Boo in London

Ducksoup, Soho

2012-01-31T21:42:00.001Z

Having been out of the country for 3 months at the end of last year, I'm trying to catch up on all the new restaurant openings that I missed. I'm usually pretty lame where this is concerned and it takes me a while to get to such places but I did make it to Ducksoup in early Jan a mere 3 months after it opened, woo! Head chef Julian Biggs and his team met whilst working at Mark Hix's Oyster and Chop House and have joined forces and gone it alone.

Things I loved before I even got there, they post the handwritten menu online (almost) every day, they have a natural wine list drawn on on the wall and I was going with my friend Emily, who I'd not seen since June.

We got slightly carried away and ordered more than we could eat, starting with cavolo nero with lemon and chilli (£3.50), rabbit rillette with cornichons (£5) and potato and celeriac gratin (£3.50).

The greens were great, sprinkled with cumin and a really lovely start. The rabbit was good too, we were offered some bread to have with it but the gratin was overly runny with a lot of fairly flavourless stock.

Next dish to arrive was the roast turbot with salsify (£14). This was brilliant, the fish delicate and almost creamy against the crunchy salsify, all topped with guanciale, a pig cheek bacon. My favourite dish of the night.

Last up were the lentils with wild mushrooms and more cavelo nero and another favourite of the night, bollito misto, a sort of stew with brisket, toulouse sausage, tongue and cock (both £14)! The latter was served with braised shallots and came topped with a tangy gremolata which made the dish.

We were getting pretty full by this point and agreed we would order 1 less large plate next time. The lentils were unnecessary and forgettable.

We had a couple of cocktails each and paid just over £40 each, worth it, I think, as most dishes - lentils and gratin aside - were excellent. Bottled tap water comes at £1 a bottle. With no room for pud or cheese, we hit the road but I'm looking forward to my next visit, perhaps at lunch when they offer a main dish and a glass of wine for £12.

I really enjoyed the evening, the mostly bar style seating is relaxed and convivial, the guys working here are all friendly and helpful and the menu is interesting and constantly changing, depending on what's in season and in the fridges. We had no trouble getting a seat at 6:30ish on a Monday but it can get really busy so be wise and go early or late.

Ducksoup
40 Dean St
Soho
7/10

Boo in Australia - Melbourne Breakfast/ Brunch (CBD)

2012-01-23T11:14:00.001Z

My favourite brunch of all the places we tried in Melbourne has to be the meal we had at Seven Seeds, sister restaurant of De Clieu, and technically in the Carlton neighbourhood, but located on the edge very close to the CBD.

I found it hard to pick from the menu as everything sounded so good but ultimately went for the ham and cheese toastie with pickles on trusty old Dench Bakers bread. The sharp cheddar was brilliant, nice smokey ham and tomato chutney, one of the greatest sandwiches I've ever had. The coffee here is amazing too.

Dan and Megs had the breakfast bun and homemade beans, corn bread and avocado respectively. Thomas had the BBQ pulled pork with slaw in a brioche bun. Everything looked and sounded amazing. I loved the place.

The other central business district located brunch venue we tried was the much loved Cumulus Inc. I'll start with what I liked, we were seated at the bar overlooking the kitchen where the chefs were busy either cooking the breakfast dishes or prepping. I love watching what they're all doing, there was a particularly daunting amount of pretty courgettes in a box with a young female chef working her way through them, peeling and slicing. Cute. The place has an excited buzz about it and staff were nice. We didn't love the food though sadly.

I had the house smoked salmon, asparagus, sorrel and 65/65 egg. Expensive at $17, the egg was great, cooked for 65 minutes at 65 degrees, a really oozy yolk and the salmon was nice with a subtle smokiness, and the thickness was nice. The bread was a bit meh (not Dench!) and I found the lack of choice on the menu disappointing. There were only 5 savoury breakfast dishes and I'm not a fan of sweet breakfasts.

Thomas' baked eggs looked nice, presented in the cast iron skillet but he found them just ok. So in all we weren't impressed in the place, having had high hopes. I think perhaps the mistake was coming for breakfast not lunch or dinner. Like most places in Melbourne, decent coffee though.

Slightly dubious inclusion to this post is Earl Canteen. You totally could have brunch here but it's really a grab and go sandwich place and come lunchtime the masses from the offices of the CBD flock here.

I arrived after a particularly intense power Christmas shopping session, desperately in need of some food and water at around 4:30pm. I feared they would be closed but fortunately for me they were setting up for the following day already and they had only sold out of one sandwich, not the pork, the one I had come for, yay!

The list of available sandwiches is drool inspiring but I had read great things of the pork belly and hell, when pork belly is available who's going for anything else!? This usually comes in baguette but they had run out of baguette so they substituted ciabatta which didn't hold up to the job particularly well. The pork, particularly the crackling was sensational and I loved the crunch and the tang of the fennel and cabbage slaw. The addition of grated apple gave the whole thing a sweetness and more texture so I was just a teeny bit upset about the bread situation but everything else more than made up for it. I'd love this place to be my lunch local.

Seven Seeds
114 Berkeley St
9/10

Cumulus
45 Flinders Lane
6/10

Earl Canteen
500 Bourke St
7/10

This wraps up the Melbourne brunch posts, stay tuned for more Oz eats in the coming weeks,including Sydney.

MEATliquor

2012-01-20T15:24:00.006Z

I have to be THE last food blogger to try one of these burgers. Most raved about them in their previous guise at either the Meatwagon or #Meateasy. Yanni (Papoutsis, joint owner along with Scott Collins) has become a legend, that's how good these burgers are. People are queueing in January for god's sake. I can't believe it took me so long.

Poor quality pictures just don't do the food any justice but MEATliquor is all about mood lighting and cool. It's just brilliant, the queue went down quickly, we arrived at around 9:30 and were seated by 10 and part of that wait was at the bar with a St Thomas in hand (a brilliant gin cocktail).

To start we shared chicken wings and chilli cheese fries, which I dripped all down my white top, gah! I'm not usually a fan of chicken wings, I find the meat to bone ratio unsatisfying but these were magnificent, a mildly hot and sour sauce making them really very moreish.

Chilli cheese fries are pretty much the ultimate in sinful food. Sloppy yet crispy with a nice kick from the chilli.

I had to order the dead hippie, the double patty cheeseburger with special sauce, American cheese, pickles, lettuce and onion. It is incredible. For better pics take a look here at the hoards of other blogger reports, particularly good snaps of the dead hippie can be found here. It is sooooo good. Our table of 6 was silent as we all got stuck in, all in agreement that it's the best burger we've had in London. And these burgers only cost £7.50, they are very special.

We also tried the deep fried pickles and the onion rings, all very good but not as good as the burger, it's obviously all about the burgers, they're that good. Also, it was a really filling dinner for less that £20 a head with beers, the price is right too.

With the no reservation policy being de rigueur in London right now, and the huge buzz that exists around this place, you're likely to have to queue most nights, they're closed Sunday and Monday so best bet would be to go between lunch and dinner to avoid the wait, if it bothers you. Or, grab a can and have a drink whilst you wait, many do judging by the litter out front, and enjoy the scent of burgers that snakes down the street.

MEATliquor
74 Wellbeck Street
W1G
9/10

Boo in Australia - Melbourne Breakfast/ Brunch (Fitzroy)

2012-01-11T12:51:00.014Z

One of the things which greatly appealed to me during the planning of my trip to Oz was the idea of having a glut of breakfast options in Melbourne along the lines of Lantana and Caravan here in London. And the coffee, I was promised amazing coffee and Melbourne certainly does not disappoint on that front.

Being based in Fitzroy North for the duration of our stay in the city, Dench Bakers was my firm favourite in the area. Approximately 1 hour after landing, I was camped here, enjoying a latte and avocado and danish feta on sourdough with a large chunk of lemon and a sprinkling of chives. So simple and soooooo good. Dench are bread suppliers to many other Melbourne restaurants.

I also tried their veggie breakfast, (why don't I eat always spinach for breakfast?) and many of their sweets as dessert at our pre Xmas feast at Jamie and Tori's were from Dench. Some friends have heard reports of snotty service but I always found them to be more than pleasant and we never had to wait for a table. Dench - I miss you.

Perhaps our second most frequented brunch venue throughout the stay was Arcadia on Gertrude Street. They don't seem to have a website but Gertrude street is home to many small independent clothing/music/art type shops and is also where the Melbourne branch of Books for Cooks can be found. The above Arcadia eggs was lovely, I always marvel at the beauty of a perfectly poached egg having seen many failed attempts both at home and when eating out.

The Mexican eggs were fantastic, scrambled eggs with tomato, avocado and coriander on sourdough. They also have a bewildering array of lunch salads, sandwiches and sweets, though I never had lunch here, my visits were always early, whilst the lunch display were being assembled. Nice coffee and muffins too.

Just 2 doors down from Arcadia lives De Clieu, another real favourite of mine and many others, it can be tricky to get a table at weekends. On our 2nd day here we met Rob and Olly for brunch and were still completely jet lagged so I neglected to take any pictures. I had the Breakfast De Clieu, a board with boiled egg, smoked ham, gruyere, tarragon mustard butter and baguette with a selection of jams. Everyone else on the table had the Brunch De Clieu, a fried egg with pureed cauliflower and mushrooms with truffle oil, veal jus, bacon and sourdough. They all raved.

Other popular dishes include a pork neck roti and a Reuben's special. Everything on the menu sounds lovely actually and I returned to try more but it was too late in the day and they had stopped serving food (at 3pm daily). Still in time for a great latte though!

De Clieu is the newest opening from the team behind Seven Seeds and Brother Baba Budan, both in Melbourne's CBD, see my next post for my thoughts on Seven Seeds.

Also very close to where we were based, with Megan and Dan was Jorg. We went here on day 3 of our trip, the sun was shining and we had a lot of travelling ahead of us to look forward to. The food was not of the standard to which, by day 3, we had become accustomed! Megs and I both had baked eggs, mine with tomato, peppers and cannelini beans, the other option with puy lentils and feta. I was disappointed that the yolks were hard and, as always with baked eggs + greed, we burned our tongues. Other dishes were on the small side and with Dench just around the corner, I can see why we were the only diners on a Sunday morning.

Across the road from Jorg sits the Tin Pot Cafe. They are a slightly cheaper option (most breakfast dishes will cost around $20, around £15 when we were there, and Dench increase prices by 10% on a Sunday??!)

The above bacon with scrambled eggs was okay, I had an english muffin topped with poached eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach, yay. Good coffee but a distinctly average breakfast by Melbourne standards. They open evenings too which many do not and the menu read very well, friends concurred that they had heard good things of the dinner dishes.

Rounding up the Fitzroy selection is Atomica Cafe. I was hungover and in need of serious sustenance so I ordered the veggie breakfast with extra corn fritter and an iced latte (it was a scorcher and we walked there). The smoked tomato was a revelation and this was just what I needed to prepare me for the pub crawl ahead of us.

I hope you can see that breakfast and coffee is something the Aussies really take pride in and do well. It's one of my absolute favourite things about Melbourne and the average quality is far superior compared to the standard greasy fry up available here. Unfortunately for us Brits, the Australian dollar is very strong at the moment so you'll need to take plenty of money, but it really was worth every penny for me.

Dench Bakers
109 Scotchmer St
9/10

Arcadia
193 Gertrude St (Fitzroy border Collingwood)
7/10

De Clieu
187 Gertrude St
8/10

Jorg
203 St Georges Rd
5/10

Tin Pot Cafe
248 St Georges Rd
6/10

Atomica
268 Brunswick St
7/10

Roganic

2011-12-29T01:01:00.009Z

I've been back in the UK for a week now, and I have a, frankly overwhelmingly, lengthy list of meals in London, Singapore and Australia that I am keen to document here.

To start off, and ease myself back in to blogging after 3 months off, here's a mainly photographic account of an outstanding meal at Roganic, where I dined with a group of friends back in September.

We opted for the 10 course dinner menu, starting with this pretty amuse.

Then the most spectacular bread selection I've ever seen was presented, 1 between 3 (we were 6 diners in total). This was one of my highlights, there was a quite brilliant soda bread, sweet tasting, and unlike any bread I've tried before.

Heirloom tomato, poached lamb tongue and dill custard - amazing and intense dehydrated tomato.

Bradock white (egg yolk), pickled roots, ox eye daisy and salt beef - best dish of the night for me.

Cured and smoked Cornish char, Watts farm pepper and crab apple.

Pig and smoked eel, sea purslane, black mustard and pickled corn - this, I don't seem to have photographed for some reason. I do recall the sea purslane being the best thing about the dish, salty and crunchy.

Grilled langoustine, purple sprouting, elder and loganberry oil.

Royal kidneys (potato) cooked in chicken fat, snow peas, goats curd and clam juice - tastiest potato EVER.

Skate belly, young beetroot, caramelised cauliflower and King scallop.

Cumbrian rose veal cooked in buttermilk, cobnuts, mead and wild cabbage puree - I come from Kent and find it a joy to see cobnuts on any menu. The ingredient list here perfectly illustrates the clever and interesting cooking one can expect to enjoy at Roganic.

Warm salted chocolate, William pear, chesnuts and buckthorn.

Billberries, dried caramel, natural yoghurt and iced lemon thyme.

Service deserves special mention, each member of the team is knowledgeable and helpful. The room too, which is cosy and warm, though the taller of our party had trouble with those pesky hanging lamps!

We started off with gin and tonics all round, and somehow managed to see off 5 bottles of wine throughout the night (Droit chablis '08, Chateau Filhot '99 and Rillard Morgon '09). 10 courses (plus canapé and pre dessert), I didn't feel overly full when we left and all this came to under £160 per person. I thought Roganic was terrific and am keen to try chef Ben Spalding's food again. Or, perhaps a trip up to Cumbria to sister restaurant, and head chef Simon Rogan's permanent home, L'Enclume is in order - this is certainly food worth travelling for.

Roganic
19 Blandford Street
W1

8/10 (if you've not already been, go in 2012, as Roganic is a 2 year pop up and you really don't want to miss this)

Boo not in London

2011-10-16T22:17:00.001+01:00

I'll be out of the country for the rest of the year visiting Singapore then traveling around Australia.

I'm not likely to be posting whilst I'm away but plan on eating lots!

Until 2012! x

Nid Ting, Holloway Road

2011-08-30T15:23:00.008+01:00

Clichéd Saturday evening entertainment = dinner and movie.

I did exactly this a couple of weekends ago with a visit to Nid Ting on Holloway Road followed by the Inbetweeners. Both proved to be underwhelming.

The restaurant was pretty busy with a steady flow of diners, it's a handy location for pre or post cinema dining just along the road from the Odeon. Which is perhaps the only positive thing I can find to say about the spot. Service was efficient and friendly, we'd not booked and were deftly accommodated.

Starters were solid yet unimaginative, prawn toast, dim sum-esque dumplings and spring rolls all prettily presented and generous in portion. The table dining next to us asked for 'spring rolls for 3' to start and got the giggles when 3 of the below (minus the arm) were presented, rookie error and spring roll overload.

I opted for the lamb massaman curry from the specials for main course. I really liked the sauce, mild and sweet, sprinkled with red chilli and peanuts and bulked up with potatoes but the lamb was tough and would have benefited from a longer slower cook.

Other mains were well received, the red chicken curry and a fiercely hot chicken stir fry with tonnes of chilli. There seemed to be a contingent of faithful regular diners appearing throughout the evening to a rapturous reception, Nid Ting is a safe but not out of the ordinary local find. They have an extensive menu, which I found it very tricky to select from, and prices are average (between £7 and £12 for mains).

I'll probably stick to Charuwan in future.

Nid Ting
533 Holloway Road
N19
5/10

Le Pain Quotidien

2011-08-20T10:30:00.001+01:00

I know it's a chain but the girls and I love Alain Coumont's Le Pain Quotidien so much that we ate there twice in one day on Noy's birthday weekend.

I usually have the cheeseboard, as indeed I did last Saturday. It hits the spot with an oozing blue, a pungent camembert, a hard, crumbly red and a creamy goats cheese. Served with a few dark grapes, some baguette, fruit and nut bread, wheat bread and butter. I love it, so simple, I have no idea what the cheeses are but they are consistently good.

Also great are the platters, meat, fish, veggie, mezze, they all look appealing. The fish platter with salmon pate, crab, prawns (let the side down as they lacked any flavour) and smoked salmon is perfect for grazing over the course of a long leisurely lunch. Noy enjoyed the Italian version, with tapenade, pesto, roasted veggies, artichoke, mozzarella and prosciutto. Nibs was happy with her tomato and mozzarella salad, the salads all look seriously good, generous portions and a huge selection to choose from.

Billed as a communal dining venue, at the Soho branch there is an enormous long wooden table running through the centre of the dining room as well as smaller tables seating 2's, 3's and 4's along the outer walls. I like the relaxed feel to the place and I like the prices. I'm not sure about the tartines, open sandwiches, never tried them, probably never will but there's a whole section of the menu devoted to them, and a daily special.

After a mooch around the shops we returned for some tea and cake, a pot or earl and a bakewell tart for me. An excellent crunchy pastry tart with a wickedly sweet and almondy centre, you can't go wrong with anything almond flavoured as far as I'm concerned.

Nibs went for the lemon tart and the birthday girl had cream tea. A monster scone with fluffy whipped cream and a selection of jams.

With a glass of prosecco lunch came to £20 a head with service. There's a lengthy breakfast menu available until 12:30 daily and more substantial dishes on the dinner menu from 5pm. It seems like there's a lot going on here with a befuddling combo of guises - cafe/boulangerie/pâtisserie/deli - but that's precisely what we like about it, particularly on those indecisive days where you can't pinpoint exactly what you all fancy.

Le Pain Quotidien
18 Great Marlborough Street
Soho
WC2E
6.5/10

Bocca di Lupo

2011-08-16T21:18:00.010+01:00

On a busy Wednesday evening I scoffed at the size of the queue at Barrafina and head to Bocca di Lupo instead, finally making it a tardy 2 and a half years after the launch.

I've read great reports from fellow bloggers about meals here but my dear friends John and Sue were not so keen so I was keeping an open mind. We had to wait a mere 10 minutes and were seated at the bar. My companion thought the stool to bar ratio was off and felt pretty uncomfortable for the rest of the evening. I'm fairly short so wasn't bothered.

First up came an excellent selection of bread, served with olive oil to dunk and a bowl of those amazing vibrant green olives.

The concept is sharing plates, you're advised to order multiple dishes to split. We started with some courgette flowers with honey, mozzarella and anchovies. I loved these, the cheesy filling and the crunchy coating contrasting nicely.

Served next was the tomato and basil bruschetta which I found to be dull and lacking seasoning. Luckily it arrived with my favourite dish of the night, the orecchiette with 'nduja "extremely spicy home-made salame," red onion, tomato & rocket. It was as spicy as promised and we both agreed this was a fine dish, just the kind of food I'd hoped to find on Jacob Kenedy's menu.

The next batch of dishes to arrive began with the clams, mussels & borlotti beans stew, freshened up with a sprinkling of basil but a great hearty bowlful. The linguini with spider crab tomato and basil was a little devoid of flavour, nice al dente pasta but disappointingly bland. Our final savoury choice was grilled langoustines which were, I think, overpriced at £16 for 6 of the creatures, they yield so little meat.

It can be said that the desserts are a particular speciality here, what with Gelupo across the road. We tried the wickedly boozy rum baba with strawberries and cream and the gelato cup zuppa inglese, or trifle, sour cherry and zabione gelati with toasted almonds, this was wonderful, and refreshing. Most memorable though was the caffe allo zabaione, coffee with sweetened beaten egg yolk, incredible. I saw one of these being prepared and we just had to have one.

The meal came to £80, a lot given that I found some dishes didn't quite hit the mark. The good was very good and service was lovely but I think I might just brave the queue in future as my heart still belongs to Barrafina.

