Borough Market

borough market

February 9th, 2013

A market is said to have existed on or near the current site of Borough Market since 1014.  The current buildings were erected between 1851 and 1860. They have seen a considerable amount of change over the last ten years – next week sees the reopening of Three Crown Square, closed for building work and refurbishment since 2009.

market hall

Borough Market acts as a wholesale food market from 2 – 8 am and since the late 90’s on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays it houses a retail market selling fine foods to the general public. It can be busy at lunchtimes, when local office workers visit to buy hot food and sandwiches. It’s especially busy on Saturdays, being popular with tourists and those looking to purchase high quality and exotic foods.

furness poultry and game

Furness Fish, Poultry and Game is very popular, with a meat stall selling hare, partridge, pheasant, roe deer, (hanging in the picture above) etc., when in season

furness fish

and a spectacular selection of fish

fish

which very few fishmongers in London can equal.

wyndham house poultry

There are still a considerable amount of game birds on sale, but as the season has finished it’s likely to be the last week they are available, until the end of next Autumn.

green market

The market is made up of several areas, with railway lines from London Bridge Station crossing above them. Passing through a Victorian railway arch into the Green Market, next to Southwark Cathedral, it’s sad to see that some things haven’t changed in 150 years – there’s a Dickensian looking old man begging next to the right hand side of the archway.

bread ahead

Bread Ahead Bakery stood out from other bakers at the market with their spectacular Le Pain Grand – middle left, which must be nearly 3 feet long!

vegetables

There is, of course, a large selection of vegetables, including pears from Kent and tomatoes from the Isle of White.

cannon and cannon

I was completely blown away by the British charcuterie sold by Cannon and Cannon,

venison chorizo

in particular their Scottish venison chorizo, which was so good it could have come from Spain.

borough cheese company

I particularly enjoy the fact that you can try the cheese and cured meats before you buy.

compté

There were at least three stalls selling Comté cheese. My favourite being the Comté sold by the Borough Cheese Company.

neal’s yard dairy

As an additional bonus, Borough Market is surrounded by shops, bars and restaurants, such as Brindisa, Monmouth Coffee Company, Neal’s Yard Dairy, The Globe, The Wright Brothers, etc.

I hadn’t visited for a while until recently, but it has struck me that Borough is every bit as good as the Boqueria in Barcelona and other old school European markets.

Borough Market is at: 8 Southwark Street, SE1 1TL