If you’re in East London, there’s no shortage of cooler-than-cool street food markets. But if you don’t want to trek out to Dalston, how many options are there? Fortunately for the stomachs of wider London, Street Feast have come to the rescue with Hawker House in Canada Water. I visited the Hackney version last year so I had very high hopes.
I barely ate all day in preparation for the taste sensations that I knew awaited me. As we entered the huge warehouse, my eyes swept side to side, struggling to take in the vast space. This iteration of Hawker House is spacious and has a massive number of different food and drink options with very little queuing involved – it’s brilliant! Emma and I got a drink (priorities) – cider for her, an applegrass cocktail of vodka, apple, ginger and lemon for me. Then we did a lap of both sides to make sure we were aware of all possible options before making our all-important food choices.
See?? Huge! And this is just one side…
There was everything from lobster to steak, tacos to Venezuelan arepas, every possible kind of fries you could want and even Meringue Girls for dessert! Choosing was beyond tough, but eventually we settled on Korean pancakes from Busan BBQ first up.
Most of the smaller items are priced around £4, with many stalls offering 2 for £7 or 3 for £10 – bargain! We had all three varieties of pancake – pork belly, fried chicken and chilli cheese. I ate the pork belly, which melted in the mouth, but with a great spicy kick – the perfect start to my dining experience.
Our next choice were the spicy sliders from Rola Wala. The goan chicken slider ended up being my favourite of the night – juicy and tender with just the right amount of spice, I could have eaten plates of these!
Spicy paneer, goan chicken and pork
We took a breather and a chance for drinks when Rachael arrived, and did another lap of the massive space. The long tables were filled with families and friends enjoying the fun atmosphere, with a DJ providing tunes. As the London winter chill had set in outside, it was noticeable how cosy and warm it was inside, with heaters blasting. Ideal!
Rachael, Emma and I very happy with our evening’s choices
After catching up on all our gossip, it was time for our next round. Emma and I had happily sampled Venezuelan arepas for the first time while exploring Open House London, so when I spotted them here at Petare’s stall I knew I had to give them another try.
More melt-in-my-mouth pork, their signature spicy avocado sauce and the delicious crunchy chewy cornbread meant I was a very happy arepa-eater. If you haven’t tried these yet, definitely give them a go!
Finally, I knew I had room for just one more morsel – but would it be tacos, jerk chicken, prawns or something else entirely? I don’t like to always get one thing, but having tried new-to-me meals all night, there was really only ever one choice for me – back to Yum Bun for my favourite pork belly bun. I’ve had it at a few different street food markets and it is one of my favourites ever – the perfect combination of flavours and textures. It is truly yum!
The duck bun at top and the heavenly pork belly below, on the trademark barrels which act as leaners
The food and drink options alone would make Hawker House a fantastic weekend destination, but coupled with a great venue and atmosphere, in my books it is a London must-do. But get in quick – it’s only on until the 12th of December! Your stomach will definitely thank you for making the effort.
For more information on Hawker House, click here.
Have you been to a street food market? What’s your favourite food option?
