Gopal's Curry Shack at Cargo 2, Wapping Wharf

After my first run in with chaat at Sholay I was interested in trying other examples of this dish. Gopal’s crowdfunded their permanent home at Wapping Wharf and after reaching their goal, thanks to many loyal fans they opened up about 6 months ago.  Sporting an all Vegetarian and Vegan menu that will warm you through the Wintery months. A menu of Indian street food with dishes such as a selection of dhals, the Mumbai toastie as well as seasonal curries.  With chaat on my mind I went in to order the samosa chaat dish.  Whilst a good deal of the cargo containers are designed for takeaway, and Gopal’s is no exception, there are a couple of stools to perch on. 

 

Gopal’s samosa chaat consists of crushed up samosas topped with spicy chickpea curry topped with various chutneys, yoghurt and pomegranate seeds. At £7.50 it might seem a little pricey for lunch but the portion is enormous, if you can finish it in one sitting you are a hero to me. This was just what the doctor ordered on such a grey day, and we had braved sitting outside. The chickpea curry was a tad hot but I popped back in and they gladly gave me a pot with extra minty yoghurt to cool it down. This dish is wholesome, warm and comforting. The samosas are still slightly crunchy and add a nice texture, and the fig and tamarind chutney adds a wonderful sweetness. Because the flavours change with each mouthful it was a delight to eat, and even when I was full I still wanted to go back for another mouthful. 

 

 I find it really heartening when street food stalls build up enough of a following to open their own permanent premises and Bristol is lucky enough to have converted the dreams of many a street food favourite. It was something I wrote about last year for Wriggle, our love affair with street food doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of a cooling off period. Check out the article here.

 

Gopal’s shows how imaginative Vegetarian and Vegan dishes can get. The vibrancy and flavours certainly don’t make you miss meat at all. I am looking forward to exploring more of their menu over the next few months whilst we endure more freezing temperatures. To find out more about their food visit their website. Gopal's will also cater for events and parties if you are looking for something a little out of the norm.

 

Spicy Lunch at Chilli Daddy

I have a confession to make. Forgive me Father for I have sinned, I have become obsessed with something to the point it consumes all my lunchtime thoughts.  Yes readers, I have finally tried Chilli Daddy and I adore it, in the past month I have been 4 times. What started as a street food stall has quickly grown into having two central shops one just off Park Row and one on Baldwin Street.  I was a bit slow in becoming a convert to the Szechuan dishes that Chilli Daddy provides, mainly because I wasn't sure how customisable they are. One of my only real dislikes is coriander and I knew the noodles came with quite a bit, but once finding out that you can order without I headed to the Baldwin Street branch as soon as I was able. Accompanied by Mr Popple on my first visit he was able to give a little advice on the heat levels and additions you can make.

The menu at Chilli Daddy is fairly simple choose chicken, beef or tofu in either noodle salad, rice box or hotpot. The heat ranges from 1-5 with 5 being the spiciest. I decided to go for the chicken dan dan hotpot, level 3 spicy with no coriander. Tim was brave opting for the same dish but at level 4. Note that there are potato noodles for those of you looking for gluten free options. Another point to mention is it is cash only so remember to plan ahead when you go there.

chicken dan dan hotpot

chicken dan dan hotpot with added tea egg (2nd visit)

takeaway beef hotpot (3rd visit)

Oh my word. Chilli Daddy know how to do a hugely tasty and addictive lunch. Level 3 was just right for me a good spicy kick  but not over powering. I have sampled level 4 and I could eat it but whether I would want a whole bowl of it is uncertain. Although the next time I have a cold could well be the best time to try. If you haven't already tried Chilli Daddy do check them out the food is simply amazing. Prices range from £4.50-6 and the portions are huge and very filling. I am lucky to be surrounded by such temptation every day. To find out more and hear where Chilli Daddy got his inspiration from check out their website.