Bocca di Lupo
12 Archer Street
Soho
W1D

6/10

The Horseshoe, Hampstead

2011-08-03T20:06:00.004+01:00

As a birthday treat I had the ultimate indulgence package at Natura day spa in Hampstead last weekend, heartily recommend them by the way, if pampering is your thing, it was fantastic. Anyhow, following a morning of relaxation, I dined at The Horseshoe for brunch.

This place's main appeal has to the the micro brewery, most of their home brews have recently relocated to bigger surroundings in Chalk Farm but there are still several barrels to be found under the dining room here in Hampstead. But the food is certainly not an afterthought and I have to say this is perhaps the finest smoked salmon (bizarrely from Camden apparently) and scrambled eggs I have had in a long while.

Great bread was served too on a nice little wooden board, rustic and hearty seems to be the ethos here, the room is minimal and service is nonchalant. Excellent toasted sourdough the perfect platform for the fine coupling of salmon and eggs.

They had regrettably sold out of the eggs Benedict Thomas' first choice so he went for the cheeseburger. Another use for the little wooden boards, and chips in a bucket, again, seeing this everywhere!

I really liked the relaxed vibe at The Horseshoe, having stumbled upon it is fun too, I usually plan meals so it's nice to discover somewhere having not researched beforehand, how we used to do things pre food blogs.

I'd like to come back, the mussels smelled great. Less than £15 a head, my dish came with a glass of rose for £12.50. Lovely day for it.

The Horseshoe
28 Heath Street
Hampstead
NW3 6TE
8/10

Trattoria Nuraghe, Tufnell Park

2011-07-31T19:37:00.008+01:00

Another little local gem discovered. Due to location, the Tufnell Park Spaghetti House grabs any passing custom and is always packed, wander a little further up Dartmouth Park Road though and you'll find Trattoria Nuraghe, a tiny and incongruous venue, serving hearty Sardinian dishes to a loyal bunch of diners.

One Saturday evening we remembered a while back somebody recommending the place to us, at 9pm we turned up without reservation on a rainy night and we had to wait a mere 10 minutes or so before the charming and wonderfully welcoming owner, Cristiana Curreli, seated us and poured us some wine.

To start we went for a parma ham and melted fontina plate with thin crisp breads. This was fantastic and I had major envy when my bruschetta with mozzarella turned up. It was a great dish but was completely outshone by the simplicity of a plate of ham and oozing cheese. Wonderful and a superb start. We shared some olives too.

The menu is split into pizza and other mains, those dishes are mostly fishy and I couldn't resist the seafood spaghetti with squid, mussels and prawns. The portions at Nuraghe are so generous I begin to notice most tables are taking their leftovers home with them in little plastic containers. An excellent sign that 1) I can expect a huge pile of steaming pasta and, 2) it will be so good that I will not be able to leave thinking any of it might go to waste. I wasn't disappointed, the seafood was excellent, the pasta cooked al dente and I was indeed beaten and took the rest home for lunch the next day.

Thomas' main was crab meat encased in cuttlefish ravioli with tomato sauce. He's been raving about this dish and about Nuraghe ever since and with such spectacular pasta dishes we will definitely be returning to explore more of the savoury menu.

For me the desserts were a let down given the standard of the previous courses. I had the zabaglioni which had the consistency of ice cream, I felt sure this had been frozen but the berry pannacotta was a better choice, wibbly and creamy, I think perhaps I was too full up to have enjoyed another morsel at this point.

One thing's for sure, Nuraghe is a wonderful find and we will be dining here for many years to come. Loved the hospitality, the hatch through to the kitchen where the chefs can be seen , the food and the location. With one final act of generousity, a free limoncello each, I almost felt like I had been whisked off to Sardinia, then I walked out to the street into the rain and fell dramatically back down to earth.

Trattoria Nuraghe
12 Dartmouth Park Hill
Tufnell Park
N19
8.5/10

Bistro du Vin, Soho

2011-07-29T18:56:00.000+01:00

Newcomer Bistro du Vin, Soho, is the second so far to arrive in London this year (the flagship being the Clerkenwell restaurant). The venue instantly piqued my interest being part of the 'du Vin' umbrella, the chain of elegant hotels having impressed whenever I've visited.

I am unable to attend many evening events these days due to work commitments so was sad to have missed the grand opening but I did make it along a couple of weeks ago for lunch with some colleagues.

Upon learning they have installed a josper grill here, it had to be steak all round. A fine selection of bread kicked things off as we selected a wine. I forget which, a red, a fine choice from Axel and great match for the steaks.

We were pleasantly surprised to be served an amuse, a cute little cup of gazpacho. I found it very tart, would have liked it to be a tad sweeter but it was a pleasant start.

I ordered the fillet, galloway and shorthorn cross, 250g, with peppercorn sauce (choose from this, béarnaise, sauce gascon,`cafe de Paris or garlic butter). Having ordered a medium well steak I was disappointed to find it blue in the centre. Naturally, I didn't send it back and ate it without fuss, I may yet learn to communicate dissatisfaction when eating out, though I doubt it. The accompanying frites and haricot vert were great, the sauce too, rich with that peppery kick.

My fellow diners all enjoyed theirs, other cuts tried were cumbrian rib-eye and the Donald Russell côte de boeuf.

I had to scoot back to the office for a 2pm meeting but the others all enjoyed dessert and accompanying wine. I'd definitely love to head back to explore the legendary cheese room and also for a cocktail at the bar. The sprawling room is lovely and a vast improvement on the previous occupier. Service was very attentive though at over £70 a head (for me without pud), it's not going to become a regular lunch haunt. Still a nice new addition to the ever impressive Soho dining scene.

Bistro du Vin
36 Dean Street
Soho
W1D 4PS
6/10

Rocksalt, Folkestone

2011-07-23T20:27:00.012+01:00

Mark Sargeant's new venture, Rocksalt, in Kent, sees him championing local produce with a nod in particular to fish, after all, it's located right on Folkestone harbour. There have been few positive reports since the opening in June but I found much of the food I tried to be well worth the trip out of London.

The setting is picturesque, if a little industrial, Folkestone is hardly the prettiest of backdrops but the glass walled room is flooded with light and there's a sprawling deck from which to observe the creeping tide. I very much enjoyed a pre lunch Rocksalt mary with samphire vodka.

Black olive bread served with olive oil was presented shortly after the menu, which is fish heavy but offers plenty of meaty dishes too. I started with the crab dressed with harissa, sprinkled with baby coriander with toasted bread. I order crab at any given opportunity and this was a fine dish. Other starters of goatscheese with heritage tomato salad and pork pate were perhaps less successful but my Mum's order of whelks were outstanding.

Onto mains, I couldn't resist the special of lobster with aioli and beef dripping chips. The finest example of the crustacean I have ever had, beautifully tender served simply with a wedge of lemon and tomato salad. Portions are generous here, always a bonus!

Other mains enjoyed included breaded plaice and chips with mushy peas, salt marsh lamb, mackerel with green sauce and another fishy special, monkfish with peas and smoked ham. The sides are fantastic, minted peas and potato gratin deserving special mention.

Desserts were the highlight of the meal for me. My mum's favourite, Kentish gyspy tart, was a no brainer of an order and was the finest pud I've tried all year, up there with the rice pudding at Pollen Street Social. I find I so rarely rave about a sweet dish but this really is special.

Also good were rhubarb fool and elderflower jelly with creme fraiche ice cream.

Whilst the food was really very enjoyable I was slightly irritated by the service on a couple of occasions. We were asked to order desserts and later coffees with half the table in the toilet, surely they didn't think we would readily order for our fellow diners? Twice. Also, plates were cleared as my Mum was still eating, very absentminded waiting staff. They were polite however, even when a member of our party lit a cigarette on the terrace, which is non smoking.

It's early days still so some tweaks need to be made but in all the experience was an enjoyable one. 3 courses each and a few glasses of wine came to around £50 a head. Were Rocksalt closer, I would happily return. Though South Eastern high speed trains from St Pancras can have you there in under an hour.

Rocksalt
4-5 Fishmarket
Folkestone
Kent
CT19 6AA
7.5/10

Kentish Canteen

2011-07-03T17:54:00.005+01:00

A few years back I had an unhappy brunch experience at the shockingly named R.E.D (really excellent dining). Really excellent it was not and I was delighted to see the place has had a recent revamp, it's now called Kentish Canteen, there's new signage, new and improved staff and the menu's had a complete overhaul.

Upon entering diners are greeted with an inviting display of cakes and salads, reminding me visually and in spirit of the counter at Lantana, and the decor is bright and airy. It couldn't be more different to how it was in it's former guise. Having wandered by on numerous occasions, I live a mere 5 minutes away, I was already interested in trying the place out when I was kindly invited to do so.

To start with I sampled the crushed broad bean and feta bruschetta which is so up my street it's as if this was plonked on the menu just for me. I loved it.

Equally impressive was the tomato and mozzarella salad, up there with the finest example of the cheese I've ever tasted, this was simple perfection and portions were generous to boot.

Onto mains, there's a huge selection, the sort of menu that usually sees me kept busy for at least 15 minutes, I found it tricky to choose as many dishes appealed. In the end I settled for a salad selection, the menu recommends trying a combination of 2 as a main course. I plumped for aubergine with a tahini sauce and long stem broccoli with chilli and ginger. Both were excellent.

The best dish of the evening though was the ravioli. Cooked al dente with a creamy but light sauce and lovely cheesy ricotta and spinach filling. I was very impressed. Other dishes I saw on surrounding tables which looked good included the burger and the fried chicken, think escalope, not KFC!

We had a passion fruit cheesecake and a creme brûlée for dessert, these were ok, though the least successful of the 3 courses, then I often find that to be the case.

With a nice concise wine list and a daily changing specials board, there's something for everyone to be had here. The house red anfora rossa was good and service was lovely. In stark contrast to the laughable efforts on my last visit to the same building, fortunately that's all that Kentish Canteen shares in common with R.E.D.

New owners, Owen Crinnigan and Wendy Sinclair also own PJ’s Bar and Grill and Guanabara, in Covent Garden and I believe they have a hit on their hands here. I'll be back for more very soon.

Kentish Canteen
300 Kentish Town Road
Kentish Town
NW5

I was invited to dine at Kentish Canteen and received complimentary food and drink.

Da Polpo

2011-06-27T16:41:00.006+01:00

T'was my birthday the weekend just gone and the girls and I head to Da Polpo for Saturday lunch.

Much of the decor is similar to that at Polpo/Spuntino/Polpetto, other venues under the same ownership. It's relaxed and cool and most importantly the food is just as good.

I started with a spicy bloody mary and some arancini. The risotto balls were great, oozing mozzarella in the centre, creamy rice and a satisfyingly crunchy shell.

More mozzarella to follow with broad beans and citrus dressed leaves. I wasn't best pleased with the quality of the mozzarella if I'm honest, I found it rubbery in texture and lacking in flavour. This was the low point of the meal for me.

Happily other dishes arrived and were great. The pizzettas, asparagus, taleggio and speck and the zuccini and chilli went down very well. A bowl of chilli and garlic prawns with lemon were also liked, some peeled, some with shells, though my friend had to ask for a finger bowl.

Dish of the day though, must go to the piadina meatball smash. Mine with amazing spicy pork and fennel meatballs, this dish is incredibly gratifying, melting cheese, smashed chunks of meat inside a toasted flatbread served with a side salad, this really is a virtually faultless dish. Loved it.

Fit to burst I couldn't handle a dessert proper so went in for a sgroppino, a peach/prosecco/sorbet concoction which was refreshing, light and the perfect end to another fantastic meal at one of Russell Norman's joints. My gal pals sampled a selection of ices, all brilliant, vanilla ice cream, cherry fro yo and lemon sorbet.

You can book for weekend lunch but, on this occasion, it wasn't necessary. A downstairs dining area and the non-Soho location testament to diners here on Maiden Lane not being affected by increasingly familiar restaurant queues. Or perhaps it's still early days and word still has to get out. At remarkably decent prices, we paid about £30pp, it won't be long until the crowds are flocking.

Da Polpo
6 Maiden Lane
Covent Garden
WC2E 7NA

8/10

Cay Tre, Soho

2011-06-19T21:29:00.000+01:00

London's 'phô mile' has sprawled west and now diners in Soho can sample what is considered to be the finest Vietnamese food London has to offer. A branch of Cay Tre has opened on Dean Street.

I went one lunchtime a week or so after the launch and found the restaurant fairly quiet and the food excellent.

Their prawn summer rolls, Goûi cuoán, are the best I've sampled, served with toasted peanuts and chicken liver sauce. A generous serving for £4.50, alternative fillings are pork, beef or mackerel.

The honey and five spice roast chicken, Gaø roâ ti, was succulent, as meat cooked on the bone tends to be. The meat was a little scarce but the marinade delicious and the skin perfectly crisp from the roasting. Again, reasonably priced at £9.

The Goûi boø ñu ñuû thòt boø khoâ, sesame cured beef and papaya salad was hot and fresh as only Vietnamese dishes can be. A salad that leaves you feeling like you've eaten a decent meal whilst still being light and healthy and only £7.

One regrettable negative in that I found the service somewhat lacklustre. Our order of rice was forgotten and food, drinks and bill were all very slow to materialize. It was still early days though and I'll certainly return regularly from here on regardless. The menu is full of gems and consists of exciting dishes with many varied ingredients, you could dine out here for weeks and not get bored. Also, I need my regular fill of phô and now won't have to travel more than 5 minutes from the office to find the best in town!

Cay Tre
44 Dean Street
Soho
7/10

Kikuchi

2011-06-11T21:24:00.000+01:00

Sushi sushi sushi! My blog has had a substantial bias towards Japanese cuisine over the last month. Continuing the theme I recently dined at Kikichi, repeatedly praised by bloggers, I was keen to try for myself. I walk by the place literally everyday but prices are not cheap. The restaurant was full of business men mid week, we chose to sit at the bar overlooking the sushi master at work.

We started with salmon and fatty tuna sashimi. This was without doubt the finest sushi I had ever eaten, the tuna (not even the highest grade tuna on offer here, I must go back to try the very fatty variety) was unbelievably amazing. So soft and delicate that the merest of nudges with a chopstick forced it to break up. We had to have seconds. Seriously incredible stuff.

But it don't come cheap. House rules are minimum order £25 per person, not including drinks so my hopes of returning just to scoff down a serving of that tuna are dashed. Though it is certainly worth it. We also had some salted edamame, marinated tofu and miso. All very nice.

Other main dishes sampled were the pork belly with baby leeks and onions, I confess I was slightly disappointed by this dish, though I fear anything following the sashimi would have suffered the same fate. Kikuchi is really all about the sushi.

Similarly, chicken teriyaki was good, sizzling and smoky with bean sprouts, sesame and skin (yay!) but I was still daydreaming about the tuna.

The service is adorable and the atmosphere fun. I'll be back on occasion for sure as at these prices it could become a dangerous habit, I may well have to change my route home. We had a beer and a wine and the total spend was £94 for a modest amount of food but oh my, that fatty tuna.....

Kikuchi
14 Hanway St
W1
8/10

Satuma, Kentish Town

2011-06-08T21:19:00.005+01:00

I've found another local gem and I'm sharing. Satuma is a mere 5 minutes from my house and they deliver, hurrah!

I've been meaning to visit for a while, last weekend I arrived half an hour before they opened for dinner - they close between lunch and dinner - and actually got egged whilst waiting outside (long story), so I sloped off and decided to return mid week.

Main event for me was the seafood bibimbap, diced raw salmon and prawns (cooked) sitting on top of rice and salad in the sizzling hot clay pot. Fantastic fresh ingredients and crunchy rice with chilli sauce on the side to mix in. Best version I've tried.

Starter of prawn tempura was a fine example, the batter lovely and light as it should be with not a hint of an oily taste as is so often the case.

Then salmon and tuna sashimi, not the finest I've ever had but certainly the best in this area, supplied by the reliable Japan Centre, according to Time Out. The usual accompaniments didn't disappoint and as ever with sashimi I was left wanting at least twice the amount we'd ordered!

The other main on the night was beef bulgogi, marinated beef with stir fried vegetables and a side of rice. Very good quality beef but there was a lack of sauce.

This cute little restaurant, seating 10 people max, is efficiently run with a regular turnover of loyal patrons. We snagged a loyalty card and I'm really looking forward to returning and trying all the other dishes on offer, especially more sushi, soft shell crab and the noodle dishes.

2 beers, green tea plus all the above came to £47, an unequivocal bargain. I'm very excited about this place.

Satuma
8 Fortess Road
Kentish Town
NW5

7.5/10

Kulu Kulu Sushi

2011-05-30T02:17:00.000+01:00

Continuing on the sushi theme, I recently lunched at Kulu Kulu on Brewer Street. I had to wait for a seat to free up for about 10 minutes, this conveyor belt style restaurant is very popular with Soho workers.

It is worth a wait though, fresh sushi is skillfully created in the centre of the belt before being sent on it's journey to the eagerly awaiting hands. I enjoyed the agedashi tofu, both the salmon sashimi and california rolls I sampled were delicious and the edamame were great, I'm of the opinion that you can't really go wrong with edamame though.

There are plenty of dishes that you won't find doing the rounds at your larger chain sushi joints such as soft shell crab and soba noodles (cooked to order). And unlike a certain larger chain, you won't have to pay £1.20 for tap water here. Kulu Kulu is also a chain with other restaurants in Covent Garden and South Ken.

It's very small and no nonsense but I loved it here and had my fill for a mere £17. Don't go expecting a long lingering graze, it's yet another trusted quick stop lunch venue in Soho.

Kulu Kulu Sushi
76 Brewer Street
Soho
6/10

Nara

2011-05-25T10:43:00.001+01:00

I'm in another sushi phase, come 1 o'clock nothing else will do. By far the best value selection I've found is at Nara on D'Arblay St. For £6 you can order a lunch special, they have a pretty vast selection of Korean hot dishes and a couple of sushi selections up for grabs.

I've tried the bibimbap - fine example of the dish but not as good as the sushi platter, prawn, salmon, tuna and octopus.

I've also tried the beef and pork dumplings which are seriously good but my favourite dish yet has to be the silken tofu in a hot and spicy broth topped with spring onion served with sticky rice.

As part of the lunch special, all main dishes are served with miso soup and salad and are all under £8. You also get a cleverly dissected orange for afters.
A bargain lunch just across the road from the office. Service is slightly vacant but sufficient. Watch your knees when you sit down, there's a cacophany of 'ow's' when newcomers are seated, the fittings for the grills are boxed under the tables for their Korean BBQ dishes, cooked at the table which I have yet to try.

Naro
9 D'Arblay Street
Soho
W1F 8DR
6.5/10

Pollen Street Social

2011-05-22T23:45:00.001+01:00

Jason Atherton's new venture Pollen Street Social opened in April to mixed reviews. Reminiscent of my visit to Atherton's previous haunt, Gordon Ramsey's Maze, I went with something of an open mind having considered both the good and the so so reviews and, naturally, investigating in advance what the menu has to offer.

The room itself, as the name implies, is a buzzy, relaxed space with a large bar area and that famed dessert bar encouraging a more laid back approach to dining. Our table was in the left hand side of the building which I found to be a little chilly in temperature. The chef himself roamed the floor at various points throughout the evening, checking on how things were going out front which was nice to see.

We were presented with a choice of bread before we'd even been given a menu or a drink. Something to eat first, an unusual but very welcome order to proceedings! The bread was excellent, there was a choice of sliced wholemeal and sourdough with a salt cod spread as well as some unsalted butter. We ordered an Eastside, a pink lady and some tap water to get us started.

To start I had the cauliflower & squid in a clear roasted squid juice. A very pretty dish, the broth poured out at the table. The squid had an incredible softness and the broth was wonderfully rich. The whole dish was slightly colder than I'd expected, perhaps because the plate was cold, I don't recall.

Thomas' starter of smoked foie gras with black sesame and smoked golden raisins was less successful with the fruit overpowering the foie gras.

