FOOD MARKET - SOUTHBANK CENTRE SQUARE [London]

[zuriga1]

I came across this today... a 3 day market starting Friday (4 March).

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The Real Food Market takes place on the first weekend of every month giving Londoners the opportunity to buy fresh, high quality, affordable products, direct from 40 carefully selected Real Food producers.

As well as great produce there'll be live cookery demonstrations, livestock to help re-connect people back to where their food comes from and alfresco hog roasts from Canteen.

[limster]

• Bhangra Burgers
An ok lamb burger - fairly nice with the yogurt, although the lamb itself didn't seem overly flavourful. Sweetness, spice and tang were a bit unwieldy but there were occasional moments when they balanced one another. Somewhat expensive at £6 imho -- one can get burgers £5 or so at Borough Market, they're considered expensive.

• Beppino's Pasta
Superb tagliatelle made on the spot -- a wonderful tender stretchy chew with each bite. Peas and pancetta were ok as a sauce (I'd probably go for the pinenuts and sage one next time).

• Cafe-On
Excellent texture in the macarons - crisp, delicate and crumbling into a mild chewiness. Flavours were somewhat mild and muted, I mostly tasted sweetness with a shadow of the intended flavour (contrast with the luxuriance of Pierre Herme's rich flavourings).

[limster]

• Buen Provecho
Honest, rock solid flavours. Cochinita pibil rounded with a well integrated spice and orangey flavour, the fibres of the pork silky. Beef with tomatillo had a sturdy balance of beefiness and tanginess, the tangy quality smooth and well rounded by the multifacted flavours and bolstered by the red toasty salsa. Chicken with chorizo was pleasant, but less complex, wished for a more smoky chorizo presence, but nevertheless was nice with tasty refried beans and rich guacamole. The tacos are more generous than those at Casa Morita, but Casa Morita's flavouring is slightly more complex and more focused.

• Creperie Nicholas
Good crepe - crisp and parchment thin on the edges, a slight soft chew closer to the centre. Elegant sweet chestnut filling.

• Chocolate Naive
Excellent hot chocolate, rendered in the thin style (made in water I believe), the chocolate full of rising fruity notes before settling into a more earthy middle to after-taste.

[cathodetube]

Are they all there every Sunday? Or the whole weekend?

[limster]

The stalls vary from week to week. The stalls that are there each week often get announced here: http://www.realfoodfestival.co.uk/mar...

[cathodetube]

Was talking to Simon from Luardos at Brockley Market on Saturday. He said they were no longer going back to the Southbank market due to the high pitch charges. They are going to be at Eat Street though, and Brockley Market. Had a tasty and very filling breakfast burrito from them, complete with chorizo.

[limster]

Had the chocolate bars from Chocolate Naive -- in the 60-something%, a nice snap from good tempering, earthy and woodsy with a hint of tangy red fruit, dotted with roasted cacao nibs.

[limster]

BTW, recently spotted Naive chocolates being sold at Fernandez & Wells.

[limster]

• What the Dickens
The long-grained rice in the kedgeree had a bit of powdery quality, perhaps close to al dente by risotto standards, but probably not ideal for this dish. Main flavours were coriander and an extremely mild spice, good eggs, a decent amount of fish, although more smoky flavours here woud have been great. pleasant but perhaps not exceptional, underpowered to my taste.

• Sciolti Botanical Chocolates
True to life flavours in the various chocolate bon bons, clear and sound. Favourites among the ones I tried: chai that captured the main spices in this tea; lavender and vanilla with just the right nuance of the floral aroma; a shining lemon verbena, with a great balance of tangy acidity and rich ganache. Fairly good temper overall, even if not as technically refined as some of the best I've had in the past. Not a bad value at £12 for 12 pieces.

[howler]

bhangra burger?! bhangra as in the punjabi folk dance? good lord.

[limster]

More "entertainment" here (vbg): http://bhangraburger.com/Menu.htm

[howler]

it's the stuff of nightmares! after seeing the bhangra balti burger i had to go and lie down.

[limster]

• Malaysian food van
Excellent rendang on rice, rich complex flavour in the tender beef rendang, and the rice seemed rather aromatic, perhaps cooked with pandan? Malaysian achar/pickles on the side, a slaw with chilli and various spices. Chicken satay was also very good, tender and well marinated, plus they had kueh tupat, the soft rice cakes that are a standard side item (which unfortunately is not found in place places that serve satay). I think the satay is from Puji Puji restaurant, which I first heard about a few years ago from a Penang friend mentioned as being great for satay and horrible for everything else.

• Speck Mobile
An ok apple strudel - great filling backed up by plenty of brown sugar, pastry shell was a little blunt.

• Fish stall (sorry don't remember name)
Loved the crab cakes that held together lightly, with plenty of nutty rich brown meat. Two tempura fried prawns, a long piece of sole, a nice pile of whitebait and a few chunks of cod were generally moist with crisp batter. Not bad for a combo platter with the above plus 2 dipping sauces (thai chilli and tartare) for £8.

