Hello 2010!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Wishing everyone a great 2010 and all the good stuff that comes with a new year.

Flashback to 1999

The other day I was sitting in the waiting room of the doctor's office and normally they will have English papers and maybe the Economist but that day they had an Instyle magazine from 1999 with Drew Barrymore on the cover!

1999! I was thinking "Wow! That was like 10 years ago!" I used to buy Instyle every month at that time so I was flicking through it to see what was 'in' at that time. Surprisingly it was the ads that triggered the flashback.

Elizabeth Hurley was the model for Pleasures by Estee Lauder - she looked so young then.
Nicki Taylor for Cover Girl - Where is she now?
Christi Turlington for Lancome - Doing humanitarian work while raising her kids
Milla Jovovich for Maybeline - With 2 Resident Evil movies under her belt, what next?

Get Carried Away - SATC 2 Trailer

It's here! I am loving Carrie's white sundress and L-O-V-E her chrome aviators.
Out May 28th (USA)!



For a better resolution video, go here: SATC 2 Trailer [HD]

Korea Winter Fashion - Get it all online!

Korean fashion has been quite a popular export in the last couple of years. This partially stems from the popularity of the Korean Dramas and let's put it this way, the women here put themselves together quite nicely. Not just the agashi's, you should check out the ahjumma's on the restaurant floor of Hyundai Department Store on any week day. You'd think they were going to a wedding reception after they are done with their tea and cake.

One thing that I've discovered and secretly enjoy is trawling through the online shopping sites here. You can get all the latest styles from the furry vests that are so popular to the hottest looking boots. G-Market (which has an English option), 11 St and Auction are popular online stores where you can get most everything but I find it a bit of an overload when looking at fashion. Their constant flickering banners can drive you a bit nuts after 15 mins.

So, I prefer some of the dedicated fashion websites. Here are a few of my fav's:
Pastar
Plenty of trendy styles for casual wear. They won't have suitable office wear... I stand corrected, it depends on what your office dress policy is. They don't carry many suits and smart attire for client meetings is what I meant. I like the way this website is laid out, I like the options at the bottom for accessories or corresponding matching outfits that were used by the model (which is always the same model, by the way - if you go to Karuso-gil you might just see them taking pics of her along the street) and the prices are decent.


C-Chouette
You get easy matching pieces from this website. Their ensembles are chic and without too many fussy lines.

Love-K
If you are into Romantic and Sweet, this is the site for you. You just have to see how the model poses to get the feel of their style. I personally have not bought anything from this site yet but it's just one of those situations where I like the look of an outfit but know that I wouldn't be able to pull it off.



Ozzaru and Vavara
These sites were recommended by friends who like me enjoy a 'bit' of shopping. If you want to dress like Leighton Meister or Kate Moss or pay to look drab like Reese Withespoon running out to get the kids, or the latest runway look from leading design houses, these two sites will guide you with your wallet.

La Tavola in Itaewon

So the title is not that exciting but the food at La Tavola was! Sometime earlier last year, we went to the Italian restaurant above Kraze Burger in Itaewon (a stone's throw from Hamilton Hotel, go uphill past Hard Rock) which was called Antonio's or something like that. I had the most delicious Putanesca Pasta. My OH who doesn't like olives was suitably impressed too.

The next time we went there though, it had changed to La Tavola. Needless to say we went away a little disappointed and didn't try it. Recently, a friend of mine mentioned that they had dinner there and it was good. So we decided to give it a go.

The decor looked the same but the menu was different. They have a good selection of pastas and a more extensive choice of pizzas but we both went for pasta. I had the Risotto Funghi and my OH had the Rigatoni with beef and gorgonzola. I am sure there was a funkier Italian name for it but it slips my mind right now. We also had the calamari for a starter.

The calamari was really well done! We have tried many calamari dishes before and have been disappointed many times, sometimes the batter is not crispy or the taste is non-existent. The calamari at La Tavola was fresh and the batter lightly coated and crisp. Their tartar sauce was mild and not to tangy which was a nice compliment. They also served with a few battered prawns and battered cucumber which was interesting. There was also a small side of salad.

