A Foodie’s Dream of Gastronomic Bliss in London

by Jenna Storey

Tea and Sugar. Photo by Flickr user vtsr.

Borough Market is an ideal starting place for a foodie in London.  It’s London’s most renowned food market and a wonderful source of produce. Specialty traders come from throughout the United Kingdom to sell their offerings. Spend a morning wandering  from stall to stall sampling all the goodies the market can spare. While the market is closed Sunday through Wednesday, we recommend paying a visit on Thursdays when the market is less crowded and you would have a chance to chat with the booth owners; many of whom are the producers themselves. If you don’t get your fill from sampling around the market there are a variety of restaurants in the area that frequent the stalls for the best products they can find. 

One such restaurant is Magdalen, located in an ugly municipal building that once housed the Mayor of London and his team before they made the move uptown. Magdalen serves traditional British dishes seasonally including partridge terrine, clams, and rump of beef from the countryside of Herefordshire. The custard tarts are not to be missed.

Brindisa. Photo by Flickr user Bernt Rostad.

Another market staple is Brindisa, often thought to be the best place nearby-- which translates to incredibly busy. While they do not take reservations, the bar is the perfect place for people watching while snacking on olives and jamón while you wait. Providing a winning twist on traditional Spanish cooking, you can expect all of your tapas favorites with several notable highlights such as deep-fried Monte Enebro goat cheese with orange blossom honey, and grilled León chorizo on toast with piquillo pepper.

Barbecoa is a perfect follow up to the market, featuring its own butcher shop selling quality British meat and game. While most would think a barbecue joint out of place in London, Jamie Oliver & Adam Perry Lang have done amazing things combining a world wide range of barbecue techniques. Their kitchen is a veritable smorgasbord of international cooking equipment including Japanese robata grills, tandoor ovens, fire pits, and even a Texas style smoker. Diners can expect a variety of their favorite barbecue mainstays such as pulled pork shoulder, lamb skewers, and a rib-eye for two which is dry-aged for a minimum of 48 days. 

Chips and Bearnaise at the Anchor & Hope in London.
Photo by Flickr user Jessica Spengler. 

Anchor & Hope, a no-reservations, no website gastropub near the Old Vic Theater on the South bank is open late but don’t expect this updated pub to be waiting for you: waits are to be expected. Serving seasonal cooking, back-to-basics standard British fare, and a nose-to-tail cooking style, the menu is constantly evolving with items such as spaghetti with dandelion, and rabbit, bacon, and mustard. The menu descriptions may be terse, but this is a place for serious cooking-- not flowery language. 

For a chance at outdoor dining with a killer view, Northbank is tucked under the Millennium Bridge on the Thames. Featuring a raised banquette seating indoors, the place to take advantage of the view with wool blankets for the chilly English weather is on the outdoor terrace.  The spectacular offerings include ‘Hereford’ rib eye steak and truffle chips, English peas and broad bean risotto, and warm apple and rum pudding with custard cream.

Indigo is a relaxed restaurant perched above the lobby bar at One Aldwych. A modern creative take on a European menu features healthy options with fresh organic produce. Their afternoon tea is the perfect way to enjoy a quintessential tradition in an informal setting. The dishes that reign supreme here are the seared diver scallops, bubble and squeak, and the sticky toffee pudding. 

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