[pj26]

The Waterloo BID are currently developing the market stalls around Lower Marsh, not sure entirely of the details (they are launching this Thursday) but could be another great option in the area for street food.

[cathodetube]

This has now morphed into a Harvest Food Festival for this weekend only, and is now spread along the riverside. Hadn't seen any publicity and only discovered it because I went along on one of my frequent trips there to find a small amount of stall on the piazza and was directed to the other riverside. I tried some of The Rib Man's succulent meat, in a bun, with two types of his homemade sauce. Purbeck Ice Cream - the award winning honeycombe was a perfect finish. There was so much going on there, including street entertainers am tempted to go back tomorrow.

[greeneyesN4]

Went to the South Bank today. I had some great ice cream from a small van-"sorbitium ices." They haven't been around for long. Bramley apple and toffee, and fig and honey. Both were really delicious-not too sweet but really flavoursome. There were a couple of stalls selling olive oil with flavourings which were pressed with the olives rather than being added afterwards. Really tasty!

[cathodetube]

Went back again Sunday. Tried the Anna Mae's pulled pork, with beans and coleslaw. The Rib Man's pork on Friday had spoiled me unfortunately. Anna Mae's were doing good brownies to finish off their meals. Tried a junkyard brownie, studded with M&Ms, pretzel pieces and peanut butter. Wish this was on every weekend. Think a lot of the traders felt the same.

[psycho_fluff]

I was there on Sunday with my other half & eldest son. We got some chilli jam, passion fruit curd & & mango ginger chutney from the West Country stall, had the best churros from Churros Garcia & had pulled pork from The Pitt Cue Co under Hungerford Bridge. Everything looked & smelled amazing (apart from the paella which really didnt look or smell good at all, I can do better!) & was pretty reasonable in price compared to Borough Market. I will deffo be returning on a Sunday, but will be sad to see the end of Pitt Cue Co after 4th Sept. The rest will be there right up till crimbo, I believe.

[pj26]

Pitt Cue are going? That is bad news, must get in to see them on Friday!

[zuriga1]

Am I right that they're only open in the late afternoon and for dinner? I was thinking of going to the Market this Friday, but I'm there around lunchtime.

[cathodetube]

Think they are on Twitter so you could check their feed.

[pj26]

They've been there at lunch most Fridays I've been there, but sometimes don't have the ribs until around 3pm (if they are even doing ribs that day).

[zuriga1]

OK - I'll take a look if I'm there. Thanks.

[zuriga1]

I don't Tweet.

[pj26]

Even if you don't tweet yourself you can still follow their feed http://twitter.com/#!/pittcueco

[zuriga1]

Thanks, I am still reading Computers for Dummies.

[pj26]

Made it to Pitt Cue on Friday (got there about 12.45pm and had to wait 20 mins as they weren't quite ready). Huge queue. I had the pulled pork with beans and it was just excellent. I had heard the portions weren't big for £7 but this nearly finished me off. The pork had clearly been slow cooked for many hours and had a really great smoky flavour. The beans were also really tasty and the bread soft and fluffy on the inside and grilled crunchy - perfect. So sad they won't be there this Friday as it would have become my constant Friday treat.

[zuriga1]

I never seemed able to get there... glad you did. Are they going to move elsewhere for the winter or close up shop?

[psycho_fluff]

I have the feeling they are closing up but I sincerely hope not. They should have a permanent place somewhere, this would be great for bomb fire night! Perfect to warm your cockles! I agree on the portion size, I struggled to get through it too. I want to now details on where they will be relocating to & when!

[zuriga1]

I sure hope you don't mean that people are going to start throwing bombs on Guy Fawkes Night!!

[Jenny Sheridan]

I had a delicious bhangra burger there on Sunday, with excellent pickles. Not so thrilled with the Japanese-influenced macarons. I don't know if the market has now closed for the season - does anyone else?

[zuriga1]

This was on their website--

'from May 2011, we're delighted to announce the markets will be going weekly to provide accessibility and convenience to everyone looking to find great fresh produce as part of their regular weekly shop.'

The market is closed this Friday due to the Thames Festival but will be open Saturday and Sunday. I think someone mentioned it's continuing on... I sure hope so.

[pj26]

I tried a couple of those macaroons a few weeks ago, think I had green tea and a yuzu flavoured one, both were pretty average.

[YSL]

I stopped by last Saturday too as I had a few hours to kill before my train back home. Sadly, I was still really full after lunch but still managed to find some space for some arancini (creamy and moist, very nice). But we also took home something from the Polish Deli stand - Absolutely delicious smoked sausage and the kabanos were smoky and meaty in complete contrast to some of the dry and plasticky versions you can get elsewhere. Sadly, the pickles were far too salty but the meats and the pierogis are worth trying out.

I was under the impression that the market was only a summer thingy but if it is there for the foreseeable future, I see myself heading to Southbank even more on weekend trips to Londinium!

