Event preview: Laphroaig & Tom Aikens in Borough

The Michelin-starred chef Tom Aikens brings a wild Islay touch to Borough Yards with food cooked over an open fire with a dram or two of single malt whisky

Food and Drink 30 Mar 2023

Tom Aikens

Tom Aikens

Borough has been a major hospitality destination for residents of the City of London for centuries – originally because it was an area which allowed greater licentiousness than the Square Mile. The south gate of London Bridge, the only permanent crossing point of the river until the 18th century, was also a gathering place for goods from around Britain and abroad.

Of course, this exotic variety still attracts food and drink enthusiasts to Borough Market and neighbours such as Maltby Street. A newer addition is Borough Yards, a collection of bars, restaurants and shops on Stoney Street, housed in a series of restored railway arches.

On the weekend of 21-23 April, this area will transform into The Laphroaig Market. This ticketed event is a collaboration between the Islay single malt whisky, Michelin-starred chef Tom Aikens and London-based ingredient suppliers.

The idea is that guests pick up ingredients from market stalls operated by the likes of Turnips, a family greengrocer which supplies many top London restaurants, and bring them to Aikens and his team to cook over an open fire.

Fermented grains are only one of the interesting ingredients with which Tom Aikens may cook up some fantastic dishes
Fermented grains are only one of the interesting ingredients with which Tom Aikens may cook up some fantastic dishes

Don’t worry – it’s not Ready, Steady Cook. This is, after all, Tom Aikens, formerly chef of Pied à Terre and his own Tom’s Kitchen restaurants, who is now head chef of the 25-seat Muse in Belgravia, as well as running the restaurants at the Edition in Dubai. He has some recipes in mind for the evening, for example lobster roll with sudachi lime, spiced mayo, nori, fried cabbage and cicely; rib-eye steak with Laphroaig whisky and shallot sauce, grilled onion and pink purslane; and smoked and charred cabbage with fermented grains and gremolata.

Laphroaig will be paired with dishes designed to reflect its distinctive flavour profile
Laphroaig will be paired with dishes designed to reflect its distinctive flavour profile

The dishes are designed to reflect some of the flavours Laphroaig is known for – a salty sea breeze and an earthy smokiness. Laphroaig is one of the few remaining distilleries with its own malting floors. The distinctive peated character of the whisky comes from the traditional turf kilns which are used to pass cool aromatic smoke through the germinating barley to halt its growth and complete the malting process, before it moves on to be fermented then distilled. Each dish served at The Laphroaig Market will be paired with either an appropriate dram of the single malt, or a Laphroaig cocktail.

The Laphroaig Market will be open from midday until 8pm from Friday 21 to Sunday 23 April. Tickets cost £25 and include one dish and pairing drink. You can pay on the day for additional food and drink, of course. Tickets are available from Design My Night.

laphroaig.com