Hidden Hawksmoor Restaurant, a Haven in Bustling Borough Market, London, England

Outside entrance of Hawksmoor Restaurant in Borough Market, London, England. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

The bar area of the Hawksmoor restaurant in Borough Market, London, England. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

The restaurant table area. Hawksmoor restaurant. London. England. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Hawksmoor Steak

Steak is their Speciality.

They have English, French and wholegrain mustard and horseradish but you. Have to ask for it.

Muscat not sweet enough for me.

Delightful, Delicious Dessert - Pavlova

Pavlova pastry was delightful. Good to look at. Strong, dramatic, delicious taste of black cherry.

Chocolate looked good. At the last, no real chocolate flavou. Like confectioners' chocolate or Hersheys which was created to not melt in summer tropics in the pockets and hands of wartime soldiers, so it was made waxy with oily ingredients instead of melting milk. I am a British Cadbury's fan.

Pavlova? A small piece of solid, hidden underneath, white meringue. The Australian and New Zealand summer favourite with summer fruit, with summer being December, which is winter in England. Yes. But in England the fruit in winter is traditionally preserved, the dried currants and sultanas in Xmas pudding and cake, dried dates. Here you have preserved cherries, their flavour intensified. 

Altogether Impressive looking. 

As Shakespeare said, all's well that ends well.

My husband is a huge fan of Hawksmoor.

Wrapped toothpick.

Getting there

From Stanmore station on the Jubilee, with no changes.

Useful Website

https://thehawksmoor.com/locations/london/

Borough Market - mulled wine, Prosecco and challah braided bread

Mulled wine, warm wine, with fun flavours.

If you want clothes, go to Brixton. But if you want food and drink, go to Borough Market.

 Nearest stations

London Bridge

Overground 

Underground Jubilee and Northern Line

Borough Market - what to buy

You can see the overhead bridge carrying trains in and out of London Bridge station by Borough Market which is 'under the arches'. The market is open in the mornings and was closed when we went to London for an evening wine tasting and meal. So if you want to visit the market, check you will arrive before it closes. 

If you arrive late afternoon or you can still find a few shops open alongside. 

Free - with a purchase.

I took a fancy to this olive tree, great for a patio, £35. Chez Mio.

If I go back earlier in the day I'll head into the market and try a fruit juice. 

Here's the place, Chegworth Valley fresh juice bar.
( In the background you can just read the Chez Mio sign over the road and see one of their olive trees.)

Angela Lansbury B A Hons, ACG, CL, travel writer, author, speaker.

What to see in Borough Market, London

View of Tower Bridge, The Tower of London, and The Thames river from The Shard. Book at least a day in advance to save £5, bringing the charge per person down from about £30 to about £25.

Opposite The Shard is Borough Market

Notice the tromp l'oeil window in The Market Porter pub on the corner.

A quick coffee at Monmouth Coffee Company shop.

We stopped for a free taste of cheese at Neal's Yard Dairy.

A sign described their paid tasting sessions.

I also saw the sign of Vinopolis which is on my wish list.

The Shard

Monmouth Coffee Conpany Ltd, monmouthcoffee.co.uk Shop 2 Park Street, Borough Market, London SE1 9AB. (Also 27 Monmouth Street, Covent Garden WC2H 9EU)

Neal's Yard Dairy, 6 Park Street, (Borough Market), London SE1 9AB

www.nealsyarddairy.co.uk/shops_borough.html‎

 Tel+44 (0)20 7367 0799. F+44 (0)20 7367 0798. Eboroughshop@nealsyarddairy.co.uk

The View From The Shard, London, England

The Shard attracted our eyes as we left London Bridge station and walked to lively Borough Market. You pick a time slot in the day or evening and we had chosen just before sunset. Careful not to miss our time slot, we arrived early enough for a walk around Borough Market and a coffee at Monmouth Coffee Company. The Shard is an all-jumping tourist attraction with a huge indoor entrance hall with ticket windows.  

We passed through security, like an airport, where they confiscated our pen-knife and Xmas crackers (it was our double-birthday treat). Then stopped for a photo. We took only a few steps and saw our faces on a screen.

Next up in two zooming lifts and out on the lower and larger observation deck of the tower which gets smaller as you get nearer the top. The lower level has floor to ceiling glass windows on all four sides and silhouettes of what you see above head height.  The nearest and most easily identifiable feature is Tower bridge below. (London Bridge, left of it, looks very dull, but if you arrived at London Bridge underground station, it helps to orient you to where you are.)
   The most amazing thing for me was seeing the river Thames winding S shape the way it does on maps, whilst when you are on the ground walking along the banks you always see it ahead of you as a straight line.
   The height is just right. You can see well known landmarks clearly. Down below are the white topf of trains, zooming backwards and forward towards you, the way they do at the end of the classic comedy thriller film starring Peter Sellers and Alec Guinness.
   Even with timed entry it is quite crowded. You have to wait your turn to see out through each of the windows. People pose for photos. Champagne is for sale at about £8 a glass. We rushed from window to window to take sunset photos as couples posed against the sunset for a romantic photo and/or a kiss.

The staircase is beautifully designed, polished wooden steps and red walls and views of the level below.

The second level is quite different. Make sure you see it. Less crowded. Open to the air with a chill wind. Seems much higher. And much smaller. You really feel you are at the top. 

Back on the lower level, having seen the views already, we paid attention to the machines which are free and show you the scene below at different times of day, with the names of landmarks.

On the way back down to the descending lift we found ourselves on a platform with windows showing the different types of clouds and what kind of weather they predicted.

Finally, back at ground level, the shop offered us a range of goods, from pencils and pens at £2 to tee-shirts and maps of London. The gifts are suitable for children and adults, souvenirs for yourself or for tourists to take home.

The souvenir photos cost about £25 (various packages) so I opted for a pencil. A delightful double birthday celebration.

Book at lest a day in advance to save yourself five pounds per person.
Tickets about £25 in advance, just under £30 on the day.
theviewfromtheshard.com

On May 23rd the Shard was hit by lightning. Several online newspapers carried photos.

See my next blog on Borough Market.