On Saturday 11 August, over 30 vibrant restaurants, bars and cafes in Shaftesbury’s highly popular destination Carnaby in central London, took to the streets for an al fresco summer party in celebration of Carnaby Street Eat, the annual food festival.
Food stalls and trucks lined the streets of Carnaby, in the heart of London’s West End, serving signature plates and cocktails for one day only. Visitors enjoyed live music and entertainment and dined on the West End’s longest picnic table under the iconic Carnaby Street arch.
This year, Shaftesbury encouraged tenants to become single-use plastic free, with stall holders serving their dishes in biodegradable food containers, with wooden and compostable cutlery and drinks in plant based ‘glasses’ and paper straws. The aim was to raise awareness of the issues caused by single-use plastics together with Carnaby’s charity partner, ocean conservationists, Project 0.
In Carnaby’s food and drink emporium Kingly Court, hundreds of visitors refilled their Carnaby branded bottles throughout the day at the #OneLess water refill station, installed by Shaftesbury as part of the Mayor of London’s #OneLess initiative in the capital.
Highlights from the event included sustainable seafood and festival stalwarts Claw, who served their famous crab and lobster rolls, whilst the menu at Stevie Parle’s Pastaio featured cacio pepe bucatini, parmesan rigatoni and blackberry prosecco slushies.
Carnaby’s latest opening Inko Nito served their robatayaki Japanese cuisine including beef cheek, pickled daikon and butter lettuce on Beak Street alongside live entertainment from retro trio The Hotsie Totsies and Ketel One infused cocktails at the Cahoots bar.
Street food from Kingly Court favourites included; tonkotsu ramen and BBQ pork steamed buns from Shoryu Carnaby, gourmet chicken and falafel kebabs from Le Bab, pizza slices and Limoncello from Pizza Pilgrims and Dirty Bones’ MacDaddy sliders.
Asma Khan’s Darjeeling Express turned up the heat serving indulgent, authentic
Ugly Dumpling served Asian fusion dumplings, Kua ‘Aina cooked up Hawaiian inspired burgers whilst chorizo rolls were on offer from Tapas Brindisa Soho.
Those with a sweet tooth headed to Bread Ahead for their signature doughnuts, washed down with an Aperol or Campari Spritz from Polpo.
The Newburgh Quarter was transformed into a chill out area with grass lawn, bean bags, deck chairs and music from DJ duo GRLTLK. Visitors also enjoyed edible Tutti Frutti bubbles from Smith & Sinclair, ice lollies from Popping Licks and live entertainment from traditional Mariachi bands throughout the 14 streets of Carnaby.
Thom Elliot, Co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, said, “We have been trading at Carnaby Street Eat since it started, and it has never failed to be a fantastic day out. It is a testament to the quality of food vendors on offer in Carnaby and a great way to taste a huge selection of world class cuisines in one afternoon without breaking the bank.”
Stevie Parle, Chef-Owner of Pastaio, commented, “We’ve really enjoyed our first six months here in Carnaby and are delighted to support Carnaby Street Eat. What’s better than setting up stall, eating tons of food, having some fun and getting to know as many of our customers and neighbours as possible.”
Simon Quayle, Director at Shaftesbury, noted, “Shaftesbury are delighted to host the annual Carnaby Street Eat food festival for the fifth year and are proud to be taking steps to become a single-use plastic free destination. Carnaby has always been at the forefront of the West End’s ever-evolving food scene and this event celebrates the area’s diverse and distinctive F&B offering.”
Carnaby is renowned for its exceptional mix of over 60 independent restaurants, new dining concepts, cafe´s and bars.