Cardiff Market is so much more than what it seems on the outside. As described as one of its stall holders - Nick Spann who runs Bao Selecta - the market's newest tenant - it is a total "microcosm" of Cardiff with a vast selection of stalls that have been here for 50 years, five years, or five months.
Tailors, hat shops, electrical stores, a fishmongers, a record shop, jewellery counters, florists, butchers, bakers. And, of course, a myriad of dreamy food options, from street food tacos to traditional bacon baps. It's an utterly magical place in which you could easily and quite happily lose yourself for hours.
While there is an abundance of food options for hungry city dwellers and office workers - from The Sage Deli and Shan's to Clancy's and The Mediterranean Food Stall - in recent years, Cardiff Market has become home to a number of street food vendors, showcasing brilliant talent on the street food circuit and we are so delighted.
Spread over both the ground and first floor, we are simply spoilt for choice when it comes to lunch time options. And what better way to enjoy it than by taking a seat on the first floor balcony and not just tuck into our steaming hot food but soaking up the atmosphere and the sounds of the bustling market below.
We've rustled up a list of the street food vendors at Cardiff Market and how we think they fare.
Now, bear in mind, what we've based our scores on is the flavour and taste of the dishes, the value - in terms of quantity - and how beautiful it looks. These lunches may be a smidge more expensive than your average Tesco meal deal, but you're getting something that has been lovingly crafted in front of your eyes, what would you expect?
Read on to find out...
Dirty Gnocchi
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 5 / Presentation - 4
£7.50 for a box of 'dirty fungi' gnocchi
‘Oh my’ gosh was my first thought when I sunk my teeth into this chocca filled box of crispy-on-the-outside soft-on-the-inside gnocchi. First of all, it looked great. The ragu drizzled gnocchi was neatly packed into a cardboard box and topped with parmesan, paprika and rocket - a nice zing of greenery. Secondly, it tasted heavenly. I texted (almost) everyone I knew urging them to go there for their next lunch break. The veggie mushroom ragu sauce was rich, salty, with a hint of garlic and a splash of tomatoey zinginess that complimented the golden crispiness of the pasta.
It was a delightful fusion of flavours that didn’t feel as heavy as what pasta dishes such as this can feel like and, despite me walking quite away back to the office in the damp, cold weather, it remained piping hot.
Plus, you get the bonus of having a chat (if it's quiet) with two owners, Laura and Rhys Keogh, who are really friendly and just lush.
Tukka Tuk
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 4 / Presentation - 5
£10 for Kerala Fried Chicken and Bombay Fries
This was one of the nicest looking meals out of all of them, I'd say. Tangerine-coloured Kerala fried chicken, fries tossed in fragrant (but not overpowering) garlic and coconut, and a salad that is topped with bright purple pickled cabbage, it was like a rainbow on a plate. The taste, too, was delicious - my mouth is watering just thinking about it. The Keralan-fried chicken - of which you got a hefty portion - was crispy without being greasy and gave a slightly nutty taste - personally - which I loved. The chicken too was succlent and not too heavy and the fries had a hint of sweetness from the coconut that had me coming back for more - despite becoming increasingly full. Curated by renowned Cardiff chef Anand George and his business partner Rupali Wagh, it's not a surprise the food was absolutely class - when I tried a sneak peek of the food for their brand new restaurant Tukka Tuk Canteen (coming soon) at the Street Food Circus' Forest Feastival last year, I was blown away.
While it was amazing and is up there with one of my fave lunches of all time - and you MUST add it to your market bucket list - it's not a lunch out that is cheap as chips in comparison to its neighbours. If you're looking for a quick bite to eat, you don't want to be spending a tenner on the daily for your mid day munch. That being said, I don't regret spending a little bit extra on the quality of such a delish dish and it's one of their best-sellers so it must be worth it.
Ffwrnes
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 5 / Presentation - 4
£7.50 for a mushroom pizza
A thin crust that is salty, charcoaly and chewy - wonderfully so - and topped with tomato and smooth, stringy cheesy with soft mushrooms and truffle oil.... oh wow. The truffle oil was a surprising and welcome after taste that made you go 'oh wow'. It was lush. Not too heavy, as some pizzas can be, and just the right amount of doughiness to have that 'pizza' feel, rather than a loaded flatbread.
