Diciannove – And the truffle dinner that did not taste of truffle!

February 10, 2017, 9:29 am

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Name:Diciannove Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar

Where: Crowne Plaza Hotel, 19 New Bridge Street, London, EC4V 6DB, 
http://www.diciannove19.com/home/

Cost: We were there to try the Alba white truffle special menu. Dishes ranged from £25 to £38 with a 4-course meal costing £100 per person (excl. drinks).

About: Readers of this blog will perhaps recall my interest in the truffles of Alba, having visited the truffle auction and international fair in Piedmont recently (reviewed here). So my interest was piqued when I heard of Diciannove’s Alba white truffle menu available in London.

Situated on the ground floor of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, a stone's throw from Blackfriars Station, Diciannove is well located for those who have been exploring the sites of the City of London, but during the week, diners are largely business travellers staying at the hotel.

Perhaps due to its location, Diciannove has a generic, corporate feel about it, with a 1990s-type décor which put me in mind of a Weatherspoons in Heathrow Terminal 2. There are red neon signs in the window, grey wall tiles, a lemon yellow bar serving Peroni beer on tap, and seating made from stripy orange, purple and green fabric. It felt bright but soulless.

We attended on a Saturday early evening when the restaurant was around 20% occupied and sadly lacking in atmosphere. Despite this, we were shown to the worst possible table at a dimly lit corner of the restaurant by a fire exit. We asked whether we could be moved to one of the many other vacant tables, and to our embarrassment this seemed to cause consternation requiring the manager to be called! This was not how I envisaged the start of my meal.

What We Ate: Finally sat at one of many available window tables, we tucked into our first starter – beef carpaccio with baby rocket leaves, Parmesan cheese, truffle dressing and white truffle shavings (£25). Made with fillet steak, the beef tasted fresh and of good quality, but was let down by a dire lack of seasoning. I was pleasantly surprised by the generous shavings of white truffle, although like the beef, these had very little if any flavour.

The fresh tagliatelle pasta with Taleggio cheese cream and white truffle (£28) was well cooked with a good bite, and the Taleggio cream sauce was silken and delicious. But continuing a theme, the plentiful truffle shavings again lacked any truffle flavour or aroma. 

Better was the risotto with butter, Parmesan and white truffle (£30). Well made and creamy, simple dishes like this are the perfect match for truffles – and surprisingly this had a good concentration of truffle flavour and went some way to redeem a dinner that had not got off to the best of starts.

As a main course, we were served a beef fillet with mashed potatoes, veal jus and fresh white truffle (£38). Nicely seared, the beef was tender and delectably pink with great depth of flavour. I also loved the smooth and velvety mash it was served with, however, yet again we could hardly detect any truffle flavour in this dish.

For pudding, our waitress recommended the signature dessert of Diciannove - a tiramisu (£7).  The Black Forest Gateaux of the 1990s, I’m still a sucker for a well made tiramisu, but sadly Diciannove’s was far from it. With cream that seemed to have come from an aerosol spray, over-sweetened, and with no detectable Marsala, it left a bad taste in the mouth at the end of a very disappointing meal. 

What We Drank: The wines are exclusively Italian, and the entry-level white is a Trebbianno-Chardonnay blend from Romagna at £24 per bottle, while the red is a Nero d'Avola Legato 2015 from Sicily at £26. 

Asked for a recommendation, the Manager suggested the bottle of house red. This was an every day drinking wine with red and black cherry notes, some spice and a touch of unbalanced acidity on the finish. It seemed out of keeping with the white truffle menu both in style and intensity, and in my opinion overpowered the little flavour the truffle shavings might have had. 

Likes: The risotto was delicious. 

Dislikes: With the exception of the risotto, the other dishes had little or no truffle flavour. For an Alba White Truffle menu, at £100 per person, I would expect more. That tiramisu was the nail in the coffin.

Verdict: With over-priced food in a lacklustre setting, and a truffle menu that did not taste of truffle, Diciannove was disappointing. Not recommended.

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Dine & Stay at The Goring - The Last Word in British Luxury Hospitality

February 14, 2017, 3:00 am

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Name: Dine & Stay at The Goring Hotel and The Dining Room

Where: 15 Beeston Place, London SW1W 0JW, http://www.thegoring.com/food-drink/the-dining-room/

Cost: The Dine & Stay Package priced at £520 for two includes overnight accommodation, a three-course dinner for two in the Goring Dining Room and a full English or continental breakfast.

For those who do not want an overnight stay but still enjoy a meal at The Goring, there is a three-course lunch menu at £49.00 or £55.00 on Sundays. The three-course dinner menu starts from £60.00, and there is also a two-course pre-theatre menu priced at £35.00.

About: Built by current owner Jeremy Goring’s great-grandfather Otto in 1910, The Goring has been run by the eponymous family since it opened. The Goring remains a favourite address for international travellers and locals alike seeking a quintessentially British luxury hotel in the centre of London, close to Knightsbridge, Mayfair and Sloane Street.

The closest hotel to Buckingham Palace, The Goring has been a firm Royal favourite since it first opened its doors. The coronations of George VI and Queen Elizabeth II saw the hotel filled with royalty attending from all over the world. More recently, Kate and William chose it as their hotel for friends and family attending their big day. 

With 69 luxurious suites and rooms, each uniquely decorated, and public rooms with fine English furniture, Gainsborough silks on the walls and sparkling chandeliers, The Goring exudes the chic of a grand country house. 

The hotel is rather intimate, with just one restaurant, the elegant Lounge Bar where afternoon tea is served (which I hear is fantastic) and a fitness centre. 

Awarded a Royal Warrant for hospitality services in 2013, The Goring is the only hotel to be recognised in this way.

The London Foodie was at The Goring to experience and report on their Dine & Stay deal, which includes overnight accommodation, a three-course dinner for two in the Goring Dining Room, and a full English or continental breakfast.

Ours was a comfortable garden room, elegantly but not ostentatiously furnished with salmon-pink silk-lined walls, plush cream carpet and upholstery, and a smattering of cute cuddly toys. 

The marble bathroom was kitted out with ultra-soft Egyptian cotton towels and bathrobes. The bed was comfortable and I had a great night’s sleep, but best of all was the view of the stunning private garden on opening the curtains in the morning. 
  

What We Ate: Awarded its first Michelin star as recently as September 2015, The Goring’s restaurant, The Dining Room, is headed by Executive Chef Shay Cooper, and as might be expected, he is a real champion of British ingredients and cooking. 

The Dining Room was designed by Viscount Linley (the Queen’s nephew) - restrained and elegant, the room has plain white walls but for a few coats of arms and two strategically placed bouquets of flowers. It is a large, airy room with luxurious cream-coloured carpets and chairs, and plenty of natural light. 

This was the perfect spot to enjoy a glass of refreshing Billecart Salmon Rosé from the restaurant’s Champagne trolley. I love the idea of a Champagne trolley – it excites me nearly as much as a cheese trolley, but more on that later.  

There were so many starters on the menu that tempted me, that I was torn between choices. But one dish just had to be ordered – The Goring’s signature Eggs Drumkilbo.

The Queen Mother’s favourite, Eggs Drumkilbo was invented at Drumkilbo, a grand house in Perthshire, Scotland in the 1950s. Not your everyday prawn cocktail, this fine seafood concoction was a light mélange of lobster chunks and langoustine, soft quail egg, an aspic of seafood consommé, topped with fine radish slices, micro herbs and caviar. This was heavenly – refreshing, delicately seasoned and exquisitely textured. 

Our second starter was equally impressive - luscious poached Loch Duart salmon against crispy rock oyster tempura, served with a smattering of cucumber and green pepper brunoise, all brought together by a delectable oyster mayo.

Indecisive as I was in my choice of starters, I was thrilled to see my runner-up choice of beef tartare sent with compliments of the chef as an extra dish! This was a delectable number, made from hand-chopped Hereford beef fillet, seasoned with beer-pickled onions, mushroom ketchup, all topped with Parmesan and baby rocket.

The salt marsh lamb came as two perfectly cooked cutlets, with preserved lemon, grilled leek heart and a velvety smoked garlic potato mash. 

