2 weeks Ago By Sophie Swietochowski
IT’S too much to resist the temptation of the warm, sweet treat in front of me. Just one bite into its syrupy crust, dolloped with mountains of cream and oozing from its custard-like centre, has my mind settled. This is my new favourite dessert.
I cannot tell you what it is, though. That would ruin the secret. I’m at the penultimate stop on my Secret Food Tour of London’s Soho.
“One dish is always kept a secret on our tours,” grins Oliver Mernick-Levene, co-founder of the tour company. As we mop the sticky remainders of the surprise dish away from our chins, he tells me that he wants to give customers a flavour of something they may not have tried before, that still remains relatively undiscovered, even among the locals. He has certainly hit the brief.
As a travel writer who has tucked into local grub from all corners of the world, I cannot say that I have ever tried this before. But this moreish sweet treat may not remain a secret for long. What was once a small, quiet stall in London’s bustling Borough Market ten or so years ago now attracts a snaking queue at all hours of the day.
This stall is the home of Secret Food Tours’ first ever secret dish and one of the birthplaces of the company – formed in 2013 by Oliver and his Paris-based pal Nico Jacquart, who began sharing restaurant and market favourites with friends and travellers in their home cities. None of the restaurants we visit on our three-to-four-hour trip are chains, except a London-centric one, which we swing by for crispy truffle arancini and juicy meatballs washed down with a crisp prosecco, all because it’s simply an institution in the capital. The same goes for the 70 other countries where these food tours operate.
This is down to the fact that each one is thoughtfully crafted by a local who knows all the secrets of their hometown – and not just the foodie ones either. I cannot tell you how many times I have marched through the streets of Soho on my way to a dinner date, oblivious to the history of the cobbled paving stones I’m stomping on, or the wonky shops that have been transformed into trendy cafes and art galleries. With almost 100 tours spread across America, Europe, Australia and Asia, it’s certainly something that can be added on to any getaway But in between nibbles, our guide Charlie tells us how Soho became the foodie destination it is today.
My favourite tale is about one of Queen Anne’s footmen, William Fortnum, who melted down the remnants of old palace candles to sell on so he and his landlord Hugh Mason had enough money to open a market stall, where you could buy the first ever scotch egg. And did you know that Berwick Street market was the first place in London to sell tomatoes on the street? Or that Ronnie Scott’s jazz club is where Jimi Hendrix played his last ever gig in 1970? With almost 100 tours spread across America, Europe, Australia and Asia, it’s certainly something that can be added on to any getaway. Personally I would book for the start of a holiday, so you can utilise the wealth of tips you will come away with.
Charlie was bursting with enthusiasm for the city he was born in and shared with us some of his favourite places not featured on the tour (those have been earmarked in my notebook for another time). Now the only thing left to do is devour the remnants of the food I have collected. I have just about enough room in my stomach for that cream-stuffed eclair.
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