The best dish was probably the Rigatoni with beef and gorgonzola. The portions aren't large but when you are going through the creamy dish you tend to get full pretty quickly. The sauce was light and tasty and the beef tender and juicy. The combination was very well thought through and a delight to the palate. The risotto was al dente and they didn't skimp on the mushrooms although I would have preferred slightly different mushrooms. As far as a Risotto Funghi goes, it passed with flying colours.

I heard their pizza's are quite good. That will have to be the next time though.

La Tavola
Itaewon
T. (02) 793 6144

Indulging in Red Velvet... Cupcake Style!

Well, it’s that time of year where red, white and a splash of green is very popular. Christmas! Something else with similar colours that has become rather popular is Red Velvet Cupcakes! These gorgeous looking red cupcakes adorned with cream cheese icing are not only attractive but tasty. Well, I like most things chocolate anyway so I’m biased. The cupcakes are chocolate tasting but the red colouring give it this full and vibrant look as far as food goes and is quite irresistible.

I had a party last weekend for about 50 guests and my OH thought it was a good idea to make these Red Velvet Cupcakes as a party favour. Nice suggestion but I was getting my hopes up if I was expecting any help from there! : )

Before I set to work, I had to first of all get my hands on bottles and bottles of red food colouring which is NOT easy to find in Seoul. The type you get here is the gel type which comes in a pack with 4 other colours and that one tube of red is really insufficient for my needs. I have used that red colouring before but I found it too weak and for what I needed it for I would have to buy boxes and boxes of it which will become quite $$$. If you are desperate, you can find this brand (it’s the only food colouring I have found in Seoul) in most of the major supermarket chains eg. Lotte Mart, E-Mart.

To solve my problem, I had my OH buy them from Australia. There you can get the Queen’s brand food colouring that comes in little 50ml bottles. I used about 5 bottles. However, he had to look in several stores as I suspect due to the Christmas season, red food colouring was very popular.

I had done some research on the internet to find a good Red Velvet Cupcake recipe. Most of them required the same ingredients so I used this one recommended on the House of Annie blog. Overall the recipe is easy to follow, the most tedious of the lot was making the cake flour which I can’t find in Seoul. I followed a method of making my own cake flour and buttermilk to get as close to the recipe as possible.

When you are at the stage of adding the red colouring in, the batter looks really bright and is still quite liquidy but the moment you add the flour that has been whisked with the cocoa powder and salt, the mixture becomes this heavenly red with almost chrome like swirls inside. It was beautiful! I have never been so excited about batter colour before! It was crazy!

The photo doesn't do the batter colour justice. When you make it you will know what I mean.

I did this in 3 batches so really had my chance to admire the batter colour. *LOL* In the pictures and also when you buy cupcakes from bakeries, the cupcake sits quite high up from the cupcake liners itself. Although the recipe asks me to fill the cupcake liners to 2/3 full, the cake itself does not rise very much so I filled it close to the rim (about 3mm from edge) and it was the right height for me as after I added the icing, I still had to fit it into a box.

Here they are out of the oven.

Em’s magnificent Cream Cheese Icing which is also in the same recipe was really GOLD! It melts in your mouth and I reckon it would go well with any type of cupcake! I used the same cream cheese recipe to spread over my banana cake and it added a little ZAZZ to the banana cake that’s for sure.

After the cakes had cooled, I added the cream cheese icing with a frosting syringe that I found in Sydney. As opposed to your traditional frosting piping bag, this syringe is easier to control and for something as small as a cupcake I found it gave me a lot of control. The only drawback is the syringe is not large, so you keep having to refill it every 2.5 cupcakes that you decorate (depending on the kind of decoration that you use).

There is something soothing about spreading icing on the cupcakes.

I ended up with 2 types of decoration, one was just swirling it over the top of the cupcake and the other with little flowers. Over that I sprinkled some pink and red lovehearts. I think they turned out quite well.

I experiemented the lovehearts first on the cupcakes with the swirled icing.

Then on all of them!