Don't let the presentation scoring fool you. I have given it a four simply because it isn't wowza. It looks like a pizza. It's not uber colourful. It's not impressive either. It's a classic looking pizza - and that's okay. It does what it says on the tin - with a bit of flavour pizzazz.
And with the taste as good as it was - the funghi pizza consisted of: tomato sauce, mozzarella, mushrooms, basil, &extra virgin truffle olive oil - it doesn't matter if it was a work of art or not.
However, be warned: the tomatoey base is rather slippy and if you don't act fast, your toppings have a tendency to slide right off the dough. Although, scoop it back on and you're back to square one.
What I will say is that on top of the delicious pizza as a whole, the service was incredible. I got my ticket and waited, seated on the only chairs on the market's balcony I could find, for my number (97) to be called. When it was, I didn't quite hear it (sorry pizza boys) and so one of the lads behind the counter came and found me to deliver my pizza into my hands. Now that is class service and matches the heavenly flavours of the pizzas Ffwrnes produces.
Thai Asian Delish
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 5 / Presentation - 3
£7 for a Thai green curry with chicken
So, I'm going to start with... don't worry about the presentation rating - it doesn't matter when it comes to this huge, steaming container of Thai goodness that will carry you through lunch, dinner and supper - maybe even breakfast the next day if that's your thing.
Most definitely the OGs of streetfood stalls in Cardiff Market the team at Thai Asian Delish have been slamming out their tasty curries, pad thais and stir fries for years now as the market has evolved around them. But their quality has stood firm and you won't go far wrong if you want a lunchtime kick of spice.
The Thai green curry comes with sticky rice, or half-and-half (I think I may have popped my trousers if I'd had the latter) and is a hefty portion that's well worth the price and you can have it veggie or with prawn, also. There's plenty of fragrant, coconutty sauce that has one hell of a kick and more chicken than you can shake a stick at, every now and then you'll pick up a carrot or snap of ginger - but be quick with that sauce if you can as it'll absorb into the rice quick smart - but that still tastes gorgeous.
Light lunch this is not, but if you want a filling, tasty, spicy, moreish, decently priced meal that's served to you in seconds, this stall is for you. And it certainly is Delish.
Ya Souvlaki
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 5/ Presentation - 5
£5.95 for a chicken pita wrap
Very new to the market is Antonis Alexandris' Greek stall, and hell's bells what an addition. You know when you spend a morning at your desk wondering what to have for lunch other than a soggy sarnie, but your mind has gone blank? Well, get one of these.
They are hot, they have soft grilled chicken, minty tzatziki, fresh salad to cut through those two and, of course, THEY HAVE CHIPS IN THEM. Oh yeh, and the pitas come all the way from Greece and taste like a pita I've never had before - not even in Greece.
It's like a complete meal in your hand and taking a bit of all the above in one go - challenge extended and accepted by me - gives and explosion of taste and will have you binning off a meal deal because, really, it's not that more expensive.
Friendly, lovely blokes behind the counter too. I'm going back when they do the calamari special next time, too.
Bao Selecta
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 4/ Presentation - 5
£8 for crispy pork rice bowl and £4.50 for a crispy 'beef' bao bun
Cardiff Market’s latest addition, Bao Selecta only opened on Tuesday, March 21, but it already has queues running down the market. And it’s easy to see why. Offering a fully vegan menu - although you wouldn't taste it - its rice bowls and bao buns are topped and stuffed with crispy ‘beef’ and crunchy ‘pork’ - which, when you sink your teeth in, is mind-blowing to think it’s not meat. I had the pork rice bowl and it was sweet, crunchy, salty and had the texture of pulled pork. It was amazing. The sticky rice below was just enough to keep me full until dinner and provided a nice sweetness to the sourness of the pickled cucumber and onion. Topped with sesame seeds (that added a nutty punch), it was a very aesthetically pleasing.
