I kicked off my lovely weekend by running out of work on a Friday evening to spend time at this year’s Taste of London winter food festival. The event was held inside Tobacco Dock just a short walk from Shadwell station. This years event had live demonstration master classes from top chef’s such as Michel Roux Jnr and Tim Anderson ( Masterchef Winner 2011) coupled with tons of restaurant stalls.
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| Live cooking classes |
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| Cocktails Masterclass |
Restaurants such as Barbecoa, Andina, Club Gascon, Brindisa Tapas Kitchen and Benares had stands upstairs.
Downstairs you’ll find restaurants such as Kurobuta, Ember Yard , Hixter, Shake Shack , Roti Chai and the Truscott Arms.
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| Kurobuta’s Hot Coals |
The stands I visited had some good dishes indeed. The first stand I ran to (moved towards in a brisk and hungry fashion ) was Brindisa’s Kitchen. I had the pleasure of visiting their borough market restaurant a few times in the past ( Check out my borough market post) and as such I knew what to expect…Good Spanish food. The potato and meat Croqueta with Aioli and Brava Sauce is one of the best dishes at the show in my opinion. Make it your mission to get this dish if you are visiting the show this weekend.
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| Try accompanying juicy Iberica Jam with some nice wine |
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| Potato and Meat Croqueta with Alioli and Brava Sauce |
I followed this up by trying the smoked ribs dish from Barbecoa. This steak restaurant situated by St Paul’s Cathedral was founded by Jamie Oliver. The smoked rib I tried at the stall was possibly best being served at the event.
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| Smoked short ribs |
I stopped by Andina‘s Peruvian food stall for some Mini Pork Chicharrones after one of the staff mentioned that it was a very addictive dish. I have to say that she was right and I think am finally going to visit their restaurant in Shoreditch. I walked by a few times but never entered as I wasn’t sure about the menu.
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| Confit pork belly with PK Rocoto Chilli Sauce, salsa criolla |
A quick trip downstairs to 2 stalls that caught my eye, Kurobuta and Ember Yard. I tried the pork buns at Kurobuta. A decent try but I felt the soy overpowered the tasty pork. The pork should be the star of the dish and I couldn’t really taste it as it was buried under the Soy sauce and and accompanying Peanut flavours.
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| Kurobuta: BBQ Pork Belly in Steamed Buns with Spicy Peanut Soy |
The last place we ate at was Ember Yard. The Iberico Pork ribs , followed by the Truffle Mac and cheese were 2 dishes I was looking forward to trying. The pork ribs tasted good however I must say, liked Barbecoa’s version more. The Truffle Mac and Cheese was a little disappointing. I wasn’t expecting it to be grainy, however with that said I practically finished it, so it could not have been too bad on the whole. I also bought the Charcoal grilled Octopus and Chorizo with Saffron Aioli for 5 crowns (Currency used at the event, with each crown representing a pound). I think for that amount they should serve more than 2 grilled octopus mini octopus balls on the stick.
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| Iberico Pork Ribs with Quine Glaze and Squash Puree |
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| Truffled Mac and Cheese |
A quick wander around the place on our way home led us to stop at Great Eastern market. There was a very nice little place selling some delightful cakes and sweet treats so make sure you pick up some nice deserts for you to have when you get home. My girlfriend said The Lemon Lime tart was to die for, I’m salivating just thinking about it.
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| ‘Someone’ took the lemon Tarts home so I never got to taste them. Quite painful really. |
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It ends on Sunday the 23rd of November,so you better hurry! It comes highly recommended. Tickets cost about £21.50 including booking fee, you will then receive your taste card on arrival which acts as your ticket and way of paying for all the delicious foods at the event, however some stalls do accept cash.
Have a nice weekend and have fun if you do get to visit.
See you soon 🙂