Better still was the saddle of Cumbrian fallow deer, served with roast Jerusalem artichoke, cavolo nero, venison sausage and curled pork crackling, pine nuts and quince dressing. This was a well-conceived dish, not only for the quality of its British ingredients, but also for how artfully and seemingly without effort all this came together.

The cheese trolley at The Goring is a thing of beauty. Crammed with a delectable spread of artisan British cheeses from every corner of the isles, I just couldn’t resist it. 

Offered as a dessert option, I begged the waiter to let me have it as a pre-dessert course on its own, and judging by my experience I would urge you to do the same. It will cost a little more but it’s money well spent. It was hard to choose among the dozens of options but we had five choices each of hard, blue, goat’s and sheep’s cheese. 

And now to dessert proper. The bitter chocolate ganache served with milk jam and milk ice cream was rich, not overly sweet, and just the right size. 

Also excellent was the black fig trifle - gorgeously presented, it was served with gingerbread, caramel and creamy buttermilk. Atop was a paper-fine ring of dark bitter chocolate studded with green pistachios and candied fruit. 

I was glad I did not have far to go after this meal, but to climb a flight of stairs to my room at The Goring and fall straight into bed. I don’t about you, but whenever I have a large meal in the evening I wake up starving next day. And how fortunate that breakfast awaited so close at hand. 

As part of the Dine & Stay package, guests can have either a continental breakfast (fresh juices, hot beverages, cheeses and ham, and a selection of breads and pastries) or a traditional English breakfast served in The Dining Room.

The latter included all of the above, plus a cooked option, and this was my choice. This was the full, traditional English breakfast, but a far cry from its greasy spoon cousin. With Burford Brown fried eggs, Lincolnshire pork sausage, bacon, black pudding, grilled tomatoes and mushrooms, it was a paean to all that is great in today’s British food and agriculture, and I savoured every mouthful of it. 

Likes: The Queen Mother knew a thing or two about food as those Eggs Drumkilbo were the business! Our meal at The Dining Room was exquisite and at £60 per person, it was also excellent value. The cheese trolley was legendary.

Dislikes: None.

Verdict: The Dine & Stay at The Goring is the last word in British luxury hospitality. Chef Shay Cooper is at the top of his game and I cannot think of a better place to try some of the finest British ingredients and cooking right now in London. Very highly recommended.

The London Foodie Goes to Spain’s Castilla-La Mancha – Theatres, National Parks and a Fabulous Lunch at Mesón El Bodegón!

February 17, 2017, 11:56 am

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The region of Castilla-La Mancha is one of Spain’s lesser-known jewels, though I discovered on a recent trip there an incredible richness of culture, culinary and otherwise.

Home to Miguel de Cervantes (the Shakespeare of Spain), the wondrous Windmills of Consuegra as featured in Don Quixote, and the most important cathedral in the country in Toledo, Castilla La Mancha is also a melting pot of Christians, Jews and Muslims making it one of the most culturally exciting and diverse places in Spain. 

I have written about the best restaurants in Toledo, Spain’s Gastronomic Capital of 2016, in a previous post which you can read here. Today I am sharing my other experiences of Castilla-La Mancha in the beautiful town of Almagro, known as the Theatre Town, the nearby Parque Nacional de las Tablas de Daimiel, and a fabulous lunch I enjoyed at Mesón El Bodegón.

Almagro

In the province of Ciudad Real in Castilla-La Mancha, Almagro is considered to be one of the most beautiful towns in Spain. Its heyday was in the 15th and 16th centuries, when the Fugger family (bankers to King Carlos V) lived in the town.

With cobblestoned streets and whitewashed walls on the centuries-old buildings, walking through it felt like stepping into a scene from a Pedro Almodovar film, who in fact is one of Castilla-La Mancha most notable sons. 

I was amazed by the gorgeous Plaza Mayor, the town’s highlight, with its fine arcaded and colonnaded buildings, each with green-framed windows, a legacy of the Fugger family’s influence.   

We arrived in the midst of a public fiesta – old ladies sat together crocheting lace – a specialty of the town. People were painting, kids were running around, giving an inspiring insight into the community living in Almagro. 

On one side of the square is the Corral de Comedias, a 16th century open-air theatre which regularly hosts performances of classical Spanish theatre. 

There were no performances on the day I was there, but travellers can still visit during the daytime and so I checked it out. It is a fascinating spot and the only theatre in Spain of this period. It is the Spanish equivalent of London’s Globe Theatre, except that it is an original building, not a recreation. 

Also worth a visit are the town’s Teatro Municipal de Almagro which was magnificently restored in the 1970s, and the National Museum of Theatre. 

These are among the venues of the Almagro’s International Festival of Classical Theatre, which takes place each July, and is a great opportunity for theatre lovers. For 2017’s full programme, visit the Festival’s website here.

Almagro is a charming town, where the pace of life seems to have gone unchanged for centuries. It is a great place to immerse yourself in the way of life of people in this part of Spain, with a proud, strong and interesting cultural heritage. 

The National Park of Tablas de Daimiel 

The Tablas de Daimiel is a huge area of protected marshland, located in the heart of La Mancha region. Created by the overflow where two rivers (the Guadiana and the Cigüela) meet, it is one of the most important wetlands in the world, with an impressive diversity of wildlife and stunning landscapes.  

I was there in Spring, and was able to see a huge range of multi-coloured birds and waterbirds rearing their young. Great-crested grebes, herons, egrets and Iberian ducks are common visitors here.  

The National Park of Tablas de Daimiel is a great place for walking through meadows of wild flowers, hiking, bird-watching or just chilling out, and I highly recommend a visit.

Lunch at Mesón El Bodegón

Headed by brothers Chef Rubén and award-winning Sommelier Ramon Sanchez-Camacho and their mother Maria Infante, Mesón El Bodegón is one of the top restaurants in Daimiel. I had a fantastic 9-course tasting menu there at the staggeringly good value price of €44, plus €20 for a matching wine flight. 

In the little town of Daimiel, the restaurant may not look much from its exterior, but the quality of its food is superb and the cavernous wine cellar is a sight to behold. The site was the family’s winery from 1795 to 1975 before being converted into a restaurant. 

We started with a visit to the wine cellar, and a glass of local bubbly expertly sabraged by Ramon. 

Returning to the dining room, our Manchego (of La Mancha) culinary adventure began. There were so many highlights - I thoroughly enjoyed his green and black foie “olives” with delicate skins made from apple (green) and sweet wine (black), served with chorizo migas and marmalade, olive oil and saffron.

Another noteworthy dish was Rubén’s delectable version of Castilian soup, a rather rustic affair normally made with egg yolk, ham, paprika and garlic. Here, it was elevated to another level with a delicate quail egg yolk, steamed garlic, saffron, and Iberico ham.

Next up was a super-crispy morsel of octopus, utterly tender on the inside, served with the chef’s red wine mayonnaise.

A month-old kid (baby goat) was meltingly soft, cooked sous-vide at 40°C for 18 hours, and served with chanterelle and perrichicos mushrooms, and a velvety carrot cream.  

I was very impressed by the quality of Rubén’s cooking, and the lightness and sophistication of his dishes. He explained that many of these dishes were his reinterpretation of La Mancha’s food classics. I highly recommend Mesón El Bodegón, if you are visiting the region, please see the restaurant details in the Travel Essentials section.

The #InLaMancha campaign was created and sponsored by Turismo Castilla La Mancha in partnership with iambassador. The London Foodie maintains full editorial control over all content published on this site as always.

Travel Essentials

Almagro and Ciudad Real are about 2 hours drive or 50 minutes by train from Madrid.

Corral de Comedias
Plaza Mayor, 18
13270 Almagro
Ciudad Real
Spain

Almagro’s Municipal Theatre 
Calle San Agustín, 20
13270 Almagro
Spain

National Museum of Theatre
Calle Gran Maestre, 2
13270 Almagro
Spain

Almagro’s International Festival of Classical Theatre
http://www.festivaldealmagro.com

National Park of Tablas de Daimiel
Carr. a las Tablas de Daimiel
13250 Daimiel
Spain

Mesón El Bodegón 
Calle Luchana 20
13250 Daimiel
Cuidad Real
Spain
http://www.mesonbodegon.com

The London Foodie Goes to Spain’s Castilla-La Mancha – The Historic Town of Consuegra for Saffron G&Ts and Tilting at Windmills

February 21, 2017, 2:30 am

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Travelling through the region of Castilla-La Mancha in Spain, I got to experience much of what this part of the country has to offer – the fabulous cooking, and affordable fine dining scene in Toledo, reviewed here, as well as the charming theatre town of Almagro, and the nearby Parque Nacional de las Tablas de Daimiel, a great place for bird watching, hiking and communing with nature, which I also wrote about here.