The cupcakes taste good on the first day but by the second day, I found the cupcake to be too dense. So, I am still looking for another recipe where the cupcake is fluffier and stays that way for 2-3 days.

Chocolate Fruit and Nut Cases - You can't have just one!

Some years ago, my OH gave me 'The Delia Collection - Chocolate' recipe book for Christmas. I loved pretty much everything in the book but have only attempted a few. The recipes are relatively simple, nothing very exotic beyond Marello Cherries. She does use prunes a lot with her chocolate cake recipes but I suppose it would add a bit of texture to the cakes.

One of my all time favourite recipes was discovered in this book! When I was young, one of my Aunt used to make these chocolate cornflakes that she would freeze in a baking tin and then cut them up into large pieces that we could eat till there was chocolate all over our face. Needless to say that when I saw the Chocolate Fruit and Nut Cases recipe in this book, I went... well a little NUTS. : )

This is a sure win, no nonsense, right for all occassions, gurantee hit with kids or adults! You're thinking... yeah right! I kid you not, I can gobble up 3 or 4 in those mini cupcake cases at a go, more if I want to feel guilty after. If in doubt - try it. Here's the recipe.

Extreme close up

Word of advice...
I have had my batches of chocolate sauce seize while using the double boiling method. There are several reasons for this.

• You could be overheating the chocolate
• Don't let the pan/bowl holding the chocolate touch the water in the pan below
• The ingredients asks for you to add butter and maple syrup, if your butter was sweating before you put it in, this could cause the chocolate to seize too. To avoid this, you could keep the butter out of the recipe (I tried that and did not loose flavour or texture) and/or mix the golden syrup only when you are mixing the cornflakes and the chocolate together
• Any trace of water will cause the chocolate to seize so make sure your utensils are DRY before using them to melt the chocolate
  

Shopping in Karosu-gil

After I arrived in Seoul, I read about Karosu-gil and wanted to explore, however it took me some time before I actually went there. I wasn't disappointed though, I went with one of my best friends who also has a taste for a good shopping experience!

Not the best picture I know. Will try to take better shots at the next trip.

S came from Malaysia and wanted to dive into Korean fashion. So handbag in tow (with our trusty credit cards of course) we headed to this little shopping street. The directions we got were to head up the street from Sinsa Station and take the first left after Paris Baquette.

Much has been written about Karosu-gil and it's chic shops. Although the name means 'tree-lined street', I think there are actually more trees in Samcheongdong-gil. But let's not take away the 'quaintness' of this place. You will be hard pressed not to bounce from one side of the street to the next as you see some attractive window displays beckoning you to enter the cozy stores.

We were disciplined (sort of) and proceeded down the left and then made a U-y at the end to come back up the street.

At the top end of the street there is a rather large cafe called Coffee Smith, you can't miss it. It's designed with wood and steel so it's got a warm inviting look about it yet staying well away from being rustic with the steel beams. It's 2 storeys and seems pretty packed on the weekend.

There are a few stores that I would label as favourites on that street. One of them is Understar which is next to Coffee Smith. It's underground and has a cool selection of thights/leggings, gloves and mufflers. You will find plenty of styles for these along the street but I find the quality and colours from Understar the best. My top buy from Understar are their leggings with the zipper detail at the bottom.

They are also carrying some cool hoodie capes. Hard to describe. They are knitted hoodies but it only comes down to your shoulders. There is a zip opening to one side which sits nicely as if it was all was meant to be there! Totally not designed for warmth but for fashion!

A few doors down is my favourite store called Brush. It's small, white and always has the most attractive thing on the window and on the rack closest to the door. I always end up buying something there! Their designs are simple but unique and tend only to have 1 size. You can't always try on their clothes so be prepared to be disappointed if you don't have a 'regular' body shape.

I picked up a nice long red turtle next sweater with snap button details at the end of the sleeves there but also fell in love with a grey dress with butterfly sleeves and zipper details at the hips as well as a latte coloured dress with opened sides from shoulder to waist and a woven metal detail at the waist.

