The Eating Well

Shake Shack, Shaftesbury Ave, London, UK

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Fri, 08 Dec 2017 13:57:00 +0000

TBF I'm finding it hard to like Shake Shack's UK version. It suffers, as does Five Guys, from being notably more expensive than it deserves to be: both in comparison to the price in the USA, and to the best of the local competition, like Honest Burgers. Five Guys at least can claim to be competing with Byron, GBK etc. and priced accordingly (though much higher than in the USA). Shake Shack on the other hand feels like it's more in competition with McDonald's Signature range yet at prices 50% higher for food, and higher still for drinks.

The one thing they do have going is a decent medium temperature for the meat, leaving a little pinkness, rarely found in UK fast food joints.

Kotteri Hakata Tonkotsu, Shoryu, Picadilly Circus, London, UK

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Fri, 08 Dec 2017 13:47:00 +0000

It is... just more. More tonkotsu-y. Rich, deep, filling. Very decent effort for London.

Honest Burgers, Warren Street, London, UK

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Sat, 04 Nov 2017 14:06:00 +0000

Ok, I was probably extremely well disposed to eating almost anywhere as I flopped into Honest for a quick bite while the lovely Eye tucked into the surprisingly pleasant 'school dinner' faire in UCLH (who might I add, off topic, are a jewel in the crown of the NHS, absolutely 5-star). But even so I was floored by how moreish the Keralan Fried Chicken burger is. Fried chicken is substantial and very deeply fried for a challenging crisp; onto that goes pickled mooli, garlic mayo, onion, lettuce, and rosemary. And unlike some Honest offerings this one comes with chips included (fries that is).

Plus they serve New Zealand bread (though now UK made) Gingerella, one of the funkiest bottles of pop you will find.

Excellent.

Dave & Busters and Opa!, Santa Clara, USA

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Fri, 29 Sep 2017 14:53:00 +0000

Ok, we went to Dave & Buster's at the Great Mall to play video games, but I was surprised to find a thriving early evening bar scene with local business folks watching sports and eating huge plates of fried and carb heavy food. When in Rome etc. so I tucked into a cheeseburger with fries, which I found ok, while Chris went for the heroic option (think 300 Spartans) and had the Caveman Combo of "individual St. Louis-style pork ribs tossed in a Sriracha honey soy glaze served with four mini-cheeseburgers on Hawaiian rolls and seasoned french fries." He finished it too, so it can be done no matter how epic it sounds.

For a healthier option the next day we hit up Greek restaurant Opa! (exclamation mark restaurant's own) at Santa Clara Marketplace. Here too the plates were huge with an all the dips starter defeating three of us. The souvlaki was good (not Santorini good, but 'would have again' good for sure). As we at tables all around us had dishes set on fire next to them, a rather off piece of performance for a place mostly full of business people.

While in the vicinity why not hit up Lula's Chocolates for delicious salted caramels too?

Caveman Combo Chris

It's a burger with cheese on it

All the dips - enough for four or five people

Souvlaki at Opa!

Santorini, Greece

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 14:33:00 +0000

Apparently this is my spiritual home, Lucky's on Santorini, where Lucky will regale you with tales of his time driving a cab and serve you the best gyro you have ever had (all for prices that you can probably find in spare change in your pocket.)

Santorini was a great place to eat, although many of the restaurants I tried had basically the same dishes on the menu - with local tomato and peppers featuring as well as souvlaki of course. I can highly recommend Vanilia and Argo (be sure to book in advance), for great food and stunning views. For something more casual then off the beaten track search out Falafeland for great falafel (what else!)

The other great find of the trip was the local fava dip. Confusingly this isn't made from fava beans, but rather yellow split peas, with lashings of garlic, olive oil and onion plus a bit of thyme and lemon juice.

Sauvlaki at Vanilia

Lucky's Gyro

Fava at Vanilia

View at Argo

Veal pasta at Argo

Argo

Fried fish at the old port, Fira

Céleste, Lanesborough Hotel, London

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Mon, 13 Feb 2017 09:52:00 +0000

Céleste is an amazing room with soft blue and classical detailing (think a Wedgewood plate, expanded to room size), set inside the impressive Lanesborough Hotel, (check out The Withdrawing Room as you pass by).