In this third feature, I report on the tiny town of Consuegra in Castilla-La Mancha, situated between Cuidad Real and Toledo. This is the home of the famous windmills of Consuegra, which were immortalised in Cervantes’ classic book Don Quixote. 

Molinos de Viento de Consuegra (the Windmills of Consuegra)

The twelve huge windmills are on the top of a hill, and originally served to grind wheat flour. 

Each has its own name, and at the Bolero windmill you will find the Tourist Office. 

Here it is also possible to see the grinding stone and the full mechanism from inside the windmill.

But the best thing to do here is to walk around the white windmills, taking stock of the wonderful scenery of the castle and the surrounding hills.  

Saffron Gin & Tonic at Café La Antigua

Spain is one of the top quality producers of saffron in the world, and here at Consuegra, one of the most enjoyable ways to try this highly prized spice is in a good old-fashioned G&T, as I discovered at the Café La Antigua. 

Barman Jesus fixed us some mean G&Ts at Café La Antigua, and I was intrigued to see that the saffron strands were frozen into the ice cubes, rather than used to infuse the gin as I have done in the past. This version made for a subtly coloured and flavoured cocktail, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The town is also known for its hojaldre, a sugared puff pastry treat that went down very well with our saffron G&Ts. 

Café La Antigua is a great stop on the way to or from the windmills of Consuegra.

Museo Casa de Cervantes in Esquivias

If you have read Don Quixote or have an interest in the life and work of Miguel Cervantes, I would recommend a visit to the Museo Casa de Cervantes. 

Situated in the town of Esquivias in the province of Toledo, Castilla-La Mancha, Museo Casa de Cervantes was originally the 16th century home of the eponymous writer and his wife Caterina de Palacios. The building has been painstakingly restored and gives a real feel for how Cervantes and Caterina might have lived their lives. 

This is also where Cervantes did a lot of his writing, and is therefore a place of great historic significance. It is thought that many of his characters were inspired by the town of Esquivias and its inhabitants, which contributed to his extraordinary literary creations within the walls of this house. 

Adjacent to the house there is an impressive exhibition of sketches bringing to life the fascinating life story of Spain’s most famous writer.  This is a great place to spend a couple of hours learning all about Cervantes.

Wines from the Land of Don Quixote 

Located in Bargas in the Province of Toledo, Bodega Finca Loranque is a 200-year-old winery, and is among the oldest in the region. Perhaps paradoxically, the winery is equipped with state of the art technology, which helps it produce some of the most prized wines of the area. 

Castilla-La Mancha is one of Spain’s most important wine producing regions, with nine Denominaciónes de Origen (DOs). It is the largest continuous vine growing area in the world, and consequently it is also where more than half of the country’s grapes are grown. 

Historically known for the bulk production of table wine, recent years (and particularly 1986 when Spain joined the European Union) have seen a winemaking revolution which has transformed the image and quality of Castilla-La Mancha’s wines.

At Bodega Finca Loranque we were told that both large producers and single estates in Castilla-La Mancha now employ modern wine making technologies, combined with a judicious selection of grape varieties to make the most of the challenging Continental climate – with very hot summers and very cold winters. As a result only grape varieties which can tolerate such testing conditions are planted, including Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha and Syrah.

On our visit to Bodega Finca Loranque, we had a wine tasting with the winemaker. The tasting started with a Finca Loranque 2013 Syrah-Tempranillo 50:50 blend. Aged for fourteen months in French and American oak barrels, this had powerful red fruit compote quality with hints of liquorice.

Next up was the Finca Loranque 2013 Cencibel, the first vintage of this new wine. It came from a small 2-hectare vineyard plot, and only 4,000 bottles were made. With cherry colour, aromatic herbs, red fruit, vanilla and cinnamon and a balancing acidity, this was an elegant and rounded wine, with well-integrated tannins and a medium finish. 

Better still was the Loranque de La Cruz 2013, made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Hand harvested and aged 16 months in oak barrique, this had powerful aromas of deep red fruit, with vanilla and cedar notes, balanced tannins and great length. This is the top wine of the range, and I purchased a few bottles to bring home. 

Bodega Finca Loranque is open for visits and tastings, and presents a great opportunity to learn about some of the well made wines of Castilla-La Mancha. For more details, see the Travel Essentials section below. 

The #InLaMancha campaign was created and sponsored by Turismo Castilla La Mancha in partnership with iambassador. The London Foodie maintains full editorial control over all content published on this site as always.

Travel Essentials

Molinos de Viento de Consuegra (Windmills of Consuegra)

45700 Consuegra

Toledo

Spain

Café La Antigua

Plaza España, 5

45700 Consuegra

Toledo

Spain

Museo Casa de Cervantes

Plaza Miguel de Cervantes, 0

45221 Esquivias

Toledo

Spain

Bodega Finca Loranque

S/N 45593

Toledo

Spain

http://www.fincaloranque.com

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Fine Wines, Epoisse and Gingerbread – The London Foodie goes to Burgundy

February 24, 2017, 3:30 am

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I recently returned to the French region of Burgundy, as part of the #VisitFrenchWine campaign - I spent three heavenly days learning all about Bourgogne’s wines, fine produce, and its dining scene, the latter of which I wrote about in detail here.  If you are planning a visit to Dijon, you will find some great restaurant recommendations there.

Today I am sharing my experiences exploring the wines and Climats of Burgundy, the great ingredients and dishes I discovered, and some amazing things to do in the region. 

Learning About the Wines of Burgundy and its Climat

Discovering the Routes des Grands Crus with Bourgogne Gold Tours

Going on a private 1:1 wine tour of the region might seem a bit intimidating, but I need not have worried as I was in the capable hands of Bourgogne Gold Tour’s founder Youri Lebault. Wine education is a real skill, and I know only a handful of people who can deliver such specialist knowledge in an accessible and engaging way. Well Youri had plenty of all that!

Our wine tour took in the wonderful Routes des Grands Crus in Burgundy, the region for the world’s best Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays, but also home to some great Gamays and refreshing Aligoté wines. The route runs from Dijon in the north, through the lovely central town of Beaune, as far as Santenay in the south. 

As I only had a morning, the tour took in only the northern-most region - the Côte de Nuits, from Dijon to Corgoloin. This is the most prestigious stretch of the route, as it contains some of the greatest red wines in the world including 24 of Burgundy’s 33 Grand Crus (the highest classification in the region).

We set out from Dijon, heading along the Côte de Nuits, passing stunning vineyards with golden-leaved, autumnal vines – it was a sight to behold. We went past a number of villages on the way and I recognized some evocative names I knew only through wine bottles and their contents – Marsannay, Gevrey-Chambertin and Morey-St-Denis for example. 

Just before Chateau Clos de Vougeot, when I thought we were stopping for a photo-opportunity, Youri whipped out some of his maps and charts of the region for a 10-minute crash course in situ. One of the most interesting things I learned that day was about the climats of Burgundy, and by the way this is nothing to do with climate!  

So what is climat? You can think of climat as a term used in Burgundy for a single vineyard plot. To understand the way climat is used, it helps to understand terroir first. Terroir is a French term that translates loosely into “sense of place”, suggesting how the combination of climate, soil type and typography influence the way a wine turns out. Given that terroir refers to this concept, then climat refers to an actual plot that is unique because of its geographic characteristics or terroir. The climat classification is unique to the region of Burgundy, and in 2015 UNESCO recognized the climat of Burgundy for its World Heritage List.  

So what does this mean for the wine buyer? The idea is that every plot of land in the narrow strip between Dijon and Santenay will make for a unique wine style due to its soil and location. Consequently, some climats are more prized than others – there are those that are tiny and produce small amounts of Grand Crus wine which will be then be dearer than other larger sites. 

