Harrods Food Court in London

Lightbox (30) Tags: england europe food london store uk Posted: March 9, 2010 by Val

Londoners walking in front of
Harrods, London (from fashion
plate of 1909)

On a typical Harrods'
floor.

I could never suspect that one day I would write about a department store as if it were a museum or a historic landmark. Yet, here we are - allow me to present you Harrods, a luxury department store located on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, UK established in 1834.

By American standards, Harrods is not that big. It has over one million square feet (90,000 sq m) of selling space in over 330 departments (see our side bar below with some trivia regarding world's largest stores and malls). But for Europe, it is huge. for example, Galeries Lafayette, the Paris department store and capital of fashion is about three times smaller (about 32,000 sq m). The UK second biggest shop, Selfridges (Oxford St. London, UK) is approximately half the size with 540,000 sq ft (50,000 sq m) of selling space.

World's Largest Retailors Trivia

According to the Guinness World Records™, the Shinsengae Centum City department store in South Korea is the largest department store in the world. It locates in building with 3,163,567 sq ft (293,905 sq m) of retail space. The previous record holder was the Macy's store in New York City with 1,022,571 sq ft (94,999 sq m). Macy's was surpassed by Shinsengae Centum City in 2009. The Dubai Mall is the world's largest shopping mall based on total area - 12,100,000 sq ft (1.12 sq km).

Two largest American malls are:

King of Prussia Mall (King of Prussia, Pennsylvania) 2,793,200 sq ft (259,500 sq m) opened in 1963 with 400 stores and seven anchor department stores and
Mall of America (Bloomington, Minnesota) 2,768,399 sq ft (257,192.7 sq m) opened in 1992 with 522 stores and four anchor department stores.

The size comparison between the two malls is a misleading since Mall of America includes the Nickelodeon Universe (or The Park at MOA), a seven-acre (28,000 sq m) amusement park located in the center of the Mall of America. As far as Harrods is concerned, it seems that comparing Harrods with malls in the United States would not be fair in terms of floor size since malls are less packed with stores and often include additional services.

But it is not only about the size. It is about the choice and offering and customer service and store decor and many other things where Harrods clearly stands out providing a unique experience for buyers. Indeed, the Harrods motto is "Omnia Omnibus Ubique" which means "All Things for All People, Everywhere". Perhaps to reaffirm its reputation (and respond promptly to economic crisis of 2009 and concerns about inflation), Harrods even started selling "off the shelf" gold bars and coins (with products ranging from 1g to 12.5 kg). You have to agree that it is rather unique offering.

I am not sure if this is relevant, but I want to mention that Harrods is owned by Mohamed Fayed, and Egyptian businessmen (UK resident) with other members of Fayed family involved with store management. There is no doubt that Egyptian art traditions influenced significantly the interior decor of the store adding to the luxuries and opulence of the environment inside the store.

By store reputation as well as personal experience I can say that Harrods sells the best. Even if it is not the largest store in the world, the selection of products (and services) is impeccable. Some of the store's departments have acquired international recognition; so-called Food Court is one of them. Unfortunately, the Harrods' Web on-line business is not significant. As of the time of this writing only very limited categories of goods sold by store are available for purchasing on its Web site.

With this small gallery dedicated to world-famous Harrods Food Court I would like to give an idea about this store to those who have never visited London and never looked inside Harrods. All prices found in captions relate to year 2009.