The food is exceptional, classically French and can be quite accessible in price if you choose the set lunch option (Menu of the Day) which includes three courses (with a cheese option amongst the desserts if that matters to you) and a generous 'three bite' amuse-bouche (ours was a witty take on fish and chips). We had mackerel with a wasabi sauce, pigs head (a sort of pork fish-cake), cabbage wrapped farce of game, day boat cod, and hazelnut and fudge themed desserts.

We paid £38 per head with a free glass of champagne which is ludicrously good value. Frankly the five course tasting menu looks cheap at £85 based on the value we experienced. Regular main dishes are from £34-48 each. We also had a bottle of Alice, by Pierre Bories, a winemaker in Corbiéres. This is a blend of Grenache and old-vine Carignan, that worked well across all courses with a range of fish and game. I'm rather into Grenache at the moment as an alternative in situations where ordinarily I'd have gone for a Merlot. I know they don't taste the same but they seem to fill the same accessible and adaptable slot when making a wine cover a range of foods. (The wine pairing for the menu du jour is very fairly priced it that's your thing). The wine list is wide and while there are bottles for four figures there are quite a few wines in the 35-60 range, especially in the reds. A quick check suggests wine mark up is about 300% on retail on those lower end bottles so probably even higher on wholesale prices. Mark up on the more expensive wines not quite as bad.

The service was attentive without ever being pushy and all the wait staff paid attention to us not just one waiter. I much prefer that style, which is becoming a little more common. Service is automatically added to the bill.

London has a lot of high end French cooking these days but this is at the top of the class alongside Ducasse and Darroze. It is described as "conceptualised" by Chef Eric Frechon, and his protégé from Epicure in Paris, Florian Favario has been installed in the dining room as Executive Chef. As far as I can tell this is as close to an Epicure in London as you might want (or that we are going to get).

Holds one Michelin star today, which it very clearly deserves (the chef's hold five between them). Overall very impressive and I'll certainly go again.

Vegas / USA Round Up

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Fri, 13 Jan 2017 14:07:00 +0000

So I just got back from Las Vegas (work, I'm not much of a gambler) and as ever I made the trip more bearable with some decent food here and there. And Nathan's Famous too.

Starting with Sushi Roku at Caesar's Forum, which I mildly prefer to Sushi Samba in the Venetian (technically the Palazzo but it's all the same).

$17 might seem a lot for a bowl of ramen, but it's really good ramen; which is rarely the case outside ramen specialists IMHO. Wontons, salmon carpaccio and dragon roll were all good too.

Also in Caesar's is Carmine's, a Vegas copy of a NYC institution. This place is family style and don't be fooled by the entree prices - one of these dishes will serve two - three people. It's not amazing, if you want Vegas' best Italian head over to B&B in the Venetian, but it is fun. Good for groups, as they say.

My favourite dish is the meatballs, available as a starter or with pasta. The bread pudding rocks too.

Rounding off the best of Caesar's The Palm is a steakhouse institution with out posts in many major cities. Check out seared tuna and of course a giant steak...

For the best breakfast on the strip I still rate Bouchon, though having now been to the Napa original (in Yountville) I've got to say the Vegas version lacks panache. Still for $24 you get coffee, juice, a pastry and le petit dejeuner americain (eggs, bacon, croquettes and sausage).

When I go to the USA I like to get a fix of Mexican food and this time I went to Border Grill in Caesar's (yep, I ate a lot at Caesar's, since it was right by my hotel). Their Yucatan pork shoulder is rubbed in achiote and braised in banana leaves for something unusual and very tasty indeed. Portions are extremely generous for $24.

Another cuisine America does so much better than anyone else is Creole. In fact one rarely sees it outside of the States. I love Emeril Lagasse's Table Ten and head back there often when I'm in town.
Right now their four course tasting menu is probably the best deal on the strip for just $48 ($28 more for paired wines).

I had the BBQ shrimp with biscuit, gumbo, french onion braised beef shortrib and the signature banana pie. It was a struggle to get as far as dessert. They say the portions are a couple of ounces shy of the regular menu version but that's a necessity if you are going to manage even a bite of pie.

For fast food, on this trip I tried breakfast at Nathan's Famous where they make a passable Egg McMuffin imitation (sort of omelette rather than sort of fried egg) and very decent fried.

