Remember London back in June, when the sun shone gloriously on upturned, smiling faces? People spilled into the streets, joyously sharing a pint or two of Pimm’s, lovebirds skipped arm-in-arm through the park, and boats sailed gracefully up the Thames – every drop of sunlight absorbed and every ounce of Vitamin D enjoyed. The winds have changed, literally, but that doesn’t mean we can’t look back on the summer season with fondness. Especially with a flashback to my favourite food-filled event, Taste of London, which is now kicking of with its winter sister, creatively referred to as: Taste of London Winter. To help get you in the mood for the weekend long feast, let’s look back at the main event. 
I grabbed my dining partner in crime, and made our way to Regent’s Park for an afternoon of gourmand delight. 
We first said hello to our burger buddies from across the pond, Shake Shack, guarded by smiling faces, including this posing beauty.
After snacking and sampling from an incredible selection of stalls, we stopped by Australian tea brand, T2 Tea.
They had a buzzing stall pumping out music and pouring out samples of an endless variety of loose leaf teas.
We filled up on our favourites before hunting down more treats to try.
East London’s star in the sky, Duck & Waffle, were dishing up the classics. 
We decided Duck & Waffle’s Chef de Cuisine, Tom Cenci, looked like a giant chef taking over the Swiss Re building.
An obligatory order of the duck and waffle never fails to satisfy.
Have you seen Daniel Doherty’s cookbook, yet? Perfect Christmas gift for the foodie in the family, and quite the bargain. 
We couldn’t resist some bacon wrapped dates with linguica and manchego. The perfect combination of sweet and savoury – these filling bites are like candy for adults.
Before heading for Round 2, we chilled Mahiki-style in the sun whilst rocking to the beat. 
We soon spotted our other friends from across the pond, New York-style Chop Shop had some wonderfully meaty offerings.
Creekstone Farms USDA hanger steak was served with a whipped Parmesan & Dijon mustard dressing. 
And smoked creamed corn with barbecued beef short ribs embodied comfort food on a plate.
For those looking to top up with some bubbles, Laurent-Perrier‘s Champagne garden was overflowing with people watchers, and later offered a Champagne Masterclass. 
Lured by the scent of smoking BBQ, we squeezed past the growing queue of Roka‘s Robata grill where Korean spiced lamb cutlets sizzled away.
L’Autre Pied offered elegant portions of scallop ceviche with cucumber, balsamic, crème fraîche and dill. 
And The Truscott Arms served up comforting plates of beautifully cooked beef cheek served with smoked mash and crispy shallots. 
We made our way to José Pizarro where pieces of acorn fed Jamón Ibérico were being expertly sliced straight from the leg. 
The Palomar oozed cool, serving Israeli influenced specialities from the much favourited restaurant. 
I couldn’t resist one of my favourite dishes of Shakshukit, a deconstructed kebab of minced beef and lamb served with yoghurt, tahini, watercress pesto, tapenade, Harrisa and a mini pita, all bursting with flavour.
Chris Thompson, Duck & Waffle protégé, cooked up something fit for the Flintstones, but happily devoured by my dining partner and I. Other foodies greedily looked on, all asking eagerly where they could get their hands on the succulent braised short rib, smothered in vibrant jalapeño miso sauce.
Switching tracks to the sweet side, we visited Tredwell’s for some salted caramel soft serve, topped with ginger cake crumble. 
And made sure we said hello to Chef Marcus Wareing, himself. 
Close to bursting but looking to satisfy our sweet tooth with a final treat, we tried Duck & Waffle’s buttermilk and corn mousse with pistachio and toffee for one last bite.
Now that you’re suitably armed with a fair share of foodporn, who’s making their way to Taste of London Winter this weekend? Warning: sunshine not included.
This was accompanied by their famous BBQ spiced crispy pigs ears, also lovingly referred to as crack. 
Having previously spotted macaron on the menu, we headed for Duck & Waffle’s graffiti styled tent. 
Ahhh, the always attractive burger bite.
I soon spotted 
Benares’ fennel infused lamb chop with mint chutney was an incredible flavour combination, which really complimented the meat.
Upon trying the dish, I discovered that lovehearts are indeed duck hearts, which had a smokey, earthy flavour from being grilled on a skewer of pine needles. The oyster pearls were made from tapioca mixed with onion and parsley. It was very interesting and overall I enjoyed the flavours, although it was not something I would typically order.
We soon became hungry from watching the dumplings demo, and to our delight, discovered that behind the demonstration steaming hot buns were being sold for only £1!
Sweet, chewy dough topped with tangy tomato sauce, melty mozzarella and a peppery bite of basil transported me back to dinner by the seaside in Italy. 
Heading over to 
The thing about D&W that I most enjoy, is the constant element of surprise in their varying dishes. There’s no set cuisine, which results in something to please anyone’s palate.
My dining partner and I shared a half dozen Rock Oysters, three Colchester Rocks and three Fines de Claire Prestige. A little lemon, some shallot vinaigrette and a dash of tabasco before they were slurped down the hatch. The perfect kick-off to the long day of research ahead.
ALESSANDRA BRIAN 
