The Jugged Hare

I've had a couple of work lunches at the Jugged Hare.  I was tempted to revisit last week while I'm still in the area because of the recent release of the top 50 gastropub list for 2013.

Special mention here to the pub coming in 2nd place, The Sportsman, my top meal of 2012.  Representing Kent, go guys!

So The Jugged Hare is 24th on the list, in general London pubs did very well, see a run down here.  I'm not entirely sure this place should technically be classified as a gastropub, but I have only eaten in the restaurant area.  There is a small front pub section and a larger formal dining room at the rear.  The decor is reminiscent of Goodman, Mayfair, lots of dark wood and leather.

The menu is meaty, there are plenty of daily specials, hawked on twitter.  There's also a lot of fish and a pie of the day.  I liked the sound of the majority of the menu and could happily eat my way through the lot.  I tried the fish pie on one occasion which was small but perfectly formed.   Generous amounts of salmon, haddock, prawns and scallop with a nice crispy mash potato topping.

Once seated, you are given a small sourdough loaf with salted butter. I really like the bread, there's no cover charge but the dishes don't come cheap with mains between £16 and £30.  When I sat down, somebody had a laptop bag sprawled across the seat I'd been allocated, nobody volunteered to move it, so I moved it myself, an act which was treated with general disdain from both the neighbouring table and the waitress.

I had the special of braised herdwick lamb shank with mash and savoy cabbage.  I drank water which was topped up once from a jug closely guarded by the wait staff, and was never seen again.  The lamb was lovely though.  So tender, off the bone served on top of the mash and veg.  There was the slightly bizarre appearance of baby spinach leaves, I ate them but it seemed unnecessary.  In all I was very happy with my choice.

Thomas had the Tamworth pork shoulder with caramel apple sauce.  Some of the specials come with sides and others do not which is strange.  Thomas' did not so he also ordered a green salad and some suede mash.  The pork was ok, not particularly mindblowing but the apple element was pretty great, sweet and tangy it livened up and otherwise average dish.  More inexplicable foliage to decorate. 

The whole thing is a bit stuffy and not in keeping with what a gastropub is all about for me.  The food is good, but expensive (we paid about £30 a head for 1 dish each) and I'd much rather go to the Bull & Last, recent find The Pig & Butcher, or back to The Sportsman, quite possibly my favourite pub anywhere in the world!

The Jugged Hare
49 Chiswell St
Barbican
EC1Y
6/10

The Longroom

It may sound like I have done little but blow the trumpet for EC1 of late, and thinking about it, there is actually a lot of good food to be eaten around the Old St/Clerkenwell/Farringdon area, despite my initial trepidation when accepting a job there.  One of the newer openings, is The Longroom.

It is indeed a rather long room with a central open kitchen where the limited menu is prepared and served.  Their schtick is quality meat and beer, as it's still early days they are rarely full yet and the room feels a tad vacuous.  There's been minimal buzz surrounding the place on twitter and I'm yet to read a review.  I was keen to try before I leave the area and head back to Soho for work.

The short and sweet menu reads well.  Home cured salt beef is the star, in sandwich or sharing board form, the menu bolstered by some home made soups and cheese toasties.  As long as the beef is good, what's not to like?

And I did like the beef.  It bared the requisite characteristics, in that it's suitably salty, stringy and tender.  It's Keevil and Keevil brisket, sourced from around the corner at Smithfield market.  It was the accompaniments I was not 100% sold on.  The bread, sourdough from Gail's Bakery, is very good bread, but I wasn't sure of it's place in this context.  I'm not certain why they've veered from the traditional and shied away from rye.  It is nice bread though. 

The house pickles were very generous, onions and gherkins and other crunchy vinegary specimens, vying for your attention and rendering the beef all but tasteless in the sandwich.  I had the Reuben with swiss cheese, thousand island dressing, english mustard and sauerkraut also thrown into the mix. Ideal to soak up the many beers on offer.  I felt there was something missing but can't be sure what, or perhaps it's that the sandwich isn't perfectly in harmony with a bit too much going on.  It's not quite up there with the Mishkin's Reuben for me, but they are completely different beasts.

That said, I'll be heading back later this week for my leaving lunch, and I'll be trying a cheese toastie next time.  I love the idea of the place, perhaps it's early days and things will develop with time, what they are doing right, is the drinks.  I had a pint of the London Fields Hackney Hopster pale ale.  All citrusy and light, I forget that I'm not keen on beer when I drink this!  As well as the multiple draught options, there are plenty of imported bottled beers on the drinks menu.  Of particular interest, the Little Creatures pale ale all the way from Oz.  (Imported by Aspalls, but still craft, right?! Hmm.)

