missiecindz.com | Missie Cindz

Someone recently asked me what’s my favourite thing to eat. I find that to be a really hard question to answer.

Do I pick savoury? {a good Sunday roast with all the trimmings}. Do I pick sweet? {I’d say apple crumble and custard, Victoria Made cakes, rice pudding with a dollop of strawberry jam, but then there’s also ice cream too! ~ oh dear, that’s FOUR!}, or do I pick a type of cuisine? {Japanese and Chinese was my instinct but I do adore Italian food too – that’s three!)….

There are so many amazing foods for all different types foods, and then, there’s also bread. From brioche to Italian loaves to whole wheat rolls to naan, I love it all ~ I couldn’t possibly choose one type! Even baking bread seems magical!

Eating is one of life’s greatest joys, so to answer the question. Why limit yourself? ~ What would you say? What’s your one favourite food?

(It’s really hard to pick just one, right?)

{Photo sources (from top to bottom): Victoria Made cakes photos by Jess Petrie Photography / Photos by Cindy Cheung – Fish and Chips at Holmes on Bakers St, London / Nonnas Italian, Sheffield / sharing sushi at Sushi Express, Sheffield / own-made meaty pie from The Broadfield Ale House, Sheffield}

Hidden little Gem….

I love a good food market, and what I’ve found about London is that there’s a myriad of bright and fantastic food markets in the city.

I have recently discovered Maltby Street Market, located behind Tower Bridge Road, where the different vendors are tucked away in the characteristic railway arches. I discovered this place after a recommendation from @Clerkenwell_Boy – and I’m so pleased I went! The place is a foodies heaven, with a number of food stalls and eateries basically cobbled together and tucked away under railway arches behind Tower Bridge road, not far from Bermondsey.

It’s a market with a more personable touch with the stall holders more than happy to stop and talk about their produce. There’s a very ad hoc and ‘honest’ feel, with a less touristy environment (unlike Borough and Spitafields). The produce on offer is a mix between British country style food. With a deli, gin house – I loved the look of Little Bird which serves its very own London gin; French bakery and homemade cakes, freshly baked Portuguese tarts to delight and amuse. Um, hello cured meats and cheeses! It’s the perfect place for picking up some pantry staples or to craft your very own charcuterie and cheese plate.

Nigel Slater described the place perfectly in the Observer… “I have often dreamed of finding a perfect place to do my food shopping. A place far from the strip-light nightmare of the supermarket; somewhere that offers the best of a farmers’ market with a taste of something from further afield. A slightly secret and hidden place, where supply goes with the ebb and flow of the seasons, where there is a constantly evolving group of traders bringing things to tempt and delight.” – I couldn’t agree more with Nigel.

Finally, you really can’t leave without a warm drink and a little sweet snack. Kill two birds with one stone, yes? (that’s what I did :). You must visit the tasteful French bakery, Comptoir Gourmand ~ their pastries and tarts looked absolutely incredible! (and very reasonably priced too).

Maltby Street Market is a wonderful place to hang out on a Saturday.  Go on, peek through all the artisanal delights but without the pushy crowd – Missie Cindz

Maltby Street, Bermondsey, London, SE1 3PA | Nearest tube: London Bridge or Bermondsey | Twitter: @MaltbyStMkt

{Photos by Cindy Cheung and Baz Chan}

Street Kitchen Hot Dog Sampling at The Miller

Lovely branding from Partizan, a small microbrewery in London

The other night I was invited to an amazing gourmet hot dog preview from London-based Street Kitchen at The Miller pub in Bermondsey ~ good job I had a serious hankering for hot dogs. The menu was specially devised to introduce the residency of Street Kitchen at The Miller and I found myself in hot dog heaven, rolling around on a soft bun shaped cloud featuring gourmet ingredients sourced directly from UK farms with a selection of seasonal salads and slaws.

