Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Norwich

Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 20 and Coral Bay

This week’s expedition on my quest to visit every food stall on Norwich Market was Coral Bay which offers Caribbean food. It’s not a cuisine that I know particularly well, other than some visits to the national Turtle Bay chain and a few pub meals over the years, but it’s always appealed.

The menu and we went for two Jerk Chicken meals for £13 as part of the lunch deal. The service was efficient, prompt and warm with no waiting time when we ordered. The stall accepts card and cash with everything looked clean and organised.

The patties in the warmer. The signage at the stall notes that this is a family operated business and they also have a restaurant in Gorleston.

There are sauces to add to the food which we took advantage of to further spice up proceedings.

The jerk chicken was served with salad, coleslaw and rice. The chicken was tender, moist and just fell off the bone which was all rather delightful. I was also pleased that the chicken skin was crispy, just as I like it. The coleslaw was creamy, the salad added texture and the rice handily absorbed all the BBQ and hot sauce I poured on it. There are a couple of seats at the end of the stall for customers so we sat there to eat the food, since I’m paranoid about the seagulls swooping down as soon as I leave the safe confines of the market.

This was one of my favourite meals at the market as it was reasonably priced, the menu looked interesting and the quality was high. James also viewed the meal positively and he appreciated the availability of hot sauce, since that’s something that he drinks throughout the day in the way that others drink water. Other customers were offered a loyalty card which we weren’t, but there was an inviting feel to the whole arrangement so I’d happily recommend it to others.

As an aside, we’ve only got seven venues left to try now, including both of the chips stalls operated by Lucy’s, which is where James and I have been eating for what seems like a decade. Will our traditional favourite win through, or have we been so surprised and delighted by the other stalls that we’ll be looking for pastures new? The anticipation is building…. (well, it isn’t as no-one is likely to care about this, but I like a little bit of drama).

August 22, 2023
Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 19 and Reggies

Week 19 and my plan to eat at every Norwich Market food stall saw us visiting Reggies, which has been going for more than 60 years and is something of a staple of the market.

The stall’s clear and well presented menu, but they have a set-up which means it’s not entirely clear where you’re supposed to stand to order. On the plus side there are numerous ledges to lean on so there’s no need to leave the area and risk seagull attack to eat the food. The set-up meant it took them a while to notice me but the service was polite and I went for a BLT sandwich. It cost £3.50 and they accept cards and cash, with everything feeling clean and ordered.

James did think about getting that Reggie’s Belly Buster, but he went for a less decadent bacon and sausage sandwich instead. My BLT roll was served promptly, but I’m afraid that I may have been rather spoiled by Deb’s a couple of weeks before. The set-up there meant I could ask if they could cook the bacon a little longer as I like it crispy and they pro-actively offered to remove the fat which was marvellous but not something I’d ever ask to be done for me unless asked. This roll had two pieces of bacon, of which one was slightly grey, and it was just a little overly fatty for my own tastes (which are quite specialist I confess) and I can’t say it had much depth of taste. The tomato was quite soft and it did have some flavour, but the lettuce was only just present. There was nothing specifically wrong with the whole arrangement, but it wasn’t for me.

Although the whole set-up wasn’t for me, I will have to caveat this by noting the market stall is popular and given they’ve been going for decades they clearly know what they’re doing. But these market tours are something of a voyage of discovery and each stall will cater for the needs of particular customers and I think Deb’s is the venue serving this type of food that has surprised and delighted me the most. However, I’m sure there are some wonderful breakfast items at Reggie’s and a visit here is still recommended so that everyone else can find the market stall much suited to them.

August 21, 2023
Norwich – Morrisons not Moving into Former Topshop

Some graffiti on the former Topshop which doesn’t seem an unreasonable statement, namely the “potential housing kept empty by millionaire landlords”. This building on Haymarket has been left empty for two years and was meant to be taken over by Morrisons this year on a 15 year lease. Morrisons have only just confirmed that they don’t want it any more, meaning that the large building looks like it’ll be left empty for some time to come. It’s all a bit sub-optimal.