Its more floury companion, the bao bun, also proved to be lip-smackingly good. So good my dining partner got two. Looking at it, one wouldn't fill you up and at £4.50 a pop, you'd expect to have more of a meal than a little snack. That being said, while it may be small in size, it is mighty in flavour and really (I know, we've said before) tastes like meat. It's unbelievable. The sweet bun compliments the sticky and salty 'beef' so nicely and the onions add a lovely zing to to sarnie.
The team behind the small 1m2 serving space, too, make it a smashing experience as their energy and smiles really brighten up a dreary rainy day - there seems to be a theme there with stallholders in the market...
The Bearded Taco
Taste - 5/ Value for money - 5/ Presentation - 5
£6.50 for two tacos or £9 for three
When you first get given your neatly packed box of tacos (whether you decide to go for two or three), you - me - think they're only small, they can't be that filling. But boy let me tell you. They are not only packed with flavour - the pulled pork is succulent, salty, and melt in your mouth, and it is topped with sweet and fresh tomato salsa and zingy pickled pink onion that makes your hair stand on end - but packed, full stop. You get a whole lotta filling sandwiched inside a GLUTEN FREE corn taco whose colour is a sort of dark lavender tinge and it is so worth the £9 because you get so much goodness.
Two is plenty for a delicious and filling lunch. Three is wonderful if you're hungry. It looks great. Tastes great. And the service from the guys behind the bench is top notch - and always with a massive smile and a chat.
Having recently opened in February 2023, it's totally understandable as to why they have people waiting patiently in line to try their grub - it is well worth the wait.
Pierogi
Taste - 5/ Value for money - 5/ Presentation -5
Duck dumpling for £7.40
With a choice between dumplings stuffed with duck, cottage cheese and potatoes, spinach and cottage cheese, and buckwheat with mushrooms, I opted for the duck which came with fried onions and plum sauce.. As the dumplings are freshly made, there is a short wait for food to be served but the process moves along as quickly as possible, and there are seats for while you wait.
In one portion, you get seven good-sized dumplings, which is plenty - the servings are filling, and you won't be left hungry afterwards. My pierogi came beautifully presented - topped with chives and fried onions and the plum sauce to the side. The dumplings are served hot and are boiled rather than fried which gives them a softer texture.
You can certainly taste that the dumplings have been made fresh. Not only are they hot when they're served, but also from the dough you sink your teeth into - you can see this being rolled out while you wait too. As for what's inside, the dumplings are full, but the little pocket is strong enough to keep them in tact, making them perfect for dipping into the sauce.
The duck had a pleasant flavour, while the plum sauce that came with it had a creaminess too it.
Smashed Burger
Taste - 5 / Value for money - 4/ Presentation - 4
Bippy's meal deal for £10, veggie burger meal deal £9
You can't have a round up of street food without including the original street food option: a burger. And Smashed Burger, a relatively new market addition, is one for the books. My food companion and I opted for a lunchtime meal deal - costing £10 a pop and was made up of a burger (with TWO patties) and chips. I opted for a veggie one and was shocked. A good kind of shocked. I have tasted many veggie burgers in my time (sometimes you just want a burger without the heaviness of a wodge of meat and plant-based patties are delicious) and this burger was so spot on with mirroring the taste of beef. So much so that I had to think back to us watching the chef cook the patties to check it was, in fact, a veggie burger (...it was).
The saltiness was just right, the flavour was rich - and it didn't fall apart nor taste fake and rubbery. I also appreciated the size of this singular patty - it oozed out of the brioche bun, meaning extra substance for a nibble once the burger bun had been demolished. The chips were great, too. You can't go much wrong with chips.
The beef burger - named 'Bippy's' burger - is made up of the two beef patties and is well-packed and bursting with flavour. It tastes high quality and is the right level of saltiness, even with the addition of the bacon. Without sounding like I am lost for words, the patty tastes...beefy, in the best way, and the burger sauce - the stall's own, we're told - is smokey with a slight kick.
It's not too thick of a burger either so doesn't feel like the most decadent lunch - although it is probably one to limit to a treat day as you will be completely satisfied by the end.
Why did we give it a 4? Well, because when you go to the market, you don't expect your dinner to cost a tenner. That's just a given. However, that being said. It isn't not worth the money - you do get two patties mind. Presentation wise... it's a typical burger and chips in a polystyrene container. Nothing special and does the job.
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