Our second stop was at the Chateau du Clos de Vougeot, a 12th century chateau built by the Cistercian monks. 

While the Chateau is not strictly speaking open, you can visit a number of its working buildings that house four huge presses, the cellar and the dormitory of the lay brothers whose magnificent woodwork dates from the 14th century.  

Burgundy Wine Tasting

Chatezu du Clos de Vougeot is a great place for a visit with a real sense of place, and to take in the history of almost 1,000 years of wine making in Burgundy. From here, we drove a short distance to La Maison Vougeot to finally try out the eponymous wine. 

La Maison Vougeot is a modern wine boutique kitted out with oenomatic machines keeping wines in the perfect condition and temperature for tasting. 

It is similar in style to The Sampler or Vagabond in London, with a card to purchase credit before embarking on a tasting session. 

It’s a very elegant spot, and a great place to try a huge variety of the wines of Burgundy in 25ml measures, without committing to a full glass or bottle. It was here that we tasted a measure of the magnificent Vougeot Clos du Prieuré Monopole 2014. 

Our next stop on the tour was at the biodynamic winery Domaine Michel Magnien for a great tasting of some of Burgundy’s iconic wines. 

These included 2012 vintages of Morey Saint Denis (€69), Chambolle-Musigny Vielles Vignes (€48) and their Premiere Cru, Borniques (€50), the lovely Gevrey-Chambertin Aux Echezeaux and finally the Grand Cru Charmes-Chambertin at a whopping €90 per bottle. 

Made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes, these fine wines at their best are deep ruby in colour, and express aromas of strawberry, blackcurrant, liquorice and spice. With age, they develop power and elegance, with a full and complex body. It is not hard to understand why these are some of the most sought-after wines in the world.

Lunch at Le Castel Très Girard

The end of our tour was a fabulous lunch at the nearby restaurant Le Castel Très Girard, which is also a small boutique hotel. Here I had two of the Chef Chern Gan’s specialties, which included some of Burgundy’s finest ingredients.

A delectable starter of escargot (snail) ravioli in parsley butter served with a refreshing glass of Saint-Romain, Alan Gras, 2014, a wonderful Chardonnay I enjoyed so much I bought six before returning to London, but more on that later. 

It was my last meal of the trip, so of course I had to order the Beouf Bourgignon for main course. Served with a gratin dauphinois, this was perhaps the best I had on the trip. Succulent, tender meat in a richly intense wine sauce that saw me scraping my plate with relish!

To accompany, I had another taste of Morey Saint Denis, but this time a 2013 from Domaine Arlaud, which had a great depth of berry fruit flavour and sufficient structure and length to partner the mighty beef.

Burgundy Wine Buying at Grands Bourgognes

The Castel Très Girard Hotel & Restaurant is owned by a wine merchant whom Youri seemed to know well. His wine business, Grands Bourgognes has a mind-boggling selection of every type of Burgundian wine (see details in the Travel Essentials section).

As I was returning to London by Eurostar (with no weight limit), I decided to pay a visit to stock up my cellar. Grands Bourgogne is a huge warehouse with a shop out front, in an industrial estate outside Dijon, much like a massive Majestic Winestore. Perhaps because of this, there is a wide range of wines for every budget, including some affordable Grand Crus and Cremants de Bourgognes. It is also possible to purchase online for delivery in the UK, and I highly recommend it.

When it comes to wine travel, France has so much to offer. Like the Routes des Grands Crus, there are popular wine touring routes all over the country, including in Champagne, the Loire Valley, Bordeaux and the Rhone, but few are as picturesque or with so many legendary names as the one in Burgundy.

If you are planning a visit to discover more about Burgundy’s wine routes and to taste some fantastic wines on the way, I highly recommend one of the many itineraries provided by Bourgogne Gold Tours. 

Discovering Burgundy’s Finest Ingredients

Dijon International Gastronomy Fair

Every year the Dijon International Gastronomy Fair takes up residence for two weeks in November. This is a major event in Burgundy, and the sixth biggest in the country, attracting nearly 200,000 visitors, and over 600 exhibitors each year from across 
the world. 

I spent some very enjoyable hours talking to many French food producers from different areas of France. Some of these included La Biscuiteria Basque, where I tried their superb Basque Gateaux, the nougat makers from La Maison du Nougat, and my very favourite, the lovely people from Le Domaine Macarons de Réau who make old fashioned macarons of every flavour and colour. They were delicious. 

The Dijon International Gastronomic Fair is a great day out in town and a fantastic opportunity to learn and sample a huge variety of French produce and dishes.  

Cheeses of Burgundy

Burgundy is not only about its wines, but the cheeses are also noteworthy. I got to visit Fromagerie Gaugry for a fantastic cheese tasting of 4 different cheeses of the region including Epoisse, Brillat Savarin, and L’Ami du Chambertin. 

Priced at €12.50, the tasting also included and a glass of wine and a guided tour of the factory with a detailed explanation of the various processes in cheese making. 

Fromagerie Gaugry is well outside the centre of town on the RD974 road between Dijon and Nuits St Georges, and while I would not normally pay a special visit, it happens to be just a few metres from the Grands Bourgognes wine store, which makes it a great stop if you fancy stocking up on cheese as well as wines before returning to the UK.

Dijon Mustard

A visit to Dijon would not be complete without paying homage to the city’s eponymous mustard. There are two stores that really stand out – La Maison Maille, and Edmond Fallot. 

I am a total convert to Maille mustard, and have written about it in detail following a fantastic tasting at the Maille boutique in London’s Piccadilly, which you can read here.  There is so much more to mustard than just a spread on your ham sandwich. There are so many different types of mustard and ways of cooking with it that I found it a truly eye-opening experience. 

Edmond Fallot have been making mustard in Dijon since 1840, and are another big name for quality mustards of Dijon. I paid a quick visit to their store and was astounded by the variety of flavoured mustards available. 

One to note was the yuzu mustard which I got to try and it blew me away with its flavour intensity. I would love to be able to cook with it if it were available in the UK. 

Pain d’Epices

Around the corner from Edmond Fallot’s mustard store is the charming Pain d’Epices Mulot et Petitjean, founded in 1796. 

An enchanting shop, it is known for its Pain d’Epices (usually translated as ginger bread although it does not contain any ginger). 

Pain d’Epices is a sweet, dense bread that comes in many shapes and sizes, and sometimes coated in a sugar glaze or filled with blackcurrant (cassis) jam, another important ingredient in the region. 

I found it delicious on its own, but was told it makes for great toast topped with pan-fried foie gras and a cassis-based sauce. I had a tasting at the shops old kitchen of the different styles of Pain d’Epices, with a classic pairing of Crème de Cassis. 

Mulot et Petitjean is the top maker of Pain d’Epice in France, and for Londoners, it is the French equivalent of Fortnum & Mason. I highly recommend a visit and tasting here. 

Crème de Cassis

It was also at Mulot et Petitjean that I discovered the region’s fondness for cassis (blackcurrant). The berry is a major ingredient in the cooking and drinks of Burgundy. 

It was a former mayor of Dijon named Felix Kir, who invented the first cassis cocktail, the Kir, made with two local drinks - Aligoté white wine and crème de cassis. Everyone knows Kir Royale made with crème de cassis and Champagne, but this was a fancier version of the Dijonnaise original.

What to Do

Owl Trail

You may be surprised to learn that between the wine tours, cheese tastings and other indulgences, I still managed to explore the old town on foot!

Dijon’s Owl Trails are self-guided walking tours with 22 stages designed to give a taste of city’s charm and to take you back in time and show you the history of the town. 

Each numbered stage takes a place of interest and a whole trail can be covered on foot in about one hour. There are 3 trails covering different areas and aspects of the city. 

Having no sense of direction whatsoever, I still managed not to get lost as the trail is so clearly marked by brass owls in the pavement for every stage, with painted dots joining the owls along the route. It was great!

Tower of Philippe le Bon

One of the best stops was at the Tower of Philippe le Bon, Duke of Burgundy between 1419 and 1467. 

It is possible to have a guided tour of the tower, climbing 316 steps to the top for commanding views of the city. 

This must be booked at the Dijon Tourist Office (€3 per person) where the tour begins.

Where to Stay

I stayed at the Hotel Vertigo, a chic hotel in the heart of the city overlooking Place Darcy, and a few metres away from Rue de la Liberté.

The building was constructed in 1926, and is now listed, but inside it has been ultra-modernised - my room had some wacky features like a ‘floating’ bed, and a huge mirror that doubled as a TV (which I only discovered by pressing the remote control button). 

The hotel felt intimate, with a small spa and swimming pool, a fitness centre, and a beautifully designed and welcoming lounge area. 

The tram stop is right outside the hotel, which was handy to get me to the International Gastronomic Fair and to explore the city. 

Best of all was the hotel’s breakfast buffet, with a generous selection of great cheeses, freshly squeezed juices, charcuterie and patisserie including breads, cakes and croissants. 

There were also some cooked options, served in individual cast-iron cocottes. I loved the velvety, creamy scrambled eggs, and the ham and sausage.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Hotel Vertigo offers free use of the latest BMW electric bikes for its guests to explore the city. I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at Hotel Vertigo, and thought it was a convenient location for all that Dijon has to offer. 

As you plan your trip to Dijon, bookmark this page and make sure to visit any of these venues to experience the best of Bourgogne cuisine, wines and hospitality in town.

The #VisitFrenchWine campaign was created and managed by Captivate in partnership with ATOUT FRANCE– France Tourism Development Agency. The London Foodie maintains full editorial control of the content published on this site as always.

Travel Essentials

Bourgogne Gold Tours
Mr Youri Lebault
+33 (0)6.60.88.50.55
www.bourgogne-gold-tour.com

La Maison Vougeot
1 Rue du Viewx Chateau
21649 Vougeot
France

Le Castel Très Girard
7 Rue du Très Girard
21220 Morey-Saint-Denis
France
http://www.castel-tres-girard.com/fr/le-restaurant.html

Grands Bourgognes
ZAA Le Saule
Chemin de Saule
21220 Brochon
France
www.grandsbourgognes.com 

Dijon International Gastronomic Fair 
http://www.foirededijon.com/fr/decouvrir/presentation.746__1445.php

Domaines des Macarons de Réau
Rue Frédéric Sarazin
77550 Réau
France
Newgirl.macarons-de-reau.com

Fromagerie Gaugry
RD 974
21220
Brochon 
http://gaugryfromager.fr/home

La Maison Maille
32 Rue de la Liberté
21000 Dijon
France
www.maille.com

Edmond Fallot
16 Rue de la Chouette
21000 Dijon
France
www.fallot.com

Pain d’Epices Mulot et Petitjean
13 Place Bossuet
21000 Dijon
France
www.mulotpetitjean.fr

Dijon Tourist Office
11 Rue des Forges
21000 Dijon
France
http://www.burgundy-tourism.com

Dijon’s Owl Trail
http://www.destinationdijon.com/en/dijon-visite-parcours_chouette.htm

Tower Philippe le Bon
Palais des Ducs de Bourgogne
21000 Dijon
France
http://www.destinationdijon.com/en/dijon-visite-montee_de_la_tour_philippe_le_bon.htm

Hotel Vertigo
3 Rue Devosge
21000 Dijon
France
http://www.vertigohoteldijon.com/en/

Jersey #theislandbreak - Jersey Royals, Cows and Much More!

February 28, 2017, 8:31 am

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For an island of 45 square miles, Jersey really packs a punch – on a recent trip to the island I came to discover a place with fascinating history, great natural beauty, and one of few places in the UK with such a concentration of top quality produce – think Jersey royals, Jersey cows’ milk, Jersey oysters and lobsters, and more!

I have written about some of the great meals I had and restaurants I visited during this trip in an earlier post which you can see here, but today I would like to share some of Jersey’s fantastic local produce and the people behind them I was lucky enough to meet. 

The Big 4 

Jersey is home to a plethora of fine agricultural products and seafood, but four ingredients are the cornerstones of the island’s reputation for excellence. 

Jersey Oysters

With its huge tidal range and some of the cleanest seawater in Europe, Jersey is the perfect place to farm high quality oysters. The Island’s fast-changing and nutrient-rich waters provide an abundance of food which allows filter-feeding oysters to grow quickly and obtain a clean, fresh flavour. Over the two years it takes to cultivate an oyster, its development is closely monitored to ensure its purity, cleanliness and succulent taste. 

My first taste of Jersey oysters was at Faulkner Fisheries, where I met owner Shaun Faulkner. Nestled inside an old WW2 German bunker at L’Etacq in St Ouen, Faulkner Fisheries is the supplier of fresh seafood to Mark Jordan from Ocean, at The Atlantic Hotel reviewed here. 

The various rooms of the German bunker were turned into a series of tanks where the live local shellfish are stored including lobster, crab and spider crab, oysters and more. The tanks are filled with continuously flowing seawater to keep the produce in peak condition. 

Faulkner Fisheries also has a shop where locals and visitors can take home fish to enjoy with a bottle of wine, which is also sold on the premises.

In the warmer months, Faulkner Fisheries offers their famous seafood barbecue, which I hear is the place to be for the best grilled seafood on the island. I will need to return in summer to experience that, but on this visit, in early November, I got to try their famous oysters.

Smaller than the more familiar rock (Pacific) oysters, Jersey oysters have a greater concentration of flavour, seaweed and flinty mineral. 

If you haven’t tried Jersey oysters, I urge you to - without exaggeration, they are the tastiest oysters I have eaten. With 80% of all Jersey’s seafood sold to France, if you find them on a British menu, you will be in for a treat. 

Jersey Lobsters

Jersey’s coast and seabed is mostly rock, creating many hiding places for lobster to grow and feed in safety. Clear, shallow waters coupled with strong sunshine and a large tidal range also combine to provide an ideal marine environment. 

I had the opportunity to try the Jersey lobsters during a lunch at Mark Jordan on the Beach, you can read the review here. Slightly smaller than their Canadian counterpart, and perhaps because they are sustainably sourced at the peak of maturity, it had a deliciously firmer, sweeter and meatier flesh than other lobsters I have tried. 

Jersey Royals

For many, the first Jersey Royal marks the arrival of spring so it is no surprise that the island’s iconic tuber is one of the most longed-for seasonal foods and its principal agricultural export. 

Besides being unique to Jersey, the Jersey Royal enjoys EU ‘Protection of Designation of Origin’ (PDO) status in the same way that Champagne can only be produced in the French region bearing its name. In the other words, Jersey Royals can only come from Jersey. 

The variety has been grown for over 130 years on the island, since around 1880. Today, the Jersey Royal accounts for over 70 per cent of all produce grown in the island, yet despite being farmed on an industrial scale, many traditional methods are still used, such as using seaweed as natural fertilizer.

The Jersey soil is light and well drained and many farmers still use seaweed harvested from Jersey beaches as a natural fertilizer (it is known locally as Vraic). Jersey has some of the most formidable tidal flows in the world, and the strong movement of the sea deposits large quantities of vraic on the shore. The practice of using vraic on the land dates back to the 12th century.

The Jersey Royal season begins in November with planting under glass. The main outdoor crop is planted from January to April with harvesting from the end of March through to the July. 

As my visit was in early November, I was able to see some of the process of preparing for the coming year’s Jersey Royal crop with Christine Hellio at her farm, the Vinchelez. The selection and grading of the “mother” potatoes has to be done with great care, and they are packed upright and closely in boxes before being transported around the island for planting. 

However some of the restaurants on the island will serve Jersey Royals even in November, and this was my experience at Café Zephyr. Here I had a fantastic pan-roasted seabass, with tiger prawns, a rich lobster bisque, beurre blanc and Jersey royals. I wrote in more detail about this in my first posting on Jersey’s best eateries here.

At Christine’s Vinchelez Farm, I also saw my first honesty box. This is a common sight throughout the island, where farmers will place their produce for sale on the road or at the farm entrance, alongside an honesty box. I can’t see this taking off in London somehow!

Jersey Dairy

The Jersey cow in its current pure-bred form has been a feature of the Island’s landscape for more than 200 years. Renowned worldwide for its creamy, high quality milk, all Jersey cattle on the island are registered in the Jersey Herd Book, which was established in 1866 to guarantee the pedigree of the breed, much akin to Japanese Wagyu cattle. 

