Exploring London with Secret Food Tours
Everybody who knows us knows that we love food. And that’s also what we love to do while traveling: trying new foods. In London, there are so many food markets and restaurants. It was overwhelming to do research and find the best spots. So what better way to find the best spots and taste the best foods than to do a food tour?
We booked a tour with Secret Food Tours: their guides know all the best places to have delicious food. In the past, we did a food tour in Vancouver with them. In London, they offer 5 different food tours in 5 different parts of London. It is hard to choose which one to book. After looking at the dishes and the various neighborhoods, we decided on the one in Camden.
And why are they called Secret Food Tours? They always include a secret dish in their tour that they don’t show on their website. There is still some surprise left!
On the day of the food tour through London, our guide Anita was waiting for us with the orange umbrella. Although we had a small breakfast, we were very eager to start the food tour.
Stop 1: BOXPARK – secret dish
We start strong: with the secret dish. I can’t tell you what it is but it is a British classic with a twist. We enjoy it at BOXPARK, a nice mixture of food venues and stores. The dish is the good kind of messy and we know right away we are in for some more treats.
Stop 2: gin at Half Hitch Gin
Anita guides us through the streets of Camden while giving a short history lesson. We learn where the word “hungover” came from. And before we know it, we are at our second stop: Half Hitch Gin. This small-batch gin distillery is the only one left of London’s big gin industry. We get to try 3 different gins, also the new Christmas gin. It’s a bit strong for me, but I get to try it with some tonic.
Stop 3: Birria tacos at Camden Lock
Our third stop is next to the gin distillery: we get to try some birria tacos. Birria is a Mexican dish that was originally made with goat meat. Because goat meat is very gamey and has a tough texture, they cooked it for a long time at low temperatures. Nowadays it is mainly made with beef and served with a delicious broth (consommé) made with the juices from the meat and spices; perfect for dipping the taco in. This was so good. I already searched for a place in Belgium where we can have them (but didn’t find any).
Stop 4 and 5: duck, char siu sou and fried pizza at Hawley Wharf
Before getting to the 4th stop, we bring a visit to one of the most famous stores in Camden: Cyberdog. After seeing some beautiful street art, we get to Hawley Wharf. This is a relatively new part of Camden that was built after a fire in 2008. Like in the rest of Camden, there are a wide variety of food stalls to choose from. We combine 2: we get roasted duck and char siu sou (a roast pork puff pastry) to start. The duck was nice and crispy and paired well with the sweet sauce. The pastry was sweet and salty at the same time.
After that, we had fried pizza dough topped with ricotta, mortadella, and pistachio with a nice glass of red wine. There are only 2 places in the world where you can get this fried pizza: here and in Naples. This was also so good and not as heavy as you would think.
Stop 6: Cheese platter at Camden Stables
We are getting to the end of our food tour, so we can go towards dessert. But first, we try a cheese plate with 3 different English cheeses. Creamy goat cheese (paired with honeycomb), cornish gouda (paired with fudge), and blue cheese (paired with chutney). This is all combined with a glass of cider; this goes all very well together. We also get the opportunity to try stilton and caramelized walnut gelato with a shot of Ruby Port! The taste of the blue cheese was not overpowering at all: this was a nice surprise!
Stop 7: Humble Crumble
This was the only food that I had on my wish list to try: an apple crumble from Humble Crumble. I was happy that we had a small portion because, by this time, we were all stuffed. And it was as good as I thought it would be: delicious apples and crumble and a silky créme anglaise.
Conclusion
This food tour through Camden Market was so worth it. We had so much amazing food and learned a lot about the history of London and Camden. My favorite was the taco but the blue cheese ice cream was a close second. This is a must when you are in London and you love food!
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Some of these links are affiliate links. If you buy something through these links, Travel Eat Enjoy Repeat will earn a small commission. This will cost you nothing extra. This article is the result of a fun collaboration with Secret Food Tours. But as always, all opinions are my own!.
