Food Fit for a (Cricket) World Cup

With the 2019 Cricket World Cup starting today (Thursday 30th May), breaking for lunch is part of the tradition, and luckily, there are some wonderful establishments around the grounds that are taking part in the tournament, giving you a fine spread of food to spend lunchtime over. 

The UK leg of the World Cup is being played out over eleven county grounds, including Cardiff, Leeds, Manchester, Taunton, Birmingham and, of course, two London clubs, and that means that there is some good eating to be had.

If you head to the London venues, you will be heading towards either St Johns Wood (Lords) or Kennington (The Oval) and both of those areas have some great restaurants. If you are in St Johns Wood, you could try Gogi on the Edgeware road, and sample some of their wonderful Korean cuisine, and if you like Bulgogi or Chicken with Kimchi, this is definitely the place to go.  Just up the road, there is also Maguro Sushi, with their famed Saba Shioyaki salty mackerel, while on the other side of the cricket ground is the Ivy restaurant, which is considered to be one of the best in the area.  If you have planned to watch the World Cup legs at the Oval, the South of the River lunching experience might include the atmospheric Beehive, which serves a solid spread of good food with some truly excellent steaks.  The Jihwaja is an easy-going Korean eatery specialising in staples such as chicken dumplings & beef galbi, while if you fancy Persian then book at table at Doost and experience their Okra vegetarian stew, or Tender Lamb with Aromatic Herbs.

If you fancy catching the cricket at one of the other national grounds, there is equally good food to be had.  In Cardiff you could visit Kemis with its range of independently-sourced food, or Bar 44 with its menu of tapas and vegan meals.  If you are planning on visiting Birmingham and the Edgbaston ground, you will find the cuisine decidedly curry-based.  Notable restaurants include the Royal Watan Kashmir restaurant and Diwan, while if you are looking forward to a more Middle Eastern palette, then there is the Saba Persian, featuring a wide range of authentic food.

Ay Old Trafford in Manchester, you could visit Emilias Delorama for a great range of Mediterranean offerings, or Tibetan Kitchen which specialises in authentic Tibetan food and drinks to see you through lunchtime. If you are at Old Trafford and hungry, you might also try a decent burger at The Lunch Box. Somerset is considered to be one of the true homes of cricket and the county ground at Taunton has some excellent easting experiences.  Head to Eat the Bird for some good traditional food, or Bare Grills for a range of barbeque and grill meals.

Wherever you go to see World Cup games, you are assured of a huge range of traditional and exotic food to sate your appetite.  Hopefully, the cricket will do the same for your game needs.