Today, there are around 4,000 Jersey cattle on the island, of which 3,000 are ‘in milk’, calving all year round to ensure regular supply of milk to the Jersey Dairy (formerly the Jersey Milk Marketing Board). This cooperative produces and markets Jersey dairy goods including milk, cream, ice cream, butter, cheese and yoghurt. 

It is illegal to import milk into Jersey, which helps to maintain an autonomous high quality dairy industry in the home of the famous breed. As might be expected, there is a reciprocal ban of imports of fresh Jersey milk from the island to the UK, so all the Jersey dairy you see on sale in your local supermarket is from Jersey cows farmed in the UK. It might be delicious, but it’s not the real McCoy. I was very surprised to learn this because I had always assumed that Jersey milk came from Jersey.

This ambiguity is an issue that has been tackled since the 2001 formation of the Genuine Jersey Products Association, which has created a system of authentication and a logo to certify genuine Jersey produce created on the island from dairy to agriculture to clothing. So look out for the symbol below if you want to purchase the genuine island article.

My experience of real Jersey Dairy was in the form of some excellent ice cream from MiniOti, in the company of the charming Anna Boletta, one of the founders of MiniOti. As parents, she and her business partner wanted to create a delicious but healthier ice cream for the whole family with no processed sugar or artificial sweeteners. 

They use stevia instead of refined sugar - a natural sweetener with zero calories, and up to 150 times sweeter than sugar, it is thought not to have the same harmful effects. In addition to having no refined sugars, the ice cream is probiotic, carrying live cultures which are thought to be beneficial to the intestinal tract, and is made from 100% Jersey milk and cream. 

But the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so how did they taste? They were delicious – all that Jersey milk made them luxuriously creamy, and I honestly could not tell the difference between sugar and Stevia in their ice cream. 

The Makers and Shakers of Jersey’s Artisan Produce 

During my short trip to Jersey, I visited a few other local producers, thanks to John Garton, Chief Executive of the Genuine Jersey Products Association (and weekend male model, but that story is for another day!) who drove me the length and breadth of the island to meet some of the makers and shakers of Jersey’s artisan produce

Many of these products are only available in Jersey, so as you plan your trip, make sure to find the time to try some of these at the island’s delis, restaurants and farmers’ markets during your stay.  

Liberation Brewery

One of these makers and shakers was Paul Hurley, the Beer Master from Liberation Brewery. It is Paul who creates all the blends, and decides the styles and flavours for all Liberation beers – not a bad job!

The brewery's beers are part of Jersey's rich history, and brewing has continued uninterrupted even during the First World War and the German Occupation from June 1940 to May 1945.

Liberation Brewery’s beers include Liberation Blonde and Ale, Ambrée, Noire (a stout beer), Rouge, and a Liberation IPA, among others. The brewery’s flagship cask ale, Liberation Ale, has picked up several international awards over the years. 

Paul gave me a brief introduction to what goes into the making of their beers, the different types of malt and hops, and the whole brewing process, finishing with a tasting. 

Visits and tastings are open to the public, and for full details, see Liberation Brewery's address and website details in the Travel Essentials section below.   

Fresh Fish Co

No self-respecting foodie’s trip to Jersey is complete without a visit to Fresh Fish Co. There I met the owner Vikki who has a real passion for the fish, seafood and produce of Jersey, and her shop is a testament to that love. 

You will find everything there from the freshest fish to Jersey’s own sea salt, honey, artisan bread, salted caramel sauce and many other kinds of yumminess. I spent a lot of time going through the shelves of her shop in awe – it’s a real gourmand’s paradise.

Vicki also prepares a lot of food to order, and on the busy Sunday morning I was visiting, a steady stream of customers (all of whom she knew by name) came in to collect magnificent seafood platters, coquille St Jacques, salmon en croute, crab and fish cakes, all ready for the oven or table. 

I highly recommend a visit to Fresh Fish Co in St Helier, and if you do, say hello to Vicki for a crash course in Jersey’s finest. 

Heritage Jersey Apple Tree and Press 

Hans Van Oordt worked as a garden designer in Jersey for many years before deciding to move into apple farming and making fresh apple juice from Jersey heritage apples. 

A few years ago he became aware that there were very few orchards on the island with traditional Jersey apple varieties. Since Jersey was once famed for its apples, this seemed an unfortunate state of affairs. 

His interest in Jersey apples coincided with the growth in the popularity of small-scale craft cider making. And so, not wanting to see the loss of many ancient varieties unique to Jersey, he started propagating and selling them. 

Heritage Jersey Apple Press had its first crop in 2014, after years of painstaking work and slow maturing of the trees. This was when they launched their brand new pressed apple juice products. 

They make three types of pressed apple juice – there is an Early Season Pressing, a Mid Season Pressing and a Late Season Pressing. 

Hans explained to me that all the varieties are different in taste and colour: “One of the joys of apples is their variety. As the season unfolds, different apple varieties strike different notes of sweetness, acidity, flavour and aroma” he told me. Hans’ pressed apple juice is a blend of traditional Jersey varieties, as well as others, and the composition of each batch changes as the season progresses.

I was there to see Hans pressing a batch of apples for juice. All the juice is made from squeaky clean handpicked apples with no sugar or sweetener added, macerated then the juice gently extracted using a bladder press of the type used for making Beaujolais. It is 100% pure pressed apple juice with only some Vitamin C added to stop it from oxidising.

The juice is then gently pasteurised so it has a shelf life of 12 months, or 3 days once opened if kept refrigerated. I was there for the late harvest pressing, and the juice was tart, sweet and delicious.  

Meet Jon Hackett the Pig Farmer

At a time of life when the average person thinks about slowing down, Jon Hackett of Brooklands Farm retired from a successful career in the mortgage and investment business to develop his hobby and passion for life as a pig farmer. 

Today, more than a decade on, the family business has grown from keeping a few pigs into a thriving concern, with Jon’s wife, Jenny, and son, Jono, working alongside him and a professional butcher.

Brooklands Farm is tucked away at the end of Longfield Avenue – a residential estate - off Route des Gènets in St Brelade, with breathtaking views of the sea. However, the tell-tale signs are clearly visible from the main road where pigs and piglets contentedly graze and forage freely without a care in the world. 

I had a tour of Jon’s farmhouse overlooking St Brelade’s Bay, where the basement is dedicated to a butchery and commercial kitchen. Here I had the chance to try one of his fantastic pork pies.

Apart from visiting his farm, you can also try his produce at the famers’ market at the weekends, where he has a trailer with his trademark “Me and the Farmer” logo, serving up locally produced beef burgers, as well as pork ribs and sausages flavoured with local ingredients like Jersey lavender and black butter. 

Jersey War Tunnels

During my stay, I had a Jersey Island 2-day Pass, costing £32 (also available for 4 or 6 days from Jersey Tourist Office). So, beyond the sandy beaches, stunning countryside and all the amazing food, what else is there to do in Jersey?

The Jersey Pass gives you free entry to 16 of the best attractions of the island, as well as giving discounts to a number of others including hotels and restaurants. Some of the attractions include the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, the Jersey Museum, the La Mare Wine Estate, and the Jersey War Tunnels to name just a few. 

You may be surprised to learn that with only two days on the island, and with a hectic itinerary of meals, farm visits and tastings, I still managed to find time to explore the Jersey War Tunnels with my Jersey Island Pass, and I’m so glad I did.  

Jersey War Tunnels is a poignant reminder of the German Occupation of Jersey During World War II. Dug deep into the hillside by forced workers, the tunnels bore witness to the cruelty of the Nazi regime. 

It is now home to a series of poignant exhibitions that detail Jersey’s occupation history from resistance, to starvation and eventual liberation. 

My Jersey #theislandbreak visit was sponsored by the Jersey Tourism Board, for more information about the island, please visit their website here. The London Foodie maintains full editorial control of the content published on this site as always.