Onto the mains and my Cotswold lamb, braised belly and artichoke with sheep’s milk curd was an interesting plate. I found the lamb rack itself not as tender as I would have liked but I loved the curd and the belly had an excellent flavour. It was beautifully presented with a scattering of flowers.

The most memorable dish of the night was Thomas' roasted dingley dell pork belly with beetroot, hops, seeds and grains. Claims that this is the finest dish Thomas has ever had made me grin from ear to ear. It was indeed a tremendous combination of textures and flavours and look at that crackling, puffed up like popcorn!

Onto dessert and for me a traditional English rice pudding with hay ice cream and lime jelly. This was spectacular. I've never eaten hay so was unsure what to expect but there was a malty note to the ice cream. The lime was perfect with the rich creamy vanilla flecked rice pudding. My favourite course of the night.

The rhubarb, ginger and vanilla cheesecake with rhubarb sorbet and nut crumble was less memorable. We had wine by the glass, the pollen street social selection is lovely. The damage, for 3 courses and 3 drinks each, was £150, not bad at all and interesting to note we were both perfectly full, it's not necessary to order more than one starter per person as was the case in the first couple of weeks of opening. Though multiple starters can be ordered to create a tasting menu as the menu suggests, I'd love to come back and do just that.

Upon arrival each table is presented with a key which, when exiting, is exchanged for a gift. This was 'tea on us' comprising of a teabag and 2 friands. I enjoyed mine as soon as I got home, what a nice touch.

Pollen Street Social
8-10 Pollen Street
W1S 1NQ
8.5/10

Gilak, Archway

2011-05-08T12:49:00.009+01:00

Foodie hot spot (pah!) Archway is just down the road from my digs so it warms my heart to see any venue based there reaping praise from the big guns for the quality and good value of their offerings. Late last year Time Out gave Gilak, a small Northern Iranian restaurant, the nod by way of inclusion in their Best Cheap Eats in North London and they've more recently followed up with a further glowing review

Many have raved about the starter dips, in particular the aubergine based ones so for our first course we opted for the boorani-e-aubergine (smoked and mixed with garlic and yogurt) and boorani-e-esfenaj (yogurt with spinach and garlic) with some flatbreads for scooping.

The aubergine was as good as expected though we didn't detect much spinach in the 2nd dip. The flatbreads were great, though we were less sure about the sir torshi, pickled garlic (pictured top of post). They're very bitter and something of an acquired taste.

Moving on to mains the menu is broken down into Persian stews and Persian grills. I opted for khoresht anarbij. The picture really doesn't do this dish justice, it was fantastic. A stew of lamb meatballs in a walnut, onion and sour pomegranate sauce, I've never tasted anything like it before and absolutely loved it. Very earthy and grainy, I've thought about this dish a lot since the meal and would struggle to return and order anything else. It was served alongside an enormous plateful of rice, plain and saffron, beautifully golden grains scattered atop the fluffy white pile.

I was pleased when my companion ordered chellow kabab momtaz from the grill section giving me a chance to sample the marinated chicken and minced lamb skewers. This dish was really pretty, the vibrant yellow marinade, from the saffron, giving the chicken that golden hue. Again the flavours here were quite unfamiliar to me and this was a really unusual dining experience, in a good way. The meat was all so succulent and the portion size very generous, the place was full with a varied and eclectic bunch of diners, families with children, couples, groups of friends, I see why Gilak's earned the reputation as a bit of a local gem.

I couldn't resist the bastani, Persian ice cream with saffron and pistachios. Once again my taste buds were completely unprepared for the flavours, the saffron is very strong, almost perfumed but quite savoury. The pistachios adding crunch to the creaminess, the dish was perfect with some Persian tea sweetened with plenty of sugar.

For all this we paid less than £40 and we left happy and very full. I would very much recommend visiting, even if it's slightly further than you would normally trek, it's really close to Archway tube station.

Gilak
663 Holloway Rd,
N19 5SE

7/10

Boo in Cambridge - St John's Chophouse

2011-04-26T14:29:00.008+01:00

We've been so fortunate weather wise over the bank holiday weekend and on Easter Sunday a group of us head to King's Cross, hopped on a train and 45 minutes later arrived in sunny Cambridge.

The highlight was definitely a punt on the river sipping on ginger beer but the day was full of slow ambles soaking up the sights, though the colleges themselves were closed, the university buildings provided ample entertainment.

Having researched potential lunch spots it's clear that Cambridge is primarily a chain restaurant town, there are few local independent eateries and even fewer cuisines are represented. A subway is a pretty grim backdrop to the picturesque Magdalene Bridge for example.

A few Cambridge based food blogs I found spoke highly of The Cambridge Chophouse and we opted for sister restaurant The St John's Chophouse come lunchtime.

Their remit is classic British cuisine and that they do well. Nibs' roast beef was a fine example, much better than any I've tried in London.

My fisherman's pie was great too, all white fish in a cheesy sauce topped with creamy mash. I loved the side of greens, peas and broccoli all retaining a nice crunch.

The others in our party of 5 each tried the braised beef cheeks with mash and the same selection of vegetables. All plates were cleared.

We all had a drink, cider and spritzers all round, bread was served very swiftly without request and with tip (not included on the bill - such a refreshing change) we paid £20 a head. I must say the service was exemplary, really very sweet and we'd not booked in advance, rather turned up at lunchtime on what must have been a very busy day for them. Very impressed. I only wish they were closer so I could return and try their suet pudding of the day, or perhaps I'll return soon, I may well have fallen for the place.

The St John's Chophouse
21-24 Northampton Street,
Cambridge.
CB3 0AD

7/10

L'Eto Caffe - Soho

2011-04-17T20:20:00.007+01:00

L'eto Caffe are Wardour Street newcomers and the most recent addition to the Soho coffee scene.

I'm in 2 minds about it to be honest. The counter type displays, akin to those at Princi just down the road are inviting. At first the salads and mains were in the window, this has recently changed and now passersby are lured by a mouthwatering array of sweet treats.

I've been twice for lunch and for £5.50 you can get a small plate of salads, there are usually a selection of around 5 or 6 to pick and mix from. A main course like chicken breast in tomato sauce, baked salmon or lasagna, plus a side is a hefty £12. It is good food but at these prices it's unlikely to secure many return visitors for lunch but the quality is above average and ingredients are thoughtfully sourced. I particularly liked the pesto mozzarella.

I'm yet to try their breakfasts but the large chalkboard menu reads very well with the usual eggy suspects as well as pancakes and healthy options.

After my initial visit in their first week when I encountered some bizarre service, things seem to have improved and servers are sweet and helpful.

L'Eto Caffe
55 Wardour St
Soho
5.5/10

Spuntino

2011-04-09T10:05:00.001+01:00

Another offering from the team behind Polpo and Polpetto, Spuntino has become London's most talked about dining destination in recent weeks since it's March opening. The concept is simple, bar style seating, American comfort food, cool atmosphere. What's not to like? The no reservations policy and the queue perhaps? Not a problem for me when our party of 2 arrived at around 9pm on a Tuesday evening a couple of weeks ago. About a 15 minute wait and we were seated.

We started things off with a prosecco and some fried olives. These are stuffed with anchovies before being crumbed and fried, delicious and a definite way to make the queue more bearable to those adverse to a wait.

Lighting is dim - as are my snaps as a result! - provided by tea lights in tumblers. The vibe here of an evening is fresher and more upbeat than those at Norman's other restaurants, music is louder and the focus less on food, more on drinking and eating to soak up the booze. Having said that, this is a restaurant and the food is, in my view, incredible and my favourite kind of fare.

We ordered 5 dishes between 2 and for a total of less than £50 we were both stuffed and happy. My winning dish was the mac and cheese. I'm a sucker for this, though I usually find it not up to standard I make at home. Not true of Spuntino's version. It's exactly what I want it to be.

The mac and cheese is the far dish above. More visible are the shoestring fries and the legendary truffled egg toast. Aromatic and oozing this is a guilt inducing masterpiece, try to resist and fail.

Another favourite were the delicious aubergine chips, again deep fried (eep!) and served with a quite brilliant fennel seed yoghurt which I must attempt ro recreate as it was a revelation.

The sliders were something I was super keen to try, we had the beef and marrow and the salt beef ones. The latter was slightly on the dry side, I dunked it in some frenchies and all was well. The beef on the other hand was moist and clearly benefits from the inclusion of the marrow into the mix. I was wishing we'd ordered something green at this point, feeling this had become a bit of a carb fest but we were done.

I loved everything about the place with one exception, also mentioned in posts from Gourmet Chick and Greedy Diva. They would benefit from installing some coat hooks, my bag and coat were sprawled over the floor at one point whilst I was queuing and it's very tight back there, not much room for the waiters to serve out the food. I did however, have a hook where I was seated at the bar and they really are a must for such a teeny space. For security, convenience and in the interests of keeping the place tidy.

I really liked the service, friendly and fun and the free spiced popcorn is a very nice touch whilst you wait for the food to arrive. I can't wait to come back and sample the rest, especially the boiled egg and soldiers. I might bring the girls along for brunch some time.

Spuntino
61 Rupert Street
Soho
W1D 7PW
7/10

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

2011-04-07T13:05:00.003+01:00

Much has been said of Heston's new venture, mostly good, none shockingly awful. This is because he clearly knows how to run a kitchen and to make ordinary ingredients taste exceptional. He is a genius. It's been an amazing rise to fame, the ordinary kid from High Wycombe who ate the same rubbish at school as we all did is now one of the top chefs on the planet. Good luck to him, I say, it was only a matter of time until he launched a London money spinner.

Dinner is more accessible, affordable and every day than the Fat Duck and whilst I didn't love it as much, it is predictably now one of my favourite places to eat in the city. I can't wait to go back and try more of the menu, here's what I had on my first visit back in March.

Bread, sourdough and wholemeal, brilliant crusts and lovely creamy butter. Excellent, seconds were offered and declined, I've learned, at long last, not to fill up on the bread course.

My starter - roast scallops with cucumber ketchup and borage (or starflower). A very pretty and delicate dish, perfectly cooked molluscs.

The meat fruit for Thomas, smaller than I expected it to be, I thought it could do with more toast but Thomas disagreed. I preferred this to the scallops as it had more of a wow factor visually and on the palate.

My favourite part of the meal was my black foot pork chop served with cabbage and robert sauce (brown mustard). I also had some pureed potato on the side and I savoured every mouthful. By miles the best pork chop I have ever had I could quite happily eat this every day for the rest of my life. Perfect. Thomas' main course of black angus sirloin with mushroom ketchup and triple cooked chips was also memorable for it's flavour and execution, with a couple of dots of marrow and those much lauded chips.

For dessert I had the tafferty tart, mainly because I'd seen pictures of it in multiple blog posts and think it's by far the prettiest presentation of a sweet that I've ever seen. The taste is very powerful, think turkish delight and sour unripe berries. It didn't quite live up to my expectation but the textures are masterful, crunch from the sheets of sugar, the smooth sorbet, jelly and candied rose petals combine in one heady spoonful. There is so much going on here it's an impressive end to the meal. Thomas had the baked lemon suet pudding, that's what it's all about, classic British dishes with a Heston twist.

An indulgent end to the meal is delivered in the form of a white chocolate and earl grey ganache. Cutely presented in a small gold edged cup and saucer with a caraway biscuit. The biscuit was brilliant, Thomas didn't get one which we noticed too late for him to get a look in at mine!

Drinks wise, we opted for a couple of glasses of champagne whilst we waited at the bar for our table (only 5 minutes or so) and wines by the glass recommended by the sommelier to complement our main courses. The price, £180 for 2, one I am more than willing to pay to sample food of this standard and I can't wait to try more, though that will be easier said than done with each month booking up on the day of opening the reservations. Others continuing to love it as much as I did it seems.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
66 Knightsbridge
SW1X 7LA
9/10

Anchor and Hope

2011-04-05T13:10:00.009+01:00

My best friend Jemma has lived just around the corner from the Anchor and Hope for a few years now and I only managed to make it for lunch the week before Jemma moved house. Still, judging by the food we ate for her birthday meal last Saturday, it's well work coming back, even if it is a bit of a schlep (though fortunately she will still be in the area).

We arrived at around 1:30 on a busy Saturday lunch shift and were lucky to secure a large table for 6. The kitchen closes at 2:30 and reopens again at 6 for dinner service and they operate a no reservations policy.

We had a couple of drinks (me the special, a rhubarb and prosecco cocktail which was amazing) and had some bread whilst waiting for a friend to arrive. As it approached 2:15 we were rushed into ordering and informed the kitchen would soon close. Whilst one of our party was late, we still had some time but felt pressured to order for her.

As luck would have it, she arrived and all was well. I started with the potted shrimp, served sans pot on a plate with melted butter. Not what I'd expected but good and a generous portion. The lemon cutting through the richness of all the butter. Jemma and Charlie shared their favourite snail salad and Cranny liked his terrine.

Main coursed swept the floor though, the hare lasagna for 2 was impressive and delicious and, again, a very big portion.

I selected the veal Milanese with spinach. I loved the crispy coating and the moist meat and the spinach was tasty. Why have I never had it topped with a grating of parmesan before? Genius. Again, a large chunk of lemon helped by adding an element of freshness to what is essentially deep fried meat.

Other mains tried at our table were braised lamb neck with cous cous, olives and tzatsiki and the winning wild rabbit with bacon, prunes and sherry for the birthday girl. The side order of lentils was an unexpected hit, the deep smokiness and creamy texture elevating the simple pulse making it one of the most memorable dishes of the meal.

I'm so glad to have finally made it here, I wasn't disappointed and will definitely be back. We each had 2 courses and several drinks and it came to £25pp. I like the unfussy approach and the adventurous menu, so many gasropubs have become tired and samey but the menu here is genuinely exciting.

Anchor and Hope
36 The Cut
SE1
8/10

Fernandez & Wells

2011-03-11T10:18:00.001Z

I love London, there are still so many establishments on my wish list. Regular restaurant openings mean that list continues to grow rather than diminish each week. It's really very exciting and I find eating out is still the thing I enjoy spending the majority of my weekly pay on. Other expenditures just mean less ready cash for dinners out.

The abundance of places to dine at in Soho has meant it's taken me an age to get to Fernandez & Wells but I recently lunched at their espresso bar. Very good it was too. I had a chorizo and tomato stew with bread.

It was a massive bowlful with a generous hunk of baguette. I actually couldn't finish it.

The array of sandwiches, baguettes, buns, salads and pastries is really impressive. Everything is inviting, it's tough to choose. It's only a smidge more than you'll pay for a pret/eat type lunch and infinitely more satisfying. The toasted egg, prosciutto and watercress ciabatta was also a hit.

They serve meat and cheese platters, are open evenings here and at the larger restaurant on Lexington, or there's the cafe on Beak serving breakfast and lunch. Something for everyone and is a real gem to have close to work.

Fernandez & Wells Espresso Bar
16a St Anne's Court
Soho, W1
8/10

Jamie's Italian

2011-03-08T21:29:00.001Z

Saturday Kitchen is rarely my weekend food inspiration but this week, watching Antonio Carluccio cook a stunning plate of tajarini al tartufo (in Umbria, not BBC television centre) resulted in an almost unbearable craving for truffle pasta.

Sunday lunch with my Mum was a perfect excuse to seek out that carby treat. Meeting at Charing Cross somewhat limited our choice of venue so we plumped for Jamie's Italian. We'd eaten at the Covent Garden restaurant before and both had pretty good salads, we were keen to sample some pasta dishes. Happily, like before, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the ingredients and the execution of the dishes.

I started with the bruschetta with ricotta and 'oven dried' tomatoes. This was really lovely, a generous smear of fresh creamy ricotta on some crisp ciabatta, good quality olive oil and a sprinkling of baby basil and rosemary. However I have a couple of issues with the menu descriptions. The tomatoes are clearly not oven dried and there was not even the merest hint of garlic (ciabatta supposedly rubbed with). Still, I really enjoyed it.

Also visible in the above picture are the green olives from Puglia, declared on the menu to be 'the world's best olives on ice.' Totally annoyingly over the top wording but I had these last time I came and to be honest, these, along with the olives I had a 500, are the best olive's I've ever had. Though I do not claim to have tried every olive in the world. I'd be very surprised if even the great Jamie himself had.

My Mum had the aranici, they looked stunning. My main, the very reason I was here, wild truffle tagliatelli was very good. The pasta was a tad over al dente but by no means disastrously so. The silky sauce of butter, Parmesan, nutmeg and truffle shavings really hit the spot, no mistruths on the menu with this dish. Should I find myself without a reservation for one of London's finer Italian eateries and craving pasta, I'd consider Jamie's Italian to be a reliable option.

Mum's spag bol hit the spot as did 2 americanos with hot milk. Worth noting that the service is slightly irksome. The wait staff seem to have been instructed to strike up conversation as frequently as possible. It's a bit try hard for my liking. Otherwise, I'm really very impressed with the place. At £20 a head it's reasonable and the Upper St Martin's Lane regeneration has dramatically improved the area.

Jamie's Italian
11 Upper St Martin's Lane
WC2H 9FB
7.5/10

Koya

2011-03-05T17:33:00.006Z

Blogger's favourite Koya opened almost a year ago and having heard nothing but rapturous praise for their noodles ever since, I've been eager to visit for months. It's taken me a while due to Koya's popularity and the ever present queue to get in. One time I made it in only to find they'd run out of noodles.

Last Tuesday I made another unplanned attempt, and success at last! No queue and we swooped on a table for 2 just as a couple were leaving. So, it totally lived up to the hype and these were the best (apparently freshly foot rolled each morning) noodles I've ever had. I had the kinoko hiya-atsu, cold udon and a hot broth with mushrooms and walnut miso. At £10.80 it's not the cheapest option but the miso really elevates this beyond a token vegetarian option.

To start we shared a yasai ten mori, tempura selection, which included asparagus, mushroom and banana (!) amongst others. This too was brilliant.

I also popped an onsen tamago, poached egg, into my noodles, adding another layer of depth to the flavours in the bowl once the yolk had been speared. The noodles are lengthy so fairly tricky to manage without making an awful mess but nobody seems to mind, and everybody slurps. I also had a taste of my companions duck which was lovely and we shared a side of kinoko tsukudani, soy marinated mushrooms. We drank tap water and left feeling just the right level of fullness having parted with only £35.

I can't wait to explore more of the menu here. The room is small and social but I spotted some bar style seating in a room at the rear which overlooks the kitchen, I'll be back to try to nab one of these seats. Certainly the best noodles in town.

Koya
49 Frith Street
Soho
W1D 4SG
7.5/10

Wright Bros (Soho)

2011-02-24T11:02:00.004Z

I was so happy to hear that Wright Bros were opening in Soho, so convenient for me as I work there. Not that Borough is much of a trek, but I'm glad there's somewhere in the immediate area to become that go to place when all that will do is a shellfish supper. Such was my faith in these guys. I love the small original venue and it's rustic charm. I was hoping the bigger shiny new restaurant would retain much of this ethos and I first visited last week to find out.

I booked an 8pm table online weeks and weeks ago in early January. Having trouble locating the confirmation email last week I mailed the info address to confirm the booking. They denied all knowledge of it and said they could only offer a much earlier booking on a shared table. I declined. Then, on the day of my supposed booking, they called to confirm my online reservation. Having not made any other arrangements I played along.

We arrived about 20 minutes early and I mentioned the emailed denial of my booking which was brushed off as an easy mistake to make. We were told that our table was not ready (despite there being plenty of empty tables upstairs) then informed it would be too complicated for us to have a drink at another table whilst waiting for the bar seating to free up. So we trotted off to the pub next door for a half, returned at 8 to find the seats still not available. We were permitted to wait in the bar this time.

I'd forgotten just how much of a debacle this was. The seats became free about 20 minutes later and I'd pretty much forgotten about this until now. But it was all very unsatisfactory.

Of the food, the oyster selection, crab, smoked mackerel pâté, cheese and chocolate pot were all really very good. Though all I will remember of the evening is the reservation and seating shambles. I guess it's sort of still early days for this new venture but with the place far from full I fear how they might cope on busier days. I don't think I'll bother to find out.

Wright Bros (Soho)
13 Kingly St
Soho
W1B 5PW

5/10

Gordon Ramsay at Claridges

2011-02-22T14:36:00.001Z

A brilliant Christmas gift from my Mum and Auntie to my sister and I was Sunday lunch for 4 at Claridges. We finally made it last weekend on the day of the BAFTA awards, the atmosphere was suitably electric, not only did we have a lovely meal but we spotted Julianne Moore and Tom Ford in their finery heading off to the red carpet. The venue is uber glam.

Upon arrival, at 2:45, the dining room was heaving. We were seated, offered an aperitif and presented with a bewildering array of menus to choose from. 3 seemed overkill but actually meant that there was something to please each of us so we were glad of the choice. My sister can be a tad fussy with food, she's the first to admit and she was happy with the set Sunday menu which included a roast beef and yorkshire pudding main.

The room was smaller than I expected, but it's cosy. The winelist was concise and presented on an ipad. The service was mostly polite though we felt rushed towards the end of the meal.

Things started on a high point with a lovely butternut squash amuse with truffle oil. I expected it to be cold for some reason and remember being quite taken aback that it was hot. Cranny wasn't keen so I got 2 servings. Those black pieces just visible are mushroom pieces, I really liked this.

I chose from the a la carte menu, 3 courses for £70. To start I had the thai spiced lobster ravioli. Generous with the lobster, this dish was pretty to look at and the spice was pleasantly subtle. Other starters sampled were the Caesar salad, pork belly with crayfish bisque and rump of beef with root vegetable salad. All well received.

My main course was a slight disappointment in that I was the only person at our table to not get a gravy pouring from the waiters. My lamb suffered as a result, it was crying out for some moisture but it was all about the shepherds pie for me anyway, served as a side dish accompanying my lamb.

This was brilliantly smoky and much better than the Salt-baked Herdwick lamb loin. Other mains enjoyed were, of course, the Kid's roast beef, loin of venison and shoulder of rose veal. All with gravy.

There was some confusion when ordering dessert/cheese. My sister, opting for the 3 course Sunday lunch menu wanted cheese instead of dessert to be served when I had my cheese, after my dessert. A fairly simple request which flummoxed 3 waiters 1 after the other. In the end her cheese was served at the same time as our desserts and it seemed simpler to just go with it.

Anyway, the cheese was lovely, I do love cheese trolley time when eating out. Served with white grapes and a choice of biscuits or bread. Having seen images from other bloggers earlier meals here, I think the range of cheeses on offer here has diminished over the years, as have Ramsay's Michelin stars. One can never have too many cheeses.

A pre dessert of passionfruit mousse, sorbet and foam was excellent. The foam was very tart and the accompanying buttery pistachio biscuit was a perfect partner. I really wished this was bigger. My actual dessert was the orange and passionfruit pannacotta with cheesecake ice cream. The generous portion was a bit too much for me, I still had the cheese to contend with which had already been selected and plated. The pannacotta itself was wonderful, it's creamy consistency complemented by the crunch of the cheesecake chunks in the ice cream. My favourite of the 3 dishes I'd chosen.

Other desserts were banana and caramel soufflé and chocolate fondant. I enjoyed many parts of the meal but I see where there are areas for improvement in the plates offered up here. I am soon to try Royal Hospital Road and am keen to compare his 3* offerings to the food here at Claridges.

No doubt about it though, officially my best Christmas present!

Claridge's
55 Brook St
Mayfair
W1

6.5/10

The Water Poet

2011-02-09T09:35:00.001Z

Pub lunch on a Sunday, the quest continues to find a decent roast in London. To be fair I've not tried that hard due to my, perhaps premature, conclusion that a really fine example in this city simply doesn't exist. I recall during my uni days having a great one somewhere in Southampton, but this being a little further than I'm currently willing to travel, Sunday lunch perfection continues to elude me.

A group of us sampled a selection of roasts at The Water Poet in Spitalfields last weekend, the beef, the pork and the lamb.

There was quite a long wait having arrived lateish for lunch, at around 2:30, though by the time we got to order (about an hour later) they'd not sold out of anything on the menu.

The high point of a roast dinner should not be the vegetables. The savoy cabbage and parsnips were great. The beef was cooked medium and was flavoursome but a bit too chewy. Roast potatoes were ok but they were stingy with the gravy. Service is very slow and a bit vacant. My yorkshire was more of a pancake than a pudding.

So, again I conclude that you can't beat a home cooked roast. Want bread sauce with your beef? Yorkshire pudding with your chicken? We do, so my friends and I have concluded we'll stick to Noy's kitchen on Sundays from now on. Should we visit again we'll probably stick to drinks and pool at The Water Poet, they've a nice covered outdoor area and multiple big screens for sports fans.

The Water Poet
9-11 Folgate St London
E1 6BX
5/10

Ten Ten Tei

2011-02-06T22:33:00.002Z

I remember chuckling reading this post about Ten Ten Tei a while back, some things never change it seems and that pesky door is still traumatising diners. Being yelled at when you enter a restaurant isn't the best of starts but it is still chilly so we let it go!

Loved the food at Ten Ten Tei and will definitely be back. I had the soba tempura lunch which comes with a couple of maki rolls with avocado and some miso soup on the side. Unlimited green tea as is the custom in many non-chain sushi eateries, all this for less than £10. The revelation for me was the fried agedashi tofu, so silky and delicious, I was always a fan of tofu anyway but now I am officially in love with it.

The things that make Ten Ten Tei stand out for me are the quality of the added extras, the miso is amazing, the pickled ginger isn't hot pink in colour and the wasabi is properly nose tingling with only a minimal amount. Awesome.

The temaki were also of a high standard, fish so tender and vibrant in flavour, I've not been able to stop thinking about it since. My soba tempura was a pretty poor choice, tempura in soup will of course turn into a soggy mess and the stock was scaldingly hot. Luckily my companion allowed me a few bites of his. Next visit I'd like to sit at the bar, and will likely order sashimi. Speaks volumes that I'm already counting down the hours until I'll be back at work in Soho.

Ten Ten Tei
56 Brewer Street
Soho
W1F
8/10

The Cuckoo Club

2011-02-05T21:55:00.006Z

I was recently invited to attend a bloggers dinner at The Cuckoo Club to mark the launch of their new menu.

The dining room has a very glamorous feel to it, with moody purple lighting and opulent table dressing, not shown below.

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food. The standout dishes were the lighter options, tuna tartare and monkfish in potato broth, chef Chris Parker clearly catering for the calorie conscious clientele. Every dish on the menu is dairy free. The clear highlight of the evening for me were the fabulous cocktails. Upon arrival we were treated to any cocktail of our choice, I opted for a long gin based tipple with pink grapefruit. Jemma's cucumber selection was a revelation, so fresh and moreish, garnished with fresh dill. Almost visible in my picture was an impressive array of garnishes including countless fresh herbs, yellow cherry tomatoes, chillis, lemongrass and whole yellow peppers which acted as vessel for one of the selection on the menu. Very impressive. Unfortunately all my snaps of the food are practically unviewable due to the lighting.

The Cuckoo Club restaurant is open Wednesday to Saturday from 8pm and I'd recommend it to anybody interested in having a pre night out bite to eat, where the focus of the evening will be the booze. That said what's on offer here is certainly a cut above most club menus and full marks to The Cuckoo Club for paying attention to the food and making an attempt to appeal to the foodie as well as the party animal.

I dined as a guest of The Cuckoo Club and thanks to Sarah from LDR London for inviting me along.

The Cuckoo Club
Swallow Street
W1B

Boo in Paris - The Rest

2011-01-23T19:12:00.010Z

Other meals in Paris were a mixed bag, the okay - Le Coq, Bouillon Racine and the bad - Le Castiglione.

One thing you can always count on in Paris (apart from places you really want to visit being closed for Christmas/summer) is quality bread and butter. Everywhere offers lovely dinner rolls and the most amazing creamy butter to start your meal. Obviously there are plenty of superb red wines too!

Our visit to Le Coq came about following a last minute request to our hotel's concierge so we had no idea what to expect. The decor was a tad gauche but the food was mostly solid and the service was lovely.

Fois gras to start, lobster spaghetti for me and steak for Thomas, were all good. Dessert was a disaster, a sweet omelette hiding some warm flat champagne with a couple of raspberries thrown in for good measure. Absolutely foul and overpriced at €14.

A chance lunch at Le Castiglione was disappointing. Great frites and peppercorn sauce but one massively undercooked piece of steak for me, and a second smaller overcooked piece, though Thomas' was correctly cooked to medium rare. A stop off at the conveniently located Pierre Hermes on Avenue Paul Doumer, close to our hotel in the 16th, just about made up for our dining disappointments. Well, that and more red wine.

Dinner on our final night was at the quaint Bouillon Racine in the 6th. A lovely little brasserie with Art Nouveau decor. It feels very grand upon entering but it's actually very relaxed and casual. We fared well here with the food , until I wanted cheese for afters and they didn't have any. Grr. And the wine (beaujolais) was far too cold.

Decent onion soup, scallops and dauphinoise potatoes but sadly none of that amazing butter with the bread. We were sat by the door and it was freezing each time the door opened and slowly closed.

So, in all, we didn't have much luck eating out on this trip. As I mentioned, many of the recommended restaurants we'd hoped to visit were closed for Christmas and it was too cold to explore much on foot. Thankfully our hotel was excellent and we had a near constant supply of macarons and nutella crepes.

Le Coq
2 place du Trocadéro
75016 Paris 16er
6/10

Le Castiglione
235, rue Saint-Honoré
75001 Paris 1er
4/10

Bouillon Racine
3, rue Racine
75006 Paris 6er
5/10

Boo in Paris - L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon

2011-01-09T21:40:00.021Z

I spent Christmas in Paris last year. Having previously visited the city in August 2009 I was disappointed to find many of the places I would like to have eaten at were closed for the holiday period, as many also are during the entire 8th month of the year.

Gladly L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon was open and I booked us in for lunch on Christmas day at 2pm. Having never dined at a Robuchon restaurant before, I really had little idea of what to expect. I'd attempted to browse their website but it's one of those annoying restaurant flash sites so I found the email address I needed to book a table and left it at that. Fortunately the UK website for the London venue is infinitely less irritating than Joël Robuchon.net.

So unlike most meals out, I had not read any blog posts or viewed the menu in advance of this one, as it was Christmas I wanted it to be a relaxed occasion, whilst being almost certain that we would surely love the food of a chef whose global empire has amassed a total of 26 Michelin stars.

This turned out to be true and the food was exceptional. The lasting memories I have of the meal however were more to so with the service. Having arrived 5 minutes early we were told to wait in the lobby of the adjoining hotel, at a small bar. This is not unusual and we were actually glad of the time to enjoy an aperitif. But the guy who welcomed us ushered us through and then back out of the restaurant without giving an estimate of how long we might be left there and without taking our coats. We received and finished a glass of champagne, whilst sat at an unmanned bar, for 25 minutes when we finally went to find the chap who had welcomed us. He came to take our coats just as the barman returned so he couldn't see what our issue was.

We ordered another glass which after 5 minutes did not materialise and then we were led to our seat. Comparing this to the service we experienced at The Ledbury a month before, it's difficult to believe they have the same Michelin classification. What made it more difficult to swallow was the fact that the absent barman tracked us down inside the restaurant and handed us a bill for the drinks. We refused to pay (well Thomas did, I of course, would have just paid despite my dissatisfaction) and a discussion ensued with 2 waiters and eventually the manager who reluctantly agreed to settle the drinks tab whilst arrogantly proclaiming that we would no doubt love the food and explaining that it is their policy to not hurry diners to leave (or indeed state upon booking that the seats must be vacated within a given amount of time, something which I appreciate and actually admire) especially on Christmas day. I totally understand that but we would merely like to have been informed that this was the case when we arrived. As it was we felt quite negelcted.

Bad start aside, the manager was right, the food was some of the best I had in 2010 and having not researched Robuchon's L'Atelier concept I was perhaps unprepared for the more casual style of Michelin dining offered here. Still, as has been discussed elsewhere recently, service is a major factor in deciding whether you will or will not be likely to make a return visit.

Back to the food, we opted for the €150 tasting menu and a bottle of rosé.

L'amuse-bouche - Jerusalem artichoke soup served cold with artichoke crisp. I really liked this, Thomas found the consistency a bit 'sick like' (his words).

La saint Jacques - scallop ceviche with sea urchin. This was my first try of sea urchin, I was surprised by it's vibrant colour and soft texture. Very good.

Le caviar with smoked mackerel, potato and horseradish cream

Le foie gras with white beans was my favourite dish

L'œuf - Poached egg in a mushroom broth with girolles. The perfectly runny egg made for an interesting mouthful once the yolk was pierced. Again, Thomas thought texturally this was a little sickly.

The lady dining next to us found a hair in her egg dish. She sent it back, there was no apology and she was presented with an entirely different plate of food (which she took with good humour) 10 minutes later when she enquired where her replacement L'œuf had got to, by which time her companion had finished this course.

Le rouget - red mullet with olives, tomato and capers. I adored this too, unusual I thought to combine such strong flavours with fish but the mullet was more than a match for the trio.

La Caille - my main course (from a choice of three) was the quail stuffed with foie gras with truffle mash. Brilliantly cooked and very decadent.

La joue de boeuf - Thomas' main. Beef bourguignonne with mini carrots and onions and the creamiest mash.

Les Parfum des Iles - passionfruit granita with lime, refreshing and pretty.

La Pomme - royal gala apple with caramel sauce and salted caramel ice cream.

We also had a starter of oysters to share from the specials which were excellent. Good rye bread was served as well as the typical bread basket and creamy butter which is visible in the picture at the head of the post.

Seating is very compact, we were in a corner so were granted some privacy but to our right there was (before the hair in the egg lady arrived) a diner who was all elbows.

That said, it's always a joy to watch chefs at work, here from the bar style seating circling the kitchen and in all this was a great special occasion meal let down somewhat by the careless front of house service. Were it not for this blip, I would likely be raving about the place and eagerly anticipating a trip to the Covent Garden site.

L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon
5 Rue de Montalembert
75007 Paris, France

7/10

The Ledbury - my meal of 2010

2011-01-05T13:13:00.010Z

A special occasion meal in 2010, the venue surely a no brainer. The Ledbury, awarded 2 stars in Michelin's annual guide, was raved about by everyone who dined there. I was beyond excited it goes without saying.

We decided to go for the tasting menu and rather than babble on about each dish I'll keep it brief as I'm sure by now most people are aware that Brett Graham and his team are dishing up some of the most consistent and exciting food in the city at the moment.

To begin, bread, a choice of three, I tried each throughout the evening, bacon and onion, chestnut and wholemeal. A canape, fois gras parfait then the amuse bouche, deep fried quails egg on a chestnut puree with truffle shavings.

Next up was the now legendary scallop ceviche with kohlrabi and horseradish 'snow'. Followed by the signature dish flame grilled mackerel with cucumber, mustard and shiso. A fine dish, perfectly representative of Graham's adventurous use of ingredients and exemplary cooking skills.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the night was the vegetable course, a plate of baked root vegetables which in lesser talented hands might have been a low point of the menu but was actually quite the opposite.

Moving onto another fish dish, poached skate with Parmesan gnocchi was one of the highlights of the meal for me. Hints of truffle and more wonderfully cooked vegetables elevating the dish without distracting from the delicacy of the fish. Perfect. For me the least successful part of the menu was the lamb that followed. So divine had the fish courses been, I don't think any meat could quite have lived up to the preceding excellence.

Next to the sweet courses. The pre-dessert passion fruit jelly with Sauternes mousse was lovely, enabling the diner to seamlessly transition from the savoury courses, with the tang of the passion fruit. Then another sensational dish, the crème caramel with orange sorbet and green tea ice cream. The combinations here were so delicious that I forgot entirely how full I was and could not have stopped eating this had my life depended on it. A lovely gesture next in an extra dessert to share, a pear tart and sorbet with a message for us!

We somehow managed to find room for cheese with yet more bread, a walnut loaf served warm. We left without petit fours which I was glad of not being able to accept another morsel.

One final note to add that never before have I experienced such exceptional service. We were given a glass of champagne on the house, an extra dessert and a visit to the kitchen to meet the chef. When asked what our favourite dish of the evening was, we both responded that the vegetable dish was a revelation and Brett presented us with some veggies they had just taken delivery of, instructing us how he cooks them and had them wrapped up for us to take home and attempt to recreate.

The time was gone 11 and the kitchen was still a hive of activity, I was surprised by how small it was and so inspired by Brett's passion and knowledge for what he does and the amazing generosity. I felt so spoiled. We were uncomfortably full due to our inability to know when enough is enough but we left with the biggest smiles on our faces.

I urge you to visit if you haven't already.

The Ledbury
127 Ledbury Road
Notting Hill

9/10

Lunches

2010-12-22T12:49:00.004Z

Long time no blog! So, the lack of posts lately is due to my new job, which is pretty full on but fun and in Soho so I now have the opportunity to explore a multitude of potential new lunch spots on the rare occasion that I actually get to take a lunch break!

I've tended to grab something on the go but when I can take that bit longer and actually eat something hot at a table that is not my desk I've found myself drawn to Pho. Just across the road from the office and just what the doctor ordered in these cold cold months. I've mostly stuck to ordering the pho, it's quick, filling and pretty good, especially the Bun Ga Hue, hot and spicy chicken. With the below average temperatures we've experienced over the last couple of months this has been my top lunch spot though it is rather pricier than your average lunch venue and as it is a chain. It's only my idle nature that stops me from finding a cheaper independent version in the area, there's a challenge for January.

Bibimbap is another must go place, rice served in a clay pot for that crispness that develops as you eat your way through the dish. I particularly like the seafood option with squid, mussels and prawns with added miso and chilli sauces this is the perfect one pot meal. Again good for the winter months with fresh veggies and your choice of meat, seafood or egg toppings.

I've also called upon my old favourite Byron on a number of occasions as well as checking out the new branch of Wahaca on Wardour St. I continue to enjoy the food at both establishments.

Special mention to Shelley's Sandwich Bar on Dean St where I grab an essential jacket potato fix every so often, or if I don't quite know what I fancy I invariably find myself loitering around until something on their extensive menu calls to me.

I am still yet to try Fernandez and Wells, purely out of laziness I think, but that's next on my list as again, it's just down the road and I'm quite possibly the only food blogger in London to never have sampled any of their wares. To be continued....

Pho
163-165 Wardour Street, Soho
6.5/10

Bibimbap
11 Greek St, soho
6.5/10

Charuwan

2010-11-07T17:01:00.003Z

When I first moved into the N19 area I had a meal at local thai restaurant Charuwan (no website) and I forget what I had but I was decidedly underwhelmed. A Sunday night craving for Thai coupled with my usual feeling of idleness come the weekend meant that I was unable to venture further than 3 doors down the road in search of dinner. As luck would have it Charuwan offer a takeaway service with a 10% discount to boot if you collect the order yourself.

I was so impressed by the quality of the food that it's become our go to takeout over the last month or so. My favourite dish is the fresh spring rolls, tightly packed rice papers, filled with vermicelli rice noodles, carrot, mint, lettuce, bok choy, fish sauce and topped with larb nua (diced beef). I've been craving these on a regular basis since first tasting them.

Other dishes I've sampled include prawn tom yum soup, laksa, pad kee mau (poorly pictured above), som tam (papaya salad), chicken pad thai, 'weeping tiger' (or chilli marinated beef), pad med ma muang (chicken with cashews) and moo ping (pork ribs with garlic and sesame). Everything I have had has satisfied and I'm happy to announce I have found a local gem. N19 - quite the foodie hotspot boasting my faves Del Parc and the nearby 500

Charuwan
110 Junction Road
N19

7/10

Buen Ayre

2010-10-15T14:18:00.006+01:00

Having dined at A La Cruz a few weeks back, I was keen to try John Rattagan's other, more established eatery Buen Ayre. One evening after work we ventured East, met Patrick and Grace and settled in for a meaty treat.

We opted for the Choripán con morrones y chimichurri to start, kind of like hotdogs, we split 2 between the 4 of us. Nice home made sausages, good bread and a slice of piquillo pepper thrown in for colour and sweetness. The accompanying chimmichurri sauce was a tasty addition.

For main course we had the Parrillada Deluxe. A Parrillada is a table top grill upon which was served a selection of Argentine sirloin and rib-eye steaks, pork sausages, morcilla and provolone cheese. I'm always a bit wary of sharing platters, fearing I'll not be sufficiently sated but this really was more than enough meat for all of us. Despite not being a huge fan of black pudding, even I must say the morcilla was excellent. The cheese is an interesting idea, obviously it melts on the hot plate, it does seem like a slightly odd addition but what's not to like about melted cheese?

Side orders of chips and a green salad were sound though I severely burnt my mouth on the former. Service was very pleasant and even on a Tuesday evening the atmosphere was vibrant and the restaurant full.

With a couple of bottles of red this all came to a reasonable £35 a head. I'd have to say I still prefer the meat at Goodman though, it my preferred venue in London when it comes to steak though I will undoubtedly revisit Buen Ayre, that morcilla in particular begs my return.

Buen Ayre
50 Broadway Market
Hackney
E8

7/10

Oktoberfest at Beglo

2010-10-12T10:20:00.009+01:00

Resigning myself to not visiting Munich for the annual beer festival this year was tough but made that little bit easier by an invite to preview the Oktoberfest menu at Belgo Centraal. It's a curious concept given that Belgo is a Belgian beer house specialising in moules frites but I was willing to keep an open mind and see whether what they had to offer was anything like the real thing.

The dinner was held in the far corner of the Covent Garden restaurant, in a cavernous nook of the main room, very snug if somewhat chilly. The food was served between 2 with a beer to accompany each course. Starters were ginger and parsnip soup, duck terrine and classic moules marinières. All very good and served alongside some dark moist rye bread.

Main courses were beef carbonnade, mushroom bouchée and moules portugaises. The standout dish for me was the mussels, served in a rich paprika and chorizo sauce with basil and new potatoes. The shellfish being the speciality of the house this was no surprise, but I was too full from all the beer to even eat many of them. My fellow diners seemed to feel the same way with much of the final dish remaining unfinished. Perhaps they were just saving room for dessert, again 3 of those to sample.

Of the poached pear, Belgian waffle and Belgian chocolate pudding I preferred the latter, more of a fondant with an oozing centre served with fresh cream, the traditional Belgian dishes were definitely the stars of the evening.

To my disbelief, I am a convert to pleasures of fruit beer, having previously found it sickly and bloating, I was most impressed with the Floris apple beer, served with the poached pear and lemon sorbet, and also the raspberry beer I was served as a welcome.

This menu is available each Wednesday throughout October, 3 courses with 3 specially paired beers for £33. A right bargain but really not a patch on the real thing though this is billed as a celebration of Oktoberfest rather than an attempt to emulate the Bavarian festival. The atmosphere is recreated with long communal dining and tables offering the chance to meet other beer enthusiasts. Quote 'Wednesday Night Pilgrimage' when booking.

I dined as a guest of Belgo Centraal.

Belgo Centraal
50 Earlham St
Covent Garden

Boo in Germany - Dallmayr

2010-10-04T10:15:00.008+01:00

In the centre of Munich stands the grand delicatessen Dallmayr. I'd liken it to London's Harrods food halls, but it's much more welcoming and accessible, more like Fortnum & Mason perhaps, yet it's grander and less stuffy.

The Munich institution has been in existence since the late 1700's and through it's various incarnations has served the people of the city and beyond with fine food and refreshments. There's a 2* Michelin restaurant, a coffee house and they also pioneered the use of vending machines throughout Bavaria in the 1960's. During my last trip I dined at the Lukullus Bar situated amongst the hub-bub of the shop floor. Service is swift as there are a limited number of tables though we were seated within 10 minutes. Impressive that all tables were full on a Monday lunchtime.

We were on holiday so as a treat we ordered the half lobster with seafood sauce, half a dozen rock oysters and a couple of glasses of prosecco. We were given a selection of bread, rye and sourdough, both excellent, and a small layered bread and cheese sandwich, for want of an accurate description. It was malty and creamy, very moorish and the prefect start.

The oysters were split between us and served 3 per plate with lemon. We were slightly miffed to not have the option of chopped shallots in red wine vinegar as is often served with them but have since learned that this was originally only presented as a palate cleanser to be eaten with bread between molluscs. When considering the swift turnover of tables here the presentation is acceptable (i.e. no bed of ice), there's little time to linger, it seems to be a quick refuel type venue though this does seems slightly at odds with the epicurean ethos of the place.

Anyhow, the oysters were excellent, we had 2 Australian and 1 French each. The French fine de Claire's again stood out in terms of depth of flavour.

To finish our lunch we had the half lobster, served cold, in the shell with seafood sauce presented prettily in an oyster shell. There's little to dislike about the acclaimed crustacean but this particular beast was served slightly too cold for my liking. The sauce was your typical prawn cocktail marie rose concoction, I favoured the simplicity of a squeeze of lemon over the sweet claw and tail meat.

With all that bread we were surprisingly full and head out into the rain for a spot of shopping impressed, as always, with the first class service offered at Dallmayr. Great shellfish and prosecco at a fraction of the prices in London, about €50.

Dallmayr
Dienerstrasse
München
8/10

Boo in Germany - Bürgerstuben

2010-09-28T10:16:00.002+01:00

My recent trip to Germany to visit Thomas' family did not, unfortunately, coincide with Oktoberfest. After I'd sufficiently sulked about this and daydreamed for hours about the meat and the beer that we were missing out on this year, I got over it and more than made do with visiting several traditional Bavarian restaurants instead.

Some of the highlights were dining al fresco in the gardens at Schloss Schleißheim or Schleissheim Palace, a stunning Bavarian castle with incredible grounds, tree lines walkways and spectacular fountains. The restaurant Schloss Oberschleissheim marks the scene of my very first Wiener Schnitzel, here served with sauteed potatoes and a cranberry sauce. There's also more informal dining available at the biergarten. I neglected to take a photo as I was feeling rather delicate following a night out which began at 4pm the previous afternoon at the Englischer Garten in the centre of Munich and ended rather hazily at the curiously named Paradiso Lustbar, fun times.

One of the nicest meals out was at the Bürgerstuben in Garching. Suprisingly not the best burger in Germany but the restaurant at the town conference facility! I've had some great food during previous visits to Germany but this time around I completely fell for the local cuisine of Bavaria, potato dumplings and delicious gravies, there are many similarities to English meat and veg dishes.

One of my faves is Spätzle, at Bürgerstuben I had spinach infused dumplings in a blue cheese sauce, perfect comfort food, typically served in the dish in which it's oven baked. Served with a tomato and onion salad with a tart vinegarette.

Another classic dish available all over the region is Weiner Zweibelrostbraten, translated roughly as onion roast, this is usually in the form of a steak topped with crispy fried onions, here it came served with potatoes but the waitress happily swapped it for Kasespätzle upon request. Service is super friendly and we even had the chance to try some Wies'n beer, the first of the annual brew made for Oktoberfest and often available at local establishments a week before the celebrations commence.

Here diners are also presented with an amuse, we had a mouthful of smoked salmon on a disc of bread. We dined on a Monday evening and the place was full yet the service remained excellent throughout the night.

I also, for the first time, sampled multiple Bavarian desserts, the highlight of which was Kaiserschmarrn or 'Emperors mishmash' which is chunks of sweet batter which has been caramelised and is served with either apple or berry sauce. I also loved the Bavarian Cream which I would liken most to a pannacotta, a set cream with a base of fruit puree.

I cannot wait for my next trip.

Bürgerstuben
85748 Garching
Citizens place 9
8.5/10

A La Cruz

2010-09-26T14:09:00.006+01:00

A couple of Thursday's back I spent an evening celebrating Argentinian beef and wines at A La Cruz. The restaurant is situated just behind Exmouth market and the event took place in their cosy wood panel lined private dining room. The night comprised of a 7 course menu pairing different varieties from Mendoza winery Bodega Septima with different cuts of steak.

Welcome drinks were served next to the impressive fire pit, unique to this venue. A La Cruz owner and head chef John P Rattagan also runs Broadway Market's Buen Ayre where I have also dined recently, blogpost to come. He spoke passionately on the evening about his love of Argentina's culture and flavours having lived there until 1990, his introductions to each course were all too brief for my liking, I wanted to hear more though John was keen for the focus to remain on the wines.

Our first drink was an intro to Septima's brand new sparkling wine giving us a taste of the quality of wines to come. Septima's reds grace the menus of most of London's Argentinian restaurants including both of John's ventures, Santa Maria Del Sur, Garufa and Gaucho.

We were seated and the first course was served, fillet carpaccio with capers and parmesan. This was my favourite dish of the night. The matched wine was Septimo Dia Chardonnay 2008, the sole white offering, it was full bodied and aromatic with strong citrus and vanilla flavours.

Next up was the seared fillet with a mustard and white wine sauce, this was matched to the Septima Noche 2009, a pinot noir. Visually a lighter hue which comes from a briefer colouring using the grape skins late on in the 8 month ageing process. There was a strong cherry flavour. Again the steak was excellent.

I'll be briefer from here on as the wine began to take effect and my notes suffered as a result. Also for fear of this post becoming an essay. Next up was a mini sirloin with salsa criolla and Septima malbec 2009, a darker, elegant smoky red.

Moving on to the Septima Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, a stronger, longer lasting finish, spicier and smokier than the previous examples. There were cubes of ribeye with chimichirri sauce to match the intensity of the wine.

The premium wines of the evening were the Septimo Dias. Grapes from a higher altitude offering more character and depth of flavour. The Malbec 2008 made the gold list in the 2010 Sommelier Awards and we were each given a bottle to take away with us. The steak match for this took the form of rump mini sandwiches with ciabatta and rocket.

The final beef dish was flank with a cherry tomato and rocket salad. This was completely overcooked which was a bit of a disappointment though I was full anyway, the wine kept flowing, this time the Septimo Dia Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 peppery with blackcurrant notes.

Last up was the flank of lamb cooked on the pit served with mint sauce, new potatoes and carrots. This was almost sickly sweet, lamb's not my favourite meat and after all the beef it seemed an odd end to the menu but the cooking method is spectacular and I'm glad to have had the chance to try it.

The last wine to sample was the Icon wine Septima Gran Reserva 2008 which is floral and sweet. All wines sampled (save the new sparkling variety) are available at the newly re-opened Wine Rack stores across the South East and London for less than £15, very reasonable, I'll definitely be seeking them out.

Should you wish to sample some of these pairings, A La Cruz and Septima are launching a special tasting menu on the first Monday of each month. Beginning November 1st for £36.50 you'll get 3 cuts and a glass of the Septima Malbec.

Thanks to John Rattagan and Relish PR for hosting the evening. I dined as a guest of A La Cruz and Septima

A La Cruz
42 Northampton Road
EC1R 0HU

Hix Selfridges

2010-09-20T10:35:00.002+01:00

Shopping on Oxford Street can be an arduous experience. On a Saturday afternoon you virtually need to be wearing a suit of armour to negotiate the crowds. We did this a couple of weeks ago (brave it that is, not don body plates) as I was buying a new handbag to replace my stolen one :(

Weaving your way along the street sure works up an appetite so once I'd selected my new prized accessory we head for Hix Champagne Bar. We requested seats up at the bar on the restaurant side of the establishment and ordered a bottle of Moet & Chandon (Epernay) Brut Imperial and a dozen rock oysters (again, not the correct month for natives).

Red and green Tabasco's were offered alongside the standard lemon and vinaigrette. These were Cornish oysters the waiter informed us, a helpful friendly chap, he later gave us a free strawberry daiquiri each because we were the customers who had been seated longest at his bar. Perhaps a ruse to get us to buy another bottle the cynic in me thought....it was nice nonetheless.

We also had the chorizo with romesco sauce for just under £6, this was excellent, we ordered another after devouring the first portion right away. This followed by a loaf of warm bread with butter and we were set for an evening of boozing at The Lock Tavern with some friends visiting from Australia.

I really enjoyed the couple of hours we spent here, fellow diners were an interesting mix of families, groups of friends and couples, snacks and main meals are available, or just drinks of course, in the bar area. Both sections are accessed by a grand winding staircase leading from the beauty hall and the venue overlooks the ground floor of the store. Perfect for people watching. I'm certain that I wouldn't have head here were it not for the planned shopping trip though, much better to relax and dine away from the somewhat frantic atmosphere of a department store. That said, I was impressed with the quality of the food, drink and service, shoppers seeking replenishment could do far worse.

Hix Selfridges
400 Oxford St
W1

7.5/10

Wright Brothers

2010-09-16T14:22:00.003+01:00

A few weekends ago, fools that we are, we visited Borough Market, on a Saturday afternoon. Needed a rest pretty much as soon as we got there and went for a celebratory oysters and champagne treat at Wright Brothers following some good work related news.

We went for a selection of half a dozen rock oysters (our visit being at the tail end of August shortly before natives are at their best) consisting of 2 Speciale de claire (French), 2 Carlingford Lough (Irish) and 2 Dorset rocks (British). These were served with the usual accompaniments of a lemon wedge and diced shallots in red wine vinegar.

Our preference from the selection was the French, far right in the picture. These were visually very different, a deeper shell and a fatter mollusc, the depth of flavour was incredible, they were very creamy and we were off to an amazing start, the Irish and English varieties just didn't live up these.

The selection was reasonably priced at £12. we also ordered a couple of glasses of rose prosecco, and some lovely rye bread, sourdough and ginger bread was also presented.

Browsing the menu online I am really looking forward to my next visit to sample some of the other offerings, I really liked the relaxed yet luxurious vibe of the place and note with interest they're soon to open a new restaurant on Kingly Street, that bit closer to work.

11 Stoney Street
Borough Market
SE1 9AD

8/10

Dar Fez - Boo in Marrakesh

2010-08-31T14:02:00.000+01:00

We asked the lovely owners of our riad, Riad Clementine, to recommend a nearby place to eat on the second evening of our stay. They did offer food where we were staying but guests need to inform the kitchen of their dining intentions during the day in order for the chef to purchase sufficient ingredients. We'd neglected to do this so sampled the delights of the nearby Dar Fez.

We were told we would be greeted by one of the waiters as the place is located off the main street down a little alleyway (pictured top). As is the case with most venues in Marrakesh but we thought this was a very nice touch. The sight that met us upon entering the dining room was awesome, a massive tree is situated in the middle of the space with branches tangling all the way up the length of the walls making for pretty spectacular surroundings.

We both went for a set menu option of a selection of salads to start, tagine for main and some melon and traditional biscuits served with mint tea for afters.

The 'salads' for me were the highlight of the meal, more of a Moroccan meze selection really with a variety of dishes including aubergine, courgettes, olives, lettuce (dressed with rosewater), spicy tomatoes, lentils, red cabbage all served with the obligatory flatbreads. I love this type of eating.

This time I opted for the lamb tagine with prunes. I didn't really notice a huge difference from venue to venue, and having tried multiple versions over our 4 day trip I would conclude that I prefer the red meat tagines, the chicken we tried tended to be fairly on the dry side despite being served on the bone whereas the beef and lamb are typically cut into smaller chunks to ensure they are moist and tender. Dar Fez's take on the dish was very heavy on the prunes though, I left many of them. They were very generous portion sizes.

Next up was a plate of melon. Water, galia and cantelope this was good and a nice light alternative to dessert. We also had mint tea and this came with 3 types of traditional Moroccan biscuits, served on a tiered serving dish there were loads of them, far too many for the 2 of us to get through.

We'd opted for the 4 course menu, there were additional menus which added a pastilla course and/or a cous cous but we found this to be more than enough food. We paid about £30 each and had a bottle of rose, very reasonable. We were the only diners throughout the evening though, I always find that slightly unnerving.

Dar Fez
8 Rue Bousoouni
Bab Doukalla

La Maison Arabe - Boo in Marrakesh

2010-08-24T15:21:00.010+01:00

On our final night in Marrakesh we opted for something a bit fancier and tried out the legendary and long established Maison Arabe. This place was a real trailblazer in that they were the first hotel to open up to the general non staying public, serving tourists traditional Moroccan food with a modern twist, they also have a cookery school. The building is luxurious and the decor plush, fully air conditioned with a piano bar in which to enjoy a pre dinner drink and a terrace restaurant overlooking a beautiful and romantically lit outdoor pool.

Upon arrival I had a Prosecco whilst Thomas opted for a mojito and we nibbled on some complimentary almonds whilst listening to the piano player. He took requests! We did however feel slightly rushed, having arrived early and finding the restaurant far from full we were surprised to be hurried into looking at the menu and ordering whilst sitting in the bar. It felt like the waiters were watching us as we finished our drinks, waiting to pounce at the very moment our empty glasses hit the table. We had asked what would be the best time to book for dinner, 9:30 was suggested so we were a little taken aback by this.

As we sat down the starters and some bread arrived, we'd barely had time to unravel our napkins but I enjoyed the food. I had ordered the pastilla with chicken and almond and Thomas the pastilla aux de mer, on that day with monkfish but the fish varies by season. We soon realised that we preferred each others and swapped, the fish was perfectly cooked with just the right amount of citrus, the pastry was crisp yet holding it's shape and I enjoyed this take on the dish far more that the previous one I'd tried at the Djemaa el Fna.

There is a choice of menu here, you can opt for either the national cuisine or a choice of dishes from around the globe, no brainer really, for main course I had the beef tagine with oranges which was perhaps a tad too sweet for my tastes but the meat was succulent and flavoursome (served on the bone, I don't recall the cut) and there was some candied peel on top adding a bitter edge. Thomas had a chicken tagine and this time we skipped the cous cous side order, feeling that end of trip bloat. There was plenty of bread to mop up the tagine juices with.

Feeling full we requested a break before dessert and retired poolside to finish our wine (house white) and enjoy the music courtesy of Badaoui & Isbah Khalid (see some of their work here on YouTube), it was really quite mesmerising and created an amazing relaxed atmosphere, we took away with us one of their cds. By the end of the night it was just us and 1 other couple enjoying the music, it felt like a private intimate gig and made the night for us.

However, once again the mood was scuppered slightly by the hurried service and our desserts were served after around 5 minutes instead of the half an hour break we'd politely asked for. I really liked the passion fruit souffle but I just couldn't find room to finish and I rarely leave food. The music did make up for it though and I would recommend La Maison Arabe, it's a blissful haven of tranquility amidst the hectic alleys of Marrakesh. As a reflection of the superior food they serve, the prices here are a lot higher than we paid anywhere else in the city but it was well worth it for the entertainment in particular.

p.s this is not to be confused with Cafe Arabe, a place we frequented daily for the duration of our stay mostly because we loved the water spray system they have on the roof terrace. With temperatures soaring into the late 30s we sought refuge here to cool down and enjoy a drink. Again, it's a tad on the pricey side by Marrakesh standards but we would always make the most of the complimentary bowls of olives and bread sticks. They do a mean bloody mary too.

La Maison Arabe
1, Derb Assehbé
Bab Doukkala

Cafe Arabe
184, rue Mouassine
Médina

Djemaa el Fna - Boo in Marrakesh

2010-08-16T16:00:00.004+01:00

I'd been warned about the culture shock factor one travelling to Marrakesh is bound to experience but nothing can prepare you for the mayhem and disarray of the Djemaa el Fna, Marrakesh's central market place where by day you can hang with monkeys, drinks some cooling freshly squeezed fruit juice or watch snake charmers working their magic. By night there are hundreds of food stalls, each trying to entice the tourists with sheep's head stews or kebabs for the more faint hearted!