August 11, 2023
Norwich – NR3 Beer Mile

Well, this is a marvellous idea (not least as some of my favourite venues are taking part) as 11 Norwich pubs in the NR3 postcode have come together to organise a beer mile. The excitement will be taking place between Thursday 10 August to Sunday 13 August, although as I’m walking some of the Shotley 50 event this weekend, I’m unlikely to be visiting very many of the pubs.

However, I wanted to take part in at least some form, so I went to visit the Leopard to collect a map of the event and also get my first of the trading cards. There was already interest on the Thursday afternoon and the staff member thought it would be a success, so perhaps this might become an annual event. The weather is favourable at the moment (not favourable to me as I like rain) which might also help bring out the crowds.

My first stamp and trading card, this one from the Leopard.

The pubs, which have over 200 beers between them, are :

Artichoke

Brewery Tap

Cottage

Duke of Wellington

King’s Head

Leopard

Malt and Mardle

Plasterers Arms

Ribs of Beef

Rosebery

Stanley

August 11, 2023
Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 18 and ‘And Eat It’

And next up in my series of eating at every food stall at Norwich market which is ‘And Eat It’ who specialise in homemade cookies, cakes and brownies.

I don’t have a particularly sweet tooth (although I can eat eight chicken bakes from Greggs, such is my savoury tooth) and so a lunch of a cake isn’t what I would usually opt for, but this market food investigation has to be rigorous and thorough with those filled cookies being particularly tempting. I narrowed my choice down to between the Lemon Meringue and the Milky Way options, with the latter proving to be the one which sounded the most decadent to me.

The welcome was immediate and friendly, although I was a little surprised that when James asked for a recommendation they didn’t explain what was available meaning he only discovered too late that there was an option he would have rather gone for. I was intrigued at just how wide the range was, there’s no shortage of choice here. It was an inviting and informal stand, I can imagine children must be surprised and delighted when they walk by here. I was overcharged, but the team members resolved it quickly and they accept cards and cash. Everything looked spotlessly clean and organised, with the cakes all being well presented.

The Rocky Road options, which is what James would have opted for if he had seen them. He likes bricks of chocolate, whereas I have a more delicate requirement. The slices of cookie pies are visible on the bottom shelf and they looked decadent for those who like big heaps of sugary treats. I did think that some of those product names might get Julian another Facebook ban if he posted about them.

My Milky Bar option with the cookie element seeming fresh and it had the rich taste that I had expected. I hadn’t expected the centre of the cookie itself to also replicate the Milky Bar, meaning it had a deeper depth of taste than I had anticipated. Although I inevitably felt the sugar rush, it didn’t taste too sickly or sweet, I thought that the overall flavour worked well. This cost £3 and I felt that was entirely reasonable given the quality of the food, so no complaints here on that.

James went for the Toblerone and Daim cookie, which he was complimentary about and I felt that it was the option that Alan Partridge would have gone for as well.

Overall, this stall has a strong reputation and they have been going for several years. The quality of the food was high with plenty of options. For anyone wanting to buy a present for someone, this is an ideal choice and I can imagine most children and chocolate lovers would be suitably and delighted by the gift. Gifting food treats is never easy, it wouldn’t feel appropriate to dump some chips on someone, but this kind of decadent treat is far more acceptable. Anyway, I digress. It’s not quite what I’d order for lunch under normal circumstances, but it was an enjoyable treat which highlights the range of food that is available at Norwich Market.

August 9, 2023
Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 17 and Deb’s

The latest in our expedition around Norwich market stalls was Deb’s which specialises in burgers, breakfast rolls and the like, perhaps the sort of location that many people would associate with the market. First impressions were positive, it looked clean and organised, with the team member coming straight over to welcome us.