The tasting session menu included three signature hot dogs: The American Pitbull ~ smoked pork sausage with ‘chapel down’ red wine onions, ketchup, sweet mustard dressing and pickled cucumber, the Boston Hound ~ smoked sausage with slow braised belly pork, red cabbage slaw, celeriac remoulade and barbeque sauce, and the Basque Terrier ~ smoked pork sausage with a spicy chorizo salsa, avocado, jalapeno and pickled red onions.

My favourite was the Basque Terrier with its mix of spicy and tangy all housed in that soft bun. I found the Boston Hound a little too sweet for a hot dog but the belly pork was —um, out of this world, the ‘nibbling’ crackling added a nice crunch. I didn’t get to try the the American Pitbull as they’d ran out. As a finishing touch, I also got to try artisan ice lollies by Ice Kitchen (it was great to meet you Cesar and to hear the passion for your products) and a glimpse of the new exhibition of Pure Evil artwork.

The Miller also have some really great beers in from Partizan (twitter: @PartizanBrewing), a small microbrewery in London. I love the branding, the graphic design on the bottles were impressive, oozing a tasteful touch of Scandinavian art illustrated by the talented illustrator Alec Doherty, who I’ve been a fan of his work for a long time.

London made hot dogs and local beers – I'm loving summer already!

London Street Food Haven
Needless to say, my belly seemed pretty happy. It’s amazing to me what can be cooked right on the street without the need for a fancy kitchen and equipment (Street Kitchen cook from a a vintage trailer). Street food is really big in London and has become probably one of my favourite kinds of foods this year because the people who make it focus on one thing, and usually do it really well. We didn’t have very many street food vendors in Sheffield – and the food movement was just kicking off, but I am a huge fan of food trucks and look forward to discovering more places to eat in London!

People will always want delicious fast food and Street Kitchen’s collaboration with The Miller will make it good for you as well as just good tasting. The new hot dogs launch at The Miller on Thursday 16th May. On a non-foodie note, the bright red tees the staff wear are pretty awesome ~ with a rotated K as its logo but also acts as a table with the words “Street Kitchen’ sat on the top. Where can I get one in my size, please? — Missie Cindz :)

The Miller | 96 Snowsfields | London Bridge | London SE1 3SS

{photos by Oliver Denton – and thanks Oli for the company, I had so much fun discovering the London food scene and sharing hot dogs}

You are invited to attend Missie Cindz’s seasonal Pud Inn Club on Saturday 22nd June held in The Rutland Arms (upstairs) starting 2.00pm – 4.30pm with a ‘Happy Hour’ {booze} pudding themed menu.

Dessert doesn’t have to mean straightforward cakes, pies or puddings. We will be adding a splash (or two) of liqueur or wine to kick your favorite treat up a notch ~ join me for a sweet afternoon to enjoy a delicious 5 course of treats with spirits made by local Sheffield bakers, pubs, restaurants and Pud Inn diners.

The pudding possibilities are endless; some are more familiar, think of the boozy Italian Tiramisu, Chocolate Guinness Cake and the classic Sherry Trifle – this is not the menu by the way, and you’ll just have to wait until the day to find out what’s on your 5 course puds menu.

Event Details
•    When: Saturday 22nd June (2pm – 4.30pm)
•    Where: Rutland Arms
•    Price: £8 per person
•    NOM size: 25-30 people

This is a ticketed event and places are limited, Pud Inn tickets are £8 per person and will be available to purchase at the bar from Monday 3rd June or via email booking from 7am, and won’t be able to reserve Pud Inn tickets before this date. Please do look out for more event details on this blog, twitter by following the hashtag #MissiesPudInn or by joining and liking our facebook event’s page.

About Missie’s Pud Inn
Pud Inn’s GREAT! Support your local pub, local bakers, local talent AND brighten the community! What’s not to love!?  It is a friendly and informal afternoon with other pudding enthusiasts from Sheffield and beyond – if you want to come alone and make new friends, that’s fine too. Yes, Pud Inn is rather naughty and it’s unhealthy but I think everyone is allowed a guilty pleasure once in a while – after all – “what’s life without treats!?”.

