It took us a while, but last week, we took advantage of the Bristol Wapping Wharf Gourmet Food Tour voucher our daughter had given us for a great Christmas present.
When booking with Food Tours of Bristol, I was surprised to see how many of the tours were sold out, but was pleased to find a slot on a Saturday in August.
The website was easy to use and took our voucher with no problem. The day before the tour, we received a text message from Miguel to confirm whether we had any allergies/dietary requirements, whether we were happy to eat oysters, prawns and cured salmon and to reconfirm the meeting point and time (1:45 pm) at the Junction pub on Wapping Wharf.
Since our daughter lived near Wapping Wharf a few years ago, we knew the Junction pub and a few of the nearby restaurants, but we were looking forward to exploring more.
On arrival, it was easy to find Miguel, who immediately offered an introductory half-pint of one of Junction’s craft beers, ciders or soft drinks (included in the tour price) and took us to a table to meet our fellow tour guests. On the Gourmet tour, there can be between 4 and 8 guests; on this occasion there were 3 others.
We did the usual introductions, and Miguel explained he moved to Bristol in 2019, having grown up in Canada. He has worked in hospitality for many years and set up Bristol Food Tours three years ago to showcase the Bristol food scene. We were joined on our trip by a lady who is learning how Miguel runs the tours so more tours can be offered and Miguel can expand into different areas of Bristol.
Our first stop after Junction was one of my favourite lunch stops in the area, Loki Pokė.
Loki Pokė serves bowls of sushi rice with a choice of pickles, veg, sauce, and protein. Interestingly, the first time I saw similar bowls was during a trip to Gothenburg, but Miguel explained how the owner had the idea based on her experience in Australia.
We had a sample of the salmon-and-avocado bowl. A fantastic start to the tour.
Our next stop was Clifton Seafood Company, which was a new venue for me. This is actually a retail fishmonger which has been using one of the units on the wharf since 2018.
Here we were each given a small bowl containing 2 large prawns, a small portion of cured salmon and a side of tartar sauce. It looked amazing – so much so that I tucked in before remembering to take a photo! And it tasted as good as it looked, particularly the salmon, which was delicious.
I did manage a photo of some of the oysters – we had one each, freshly shucked.
I have had oysters before – when I was in Gothenburg – but I wasn’t a big fan. However, I thought it was worth trying again. Clifton Seafood Company’s oysters didn’t seem as strong as the ones I’d had previously, but I still wasn’t a big fan. Several people on the tour hadn’t tried oysters before, so it was a good opportunity to give it a go.
While we were sampling the seafood, Miguel also explained the recent history of the Wapping Wharf area.
Around 20 years ago, a family-run developer acquired the largely derelict area with the plan to develop a mixed-use urban quarter. Having started to build apartment blocks, in 2016, they created Cargo – a retail and dining area built from converted shipping containers.
Today, the area is home to over 1,000 people and 45 independent restaurants and retailers.
Each of the places we visited in the tour (except Junction pub) was in a shipping container – quite extraordinary.
The next two stops were upstairs (two shipping containers on top of each other create two levels of restaurants). We first visited Seven Lucky Gods, a Japanese restaurant. I had previously had one of their Bento bowls for lunch, but on this occasion we tried Chicken Katsu Curry Arancini and Sichuan Fried Cauliflower.
The Sichuan fried cauliflower was particularly tasty with Sichuan chilli oil, sesame, and nuts.
At this stop, there was an option to purchase drinks, with Miguel offering a pairing suggestion.
From here, we went next door to RAGÙ, which has a Michelin Bib Gourmand (recognising restaurants offering exceptionally good food at moderate, budget-friendly prices).
We tried the Roman artichoke fried with ailoi (this photo was shared between two)….
… and the Zebinati melon, Sorrento tomatoes, prosciutto di Parma salad (also shared between two).
The salad was very tasty – particularly the dressing. The artichoke was more of a required taste, and although I enjoyed it, it is not necessarily something I would order again.
Miguel recommended wine pairings for those who wished to purchase drinks here.
Our next stop, the final savoury tasting, was at Bertha’s Pizza, a 4-minute walk via Abel Yard and through the restored 19th-century gatehouse originally part of Bristol’s New Gaol (built 1816 – 1819).
At Bertha’s Pizza, we watched our pizza being made using a sourdough base (the dough is proved for at least 30 hours) and baked in a pizza oven imported from Italy.
The resulting cheese, tomato and basil pizza was delicious; you can really taste the difference in the base – the only downside being that it had to be split into 5. Though, to be fair, we were getting quite full by this stage.
Following the delicious pizza, it was just a few steps to Box-E.
Box-E, another Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant, was the stop for dessert. We had the Saffron pannacotta with raspberries and pistachios, which I understand is the dessert on the current 7-course tasting menu.
Well, if the dessert is anything to go by, it would definitely be worth booking the tasting menu, which at the time of writing is only £59 pp (and needs to be booked in advance). The à la carte menu also looks like good value. Interestingly, Elliot, the owner, is the only chef in the kitchen, so they pass on savings to their customers.
Sadly, we just had one stop left on the food tour, at Anna Cake Couture…
Where we had a peach fizz macaron – a perfect way to end the 3-hour tour.
The tour was a lovely introduction to the amazing independent restaurants in Wapping Wharf and a perfect Christmas gift.
When visiting my daughter, we don’t tend to go into the centre of Bristol too much any more, but we will be making the effort to visit a few of these restaurants again, particularly Box-E.
Notes about Bristol Food Tour
We really enjoyed our afternoon tour with Miguel and would highly recommend it if you live in Bristol (the other 3 guests on our tour lived in Bristol) or are visiting. It also, as we proved, makes a great gift.
Miguel was the perfect host and shared his deep knowledge of the area’s independent restaurants.
- There isn’t much walking involved; the restaurants are at most a few minutes away and often next door.
- However, there are steps up to many of the restaurants – I don’t know about accessibility options. I suggest you enquire before booking.
- Much of the food we ate was vegetarian / pescatarian – we only had 2 meat dishes. I believe if you don’t eat meat, alternatives can be provided.
- We have big appetites and are always a little concerned that there won’t be enough food. Not a problem on this tour; there was plenty to eat – only a light snack was needed that evening.
- The tour was at a nice pace, lasting 3 hours and never feeling rushed or too slow. Miguel managed to keep things moving so we didn’t have to wait too long for food, but also didn’t feel we had to eat quickly.
- Miguel is extremely knowledgeable about Bristol’s food scene and is more than happy to offer suggestions of restaurants he has tried. He was even able to offer suggestions in the area my daughter lives, even though it is a bit further from the centre.