I also tried Jack In The Box's tacos (two for $1.29!) as a result of this WSJ article. They are pretty bad. Stick to Taco Bell (there's a fractionally upscale Taco Bell Cantina now in Vegas too).

Lastly I got White Castle one night while pretty drunk and jetlagged. And hell, I liked it.

Tokyo

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Wed, 30 Nov 2016 14:47:00 +0000

Tokyo is the menu that never stops. Page after page of delicious food. This time I hit the city for a couple of favourite spots and a couple of new things too. I've focused on the classics: ramen, katsu sushi and tempura.

Ichiran ramen in Shibuya (and Shinjuku I believe) not only only sells tonkotsu ramen but also has a receipe that harks back to the 1960s. Innovation, not so much, but tradition and focus in spades. To help you feel the tradition and focus yourself you eat in a private 'booth' separated from the kitchen even by a partition. Fill in your order, signal for service, eat and leave. How good is it? Not to my mind as good as Ippudo, but still splendid. They claim to have invented the 'red' sauce that's used to garnish ramen here too.

An old favourite Maison remains the best of the 'chain' katsu places in my opinion. This time I discovered their super sized pork loin. So good.

Another old favourite is restaurant Gonpachi, inspiration for Kill Bill and site of a couple of US presidential meals.

What is there to say? Food is decent, if never stellar, but the surrounds rock.

I tried the extremes of tempura with Tempura Tendon Tendon, a chain where dinner will cost you around 1,000 yen or less, and Tempura Tsunahachi Honten, who regrettably don't allow photos.

The lesson is that tempura is great at both extremes of the spectrum. And surprisingly the very best is only a modest premium in price.

For sushi I hit up Shibuya's Genki - who've recently replaced their already impressive conveyor system, where tiny 'cars' on different levels bring the food to patrons, with a new even more impressive system.

Don't be put off by the tech - the sushi is remarkably good too given the very accessible prices.

Overall I tried to eat fairly cheaply on this trip, given that the pound was at a frankly horrifying 120 yen level. I was pleased to find it was easy on a budget of 1-2,000 yen to eat well for every meal.

Engawa, Ham Yard Hotel Complex, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Thu, 15 Sep 2016 12:00:00 +0000

The tl;dr is simple: this is the best representation of authentic Japanese cuisine I've had in London.

The story of why is more complex. It's a little over two years since Kobe beef became available for import and make no mistake, that's the focal point here. Each of the three evening menu options (3, 5 or 8 courses) includes authentic Kobe (ie from the Kobe region, not just the Wagyu breeds). We tried both sirloin and rump cuts. The sirloin was the 'full' Kobe experience one hears about: simply melting in the mouth due to the exquisite fine marbling of fat. The rump is more flavoursome however so neither is a lesser choice.

We went for the five course set menu, sharing two different appetisers as well as differing cuts of beef. Compared to the eight course version you miss chawanamushi, shabu shabu, tempura. Nothing essential and you won't be hungry at the end.

We also took the five sake taster set. Sake isn't course matched like wines (there's really no point). Instead a sparkling sake is served first, then three bowls of differing sake, and finally a warm and 'vintage' sake (unusual as sake usually lasts a year).

The Clocktower, Edition Hotel, New York

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Sun, 19 Jul 2015 16:20:00 +0000

I don't feel in a position to properly review this hot new Jason Atherton outpost in NYC since the only opening I could get was brunch and I couldn't resist the full English.

That was perfect: poached eggs piquant with vinegar, tomatoes bursting with flavour (all too rare) and a sausage of black pudding. Coffee ordered black came with cream on the side anyway and the music was momentary awkwardly loud (they fixed it). But for a Sunday brunch, very nice indeed.

That said I rather suspect that if you're a Londoner in NY you can maybe skip The Clocktower and just hit Berners Tavern instead. Several menu items are identical (Mac n cheese with ox cheek, fish & chips, the burger) and the space is a more cramped version of Berners with the art spread over several lower ceilinged rooms. They're both in Edition hotels too.

Ok let's just say it: The Clocktower is Berners Tavern copied in NYC. That's great for New York but as a tourist, you can miss it.

Service impeccable. Total $24 for breakfast and coffee before tip.

Berners Tavern, Edition Hotel, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Thu, 16 Jul 2015 14:17:00 +0000

The cavernous room of Berners Tavern is filled with two things. Art covers every wall and every table is filled with diners (ok there's one two top behind the greeters station that remains empty, perhaps kept for hotel emergencies?)