Prices are reasonable, £5-9 for the sandwiches, with a lunch special available of half a serving of soup with half of any sandwich for £7.50.  The beers are available in quarter, half and pint measures, which is handy for me as I'm in lightweight form at the moment since my pathetic attempt at #dryjan.

The Longroom
18-20 St John Street
EC1M 4AY
6/10

The Pig & Butcher

I'd all but given up trying to find a decent Sunday roast in a London pub.  After multiple disappointments, and a phase of not really feeling the humble roast dinner, it seemed like a thing of my past.

Living in Islington is great.  There are almost too many cosy local pubs offering increasingly impressive selections of craft beers and ales, though most lack an equally remarkable menu to entice those more interested in the food than booze.  I harbour a healthy (ahem) interest in both and am happy to report my latest find, an establishment which invests equal thought and time in both the beverages and the eats on offer.

I reside a mere 5 minute walk from The Pig and Butcher and they will no doubt be seeing a lot more of me.  The decor is rustic and charming, miles better than the dingy old interior of The Islington Tap, think sticky floors and drafty corners.

My friends and I arrived for 12, and they were full by 12:30.  It's certainly popular with locals, staff are friendly and service is deft.  It's advisable to book in advance though early birds will snag a bar table.  We each went for a different roast, all come with seasonal veggies, creamed leeks, a yorkshire pudding and roast potatoes.

Roast leg of Kentish lamb.  Loved everything about it, except the tats, 

which were disappointingly anemic.

Slow roasted, pulled Old Spot pork shoulder & apple sauce was a hit.  

Creamed leeks in the foreground, were an excellent accompaniment.

35 day-aged roasted Hereford beef sirloin was also well received, 

all needed more gravy, an extra jug was served when we asked.

Roasts are £15.95 so they're not cheap.  Only grumbles were the potatoes, and the lack of gravy, otherwise excellent and the quality of the meat really shines through.  As an ex waitress I rather like the idea that they spoon out your chosen sauce for you, rather than delivering multiple sauces per table, smart of them.  Reduces unnecessary waste and mess.

There are a couple of non roast options and some really interesting sounding starters and desserts.  I'm keen to sample the weekday dinner menu but was not up to anything more than 1 course on this visit.  Sue and John tried some of the many beers, there's also a weekly special, this week's was an offering from Hawaii with pineapple.

The whole thing was reminiscent of The Bull and Last, my favourite gastropub in London.  Leaning towards the carnivorous, there's a butchery room on site and daily deliveries of meat and fish result in an oft changing menu.  I love the vibe and am happy to have found the place.

The Pig & Butcher
80 Liverpool Road
Islington, N1
8/10

EC1 Cafe Lunches

So far, January has been a pretty dull month, I tried to forgo any alcohol and only managed 12 days so for the first half of the month, I tried to liven things up come lunchtime.  It hasn't really worked, save for the odd trip to Burger & Lobster but I've realized I've not written about a couple of EC1 cafes I have frequented fairly often since starting at my current place of work in July (I'm back to Soho in Feb).

J & A Cafe
This place is a hidden gem, off of Clerkenwell Road down a small alleyway but always busy and serving a solid menu of homemade goodies to eat in or takeaway.  I usually have the soup of the day, 2 or 3 varieties are chalked on the board, the soda bread served with it is brilliant, the best I've had.

Chicken and bacon chowder with soda bread (£6.50)

The blackboards advertise the daily menu, selections of salads, pies, tarts, stews and sandwiches.  Another favourite is the savoury tart, more of a quiche really served alongside a choice of salad.  There's such a variety available each day, a potato, rice, pearl barley and a leafy option always with interesting sounding ingredients.  I've never had a duff order here.  Wholeheartedly recommend it, if you're in the area and I'll miss it when I'm not.

Pie of the day (£10.50) served hot with a choice of potato, salad or champ.

Tart of the day (pea and feta pictured, £9.50) served with leaves and a salad of choice

Service is efficient, the food served very quickly and I'm usually in an out within half an hour.  There's a bar in the evenings and weekend brunch looks appealing.  I'll definitely be back to check that out.