[cathodetube]

I have had the Polish pickles and am obsessed with them. Not sweet, not vinegary, just done in a brine and I didn't find them too salty. First tried them at the Covent Garden Market, Always buy some to take home.

[cathodetube]

Bhangra Burgers were there on Friday. I really like their lamb burgers, served in a wrap but didn't have one because Luardos were there and they were serving fish tacos. They used coley, battered and cooked in front of you. Salsa, corn tortillas, white cabbage. Not bad at all. I meant to post this earlier because the market was also open today.

[cathodetube]

The American cake stall, run by 2 American guys, is called Outsider Tart. They also have a shop in Chiswick.

[Mike M]

I thought their baked goods were pretty great. I am hoping they become one of the 'permenant' stands.

[jerkfaceirl]

It's all pre-made food vendors, not much use if you want to cook your own grub.

[cathodetube]

It isn't advertised as a farmers market. I saw bread, coffee beans, cider, cheese and chorizo amongst stuff you could take home and make stuff with.

[pj26]

Yep - that's right, it's not only pre-made food. I bought some great English-produced chorizo, vodka, there's also quite a few cheese stalls, some butchers, Italian & Polish deli foods.Perhaps the only thing they don't have is fruit and vege stands

[cathodetube]

I tried the chorizo and liked it. Didn't buy any because I already had some at home. Am looking forward to going back to the market this Friday.

[pj26]

I bought some spicy and the plainer type. They were really good, dense and great both cooked and just sliced.

[cathodetube]

The sliced Polish pickles at that stall are incredible. Not vinegary, not sweet, just perfect in my opinion.

[cathodetube]

This is EVERY week now.

Went there yesterday and loved it. Was looking for Bhangra Burgers but couldn't find him and after looking on his website realized he was away doing a festival or something.....anyway had a wonderful time wandering around trying lots of different things. It's open every Friday, Sat. and Sunday for the foreseeable future and heard talk from the traders of it continuing into winter. Some of the former traders are there from Borough Market, Borough Cheese and Kappacasein, the famous grilled cheese maker! Flour Station bakery has a stall.

There is a Polish stall - I enjoyed a huge pork pierogi and took home another one for later. Only a few cake stalls but there is one serving very American type bar cakes. Two ice cream vans. An Ethiopian coffee seller. The West Country was well represented with cheese and cider and I drank a half pint of beautiful dry cider. The same stall also sells cheese, and chutneys, which you can sample, plus amazing lemon curd. There were a few places doing burgers from their own meat, one advertised as being hung for 28 days. Also a hog roast stall which looked to be sold out by 5pm. I am seriously thinking of going again on Sunday. Opening hours from about 11 am to 8 pm ish.

[zuriga1]

Thanks for your report! I have yet to make it up there for a look-see, but maybe next weekend. It sounds as if there certainly are a lot of interesting food choices, and I'm so glad to hear that some of the former Boroughites are there. Flour Station is everywhere! It's even at the outdoor Kingston market and yesterday I saw a small stall at Arts in Action, held at Waterperry near Oxford. Their dark rye is fantastic.

[cathodetube]

Are you sure you don't mean Flour Power as they are usually at all the markets. I like both of them. Flour Power was kicked out of Borough as they were deemed too big!

I just had some pickle from Cherry Tree which I bought yesterday at the cider stall. It was a mild garlic one. They also sell a stronger garlic one. Both were amazing in my opinion. Had them with bratwurst type sausage from Lidl. Small herb flecked ones.

[pj26]

Kappacasein (the grilled cheese sandwich) is also there - it's now become my rather indulgent Friday lunchtime treat!

Have also bought some very smooth vodka from a guy there who makes it himself, really good on the rocks.

[cathodetube]

I did mention Kappacasein in my first post on here. I purchased a sandwich from them.

[pj26]

I was quite surprised to see him there, thought he was now over at Maltby St after all the hoo-ha at Borough.

[cathodetube]

He is still at Maltby Street. Guess he must have someone working with him. Pretty sure he said he, as in his company, is also there on a Friday.

[AGM_Cape_Cod]

Is he no longer at Borough Market? I have told people about the incredible toasted cheese sandwich but don't want to direct them to the wrong place. TIA

[CTownFeedR]

They were part of the Bermondsey 7

http://www.kappacasein.com/

S

[zuriga1]

To be honest, I didn't take a lot of notice when it came to the name of the stall... just Flour something, so it might well have been Flour Power. I'll check next time I'm there. That pickle sounds mighty good.

[cathodetube]

Apparently Flour Station is Jamie Oliver's bakery.

[pj26]

do you mean he owns it or uses it?

[cathodetube]

He started it at some point. Think it was to do with Fifteen. Not sure he actually runs it now.

[brokentelephone]

That sounds quite cool, but why not just head to Borough if you're going south of the river?

[Samuelinthekitchen]

because £30 for a carrot seems excessive?

[zuriga1]

It just sounded like a different place to try.. and as said, Borough can be expensive so why not check it out and maybe find something better. Also, I can walk to the South Bank but not Borough so I can skip buying a Travel Card with my train ticket. :-)