Saturday morning, Andre and I woke up bright and early and set off to Brixton Village and Markets. Roaming through the stalls, we were starting to feel quite ravenous, so decided to grab some breakfast first. Strolling through the village, we came across Burnt Toast, a quirky little cafe with tables scattered out front. It was quite busy so we paired up with some others around a little blue table, blankets strewn over our knees for warmth as well as a couple of coffees served on a range of colourful saucers. The breakfast served wasn’t quite the traditional English breakfast one may seek out in London, mainly there wasn’t a baked bean in sight! But eying the emptying of the plates surrounding us, we could hardly wait to dig in.
I ordered the baked eggs and Andre the “Peckish” breakfast. But first came out the bread and butter. I loved this concept! At the end of our table was a toaster and basket full of condiments, including the ever tasty English delight, Marmite. Reaching over and beyond our new comrades, we toasted our freshly baked bread and slathered it in peanut butter while waiting for the real deal. My baked eggs looked heavenly, a perfectly puffy cloud sprinkled with cheese and exploding with mushrooms and spinach. Andre’s “Peckish” breakfast obviously meant “I am so hungry I could eat a horse” breakfast with a hefty portion of scrambled eggs, a huge heaping of bacon and two plump sausages. Although the cakes and desserts were flirting with us through the window, we finished up to make room for the massive queue forming.
We continued our journey through the markets, Andre picking up his regular fruit, veg and chicken, sampling some honey and pastries and sipping on Ethiopian smoothies of carrot, orange and ginger. We stopped ourselves before getting too carried away, so we could save some room for the Borough Markets, where we spent the afternoon grazing, sampling and being merry.
The Borough Markets came highly recommended by a fellow foodie passing through Paris this summer. It was her #1 place to explore when in London and without a doubt, I can see why. I had died and gone to foodie heaven! It was full of hustle and bustle in this dry, London afternoon and I could wait to join the chaos of it all as the scents of the different stalls lured me from the tube. We tasted cheeses, mustards, olive oils, smelled truffles and chatted with the guys from Cannon and Cannon British Charcuterie as well savoured the blood, wine and chocolate saucisson. We continued to stroll and marvel over the oyster bars, hanging pheasants and sizzling pans of paella and curries. Then I was stopped dead in my tracks as I watched a couple turn around with the most dazzling doughnuts I have ever seen... the centrefold in the doughnut magazines! I grabbed Andre’s arm and slithered our way through the crowd to Bread Ahead. We ordered two to go pronto: velvety chocolate and classic vanilla. The doughnuts were the size of baseballs, filled with silky smooth custard and dusted with sugar. It reminded me of fairy dust and every bite was like a thousand little fairies dancing on my tongue!
We only skimmed the surface of the Borough Markets and I am anxious already to get back and taste more! Next time we visit, we will be sure to skip the breakfast and wear some track pants! It’s a wonder we didn’t roll all the way home!