You’re not short of places to have lunch in Woking town centre.

From the omnipresent fast food chains and meal deals to finer dining options, there’s something for every taste and budget between the railway and Victoria Way.

But for those who fancy something different, something maybe a bit more exotic, fulfilling and dare we say it, tastier than a chicken sandwich, egg in a pot and a packet of crisps, then surely Market Walk is the place to go.

Market Walk feels like a secret, but really shouldn’t be. Linking Jubilee Square and the vast concourse of Victoria Place, this walkway is a beacon of entrepreneurialism and a melting pot in every sense of the word, featuring everything from watch and phone repairs to African food importers.

And food is definitely its biggest selling point, for it’s possible to dine on a different cuisine every lunchtime for more than a week, with Far Eastern delights at one end and the epic Boz’s fruit and vegetable stall at the other.

“I’ve had something from everyone and I have to say, it’s all very good,” said Csongor Bárócz, who opened Pastanni on Market Walk early this year.

“The meat at the Vietnamese place next door to me reminded me of the barbeques I enjoyed when I was little,” he added, referring to the delicious and moreish BBQ beef Pho from Bep Viet.

“Each place in Market Walk is great in its own way and I can recommend them all. It’s just that sometimes it feels we’re a bit overlooked, and maybe more could be done to let people know what’s here.”

Mr Bárócz may have a point. Look for Market Walk Woking on a well-known internet search engine, and top of the page is the https://vpwoking.co.uk/market-walk/ website.

It’s a nice, easy to use, glossy website and its Market Walk page includes pictures and details of some of the traders the Woking News & Mail spoke on its tour.

But at the time of writing only five of the current ‘street food’ vendors feature on the page, for whatever reason, and there’s a lot more to choose from.

So let us tell you what you can expect on Market Walk, starting at the Victoria Place end.

Katsu chicken is a top seller in many restaurants these days, so it’s no surprise that it’s one of the most popular options at Shin’s Sushi & Bipimap. The chicken is moist, covered in a lovely crumb, and the sauce is every bit what a Katsu sauce should be.

We can also recommend the sweet chilli chicken – be warned, it’s got a kick – while the service is swift. Shin’s is one of the longest-running vendors in Market Walk, as it opened not far off a decade ago, while Foy’s African and our next port of call Bep Viet, is another favourite.

Their BBQ beef pho – the savoury and umami rich broth filled with noodles, beef and all manner of goodness – is delicious but their Banh Mi (baguettes) and jasmine rice curry dishes are also well worth a look.

Business has been a little quieter since Covid according to some of the traders we speak to, with some vendors like the butchers, fishmongers and bakers sadly leaving in recent years.

But they’ve been replaced with street food vendors from all corners of the world, like the Nepalese team at Food Junction. Their specialist is MoMo dumplings – the vegetarian option is decent, but the lamb option and the complimenting unctuous sauce was to die for.

Csongor is another, of course, and he can cook you any number of Italian-esque dishes before your eyes. We opted for the beetroot linguine with a creamy sauce infused with Silent Pool gin, complete with prawns and truffle parmesan. It was a rich delight but without the price tag, with most dishes on offer in the walk hovering just above the £10 mark or less.

“Market Walk was recommended by a friend of mine,” said the vendor on how he started up, having been inspired by a local Italian restaurant on his travels.

“I got in contact with Woking Borough Council and the rest is history. It’s a good place to have a food start up.

“It’s a really good starting point and it’s like a stepping stone. It’s a good experience for new traders.”

We can’t go any further without telling you about the lamb and chicken shawarma at Midan Alsham. Run by a Syrian refugee family who made Woking their home, everything is made onsite with layers of marinaded chicken and lamb breasts being condensed into a meaty punch.

We had to have a bit of chilli sauce with our lamb shawarma, but it didn’t overpower the meat.

“Everything we sell is made right here in Market Walk – I think our shawarma is the best in the area,” said chef Abdu Damza, originally from Damascus.

“We like it here,” he added, with Lee Hawkes of Boz’s Fruit & Veg echoing the sentiment.

He said: “I’ve been here for nearly 25 years. I can’t put a finger on how much we sell, there must be over 100 things, but we’re always busy. It’s a good area.”

Fantastic falafel can be found at Yellow Stone while local pizza legends Profumi have a loyal clientele after opening up in Market Walk a few years ago.

A couple with roots in Naples and northern Italy are behind their traditional woodfired pizza, with 35 different types to choose from.

“It’s got a bit quieter over the last couple of years because of Covid but there are a lot of lovely people here,” she said, adding. “We do like being here.”

And there’s so many more vendors we haven’t even mentioned yet, like Golden Potato – perfectly placed right next door to Boz’s – and sellers like Mobile Touch, Ebi Continental Foods and Biltong.

So if you fancy something different this lunchtime when you’re out and about in Woking town centre, ditch the meal deal for once and follow signs for Market Walk. These vendors – and your tastebuds – will both thank you.