So, my friends Christopher and Ivan were passing by Blackbridge today and kind fellows that they are, bought me a truly wonderful present. Two Eccles Cakes from St John.

Eating these required a certain something else so I strode manfully up to Whitecross Market to the Neal’s Yard stall and bought me some Mrs Kirkhams Lancashire cheese.

I’m literally all smiles now.

For us, anyway:

Clicky

Just next to Holborn - quite random, but pretty cool.

You need to book tickets as it’s on a schedule (but it is free).

Nigh on five years ago (gracious) Blackbridge’s life began on a London street which offered much in the way of breakfast/lunchtime/snacktime culinary options. In fact, the only regret I have about the move onwards and upwards to our current home on Great Sutton Street was that we chose an area which is in comparative terms, a culinary wasteland.

That said, as anybody who has visited us recently will know, for the last year we’ve been blessed by our proximity to one of the contenders for London’s best café, the J & A. That’s a whole different post which I’ll really have to get around to one day, but right now, I’m here to talk about the other shining light in our lunchtimes - Whitecross Street Market.

Back in the proverbial, Whitecross Street was notable to me because of a rather chaotic second-hand record shop (now gone the way of every other rather chaotic second-hand record shop I used to visit), a great sushi place and the rather alarming occasion when while walking to work one morning ages ago, some local toughs threw an egg at me. They missed. Luckily for them. Ahem. Anyway, anyway, now, this has all been eclipsed by it having become one of this part of London’s finest features - you really should witness the food stalls which now populate Whitecross Street, especially on Thursday and Friday. Such choice! You can queue up for a burrito, buy a flatwhite made by the world’s best barrista, have a fine Chicken sandwich (which happens to often be the choice of my esteemed colleague Finn) or enjoy at least a dozen other exciting options. There are still blokes selling sweets, dodgy CDs and batteries too. It is great, my friends. And fortunately for us all, just slightly far enough away to avoid a daily visit, which is a darn good thing for our waistlines. Happy us. Happy us!

And talking of burritos…