Borough Market in London has been in existence for hundreds of years. It is the oldest market in the United Kingdom. I’m positive that at some point, anyone and everyone who has ever been in London, either to live or visit, has made their way over to this hip market that’s just a stone’s throw away from the world-famous London Bridge.
I’ve even seen a photo of Prince Charles and his wife Camilla there. It is quite a popular destination as you can find some of the freshest fruit, vegetables, and the finest artisanal baked and dairy goods.
Borough Market: A Guide
Where is Borough Market?
Borough Market sits just under the railway lines and conveniently, the Borough Market tube stop is London Bridge. Just follow the crowd once you exit :-). We decided to stop by for some quick food on our recent visit to London. We try to do it every time, time permitting, of course.
We were starving as it was late afternoon. We were headed back to central London but impulsively decided to head there. It was a great decision as we had seriously yummy and inexpensive food.
RELATED READING: Loving London
Borough Market: a tiny bit of history:
The Market was first opened in the 11th century as a place for merchants to sell their British-reared meat and fine baked goods. Sometime during the 13th century, the traders were relocated to Borough High Street.
The reincarnation of Borough Market at its current location was in 1756. Parliament had shut it down the previous year. A group of concerned citizens raised the £6000 needed to buy the patch of land.
Borough Market: Best food market in London (my opinion)
The Borough market is home to approximately 80 individual stalls. It would be nearly impossible not to find something to your liking. They have everything from a slow-roasted pig to Asian fast food to mouth-watering sandwiches.
The hard part is trying to decide what to eat, not the lack of variety. I ended up having some Indonesian food while Federico had his Bratwurst. As for dessert, we indulged in some Nutella-filled donuts (not eaten there, we brought that back to the apartment to consume for breakfast) and German fruit cake which was simply delicious.
Related: Market Leadenhall London
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After getting our fill of food, we walked it off by visiting the Tower Bridge, which is always delightful, We also made our way to the Shard for a few pictures. We didn’t go in. Way too expensive, but l would like to visit it at some point.
Some of the most popular Borough Market Restaurants include:
- Padella for simple but fantastic Italian food. Small menu, not very expensive, and gets raves.
- Tapas Birdies for some of the best tapas at Borough Market Southwark London Bridge area
- Arthur Hooper’s for small plate tapas and wine from all over the world.
- Roast Borough Market – Deliciously British food, all prepared from the day’s market offering.
There are also lots of Borough Market pubs if you’re into drinking and/or pub crawling including The Globe Tavern and The Market Porter.
London Market Wrap-up :
A visit to the Borough Market is a must if you are foodies like us. We always try to stop here at least once anytime we visit London. You will love the assortment of fresh goods on offer. It is also a good starting point from which to walk and hit some landmarks in London, such as the Tower Bridge, the oldest Gothic Church in London, namely the Southwark Cathedral.
There is also a gigantic mall called the Hays if that’s your thing, museums, not to mention people watching (I love that. I always get a kick at deciphering between the locals, who are usually stylishly dressed, and the tourists who are usually just dressed for comfort).
Sometimes you get lucky enough to catch shows or outdoor film screenings. It’s always an enjoyable outing. Eating at London markets like this is a good way to minimize costs in a very expensive place. For more tips, make sure to read how to do London cheaper tips post.
Admittedly, l have become a fan of fresh veggies and fish since we moved to Europe and grocery shop almost daily. The food certainly tastes better to me. I did notice how much more expensive the fruit and vegetables were compared to the prices in Spain.. like triple.
Borough Market Opening Times: (Borough Market Hours)
Borough Market Sunday visit is not happening – CLOSED!
Monday to Thursday 10AM – 5PM
Friday: 10AM – 6PM
Saturdays: 8AM- 5PM
Have you ever visited the Borough Market London? Do you love fresh food or are you more of a fast food, whatever goes kind of person?
I definitely appreciate fresh, organic food. You can taste the difference. One of my goals is to eventually eat all organic. I only hope that it will become the new normal and drive prices down. I love European market culture and the fact that they shop daily as opposed to stocking up like we do. I’ll definitely have to check this market out the next time I’m in London (it:s been years since I’ve been!).
I certainly hope the prices come down too. I think a lot of people would love to eat fresher organic food, but the prices keep it an impossible dream. It is so much cheaper to get fatty, sugar laden food than to eat healthy :-(. You should check out the market on your next trip. I think you would really enjoy it.
i got fat just looking at all the bread. I LOVE London!
They do look good don’t they? Federico says he would totally scrub toilets if it meant living in London.. ;-). We both love it. It is just so freaking expensive for the kind of life l would want..haha!
The picture you including of the pastries has my mouth watering!I didn’t get to visit any markets but it is HIGH on my to do list the next time I’m in London. Thanks for sharing!
Just putting the pictures on the post made me hungry all over again. Federico had to mention the guy throwing away all the “good” fatty parts..again! I hope you get to visit some markets next time you go. I’m not too crazy about the shopping for knick-knack ones, give me food any old time :-). Thanks for the comment.
London is my favorite city but I’ve never been to Borough Market! The food looks phenomenal so I definitely have to check it out on my next visit.