Friday Evening at StrEAT in Cabot Circus

Last Friday Rich and I were invited to sample various street food vendor's wares at the first StrEAT food collective in Quaker Friars in Cabot Circus. This event will be held every Friday in May from 5-9pm and I would seriously consider getting yourselves down there for some truly wonderful food. In the interests of science it was only fair that we tried to sample as many of the vendors as possible. But this was a struggle as there were quite a a few and the choices were mouthwatering. We did a quick scope of the stands to decide what our first pick would be, Whisk caught our eyes first and we headed over to take a closer look.

beer braised brisket

16 hour roast pork shoulder

Possibly the best food of the evening was the first we sampled, Whisk cooked up two 'low and slow' options, brisket and pork shoulder. The flavours of each were incredible, served with home made 'slaw and diced cornichons. There were options for sauce toppings as well which complimented the meat beautifully. I cannot enthuse how good this tasted you should get down there over the next couple of weeks and sample it for yourselves.

Asia Pop! Sign

Onwards to Asia Pop! With the best sign of the day, no contest. They had wontons and noodles in soup, strawberry mochi and lettuce wraps. I decided to sample one of the lettuce wraps, which was fried pork mince with spices, peas and topped with peanuts and fresh chillis. I waited as it was cooked up fresh to order and wandered around, StrEAT was pretty busy which was great to see as it's the sort of event that is perfect for light summer evenings and bringing many but different food businesses to our attention. We particularly enjoyed the Brazilian beats that floated out over the crowds, really gave a summery party atmosphere to the event.

Lettuce wrap

Strawberry Mochi

The wrap was delicious and refreshing, a perfect light starter bite especially in the summer. The richness of the pork was cut through by the spicy fresh chillis and the peanut gave it a good extra crunch factor I was really impressed and would have had another but duty called me to another stand to sample. Our third choice was to head over to Chomp, I had heard great things about this business who can resist a sign that beckons to all burger fans? Although the steak and fries option was extremely tempting we decided to share one of their much praised hamburgers and quadruple cooked fries.

Chomp van

Chompers at work

all wrapped up

undressed

up close and personal

This was a damn good burger, the parmesan mayo was a revelation. The Chomp guys had paid special attention to make sure this burger was big on taste and high on quality. The meat was superb and the relishes on top were wonderful, really emphasised the burger flavour. This was not quite the best burger I have ever eaten but it was definitely the runner up. The chips were equally wonderful, crunchy and well seasoned, burger enthusiasts should get themselves to Chomp as soon as they can.

We were full, extremely full. I didn't even get to try the Coconut Chilli stand with their wonderful smelling koftas, Pizza Monkey and their fresh from the pizza oven, pizzas. I did have room for one last tiny thing though, it was something that smelled so delicious I couldn't resist. Tambo, Peruvian Kitchen was serving up anticucho, Peruvian meat skewered snack, these ones were the most popular type, ox heart. Not being one for offal really I thought, why not they smell great , and bit the bullet.

On the grill

Anticucho (ox heart skewer)

Offered two choices of sauce to go with my skewer, spicy or fresh I opted for both, I was warned the spicy could be pretty hot, although to me it wasn't that hot but definitely delicious. Offal is definitely not something I would normally go for but was pleasantly surprised with how delicious the skewer was. It tasted like lean steak, enhanced by the smoky marinade it was glazed with. I was expecting a strong offal and slightly metallic flavour, this was not remotely the case.  I would urge you all to go outside your comfort zone and try this skewer it will surprise you with how delicious it is. 

It was hard to steer ourselves away from all the other vendors we hadn't tried, only to get stopped by Cupp, the bubble tea specialists. I just couldn't leave without trying one, so settled on coconut with green tea. Really refreshing and I did like the tapioca balls, although I can understand why some people wouldn't. A chewable drink, and my first whole bubble tea, although I have tried a sip of it before. 

caged tea

coconut bubble tea

I took a lot of photos at this event there was so much going on and it is a great event for Bristol. I urge everyone to try and make their way down there this month after work on a Friday, what a great way to ease into the weekend. Check out the StrEAT website for vendor updates.

We were invited as guests to sample the event so the food was free for us but did not mean we were obliged to write a positive review had the food been not up to scratch. The food is all very reasonably priced, most items £6 and under with large portions. I for one hope to go after work again the food is just too good to miss. Now go, what are you waiting for?