Workshop Coffee
Formerly St Ali, of Melbourne fame, I'd been meaning to visit Workshop cafe for some time.  After an acrimonious split, they re-branded as Workshop and seem to be flourishing.  There's a second branch in Marylebone but I've only eaten at the original and biggest Clerkenwell Road venue.  There's a focus on coffee and brunch, in true Antipodean style but they take the rest seriously too, a recent pop up collaboration with The Hart and Fuggle looked very interesting.

Tarragon chicken caesar salad (£11.50)

Hamburger, comté, chipotle mayo, ratte potatoes (£13.50)

Sweetcorn fritters, halloumi, spinach, poached eggs and kasundi (£11.50)

The kasundi in the photo above is a mustard relish.  I wasn't too keen on it actually, it had a rather acrid aniseed flavour.  This is a bit pricy for an everyday lunch, but nice once in a while.  I find the service can be a bit slack, they are always very busy though, so they're doing something right. Best for breakfast or weekend brunch.  They used to offer a selection of sandwiches on the coffee counter, which were always good and better value, but these were gone when I visited last week.

Salvation Jane
I don't have a bad word to say about the food at Lantana, so was keen to try sister restaurant Salvation Jane when I heard Shelagh was expanding.  I've been for weekend brunch and weekday lunch, and much preferred the former. 

Corn fritters (£10.50) were under seasoned and thai fish cakes with noodle salad (£9.50) were uninspiring.  Much better was the grilled halloumi with toasted turkish bread, hummus and dukkah topped with poached eggs (£9).  That's a dish I'd definitely return for.

As at Lantana, the coffee on offer is lovely as are the selection of sweet dishes on the counter.  It's a much larger venue than the original site so easier to nab a table, no sign of a queue on either of my visits.  I do so love Lantana though, the first of it's kind in London, and still one of my top choices for brunch.  The menus seem to be remarkably similar if true to what's advertised on the website.  

Service is friendly and the place has a charming relaxed vibe.  It's good value too and being only a few steps away from the Old St roundabout, it's a shining beacon in a grimy little strip on City Road.  Shame on anyone walking by and going to the Pret next door.

J & A Cafe
1-4 Sutton Lane
Clerkenwell
EC1M 5PU
8/10



Workshop Cafe
27 Clerkenwell Road
Clerkenwell
EC1M 5RN
6/10



Salvation Jane
55 City Road
Old Street
EC1Y 1HQ
6/10

Duck & Waffle

My last post of 2012 is reserved for a meal at one of the years most hyped restaurants, Duck & Waffle on the 40th floor of the Heron Tower. 

It was Thomas' birthday meal and I tried (and failed) to coincide our seating with the sunset, not remotely visible either from where we were sitting, or at all through the heavy covering of grey clouds over the city.  It did mean that we sat down at 3:30 and were given the brunch menu to choose from. 

As we arrived, about 2 minutes late, we were asked to wait at the bar.  They were super busy so it was a while until we were handed drinks menus but everyone was friendly and apologetic about the wait, around 15 mins in all.  The views kept us occupied.

We started with some champagne, half a dozen Carlingford rock oysters (£2.50 each) and the bacon wrapped dates (£7.50).  The dates were wonderful, smokey and sweet served with a small salad of dandelion with a glob of linguiça sausage in the centre of each parcel.

Next we ordered the signature dish of duck and waffle (£15) which was definitely our favourite come the end of the night.  I had wanted to have the steak and eggs benedict with ox cheek but they were out.  The confit duck leg with waffle, fried duck egg and maple syrup with mustard seeds is quite brilliant.  Richer and more satisfying than the example of the dish served with bacon.

The duck egg en cocotte (£10) reaffirmed my hatred of serving egg dishes in scorching hot pans, might look pretty but unless you down the yolk immediately, it invariably overcooks and disappoints.  Otherwise the combination of truffle, gruyére, mushrooms and soldiers was lovely.

We shared all the dishes and our final non sweet selection was the tomato and goat cheese bread which we pimped up with N'duja spicy sausage (£8).  It was a slight let down as it followed such strong dishes but the sausage packed a decent punch and the cheese and the cherry tomatoes were fine quality ingredients, there just wasn't quite enough of them.

To finish we had the spicy ox cheek doughnut with apricot jam (£8) and the selection of macaroons (£8) best of which was the salted caramel.  Other flavours included pina colada, green tea and chocolate and passionfruit.  The doughnut wasn't what I'd hoped it would be, I felt the smoked paprika was a bit overpowering but the doughnut texture itself was spot on, and I'm not usually a fan.

