The Many Mouthwatering Markets of London!

I had plenty of high expectations when coming to London. I knew the theatre would be great and there’d be some awesome sights and so much history to learn. However, there was one thing I truly wasn’t sure about before heading here – the food. American media is pretty tough on British cuisine. The most famous jokes are, of course, making fun of British people for eating beans on toast (which I found out that I quite enjoy) and for “calling fries ‘chips’ and chips ‘crisps’” Despite these expectations, I went in with an open mind. And oh boy, was I awarded for my receptiveness!

London’s markets are, in my opinion, a highlight of the British culinary world. On our trip we have gone to several markets, each unique in their foods, stores, and, most importantly, their availability of good seating. I’d like to talk through a few of these markets and illuminate what each has to its advantage.

After our trip to the Tower of London on May 23rd, we hit up Old Spitalfields Market. This market was bustling with people, many souvenir and trinket shops interspursed between delicious smelling food stalls. Taking Shawn’s recommendation, I got my meal at the market’s Indian restaurant (I cannot recall the name). I got a bento box with a delicious spicy chicken, rice, cucumber salad, and a fantastic sauce. Additionally I got a piece of cheese naan to dip into everything. The food was delicious, and I ended up getting an apple crumble and warm custard at Humble Crumble to bring home to the hotel for dessert. The food was all great, the market wasn’t too large or loud, and all-in-all Old Spitalfields certainly made a great start to our tour of many of London’s markets. But first, I have to talk about a great restaurant experience I had in London.

Because of how fantastic the Indian food was at Old Spitalfields, I knew I had to try some more. And so, after our visit to the Portrait Gallery on June 4th, Ilaria and I visited Dishoom, a popular British chain of high-end Indian restaurants.I have eaten Indian food once or twice before this trip, but never had it at a real restaurant like this. Ilaria really hadn’t either and so, we decided to kinda splurge and try as many things as possible. We ordered a bunch of plates including lamb chops, rice, and one of their most popular dishes, the chicken ruby. These with some cheese naan creating a heavenly meal that was different from any I’d experienced. We shared all the dishes, filling our plates (and stomachs) with whatever they could fit. It was all delicious and, to top it all off, our server gave us a complimentary rice pudding that was without compare. Altogether, it was my favorite eating experience I had in London. However, some of the markets also gave some tough competition.

Some of the best food I had came with a wonderful performance element. The first is the bowl of heaven from Camden Market seen in the picture above this text. This mouth-watering meal is the Masala Chips from Funky Chips. My first time getting these, Merritt and I decided to share a small. I was worried this would not be enough food, but, upon receiving the mountain of food in the picture, my worries were assuaged. On the topic of performance, the people at Funky Chips have their routine down. The actual making of the chips is a spectacle. All the ingredients are poured and mixed into one huge metal mixing bowl. While they do this the guy making the bowl yells out “best chips and england” Cheesy cheesy” “Spicy spicy” to which the other guys working there will repeat each one. At the end, they bring out the cardboard tray for the food. The chips are poured in and every time they did, I swore they wouldn’t be able to fit it in. But, every time, they would. And every time, eating it would be a magical experience.

The second performance-forward meal I ate requires a bit less description as I remembered to video the magic. This magic happened at Kappacasein Dairy with their Raclette, a pile of potatoes and onions covered in their freshly melted, right-off-the-wheel, cheese. The potatoes and cheese, with just a bit of salt and pepper, were indeed delicious. However, I would say that the performance element of this meal is more than the food itself while at Funky Chips, both the performance is great and the taste is especially phenomenal. If I could go back, I would probably choose funky chips over it, but they were both great!

We also got to see some amazing non-food-related performances. Going through the tube system of London, I noticed a lot of instances of live music and people busking. However, some of the best musicians and groups I’ve seen were in London’s markets. My first experience with the music of the markets was at Covent Garden. Here, I was with a small group just traveling through on one of our free afternoons when I stopped to listen to a musician. She was playing acoustic guitar and singing and sounded wonderful. She had a QR code for her social media and I scanned and followed her on Instagram. Her name is Alice SK and is a local London musician. She actually reached out to me a few days later and asked if I was at Covent Garden the other day. I said yes and we chatted on instagram about my study abroad and her live show stuff. If I ever come back to London, I’ll definitely try and see one of her headlining shows with her band!

I also was lucky enough to catch two bands at separate markets. One, the shorter video, was outside of Camden Market while the other was inside of Covent Garden. I didn’t get to watch the first for long. For the stringed sextet, I was able to stop and listen for a bit. They were phenomenal and even played a song from Game of Thrones before I left. I find the fact that these markets are able to be not just a place for food and trinkets but also a place where musicians can succeed is truly awesome. As a musician myself, I am even more tempted to run away and live in London!

I’ve resisted the temptation to stay in London for ever, but these proceeding additional pictures of meals Squirt and I have had will hopefully explain to you why I was tempted in the first place!