I Ate Viral Food at Shepherd's Bush Market (London’s most underrated market!)

Now when you think of London markets, you think Borough Market, you think Camden Market, but are people sleeping on one of the best street food markets here in London? Today we're at Shepherd's Bush Market and I've never been here before, so you're going to come with me to experience it for the first time. We're about to take you on a flavour journey across the entire globe. We've got hits from Asia, down to Africa. This is like one of the only foods on this planet that I haven't tried. And even a little bit of sunshine from the Caribbean. It doesn't get much more authentic than this. Shepherd's Bush Market has been here for over 100 years, but the real story is told through the food. From everyday produce to flavours bought by generations of migrant communities, this market has fed West London and shaped its culture. Just what I love about this market, there's a real spirit, it's great. Today I'm going to give you the ultimate food tour, showing the best and most affordable bites to eat at London's most underrated food market. Oh my god, that is one of them. What is that? First stop, the cash point, because I've heard here that cash is king. Let's hope it's got some money on it. Oh, look at that. We've even got a £50 note. All right, first stop, we're heading to Sam's Sandwiches for Algerian street food. I've heard a lot about this place. I'm bloody excited. It's like a bloody maze in there, isn't it? How are we going to find out where anything is? Just going to have to follow the nose. Oh, there we go. That was good timing, wasn't it? Which two meats do you normally recommend? Probably the sausage, even a chicken, I'll admit. I'll go Algerian sausage and mincemeat. Just by looking at this place, I know it's going to be good. It's got all the recipes for success. Down some dark, dingy alley with barbed wire going across the front of it and a guy with his head out just grilling meat. It's literally got to be good, right? It's literally still steaming hot. So this is Sam's Sandwiches. The menu is simple, only five sandwiches. They start from £7 and they haven't raised the prices in the past four years. For £8, you can get double filling. So we've gone for the beef and the Maguire sausage. I've heard good things. I'm expecting a lot from this bite of food. Oh my God. Whoa, the bread is so crispy. I love how he toasts it at the end. And then you've just got so many flavours, herbs, spices. They must have painted about five or six different sauces in here. And when you take that bite, you're just getting that flavour explosion. Before we visited here, Algerian street food was not on my radar at all. And then suddenly I've had a bite of this sandwich and it's contender for the best sandwich in London. I'll tell you what, at the moment, Shepherds Bush Market won. Other food markets in London, zero. Next spot, let's go and see a fisherman. How do we get there though? I've got no idea. I'm just kind of chancing it now. It feels like every single corner you turn around, you're entering a different like door to the world. Do you know what I mean? Okay, so we're here at Brothers and Cousins. This is a fishmonger here in the market, but they're famous because you can buy their fish and then you can take it to the grill master and then he'll cook it up any way that you want. Are you sure that's a prawn and not a lobster? Oh my god, that's crazy. Here we go. Hello mate, you okay? Are you all right to cook up the prawn? The spices, what's in that? Fish is small. The grill master has been in Shepherds Bush Market for over 22 years. They do amazing falafel and halloumi wraps, but in the corner, he has a coal fire grill. Constantly heated, perfect for seafood and most importantly, my prawns. Prawn? That's a prawn, big like that? Yeah, do you want to try one? I would on the normal side, but I've never seen prawns big like that. I thought it was a freaking lobster. No, I thought it was a lobster too. Do you want to try one? No, as much as no, I would. I want a normal size. I'm not in the mood for that right now. So you come, get the fish from my fish shop. Yeah, and then I will have it grilled for you. That's why I didn't know that. It looks like I've got a Jenga tower full of these jumbo prawns. You take your fish in and then they cook it £10 per kilo and then they serve it with chips and a side salad. This is hands down one of the biggest prawns I've ever seen in my life. It's like a bloody dino prawn. I'm going to try it with that homemade Lebanese hot sauce. Oh, wow. That's delicious. They're almost meaty because they're so big and then bringing them here, you just get that like whip of smoke. I have no idea what this is. Bloody hell, I may have over dipped. Let's hope I like it. It almost tastes like a liquid hummus. You can taste sesame oil, garlic. There's a really nice creamy texture. It's almost a little bit nutty too. I love it. And we've got such a nice taste in my mouth. It's like my taste buds are having a disco inside my mouth. This market was built