Despite being very busy things move at a sensible clip, at the cost that service feels somewhat mechanical.

Carrot and buttermilk soup is delicious, served as a bowl of roasted carrot and thin crouton crisps into which the creamy soup is poured. Good. And in my case the only other choice was 'nothing' as I knew the main course of macaroni cheese with ox cheek is 'substantial'.

It's also very very hot. If you order it be prepared that whatever any companion orders you will finish last. In fact you might not even start before they finish, depending on asbestos levels in your mouth...

Is it the best macaroni cheese ever, as other reviewers have claimed. Dunno, I basically never order it. Is it a fun and fullsome dish that will probably send you away happy (and for a snooze?) Yes it is.

I can tell you nothing about dessert except the ones I saw also looked hearty. The macaroni had me beat.

Lunch was £50 inc. service and a half bottle of Cotes du Rhone for a reasonable £16.

The Breakfast Club Soho, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Tue, 14 Jul 2015 10:53:00 +0000

I don't know quite why but while I'll happily wait in line for 30 minutes for the best breakfast in San Francisco or Vancouver, the idea of doing so in London seems extremely alien.

Still, truth be told, unless you are going high end (say The Wolsey or The Delauney) there aren't many great breakfasts to speak of in the heart of the capital. Google the topic and you'll get the picture.

So I decided to use some of my vacation time stood in line for the legendary Breakfast Club, one of the few worth the wait in the west end.

The line is taken seriously here. There's no list - you just wait in the line holding your spot. In front of me a Chinese family watched their daughter throw up in an alley, then faint and be revived by a doctor in the line. The staff brought out two chairs so the girl could sit and raise her feet but there was no sign they ever considered quiting the queue. That's how seriously they take the line here. Would it be worth that stoic dedication?

Inside after 35 minutes it took me seconds to choose The Full Monty - a fry up with bacon, beans, sausage, mushroom, potato, black pudding and bread as well as two eggs: fried, poached or scrambled.

How is it? Epic. Quality ingredients, handled well. You can't go wrong. Around me there were pancake towers draped in cream and fruit and several Benedicts, of which the menu holds a wide selection. But seriously you can't go wrong with this fry up.

I'd have preferred to get my Earl Grey tea in a pot than a mug but otherwise there's nothing to fault. Service was spot on. Your reward for waiting in line is that there is no sense that they're hurrying you.

Worth the wait.

Fera, Claridges Hotel, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Mon, 13 Jul 2015 12:51:00 +0000

Set lunch today at Fera, a deal from Opentable at £39 for three courses, inc. a glass of Laurent Perrier listed at £16.

Also took a glass of Force Majeure, £10.50.

Of course the very first thing to arrive is an amuse of blue cheese mouse on an airy cracker draped with flowers. We are firmly in Simon Rogan territory. How you feel about that will very much affect your affection for Fera.

Nothing much else can stand in the way of you loving it. The room is sublime. The service almost perfect (see: dessert). So: do we like the forage and flowers cuisine?

Yep, well enough.

And that's a surprise. I could care less for Noma-esque venues ordinarily and I'm borderline on Nordic cuisine. But Fera is an exception. Stout bread with properly salted Cumbrian butter helps soften my scepticism before smoked salmon arrives on a plate dribbled with sauces (no sauce spoon!) and smattered with tiny leaves, imperceptible mushrooms and mysterious powders. Not a good sign. But it tastes so good. Like the very best sashimi. Suddenly I'm ignoring the twee aesthetic and scooping sauce up with stout bread.

Then comes the cutlery for the main course. I'm in love. Studio William. Total class.

My chicken comes from Preston I'm told. I wonder if that sounds exotic to a southerner? It is delicious, and extremely well plated. However where on earth is the sauce spoon? And I'm guessing there will be no more bread as my side plate and butter were taken away with the first course... Small things though compared to the fact that not only is the chicken very good but these are perhaps the best carrots I've ever tasted.

Dessert: I quickly choose chocolate, with chamomile ice cream and put down my menu. Almost ten minutes goes by before my waiter comes to take an order, during which time it's impossible to catch his gaze. Ultimately another waiter pauses significantly behind my shoulder until his colleague notices I've been forgotten. A small blip on otherwise fine service. Whether because of this or not as I rise to go I'm intercepted and offered a kitchen tour. It's like they know my weaknesses. I'm won over as I'm shown the leaves being grown and the induction run that means the kitchen is never very hot to work in. A terrific touch of service.

