place of a burger. I was also going to get a hot dog, which I had heard were pretty good as well, though my main thoughts were on the onion rings. With maybe a little garlic aioli. Finally, we made it towards the front of the queue and fortuitously some chairs freed up so I went over to nab them while Stephen queued the remainder of the time to order. I saw him texting and moments later my phone went off. He was informing me that they had run out of onion rings. Curses on you food Gods! Curses!

He ordered some chips instead. 

All through the last hour he had been debating on which type of burger to get. They have some specialty burgers, named after various film stars, which have interesting toppings. Stephen couldn't decide between the Sheen (philly cheese, cheddar, beer soaked onions, applewood smoked bacon and burger) or just a regular cheeseburger. Forty five minutes into waiting, with our noses colder than anyone's nose should be, Stephen declared that he didn't care how good the burger turned out to be, this would be his final visit. Nothing is worth queuing this long for. I suggested that if that were the case, then maybe going for the Sheen over the normal cheeseburger would be the way to go.

When he joined me at my seats (outside, and next to some heaters which curiously weren't turned on) he told me he'd taken the plunge and gone for the Sheen, which came along not too long after we were sitting. As did my hot dog and chips. Once again, I forgot to take any pictures, but the burger looked really good. Stephen was going to give me some as a way of easing me into burgers (I think I should take them up) but he was enjoying his so much he clearly forgot all about giving any away. The one little criticism he had of it was that it was a little overdone for a medium burger. However, he said that given all the sloppiness on top of it, a slightly sturdier burger was probably not such a bad thing.

My hot dog was ok. It definitely was a hot dog and not just an English sausage in a bun. But it still wasn't quite an American hot dog. And the bun was good (definitely better than some I've had) but it wasn't quite right. Hot dog buns should be longer versions of hamburger buns - slightly sweet like brioche. The chips were pretty tasty but I suspected not a patch on the beetroot onion ring beasts I had so set my heart on.

As we walked back to the bus stop, too cold to do anything but get back as quickly as possible, Stephen mused aloud about his next visit. "I thought you weren't going to go back there again," I said. "Well, next time I'd just make sure I got up early and got there before the lunch rush," he replied. I doubt, and I suspect he does too, that there isn't really a 'lunch rush' with Lucky Chip, just a steady stream of hungry hipsters. So I guess that's as good evidence as you can get that the burgers are pretty excellent.  

Street Kitchen, 7th December

I had an early interview – well early for me – which conveniently finished around lunchtime. Why not go and get some chow from Street Kitchen in Liverpool Street on my way home? Why not indeed.

It was a bitingly cold day, especially as I was in my interview finery ie, a suit jacket as opposed to a warm wintery coat. I followed the circumference around Broadgate Circle and saw the familiar silver van from all those Food Network advert shorts (anyone seen those?). I had told Stephen I was likely to go over there for some scran the day before and he warned me that Jun was unlikely to be there. I said I knew but secretly hoped he might.

And he was! He was there, waiting around for people to come up to the hatch. And he served me! Yay! I love Jun - we've seen him at Taste of Christmas and another foodie event and he always seems so nice. Of course, I didn't chat to him or anything but it was nice that he was there.

They always have a few choices - I was quite tempted by the sticky pork or hot smoked salmon but in the end went for the winter broth with celeriac, cabbage and braised meat (I think it was beef) and a warm brioche roll. Mmmm, it was the perfect choice for a cold winter's day. It was also under a fiver whereas the other options were £7.50. 

See - large chunks of meat

The veggies were just the way I like them - cooked but still with a bit of crunch. And hiding underneath all the vegetation floating on top were some surprisingly large chunks of meat. I took a sip of just the broth at first and was already pleased - it was full of flavour. It reminded me of the chinese vegetable soup I'd had at Yum Bun, mainly in an inverse way (this one had flavour, the other one didn't). As I said, the vegetables were good and the meat was also a little fatty and tender and tasty. As pleasing a winter warmer dish as you could ask for.

Oh - the brioche roll was just meh. And I think the soup was enough really - I didn't even eat the roll at the time but saved it for a snack. As a bread lover, that's saying something.

Yum Bun, 17th November

I had just been told that I hadn't got the job I wanted within my own company. Normally going for a promotion in your own company is not too big of a deal if you don't get it, but in this case it meant I was out of a job. I felt both defiant and despondent and knew I needed something delicious to eat to bring me back to equilibrium.