on trust and community and that's exactly what we're seeing right in front of our eyes from the fishmonger pairing up with the grill master. That combination alone is fantastic and boy, are they doing a good job. Now, you can't come to Shepherd's Bush Market and not go and see the Juice Man. This place is super famous. Every single person are like, when you go to Shepherd's Bush Market, you want to go to Osman Juice. What are we going to get? I don't know. Let's ask Osman. Let's ask Osman, shall we? It's Oasis Juice Bar, mate. Oh, Oasis, not Osman. You've got a never-ending menu of juice. We started off with like just eight juices. Yeah. And then we just slowly expanded and expanded and expanded. Now we have like over 16 juices. How would I eat with the ginger? I don't know, let's give it a go. I've got pure and I've got a mix. No, let's go pure. I'm going to do it. Oasis juice. It's got beetroot, pomegranate, pineapple, orange juice and lime in it. Sorry, that shocked Ginger's eyes. It's making me cry. Oh, wow, that's delicious. Can't really taste the beetroot too much. You get a massive punch of the pomegranate. A nice like... Does it have apple in it? Yeah, apple, lime, pineapple in there. So it's got pretty much all the fruits that your body needs. Mate, keep on talking. You're making my doctor very happy. The thing I love the most is that you get to try all the samples. We just keep on discovering gem after gem after gem here. Again, the price is so reasonable. You can actually get this whole thing for four quid. Just four brothers set off for the mission just to create amazing fruit juice, amazing prices. It does exactly what it says on the tin. How are you? I'm your fan. No way, really. Nice to see you. Yeah, you too. Thank you. Where are you shooting today? Just going around the market, so yeah. Did you try the inside Algerian food? Sandwich. Yeah, yeah, we started there. It was really good. Is that your favourite? Yes, my favourite. I can eat three times a day. Really? It's so friendly around here. I love it. I wish you were in my store. Really? I make everyday fresh. No way. Six different flavours. Wow, and they're all the same price? All the same price. So every day I make up like between 7, 7.30. Yeah. And before I open 12. Yeah. So I cook. No way. I cook every morning. I was in Japan at the start of, no, the end of the year and went to Tsuzuki fish market. And I tried it there for the first time. Onigiri is from like 18th century. It's a very old recipe. Really? Normally we use like a bit fermented like ingredients. And the fish usually, sorry, sushi we use raw fish. Yeah. But onigiri we don't use raw fish. I do everyday miso potage soup. Yeah, I'd love one please. Thank you. That's delicious, wow. Do you like truffle? I love truffle, yeah. Maybe this one. Okay, I'll just bite it from here. Whoa. Rice is quite fluffy. Like so the not like act airy. Everything is so well balanced. The rice, you can almost taste every single grain because it's cooked so perfectly. What's the secret to good rice? I cook the rice with the gas. Yes, and especially we eat this cold. So I want to rice not dry. Honestly, it's so good. Wow, that's bloody brilliant, isn't it? Who would have thought a little taste of Japan here in Sheppard's Bush Market. From Japan, a direct flight to the Caribbean. Go and get your hot double A, hot double A, £3.50. Only £3.50, double up and double for £1.50 This is Archie's Doubles, one of the absolute institutions of this market. Attracting all the characters. You said Hong Kong NHS? Yes. Okay, my lovely. What are you after? For me to marry you today? This is very good. Yeah, oh my goodness. Oh, this is just what I love about this market. Like it's just so different to any other London market. There's just real people, souls, like just the sense of community, the way that everyone interacts. They're all friends. Like there's a real spirit. It's great. I was born in Trinidad, but grew up in Devon. So... Your accent is wild. Yeah. Well, here we come out with some of the Devonian accent and all. But the people think I'm Welsh as well. What I'm making now is the barrow. They call it barrow in the Caribbean. You have to make the dough in a special way. So when you stretch it, it doesn't break, right? So it's not like a normal bread dough. This is how I make multiples of it. Usually in the Caribbean, they have them all ready and bagged in a little. But I love my bread dough. That's the worst. I'm gonna be super quick when doing them because they cook so fast. What would you say Trinidad and Tobago food is all about? Really, because of the population, they say one third could be more Afro-Caribbean. The other third could be Indian, right? And a lot of them originated from the Punjabi region. And in the Punjab, this was originated from and they call it Chana Bhadara. How they eat it, right? In the Punjab region, everything is eaten by hand, okay? So there's a mutton there for you. Special hot double offer for you, £3.50. So £3.50, double up double for £1.50. Get a large for five. It's like in the past, right? In