Re-imagining the World One Mouthful at a Time . . . . .

Exploring Where I Live – Borough Market

19 January 2014

Borough Market, LondonBorough Market, LondonBorough Market, LondonBorough Market, LondonI made a commitment at the beginning of the year, whenever possible, to be find happiness in being a London Home Tourist. I moved to London for a new design adventure and personal challenge in April 2013, and have never looked back ever since. Every day I discover something new from this cosmopolitan city.

While I still have a hard time not being busy, I hope to meet & connect with London locals in my (new) home city. Last year went by so fast I didn’t get the chance to do all the touristy London things or discover secret spots worth sharing with readers. This weekend, I resorted to some much needed ‘Feed Me Time’ and took myself up to Borough Market (twitter: @boroughmarket).

Piggies with taste go to the Market…
If you’re around the London Bridge end of the Southbank, then Borough Market will be a joy for any foodie, always good for food and drink. What a gluttonous and wonderful way to spend a Saturday afternoon –brimming full of choice. This is the place to grab fresh produce, ‘around the world’ meats (cured and fresh), hand crafted cheeses, and freshly baked breads, cakes & pastries – there’s bound to be something or anything you might want to take home to cook, and the best bit, you can indulge on some street-food style lunch whilst you’re at it too {I like to get a little of each from a few different stalls}.

Borough Market, London Borough Market, London Borough Market, London

Food Glorious Food!
I had some lovely vegetarian food from The Veggie Table stall. Here’s their signature Heavenly Halloumi burger (see photo above): halloumi cheese with organic carrots, courgettes, fresh mint & coriander in a toasted pumpkin seeded bap. Delicious. Discovered the Boston Sausage (I was after their burger but it was late in the day and they’d sold out), and also shared my first a venison sausage (hotdog) with a friend. One of the great things about Markets are being able to browse and create dishes to cook whilst wandering about the market – definitely places for food inspiration and colour. I also really enjoyed the exotic and unexpected finds throughout – including fresh oysters and seafood – live crabs still moving in the tank, cured meats from the South Tyrol, Italy (from the Exquisite Deli) through to Argentinian street food from Porteña including empanadas (hearty pasties with fillings such as spinach and ricotta, ham and cheese, mozzarella and tomato or beef). If you’re a cheese lover, be sure to try Kappacasein’s grilled cheese sandwich. The Market closes on Sundays as traders have a well deserved rest!

One great thing I found was everyone was offering you samples to taste and I didn’t once feel the pressure to purchase anything (strange for London, I know!). The people behind the stalls were all very friendly and happy to share with you information about what they had available.

Borough Market is much more vibrant and upmarket Greenwich Market and it has a great buzz to it. I could spend hours walking around here and I thoroughly recommend it if you are in the area and have a few hours to kill. Avoid the crowds if you can. If you have a day off, try popping by during the weekday hours, or get over there early (9:30/10am) to browse around first, and by the time you’re done, the food traders will be ready to serve you lunch!

Sometimes it’s fun to be a tourist in your home town… try it, and discover something deliciously new right on your doorstep!

Borough Market  Stoney Street | London Bridge | London SE1 1TL

(Photos by Cindy Cheung)

Missie Cindz

posted under: London