Street Food

The Rise and Growing Popularity of Street Food

Through out Britain over last ten years food has become a very hot topic indeed. Once treated as a necessity that had to be carried out like a chore, food has become big business with more TV shows based around cookery than ever before, cookery books outselling any other kind of publishing and numerous newspapers and magazines featuring recipes and food features. People have finally got excited about food. When it comes to eating out this passion for food has been directed towards casual dining and street food, with many new markets and festivals popping up all over town.

It would seem people have demanded access to exciting, high quality food without having to adorn a dinner jacket and spend three hours precisely nibbling many courses while paying through the nose for the privilege. Street food markets and stalls have provided the perfect answer for the busy folks who rushed out the house with no breakfast, to grab it on their way to the office or at lunch time provide a far tastier low cost social alternative to a stale mass produced boring sandwich and packet of crisps from the supermarket.

It’s astounding how long it has taken for street food to become popular, many Asian countries  have been doing it for decades. Perhaps it was snobbery and these recent years of austerity have brought us all down a peg or two. Whatever the reason, I for one, am very glad that the whole scene has taken off here in the UK.

Most major cities and towns now hold at least one street food market or festival, local councils are happy to add some buzz to their otherwise bland plazas and struggling high streets, drawing a crowd as people socialise over tasty freshly prepared food for little cost. In London the average vendor is selling a meal for around £6. While the summer sun is here markets are extremely popular as folks perch on near by benches or stone steps to chow down. But even in the cold winter days, places such as Canary Wharf’s Woodside Lunch market still gathers the business men and women of the near by offices together for some al fresco dining.

Visiting a street food market is a chance to sample food from exciting young chefs, made with love and quality ingredients. The difficulty comes in trying to decide what to have, with so many tempting smells wafting up the nose and varieties in cuisine one just has to keep coming back from more!

Check out this link for Time Out’s best street food markets in London. Do a google search for your local town or city to see what’s going on. Here’s a few tips to get you started: 10 Cities Where You Can Eat Amazing Street Food. Please do leave your comments on your favourite market to visit and why.