the old days, they'd take it down the mine and that'll be their breakfast, dinner and so on. In the Caribbean, it's exactly the same. They'll come, pick it up. You've got 11 of these and all. £3.50, only £3.50. I don't buy any of these at all. And if you think I'm lying, they're actually in olive jars. So that's the hot sauce. That's the tamarind. And that's your green lime, green chilli. I actually have a big bottle of the hot sauce and I give to the neighbours as usual, as my samplers. So if they tell me under why, it's like one of them will say, yeah, it's not as hot as ours. You go, oh dear. So I'd rather get some more of scotch mullets and it comes out like a steam. He talks about proper Trini food. It doesn't get much more authentic than this. The flavours, the spices, the mixture of all the sauces. It's just like proper home-cooked food. Cooked with so much love. This is a very lovely market to work in. Everybody's friendly. If I have to run away to get some more stock, they look after my stall for me. I mean, I just love how you just taste all the different influences inside this like Trinidad sandwich. You know, you've got influence from Punjab. You've got influence from Jamaica. You've got influence from Spain. And it's just this massive melting pot of flavour. And the best part about all of this, £3.50. Like that is just insane value for money. Like to think that you normally can't, you can't even get a taco in London now for £3.50. Here, I mean, that would feed two people. From our short time in the market, all I've heard is that you've got to try the falafel hut. This guy has served everyone from the princess of Dubai to the Egyptian king. So let's see what all the fuss is. How long have you been in the market? I've been 24 years. 24 years? Look around you. There's the famous falafel in Poland. Really? Oh my God. I love falafel, so. I have all the famous people with big family. Really? Like who? Who's been here? Everyone. Who's your favourite? Moussala. No way. Moussala's been here? Yeah, two, three. Really? Just look at this for a cross-section. Boom. Whoa. Every single place we go into is like, this person's been here, this person's been here. That's the first one. Are they lying? Yeah, that's the first we've heard of Moussala. I'm not sure how much I believe it. Do you think you can get all of this for £5? The value for money in this market compared to other London markets is incredible. Like if you go to come to market, you're not getting a falafel sandwich or anything for under £13, £14. The sauces are made fresh, the salad's made fresh. The thing that actually makes this, for me, isn't the falafel, it's the aubergine. They've combined the aubergine so perfectly. All that natural sweetness just comes out of the aubergine. It's delicious. £5. If you live locally or work locally and you just want a cheap, quick lunch, this literally is shepherd's bush in a bite of food. From a bite of food, next up we have a whole platter of food. We're at Delina's, which is an Ethiopian spot right on the market. This is going to be a first for me as well. This is like one of the only foods on this planet that I haven't tried. I can't believe you've never had it. I've always been really excited to try it. Yes, so Ethiopian food, it's mainly like, it's similar to like Indian cuisine in terms of how we use our spices, but we have also a bread called injera, which is so different to any other bread. I've always been so interested because it looks funny. It's fermented and it's flat and it's sour, so you get a tangy taste because it's fermented, but it's super, super good for you. It's made from a grain called teff, which is really, really, really, really tiny, small grain. So you make it all fresh in-house, make everything? Exactly, yeah, we make it here. So first thing first, we have to leave this one to ferment. Yeah. And then we get the butter here, which is, this is what we make the bread from. So let's make injera, shall I make injera? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you just need to kind of spread it. Because of the fermentation, you can smell and then you can also see the little bubbles. Core, yeah, it's like vinegary. As this lady said, it will have a lot of steam coming. Okay, I'm going to do something special, especially you, for the first time. I'm going to spice it up a little bit. Okay. I'm going to put a little bit, this is how I like for people to try it. It's called katenya, it's like a bite. Here you can taste three things. It's actually the whole Ethiopian experience of like Ethiopian food, you can have it here because you have the injera and you have the spices that we always use for our cooking. And then you have the ghee as well, good way of starting Ethiopian food. It's crispy, it's super buttery, but I love that little like tinkle of spice and then the acidity from the fermentation, just like, it like refreshes your mouth. Ethiopian food always sits down on the top of the bread. This is our vegetarian churrata. I started in a market store, as a food trader, that's what I did like