Sunday morning…well, afternoon…I like a lie in, don’t judge me! Not wanting to wander too far from home, I thought it was about time that I explored some local options. In the last few months, Roman Road in Mile End/Bow has seen some great new additions – one of those is Cafe East. I’ve walked past a few times and today was the day I was to go in, after seeing some of their photos on Instagram.
Following our preview post last month, here we have it, the return of the East London tropical beach pop up…the Last Days of Shoreditch. I’m unsure where the name came from exactly but positioned on the crevis of Great Eastern Street and Old Street, you’ll find a beach hideaway nestled and ready for you to pull up a deckchair.
We were lucky enough to go to the launch of FDoS and although there was a little delay on allowing entry we were glad to get to the bar and have a drink as the sun was shining and we were all excited to see what was available this season.
Hungry. In Soho. Not sure what to eat as I fancy something new…that’s when I stumbled upon Gaza Cafe completely by accident, and was drawn over to the window by a picture of a rice burger. Rice burger? Say whaaaaat…. Although effectively this is a standard rice dish shaped like a burger, it appealed more! Intrigued, we went in.
It’s 2017 and any products that can be made into a unicorn, will be made into a unicorn! That includes the freakshake, and I have wanted to try one of these dessert giants for a while now. I missed the Pokemon freakshake boat last year, so why not take the opportunity to try a unicorn one!
Prawnography – ooooo matron! Who are these punny fish fans? Well I discovered them as one of this year’s *new* traders at Dinerama is Prawnography and you can find them on the right hand side as you come in, with their little fisherman style hut, decked out to very much suit the cuisine.
Your captain is Jim Thomlinson, a Michelin Star chef who wanted to try his hand at fancy street food. Now although Prawnography are relatively new – I say this as they’ve been at Dinerama for a good six months now at least – they’ve been at Hawker House for two years but are fully embracing their new home in East London. Personally I am yet to visit Hawker House, but East London has a very foodie crowd which allows Jim to ‘fancy up’ his dishes and play around with his obvious Michelin quality presentation.
This week we see Last Days of Shoreditch Riviera arrive back in the heart of East London, in the crevis where Old Street and Great Eastern Street meet, with a sensational summer programme of beats, bars and beach life. If you feel so inclined, you can relax to the sounds of XOYO DJs who will take the Saturday daytime residency each week, expect cocktails, an urban beach, craft beer bars alongside mouthwatering street food as well as a pop up restaurant and label takeovers.
Last weekend I found myself with pal Goldy Loxx/Anna in Soho, looking for something to put in our mouths. That sounds weird. BUT IT WAS TRUE. We weren’t sure what we fancied and I had walked past HipChips several times in the past and assumed it would be long gone as a pop up but here it was, still serving. So we went in.
Are you allergic to fish? If so, probably don’t read this. Or do! Here we have Sushi Gourmet who, as you may be able to guess, are a sushi hub. They do also serve up non fishy treats (such as the chicken gyoza I’ve sampled or perhap teppanyaki) which is where the above “or do” applies. Anyhoo, Sushi Gourmet just opened their first UK sushi kiosk in the Sainsbury’s Nine Elms store! Yay!
The low-down on Sushi Gourmet is they are offering customers a brand new food buying experience, with sushi chefs hand making the products in front of their very eyes. SG only use ingredients from hand picked suppliers but with all this they’re also price concious to let you chow down on quality sushi without breaking the bank. J’adore.
Cajun Catfish burger/ sandwich – £6
I was going to have boring lunch today. Something standard. But then I realised it was a Thursday. Kerb is at the Gherkin on a Thursday. I did a little food #tbt, looking back on my photos from Kerb at the Gherkin a few weeks ago…and that was it. My boring plan was ruined. I knew I had to go again at lunch and from browsing the vendors available (the line up changes every week) I knew who I’d be heading to. But I didn’t expect to pick the dish I picked…
‘The Green One’ Steak and courgette fries- £8 – Stakehaus @ Kerb at the Gherkin
Thursday lunchtime we popped over to Kerb at the Gherkin to cheer up a pretty dismal chilly feeling Thursday. The traders at this site vary from week to week so I had looked beforehand and knew I was heading straight to Stakehaus. I’d meant to visit them at another street food venue but I think the advertising was wrong so grabbed this opportunity by the…er..cow horns.
