Like a beacon from a lighthouse on a foggy day, the smell of charcoal toasted bread drew my friends and I into a small stall on a chilly Saturday morning at Brockley Market, a small farmers market in the London borough of Lewisham.
With foraged items, local ingredients and everything made from scratch Mike & Ollie make food to care about. Despite a long line forming, Mike takes the time to talk about the food he’s serving. The wild garlic added to each wrap came from his neighbour that morning who stumbled upon it while walking his dog, no big deal.
Every part of each menu item was crafted with a thoughtful, creative note behind it. The free-range pork belly? From Suffolk! The handmade Lebanese flatbread? Organic! The yoghurt? Homemade! The Quince? House pickled! The rhubarb/seville orangeade? Freshly squeezed and stewed!
When leaving with my giant, pork-belly stuffed flatbread I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face along with the house made hummus. It wasn’t just because each and every last bite of that wrap put me into a sedated food coma, I was giddy with excitement.
It is rare to find places and people like Mike & Ollie who deeply care about what they do and in the process just so happen to get everything right! They didn’t just decide to jump on the local food bandwagon, they are in fact, driving the bus (save me a seat)!
I’d like to keep the flatbread wraps all to myself, but there’s no chance that these guys will be south east London’s best kept secret for much longer! Visit Mike & Ollie every Saturday morning at Brockley Market or every Wednesday/Friday at Deptford Market from 9-4. Or you can follow them on twitter to see what they forage next @MikeandOllie