LiveLifeWell,
Allison
You definitely should Allison, the food is quite fresh and delicious :-). I love discovering new places to eat. Yep.. London is my favorite city too!
So, I guess no radical diet resolutions for 2016?? 🙂
Frank (bbqboy)
..Mmmm… Nope!!! 😉
I have never been to London= fish & chips and tea. …Borough Market looks interesting …lots of food the eggs( wow), sweets and all that breads. Freshly made organic is expensive but well worth splurging. You had a great time great!
You know we were a bit surprised that it was that expensive because here in Spain, it’s way cheaper. We are now spoiled.. :-). You just wish you could sample everything looking at all the goodies. I hope you get to visit London at some point. Yep..you can’t go wrong with fish and chips. Thanks for the comment.
Maybe one day get to go to London. Thanks.
🙂
I love a good market. My mouth is watering just looking at all the delicious foods in your photos!
Me too. I hate shopping for clothes and such (except handbags 🙂 ), but l love a good market with food. I kept saying the same thing while editing the pictures..haha! Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Fantabulous post. I loved it. (I think I say that a lot! I really need to get traveling.) Markets are one of my absolute favorites when we travel. I don’t think I’d ever leave this one. Interesting about the prices between Spain and London. One thing I remember about Spain, it was in May, was that we’d just walk around and fruit would be falling off the trees onto the ground! We tried to get my mother-in-law to pick one and eat a fresh orange, but she wouldn’t do it. I think we were in monastery ruins or something. But the fruit trees were amazing to me. You look great! Are those braids gone now?
Haha! Nope, this is the first time you have used fantabulous! :-). It’s a good thing that your MIL did not eat the falling oranges. They are bitter as heck ;-). They fall off the trees constantly. We have 3 of them in the yard and are constantly picking them up when in season, like now. The city every so often will bring out trucks and men to pick them up. They are sold off to companies to make marmalade with. I wish they were the sweet ones.. Thanks for the compliment. Yes, they are gone..back to being bald! It just refuses to grow.. :-(. Need to find someone around here that can put them in for me :-).
I’m so glad she didn’t eat a bitter orange! That would have been disappointing.
No lie! She would have been very mad..haha 🙂
I’ve never been to London but this post makes me want to hop on the next flight out!
Haha! This would be a good time to visit since it’s off season and the flights are cheaper.. Go! 🙂 😉 🙂
I love all the beautiful stalls! Especially the floral ones. Such blogger pictures, LOL!
Imagine how many stalls we missed. We kind of stopped once we found what we wanted to eat :-). It is such a cool place as t spreads out to the next street over, and in between there are pubs, restaurants and a gazillion people milling about. It really is a very nice area. I’m not big on flowers, but they do look pretty don’t they? Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Lovely pictures, that market looks like a place I would love to visit! I hope to make it to London one day within the next few years or so!
I hope you get there as well. It is absolutely my favorite place, and it wasn’t so damn expensive, l would live there.. ;-). The market, and the whole area actually is quite nice. Someone mentioned that l forgot about the great pubs there too.. how silly of me :-). Thanks for the comment.
What a nice looking place (and even better looking food). I should make sure not to put London on my “to visit” list because it does seem really cheap. I’d probably use up all our travel budget during one visit to the market, hahaha. But it would be all well worth it, at least for the roasted meat and a slice of that German cake 🙂
I know what you mean about the prices. We were shocked as well comparing it to Spain. For sure l don’t think l would be able to eat fresh if l lived there. The salaries don’t correlate to eating fresh for most people. There are ways to do London on a frugal budget, so l don’t think you should take it off your list just yet :-). The German cake was very delicious. I think if he had kept the fat on the roasted meat, we would have had..,meh to lean :-).
Thinking of planning a vacation with my family here! Totally awesome tip! A must try for sure!
That sounds like a fantastic plan Nicole. I think everyone would love it as there is so much to do. Check out other posts l have on London via the search for more things to do as well as tips on doing it on the cheap (er). :-).
Such a lovely post kemkem and yes, we’re foodies!!
I know Borough Market well as it’s considered to be one of the best, and as you correctly stated, the oldest. The variety and quality of food is second to none and hardly surprising since the parish of Southwark has been a place of importance for a very long time! What with the presence of “old London” and a combination of the new, it’s a pleasant place to spend a few days just wandering, strolling and chatting with the locals.
And of course, who doesn’t know that old nursery rhyme – “London Bridge Is Falling Down”….. or even “London’s Burning! London’s Burning!” which we all used to sing as young children lol!
Burn it did too! :-). I love that whole area, and walking around..not to mention the food as well :-). You can not fault the quality. The worst part is trying to decide what to eat 😉 as everything looks so good, and yummy! I always picture the book Pillars of the earth whenever l think of the market area. Thanks for the compliment :-).
I hadn’t heard of the market, Kemkem, but some of the food looked great even though we’re not foodies at all. I like taking pictures of markets rather than trying the local delicacies!
Oh it’s a very popular market indeed, and always crowded. So many pubs in the area too and makes a nice long walk to see the other lovely bits of the city. Oh, I couldn’t just take pictures, I gotta eat…haha! I’m a foodie after all. I hope you guys are well 🙂