More England/Scotland Tasty Bits

So you heard from my better-traveled half about our England and Scotland adventure, but he left a few bits and pieces out, so here you go.
When in Great Britain, be on the lookout for:

1) Boost candy bar. "Charged with Glucose" the shiny blue and red wrapper proclaims. No kidding - the wafer cookie with a soft, pliable caramel center, covered in chocolate, is so major, as Victoria Beckham would say, that is if she ever ate food. It's like a caramel stuffed Kit-Kat. Who can pass that up? I managed to scrounge up 60 pence from our remnants of currency to feed an Edinburgh Airport vending machine for a Boost bar. It wasn't easy and for a minute there I thought I might have to go begging for 20 pence, but it worked out. Thanks to A.E. for her suggestion to seek out the Boost.

2) The Bacon and Cheese Bubble Bap in Borough Market. Don't know what a Bubble Bap is? I ventured into a food stall and a sign for the food item caught my eye. It just sounded...fun! Well, if your idea of fun is a thick bacon sandwich with cheese and a pile of shredded cooked cabbage, you're right on. I told the women behind the stall, "I'm not quite sure what I am getting. Can you fill me in?" In authentic Cockney one of the ladies said, "Luv, the bubbles are cabbage. Pour ya some brown sauce on there and have a taste!" It was salty and very cabbage-y and the brown sauce is a cross between tamarind paste and BBQ sauce. The Brits love their brown sauce, those crazy buggers. The Bubble Bap was certainly different. Having been off the plane for two hours and in need of something other than a meager airplane danish, I wasn't about to cast it away.

3) Deuchers Pints. The Caledonian Deuchers IPA, to be exact. They drink a lot of it over there and for good reason - it ain't no Bud Liiiite. However, a bartender in Edinburgh told Scott that he was known to down a Corona or two on a Friday night. I can't see why when you have access to a fine thing like Deuchers. (Pronounced: Duke-rrrrrs)

4) Wildfire. Rose Street, Edinburgh. Want a cozy spot with authentic Scottish fare? Wildfire is it - only about 10 tables in the place, gas logs blazing on a rainy eve, friendly servers, and such good food. Scott's lamb with potatoes and gravy and my mom and I both enjoyed fresh Scottish salmon. We ended it with an ice cream with raspberry coulis. Sooooo good! We lucked out here, when Mussell Inn (described below) was booked up on our first night in Edinburgh.

5) Toast racks. When you make a bunch of toast for breakfast, you don't just merely pile it on a plate or in a basket to bring to the table. Every guesthouse we patronized had little metal toast racks for each slice of toast to fit into, like a filing system for bread. I found them so cute that my mother bought me one at Harrods (about the only affordable thing in the place!) I haven't used it yet, but when I do, I will go all out - toast with orange marmalade and milky tea. Ah, the simple things in life!

That's five for now. I have loads to share, so that's just a taste!

Comments

  1. Soooo much fun to read your travel foodie comments!
    And, sounds like Miss. E had a great birthday.
    :)
    L

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment