"Basildon is a big West Ham area, so it's nice to have this new shop so close. I think it's brilliant that the club puts on events like these. It's good for the fans to meet the players but equally for us to meet the fans is always nice.
"It's great to be able to put a smile on their faces. Coming from Basildon, I have massive respect for the people here. Having lived here for so many years it's nice to be able to give something back."
West Ham's next game is away at Everton on Saturday, a notoriously difficult place for the Hammers in recent seasons, yet Tomkins is confident the team can get a result.
"Everton away is a massive game. We're going to go into it with massive confidence, we can definitely get a result on Saturday. They haven't been at their best this season and if we continue to play the way we have been, we could definitely get the three points."
Tomkins' confidence is well founded as the Hammers sit fourth in the Premier League table, a position not many people expected at the start of the year.
"It's better than where most people expected us to be. It's a massive start for us, it's been brilliant so far.
"Everyone has done well so far and the depth of our squad is looking very good. We've had a few injuries but they're coming back to fitness now which is a plus and creates good competition for places. There's competition all round for places and the bench is getting stronger with each game."
Goodison Park holds special significance for the central defender as he made his Hammers first team debut there six-and-a-half years ago in a 1-1 draw.
Tomkins remembers his debut well, as he recalls: "I only knew a couple of hours before kick off that I was going to play. It was a brilliant feeling and I've always remembered it. There was mixed emotions, obviously I was delighted to have made my debut but we only drew. I hit the bar as well."
Among the players Tomkins and his fellow defenders may face this Saturday are Samuel Eto'o and Romelu Lukaku: "It's always nice to test yourself against the best strikers. Eto'o has got a brilliant track record and Lukaku has got great physical strength. If we keep them quiet we'll have a good chance of keeping Everton quiet."
After the current international break is over, the Hammers face a busy set of fixtures as the Christmas schedule is only round the corner. Despite it being a tough time physically and mentally, Tomkins remains that it is a time all footballers still enjoy.
"There's a lot of games coming thick and fast and as a footballer that's exactly what you want even though you don't get much time with the family over Christmas. It's important to keep this momentum going into the Christmas period and to keep players fit because there isn't much time between games."