I also walked away with a stunning piece of jewelry last week. It's a gold short necklace with what looks like tiny metal beads on it. So hard to describe but it's a beautiful accessory. That one cost about KRW69,000 but really well made so definitely worth the dosh. In general I find their prices very reasonable. Better quality than what you generally find in Doota (Dongdaemun) and not your typical high street designs like Zara, Gap, MNG etc...

Other worthy stores to note for clothes are (on the same side of the street as Brush) About Some, Barbara Shoes (although I always feel they are overpriced), Jiny's Closet and something more familiar Kate Spade at the end of the street. On the other side of the street I like E-At Home, Farmer (hair accessories for special occasions... or not), and the jewelry store next to Farmer whose name I can't remember. That store has the most delicate necklaces at very affordable prices. You will find something for yourself or a gift for a friend at the drop of a hat.

There are also some nice restaurants and cafes along the way. I particularly want to try Deux Cremes as they are suppose to have the most deletable tarts. Will try that the next time.

Fabric Shopping in Seoul – Part 2 (Dongdaemun Shopping Town)

The great thing about Seoul is that everything is pretty centralized if you are looking for a particular item. What I mean is, if you are looking for electronic goods for example, you go to the Yongsan Electronics market where there is more choice than you can count. If you are looking for pets, they are a gazillion pet shops along that one street. Same with music instruments, furniture, sewing machines, lighting, sporting goods etc…

I think the Koreans practice laissez faire pretty well and aren’t afraid of a little competition even if it is right next door or across the street. So this makes shopping around really convenient.

Another great place for fabrics is Dongdaemun Shopping Town which is directly opposite Pyeonghwa Market on the other side of the Cheongye river. If you are using the subway, lines 1 and 4 will take you Dongdaemun station then take exits 8 or 9 and it’s the tall white building ahead of you.

For more information: http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_2.jsp?cid=273734

I tend to get a little lost every time I go there as the stores can seem repetitive after awhile and the pathways are so convoluted. I tend to get my sewing supplies in the basement. There are a few stores there at the edge of the section where the thread stores start on the far left of the building. If you go in through the main entrance, take the escalator down, walk through the curtains/soft furnishings section, past the blankets and knitting sections and you will see lots of thread vendors ahead of you.

Some lace, buttons, ribbons and embellishments on the ground floor

Also found in the basement are batting, vendors who will sew bedding/duvets for you. You can order your soft furnishings like cushions, curtains, table cloths as well. What I found helpful were the ahjumma’s and ahjassi’s who sit there with their overlock machines and will sew your edges closed for you for a small fee. My 한국 語 is not that quite good enough yet.

For cotton and linen, I head up to the first floor and target the A sections. You may find some heavier materials in D section although I find that they have more cotton t-shirt material of different weaves. Have not been able to find felt or fleece yet.

In A section there are also many choices of cotton, silk and polyester although I would just walk around and pick your favourite stores. Sometimes you will see the same fabric in different stores.

Be warned, if you are looking for t-shirt fabrics, most are wholesalers so will not entertain small quantities. I find that the vendors selling cotton and linen to be more open to selling in smaller quantities from 1m. Though, I dare you to ask for half a meter. Let me know how successful you are. : )

There are plenty of choices for lace, trimmings and buttons. Basically there is something for everyone here. I never spend less than 2 hours every time I go and I end up buying lots of fabrics that I have yet to use but they are for all these great projects that I have in mind. : )

Stand by Me - Shinee (Music Sheets) from Boys Over Flowers OST

Finally had some more time to bend my very popular Boys Over Flowers piano book. Here's another song that I like. Also saw Shinee winning some award last night. No idea what award it was but it was right after the SS501 performance. Have you SEEN Hyung Joon's hairstyle??? It's like an overused mop and he looks like an ahjumma! I think his hairstyle in the UR Man video was the best.

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Fabric shopping in Seoul - Part 1 (Gwangjang Market)

I recently got a sewing machine from Singer (read about that experience from an earlier post) so began my search for the raw materials to 'put something together'. I had heard that there is a big fabric market in Seoul, afterall a lot of designer fabrics get printed in Korea (not just China). In fact, Heather Ross who wrote 'Weekend Sewing' has her fabric printed in Korea too!

