Kampung Ali at Boxsmall

It’s not so long ago that the lack of regular markets and the dearth of diverse food to eat on the go was a perceived weakness in Edinburgh. We’re still in need of a regular wholesale market for our excellent local produce, but in terms of regularly occurring retail markets with exciting food options we’re doing increasingly well.

The latest addition is the Boxsmall market, which brings together a collection of carefully crafted little pod booths in Festival Square, just in front of the Sheraton hotel. It offers a blend of craft and food stalls.

The market, which runs every day until the end of August, so will be a prime location during the Festival, had a few teething problems in its first few weeks, but seems settled now. There are a number of traders that are there throughout the week, with the numbers bolstered at weekends. There’s a bar and coffee place (the coffee is not great, though, so I wouldn’t recommend it) and regular sustenance is led by a stall from local Malaysian restaurant Kampung Ali. I stopped there to try their canai roti (£2) and noodles (£4.50), today.

The multi-tasking chef was promptly at work preparing my items, toasting the roti and heating the noodles on a little grill plate. I was soon in receipt of both dishes so found a nearby table to munch at leisure.

The roti was rather good with the accompanying sauce packed with flavour, if a little on the thin side. It was exactly as I’d had the dish on my visit to their restaurant, so this was a good opener.

The noodles were good, too, but lacked an element to deliver a real knockout punch. They were tasty and filling.

So overall Kampung Ali is doing a pretty good job. It’s good to see Malaysian added to our list of available street food options. I look forward to visiting Boxsmall again during the Festival and would recommend you give it a go, too.