Gardens and Pies

I think my current favorite thing about London is its green space.  It seems like anywhere they can, and even some places they probably shouldn't, the people of London plant trees and grass.  Trees are planted crammed in sidewalks and buildings attempt to incorporate the foliage in any way possible.  You'll be walking past high rises and pass the open gate to a small public garden wedged between a shop and an apartment complex.  These aren't half-assed green spaces either; the parks are well maintained, if not intentionally overgrown.

I have walked past St. John the Evangelist church and it's attached mosaic garden in Waterloo regularly to get to the Strand campus. I ducked inside the gate today to check out exactly what was going on back there in the little garden across the street from Britain's largest IMAX cinema.

In the back corner of the mosaic garden I ran into a man and his son sitting on a large mosaic bench.  They explained to me that this garden, and the bench they were sitting on, is dedicated to the homeless who live and die in the area.  The names of the local homeless who have died are written on the tiles of the bench by anonymous people. I couldn't get a full shot of the bench, because the man was sitting on it and I felt awkward taking a picture of him.  The following statue, with the owl, is a dedication to the pets (of the homeless, I believe) who have passed away.

After this I wandered down onto the Southbank to sniff out a small restaurant/food stand I had read about online.  Unsure of exactly where it was, I just started wandering through the crowds, figuring that I would happen upon it eventually.

I finally turned a corner and landed in Gabriel's Wharf. To my surprise, there it was! Pieminister!

I had been craving filling and meaty food, along with mashed potatoes. This is no surprise for all who know me, I pretty much could live off mashed potatoes and be satisfied.  I ordered their Shamrock Pie with mash and gravy, with a bottle of Victorian Lemonade to try.  The Shamrock Pie contained beef and Guinness gravy and could of easily been a meal by itself.  Add in the large quantity of mash and a good helping of gravy and I was stuffed.  The pictures don't look that glamorous, but I think anything covered in gravy isn't that photogenic.  I'm pretty sure even Angelina Jolie covered in gravy would be unappealing to the camera.

It was very hard to decide on which pie to get. They all sound so amazing.  The pie was huge and tasty, and the mash was very creamy with the wonderful gravy.  The Victorian Lemonade was a mildly sweet lemon-ginger soda, complete with pieces of ginger and lemon floating inside of it.  Actually really refreshing, I was pleasantly surprised considering that I am usually iffy about ginger in my drinks.  But oh, I will be back.  With their prices set pretty damn low for what you're getting, Pieminister will be seeing much more of me.