After a bit of research and wandering about, I found 2 sources of for fabrics and sewing knick knacks. The first place I hit was Gwangjang Shijang (Gwangjang Market). This is close to Dongdaemun, if you take the subway use Line 1 and get off at Jong-no 5(o)-ga. Alternatively, if you are looking for bus routes, check out this site for more options.

When I first got there, I was a bit confused as I came in through the food alley. You will see lots of small stall that are cooking some form of pancake or 'chon'. I never did stop to enquire what kind of chon it was but it did look good albeit super oily.

Food alley

Lady making 'chon'

If you head off towards the area where you see stores selling hanboks and blankets, you are heading off in the right direction. It really depends on which direction you are coming from. I had to ask someone the first time and mentioned 'utt' which means cloth or fabric or clothes. Somehow they understood me, but then they said something like they are closed. Turns out I went on a Tuesday and most of the fabric shops close on that day! Great!

So if you go on another weekday you will see lots of small stores selling fabric, maily cotton, polyester, silks, and blankets. There are a lot of stores that sell, not exactly fabric ends but small pieces of fabric that are no more than say 3m. One good thing about Gwangjang market sellers as compared to the ones at the Dongdaemun Shopping Town (which I will write about later) is that they don't mind you buying 1m of fabric. They cater more to the individual hobbyist than wholesale buyers like the ones that you find in DST.

Special desserts made for weddings

Along the alley where you find all the fabric shops, check out the stores on the left, you will see smaller alleys that go off from the main walkway and in there you will find shops that sell sewing accessories like buttons, knick knacks, lace, thread etc...

Generally the price is comparable to DST, I guess the main differences that Gwangjang Market is:

• Less packed
• Bit more space to move around - you won't have ahjassi's with 1ton bags swiping past you like in DST
• Friendlier sellers
• Easier to buy smaller quantities of fabrics
• Just a tad less intimidating
  
• Heaps less confusing
  
• Much less choice than DST

St John Bread and Wine

When I visited London a couple of months ago, I insisted that my friend Siu Mai (not her real name) take me to St John Bread and Wine after reading her food escapade there on her blog. I was not disappointed. I was just susprised I put away as much as I did.

St John Bread and Wine is near the old Spitalfields market and they pretty much experiment and create dishes from all the interesting parts of the common animals that we consume. The menu was exciting and it didn't take us too long to decide what we wanted to eat. We made sure we were hungry too!

Here's a look at the menu.


Cold Angus, Horseradish and Wood Sorrel
This looks very raw but it was surprisingly light on the palate and tasty.

This was the special of the day, Smoked Goose with 'something' cheese but it's actually a jam. It was quite salty so the jam was a nice complement as it tempered the gamey taste of the duck too.

Puffball & Bacon.
The Puffball is made with mushroom and cheese. Rather unusual albeit a little tame in flavour but I guess that's whether the smoked bacon comes into play.

Ox Heart, Salted Crest and Pickled Walnut.
The Ox Heart tasted like chicken heart in that it was crunchy but I would say the combination of the texture and flavours, this was my least favourite dish.

Gingerloaf and Butterscoth Sauce.
Very yummy, SM made the mistake of thinking that little ball of on the side was ice cream. She found out very quickly it was clotted cream!
Blackcherry Sundae.
I am a big fan of Black Cherries so I ordered this. The first mouthful was really sour so my expression gave SM a fit of giggles. But after that it was sweetness all the way! The ice cream and cream tempered the sourness of the cherries and made it soooo good! The caramel biscuit was sweet and crunchy. There was nothing left towards the end.

Fluffy Corn Pacakes Anyone?

I've been on a bit of a binge recently, trying out new recipes from main meals to desserts. I recently came across a really good recipe for Corn Pancakes or Corn Cakes. This is a breeze to make although you will need a blender and so delishes!

I found the recipe at Gourmet.com. Although the recipe asks you to use fresh corn kernels, they aren't in season in Korea at the moment, so I rely on trusty Jolly Green Giant. They have the crunchiest kernels, even better than Del Monte. If you live in Seoul, you can find them at the Foreign Supermarket (Itaewon), Haddon Supermarket (Hannam), Hannam Supermarket (Hannam), Costco and Core Mart (Itaewon).

