Tag: finzels reach market

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Awesome Fritto Misto

stall

Bristol has a decent street food scene, around where I work in Bristol, as well as all the stalls at St Nicks, there are twice weekly markets at Temple Quay and Finzel Reach. The organisers of those markets always try and have a mix of stalls and types of cuisine. There aren’t that many traders selling fish, one that stands out is King Fin. If I am at a market and they are trading, it is usually one I go for. So, when I went to the Finzel Reach street food market, I headed towards King Fin to try their new(ish) Fritto Misto dish. The Fritto Misto replaces the tempura monkfish on the menu. I remember when they had Fritto Misto on the menu before, and tried it back in 2022. I wasn’t that enamoured with what I had then, I wrote:

Overall, if I am honest, though I enjoyed the dish, I was a little disappointed. The calamari was great, but the rest of the fish was a little soggy, despite having just being deep fried. There were two prawns in the dish, one peeled prawn and one whole prawn. The courgette was floppy and was quite greasy.

When I heard that King Fin were bringing back the Fritto Misto onto their menu, I was eager to try it again, despite my reservations from my previous experience.

I must go to King Fin quite a bit as I got recognised as a regular, which was nice. I placed my order and waited. As with all their menu items, the food was cooked to order. After a short while I was handed my box of food and I think it looked amazing. I took it back to my office to eat.

fritto misto in a box

It was awesome. This was a delicious box of food. The freshly cooked squid rings, prawns and (small) fish were really tasty and it was a generous portion. The deep fried sage and courgette was a nice addition. I thought this was an amazing dish and I was well impressed. It certainly was much better than my previous experience. The batter was nice and crispy.  As per usual the fries were great. 

Looking forward to having this again soon.

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Bento Box

It’s no wonder sometimes when I go to Bristol and there is a street food market if She Sells Streetfood (was She Sells Sushi) is there I will go with a bento box. I enjoy the food and I think one of the reasons I like it is that it’s not a sandwich or a wrap.

This time, I went with a bento box containing the Beef Donburi and the Tan Tan Udon. This was the same combination I had before. As this was a bento box the Tan Tan Udon came in a smaller cardboard bowl than if you ordered the full size version, alongside was the Beef Donburi.

I’ve always enjoyed the Beef Donburi and this was delicious as usual. The beef was beautifully tender, full of flavour. It goes so well with the sticky rice. I do like the addition of the (new) cucumber salad. 

Last time I really enjoyed the Tan Tan Udon, so was looking forward to eating that again. The Tan Tan Udon was udon noodles in a creamy sesame broth with spicy ground pork, Asian greens and spring onions. It was excellent and delicious. The creamy broth was superb, full of flavour, thicker than a normal broth (hence the creamy). Nice noodles and the spicy ground pork just added to this one tasty bowl of food.

I do like this food.

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I will miss those hirata buns…

One of my favourite street food stalls in Bristol is She Sells Sushi and I was intrigued to hear that after years of trading, that Lisa is changing the name to She Sells Streetfood and was also changing the menu.

So, when I was working in Bristol I headed down to Finzel Reach to see what was available and to try something new. I nearly didn’t go, as there was downpour, and I did get quite soaked in the queue. The menu now has four items and no sushi! Also gone are the lovely hirata buns.

The four items consist of two favourites, Katsu curry and the Beef Donburi. The two new items are Loaded Katsu Fries and Tan Tan Udon noodles.

I went with a bento box containing the Beef Donburi and the new Tan Tan Udon.

The Tan Tan Udon was udon noodles in a creamy sesame broth with spicy ground pork, Asian greens and spring onions. As this was a bento box the Tan Tan Udon came in a smaller cardboard bowl than if you ordered the full size version. This was served alongside the Beef Donburi.

I’ve always enjoyed the Beef Donburi and this time was no exception. 

Beef Donburi

Delicious full flavoured tender beef in a delicious sauce served on fluffy rice. It was delicious.

I was intrigued by the Tan Tan Udon and I did wonder how good it was going to be! 

Tan Tan Udo

Well, it was excellent, just delicious. The creamy broth was superb, full of flavour, thicker than a normal broth (hence the creamy). Nice noodles and the spicy ground pork just added to this one tasty bowl of food. 

I was well impressed with the Tan Tan Udon, so much so, that next time I might just go with the full sized portion and forgo the bento box. I am not really a fan of loaded fries, so might try those in the future, but then again probably not. I am though a little saddened that the delicious hirata buns are no longer on the menu, I will miss those.

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Calamari and Fries from King Fin

calamari

I was working in Bristol and popped out to the Finzel Reach street food market for some lunch. One of my favourites, King Fin was there, so I went for one of my regular dishes, the calamari and fries.

King Fin is a consistently excellent street food stall, a true highlight of the Temple Quay and Finzel Reach markets. Their unwavering commitment to freshness and quality is what keeps me coming back—they’re easily one of my favourite stalls.

The food here is prepared to order, so you know it’s fresh. The calamari is a standout—the squid is incredibly tender, while the batter is perfectly light and crisp. It’s a truly delicious dish. The fries are twice-cooked and seasoned with rosemary, served with a tasty sauce. A small portion of coleslaw accompanies the meal.

I find myself drawn back to this dish again and again. While I always promise to try new things, it’s no surprise when I return to one of my favourites.

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King Fin Calamari and Fries

King Fin, a consistently excellent street food stall, is a highlight of both the Temple Quay and Finzel Reach markets. Their commitment to freshness and quality makes them one of my absolute favourites.

