Excited About Lunch

Today we set ourselves a Task: To break the record for the most eateries visited in one lunch within a single market.
The Mission: not to feel like a stuffed pig when the task is completed.
The Venue: Brixton Village, an homage to street food.
Web: http://brixtonmarket.net/info/brixton-village/

Street Eat No 1: Mama Lan

WEB: www.mamalan.co.uk
PRICING: King prawn & water chestnut dumplings-£6, Spicy chicken wings-£4.50
RATING: 10

Mama Lan

Mama Lan is a testament to the saying “good things come in small packages”. It occupies a tiny corner in the market and specialises in homemade dumplings. You’ll probably have to wait for a seat, as there aren’t many of them, but it is well worth the wait. The delicious dumplings are heavenly, stuffed with fresh prawn and water chestnuts which gives them an incredibly fresh and delicate flavour.
If you have a hankering for some wings, go no further then this Mama! They are crispy, they are spicy and no other wing can compare to them. After a bite of these you’ll achieve wing nirvana.

Heaven on 2 plates..

Street Eat No 2: Mr Taco

PRICING: Chicken or beef taco – £1/£1.50
RATING: 10

Blazing the taco trail..

This very nice chap from Tenerife is an understated genius! He serves 200 magical little tacos a day on a small table with the few main ingredients and they are absolutely gorgeous! He was so fast I did not pay enough attention to what was going into them, but along with the chicken which was cooked in spices, and the usual guacamole, sour cream, cheese and herbs there was a kick of lime. I’m sure he must have added something else, because I don’t think I could replicate the flavour myself. I’m going to suggest he moves his operation to my office!

Street Eat No 3: KaoSarn

PRICING: Green Papaya Salad-£5.50
RATING: 8

We had an interesting experience at Kaosarn. The forecourt in front of the restaurant was full of people happily eating their Thai food, and completely oblivious to the humungous telescopic forklift parked right in front of them. But when we went to sit down at the only available table, the waitress came out and told us they were closed?! A few protestations later and she then said they could only do a few things from the menu, such as pad thai or a stir fry. We were only after a quick fix anyway, so we eventually convinced her to give us a green papaya salad.

The reluctant salad

Now let it be said that sometimes it is worth fighting for your lunch, because the salad was amazing. The green papaya, the sweetness of the cherry tomatoes, the crunch from the peanuts and julienned carrots, the fire from the chillies and not forgetting the fish sauce to launch it into a new dimension.

Street Eat No 4: Laboratorio Artigianale del Buon Gelato (Lab G)

PRICING: Large/3 scoops-£4.80
RATING: 10+

I have asked myself this question every day throughout our wash out of a summer; “where on earth can you get gelato in South London?”
The answer: Brixton village
The day was unusually hot, and Lab G drew us in like moths to a flame. And what a delectable flame it was. It’s quite a popular spot which must be savoured. You’ll be tempted to try your old favourites, but be sure to give some of the new concoctions a go, especially Beetroot. It sounds like a weird one but it was really good, and you can count it as one of your 5 a day 😉

Street Eat No 5: Federation Coffee

RATING: 5

After an exhausting half a day putting the market to the test, it began to draw to a close. As the traders prepared to shut up shop, we managed to beg a last cuppa from Federation. They handed me a disappointingly small cup of tea and a small almondy type cake with a tiny piece of fruit in it. Well it was the end of the day, who can complain?

VERDICT:

Brixton village is amazing! They have completely embraced the whole street food phenomenon and created an amazing atmosphere in the process. The market is bustling with cuisine from every corner of the earth and the act of sitting and eating at any one of them makes you feel like you are on holiday. It’s so cosmopolitan and it really has boosted the area tremendously.
For street foodies such as myself, there is no better place to visit without the worry of hygiene that you get when you’re abroad. I’m very keen to go on a world street food tour, and I was looking forward to doing just that on my previous two month tour around India. But after experiencing the street conditions, I was in constant fear that my stomach might spontaneously combust, and so kept to reputable restaurants.
This is why I love London markets. They bring so much worldly fabulousness right to our doorstep.