There's a surprise pre-dessert of dehydrated honey cake and peach. Nice!

Again, dessert is lovely to look at (and rather petit). Cake crumbs, a smear of apricot, delicious ice cream and chocolate mouse rather reminiscent of a Gu pot (yes I know there's only

So much you can do with this dish). I liked it. I'd have like it twice in fact, or a more generously portioned once...

Finally mignardises of beer jelly and beetroot meringue, which I liked more than the dessert. The jelly comes with one tiny final foraged leaf...

Fera is about on par with similar London restaurants; it's nicer than Texture (but more expensive too) and a little below The Ledbury. It certainly does deserve its Michelin star.

If you want to try the farm and forage style without a trip to Copenhagen Fera is absolutely worth a go: I really couldn't fault it within its own terms. However if you ask me for a straight choice between this and London's other hotel bound venues I'd pick the slightly cheaper Mediterranean vibe of Rivea at the Bulgari or the slightly more expensive classic French of Helene Darroze at the Connaught. Not sorry to have been this once though and I might well be back before I close the book on my opinion.

Ramen Wars, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 01:40:00 +0000

Shoryu continues to be the best ramen in the west end based on comparisons of their standard Ganso Tonkotsu ramen with Ittenbari's standard shoyu this week. Both restaurants are on the divide between Soho and Piccadilly in London's West End.

Shoyu, Piccadilly Circus

Ittenbari, Piccadilly Circus

First the service: despite being full of dinners I was surprised by how quickly my order of ramen appeared at Shoryu. At Ittenbari I had to call a waitress over, they were focused on clearing not serving, a priority I disapprove of when no one is waiting on a table.

Second: Shoryu has delicious pork buns (and other buns if you're so inclined). I ate on Monday when buns are 2 for 1. Not a deciding factor in a Ramen-off but worth a mention.

Lastly the ramen: Ittenbari has two choices - regular or DX (full egg, extra pork) and you can opt for 60 second noodles instead of the usual 75 seconds of boiling. This pales against Shoryu's various noodle types and firmness choices though on this occasion I went for the standard version of each. (No, not on the same day, just in the same week!)

I've never been able to decide which flavour of ramen I like best. It vacillates from tonkotsu to shoyu though some days I like miso or shio too.

However if you're around Piccadilly the choice is made for you by the gap in flavour between the silky, deep flavours of Shoryu's tonkotsu (pork based) and the glossy, 'fatty' soup (chicken based) at Ittenbari.

Don't get me wrong, I like Ittenbari and I'm sooo happy that with Shoryu, Ittenbari, Bone Daddies and Sasuke London now has the choice of ramen it has long lacked. But at the moment I can't help but think Ittenbari is the place to go when the line at Shoryu or Bone Daddies is too long.

Pictures from Taipei

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 01:19:00 +0000

I can't tell you the name of this place but this is its page; a friend took me there to try 'really traditional Taiwan noodles'. They were rice noodles in a very gentle (ok you might say bland) broth.

Simple roast chicken, chopped, bone in.

Mayo doesn't stick to raw bamboo so I'm not sure why they serve them together...

Afterwards we went for Famous Pepper Buns (Hu Jiao Ping) at Raohe Street Night Market. You can't miss the place, at one end of the street, because if there's no line, they've stopped cooking. The buns are made stuck to the sides in a charcoal baking oven. Cheap too.

Pictures from New York

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 00:50:00 +0000

This year for my birthday I spent a few days in New York. I dined at Momofuku Ko, which respecting the restaurants policy I have no pictures of, and Daniel, which I still hope to find time to review properly (quick version: it was amazing). Momofuku Ko was excellent theatre and the three chefs were most charming. The food was interesting, though the sheer number of courses (its advertised as 11 but is more) was eventually defeating. I must admit that a significant part of the pleasure was in the unusualness of being in a mere 12 seat restaurant (though nothing quite compares to tiny 10 seat Takazawa) which felt very exclusive indeed.

Half a cheese and tomato sandwich at Bouchon Bakery.

Breakfast at Pershing Square (far better than the execrable Carnegie Deli which doesn't deserve a pic.)