I'm not typically a fan of fruit juice, I find it quite heavy and they're rarely 100% pure juice but these were irresistible, and about 10p per glass. There are dozens of stalls set up during the day, we inadvertently found ourselves here about 2 hours after touching down in Morocco, having got lost in the souks on a stroll around to find our bearings. Within seconds there was a monkey attached to my neck and a lady had grabbed my arm and attempted to temporarily tattoo it. It's absolutely crazy, you really need have a purpose and stick to it when visiting, if you amble around aimlessly (which is precisely what you want to do on holiday) then you will be accosted.

To gain brief respite from the madness we ducked into Cafe de France and tried our first of many tagines. Chicken for me, with preserved lemons and green olives. The chicken was a tad dry and the sauce a little oily.

I liked the tang of the preserved lemon but the dish was a little disappointing, I'd arrived with enormous expectations and I suppose I expected to be bowled over by the quality of the food here. Thomas' beef tagine with prunes, sesame and almonds was better but the vegetable cous cous we chose to share was a bland mound topped with soggy insipid vegetables.

We were disappointed to conclude that we'd probably been too hasty choosing to eat here. We head back to the peaceful tranquility of Riad Clementine.

A day or 2 later we returned to the market at night when it is really quite a spectacle. Groups of locals gather dancing and telling stories, the air is thick with smoke and aromas from the numerous food stalls. First stop was for pastillas, traditional Moroccan meat pies, pigeon for me and Thomas had chicken.

I really liked the delicate pastry, the meat was good but I found the sweet and savoury combination a bit too different for my palette. We moved on to sample some skewers of mixed grilled meats and vegetables at a different stall. At each stand you are first served a flatbread and some chilli sauce, often olives too. I found myself mindlessly tucking into these whilst absorbing the atmosphere and was quite full after this times 2.

Here we were also served a tomato salad. The chilli sauce was great, very salty with a hefty chilli kick, the kebabs were nice but nothing out of the ordinary.

It really is quite unlike any other place I've ever visited, there is such a buzz, donkeys, mopeds and small children vying for right of way and demanding your attention. There is so much choice at night that it's hard to know whether what we had is representative, I was thinking about trying some of the sheep's head stews but seeing so many of them on display was not particularly appealing.

Everything is ridiculously cheap, the stallholders are all super friendly and you'd be hard pushed to find a more entertaining eating environment than here.

Tobiko

2010-08-09T16:01:00.006+01:00

For me weekday lunchtimes are boring, I'm a salad at lunch kind of girl, as I've explained before, I just am, metabolism dictates, also I am often so busy at work that I don't get chance to enjoy a relaxing hour, I wolf something down at my desk, blah blah blah....moan over.

Sometimes though, appetite, hangover or both combined, means that a salad just won't do, one such day I opted for sushi.

Perhaps inspired by the recent bout of posts on blogger find Sushi of Shiori, I decided to return to Tobiko, where I've been for soup before and loved it. Buoyed by these Qype reviews of the sushi I sampled the salmon and tuna selection for £5.80.

In short it was great, enough rice to quell the carb craving without making me feeling too full in the immediate aftermath. Freshly rolled daily (in view of those passing by early morning), you can select any sushi mix from the counter or if you don't wish to queue go for a house selection. I got there late to avoid the masses.

I'll definitely be back, there are lots of hot dishes to sample come the colder months. Fresh, affordable and very friendly staff it's certainly the best of it's kind in the Covent Garden area. They also sell everything off super cheap late afternoon because they are not open in the evenings.

Tobiko
8 Garrick Street
Covent Garden

6/10

Whitstable Oyster Festival

2010-07-28T12:46:00.000+01:00

Shocking really that as a Kentish girl I had never before visited Whitstable, to right this wrong I head down this past weekend in search of oysters.

Upon arrival we were immediately swept up in the throng, for those who don't know, The Whitstable Oyster Festival attracts up to 10000 people (to this little sleepy seaside town - that is a lot) many of them there for the opening day it seemed, good food and fine weather combining to make this a great day out for anyone, even if you don't like oysters.

Having read that UK oyster stocks have been severely depleted this year due to an outbreak of herpes and this article from Word of Mouth's Tony Naylor I feared that there may not be as much to draw the crowds as I first thought though they were there and it made the day all the more enjoyable. In fact, I'm not sure why Naylor would have written an article with such a tone on the eve of an event which promotes Whitstable's culture and heritage.

Oysters may not be every one's cup of tea but I adore them. So too do the hoards of people queueing at the many stalls set up for the week. My mate Dave was manning one of them, he's manager at the Brewery and it's brilliant to witness their tangible sense of community and genuine love of the product, it's not easy shucking oysters, doing it all day? I know I couldn't - very sore hands.

The molluscs I tried, 80p each or £4.50 for 6 were the best I've ever had, fresh from the waters that morning and prepared before my eyes, served with the requisite lemon, shallot and red wine vinegar. I certainly could not imagine a world without oysters, granted I am a fan, but were I not I should still like to see other people enjoying them.

Other attractions on the day included the regular Saturday market and the Beer Festival, in the brewery there was a huge selection of Kentish ales on offer. I sampled a pint of the Pearl of Kent (a nickname often given to the town), a fruity yet robust drink which left me feeling a bit woozy.

With such a vast number of visitors, it was difficult to find anywhere for lunch, everywhere offering food was bursting at the seams, even the towns chippy's had queues snaking down the quaint streets. We left the town and had lunch at the nearby Long Reach, oh how I longed to be eating at The Sportsman, another time.

The fish and chips I had were pretty dire, a miserable end to an otherwise wonderful day out. The tartar sauce was tasteless and I'm not sure how that is that even possible? The fish was soggy, the peas dry and the chips tasted of old fat. Still, it was only £5.99 and the beer garden was pleasant. We ought to have known better really, it's a Beefeater and there's an adjoining Holiday Inn, my only excuse is that we were starving.

It wasn't about the lunch, it was about the oysters, I urge you to get yourself down there and try some if you can, the festival runs all week.

Whitstable Oyster Festival
Sea Front and East Quay
Whitstable

The Long Reach
Thanet Way
Whitstable
CT5 3DB
4/10

Afternoon Tea at The Soho Hotel

2010-07-26T11:19:00.006+01:00

The occasion was my Mother's 50th birthday, we needed a suitably swanky venue for a Champagne Tea and having done The Ritz and The Wolseley before we settled on Refuel@ The Soho Hotel.

Upon arrival we were ushered to a rear dining room, more lounge that restaurant with large couches and ridiculous over sized decoration for example a 10 feet tall Pixar lamp and a dresser which ran along an entire wall. It's a spectacular and stunning room.

We all ordered the Champagne tea for £28 (except Cri who is expecting) despite being strongly steered toward the Sensory Tea for £35 by the waiter. Service was polite though we had a fairly lengthy wait between ordering and receiving our glass of R de Ruinart NV champagne.

The table settings were very pretty, all china was Wedgewood and tiered cake stands are shared between 2. The Champagne Tea consists of a selection of sandwiches (my favourite part being more partial to savoury than sweet), salmon blinis, strawberries and cream, scones (fruit and plain), victoria sponge, fruit tartlet and a cupcake. It's a lot of food and remarkably, I didn't need to eat for the rest of the day, we were booked in at 4pm.

We lingered for around 2 hours feeling like proper ladies in our parlour, taking genteel sips of Earl Gray from our teacups. It was quite startling upon leaving to see the crowd gathered at the Refuel Bar for their Friday post work drinks, such a haven of tranquility is the tea room.

I would definitely recommend this place for tea, sadly we didn't see any slebs, unlike others but they are often to be seen dining here and if that's not a draw for you, it's significantly cheaper than the equivalent at The Ritz although you are given seconds there.

Refuel @ The Soho Hotel
4 Richmond Buildings
Soho
W1

6/10

Benito's Hat - Covent Garden

2010-07-19T14:33:00.006+01:00

Last Thursday Benito's Hat opened on New Row in Covent Garden. I'd been very excited about the imminent arrival for some time due to its close proximity to my office. Having visited the Goodge St post a while back, I'm pleased to see both the on going success and expansion of a quality eatery and another place to add to the list of where I buy my lunch in the area surrounding work.

I was invited to attend a preview evening on Tuesday, a few teething problems remained evident, no signage, no large 'transformer' table and no bench along the front window. Still, none of that is important, what matters is the quality of the food and the drink. This branch, with it's wonderful central location, will focus more on alcohol that it's predecessor. There is a small but solid cocktail menu and our evening began with an introduction to tequila from Alex of Tequilano, resulting in a challenge to create our own cocktail.

The evening was great fun and our team (me along with Thomas, Jules and Nathaniel) somehow managed to emerge victors. We were assured that our winning concoction, Jules' Marvellous Medicine, would soon be appearing on this wall:

A lethal combination of tequila, grenadine, campari, passionfruit liqueur, grapefruit, lime and mint. Shocking pink in colour and served short.

Upon my return one lunchtime, I noted that the wall remains bare and Jules' Marvellous Medicine is not in fact appearing on the menu currently, owner Ben remarked that he wished he had reviewed each teams list of ingredients before selecting a winner, alas it was too late, we were shaking our maracas and choosing winners t-shirts by this point. Never mind, I'm sure punters will make do with the 'real' drinks on offer, highlights among them including an espresso martini and a refreshing paloma.

On the night us wannabe mixologists were kept relatively sober with a constant supply of tacos (the slow braised pork variety being my preference), tortillas, guacamole and their brilliant black beans, flavoured with avocado leaves. For lunch, I opted for the lighter Felipe's chicken salad, chicken braised in achiote, tomato and guajillo chillis.

This may look a little messy but it was tasty, filling and, I think, a bargain for £5.50. Anyway, Mexican food it all about getting involved, using your hands and should never be fancified in my opinion.

During the preview night I learned that a shot of tequila should not be chased by lime and salt, this only masks the flavour and causes that teeth on edge sensation from your mouth down to your tummy. It should instead be followed by a slice of cucumber, this makes the whole thing really rather pleasant and is definitely how I'll be enjoying that winning bottle of Tequilano.

Thanks to Sally of Relish PR and Ben for being excellent hosts. I was invited to attend the preview evening as a guest of Benito's Hat

Benito's Hat
19 New Row
WC2N

Drapers Arms

2010-07-14T09:36:00.001+01:00

Fortunately for me this recent fine spell of weather coincided with my birthday and I was pleased that the opportunity arose to spend the afternoon with some friends and family at The Drapers Arms in Islington, a pub I've wanted to visit for a while now.

We arrived during lunch and sampled a number of dishes on the menu throughout the day, whilst enjoying the sun, some great beverages and watching the USA vs Ghana match in the evening. I must admit I'm feeling slightly bereft at the lack of games now the World Cup is over. Roll on the start of the Premiership season!

Anyhow, back to the food, I had a ploughman's shortly after arrival and Thomas had a pork and apple sandwich. Mine was excellent, a monstrous piece of cheese with plenty of lovely bread and butter, the perfect dish to nibble on and to share with the group and good value at £9.50. Thomas thought his sandwich was a bit apple heavy and could have done with a slightly more generous serving of pork.

I got serious envy spying a whole crab on a nearby table. Other dishes sampled included a confit duck leg and roast beef. I ordered the chicken, sausage and mushroom pie for dinner with a couple of sides, new potatoes and spring greens. I really liked the pie, it was again a generous serving for the £12.50 price mark. The filling was a tad looser than I had expected but the sides soaked up the juices well. The golden pie casing was nicely crisp and there was ample meat inside, all too often pies disappoint on that front.

In all, I really enjoyed my day at The Drapers Arms, both the quaint garden to the rear and the nice high ceilinged dining room. Come evening the focus here seems to be on eating but it was also a great place to celebrate the passing of another year with a few drinks. I'll definitely be back to sample more.

The Drapers Arms
44 Barnsbury St
N1 1ER

7/10

Boo in Yorkshire - Grassington House

2010-07-12T11:23:00.000+01:00

A few weeks back I travelled to the picturesque village of Grassington near Skipton, in Yorkshire. This was a wedding road trip and my first time to the county and I must say I was completely won over by the Yorkshire Dales, miles and miles of hilly green landscape, it's idyllic and unspoiled and really the ideal venue for a wedding, well done John and Sue for choosing such an amazing location.

The hotel we stayed in, Grassington House, is a Georgian style building in the centre of the village offering 5 star accommodation.

We opted for b+b and the breakfast was incredible, I sampled both the full English and the scrambled egg and smoked haddock. They served me the first black pudding that I can honestly say I enjoyed. I always look forward to staying in hotels and here both the quality of the decor and the food were marvellous.

There is also a restaurant for evening meals. A large group of us ate here on the Sunday evening where they offer a 2 for 1 4 course meal for £39.50 per couple.

Choices are slightly limited with only 2 options per course. To begin there was an amuse of goatscheese and beetroot. A nice earthy mouthful and pretty presentation.

I opted for the seafood platter to start. The highlight of this dish for me was the tempura tiger prawn which was faultless, light crisp batter encased the firm meaty crustaceans. Attention again paid to presentation with starters coming on black slates. I was a little disappointed by the portions size, the lobster piece for example was less than a mouthful, more canape size really.

Then we were served a hot carrot and coriander veloute in cappucino glasses, I thought this would have benefited from being cooler, it was difficult to drink right away, not to mention awkward to hold, but the flavour was fine.

My main course was grilled dorade fillets served with new potatoes, spinach and olive tapenade. I'd never heard of this fish before, having googled it I see it's the Spanish term for a gilt headed sea bream. It was a solid dish, though I think the tapenade was a little over powering for the delicate fish. I chose this as the lighter option following a particularly indulgent Saturday but subsequently wished I had gone for the pan fried chicken breast with truffle risotto, no brainer really.

For dessert, again wanting something light, I had the strawberry and champagne jelly. The other option was a chocolate orange mousse and I have an aversion to chocolate orange so this was an easy choice. The jelly was nice, I detected only the merest hint of booze though, the accompanying strawberry espuma (fancy word for foam) had deteriorated to nothing after only a minute at the table.

Chef John Rudden, previously holder of a Michelin Bib Gourmand at The White Hart in Lydgate, has some nice ideas, executing them deftly and serving up fine food for a fraction of the price you pay here in London. Per head with a couple of local ales each, coffee, for those who wanted one, and service the total came to £25 per person. A bargain. This menu is available on Sunday and Monday nights only, the a la carte menu is offered every night. The place is very popular though I noted that most of our fellow diners were elder couples but this may have something to do with our early bird time slot of 6pm, this was a request of the restaurant due to the large booking (10 people).

I really enjoyed this meal, Rudden champions fresh, seasonal and local produce which if cooked well never fails to satisfy. I would definitely return here to stay, the rooms are immaculate with exceptional attention to detail and it is excellent value for money.

Grassington House Hotel
5 The Square
Grassington, North Yorkshire
BD23 5AQ

Paramount

2010-06-27T11:15:00.005+01:00

I celebrated my birthday this year with a brunch at Paramount. Birthdays being a prime opportunity to fit several meals out into one day, or, even better, draw out the celebrations for as long as possible (I'm off to Marrakesh next weekend, 10 day birthday's are acceptable right?)

First thing's first, the view. Spectacular. On one of the finest days of the summer this was the backdrop to the meal. When entering the building Paramount diners must check in with reception then step into the lift to be swiftly transported to the formal dining area at the summit of Centre Point.

A recent revamp has signalled then opening of Paramount to the public, previously members only this breathtaking venue is now available for all and I can't wait to return for drinks and dinner.

I started with a bloody mary, vital brunch component, which was nicely presented and very spicy but a bit pricey at £11. There is a fairly hefty mark up but it's definitely worth the cost when you glance out of the panoramic windows, the views are mesmerising. After the meal our waiter suggested we might like to visit the viewing gallery on the next floor where there is a bar and intimate booth like seats overlooking the cityscape each direction.

The brunch menu is concise but quite varied, I figured it was a tad early (11:30) for a fish pie and opted for the plaice goujons with hand cut chips and tartar sauce. I thought the chips were a bit on the dry side, the tartar was good and the goujons were nicely crisp. It looked like a pretty measly portion but I was surprisingly full afterwards so it's actually just the right amount of food.

My Mum and the Kid both went for the full English which looked good and Noy had the open club sandwich with a side of chips. This was interestingly topped with an egg and drizzled with balsamic. Noy had a beer, other drinks were soft and with service the bill came to just over £20 each. It's not cheap, they're not offering anything unique food wise and the place was virtually deserted so it's not likely to win any awards for atmosphere but Paramount is all about the views and I shall definitely be back very soon.

Paramount
Centre Point
New Oxford St

6/10

Smirnoff Black Pop up Bar

2010-06-25T17:46:00.000+01:00

Last night I indulged in some cocktail making courtesy of Smirnoff black. They kindly sent a selection of bloggers and tweeters a kit with which to mix up several different concoctions under the tutoring of Daryl Haldane via demonstrations on twitvid, the escapades can be seen under the hashtag #smirnoffblack.

My favourite on the evening was the strawberry caipiroska, a take on the classic caipirinha prepared with vodka instead of cachaça. A refreshing combination of Smirnoff Black, lime, sugar and muddled strawberries, I think this is my new favourite cocktail.

The evening kicked off at 7pm with a vodka and tonic, ending up around 9 with a Moscow mule and several alternative versions using apple juice or strawberries. I would have continued through the night had I not run out of ice, why doesn't it freeze quicker?!

Thanks to Smirnoff and Daryl for widening my repertoire, I shall definitely be making these in the future.

I was invited to participate in the evening by Smirfnoff Black and I received a complimentary cocktail making kit

Taste of London Festival

2010-06-23T11:11:00.000+01:00

Much is written about Taste Festival each year but 2010 was the first time I actually managed to attend. I went on the final day of 4, the Sunday so I was more than prepared, I knew exactly what I wanted and what to avoid thanks to these great posts from Su-Yin, Kang and Niamh.

Regent's Park is breathtakingly beautiful on a summers day, the perfect back drop for the festival and subsequent walk to ease that inevitable full feeling. I'll start with my 3 favourites on the day:

My number 1 dish and the very first thing we tried was the Dinings seared wagyu sushi. The beef was incredible in both flavour and texture, I wasn't sure how exactly it would all come together but the fois gras, the rice, the soy and the wasabi was an incredibly exciting mouthful and a very promising start to the feast. (16 crowns)

2nd on the day was Tristan Welch's spit roast Old Spot suckling pig served with black summer truffles in a brioche bun. I've not managed to dine at Launceston Place yet, definitely on the list, again I wasn't sure about the construction of this dish to begin with, my first mouthful was a bit dry but subsequent bites were masterful and left me wanting more. (10 crowns)

My 3rd favourite dish was Trinity's pig's trotters on poliane served with a fried quail's egg, sauce gribiche and crackling, widely regarded as the dish of the festival. This was all the more sweet because I managed to snag the final portion of the day, it was available between 3-4 only on Sunday but they were all out by 3:30, it doesn't look like much on the plate but I assure you it delivered and lived up to my expectation. (12 crowns)

The good:

Chapel Down Sparkling rose and Whitstable Oysters (12 crowns)

Awana Daging rendang. Beef rendang has become one of my most often cooked meals at home and I was keen to try a version from a professional kitchen, this didn't disappoint and was a lighter and more aromatic take on the dish, lovely (10 crowns)

Satay House Ayam goreng bawang putih, super spicy chicken wings from the Taste of Malaysia section (8 crowns)

Waitrose Kitchen chocolate mousse with strawberries, coconut whip and hazelnut crackling (6 crowns)

The not so good:

Fino's cochifrito suckling pig. For me this was the biggest disappointment. The staff at the stand were harangued and unhappy, complaining about how busy they were, and the portion I got (not that pictured above) was mostly bone. (14 crowns)

Gaucho's Argentine black angus sirloin with humitas chimichurri. The beans were marvellous but the steak was a little tough, extra points for the aroma from the grill though, very enticing. (10 crowns)

Trinity's roast belly of middle white pork. I felt this was a bit chewy and not roasted for long enough, fantastic crackling though that stuck in my teeth, in a good way! (10 crowns)

Bentley's fish was light with a great crispy batter but the chips were not good, many of them black. The mushy peas were a bit meh, and I'm usually a fan. I thought this would have benefited from a dousing of vinegar, they had added plenty of salt. (10 crowns)

Tom's Kitchen's eton mess. This was a bit too 'herby,' basil I think and lacking in meringue. Very stingy portion too (6 crowns)

We somehow found ourselves doing a tour of the rum stalls for the rest of the afternoon, sampling shot after shot and nibbling on free samples from the multitude of vendors selling their wares. The festival has a wonderful atmosphere.