Harrods (Harrods, Knightsbridge London, SW1X 7XL). One of the world's most famous department stores, established in 1834 as a humble grocery store employing two assistants.	Harrods back. The store is a huge massive seven storey building which has over one million square feet (90,000 m2) of floor space and occupies a 4.5-acre (18,000 m2) lot. There are over 330 departments and 20 restaurants in the store.	Many areas of Harrods interiors are decorated with designs directly or indirectly associated with Egypt - not surprising since the store is owned by Mohamed Abdel Moneim Al-Fayed, an Egyptian business man.	Go to Low Level area in opulent Egyptian style at Harrods, London. An escalator with green rails (symbolizing the river Nile) takes 300,000 customers, on a busy day, up to the seventh floor from "lower" Egypt to "higher" Egypt as tells the myth of the culture.
Bakery? Vegetables? Not only - on the right you will find Cafe Espresso bar famous for its cappuccino, they say, the best in London.	Charcuterie. Since 1849 Harrods grown to boast a series of food halls. Though each hall is located under one roof of the Meat Hall it specializes in something different such as: charcuterie, fish, cheese, etc.	Some delicacies from Italy: Duck spec (£5.50 for 100g), Spianata Calabrese £2.40 for 100g, Culatello di Zibetto £16.00 for 100g, Venison Salame £4.50 for 100g, Salame Felino £3.25 for 100g, Sopprasata-Coppa di Testa £2.25 for 100g, Salame Cinghiale £3.95 for 100g.	Samples of gourmet food France and Italy (all prices are for 100g): Salame Porcini (coarsly grounded pork mixed with spices, porcini (mushrooms of Tuscany) and aged Parmigiano Reggiano (cheese from Emilia Romagna)) £4.95; Jambon de Bayonne (best of cured hams, protected by a European IGP (indication geographique protégée) which guarantees that the ham comes from one of 8 approved breeds of pigs and the curing process takes place only within the Adour river basin), £3.70; Saucisson de Lyon (dry salame from the hills near Lyon, France, is made from pork leg and shoulder, cut into large cubes, mixed with diced fresh bacon, sea salt, and pepper, then dried in a low heat oven, and then air-dried) £3.95; Saucisson au Beaujoleux £3.95; Saucisson en robe Pavé £3.95 .
Visitors are always impressed by the volume and selection of international food presented on counters and assembled in beautiful displays. Cheeses from France: Banon, Provence, £8.00 each; St Maure De Touraine, Loire £8.75 whole; Rocamadour Fermier, Aquitaine £1.25 each; Tomme a L'Ancienne, Rhone-Alpes, £5.25 each; Losange Le Bruceen, Poitou-Charentes , £5.75.	Cheeses from the south of France: Brousee de Hyelzas £4.95 each; Tomme du Haut-Languedoc (goat cheese from the heights of the mountains Haut-Languedoc), £3.40 100g; Perail de Hyelzas £4.95 each; Pelardon (soft-ripened goat cheese from Languedoc-Roussillon province) £2.45 each; La Meule des Berges, £3.19 100g .	Some products from Chinese cuisine: Prawn, Sarong, £1.95 each; King Prawn in Batter, £1.95 each; Beef Rendang, £2.20 100g; Sweet and Sour Chicken £1.95 100g; Ayam Mesak Merrah, £2.10 100g.	Tiffinbites™ - authentic Indian gourmet food served traditionally like Chicken Tandoor, £3.95 each; Lamb Samosa, £1.35 each King Prawn Tandoori, £3.75, each, etc.

You can buy all these tasty baguettes, rolls and croissants but forget about eating them while browsing the store. It is not allowed in Harrods: Duck and Hoi-Sin Wrap, £3.95 each; Tuna and Cress Baguette, £3.25 each; Spicy Chicken Baguette, £4.99 each; Ham and Cheese Croissant, £3.90 each; Smoked Salmon Roll, £2.15 each.	5J, The Iberico Ham House, established since 1879, Jabugo and today is a part of the Meat Hall of Herrods.	Many places in the store interior have an ancient Egyptian theme. Look at columns and ached beams in golden and black ornaments. The tile ceiling adds to the atmosphere although I am not sure Egyptian civilization was familiar with this material.	Display with Caviar. All sorts of caviar including: Russian Imperial Ossetra caviar, Beluga caviar, Ossetra caviar, Salmon caviar attract gourmands to this generous display.
Oysters area. Aquarium with oysters on a stainless steel pedestal surrounded with bottles of wine and sauces.	Fresh Fish - Crustacea is one of the departments of the Meat Hall which was built in 1903 as a part of Harrods. You can find the freshest fish, rock oysters, shrimps,sea bream and Cornish crab in its opulent interior.	Mussels half-shell £9.95 kg, other seafood - crabs, prawns	Eggs, among them quail eggs. What can be more dull than eggs but when you find quail eggs on display it becomes a little bit more entertaining. And don't forget that eggs are an essential ingredient in English cuisine.
Seafood - Oyster bar is located just in front of Rotisserie - now it is your choice - meat or fish.	Rotisserie. When you see this huge grill with all the goodies on the rack you have only one thought - I want it all, and I want it now.	Rotisserie is one of the 30 eateries in the Harrods. You can find it in the Meat Hal. The grill itself attracts attention of passers-by with its mechanical beauty and delicious smell of grilled ducks and chickens.	Sea Grill. The grill itself is not as huge as in Rotisserie but inviting and cosy.
Sea Grill sign - mysterious, like the depths of the ocean and quite appropriate to be on a pirate ship like The Flying Dutchman.	Ice-cream - wildberry, mango, lemon, passion fruit, gianduia, pistachio, etc. By the way, 100 tons of chocolate is sold by Harrods every year. They can also create any flavor you want within 48 hours.	Candies. You can find not only candies in the store. Harrods patisserie department which is located in a beautifully designed hall, offers a great choice of mouth-watering tarts, pastries and gourmet chocolates.	Wine department at Harrods is large but not as big as someone would think. Nevertheless, it is extremely well stocked. You will be pleased to find all your favorite wines including French and Italian ones. Surprisingly, prices are very reasonable. Some excellent French wines, for example, are cheaper than in France.