Travel Essentials

I flew from London Gatwick to Jersey with British Airways but EasyJet, Flybe and Blue Islands also fly to Jersey. The flight takes approximately 30 minutes. Jersey is also accessibly by sea from Poole and Portsmouth with Condor Ferries. Visit www.condorferries.co.uk or call 0845 609 1024 to find out more.

There are many hire car companies at St Helier Airport, and I would strongly recommend you rent a car – there is no other practicable way to get around the island unless you rely on taxis. I hired mine with Hertz, visit their website at www.hertzci.com  for more information.

With thanks to Sommerville Hotel for a very comfortable stay and the great views overlooking the quaint harbour village of St. Aubin.

Somerville Hotel
Mont Du Boulevard, St Aubin, Jersey
www.somervillejersey.com

Genuine Jersey Products Association
I would like to thank John Garton of Genuine Jersey Products Association for his kindness showing me around his island and for introducing me to many of his association’s artisan members.
http://www.genuinejersey.com/

Faulkner Fisheries
The Vivier
La Grande Route Des Havres
St Ouen
Jersey
JE3 2FS
www.faulknerfisheries.co.uk 

Mark Jordan on the Beach
La Plage
La Route de la Haule, A1
St Peter
Jersey
JE3 7YD
www.markjordanatthebeach.com

Didier & Christine Hellio of Vinchelez Farm
Manor Farm 
Vinchelez
St Ouen 
Jersey
JE3 2DB 
http://www.genuinejersey.com/member/didierhellio

Café Zephyr
The Royal Yacht Hotel
Weighbridge
St Helier
Jersey
Channel Islands
T: +44 (0) 1534 720511
https://www.theroyalyacht.com/restaurants/cafe-zephyr

Minioti Ice Cream - Natasha Dowse & Anna Boletta
St Lawrence
Jersey
www.minioti.com/

Jersey Dairy
La Route de la Trinité
Trinity
Jersey
JE3 5JP
www.jerseydairy.com

Liberation Brewery
Tregear House
Longueville Road
Les Varines
St Saviour
Jersey
JE2 7WF
www.liberationgroup.com

Fresh Fish Company
Unit 5 Victoria Pier
St Helier 
Jersey
JE2 3NB
www.thefreshfishcompany.co.uk

Heritage Jersey Apple Tree and Press - Hans Van Oordt
Field House
Rue du Feugerel, St John
Jersey
JE3 4FX 
http://www.genuinejersey.com/member/heritagejerseyapplepress

Brooklands Farm - Jon Hackett
Long¬eld Avenue 
La Route des Genets
St Brelade 
Jersey JE3 8EB
http://www.meandthefarmer.co.uk

The Jersey War Tunnels 
Les Charrieres Malorey
St Lawrence
Jersey
JE3 1FU
www.jerseywartunnels.com

Food Photography - Which Has the Best Phone Camera: Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge or iPhone 6s?

March 3, 2017, 12:30 am

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I was recently approached by the mobile network provider Three, to review their new Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge for food photography. I am an iPhone 6s user, and an Apple die-hard, but decided to take on the task as I am a long-standing Three customer.

I have lost count of how many years I have been with Three, and as a food and travel writer, I can’t think of a better network to be on. This is mostly because of their “Feel At Home” countries, an ever-expanding list (currently 42, including almost all of the EU, the USA, Australia, and as far as Indonesia, Hong Kong and Macau), for a full list of countries, check the link here. I write this blog post from Sri Lanka, another Feel At Home country where I can surf the net, make phone calls and send text messages all using my UK contract allowance at no extra cost. It’s brilliant.

Anyway I digress. The purpose of this feature is to compare the cameras in my beloved iPhone 6s with the SamsungGalaxy S7 Edge, and how they fare in my food photography. I also describe the digital SLR camera and lens I use, recommend some excellent photo-editing applications for your phone, and share some tips on dealing with low light food photography situations.

Food photography using your phone camera

Phone cameras have come such a long way in the last few years. Today, I can get better photos from my camera phone than I was able to get from a domestic Sony digital camera just a couple of years ago. However, it’s surprising to note that even today, the quality of images varies tremendously from phone to phone.

For my food photography, I use a combination of my Canon DSLR 5d Mk III and a Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 lens, a fantastic bit of kit which is ideal for what I do, but also came at a huge cost. I am no professional photographer and I have very limited interest in learning the technicalities of cameras and photography – these bore me to death. Little by little though, I have been learning how to get the best out of my camera by asking questions, online research, and by trial and error.

But I still take lots of pictures using my iPhone 6s, because like everyone else I carry it with me all the time, and it’s the easiest way to share images on social media. My social media channels (Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and Facebook) are an extension of The London Foodie blog, so having a phone with the best camera I can get is paramount.

Use of photo editing software and filters

In addition to the practicality of having a phone with a good camera with me all the time rather than carrying a heavy camera around, there are several excellent photo-editing apps which are easily available to download on the mobile.

The two most popular apps are Lightroom and Snapseed.  I have both on my phone but I mainly use the latter – Snapseed is a great app to bring out the colour and light from your images which suffer when taken in low level light.

iPhone 6s Image - Before Snapseed Editing

In addition, Snapseed allows you to photoshop particular areas of a picture, if say one corner of an image is too dark, that can be corrected with this app. It also allows you to “heal” bits of an image, for instance deleting an unwanted person or object in the background.

 

iPhone 6s Image - After Snapseed Editing

There are also several filters to choose from in the app, although I find this feature too gimmicky for my taste – over the years I came to the conclusion that when editing images, less is definitely more or else you can end up with something that looks artificial and tortured.

Using your phone camera in low lighting settings

I never use flash in food photography, especially in a restaurant setting where it would be intrusive for other diners. Although I have seen flash being used by professional photographers with great results. But if you don’t know what you are doing, flash can completely kill the image, bleaching the food’s colour and making it look dull and flat. 

So when visiting to review a place with challenging light conditions, like dinner at a dimly-lit restaurant, I always take my iPad with me. I discovered a few years ago that bringing the well-lit white screen of the iPad close to a dish being photographed is a good way to provide discreet but uniform light, with minimal glare or unwanted reflection. I use this trick all the time.

If I happen not to have my iPad with me, but have a supportive and self-confident companion with a smartphone, I tend to use their phone torch with the light diffused by a napkin wrapped around the torchlight. This is my second-best option, but is far preferable to using direct torch-light, which again kills most food images.

If all else fails, I take my plate to where the light is – a bar, another table, even sometimes the kitchen, though of course this will not make for a very pleasant dinner.

Comparison of Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge vs iPhone 6s

While no phone compares to a good dedicated camera, the iPhone 6s and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge are believed to be two of the best options on the market. But how do they compare?

For this comparison, I have used the both phones’ automatic camera settings, and have not manipulated the images in any way – no editing or filters. This is the setting most people use on their phones.

I copied as a footnote a table of general specifications, focusing primarily on the display and camera functionalities, to compare the hard facts between the Galaxy S7 Edge and the iPhone 6s. I leave it to you to analyse this technical information, as this review is about my personal experience of using both phones’ cameras specifically for food photography.

You will probably note from this table that the camera specification for both phones is very comparable, except that the lens aperture differs.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge has a f/1.7 lens, compared with the iPhone 6s’ f/2.2. But what does this imply? It means that Samsung S7 lens has a wider aperture, and hence it will allow more light into the image whenever the lens opens. Don’t be confused by the lower denomination of the Samsung’s f number – the lower the number, the wider the aperture.

The Money Shots

I chose a lunchtime restaurant at King’s Cross’ The Lighterman, in a naturally well-lit dining room, to photograph the food using the  iPhone 6s and SamsungGalaxy S7 Edge cameras.

The first two shots, of deep-fried squid with chilli sauce, show a small but important differences. The Samsung in my opinion has sharper detail, and the image is brighter though colder.  The iPhone image has a yellowish tone to it, being warmer, and when you look closely the details are fuzzier.

Samsung S7 Edge

iPhone 6s

The next pair of images is a platter of starters. Here once again, the iPhone image is warmer, and the colours in my opinion are more intense. For me the Samsung image has let too much light in and the resulting photograph is over-exposed and bleached. However, the details are again sharper. 

iPhone 6s

Samsung 7 Edge

The next photographs from a dish of seared salmon and pineapple with diced red onion and micro-coriander, avocado and lime purée, though very similar at first glance, show startling differences in picture clarity, especially in close up.