I nearly always go for my usual order: the calamari and fries.

It’s a dish that perfectly showcases their dedication to preparing everything to order. You can tell the moment you receive it that it’s incredibly fresh. The squid itself is remarkably soft and tender, encased in a light, crispy batter that’s never greasy – simply delicious.

The fries are equally impressive. They’re twice-cooked, resulting in a perfect balance of crispy exterior and fluffy interior, and beautifully seasoned with rosemary. A delicious sauce accompanies them, adding another layer of flavour. To cut through the richness, there’s also a small, refreshing portion of slaw on the side.

Every element comes together to create a truly delicious and satisfying meal. If you ever spot King Fin, I highly recommend giving them a try!

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Calamari and Fries

One of my favourite street food stalls is King Fin, who are a regular at the Temple Quay and Finzel Reach street food markets. I noted that they had missed a few markets when they were advertised to turn up. So, when I was in Bristol one Wednesday and visited the Finzel Reach street food market I was pleased to see that King Fin were there. So, I went with one of my regular orders, which is the calamari and fries.

Calamari and Fries

I love how they are cooked to order, you know these are fresh. The squid is so soft and tender, the batter is light and crispy. Delicious. The fries were twice cooked and seasoned with rosemary and a tasty sauce. Alongside was a small portion of slaw.

I really like this dish, and even though I promise myself to try new places and dishes, I am not too surprised when I I revert to one of my favourite dishes.

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Dirty Fries

food stall

One of the regular stalls at the Bristol Street Food scene is Big Nath’s BBQ. I haven’t had food from them before, in the main as their menu consists of rolls filled with BBQ meat, brisket or pulled pork. I think if they did a BBQ box then I probably would have tried them out. I usually avoid what I would call sandwich meals, as I generally don’t do sandwiches, and burgers are a kind of sandwich, well I think they are.

However this time, while I was at the Finale Reach street food market, I thought I would give it a go, and I went for the dirty fries.

These are fries with mac and cheese, pulled pork, BBQ sauce, pickles and mustard.

They do a regular size and a large, having seen them produce a large portion, I went with the regular size (which is still huge).

It looked great. It was very tasty, never sure about pasta and fries in a single dish, but this is an American thing, and this was a very American plate of food. There were some tasty seasoned fries, the aforementioned mac and cheese, tender and delicious pulled pork, with a really nice BBQ sauce. I liked the addition of the mustard and pickles as well. Overall a really fun and delicious box of food, also very filling.

Now the only thing that I would say is that I thought there would be some brisket on there as well, as the chalk board said “yes, it has everything on it”. Well there was no brisket, but not to worry, the fries were still delicious.

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A different Bento Box

When I buy a bento box from She Sells Sushi in Bristol I usually go for the beef donburi and a chicken hirata bun. On a recent visit to the Finale Reach Street food market I went with the bento box, but this time I went with the beef donburi and for a change the chicken katsu.

The chicken katsu was tasty. There was crispy chicken with katsu sauce on top of rice with pickles and crispy onions.

The chicken freshly cooked had a crisp coating. The katsu sauce was nice, not too spicy, but with a hint of fruitiness.

The beef donburi was slow cooked teriyaki beef rib on a bed of rice, topped with crispy onions and pickles.

This was delicious as usual, with tender beef and great flavour.

Overall I think there was too much rice for a light lunch,  but the rest of the box was delicious.

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Hot Dog and Loaded Fries

I was on the look out for some lunch from the Finzel Reach street food market. The Fontmell BBQ Smokehouse were there, in their converted horse box.

Their usual items are pulled meat buns and loaded fries. They also have jackfruit on the menu as well. This time they had an XL wild boar hot dog special. I went all out and not only ordered the hot dog, but also got a side of loaded fries with it. I went with the pulled beef loaded fries.

I took my ticket, but it wasn’t long before my food arrived. The service was efficient and friendly. This was one big dog and though it was a half portion of loaded fries, it was a large half. I also thought the food was well presented.

The hot dog was excellent, it was meaty and had a smoke flavour. It was a good sausage, but not sure if the wild boar came through as much as I thought it would. It was really tasty and I enjoyed it. I have to say though, I did use a knife and fork to eat it!

I am really on the fence when it comes to loaded fries. I do like eating fries, and usually have mayonnaise. However these were another level, the fries were literally loaded with cheese, pulled barbecue beef, jalapeños, sauces, and crispy onions. As I am on the fence, I am not sure if I enjoyed them or not. They were certainly tasty and I might order them again in the future. Overall a substantial tasty lunch.

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Another one, but this time different

One of my favourite dishes from the Bristol street food scene is the bento box from She Sells Sushi. Virtually all the time when getting lunch from the stall I get the bento box with a portion of beef donburi and a hirata bao bun. 

After having a delicious bento box from She Sells Sushi with the beef and hirata bun, a week later I was back at the Finzel Reach street food market and decided I once more would have a bento box. However, this time I went with the chicken katsu curry and the beef donburi.

The beef donburi was slow cooked teriyaki beef rib on a bed of rice, topped with crispy onions and pickles. This was delicious as usual.

I have had the katsu curry before, this was crunchy chicken strips on a bed of rice with katsu curry sauce. It was a nice dish.

Overall I think I had too much rice, as the bento box was essentially two rice dishes. I did enjoy the curry and the donburi.