I ordered a bacon roll which is always slightly risky for me in culinary terms as I don’t like how places such as Greggs serve the bacon, which is effectively near raw in my eyes and attached to a heap of fat. I don’t want any Ed Miliband moments with bacon rolls. I accept I’m just being very picky, but I thought I’d ask here if they’d cook the bacon a little longer for me. To my surprise and delight, they pro-actively offered to remove the fat without me mentioning that, as well as checking how crispy I wanted the bacon. I’ve never had such a cooked to order bacon roll before, this was a delightful piece of customer engagement as far as I was concerned and the server mentioned she likes bacon cooked the same way. And she’s absolutely right with that.

That bacon is served perfectly and I merrily put lots of ketchup on. This is a proper market roll from a proper market stall. They accepted cards and it came to £3.80, which I felt was entirely reasonable as there was plenty of bacon in the roll. This was like Americans serve their bacon, which is crispy and firm, no limpness here. The bun was light and fresh, it might not be exotic but this was a simple pleasure I can say.

James went for a bacon, sausage and egg roll, which he spoke highly of although in a perfect world he would have preferred a runnier egg. However, for next time, I’m sure that they’d cook everything just as he wanted it, this felt like that sort of place. James seemed to feel the need to pay immediately when they didn’t seem hurried, whereas I was already halfway through eating my bacon roll and conscious I’d pay when they asked. No point in delaying eating, especially when the bacon looked so delicious.

The server was conversational, engaging and pro-active, this was a laid-back and inviting stall. There are ledges around the outside of the stall for people to eat at and the food was served on proper little plates. It’s a small element of luxury in what is a traditional market stall that I’m looking forwards to returning to. Definitely one of my favourite stalls so far in this experiment. All very lovely.

August 3, 2023
Norwich – Edith Cavell Pub

The Edith Cavell is back open again, so Julian and I thought that it would be only polite to go and have a little visit. In normal Two Julians style, this post will also be appearing at our web-site at http://www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/. It’s a Victorian corner pub which was known as the Army & Navy Stores until 1981 when it changed to its current name. There have been a few periods when it has been called other things, including rather oddly Coles, with some slight variations to the name along with some troubled times for some operators of this venue.

Edith Cavell is something of a local hero, she was a nurse from Norfolk who was working in Brussels at the outbreak of the First World War. When the Germans took over the city of Brussels, Cavell started to assist British and French soldiers there to leave the occupied territories so that they could fight against the Germans. So, the Germans shot her in October 1915 with the defence that:

“It was a pity that Miss Cavell had to be executed, but it was necessary. She was judged justly … It is undoubtedly a terrible thing that the woman has been executed; but consider what would happen to a State, particularly in war, if it left crimes aimed at the safety of its armies to go unpunished because they were committed by women.”

Cavell was buried at Norwich Cathedral and there’s a memorial to her located opposite to the Edith Cavell pub.

Back to the pub, the interior of the venue has been redecorated and it has a cosy and warm feel to it. I’m not sure how functional some of the seating is as I prefer tables, but it’s all inoffensive. It was also clean and warm, with the reduced lighting adding somewhat to the atmosphere. It seemed inviting and it’s in a beautiful location in Tombland and overlooked by Norwich Cathedral.

Apologies that the lighting made it difficult to take a clean photo, but there’s Camden Pale, Camden Hells, Lagunitas IPA, Brixton Pale Ale and Tiny Rebel Easy Livin’.

And apologies again for the photo, but Birra Morretti, Amstel, Beavertown Neck Oil, Guinness and Cruzcampo flavoured water. My first impressions were that I found the set-up a little depressing as it’s nearly identical to some of the Ibis hotels that I’ve stayed at recently, but no point being too judgemental too early.

Julian had arrived before me and asked about their range of real ale, but they don’t sell that. It transpired, as we have similarly highly developed ordering strategies, that Julian and I both tried to order the Tiny Rebel Easy Livin’, but they had run out of that. The service was polite though and it’s cashless, something which I have a lot of sympathy for, but it’s going to be a challenge for them in terms of reviews as there are some militant cash is king customers around who will make their views known when they realise.