Pie by the Pound - yummy, and great value.

Dinner at Juni, which just picked up a well deserved Michelin Star. Charmed that chef Hergatt came out to say hello.

Dinner in the BA Concorde Room Lounge at JFK

And again in First Class on the plane. Yeah I know, dinner twice! But they really were hours apart and I might never get to fly First again.

Rivea, London

noreply@blogger.com (dcharold) — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 00:19:00 +0000

I'm not someone who would usually hang out at the Bulgari hotel but I love Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester and wanted to give this restaurant, with a kitchen headed by Ducasse protege Damien Leroux, a try. I opted for the deal OpenTable was running - four courses for thirty five pounds (inc. a glass of wine, bread, amuse and biscuits). The value on that deal is exceptional and it's worked it's trick. I'll be back here whatever the prices because the food is a delight. Witty (the colour palate of can you guess what this is dips), well presented, sensibly sized (these are small plates but not as cruelly ungenerous as, say, Dabbous) and delicious to the last crumb. The place is pretty too, although some noise spills in from the busy bar above.

I had 'marinated sea bream, citrus', 'sea bass carpaccio and pine nuts' and 'Roast duckling and figs' - all of which I can heartily recommend. I understand that 'Seasonal vegetables cooked in a cocotte', 'Rivea salad wrapped in a socca' and 'Cookpot of seasonal fruits and vegetables' were all good too for my vegetarian sister.

Deserts consisted of a large tiramisu (hers) and a petit chocolate tart with ice cream (not mentioned on the menu). Plus tiny biscuit 'sandwiches'. And more biscuits, bagged to take home.

We were, frankly, stuffed, which is not what I expect from a place so keen to advertise its tapas/small plate nature. I'm certainly not complaining with cooking this good!

I will definitely be back there soon (despite the inconvenience that, at least for now, it seems to be impossible to book a table for one online, thought the restaurant was far from full on the Thursday night we dined).

Vij's, Vancouver

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Sat, 09 Aug 2014 01:54:00 +0000

Is Vancouver's Vij's the best Indian restaurant in North America? There's a local fan base willing to wait 90+ minutes who'd argue it is (the restaurant doesn't take reservations). Despite my best efforts my sample base remains too small for a definitive answer but I'll go this far: it's the best Indian restaurant I've eaten at in North America.

I just missed getting in on the first sitting after arriving a few minutes before the 5.30pm opening. Ultimately I'm not sorry because as well as enjoying a Storm Brewing IPA on the patio while I waited I was also treated to several bites of spicy fries, curry crackers and pakora.

A starter of jackfruit cardamom curry was plenty spicy and served with fresh naan to scoop up the remaining sauce.

My main course was a creamy pork curry over spinach with tangy citrus notes and abundant ginger. This was served with both basmati rice and naan. Rich and rewarding.

My advice: arrive a little late and build an appetite on the patio before sinking into the dark dining room where no one can see you sweat over deep and flavourful curry with a touch of modern invention.

Guu Garden, Vancouver

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Fri, 08 Aug 2014 02:21:00 +0000

Appealingly well hidden in an almost Tokyo style Guu Garden is a trad izakaya with all the favourites of Japanese drinking cuisine - plus Sapporo in Mega (1 litre) steins. I had chicken karaage though I was sorely tempted by the cauliflower variant. Then tuna sashimi and finally beef short ribs. All three were tasty without being the zenith of their kind. It's straight up, decent quality, unpretentious food. Or in other words a proper izakaya.

Who makes the best low carb burger? Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Mon, 07 Apr 2014 23:44:00 +0000

The other big contender in the low carb fast food burger stakes after Five Guys is In 'N Out though you'd not know it from the minimalist menu. Protein style is one of the options on the so called 'secret menu' the chain is famous for. I went for the cheeseburger but if you're hungry there's a version with double meat and double cheese for the same number of carbs (11g). Here there's less attempt to shape a faux bun than at Five Guys but the result is not much easier to eat and forks are not freely available. Still it's a fine burger with all the taste and nothing much missing served sans bun.

Overall I prefer Five Guys but you can get two cheeseburgers at In 'N Out for the same $ so it's more or less a draw.

