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.

Hobnobs with Dark Chocolate - Droooool!

McVitie's has always made excellent oat biscuits. Not being a fan of oats, I was introduced to their sweeter version, chocolate covered Hobnobs. The chocolate is only on one side similar to the digestive biscuits you see in supermarkets but now they have truly edged up on their product!

You can now get Hobnobs with DARK CHOCOLATE! Talk about a big yum in every bite! I discovered them back in uni and used to have them with a hot cup of tea or Milo (a kind of hot chocolate drink very popular in Asia and Australia). The best way to eat them is to dunk them very quickly into to your tea or hot chocolate but mind you, only dip as much as you would bite off as they get soggy rather quickly. LOVELY!

The dark chocolate version only makes it all the more richer and isn't too bitter... they really got this one right! A very satisfied customer. Unfortunately, I could only lug 2 in my suitcase as I had lots of other stuff in my bag. Like a chorizo, which I will explain later when I blog about my trip to Borough Market. Oh and the annoying thing was, after I bought it at Sainsbury's, my friend found it in Tesco's for Buy 1 Get 1 Free. Don't you hate it when that happens???

(I actually have an image to upload but for some reason it is not loading from a url. I will have to reupload it later from a different source)

The Cioccolata Fiorentina

If you ever have the chance to eat at Carluccio's Caffe, you have to try their Ciococlata Fiorentina. For chocolate lovers and chocolate sufferers alike, it will be melted heaven in your mouth!

The description in their dessert menu is: Thick drinking chocolate served in an expresso cup. I went to their caffe in St. Christopher's Place which is near Selfridges. It was a little packed but it is on 2 floors, so if you don't mind sitting downstairs you should be able to find a place. It was a nice day so the al fresco tables were all taken. Once you walk in you will find yourself in their deli which is packed full of good stuff! You will be drawn to pick something out. Food's good and I like their atmosphere. I especially like the marinated olives they serve at the table.

Marmite Rice Cakes

Needs more kick!


I thought it would be more packed with Marmite flavour. But sadly it tasted more rice cakey than Marmitey.

FInally Found: Toast Rack

I have been looking for a toast rack for years and finally found one at Peter Jones in Sloane Square, London. Peter Jones is the upmarket version of John Lewis. Not bad for GBP5!

Marmite Rice Cakes... What will they come up wth next?

I love Sainbury's. I will say it again, I love Sainbury's! Wide aisles and plenty of choice. Not only did I find my usual favourites, I came across something that I can't wait to sink my teeth into and find out how it passed the food tasting department of Best Foods or Unilever as is the proper owner of the trademark.

MARMITE RICE CAKES!

Or should I say Marmite flavoured rice cakes. That's going to be an interesting combination. The bland taste of rice cakes combined extremely salty and strange overpowering savoury taste of marmite. I will try to keep my verdict of how it is a snack to a minimum number of words later. Now's not the right time for me to eat it. It's barely 8am on Saturday and I'm jetlagged.