I went for the Cruzcampo flavoured water, which Heineken are throwing huge marketing spend at in a bid to position it as a reasonably priced premium beer. It’s not a great surprise to see it so badly reviewed on Untappd, it tasted bland, generic and pointless to me, it perhaps needs to be served in a hot environment so it’s a refreshing option at least.

The pub is owned by Stonegate, who had to force their way in earlier in the year to “make it safe”, so it’s had some very recent challenges. This presents some problems for the new tenants as they’ve now I assume hit the Stonegate tie, which is forcing them to go for some rather generic keg options. Julian is a real ale man, whereas I’m more excited by decadent keg options such as offered by the Artichoke, Leopard, Plasterers and Malt & Mardle, all a relatively short walk away. There are no beers here which surprised and delighted me, with the problem that some of these drinks such as Beavertown are a chunk over £6 a pint, which is a brave position to be in given the current economic climate.

The venue is planning to open a separate gin bar on the first floor in a few weeks, in the space that was formerly used by Prime to serve their steaks. They’ll be able to get some decent mark ups on that sort of drink and I can imagine it’ll be popular on Friday and Saturday evenings, although there’s the limitation that the venue is relatively small. I imagine there will be a rush to sell cocktails as well, another gross profit winner. I’m sure that they’ll make a decent job of the interior of the first floor to ensure that it remains comfortable.

For me, this isn’t a venue that I’d return to on a regular basis, although I can understand the attraction and don’t want to be negative. Writing just for me, I don’t mind whether a pub does real ale well or craft beer well, there are some smaller breweries offering both types of beer which continue to surprise and delight me. But, just as I don’t run to the bar with excitement when seeing Greene King IPA, I’m not going to rush for premium priced keg beers that I can get in any number of other places.

But, positivity is the key, the owners are trying something new, they’ve ensured that the pub is open for the local community and I’m sure it’ll be the offering that many customers want. And variety is the spice of life, it would be a nightmare if every pub was the same with the same choices at the bar. The pub was clean, the staff were friendly, the atmosphere was inviting, it felt safe and so that’s all to the good.

PS, apologies again for the poor quality photos!

July 27, 2023
Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 16 and Bun Box

Next in our series of visiting every food stall at Norwich Market was Bun Box, which occupies four stalls and aims to offer traditional Japanese food. It expanded from its smaller outlet at the market and has attracted somewhat of a loyal following from what I’ve heard, so my expectations were high.

The clearly laid out menu, which consists of primarily of buns and rice bowls. The service was fast and efficient, with the stall accepting cards and cash. Everything looked clean and organised, but the stall doesn’t have anywhere to stand or lean on to eat the food. They did have some folding ledges, but they weren’t in use when we visited. As an aside, the number of seagulls seems to have increased at the market recently, so I still don’t dare leave the confines of the stalls with food.

I went for the chicken katsu bun which cost £4.50 and although it’s a little difficult to judge from the photo, it is relatively small so they needed to deliver on quality if not quantity. The bun had the appropriate light texture, with the chicken being cooked well and crispy on the exterior. The sauce wasn’t particularly punchy and I couldn’t taste any pickled ginger, so there wasn’t much depth of taste to the whole arrangement. Using the comparison of other stalls on the market, the prices were also towards the higher end of the scale, although not entirely unreasonable.

Trying to be as positive as I can, but I can’t say that my high expectations were met here. JD Wetherspoon, who aren’t necessarily a bastion of food quality, sell bao buns now at half the price charged here and their quality I have to regretfully note as better with a wider range of flavours and tastes. James ordered the same as me so I can’t comment separately, although I wondered if perhaps the pork bun might have worked a little better for me as that seemed to have some stronger tasting ingredients.