250 crowns later (between 2 of us) I left feeling sleepy but happy with a list as long as my arm of venues I am dying to visit for an entire meal. Taste is an expensive treat but as it comes just once a year I'll certainly be splashing out next time around and would recommend it to anyone with even the mildest interest in food and drink.

I attended Taste of London with a press pass but all eats were purchased with my own crowns

My top 10 London restaurants

2010-06-10T12:08:00.011+01:00

My blog has been suffering from neglect this year, not because I'm eating out less, but due to the fact that I now return to the same few restaurants time and time again rather than venture to new openings and risk disappointment.

I think it's time to compile a list of those places that I most regularly frequent, detailing why I love them so much and the item/s on their menus that I find myself craving, in no particular order...

1) Del Parc
The menu here - tapas 'with a North African twist' - is just the right mix of old favourites and new and exciting combinations, recent dishes I've tried include mackerel with rhubarb, mint and chilli and the classic padron peppers. The relaxed atmosphere and warm welcome from Alan and Steve ensure this is a regular dinner venue, particularly nice in the summer months.

Dishes I crave - those amazing marinated olives (below) and the goats cheese and figs in parma ham. See my full review here

2) Goodman
Incredible steak, much has been written about it, I've still yet to try the burger here because I can never resist the lure of the New York strip or the (girl's steak) grass fed fillet. A bloody mary is always a must here too. Love the decor and the excellent service just wish it was easier to get a table mid week.

Dish I crave - the macaroni cheese with truffle oil. See my full review here

3) Barrafina
I love love love Barrafina. Lucky that I'm a patient person because there is ALWAYS a lengthy queue but it is most certainly worth the wait. Efficient service, an excellent and varied tapas menu with daily specials, Barrafina never disappoints. Seafood is particularly good.

Dish I crave (always) - the magnificent cheese and ham croquettas. See my full review here

4) Lantana
This cafe paved the way for the new wave of Antipodean brunch/lunch type venues in London so we have owner (and blogger) Shelagh to thank for this burgeoning scene. It's wonderful to see them expanding and now opening on Sundays (yay) and evenings during the summer months. Get there early or late to avoid the queues.

Dish I crave - baked beans and feta. See my full review here

5) The Bull and Last
Great gastropub run by chef Ollie Pudney which is just around the corner from where I live! The menu is very considered and I've not yet been disappointed with anything I've sampled. A pretty listed building perfect for lazy weekend lunches or just drinks but you won't be able to resist the menu.

Dish I crave - triple cooked chips. See my full review here

6) Byron
This is a chain but that, thankfully, does not seem to affect the quality of the byron burger. With new branches popping up left right and centre, it seems many agree with me. Well sourced ingredients and an owner with his finger on the social media pulse ensures Byron stay on top of their game. Reasonable prices and swift but still personal service.

Dish I crave - The George Hamilton burger. See my full review here

7) Caravan
I adore Caravan, in a similar vein to Lantana but on foodie mecca Exmouth Market. Relaxed dining with a very well constructed brunch menu, again very busy so arrive early or late to be guaranteed a table as they operate a no reservations policy on weekends.

Dish I crave - baked eggs with chorizo. See my full review here

8) Galvin at Windows
My go to special occasion venue for a celebratory meal. First visit was for an anniversary dinner and I was blown away by both the exemplary service, the fine food and of course the stunning views from the 28th floor of the Hilton Park Lane.

Dish I crave - that monster tarte tatin. See my full review here

9) Princi
Great for lunch, if a little on the pricey side, I love their salad boxes and the olive bread is out of this world. Desserts and hot meals are available too, authentic Milanese from Alan Yau, good luck getting a seat, or even standing room at lunchtime.

Dish I crave - apple, chicken and avocado salad. See my full review here

10) J Sheekey Oyster Bar
I love the luxury of this bar to the left side of the main restaurant. Lavishly decorated it has a gentleman's club feel to it. The spectacle of unbeatable shellfish prepared before you if you opt to sit at the bar is very entertaining. Frequent special offers including half a dozen oysters and champagne for £14 makes this is a popular pre theatre option. Or just for the occasional indulgence, I work dangerously nearby!

Dish I crave - the crowd pleasing Plateau de Fruits de Mer. See my full review here

Formans - Dining with Dos Hermanos (minus Simon)

2010-06-05T15:00:00.009+01:00

On Bank Holiday Monday I excitedly made my way to the aptly names Fish Island to attend the latest Dine with Dos Hermanos event at Formans, the newish restaurant from H. Forman and Son, a smoked salmon and fine food wholesaler.

I had a little difficulty locating the venue, though I did enjoy wandering around this, for me previously unexplored, area of East London. I arrived in the middle of a salmon cutting demonstration, it was a lot to take in, the view from the room is breathtaking, overlooking the Olympic stadium, and Darren Matson's slicing was nothing short of masterful, he made it look so easy.

We sat to begin the feast, Dine with Dos Hermanos events are always feasts, I've been fortunate to attend previous evenings at The Bull and Last and Bentleys, both wonderful evenings. I'd missed the welcome cocktail on this occasion, but if one thing was for sure, there was to be no shortage of drinks.

We were served 4 kinds of Formans London cure smoked salmon, with buckwheat blinis, capers, diced shallots and creme fraiche. My favourite of the 4 varieties was the gravadlax. All agreed each were excellent, most preferred the wild. This was accompanied by a glass (with multiple refills naturally) of Nyetimber Classic Cuvee 1995 which was one of the finest sparkling wines I have ever tried. I could have drunk this all evening.

The main course was served family style, a large porchetta with the most crunchy and tasty crackling I've ever eaten. It was one of the highlights of the evening. The side dishes were asparagus, roasted new potatoes, carrots, apple sauce and a lovely mushroom gravy. The drinks were glasses of Ortega 2007 white wine and a shot of Kingston Black cider, wickedly strong hence the size of the serving.

The dessert was the least successful course of the night for me, a glazed apple tart with roddas clotted cream. The latter never disappoints but my serving of the tart was under glazed, the apples were fairly flavourless, though the pastry was excellent. In the picture, the accompanying glass of cider brandy is visible, I found this a tad too strong, the dessert just didn't stand up to it.

I was most looking forward to the final course of cheese, provided by Neal's Yard Dairy, the crumbly stichelton stood out for me, I thought it worked very well with the tang of the homemeade chutney and the Peter's Yard cripsbreads. We got some of these in the infamous goodie bag, I'll certainly be putting these to good use with a cheeseboard in the near future.

The Worthington White Sheild IPA was an interesting choice to serve at the end of the meal but it was a nice refreshing flavour.

We also had coffee and chocolates, the coffee pots I recall were a curious shape, one of my fellow diners noted that they would cause much difficulty for left handed pourers - lefties be warned.

Following the meal we were led upstairs to view the art selection housed on the top level of the building, this was a cute end to a great event, as we left we were handed our goodie bags, see Hermano Primero's report over at Dos Hermanos for the full content. Thanks to both Hermanos brilliant organizing and hosting as always.

All this for the usual £40.

Formans Restaurant
Stour Road, Fish Island,
E3 2NH

7/10

Satsuma

2010-05-26T16:48:00.012+01:00

When I first came to London I dined at Satsuma and remember being pretty impressed with the speed of the food and the atmosphere, I had a salmon teriyaki bento box. I couldn't really remember the quality of the food as it was pre blog and it was with slight trepidation (and horror at the length of the queue at Busaba) that I returned with Thomas, Benj, Sue and John.

This time around I succumbed to the familiar comfort of a chicken ramen. Whilst it is not the most exciting of dishes I do so love a bowl of steaming noodles in broth. I'm very keen to try the newest noodle addition to Soho Koya, I've tried and failed, they had even run our of noodles on one attempt which is surely a good sign?

Satsuma's ramen included half an egg and a scattering beansprouts, plenty of different textures and tastes to occupy the buds. I was pretty quiet while I tucked in but this is a fairly standard dish which does not wow, rather scratch an itch. A small portion and at £7 perhaps a little overpriced?

Fortunately I was able to share some of Thomas' salmon sashimi which was excellent. I really think it's a shame that it's so difficult to obtain sushi grade fish, particularly salmon and tuna, in regular supermarkets. It's something I would have at home often, though obviously I lack many skills with a knife. Fortunately the sushi chefs here are dab hands, the menu seems a lot more sushi oriented than it was on my last visit, I'm unsure.

I also tried some of the vegetable and prawn tempura, both good, light and crisp as it should be. As a group we sampled a large selection of sushi, noodle and rice dishes and all were well received. We had to wait a short time to be seated but the service was still swift and attentive, I received my ramen before my glass of wine. The bill was a bit higher than expected, the sashimi coming in at just under a tenner for a pretty measly serving.

In all a tad over priced for what it is but a reliable venue for a quick bite to eat. Decent sushi doesn't come cheap.

Satsuma
56 Wardour St
Soho
W1D 4JG

6/10

Holy Cow

2010-05-25T16:10:00.004+01:00

Waiting for a bus on a rainy Sunday I noticed a new addition to the street I live on, Holy Cow promising fine Indian Food and I made a mental note to try them for size when my next curry craving reared its head.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, extremely hungover, nothing but the carb heavy hit provided by an Indian takeaway would do the job. I had a bit of trouble finding the number, the website has not yet been updated to show the Archway branch details, but a couple of calls and it was sorted.

We ordered the modi squid to start which was nicely if subtly marinated in unidentified spices. They were deep fried but were not too fatty or soggy. A solid start.

I ordered the 'Raj recommended' murg jaiselmer - chicken cooked dopiaza style with nuts, fresh coriander, capsicum, onion, and cream. The chicken is certainly the best quality I've ever had in curry form and the sauce with rich and satisfying.

Where my curry provided a mild spice, Thomas' murg magalore gave a more than welcome hefty kick and we both agreed Holy Cow will become our new regular takeaway place, relegating the nearby Tiffin Tin to second spot.

Sides, also superior in quality to what we're used to, included garlic naans, poppadums, plain rice (helpfully they do a serving for 2 which is not 2 x portions for 1, there's always rice leftover in our house) and lassis, mango and coconut both, were good, refreshing and soothing, the ideal accompaniment.

Heck, even Ainsley likes Holy Cow, but don't let that put you off. There are various locations across London and they seem to be expanding fairly rapidly. I wish them well.

Holy Cow
Junction Road,
Archway
N19

7/10

JW Steakhouse

2010-05-14T10:55:00.017+01:00

Last night I attended the JW Steakhouse launch party at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane. The new kid on the block, JW Steakhouse is a serious competitor to the likes of Goodman and Hawksmoor who currently hold the crown and a dear place in my heart (and most London food bloggers') when it comes to steak and burgers.

The Marriott owned global chain of steakhouses are new to the UK but are firmly established in the USA, Canada, Dubai and Cairo. I was eager to see whether they would live up to the standard set by my London favourites.

The room is enormous, very high ceilings and huge windows adding to the feeling of space. It is easily double the size of both Goodman and Hawksmoor though both are opening new premises in the coming months, Goodman in the City and Hawksmoor in Covent Garden. The rear wall of the restaurant doubles as a menu, showing all cuts available and explains that the steak here is hand cut, dry-aged American USDA prime beef. Head chef Paul Hallet and his team were on hand to explain exactly what it was we were sampling.

We tried numerous cuts, all were perfectly cooked, I thought the fillet was the most successful, though all had a delightful char from the grill and were accompanied by multiple signature sauces and sides. There was excellent variety on offer, the bone in sirloin, slightly chewy I thought, and the ribeye, all regularly replenished. The pepper sauce was a hit, whole peppercorns providing a crunchy hit but others available included béarnaise, horseradish, port, red wine and stilton.

The sliders were excellent, both beef burgers and braised shortribs, like a pulled beef with pickles. Mini versions of the burgers that are available on both the lunch and dinner menus.

Canapes doing the rounds inclued calamari, served with a wonderfully rich aioli, maryland crab cakes, smoked salmon and steak tartare. There were an awesome array of sides which I was sad to see did not include mac and cheese, I feel you can tell a lot about a place by their mac and cheese.

As well as the freely flowing booze (champagne and bourbon cocktails) the highlight for me was the magnificent seafood bar in the centre of the room, with oysters and jumbo prawns, the usual oyster accompaniments and a hot sauce in which to dip the prawns, a welcome American favourite.

I found myself loitering around this area of the room for a little longer than I should have. Unable to resist the temptation of such fresh and tasty shellfish.

There was also a bewildering selection of salads, a corner of the room devoted to it, those on the menu include, JW chopped salad, classic caesar, goatscheese and beetroot and tomato and onion.

Onto dessert, which I barely had room for but again could not say no, the stand out option being Bettie's bread pudding. I'm not sure who she is but her lethal addition of bourbon to the mix coupled with the rich and melting vanilla bean ice cream is now my dream pud. Others on offer included the JW Cheesecake which uses Graham Crackers in the base and a tower of whoopie pies, which I remain unconvinced by.

I was hugely impressed by the effort of the evening, there was an abundance of everything and they certainly made a good impression. The steaks were, for me, on a par with the best I have sampled elsewhere in London. The sides were a revelation, they are hugely pimped up, the American's do this so well, double baked potatoes with bacon and onion, the Thanksgiving favourite sweet potato topped with marshmallow, green beans, asparagus, fries and thick cut chips, and new potatoes. I think I might just have to go back and try the mac and cheese. Price wise the menu matches Goodman, still seems that you need to pay above the odds prices to get a decent piece of meat.

JW Steakhouse
Grosvernor House Hotel
86 Park Lane
W1K 7TN

I attended as a guest of JW Steakhouse and received complimentary food and drinks

Caravan

2010-04-23T16:18:00.011+01:00

There's a band wagon, I'm on it. Everyone hearts Caravan, I've not read 1 bad review so I pretty much knew I would love it.

Last weekend, accompanied by the girls, I brunched and it was honestly one of the best brunches I can ever remember having. No queue, we breezed in and were seated following a mere 10 minute wait at the bar.

I like everything about it here, the space, the low key decor, the friendly servers and obviously the food.

As important a brunch fixture as the food itself, for me, is a bloody mary. Caravan's version surprised me at first with the inclusion of coriander. It took me 3 sips to decide that I liked it, so fresh with just the right amount of spice.

I settled on the baked eggs with chorizo which was quite marvellous. I adored it and ate every last drop. One slight niggle, it doesn't come with bread, in my opinion this is a vital component of any dish that includes perfectly runny egg yolks and a peppery tomato sauce. I ordered a side of toasted sourdough which did the job. The sauce was rich and sweet whilst the chorizo provided a lovely smoky meaty contrast, all tempered by a dollop of creamy yoghurt. I've found myself thinking about this dish at least once a day since my visit, I need to have it again.

Noy went for the grilled ham, bubble and squeak with 2 poached eggs and hollandaise. We unanimously agreed that the bubble seemed to be lacking some squeak, it was more of a potato cake but everything else about the dish was great. Nibs had the full Caravan fry up, mainly because she wanted mushrooms and this too got the thumbs up.

We all loved it, it's such a rarity to be quite so stumped when it comes to ordering, I found it really tough deciding what to eat, I'll be back often to try everything else but I'll be hard pushed to find anything better than those baked eggs. I didn't have one but I hear they do amazing coffee, and they also serve freshly squeezed fruit juices. I will say I noticed the absence of sausage on the menu, I do love a sausage with my brunch but the chorizo is an adequate stand in.

Cost around £17.50 each with a drink and service, a bargain to boot.

Caravan
Exmouth Market
EC1R 4QD
9/10

Sen Nin, Camden

2010-04-16T15:56:00.006+01:00

Last Friday I experienced my first Japanese teppanyaki meal when (thanks to Alex and Kid) we eventually managed a school reunion type get together. Teppanyaki being food cooked on an iron griddle.

The venue was Sen Nin in Camden

NOTE - Don't be fooled by the 50% off food offer on Toptable, they craftily presented an alleged half price Samurai Teppanyaki menu which would be a complete and utter rip off at the non discounted price of £45. We paid £22.50 each for 3 courses beginning with starter selections including dumplings, sushi rolls and veggie spring rolls. I was a bit perplexed about how well these items sit served together but went with it, eating most of the Kid's too. Soy and chilli sauces were provided for dipping and individual bowls of miso soup. The dumplings were the highlight of the evening for me as far as the food's concerned.

For main you must choose (in pairs - strange) 3 from 5 meat/fish options which are grilled in front of you by a rather flamboyant chef with the odd egg smashed on the floor (1 by Alex's feet which was cleaned up about an hour after the accident) for good measure. We were a little afraid of the guy in all honesty, knives were flying, flames were roaring, it was incredibly hot when the grill got going and the boys each had food thrown in their general direction to be caught with their mouths.

Nibs and I went for steak, prawns and calamari (ignoring the chicken and white fish). I thought that the food was served in a peculiar order, fish done first, meat, veggies then rice. Fish and meat eaten before the sides arrived. I will say that we all did our best to embrace the spirit, cheering, clapping and drum rolling the table when required, whilst the chef grilled, pouted and posed for photographs. He later emerged with marigolds and cleaned the grill. I would have thought there would be a kitchen porter for such duties? Things all felt a little odd really.

The dessert choices were green tea (?) or fruit salad. Poor. One might say I am a spoil sport and it's more for the fun than the eats but they probably wouldn't know me very well. I enjoyed the evening far more once we'd left the restaurant for the much safer surroundings of the Camden Head and few pints of cider.

Needless to say I won't be back for the food that's for sure and if you do visit, look out for 'sexyboy' (the chef/cleaner's favoured moniker) and be advised to steer well clear if there are any eggs in close proximity.

Sen Nin
35 Pratt St
Camden, NW1
4/10 (not my cup of tea)

Aplogies for lack of pics - it being a reunion we all got pretty merry, the atmosphere is fun actually. Total bill was £35 each with 10% service charge and booze.

Balans

2010-04-09T15:31:00.007+01:00

The problems with blogs is that once a place gains a certain amount of notoriety there's a danger of it becoming so popular that it's impossible to snag a table. This is the case with Lantana, if you can bare an hour plus wait of a Saturday (which sometimes I can, sometimes I can't) then you're fine but if not, like me you'll be roaming around starving in want of some breakfast/lunch/brunch.

When you have guests this is far from ideal, I really want to get to Caravan before it falls prey to the same fate but judged it to be too much of a mission when a couple of weeks ago, Kid and Crann were in town and we wanted a nice brunch. Lantana - no, Breakfast Club - no, bizarrely an even longer queue there. We ended up at Balans on Old Compton St.

Now I have a history with this place. It has, in various guises, been a stalwart destination for me. A place in which to while away the hours between the missed last train back to the depths of Kent and the first train home in the morning. Many cups of coffee required to prevent one from falling asleep on the table. Then, once I'd made the move to London, it became a regular lunch venue. I still miss the vegetarian club with goatscheese and roasted veggies, this was a casualty of the menu revamp a couple of years back.

All this went on in the smaller Balans Cafe at the Charing Cross Rd end of Old Compton Street. This brunch was my first time at the swankier and much camper big sister restaurant at the Wardour St end.

