King’s Cross – London’s newest foodie mecca

The King’s Cross area is being given a dramatic facelift. It’s also turned into a foodie hotspot.

First all-day diner Karpo opened on Euston Road in February, with a menu of US-inspired dishes, European classics like confit of duck and Italian charcuterie platters. The emphasis is on organic and seasonal produce, right through to the restaurant’s “living wall”, setting it apart from the fast food eateries usually found in this neck of the woods.

Over in newly developed N1C, a former petrol station shop has metamorphosed into The King’s Cross Filling Station, which from the outside looks like a giant corrugated garage door. It contains
an alfresco patch where Homeslice pizza is served, and inside you'll find restaurant-of-the-moment Shrimpy’s. Here orders are taken via iPads and customers are meedja darlings and hipsters, but don’t let that put you off the food, which is pretty darn good. The menu is a mish-mash of Latin and US dishes; we’re particularly bowled over by the veal heart with slices of piquant chorizo and capers. KCFS will only be around for two years mind, as the site has been earmarked for the construction of new housing.

Twenty new streets are planned for the King's Cross area, one of which has already opened: King’s Boulevard. A street food market takes place here from Monday to Friday, 11am to 2.30pm, with stalls including Bahn Mi, The Rib Man, Mussel Men and Tongue ‘n Cheek, although traders rotate for variety. There are bright yellow tables and chairs to save yourself walking while you eat, and the whole area is blessed with Wi-Fi so you can tweet about your lunch too.

At one end of the King’s Boulevard is the Grade II-listed Granary Complex, a former warehouse used for storing grain, now home to a new Central Saint Martins Campus. Later this month a second branch of Caravan will launch within the premises, opening from breakfast through to dinner. There’ll be a coffee roastery, an open kitchen and a large bar divided by wire mesh, décor that will be suitably vogueish while referencing the building’s industrial past. The food on offer will be similar to that of the original Exmouth Market premises, so expect an eclectic mix of pizzas, spicy pork buns and veal schnitzel. Outdoors there'll be seating on Granary Square.

The Granary Complex will also be home to Bruno Loubet’s second London restaurant, opening in January 2013. Granary Square Kitchen will have an international menu with the emphasis on vegetables, perhaps somewhat unusually for a French chef. A display of fresh produce is planned, as well as a counter selling food to go.

It’s all great news for passengers to King's Cross and St. Pancras, who can eschew Eurostar sandwiches in favour of gourmet food in uber-fashionable surroundings.