However, the stall was busy and they’re clearly surprising and delighting customers on a regular basis. I can’t say that I was ever particularly bowled over with bao buns when I was in China, but I did have higher expectations from this stall. At some stage we’ll revisit all of the stalls and I think that I’ll opt for something like the chicken katsu curry which might have a greater depth of flavour. Hopefully I’ll get to visit them again soon, as I’m always ready to find a different menu item which I might fall in love with.

July 25, 2023
Norwich – Weavers Arms

The Weavers Arms on Muspole Street has recently reopened, so Julian and I felt the need to pay it a quick visit (this post will also be appearing on our web-site at http://www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/). The venue has gone through a succession of owners, as well as new names, but the incoming tenants are also behind Brick Pizza and the Yard restaurant, so they have some considerable experience. There is another Woolpack in Norwich, operated by Greene King, which might be the reason that they haven’t returned to that name, although it’s always a shame when heritage is lost.

There’s some religious heritage to the site, as not only is it opposite St. George’s Church it also stands on the former site of the residential property used by the Prior of the Augustinian Priory of Our Lady Walsingham. It has been a hospitality venue called the Woolpack since the middle of the eighteenth century, hence why its recent change of name feels sub-optimal. The listed building record notes that there is an re-used sixteenth century wooden beam on the ground floor which is likely from 1510 and so it might have been in the Prior’s living room before the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

There were four real ales available and there were a couple of new beers here that I hadn’t had before. The combination of having a local brewery along with some ales from further afield that customers haven’t had seems eminently sensible.

And there were some craft keg options as well, although other drinks such as coffees, cocktails and generic keg are also available as well. For the size of the venue, the choice of drinks seems entirely reasonable and met my expectations.

The back bar arrangement. The service was attentive and polite, with the venue being relatively busy on the Saturday evening that we visited. Julian is excited and delighted about their extended hours on a Friday and Saturdays night, as we both share enthusiasm for longer hours in pubs so that we’re not forced into visiting cocktail bars. Which has been known.

To ensure that our research was thorough, I had half a pint of all four of the real ales, with the prices for these being around £2.10 each which isn’t unreasonable. They were all well kept and at the appropriate temperature, so there’s clearly some cellar knowledge here. The lighting was a little dark when we visited, but that seemed to fit the inviting and cosy nature of the venue, this isn’t somewhere that needs fierce lights. We sat at the bar, carefully ensuring that we weren’t blocking the view of the beers, where the seating was comfortable and the interior redesign has been sensitively done.

I went for the Slap Bang Citra from North Riding Brew Pub, which has a decent flavour to it but really needed more citra with a beer name like that. Brother Rabbit is one of the few beers from Thornbridge that I hadn’t tried, it’s a suitably decadent golden ale. Then comes the old reliable of Encore from Lacons Brewery and the session bitter of the JHB from Oakham Ales.

Although we had arrived too late for dining, the pub is offering food, with some tempting delights including the chicken & tarragon pie and the beef shin & Guinness pie. For those who don’t go straight to the pies section of the menu, there are also salads, steaks and fish options. It feels like a compact and manageable menu, I suspect the food quality is very high given the provenance of the owners. There are three rooms in this venue, but as it was busy I couldn’t easily go around taking photos.

Onto the toilets, which are in a more recent extension to the building. My friend Gordon also visited the pub this weekend and sent me some photos of the venue’s rather more, er, revealing artwork in the facilities although I hadn’t noticed those. One thing they’ll need to resolve is actually putting male and female signs on the toilets, the whole arrangement at the moment is confusing and a customer was commenting about it to a staff member.

Julian has decided to make extra visits to the pub to ensure that his high standards are being met, and I’m pleased to note that his considerable research efforts have confirmed that all seems well. The pub is a little bit tucked away and unlikely to get much passing trade, which all means that it’s going to have to get a solid reputation to ensure that customers go out there. However, from what I’ve seen, it looks likely that they’ll make a success of this pub.

