There’s a buzz going on about Maltby Street, considered by many as the new Borough Market. Maltby Street is a stretch of road underneath the railway that leads to London Bridge. It was where Monmouth Coffee now roasts its coffee beans and where they first started selling their coffee on a weekend. There’s a bit of controversy that surrounds the market, after several people were evicted from Borough Market for opening up a store there. Although I read about this when I was in Germany, I haven’t had the chance to go there. Fortunately on this rainy, windy Saturday morning I was able to head there and check out the stalls.

The markets that surround Maltby actually sit on a number of roads, and the purveyors aren’t as numerous as at the nearby market. One of the most well known and popular places is the bakery arm of St John’s situated on the nearby Druid Street.

I’d been told about their delightful selection of donuts. Living just a stone’s throw away from the original St John, I’m already familiar with their delicious sourdough loaves and their traditional eccles cakes. Apparently you need to get there before 12 to get one of those donuts, so I made sure I turned up at 9 to get one. Okay, maybe a bit early, but worth it as there were plenty there.

I probably should have got a jam donut as well, but didn’t really want to be that greedy for the morning. A loaf of bread for later and a custard donut to go with the coffee.

Now what coffee you say? Well, Monmouth is located just around the corner. It was already busy with people by the time I go there. No crazy queues though like at its other outlets.

Maltby street has a number of other purveyors as well. Neal’s Yard Dairy is there along with a number of other store sellers. There’s the Kernel Brewery selling home made beers, a Polish sausage and Swiss cheese store.

I bought a wonderfully aged steak from The Butchery and stocked up on a number of fruit and vegetables at Tayshaw Limited. I think I got there maybe a bit too early as the other market vendors were just starting to set up their wares. It’s looking to be a promising place for purveyors of great food and I can only be encouraged by the place. It’s not the most convenient place to get there with public transport, but if you find you have time on your hand, I’d definitely recommend heading there on a nice day.

On, and the custard donut went down a treat. Light, not too sweet and delicious. Just the way a donut should be.