WeFeast

Tobacco Dock, London

The Long Table was the first night market I visited in London. I would never have thought people in London would queue up in the cold, on a rainy day, to go to an uncovered venue for food. Not everyone loved the idea but there was certainly enough demand to start the ‘night food market trend’. And a few other bigger food markets such as TheStockMKT and WeFeast have proven to be highly successful since then.

A few weeks ago I went to WeFeast at Tobacco Dock – a converted warehouse in Wapping. The venue was 80% covered, and set up with several communal tables. More than 20 street food vendors had participated in this event. They were evenly spread out on the ground and first floors, leaving plenty of room for the guests to explore, and more importantly to form queues. At first I found the entry fee a bit pricey (starting at £8 + booking fee), but in return we got a line-up of some of London’s best street vendors and restaurants. Together with the entertainment and the very helpful on-site staff, the price seemed reasonable.

So, as the name of the event stated, it was a feast so we ate a lot. Besides my favourites - Elliot’s Café, Bone Daddies, The Bowler and Pizza Pilgrims - I also had my first tastes of Patty and Bun, Meringue Girls, The Last Days of Pisco and Hix Fish Dog. Among those, the sea bass ceviche by The Last Days of Pisco and the ginger and rhubarb Eton mess by the Meringue Girls were the real highpoints of the night. I even convinced Pizza Pilgrims to make me a custom oyster pizza. I know it sounds disgusting but with the addition of nduja it tasted SO GOOD.

Full set of photos here. Keep your eyes peeled for the next Feast!

WeFeast

Ginseng Chicken Soup, Seoul

I had been to Seoul once when I was little. Back in those days my parents were not very adventurous travellers (not with two kids anyway!), so we just joined a tour group - one of those tours ran specifically for Hong Kong tourists, which only took us to Chinese restaurants for most of the meals during the trip. But on one very cold day, when we had just got off the coach after a long drive from the mountains, feeling tired and hungry, we were treated to a local speciality. My parents told me I could have one whole chicken to myself, and wow, I was over the moon. It was served in a black casserole filled with a cloudy chicken stock. I remember scooping out the glutinous rice from inside the chicken cavity, and my glasses steamed up with the fragrance of ginseng. This is one of my earliest food memories.

Tosokchon is a very popular Samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) restaurant in Seoul. It is often swamped by Chinese and Japanese tour groups, therefore most of the staff are fluent in both languages. The classic ginseng chicken soup came with a shot of ginseng liquor, some people drink it before the meal but I like to pour it into the stock. The young chicken was stuffed with glutinous rice, chestnuts, ginseng and dates, and then poached in a herbal stock. The sweetness from the flesh was a perfect match for the gentle bitterness from the ginseng.

From a Chinese medicinal point of view, eating ginseng is said to enhance the inner strength of the human body, so we do not become ill easily. I did feel my body temperature boost for a good while afterwards. It is quite hard to bring myself to believe that this is actually a summer dish!

Tosokchon 토속촌삼계탕

After the meal we stumbled into a nearby local market. We saw a herbal shop, countless bowls of pickled vegetables and some spicy fish.

Just a normal day for these ladies, sorting through a huge basket of chillies.

Tongin Market 통인시장

A short 15 minute walk away from Tosokchon, you can find one of the must-visit palaces in Seoul - The Gyeongbokgung palace. Apart from its history and architectural background, the guard changing ceremony was also a highlight of the visit. Check out the stick-on beards!

The beautiful floating Gyeonghoeru pavilion is located at the west side of the palace, where the king used to hold feasts for important guests and officials.

The Gyeongbokgung Palace 경복궁