Market Days in London: Camden and Borough

Recently I have been able to visit two of London's most famous markets: Borough and Camden. Although they are both markets in London, they could not be more different from each other! Each has its own ~vibe, if you will. However, both have incredibly yummy food and are definite must-sees while in London. 

Borough Market 

I actually visited Borough Market on a CIEE group excursion through. We walked there, which was perfect because of how sunny it was and all the different sites we got to see. Tom from Student Life gave us a bit of a tour/some good info on our walk there as well! Borough Market is in an area called Southwark/London Bridge, and is located really close to other famous sites, like Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. 

When we arrived at the actual market, I was blown away by all of the food options, it was food stall upon food stall (umm heaven???). I purposefully did not eat before so I was basically drooling over all the yummy food. A lot of the vendors also give out free samples, so its a perfect way to get a taste of some of the options there before you commit to a meal or snack. I settled on a burger (I unfortunately cannot remember the name of the vendor, sad) and it was truly life changing. So inexpensive compared to a sit down restaurant in London and was so delicious (side note: check out the picture of me and my incredible burger above)!! There was also a vegetarian and vegan option, big fan. 

For dessert, I stopped at a bakery stand in the Green Market section of the Market and got a cinnamon bun called 'sinfully delicious'. Can confirm it was in fact ~sinfully delicious. There's also a picture of me and pal Jenna with our absolutely mindblowingly delicious cinnammon bun above! 

9After walking around for a bit and eating, I then had to head back to CIEE for my afternoon class. However, I plan to go back to Borough Market many times to try even more delicious food while I'm in London!! 

Camden Market 

I was actually on an excursion with my European Immigration Class and it ended up being located in the Camden neighborhood. So after my class excursion finished up, I decided to stop by Camden Market for an afternoon snack and to check it out. Camden Market is a popular spot for locals and tourists alike. It is definitely a bit more touristy than Borough Market, however there are so many amazing food options and things to check out. 

Camden is a bit edgier and more bohemian than other neighborhoods in London that I frequent, and that was very obvious walking up to the market. There was a lot of amazing street art everywhere! The market itself is full of food stalls/vendors and shops. I did not get to check out the shops since I was there for a snack, so I went straight to the food (priorities ok!!). I walked around for a minute before laying eyes on a mac&cheese vendor called The Mac Factory. I had been craving some food that reminded me of the States, so I went for it. It was cheesey noodle perfection, and I don't use that word lightly. I sat and ate my mac&cheese right next to the water/bridge to get to the market and it was the perfect Camden Market scene (see the picture above!!) 

I walked around some more and saw more food options, there was Italian Alley, fish & chips, asian-inspired food, and Indian food as well. I loved how diverse the food options were and thought that it reflected the diversity of the city very well! Additionally, even though my trip there was supposed to be for an afternoon snack, I ended up getting dessert as well. I settled on a nutella stuffed churro, I did not get a picture of it since I ate it so fast. Really appreciate living in a city with such a love for nutella. 

I truly enjoyed my time at Camden and Borough Market, both are some of the coolest spots in London if you ask me!! A lot of people told me before studying abroad that London didn't have the best food, and I could not disagree with them more. What food adventure will be next???