July 24, 2023
Norwich – My Makan

I was surprised and delighted to hear that there was a new Malaysian restaurant in Norwich, located in the culinary quarter that once housed the Westlegate McDonald’s on the ground floor. My Makan opened earlier on in 2023 and they’re attempting to offer authentic Malaysian cuisine, so Bev, Gordon, Brian and I thought that it was only right that we paid it a visit.

The 50% off sale was for next door, although I did have a buy one get one free voucher for a free main for the table. There’s a five star food hygiene rating certificate there for those who require such reassurance.

The menu and it wasn’t bloated in size, which is always a positive first sign for me. When aiming for an authentic Malaysian experience, I don’t want to see chicken vindaloo or something which seems to be a cuisine mission creep that some restaurants fall into the trap of. My one free main meal was slightly undermined by Gordon ordering two main meals, although I pinched a chunk of that so all was well.

It wasn’t packed on our Thursday evening visit, but it did get busier later on. The atmosphere is quiet and inviting, the acoustics work well here so it’s not too loud. It was perhaps just a little hot, but they’ve got vertical fans going which resolved the issue.

The blue butterfly pea flower drink, which I didn’t quite understand from the menu, but as they don’t sell alcohol it seemed intriguing. Bev was going on about it turning green when lime is added and it does appear to be a drink that changes its colour depending on the acidity. It’s not visible in the photo, but I found the streams of blue going into the drink from straw really quite hypnotic. When it was served the drink looked as though it was a weak cordial, but this had a depth of taste to it and a flavour that I’ve never had before. It stayed resolutely blue, but this was one of the better soft drinks that I’ve had. I was also fortunate as I ordered first and when Brian tried to order they told him that they had run out.

The view over the Pig and Whistle pub. I mean, it’s not the Petronas Towers, but watching the denizens of Norwich meander by was suitably calming.

This is the Nasi Lemak with ayam rempah, or spiced fried chicken. Firstly, I’ve never had dried anchovies and they added texture, a salty fishy taste and no shortage of flavour. The peanuts added more flavour and the sambal was moreish and had a spicy edge to it. The rice was well cooked and the salad element added some extra colour to the plate. The chicken thigh was tender, moist and the coating was crispy and packed with various herbs and spices. Dipping that chicken into the sambal was evidence that simple things done well are all that is often needed. In some senses there were an awful lot of things on the plate, but it was a delight to work my way around the plate, and the pledge of authenticity that the restaurant made certainly seemed to have been honoured.

The dessert photos, although they’re listed in plain text on the main menu as well. Photos of desserts usually indicates that they’re bought in and the restaurant has pinched the stock photos, but here it’s more because they want to show what the food actually looks like. We can’t all be Malaysian food experts and I thought this was useful.

Rice pudding is one of my favourite things, particularly on long walks when I need some liquid and solid refreshment at the same time and am too tired to chew. Long distance walking isn’t all glamour, but I digress. This is black, and as the restaurant notes glutinous, rice pudding served with thick coconut milk and vanilla ice cream. The portion size wasn’t the most subtle, but I never complain about too much food. It was served warm, it was light but yet filling and the flavours once again worked beautifully. Bev, who complains about everything, was very quiet on that front and she muttered only that she had eaten too much. There is rarely much more praise than Bev can give than to only complain that she’s over indulged.

I tried to take a photo of Gordon’s banana fritters dessert, but he had eaten most of them before I had chance, so Brian’s meal was instead brought into play for the purpose.

Bringing all things together, this was an exceptional meal. The service was attentive, polite and kind throughout the entire dine. The restaurant was clean, the surroundings comfortable and the prices reasonable. But, the food and drink continued to surprise and delight me, especially experiencing new flavours which I hadn’t had before. I am sure that I’ll be back and I hope that the restaurant continues to get busier through word of mouth, it certainly deserves to.

July 14, 2023