I headed over to Eat St, going by foot to walk off the adrenalin from the revelation that I'd be leaving my job in one week. I regretted the decision to pedestrianise myself about halfway up Farringdon Road and even more so once I got to King's Cross and started up the long walk to actually get to Eat St. I felt like I was trekking to the back of beyond. I had looked up who was there that day and knew it would be worth it - at the very least I could get a banh mi from banhmi11 and if they were as good as the ones they serve on Broadway Market, I'd be happy. But Yum Bun were also there that day and I had yet to taste their wares.

I had a bit of a recky before queuing up - having a look at the meat and how big the buns were. They had a lunch deal on - 2 buns and some soup for £6. One bun on it's own was £3 so it was basically a 'buy two, get soup free' type deal. I wasn't too bothered about getting soup but if it's free, why not? Especially inoffensive chinese vegetable soup.

Yum in a Bun

I took my two buns and soup and found myself a spare bit of kerb to sit on. Ahhhh, the yum bun. They have basically taken everyone's favourite dish of crispy duck pancakes and made them even more fabulous. Hoisin - check. Cool cucumber - check. Fresh spring onion - check. But instead of duck (which I love) they have replaced it with pork belly. Pork belly! Wonderfully tasty and juicy pork belly. And instead of pancakes they come in a fluffy 'bun'! A bun! (Ok, that exclamation mark may not be warranted given their name.) Not a bun as in a bap, or a roll, or a butty, but a bun as in a Chinese steamed bun - you know, the spherical things which often have minced pork and chives in the middle of them. I don't know quite how they cook them, but they must do them flat, a bit like pancakes, that can then be folded and stuff stuffed in.  And then - the piece de resistance is a bit of that lovely orangey chilli sauce that you get in Chinese restaurants. All together, it works beautifully. One is most definitely not enough. I think next time, though, I would ask for a tad more sauce - both kinds.

Mmmm, half eaten Bun

I ate my buns while waiting for my soup to cool and then started on that. It wasn't great. It's just a broth with some veggies in it and, as I suspected, it had mushrooms in it. The horror! Anyway, it was no great shakes - just something extra to fill your belly with instead of another bun and I got tired of avoiding the mushrooms after a while so poured the rest away. I'm glad it was free cos I wouldn't have appreciated paying for it.

Those buns stayed on my mind a long time though... I will be back for more.

Tea at The Wolsley, 5th November, Part 1

My boyfriend's mother and her husband (obviously not Stephen's father or it would have been easier for me to say 'parents') were visiting over the weekend, partly because they hadn't for a while, and partly because it was the mum's birthday on November 5th. So we wanted to line up something a bit special for their visit. Stephen's mother and step-parent are not the easiest to entertain. It's not that they're picky exactly, it's more that they're not particularly interested in anything. They come to London to see Stephen and they could really be anywhere. They're not particularly interested in food, or drink, or art, or music, so coming up with something spectacular (other than Stephen becoming the model son overnight which was unlikely) for her birthday was a challenge. But we thought we had a pretty darn good solution: Tea at The Wolsley. What mum doesn't like the idea of afternoon tea and the kudos of saying their son took them to one of the better known venues in London?

We were booked in for tea fairly late in the afternoon because we wanted to take them up the road to Broadway Market, our new favourite market. The amount of food on offer up there is ridiculous. I was very much looking forward to it and had even dreamt about it (well, I dreamt about food, I'm attributing it to excited anticipation). Last time we went I had vowed to have a Scotch egg as I'd seen someone eating a fine looking specimen but in the end I was sidetracked by Banh Mi 11 before I got round to the scotch egg stall. It was a most enjoyable diversion - I reckon it's the best Banh Mi in London. To commit full disclosure, I had eaten a Banh Mi from them before at Field Day and it was a very disappointing experience - all carrot and not much else. But I was prepared to give them a second chance, suspecting that they didn't bother to live up to their usual high standards for a bunch of drunk festival-goers. And I was right.

But anyway, I digress. This time around, I wanted to try a scotch egg, or perhaps a Yum Bun, or  a sweet potato flatbread. Or a brownie. Or a pie. Cripes there's so much there. In the end though, the in-laws were after a Full English. We managed to persuade them not to stop in the 'caff' and instead go to the Dove where the Full English boasted components made up from the produce being sold on the market outside. I'm not a massive fan of the classic English B so I opted for some eggs benedict on toasted muffin. Was not overwhelmed. My second egg was cold by the time I got to it and my muffin was using a different definition of toasted to one I am used to. There was also way too much hollandaise for me. But the Breakfast looked good and the others seemed pleased with it. 

And now I am going to build an element of suspense into my blog by not actually writing about the Tea until my next entry! I like keeping you on your toes.