The Lincolnite Tries: Twisted Street Food at Lincoln Castle

“Good food doesn’t have to be dull.” That’s what Ben Jennings at Twisted Street Food told The Lincolnite when we went to try out his now famous potato skewers, as well as a brand new item on the menu.

Ben Jennings, 48, is originally from London but has lived in Lincoln for 13 years, and he has worked in and out of the hospitality sector for almost a decade.

Twisted Street Food was an idea he had around two years ago, and after COVID-19 postponed the launch, he is now up and running selling street food delights in the city since October 2020.

Ben is meticulous with his food prep. | Photo: The Lincolnite

“I just love food, I am so passionate about it and always have been,” Ben told The Lincolnite. “Street food suits me down to the ground, it’s far better than being static in a kitchen.

“For me, the experience is of equal importance to the quality of the food, so it has to be fun as well as tasty.”

Here is where you can find Twisted Street Food, outside The Victoria pub on Union Road, Lincoln. | Photo: The Lincolnite

You can find Twisted Street Food outside The Victoria pub on Union Road, as well as his monthly pop-ups at Lincoln Castle.

Ben’s big hit so far have been his twisted potato skewers, which are twice fried and served with seasoning and sauce.

The potato skewers start off pretty routinely. | Photo: The Lincolnite

He has developed sixteen different seasoned salts and offers them in batches of four to six depending on demand, varying from cajun spice to Spanish onion and Cornish salt.

“This is where the magic happens.” | Photo: The Lincolnite

Ta-da! | Photo: The Lincolnite

The potato becomes twisted with a spiral cutter, before they are fried and dosed with a choice of Twisted’s various spices and sauces.

The skewers are then fried before being seasoned and prepped for serving. | Photo: The Lincolnite

His latest invention is a wonderful chilli dog, based on a 1950s recipe from Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York.

Ben has added a local twist to this legendary dish, offering Lincolnshire sausages, supplied by local butcher Foster’s on Monks Road, instead of the traditional Bratwurst.

The chilli dog looks mesmerising. | Photo: The Lincolnite

The chilli dog will come with caramelised onion, nine hour slow cooked beef chilli mix, blow torched mature cheddar and then garnished with fresh chillies, spring onion and American mustard.

The gourmet burger is a sight to behold. | Photo: The Lincolnite

Adding this to the menu alongside the already popular skewers and gourmet burger is part of the next step in Ben’s development with Twisted.

With a menu this good, how can you go wrong? | Photo: The Lincolnite

Ben added: “Street food is taking off, and with table service looking to be the route forward it’s cause for me to be excited, everything is just so much more civilised.

“The uptake has been massive since we started, people seem really interested in it, I think above all else the public are just delighted to be back out and about.

The gourmet burger comes with onions, molten cheddar, lettuce, gherkins, onion rings, tomato and a prosciutto crisp. | Photo: The Lincolnite

“As for myself, I’m hoping to be able to reach the festival and events circuits soon enough, as well as doing a few private events and carrying on with the success we’ve had at The Victoria and the castle.”

The twisted potatoes will cost £3.50 with seasoning and sauce, while the gourmet burger and chilli dog cost £8.50 with French fries and sauce.

Great options at Twisted Street Food. | Photo: The Lincolnite