The recipe says it makes 12 but I only manage to get about 10 out of it on average the last 2 times I made it even though the size looks about the same as the ones in their picture. Be sure to add the baking soda as that is the secret ingredient to make it fluffy! I have it with a thin layer of butter and lots of maple syrup. If you like throw in a side of bacon. Adds that bit of savoury kick. Let me know if you try it!

5/5 for taste!

Got the flu?

If you have the sniffles, maybe a touch of fever and a hint of a cough, be prepared to be screened for Swine Influenza (SI) or H1N1 if you are going to a hospital in Seoul. If you go to... oh let's say Severance Hospital for example, be prepared to be taken to the 'Screening Room', no that is not a weekly programme dedicated to the latest movies but where they keep all flu patients for testing for SI.

General population include those who are very ill with the flu so be prepared to bring a mask with you. It will be as exciting as watching bread rise and will likely taken twice the time! Meanwhile, even if you didn't have a flu before you entered, you will likely take it home as a souvenir.

Cuppacakes by +Wondermilk - Another Food Art Find

Some years ago, my sister made us drive to this house in Damansara Uptown (Area), Petaling Jaya (City), Selangor (State), Malaysia to order cupcakes for her birthday. This unassuming corner house was the headquarters of a blossoming small home business that was about to open their first store. They are called Cuppacakes by +Wondermilk. The cupcakes turned out beautifully and their designs simply beautiful. So pretty that you don't even want to take one out to ruin the whole look!

I recently visited their website again after being sent the link from my sister. Their new designs are amazing! Their concept of selling a box of cupcakes and creating a theme from that rather than based on individual cupcakes is unique and progressive. That was the only word I could think of to explain 'constantly evolving'.

They have themes of special occassions, holidays, celebrations and even one for Twilight! But my favourite from their mainpage has to be 'Ulat Bulu In Love'. I have cheekily copied their pic of that theme of cupcakes onto here. : ) Tell me they aren't Food Art!


P/S: They taste yummy too!

*MUNCH*

Coffee Art in Unexpected Places

I was recently in the Qantas Business Class lounge in Sydney. They have a pretty nice setup there although I was most impressed with the British Airways lounge in New York. They had a fountain and lounges!

Anyway, there is a long bar in the Qantas lounge equipped with a coffee making machine that is manned by a barista. I ordered a latte and a decaf cappucino. Expecting a simple cup of coffee with no frills, I was pleasantly surprised to see it with a bit of milk foam art. I had to take a picture even though I am sure people were staring.

Cappucino

Latte

K-drama addiciton anyone?

Living in Korea has its advantages if you like Korean Dramas. However, as much as you can watch the latest dramas from SBS, KBS or MBC... you won't particularly enjoy unless you have a strong grasp of Korean. No subtitles!

HOWEVER, there are fans out there who finds ways to get the latest episodes to you on the internet with subtitles! And they do a bloody good job of it too. None of that nonsense English translations that don't make sense. These guys do it as fans for fans.

Here is one of my favourite sites:
Mysoju.com

Some of the best translation works I have seen is by With S2 (stands for the Written in the Heavens Subbing Squad - quite an innovative name). Here is their site on d-addicts.com - S2.

Javabeans does a good synopsis of each episode of the dramas that catches his/her attenion. Warning: Spoiler alerts. If you haven't watched the episode and don't want to ruin it for yourself, best to wait till after you've seen it to read the write ups.

Dingbats... you find them everywhere.

Last night I was in Coles Supermarket which is a big chain of supermarkets that opens till 12am in Australia. I was in the noodles, imported/asian food aisle and overheard this conversation by two teenage girls behind me:

Teen 1: "Are yer sure yer got the right one?"
Dingbat: "I don't know, it's written in ASIAN!"

Me: What a couple of dingbats! Geez!

Someone ought to educate them that Asian is native or inhabitant of Asia or a term referring to a characteristic of Asia. Asian itself is not language!!!