Who makes the best low carb burger? Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Fri, 04 Apr 2014 21:39:00 +0000

Both of the middle/premium fast food burger chains in California offer a bun less variant on their product. At Five Guys in fact there are two - either in a bowl or wrapped in lettuce. I went for the bacon cheeseburger 'wrap' which actually turned out to be a wedge of lettuce smartly cut into a sort of imitation bun. Apart from this substitution the burger is identical to its wheat smothered version and I added pickles, onion, mushroom and tomato. The regular burger is two patties and filling so no need for fries. I managed about half before it fell apart a bit and I had to resort to knife and fork. Overall very impressive if a tad messy. The 'little' version is one patty and might be easier to manage.

Brasserie Chavot, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Sun, 13 Oct 2013 17:54:00 +0000

Brasserie Chavot looks and sounds as though you've been transported magically from the posh shops of Conduit St (or the very London lobby of the Westbury) through a magic portal to gay Paris.

The music (Peppermoon!) the uniformed (and mostly French) wait staff and most notably the decor all speak of Eric Chavot's home land.

Marco Pierre White once called Chavot “the best” and while it's too bold a statement for me he's surely in the top class. The restaurant was amongst this year's Michelin star winners.

Heirloom tomato salad was heartier than it sounds and mixes tart, sweet and savoury with even a little cheese in there.

Daube de boeuf rests in a rich gravy with artichoke and carrot. I substituted green beans in a light butter sauce for the mash it usually comes with without regret. The beef is extremely tender and the mix of juicy insides with a crispy top layer is ideal for me.

I was forewarned by my waiter that chocolate pot was in fact more pistachio than chocolate. No loss. Nut+ice cream+chocolate=Delicious.

With a glass of a more than decent Bordeaux dinner came to £52 inc service.

Overall very nice, and no Eurostar journey required.

My Michelin tally

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Sun, 13 Oct 2013 12:40:00 +0000

New state of play below. Some have since lost their stars, some have closed.

UK 30

One-star: L’Escargot, Northcote Manor, Nobu, Nobu Berkley St., Adlard’s, Room in The Elephant, Orestone Manor, Juniper, One Lombard Street, Arbutus, Wild Honey, Tom Aitkens, Rhodes 24, Auberge du Lac, Viajante, Gauthier Soho, Texture, St John Clerkenwell, St John Soho, The Hinds Head, Dabbous, Pollen Street Social, Brasserie Chavot.

Two-stars: L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Hibiscus, Hélène Darroze at the Connaught, The Ledbury, Dinner.

Three-stars: The Fat Duck, Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester

USA 17

California one stars: Fleur De Lys, La Folie, Boulevard, The Plumed Horse, One Market, Frances.

California two-stars: Aqua, Michael Mina, Manresa, Atelier Crenn, Coi.

Vegas one-star: Bradley Ogden, Mix, Mesa Grill, Restaurant Charlie, Aureole, Le Cirque.

Vegas two-stars: Picasso.

Spain 1

One-star: Cinc Sentits (Barcelona)

Hong Kong 3

One-star: Tim Ho Wan, Loaf On (aka Luk Fook)

Two-stars: T'ang Court

Dabbous, London

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Sat, 12 Oct 2013 14:53:00 +0000

Dabbous, anyone will tell you, is hot. Tables are tricky to come by, though getting easier it seems since I actually had a choice of three consecutive times (for lunch, no dinner slots this week) and the plaudits continue to rain in, including a Michelin star for chef Ollie Dabbous who is ex-of Le Manoir Au Quat' Saisons, Mugaritz and London's excellent Texture.

A Basil Fawlty is a gin and mint cocktail, served tall, and very pleasant. In the warmth of the intimate restaurant one could be forgiven for imagining its a lovely summer day with this in hand.

Olives keep you occupied while browsing the choice of a seven/eight course tasting menu or a four course set menu. You get a bag of bread, stamped with today's date, and tap water gratis.

With four courses for just £28 pounds you might expect some to be slender. Toast is covered with translucent lard and thin slices of black truffle. You eat it with your fingers and it's very more-ish. Carrots are three long, thin carrots adrift in a soup bowl with an oxtail gravy and blob of savory cream. My guess, given a fork and spoon, was that you ate the carrots then mixed the remaining cream and gravy. It looked terrible and tasted good but I must admit I've never been served anything quite like it before. When it was placed in front of me my first though was that something more must be about to be added. The table next to me laughed uncomfortably at its frugalness when their turn came.