We were seated, given a choice of where we would prefer to sit, I do like to be given the choice, often you're dumped down somewhere close to others, presumably to lessen the walking distance for the waiters. Decor is camp as you like, I love it, it's all sparkles and prints and dark moody lighting. There are 2 menus, full dinner and brunch, we peruse both and settle for brunch. I ordered the crawdaddy club sandwich which promised to contain crayfish, avocado, tomato and rocket on toasted onion bread.

What arrived had no avocado, I almost cried and the bread (no onion that I could discern) cut my mouth to buggery. Good fries though, this was really filling, fresh rocket and a nice amount of crayfish to compensate. I also got a bloody mary which were served in a glass complete with rim dunked in stock, odd. There was a very healthy amount of horseradish floating about, I like that in my bloody mary so this was very welcome.

Crann plumped for the full english and Kid a mini english of eggs, bacon and sausage. Both were very pleased. Crann ordered extra toast and was chuffed to bits with the little pot of jam which came with it.

There's a different menu available between midnight and 6am. I love that they're open 24hrs, if you're too drunk to care it's an absolute winner and with such a varied menu there has to be something for everyone. I shall definitely be back.

Balans
60 Old Compton St
Soho
5.5/10

Cinquecento (500), Archway

2010-03-30T10:36:00.016+01:00

I've been literally yearning to visit 500, or Cinquecento, if you're feeling the Italian vibe and last week I finally managed to snag a table by booking weeks in advance for a Tuesday evening.

I'll say right away that my expectations were verging on unreasonable owing to multiple failed attempts to book a table, it's always fully booked it seems, surely a good sign? That coupled with the addition of 500 to this year's Michelin Bib Gourmand list, recognising good food at moderate prices, and the fact that it's a mere 5 minute stroll from my front door meant I was filled with anticipation and on the night was slightly over excited.

We arrived on a blustery night, were warmly welcomed and shown to our table. The room is small yet manages to feel spacious, the kitchen is tucked away at the back with the entrance protected by a double door so that the grim Holloway Road location is not noticeable.

We began with a few snacks, these are presented on a menu with the wine list. Some wonderful green olives and a small mozzarella caprese salad were delivered swiftly alongside a basket of bread, the highlight of which was the moist and salty black olive bread. Everyone gets the bread, there's plenty of it and the variety is impressive.

I wanted a pasta to start followed by a meaty main so I plumped for the ragu filled ravioli to be followed by rabbit. The ravioli is one of the finest and most accomplished pasta dishes I have tasted, perfectly cooked, a generous amount and a rich and sweet tomato sauce. I was over the moon with my starter. Thomas went for the parma ham and asparagus and was unimpressed with the quality of the ham, perhaps the wrong time of year to order an asparagus dish, it came topped with a generous scattering of shaved parmesan and a drizzle of balsamic.

All courses were very thoughtfully spaced, and despite the fact that they are cooking to order there were no lengthy waits and our drinks were regularly topped up. As our mains arrived the smell of my rabbit dish was incredible. It also looked very pretty, the legs prettily scattered with the olive and tomato accompaniment sitting atop the perfectly crisp potatoes with just the right amount of the rich sauce. I must say I find eating off the bone a fairly unhappy experience sometimes but the rabbit was very good, if a little tricky to get at. Rustically presented and again a very generous amount of everything.

Thomas was less impressed with his dish of gnocci dumplings in tomato sauce, I think it needed something else, there was a topping of parmesan and arguably this might be a better starter choice but there was little about it to elevate it above good home cooking. We also ordered a bottle of Traos Nieddu which was one of the cheaper of the wines listed which range in price from £13-£30.

I was tempted by the tiramisu from the fairly concise and classic Italian dessert menu. It was a fine example, a thick dusting of cocoa and a light booze soaked sponge with marscapone. It's hard to go far wrong with tiramisu really. Thomas was once again disappointed with his choice, the tart of the day which was lemon doused in strawberry sauce. I found the combination strange and lacking in citrus flavour.

In all my experience was drastically different to my companions but I would highly recommend you try Cinquecento, a gem in the otherwise culinary wasteland that is Archway. The pasta is to die for and for all this we paid only £64, I can't remember the last time I was so pleasantly surprised at bill time. Remarkable value, I can see myself returning often to sample more of chef Mario Magli's offerings.

Cinquecento
783 Holloway Rd
N19 3JH
7.5/10

Bar Pepito

2010-03-20T18:48:00.012Z

It is with sadness that I admit to being a sherry novice, my experiences so far limited to drinking Tio Pepe at this wonderful event at Camino and a fantastic XO recommended by Brian at Rules. Many declare sherry to be the best accompaniment to food because the fino variety can be matched to any food, unlike some wines.

Fortunately I will now be able to so something about my ignorance with the arrival of London's first sherry bar. I was delighted to hear about the opening of Bar Pepito, it's admittedly an interesting USP. An authentically Andalucian drinking experience to be had right here in rainy London? Sign me up! The bar opened on Friday evening to the public and I was fortunate enough to attend a preview evening.

On the night my expectations were far exceeded and I am certain that this place will be a roaring success. Whatever your sherry preference you will find something to suit (they also serve other booze but, trust me, you won't even think of it).

I was fortunate enough to spend much of the evening chatting to Andrew Sinclair of Gonzalez Byass (with whom Camino are embarking upon this new venture) learning a little about sherry production processes whilst eating some fantastically delicious canapes including this carpaccio of venison.

Other never ending nibbles circling the room included some excellent crab and cod canapes, a tomato tartare, generous boards of chorizo, cheeses, and plate after plate of the amazing Jamón ibérico pata negra, expertly hand carved before us. The nuttiness and creaminess of these tiny cuts of meat simply have to be tried.

I loved the combination of the Valdeón Asturias blue cheese with the Noe González Byass, a 30 year old Pedro Ximenez. There are few greater pleasures in life than experiencing such perfectly matched flavours. A strong blue cheese paired with a sweet fortified wine, grapes dried in the sun to provide a sweeter and stickier flavour and a darkly golden colour. It was a heady evening, the beautiful quaint little room was full to the brim and both the heat and atmosphere were authentically stifling.

In the summer this will be an amazing venue at which to wile away the evening spilling out onto the courtyard between Bar Pepito and Camino for some much needed air. The room itself is lovingly decorated with photos and posters making it every inch like the sherry bars in Spain to which it is paying homage. Exposed brick work and tiled mosaic flooring adding to the vibe.

I had the most amazing evening on Thursday and will definitely be back, very soon. Finally a reason to visit King's Cross on a regular basis. I'm drinking a fino whilst I write this, looking out on the rain and it's just not the same somehow.

Click here to see their fine list of sherries available for between £3 and £8 a glass.

And if sherry is not your thing, something on the food menu perhaps? If you've not already tried it, you need this Jamón ibérico in your life. They are initially open Wednesday to Saturday from 5pm until midnight.

Bar Pepito
Varnisher's Yard
The Regent Quarter
King's Cross
N1 9DF

I attended the press evening as a guest of Bar Pepito

Boo in Kent - The Carpenter's Arms

2010-03-18T10:11:00.009Z

Mother's Day lunch, the Kid was charged with finding the venue and selected The Carpenter's Arms a recently renovated hotel/gastropub in the very town from which I hail. I have eaten here on a number of occasions when visiting the family but have never felt the need to post about it owing to being disappointed by the food. I recall a particularly lousy Thai green curry with prawns.

This time however I was pleased to see that the quality of the food is much improved and everyone seemed pleased with their dishes. I ordered the garlic prawns which came rustically presented on a wooden board with salad and roasted vine tomatoes.

I liked how it looked and the prawns were meaty in texture and sweet in taste. There was none of the advertised garlic though. They tasted unmarinated and unseasoned. Could have done with a chilli kick. I was actually grateful for the blandness of it all really owing to a stonking hangover. I wasn't given a finger bowl so made an ungodly mess of things. The bread was a bit stale.

Various roast dinners were ordered around the table, beef and chicken, all of which seemed to go down well. I will note that I have now decided not to order roast dinners in pubs due to the constant disappointment I encounter when I do succumb. One day I will find a place that satisfies, I was rather taken with Lizzie's account of The Anchor and Hope which is a firm favourite of my best friend Nibs. Must go there. Also I really like the idea of this blog documenting Sunday roasts tried and tested in (mostly) north London, my neck of the woods. Must try the roast on offer at the Bull and Last (website still in progress....)

Anyhow, I thought the potatoes needed to be browner, I think it's unforgivable to serve anaemic roasties, they do this every Sunday and should know how long they need to be in the oven by now, no? No excuses.

Perhaps don't bother to look at their website which is littered with grammatical and spelling errors and annoyingly doesn't have the menu on it. Despite all this I think there is potential here, the service was fine, there are a lot of waiters and they all seem very attentive and eager to serve you well. It was very busy, usually a good sign and the place ticks all the boxes aesthetically, wooden floors and quirky furniture of varying shapes and sizes. There's a nice bar where there is also food served. I think with a few finishing touches the place can be a success. Tonbridge is otherwise a bit of a culinary wasteland.

The Carpenter's Arms
3 Elm Lane
Tonbridge, Kent
5/10

Scoop

2010-03-16T10:46:00.004Z

Bizarrely, I felt the need for ice cream on a particularly cold Saturday in March. As luck would have it I was in Covent Garden so took myself and the girls along to Scoop for gelato.

I've been wanting to visit for sometime but due to the ridiculously long queues in the summer have never been. I did struggle to actually hold and eat the ice cream on such a cold day but it was well worth the brain freeze. The flavours I tried were pistachio puro di Bronte (made using nuts from Bronte, a town near Sicily) and caramel. Both were similar in colour which caused me a little confusion but both were delightfully creamy and strong in flavour. I got a tub with 2 scoops for £2.50.

Very nice, slightly more satisfying on a scorcher of a day I imagine if you can be arsed to brave those lenghty queues. Good news is that a second venue in Soho is imminent.

Italian Graffiti

2010-03-05T12:40:00.007Z

One Saturday I found myself roaming the streets of Soho in want of some eats with mother dearest. We'd just been to see Gorgeous George in Up in the Air. I'd expected to hate it. I didn't hate it but I found myself thinking about what we might eat for dinner for approximately 80 of the 90 minutes. I'm outraged it's nominated for 6 Oscars.

Anyhow, it's always quite tricky when eating with my Mum, she's not the most patient of people, neither am I when I'm hungry, like mother like daughter! No queues then. We mooched up Wardour Street, it was cold, pretty late and we wandered into Italian Graffiti. (Do check out the website, it's funny, what is that music!?)

So we were seated immediately, service is pretty good, the place is overwhelmingly loud, awful acoustics, we could barely hear each other. I ordered the salad tricolore and Mum had the special salad.

Basic, simple, no frills food is what to expect here. The salad was pretty bog standard, the sort of thing you could rustle up with your eyes closed at home. Better was the pizza bread which comes with each salad. It had a good umami rich tomato sauce and a nice charred crust. A fairly generous amount too, we got 1 basket each.

We went for a carafe of pinto grigio and couldn't resist desserts, I had the interestingly spelled bonoffi pie and Mama went for the creme caramel, her ultimate favourite. I was impressed with the quality of the puds actually. Again though lacking a wow factor. Cheap at least, totalling less than £30.

An evening of low expectations and underwhelming performances.

Italian Graffiti
163 Wardour Steet
Soho
5/10

The Old Dairy

2010-02-26T15:49:00.004Z

Sunday lunch with John and Sue, we strolled to Crouch End in the almost rain, not a long walk from N19 but not a particularly pleasant one.

The building is, as it says on the tin, an old dairy and it's quite a sight to behold from the exterior, a lot of brick, large oval windows, in all a very attractive looking venue. It's a gastropub at heart with wooden tables aplenty but a more formal dining area to the rear with dark leather booths.

The roasts at The Old Dairy looked impressive as we saw them being ferried around the place by the young, friendly and rather trendy waiting staff and they are reasonably priced at £13. When we were settled and ready to order the kitchen had temporarily closed due to an excess of orders. The waiter came over to our table about 10 minutes later and took our order, not too much of a problem but then the same thing happened when we went to order dessert. I think they would do better to take the orders anyway and explain that there might be a bit of a wait. The food arrived very quickly and announcing that the kitchen is overwhelmed is not the best way to approach a busy service imho.

Anyhow, when the food arrived it was fine hearty pub grub. I went for the roast lamb, Thomas for chicken with chorizo and John and Sue both had the beef. I was asked whether I'd like the lamb pink or well cooked. I asked for pink and it wasn't which was disappointing. I thought the roast potatoes could certainly have done with a bit longer in the oven. The veg was nice, savoy cabbage and green beans retained their crunch and there was a carrot and suede mash, a welcome addition. The Yorkshire pudding, which can be such a treat, was dry and hollow and there wasn't enough gravy.

The others did slightly better, the beef was cooked as requested and Thomas liked the chorizo. He did note that there was a lack of seasoning and I agree that the taste was a little bland. Better was my cheeseboard, a selection of Cornish yarg, Cashel blue and Somerset brie with quince jelly, red grapes and oat cakes. I happily munched my way through this (with a lot of assistance from Thomas) for a good half an hour. A very generous portion with a good choice of cheeses. Not cheap at £9.50 but worth it. Other desserts sampled were sticky toffee pudding and the apple crumble, both were consumed swiftly with no complaints.

I will note that I was very ill following this meal, not immediately following but in the middle of the night and all of Monday. It could have been a bug but this seems to happen to me after pub roast dinners, see this post. Is it possible I am allergic? They are very rarely any good so I shall stick to home cooking from now on I think and possibly visit the Old Dairy for drinks.

The Old Dairy
1-3 Crouch Hill
N4

5/10

Mooli's

2010-02-19T11:15:00.001Z

One night last week following a few after work pints, Thomas and I found ourselves in Soho in want of some eats. Something quick, something filling, not too pricey and obviously yummy, Mooli's fit the bill perfectly.

I've been wanting to visit for some time now to try my very first Indian wrap and have read nothing but praise. I saw why when we were received by the very friendly and helpful folk working there, I asked what was recommended and got the special, goat mooli and a soup as it was a bitterly cold evening and this was to be dinner. Thomas ordered the soup too and a chicken mooli.

Apparently I look like a goat kind of a girl, I took this to be a good thing because I found the wrap quite delicious. An ample amount of juicy and tender goat meat with a generous and fresh salad of lettuce, tomato, red onion and coriander. The wrap itself is a roti and made with wholemeal flour, I really liked the taste and it held up well, supporting the filling without any breakages. There was also potato adding bulk and the heat of the thing was just what the doctor ordered on a nasty February evening.

The soup too was great, lightly spiced, with lentils. We had poppadoms with this and wolfed it down hungrily in silence. The decor of the place is invitingly vibrant and the Soho location is ideal for me, the lunch deal is very tempting and with so much of the healthy stuff in each wrap they are pretty good for you too.

Thomas's chicken wrap was served with a mint and coriander chutney, mixed leaf salad and sliced apple. Each wrap also comes with two Mooli's chutneys, we got green chili and tomato.

All this and a chocolate brownie came to less than £15, a bargain. I found this to be sufficient for dinner, Thomas didn't unfortunately, and popped in for a slice of pizza at Addagio on the way home. I also had a nibble and found it to be very good, a super crispy base and great tangy topping of cherry tomatoes. I must return and sample other varieties. And I shall definitely be returning to Mooli's. I'm also loving their tweets!

50 Frith Street
Soho, W1

7/10

J Sheeky Oyster Bar

2010-02-09T15:47:00.013Z

I've had champagne and oysters at The J Sheekey Oyster Bar before and last week couldn't resist returning to celebrate some good news at work.

This time Thomas and I opted for Plateau de Fruits de Mer for 2 which was an incredibly gluttonous amount of food. I ate my way through most of it, out eating Thomas by a good 15 minutes. I just could not see such fresh and delicious shellfish going to waste.

The top layer of the platter had half a lobster, a whole devon cock crab and a dozen oysters. I loved the extravagance, the envious glances from fellow diners and the accompanying prosecco.

The lower layer of the platter was brimming with Dublin Bay and Atlantic prawns, mussels, clams, cockles and whelks.

I adore the old school feel of the Oyster Bar, deep red velvet curtains and comfortable booths providing the backdrop, tables topped with super shiny silver and very attentive and suave waiters tending to your every need. We sat at the bar where one can observe the skilled seafood chefs doing their thing.

For dessert we shared a rhubarb crumble which was very good indeed, just the right amount of tartness to the fruit and the most wonderful vanilla custard I have ever tasted.

I think they mostly cater here for pre and post theatregoers, the St Martin's Court location ideal for many of the West End shows. The neighbouring restaurant, established in 1986 is a better venue for a longer stay, read my thoughts on the main room here

31 St Martin's Court
Covent Garden
9/10

The Wet Fish Cafe

2010-02-04T10:46:00.001Z

I was invited by Andre, Owner of The Wet Fish Cafe, to attend one of his supperclub nights. Come Monday the restaurant closes and once a month caters for locals, friends and guests (and anyone else who might care to come along) on 2 long communal tables.

I rolled up on a chilly night to the beautiful Hampstead setting, slightly early but welcomed by the waiting team, given a drink and told I could sit anywhere. It was slightly daunting at first, I seemed to be the only solo diner but Andre appeared for a chat and I soon sat down and must say I met some great and friendly folk with whom it was a pleasure to spend the evening.

Seated just to my left was Victoria Curatolo and her sister, from Villa Tonino, a family estate in the Marsala region of Sicily, who provided the wine matches for the meal as well as an introduction to each.

To start things off we had a chilled starter of crab with avocado and a red pepper sauce. This was very delicate, I love crab and the mellow smoothness of the avocado paired with the slight chilli kick to the sauce. All combined together very well and the heat didn't over power the crab meat. (Excuse the dark photos, lighting was very ambient!)

The wine match was the Grillo, 2008, white, with a fairly dry and crisp finish, great alongside the starter. Victoria explained that their estate was primarily producing marsala up until 30 or so years ago when they branched into table wines. The Grillo, one of Sicily's most popular grapes is a perfect match for a fish dish, Andre explained that this time around the supperclub dishes were selected specifically to complement the wine, previous events focused on the food first.

The main course was quite brilliant and everyone was in agreement that it was the best dish on the night. The wine, "Baglio Curatolo," a Nero d'Avola, 2006, was a full bodied red with a smoky note and a hint of spice. It was served alongside beef fillet with pink peppercorn sauce and aligot. The beef was incredibly tender and the accompanying peppercorns were almost sweet in flavour. I loved the aligot, a creamy mashed potato with garlic and cheese.

This was an indulgent dish, full of flavour and soft on the palate, very comforting and once again the wine enhanced the flavours of the dish perfectly. During the evening the atmosphere was relaxed and buzzing, everybody seemed to be enjoying the event and the company of the good people of West Hampstead.

For dessert we were each served a slice of almond tart with raspberries and mascarpone which was warm and creamy with a delicate pastry. Yet again, great with the wine from Victoria, at last we could sample the speciality of Villa Tonino, their Marsala Superiore Riserva.

In the past I have not been a huge fan of Marsala wine(though I am an advocate for its use in cooking) but I was completely blown away by the sweet nutty flavours, the caramel and dried fruit notes mixing dreamily with the pudding. I now love marsala and was glad to receive a much welcome top up! Victoria also brought with her some sesame seed biscuits which it is customary to drink with Marsala in Sicily, they were also a fine coupling and can be dunked like biscotti.

The evening had flown by and my cab arrived at 10:30 sharp, I was sad to be one of the first to leave but not before snapping up a bottle of that Nero d'Avola, one of the nicest reds I've had in a long while.

If a regular evening at The Wet Fish Cafe is anything like this, I'd be more than happy to return very soon.

Check out a video of the evening here!

The Wet Fish Cafe
242 West End Lane
West Hampstead

I dined as a guest of The Wet Fish Cafe and received a complimentary meal with tasting glasses of wine from Villa Tonino