Where to spend the day in London Bridge

The London Bridge area is one of my favourite places in London. You have the River Thames to enjoy, Borough Market to stuff your face, numerous pubs to enjoy a beer and landmarks such as the Shard to enjoy. If you can find hotels near the Shard to stay, you won't have to worry about catching the last train home. 

First up on any itinerary should be a trip to the incredible Borough Market. Yes it can sometimes feel like a tourist trap but it is 100% worth a visit. You'll be greeted with some incredible food and will want to go with empty bellies. I recommend heading to Borough Kitchen and sampling some of the food stalls. All under cover, get there early so you can grab a seat and table. You should seek out the juicy jerk chicken from Rudies and have a huge scotch egg from Scotchtails. If you love Spanish tapas than Brindisa Kitchen Bar is perfect for all your croquette needs. 

You'll never be able to sample all of the food on offer in one day so I like to go around my favourite stalls to buy products to take home. Nothing beats a picky tea right? I always have to make sure to pop into Spice Mountain. They do an insane amount of different spices, lots of which you'll never find in your local Tesco! The Brindisa shop is perfect for cured meats and unusual cheeses. If you're a fan of olives then you must take a detour to Borough Olives for a pot. The sweet peppers are also worth trying. It's essential to buy a cinnamon swirl from Bread Ahead to save for later. Controversially I prefer them over their doughnuts!  

When the crowds of the market get too much, sneak down the side roads and make your way to the Anchor pub. Although it looks directly over the river you'll nearly always find a seat as it is pretty big. Take your time to walk upstairs to seek one out. It also has a fantastic terrace overlooking the Thames, a fab place to enjoy a glass of wine during the summer months. Or even the winter months if you're prepared to wrap up warm!

Once you've quenched your thirst and had a wander along the river, no doubt you'll build up your appetite again. Flat Iron Square is a pretty new food market. They often show sports on a large screen so it's great if you want to catch a match. It's filled with a few bars and a undercover selection of food stalls. It's a lot less busy than Borough Market so you should be ok to get a seat. This time we opted to hunt down Mother Clucker for their chicken strips. Make sure you ask for their Guinness gravy. You won't regret it!

Do you have a favourite place to visit in the London Bridge area?

The spending money was gifted by Hotels.com but all views are my own

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My 2020 food challenge

Instead of a New Years resolution last year I opted for a New Years challenge. Since I discovered my cooking passion about three years ago I've been really keen to try and better myself in the kitchen. I set myself the challenge of trying 52 new recipes from my endless collection of cookbooks and bookmarked recipes on the internet. I smashed it and had so much fun doing it! I felt like it really pushed me out of my comfort zone and encouraged me to try new things.

This year I decided to concentrate on my baking. I was talking to my friend's dad at a wedding and he was speaking about the fact he hadn't bought a loaf of bread for about 30 years. Instead he batch cooks them and keeps them in the freezer for when he needs them. I don't have anywhere near enough freezer space to do this but it did get me thinking about baking bread. Dough is something I have always shielded away from as yeast tends to make me a bit nervous. I have had some disasters in the past and its put me off.

But I decided this is the year that I master bread and dough. I've made a pact not to buy any loaves of bread and only eat it if I have bought it myself. I have noticed just how much bread I eat as I have been craving it something rotten! I want to try my hand at everything. Brioche, sourdough, loaves, buns and rolls. I'm hoping it will become second nature to rustle up a loaf of bread. Let's be honest. Is there any greater smell in the world than the smell of fresh bread baking in the oven?

I have already made a couple of things including an olive oil loaf from Good Food and a garlic pull apart bread from Olive Magazine. They both came out delicious but could still do with a lot of work to get them perfect. Looks like I'm going to be busy!

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Restaurant review: Breddos Tacos, Clerkenwell, central London

Tacos are one of those foods that I don't eat often but when I do, I wonder why the hell I don't eat them more often. For my birthday lunch last week I decided to opt for Breddos Tacos. I had tried their tacos at Taste London a few years back but had yet to visit their sit-in restaurant in Clerkenwell. This all changed last Thursday and now I'm already planning a trip back with friends. Spoiler alert... It was absolutely divine!

We booked a table for 12pm as I had a birthday surprise to look forward too. I would recommend booking because it's an area popular with city workers and the restaurant was heaving by 12.30. You don't want to miss out on getting a table! We arrived pretty hungry and definitely had eyes bigger than our bellies when we finally ordered.

I am a sucker for guacamole so will always, always order that if I see it on the menu. This version came with a mountain of chips and had a slight kick to it. I loved the added extra of the pistachio crumbs to add some texture. It was a fairly big portion and was more than enough for two people to share. Our second starter was the Queso. I had such high hopes for this but it just fell a little flat. It didn't really have any flavour, just a generic cheddar cheese flavour. A bit of a disappointment.

First up were the Baja fish tacos which were insanely good. Seriously I'd go back and order just a dozen of these all to myself. The batter was so light and they certainly didn't scrimp on the filling. The habanero mayo tied it all perfectly together. Next up were the confit pork belly tacos. These were a little chewy but the flavour was on point. I loved the contrast of the fresh cucumber. I'd recommend getting the Masa fried chicken tacos to try. Again with that gorgeous habanero mayo, I loved the addition of the red cabbage. We couldn't resist leaving without trying a burrito. Something we totally didn't need but we took one for the team. Bursting at the seams with spinach, black beans and avocado, we opted for the one filled with tender braised beef shin. It was tasty but not a patch on the tacos we tried. I'd definitely opt for the tacos over a burrito any day and advise you do the same.

Service was pretty attentive and our food came out in timely fashion. It's in a great little location in central London, not too far from the Barbican. It isn't one of the cheapest places I've eaten in London but it was worth every penny. I'd highly recommend anyone making a special trip to that part of town. I'm after the cookbook now to try and recreate those tacos at home!

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