Bistro du Vin, Soho

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

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

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

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

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

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

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