During the afternoon you have a chance to see familiar faces, give and build a great Sheffield community – something that I believe we should be doing on a daily basis. Even if you don’t know the food producers or bakers involved and don’t know what to expect; it all adds to the Pud Inn experience.

If you missed our last ‘Around the World’ PudInn event you can read about what we got up to right here!

Finally…
If you would like to put your name on our waiting list or to express your interest in future events then please join our mailing list to be kept up to date with my tasteful food adventure or alternatively follow me on twitter and facebook.

Wow, after this write-up I need something sweet! ~ see you all in June ~ Missie Cindz :)

{Artwork by Cindy Cheung}

It is often said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

During my first month in London, I discovered the Breakfast Club, the little yellow cafes in London that serves a twist on cosy morning comforts. Since discovering the place in my first week, and having eaten a pancake or three I’ve been allured to their yellow den (hang-outs) ever since!

Instead of soggy cornflakes, porridge or PB and J, there’s Eggs Benedict served with home-style fried potatoes, the BC Fish Finger Sandwich with skin-on chips and coleslaw, or you can go for something sweeter with apple and cinnamon soaked oats and the All American pancakes, eggs, sausage, home-style fried potatoes, streaky bacon and maple syrup! ~ heart attack on a plate I hear you scream? but, actually it wasn’t as greasy as it sounds.

The Breakfast Club serves some of the best smoothies and shakes I’ve ever had (try, the ELVIS – Peanut Butter and Banana). Really, I crave for their shakes! The place has a kind of good-humored, 80′s warm-hearted feel and after leaving the place, you feel like going home and sticking on The Breakfast Club movie to watch.

As a heads up, the place can get really busy (we had to wait for a table), but service is incredibly fast and I didn’t feel rushed and like I had to quickly finish off my meal so that the table could be prepped ready for the next customer. These guys also have great taste in music too. Definitely a ‘must try’ place to go for breakfast, brunch or dinner in London. It’s become my new go-to spot when I need something quick to warm my belly…

The Breakfast Club  |  31 Camden Passage, London N1 8EA  |  020 7226 5454

{Photos by Cindy Cheung and Baz Chan (last pic)}

Tea: making new memories and people happy

On Wednesday 24 April, 200 tea-lovers joined Yorkshire Tea for a trip on the Orient Express to celebrate the joy of a proper brew. We were treated to a tea-lightful afternoon chugging around the London countryside whilst enjoying afternoon tea with champagne and tea, and to finish off, the Yorkshire Tea Brass Band got everyone dancing whilst supping exclusive Yorkshire Tea cocktails served by Jake from Jakes Bar.

For the last few months, I’ve been thinking a lot about what brings me motivation and joy. Sure, I love a good cuppa tea or a slice of good cake…but making other people happy really tops that list. What Yorkshire Tea did this week was deeply generous, and truly made lots of people happy; creating new (lasting) memories and experiences which even money couldn’t buy! ~ well, you could if you had a lot of it but we don’t; and Yorkshire Tea also gave tea-lovers something positive to talk about, simply to bring a smile to someone’s face.

We should all think about doing something to spread a little positivity. Those moments of happiness are so important especially during bleak times like these.

Making new friends over a proper brew
Here’s a sneaky peep of my day captured as photographs – afternoon tea, finger sandwiches, cakes, champagne and more!

Onboard the train, I met Steve Jones of TunneltoTowers Run London (T2T), one of a group of fire fighters who went to help with Hurricane Sandy relief and Yorkshire Tea sent tea to. I’m looking forward to supporting his charity run and helping with some fundraising this summer. Lots of support is still  needed for the T2T charity run ~ see here for more details: www.tunnel2towersrun.org

Thank you Orient Express, Yorkshire Tea, Sam Ward and everyone involved in making the day so memorable! A special thank you to Peter Hamblin for the photograph of me (first photo), you captured my day perfectly! :) – Missie Cindz

{All photos from Cindy Cheung. First photo from Peter Hamblin Photography}