Wonder Girls NOBODY US Debut Single

Here's the Wonder Girls, US debut single. I thought it was pretty corny how they just dubbed over the video. They have been doing quite a few shows. Wish them all the success.

'Nobody' Dance Moves - Robot Style

The Wonder Girls who are making their US debut now have previously took over Korea with their catchy song 'Nobody' and their simple and cute dance moves. It was even used in Boys Over Flowers 꽃보다 남자 in the episode when Woo Bin and Yi Jung try to distract Jae Kyung from Gu Jun Pyo by taking her on a night out. They went to a karaoke and the song that JK was singing was 'Nobody' by the Wondergirls.

ANYWAY, a friend forwarded me a really cool video of some robots doing the dance moves. Too cute!


If you haven't seen the music video for 'Nobody', here it is:

Bourough Market, London

I've been meaning to post this experience for awhile but something else always came up... like that nice smelling cream from Skin Food. : ) As part of my new explorations in London last month, my friend Siu Mai took me to Borough Market.

No, I had never heard of it which seemed incredible to her. This was kind of like how the conversation went:
SM: "We could go to Borough Market."
Me: "Where's that?"
SM: "You've not heard of Borough Market?"
Me: "No, where is it?"
SM: "You used to live here and you have NEVER been to Borough Market??"
Me: "No, should I have? I've not heard of it before. I've been to Camden and Portobello Markets." (Guess that didn't count in her eyes. :)
SM: "Borough... B-O-R-O..."
Me: "I KNOW how to spell Borough, I have just not heard of it and never been there! What kind of market is it?"
SM: "Oh, it's a really famous market for fresh vege and food. I just found it odd that you have not heard of it.

She went on to tell me about all the good food by the stall vendors like this best-in-the-world chorizo sandwich, the grilled cheese sandwiches, assorted of cheeses, pastries... oh an endless list of yummy stuff. I took lots of pictures and will describe through pictures. It's much better that way.

Walking into the lane that leads to the market from Elephant & Castle station. Some cheese vendors on the left. If I'm not mistaken, this shop sells $$$ cupcakes.

Fruit and vege.

Fresh flowers and plants.

These are peppers but apparently they are only decorative and not edible.

I love Hydrangeas and these were so vibrant!

Mmmmm... pastries! We bought a few from this stall. Check out the size of those meringues on the right!

More cake and pastries.

Main entrance. Big sign, can't miss it.

On the first floor on the right of that building is a restaurant called Roast which has very traditional English Roasts.

I had my coffee fix here.

Their version of fast drip coffee.

Ok, now this lady is selling those delicious chorizo sandwiches that SM was raving about. All her friends who tried it swore it was the best. I was not disappointed! The chorizo's are fried in olive oil (that's going on behind her) then put on a bap drizzled with more olive oil, topped with a roasted red pepper and lots of rocket leaves. The peppery taste from the rocket mingles so nicely with the slightly spicy chorizo. The sweet bell pepper just tops it all very nicely.

The chorizo is under all that rocket.
Ok the toasted cheese sandwiches here are filling and the best thing is they taste so good when they go down!

Here they are being prepared in bulk.

Fruit and vege.

These are all curries!

As the sign goes... seafood.

We stopped here for some scallops topped with bacon. It was only ok. The scallops could have been seared better and the whole thing could really have done without all the garnishing save for the bacon.

SM had some oysters from the same stall but was not impressed. Later she went to another stall which had fresher oysters near the entrance.

As you can see I am so impressed with their fruit and vege selection as I feel quite deprived here in Seoul.

Here we have dried fruits and nuts.

Turkish delight in all flavours and baclava.

Olives anyone? I did a bit of sampling here... yummy!

These Parma Ham with Melon and salad packages looked so good!

Ah... the other oyster stall which SM got her oysters fix from.

Plums and Apples

They had all these interesting banners hung around the market. This one in particular caught my eye. Truly eccentric throw on the artichoke.

I sampled the Thai Green Curry here which was pretty authentic.

If you are interested to visit Borough Market, here is the website: http://www.boroughmarket.org.uk/

It was a totally fun and filling day for me.