for a couple of years. And then I got tired pushing up and down the gazebos and then start cooking classes at schools and so on. Then when I got this place, I really had my cooking class workshop here and my coffee place. Okay, I want you to try this. I'm just going to get straight into this. I mean, this looks too good. I mean, we've got literally about seven different types of vegetables and we've also got some beef and then we've obviously got this amazing house fermented bread, which we've just tried crispy. Look at this 40 bite of food. Well, I've got no idea what to expect right now. Shut up. Why have I been sleeping on Ethiopian food so long? I'm immediately, I'm pissed off at myself. Sorry, I've got to carry on eating. It's like flavours from a mother, you know, like it's, no. It's mad because you taste every single vegetable on the bite of food and then you've just got this bread, which like, I mean, that rivals an arm bread. Like I look at this bread and I'm like, it looks interesting. I don't think it's going to taste that nice and you taste it. Wow. I can't stop eating it. I'm getting every, look at that. I mean, just look at it. All the different colours, every single colour has a different flavour. And they go together like a rainbow. It's just soul food, isn't it? Soul food, hearty, big portions, big flavours. It's delicious. There's sweetness, there's spice, there's tanginess. Everything has different flavours, there's different textures. Every single thing like is on this bread. And then that bread is just... We were told we couldn't leave without tasting the honey wine though. Tell me what it is. It's like mead. Actually, can I give you a glass? Or do you want a wine glass? Oh, I didn't know. This is how we do. Okay, if you wanted to drink, you can drink. It's a little bit awkward like this out of this. Oh yeah, okay, yeah. It might be awkward. Mead, honey wine. It's fermented honey. That tipple was meant to close out the video, but on our way to the station, I noticed my number one weakness, dumplings. So the video was meant to be finished, but we've literally just walked past this place, Mr. Dumpling. As you can see, it's getting dark. We've got three lovely ladies in the window making dumplings. Dumplings are like some of my favourite food. Literally like whenever I'm hungover, that's what I order. So we've got to go in and we've got to go see what it's all about. They saw the camera and invited us back into the kitchen. We were stuck straight into the dumpling station to check out how they fill and fry their famous potsticker dumplings. It's safe to say I will be giving these a try. Then we really did get access to all areas because we went into the back of the kitchen to see these guys making noodles fresh to order on this incredible machine. I've never seen that before in my life. Before finally, they placed up our oil splash dumplings. I am absolutely buzzing to try these. Right, the order. So we've got the potsticker dumplings, which come with this like crispy edge around the outside. We've got the oil spill dumplings and inside you've got prawn and you've got minced pork. These look absolutely delicious. Look at that colour. We've also got the braised beef shin noodles and out the back, you can literally see them slicing all the noodles to order on this like noodle robot. Right, we're going to kick things off with the oil spill dumplings. We've had so much food today, but these still make me smile. Oh man, the outside of the dumpling is so soft. You can tell by the guys just making it fresh how soft it is. Super warm, but that splash of chilli just adds this like really sort of like intense, slightly sweet umami flavour. And then inside you've got the pork, you've got the prawn, which together just go hand in hand. Dumplings are like my guilty pleasure. However, I've never had an oil splash dumpling before. That has literally just changed the game. We didn't need to order anything else. I could just go home. I'm happy. Now we've got the beef pot sticker dumplings, which come with this incredible crispy skin. The bottom is so crispy and it's served with this soy dipping sauce. The bottom just crisps up so perfectly. You can just get this really nice balance of the soft, freshly made dumpling. Underneath, you've got that crunch, that crisp. Yum. And finally, we've got the noodles. All made fresh to order. Then they top it with that beef broth, which has been simmering 24 hours. The sauce is so rich. The way that they've been boiling that beef, reducing it, emulsifying all those flavours. And then you've got the actual bits of beef itself, which are so soft and tender. They're like little beef sponges absorbed in all that flavour. There are so many different noodle spots now in London. They're literally everywhere. But I've got to say, we've probably done 10 to 12 shops. These are up there with the very best. Guys, if you like this video, please like, subscribe and comment which market we should go to next. This has been an absolute banger. Thank you all for watching. We'll see you in the next video.