Given the cold weather and the fact that it's the third week of January - so Dry January is nearly done! - I thought for this latest entry I'd revisit the late summer and post an old review of a place I've been to many times in all weathers. Hope you're keeping warm and if you do happen to know a recipe for a mulled variant of lime and soda, let me know.
Date: September 2018
Is it Spitalfields Market or Old Spitalfields Market these days? Either way I know I’m not talking about the wholesale fruit and veg market that takes places in the early morning from Monday to Satruday on the fringes of the Olympic Park in Leyton (E10) - turns out that’s called New Spitalfields Market anyway.
In any case, there I was on a Thursday after work, after dinner and with a mate, so what better to do than see out the last day of my working week with a refreshing glass of the good stuff. The Grocer has become something of a Stammkneipe (that’s German for the local) for weekday evening rendez-vous with my friends owing to the buzz generated in the City on a weekday evening, the vast array of tantalising culinary options in the market building surrounding it and - the main reason - the fact it is convenient for where we all work.
To give it some credit, it is a nice looking pub with a decent outdoor terrace situated under the roof of the market hall so you won’t get wet if it rains. It looks like what might be described as a ‘traditional British pub’ but has a modern feel to it too. It’s probably a gastropub, but then again most pubs seem to serve food these days. I couldn’t find out much about the pub’s history in the three minutes I spent googling ‘The Grocer pub Spitalfields Market history’ but I did find that there were apparently once as many as seventy pubs in the Spitalfields area, although not all existing at the same time. Now there are a measly ten. According to what I could work out from this list (see the sources section for the link), the nearest one to what is now The Grocer was probably the Pendennis Castle, which was situated at 1 Lamb Street and demolished in 1884. So there you go, some history
Down to the review as always
When I ordered at the bar, I was asked whether I wanted fresh lime or lime cordial. I’m yet to decide if I like this question or not. On the one hand it shows a level of care for the customer that is to be commended - consumer choice is, after all, the only real choice we have these days - but on the other it can come across as slightly idiotic. The best answer to this is of course both and, in my opinion, a bartender should know that instinctively. Too flustered from being confronted with this dilemma of choice, I forgot to ask for the fresh slice of lime and so was left with a pint glass of weak looking lime cordial and soda water, accompanied by several hundred thousand ice cubes.
Appearance:
Paying and taking my seat on the outside I watched my drink closely as the green tinge of the cordial blended well with the green tiles of the pub in the background. Owing to the aforementioned quantity of ice cubes, my hand was nearly frozen by the time I placed the glass on the table but the beginnings of a very mild frostbite in my fingertips did nothing to allay my fears that the ice would just dilute the minuscule amount of lime cordial further than the soda water had already done. It did look like a weak one. Without the lime quarter it also felt slightly bare. Even a quick stir with a finger couldn't do anything to make it appear more appetizing.
Taste:
Perhaps unsurprising then that this lime and soda was very low on flavour. The lack of zing from a bit of fresh lime made this even more noticeable (I’m not bitter about it, I promise). It was refreshing though and went down easily, however I do remember thinking that I might as well just have had a glass of sparkling water. At least the cordial didn't have a chemical aftertaste that some do. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t memorable either.
Price:
I bought it together with a single vodka soda (a drink which sounds even more disgusting than what I was drinking). That one came with a fresh lime quarter in it (really, I’m not bitter) and together they came to over £6 so we’re talking over £2 for the non-alcoholic cocktail. Not cheap but its in keeping with other places I’ve been to in the area. Yes, it might the city of London but I’m still not a banker.
So I guess I can say that this place is ok for lime and soda. Forgettable is what I’d term it as. A shame as it is quite a nice pub.
The pub itself is worth coming to, especially on a late summer weekday evening as you can sit and watch the world go by from the outdoor area. I’ve never eaten here and have rarely drunk anything other than the lime and soda so my comments on anything else are somewhat redundant. It was a pleasant evening and the drink itself was just a way to keep my whistle whet as I talked in depth with my mate about the state of our respective love lives. A very long conversation indeed.
Sources:
List of pubs in Spitalfields Market: http://www.spitalfieldsforum.org.uk/history/
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