British Street Food Awards Finals
The British Street Food Awards Final at Hackney Bridge was a festival of flavor and creativity, celebrating the UK’s finest street food vendors. The bustling crowd indulged in £6.50 taster plates, allowing us to sample a diverse array of dishes from a wide range of cuisines. The event showcased the best of the best, with everything from Papelon’s Venezuelan cachapas to Loluli’s Thai monkfish on display.
Hackney Bridge, with its urban charm, was the perfect backdrop for this exciting culinary event. Each vendor brought their A-game, and the variety of dishes on offer made it a paradise for us foodies. What set the event apart was its celebration of street food as an evolving culinary art form, allowing these small businesses to shine on a big stage.
Welsh Stars
One standout vendor was Hills Brecon (Powys), a burger haven run by Owain and Emily Hill. Originally a caravan site, they transformed the location in 2017 into Hills Brecon, an award-winning destination for burger lovers. Hills is renowned for their epic double burgers, with accolades like the National Burger Award in 2022 and Vegan Burger of the Year in 2023. They took the people's choice award in the Welsh heats and showed up to Hackney with not one but two burgers for the judges. Their Oklahoma Onion Smash burger, featuring beef dripping braised onions smashed into a beef patty, was an absolute banging highlight for just £6.50. Hills took away to award for Best Burger.
But the Welsh Champions and now crowned British Champions was Pasta A Mano from Cardigan, known for their handmade Italian street food. Born out of a culinary trip to Italy, Derw and Jack bring authentic Italian flavors to Wales with their pop-up pastaria. Their Scarpetta Bolognese, featuring PGI Pembrokeshire Dexter beef and pork ragu on focaccia, was a popular taster dish. For those craving seafood, the full-priced Vongole with linguine, cockles, guanciale, and heirloom tomatoes was equally irresistible. An irrestible showcase of local produce from Wales and the expert culinary skills of Derw and Jack.
Oh my Apple Pie!
I also have to give kudos to James and his latest street food venture Flats. His 2024 project brings freshly made, vegan doughnuts to the streets from a repurposed Shropshire Fire Services truck. The signature dish, the S’more Flats, has been perfected over six years, featuring in-house made aquafaba marshmallow fluff torched to perfection. The taster dish and my absolute favourite (so much I took one for the journey home) is the Ohh My Apple Pie!, which includes apples in cinnamon and nutmeg sauce, crumbled Biscoff pieces, homemade vanilla custard, and salted caramel. This was utter perfection and he so deserved the award for Best Dessert.
In summary, the British Street Food Awards at Hackney Bridge was more than just a food event—it was a true celebration of community, culture, and the evolving street food scene in the UK. Whether you're a foodie or just someone who loves trying new flavors, this event is an unmissable experience.
