Street food is booming in Bristol. Food blogger Alex Ryder nominates the best places to go for in the English city to get a quick and tasty hit of world cuisine has a thriving street food scene that rivals those in bigger cities like London and Birmingham .
In the past few years the number of places to eat at in Leicester's city centre seems to have grown exponentially. This is a good thing, right? More choice, a better night-time economy and lots of interesting places to eat? Sadly, that doesn't quite sum up the picture.
Alex Ryder plots the rise and rise of the grab-and-go meal Street food is a real hot topic right now, from the big London players like Dinerama and Kerb, to the Hog Stop in Loughborough and Shellfish Pig in Cornwall.
Gareth 'Pugsy' Smith (left) and Ben Hings, founders of the Orange Tree Group, photographed in 1998 If you're from the East Midlands or came to this region for university at any point in the last 15 years, chances are that you're familiar with the Orange Tree pubs.
With so much going on and street food markets happening all over the blimmin' shop, the choice is endless. I love the wild variation in cooking techniques and cuisines; we have traders covering every corner of the world, cooking on gas rings, charcoal, in pizza ovens, under gazebos and from vintage trucks.
More people are eating out than ever before, as is evident from our great independent dining options, as well as the boom in chain restaurants popping up all over the city. Bill's have just reported gastronomical profits for their last financial year, and you couldn't walk through Market Square in February without noticing the restaurant windows full of love hearts, balloons and Valentine's offers.
On what has become typical for this year's 'summer' last week I found myself walking through Cabot Circus shopping centre in alternating drizzle and sunshine in search of the newly refurbished and opened Brasserie Blanc. Brasserie Blanc, owned by the formidable French chef Raymond Blanc, has it's home in the Grade 1 listed Quaker Friary.
Last week I challenged myself as a newbie to Bristol, to do a food shop using JUST Bristol Pounds. This 'city specific' currency is wholly new to me and I find it fascinating. What I wanted to know was whether the Bristol Pound is a thing designed to appeal to tourists or whether real Bristolians are using it for every day purchases.
pictures by Alex Hannam A fan of new dining experiences, Alex Ryder parked herself at Thyme, a Mediterranean restaurant in a city park. While the dishes were delicious, the host also made a great impression... I like to try new independent places as and when they pop up and was looking forward to trying Leicester's new Mediterranean restaurant, Thyme.
This month's Eating Out post is written by Alex who writes at the blog Gingey Bites, and is dedicated to the street food found around Bristol. Alex is a 31 year old freelance marketeer from the Midlands who now lives in Bristol.
BuzzFeed Community is a place where anyone can post awesome lists and creations. Learn more or post your buzz!
I can't fault the place - great atmosphere and quirky decor at an independently run operation which is just thriving with life Before I moved to Bristol around 3 months ago, I spent far too much time trawling social media to find all the best places to eat once I arrived.
I love a good country pub but it's rare to find one which ticks all the boxes.
Looking to take your mum out this Sunday? Here's food writer Alex Ryder with her top recommendations.
Be our guest... Gingey Bites turns pescatarian for January.