We had a lot of drinks, champagne and red wine by the glass, priced at £12.50 and £12 a glass respectively.  It's pretty pricy, the cheesebread in particular seemed way steep, a £3 mark up for a meagre sprinkling of N'duja but it does feel like a special occasion venue and those views are spectacular.  It was all the more sweet as it marked my return to the city after a week in Kent for Christmas, and it feels so good to be back.  I wish I was there tonight to see the NYE fireworks from up high, maybe next year. 

Duck & Waffle
Heron Tower
Bishopsgate
8/10

MEATmission

Newcomer to the MEAT empire, MEATmission is (for the next week or so, or until word properly gets out) your best way procuring a beloved MEATliquor/ MEATmarket burger without the hassle of queueing.  When I visited a couple of weeks ago there was no sign of a queue all evening.  

They offer many of the same food stuffs and way more beyond what we're used to.  The menu is split into inna bun, onna plate and bits and pieces and we had to try the monkey fingers (£7) from latter section.  Marinated and battered chicken fillets served with blue cheese sauce which was sadly absent from our tray but delivered upon request.  These were magnificent, tangy and not greasy in the slightest.  Wickedly moreish and a brilliant addition bolstering an already strong repertoire of trashy delights.   

 

The onna plate section of the menu sees an introduction of such delights as red in bread, chilli con carne served in an edible bread bowl then covered with cheese, onions, mustard and jalapenos, and the garbage plates, available in either chilli, beef or roast beef incarnations.  They are a lot of food, so on this occasion we skipped them and moved swiftly onto burgers.

This beauty is the bacon cheeseburger (£7), also new to me.  I've always gone for the dead hippie before, but this is definitely worth a look in.  A round almost caramelised bacon slice perches on top of the patty, which, for me, still has the tastiest char around.  Red onions, oozing cheese, lettuce, mustard and ketchup rounding it all off nicely.  We had plenty of cocktails throughout the evening, starting with the pinot grinchio a refreshing white wine and apple combo served with a minty candy cane.  We both also had fries and paid only £27.50 each, it's still a right bargain. 

The usual MEAT rules apply for the time being, turn up and queue, but this will change at MEATmission in 2013.  You'll actually be able to book.  You'll be able to take out during off peak hours but they'll be closed Sunday and Monday.  I love everything about all of them,  I've said it before and I say it again now, these are my favourite burgers in London.  Go before it gets mental.

MEATmission
14-16 Hoxton Market
Shoredicth, N1
9/10

Bone Daddies

I popped into Bone Daddies last Tuesday to see what all the fuss was about.  London is in the midst of a ramen takeover, Tonkotsu, Ittenbari to name the first wave, there will be plenty more popping up, no doubt.

I really liked Bone Daddies and will definitely be back to try more.  I went for the classic tonkotsu variety, 20 hour pork bone broth with chashu pork slices and spring onion.  I also got an extra egg garnish because I have a thing about boiled eggs, £11 altogether.

The first sip of the broth was fragrant and smoky, it was just the thing to brighten one up on a cold dreary London day in December.  The wait wasn't even too bad, arriving at 7:30 we were seated by 8.  We were by the door though and with newcomers joining the queue and leaving the door open we repeatedly fell prey to a vicious draught. 

We snacked on some brilliant cabbage and miso (£2.50) and the fried chicken with lemon wedge (£5) whilst we waited for the ramen to arrive.  To drink, we opted for tap water and hot sweet sake, Ozeki Ginkan (Honjozo), £6 for 150ml. 

We had to ask for some napkins several times before they materialized, and it was too late for my cream silk top which ended the meal with several splatters, this says more about my appalling handling of chopsticks than anything though.  Otherwise, service was friendly and relaxed.

I preferred this bowl to the equivalent at Tonkotsu and can't wait to try the tantanmen ramen, a spicier broth with minced meat.  Australian chef Ross Shonhan has clearly done a lot of research into the items on the menu here and it's paid off.  The food feels very authentic and the atmosphere of the place is in keeping with current London trends, loud music, bright and garish decor etc.  If the unanimously positive early reviews are a sign of successes to come, we might even see expansion of the brand, and I for one will definitely be seeing a lot more of the place. 

Bone Daddies
31 Peter Street
Soho
W1F
8/10