Grain feed barbecue beef with roast onion and a buttermilk sauce was the 'main' course. The beef was excellent (about 150g I'm guessing) but no spoon this time so I was glad to have bread left for the sauce.

The dessert I wanted, Burrata with crushed apple (tasted stewed but I might be wrong), required a hefty £5 supplement, cheese apparently being a premium ingredient (someone should tell the Roux at the Landau where cheese is a straight dessert option in the similarly priced set lunch). The first few bites are quite savoury, with nut too, and then the apple reveals its sweetness. It was nice but not premium price worthy. To end there are three tiny green Japanese peaches.

So what did I make of the hottest restaurant in London? It was a casual, relaxed cafe like space with attentive, slightly pushy service. The food was tasty, if too often not much too look at, and my initial fear that I'd leave hungry turned out to be quite unfounded.

Unfortunately I wasn't expecting tasty. I was expecting delicious. Was that fair? All I can really say is: if you want a similarly priced, similarly Michelin starred, experience then in my opinion L'Atelier Joel Robuchon knocks seven bells out of Dabbous. Actually I'd say the same for the unstarred Roux at the Landau which has the additional advantage of a lovely space.

Lunch inc. service and one cocktail was just under £43.

Will I continue to haunt toptable to get back in? No! Will I be back once it quietens down? Maybe. There was enough here to make me think maybe it deserves a second chance. But not in any hurry.

The Hind's Head, Bray, UK

noreply@blogger.com (david harold) — Tue, 08 Oct 2013 19:59:00 +0000

One might be tempted to regard The Hind's Head as the 'least' of Heston Blumenthal's restaurants but make no mistake this Michelin starred venue is different rather than to be discounted.

Located a couple of cottages away from The Fat Duck in the tiny village of Bray it's a picturesque location and we were lucky to hit it on an 'indian summer' day. (The car park by the way is opposite the restaurant and quite tricky to spot).

Yes, there's a relaxed atmosphere but it's still more of a restaurant than the 'pub' it claims to be and most of the diners on the Sunday we visited had dressed in their Sunday best (or at least a notch above what I'm used to in a pub on Sunday). It's worth a Sunday trip by the way, as the menu that day includes two special roasts (pork and beef).

I started with Heston's trademark Scotch Eggs, which I'd seen a recipe for online and couldn't wait to try. I had two in lieu of a regular starter. The tricky thing with Heston's eggs in getting the sausage cooked to succulent perfection while the egg yolk remains runny. The first egg was perfect. The second's yolk was more 'done' perhaps due to sitting around while I ate the first one.

I tried the jasmine smoked salmon too which was very nice with a taste that seemed somehow freshly applied rather than deeply inlayed.

I followed that with one of the Sunday specials, roast sirloin of Highland beef with roast potato, mixed veg and Yorkshire pudding. The beef was served medium technically (not bleeding) but very pink indeed. Fat was rendered to the point it melted in the mouth. It was delicious. Given that I'm of Irish extraction is it a terrible cliche to say that I liked the roast potatoes best out of this dish? Frankly I could have eaten a plate full.

The vegetarian main course of warm new potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower puree was likeable, from the small amount I tried.

We'd asked for an extra portion of vegetables but what actually showed up with the main course was a portion of crispy fries. They looked too good to send back so I kept quiet about the mix up. The bill was correct at the end of the meal.

For dessert I had the mess of blackberries, which mixed fruit with a crunchy meringue. I've got a thing for Eton Mess at the moment and this was a neat, if slightly sweet, example. This was a very generous portion and I felt somewhat sleepy after lunch.

Food is not especially cheap if you're thinking of it as a pub, but reasonable enough for its pedigree. Indeed you could probably spend less at Dinner if you went for the set lunch there but the portions are perhaps a little more generous for the most part. I'd perhaps feel a bit short changed if I'd stumped up £32 for the relatively small steak (I'm guessing under 300g by the examples I saw carried by).

Service was excellent and the meal took about two hours, which seemed well paced. Wine list seemed reasonable too (by which I mean there are some decent affordable choices). We had a half bottle of very pleasant Sancerre for £25.

With quality more than deserving of its star and a pleasant, relaxed vibe The Hind's Head is a great place for a meal that delivers more than it demands.