Meatopia

Tucked away in the historic Tobacco Dock, you’d be forgiven to have had no clue that such a feast awaits. 

Meatopia is a weekend-long food festival that celebrates ethically sourced meat cooked over wood and charcoal. Live music plays in different areas and there’s plenty of booze to be shared. All around really good vibes. Founded by Josh Ozersky, the late restaurant editor of Esquire magazine. He started it in the US and years later it was introduced to the UK. I believe the first UK one was held back in 2013, which makes this festival over 10 years old. This seems crazy to me because I had never heard of this prior!

I discovered Meatopia when last year I began the craze of smoking meats. I bought a smoker and got to work, learning about how different woods produce different smokes and tastes across the meats. I bought a lot of meat and not to blow my own horn, but I am not bad for a newbie! It’s a craft for sure and one that requires great patience and resilience. So, I was excited. 

The first of September fell upon a Sunday and the weather was 27 degrees - a great day for a BBQ.

Nehir’s Tips: Don’t wash. Ladies, don’t wash your hair before this day. You’re going to come out smelling like smoke, so be prepared to have to bung everything in the wash later. Stock up on Meatbucks. Meatopia doesn’t operate on a card or cash basis for the food - they use Meatbucks. These are essentially tokens you can pre-pay online or buy on the premises. 1 Meatbuck = £7. This doesn’t apply to drinks, you can buy those on card. My personal recommendation is to buy 4-5 tokens. It will save you time later as you browse through the stands, especially because you are going to be queuing a lot. Have stamina. The queues are long! Most of your time will be spent in lines. Be friendly. There’s some all around good vibes at this festival, and people like to chat. I came solo and it didn’t bother me, because the longstanding queues help you form bonds haha.

This is a real celebration of both open fire and slow smoked cooking. You can feel the passion in the air as you browse through the different chef’s stands. I would say, don’t dally too much in the beginning. If you have food that you like, hit those stands first. I arrived only an hour after it had opened, and two of the biggies I wanted to hit were already sold out! Guess no slow cooked Texan ribs for me this year. So pick your faves and stand in line. What I did was eat my food in the next stand I queued for. By the time I’d reach the next stop, I had already finished my previous meal and slightly digested it. Don’t stand on the side - get into the next line for meat goodness.

What I ate: Sirloin steak served with smoked cabbage and spicy mayonnaise from The Quality Chop House / Pecan smoked lamb in a whiskey Jameson glaze from Bab Haus / Pulled pork tacos with crispy haggis shavings from Feast Alba / Atlantic swordfish marinated in middle eastern spices on pitta from David Palmer and Life of Fish / Smoked goat curry on roti / and Ice cream sundae from Happy Endings. All of this totalled £35. Because the portions are a good small size, you can eat at various places without getting stuffed prematurely.

Meatopia isn’t like anything I’ve experienced, certainly not in the UK. It's a niche festival because it focuses primarily on meat. I am sorry to say, this isn’t a safe space for vegans or vegetarians. But it carries such wholesome energies.

Everybody is so friendly and looking to have a good time. If the chefs are lucky enough to sell out early, don’t be shy and go speak to them. It was great learning about their journey to the present day.

You can bop your head to the various live bands playing. There’s merchandise galore. Fancy buying a chef's apron or good quality knives? They got you. There’s also an array of spices and hot sauces you can try before you buy.

All in all a very good day out in London. Go with friends, take a date or fly solo - either way, you’ll eat well and have an excellent time. Link to their Instagram here.