Samsung S7 Edge

iPhone 6s

To illustrate this point, I have blown up the same image so that you can appreciate their detail. Notice the minute veins and creases visible on the back of the micro-coriander leaf from the Samsung image, which are blurred on the corresponding iPhone picture.

Samsung S7 Edge

iPhone 6s

Finally, the dessert was chocolate mousse with raspberry sorbet, fresh raspberries, lemon and lime zest, hazelnut and caramel.  Here, to conclude, we see a similar pattern – the iPhone image is warmer, darker, though the colours seem to have been tinted and the details are less clear. The Samsung on the other hand has let more light in, the colours are brighter and more true to the original (compare the blue colour of the plate between the two images – the iPhone’s is grey). Look also at the finely grated hazelnut over the chocolate mousse – it is much clearer in the Samsung image than the iPhone’s.

iPhone 6s

Samsung S7 Edge

Another common theme we have seen in all the images is that the Samsung photos are about 50% larger in Mb size, and the ISO used from the automatic setting is much higher in all the images.

Verdict

Technically speaking, the Samsung Galaxy S7Edge phone camera has slightly higher specification, and delivers clearer, brightly coloured food images, if somewhat overexposed under certain conditions. The wider lens aperture (f/1.7 vs f/2.2) allows more light into the image and the camera should fare better in low light levels. In addition, this phone camera offers a range of food related filters to photoshop with not found on the iPhone 6s.

The iPhone 6s takes warmer photographs, and is less prone to over-exposure, but suffers from a lower level of detail. The images seem fuzzier and of lower resolution though the range of colours is sometimes truer to the original than the Samsung S7 Edge.

However, having now both phones, I still do not believe I will be switching from my iPhone 6s to a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. From my perspective, the slight benefits of the Samsung camera do not outweigh the hassle of changing phone brands with everything that entails.

The Hard Facts: Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Vs iPhone 6s

GENERAL	Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge	iPhone 6s
Price (32GB model)	£589 on samsung.com/uk	£499 on apple.com/uk
Release date	February 2016	September 2015
Dimensions (mm)	150.90 x 72.60 x 7.70	138.30 x 67.10 x 7.10
Weight (g)	157.00	143.00
Battery capacity (mAh)	3600	1715
Colours	Black, Gold, Pink Gold, Silver, Blue	Silver, Gold, Space Grey, Rose Gold
DISPLAY
Screen size (inches)	5.50	4.70
Resolution	1440x2560 pixels	750x1334 pixels
CAMERA
Rear camera	12-megapixel	12-megapixel
Flash	Yes	Yes
Front camera	5-megapixel	5-megapixel
Aperture	f/1.7	f/2.2

Gourmet Tinned Fish & Seafood: A Spanish Delicacy to Reckon With

March 7, 2017, 12:30 am

≫ Next: The London Foodie Goes to Taiwan – Tainan the City of Snacks

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I first heard of the Spanish gourmet tinned fish industry (at the time with some skepticism) on a previous trip to Galicia in Northwestern Spain, a fantastic trip that I featured in The London Foodie (see the post here).

My curiosity was again piqued when I was invited by ANFACO (Asociación Nacional de Fabricantes de Conservas de Pescados – The National Association of Preserved Fish Producers) to return to Vigo in Galicia and learn all about the Spanish canned fish industry, but more on that later.

Vigo – Capital of Galicia

One of my favourite regions in Spain, Galicia is relatively undiscovered by the Brits, but it has so much going for it - most importantly top quality fish, seafood and wines. 

Vigo is home to the largest fishing port in the world, attracting fishing boats from across the seas arriving at the city to sell their catch, or as a starting point en route to other European destinations. 

On my latest visit, the port was bustling with numerous auctions taking place as we got there in the wee hours.

So fresh, good quality fish and seafood is in every Galician’s DNA – it is served and consumed from the most modest of eateries to Michelin-starred restaurants, making Spain one of the top 10 countries for their consumption of fish.

We experienced great fish and seafood everywhere we visited in Vigo and the surrounding areas. One restaurant to note was the Pigmalion Tavern in Vigo, a simple restaurant with a few outdoor tables close to the sea and where a lot of the local fishermen eat. We had some fantastic grilled razor clams here and a glass of super-chilled Galician Vermouth (the drink of choice with Galician seafood I am told). 

The grilled fish platter with potatoes and padron peppers was also excellent. The Pigmalion Tavern offers a fabulous value 3-course lunch menu with options such as gazpacho or home-made croquetas for starters, and paella mista or bacalao for main course, as well as bread, a drink and a dessert, all for €12. I enjoyed this restaurant and recommend it.

Around Vigo – Baiona and A Guarda

Baiona

We also had the opportunity to visit some of the gorgeous coastal towns close to Vigo. Only a thirty-minute drive is Baiona – a beautiful seaside town with lovely beaches and a long promenade.

The town is known for its many tapas bars and quaint architecture, and it is a holiday destination for many locals from Vigo.

Baiona is also home to the beautiful Parador Baiona Hotel Conde de Gondomar. State-owned, the Paradores de Turismo de España run a chain of spectacular hotels, often in restored historic properties like medieval castles, Renaissance palaces or former convents. Today there are 93 paradors across the country, often in spectacular locations, and they are always worth looking out for. 

The Parador Baiona Hotel Conde de Gondomar is set on the top of a steep hill overlooking the bay with the most commanding views, and is also a great spot for lunch and cocktails.

A Guarda

Further along the coast is A Guarda, another picturesque seaside town where we stopped for dinner. We had one of the best meals here at Restaurante Bitadorna, a seafood restaurant which is right on the promenade. They offer a 10-dish tasting menu for €55, but we went à la carte. 

It was great starting with a big platter of percebes (barnacles), and some local vermouth.

We also enjoyed some delectable grilled scallops with a brunoise of carrot, celery and courgette, and clams in pumpkin sauce.

The razor clams were just too good to resist and we had another big platter. This is not a budget eatery (seafood seldom is), but with so many choices along the promenade, this is a great restaurant with fantastic seafood and worth pushing the boat out a little. 

The Wines of Galicia – Rias Baixas

Another good reason to visit the region is their wine. The area of Rias Baixas in Galicia, home to the best Albariño wines in the world, has its own DO (Denominacion de Origen). Great wines are also made from other less known native grapes including Caiño Blanco (and Tinto), Loureiro and even Torrontes, as I discovered during a fantastic tasting at Terras Gauda Winery.

This relatively young, 25-year old winery produces four different white wines using Albariño, Loureiro and Caiño Blanco priced from €10 to €31. The wines were well made and it was interesting to experience other regional grapes beyond my much-loved Albariño.

Terra Gauda offers enotourism packages including a vineyard tour and tasting, local accommodation and fine dining. For more details, see their website in Travel Essentials below. 

Discovering Galicia’s Gourmet Tinned Fish

The perception of tinned food in the UK, the stuff that granddad ate with slices of white bread and stewed tea, contrasts significantly with how it is in other parts of the world. 

In Spain, gourmet tinned fish and seafood is readily available, the quality is superior to anywhere else I have seen, and it is definitely not frowned upon. 

As I was to discover on this trip, you can find some artisan boutique producers of tinned fish and seafood, with canned delicacies including anything from the more popular sardines to octopus, Icelandic smoked cod livers, and Galician sea urchin caviar, to name just a few.

My experience of the Spanish fish canning industry started with a visit to ANFACO (The National Association of Preserved Fish Producers). Canned fish in Spain is such an important industry that it was remarkable to learn it even has its own association to look after the interests of its members, spread the word on the quality of the country’s fish canning, and run state of the art laboratories for quality control. 

The association is also home to a fascinating museum on the development of fish canning in the country, cataloguing the background to this method of food preservation from its start to the present day. 

The canning process dates back to the late eighteenth century France, when the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, concerned about keeping his armies fed, offered a cash prize to whoever could develop a reliable method of food preservation. Nicholas Appert conceived the idea of preserving food in bottles like wine. After 15 years of experimentation he realized that if food is sufficiently heated and sealed in an airtight container, it would not spoil. 

An Englishman, Peter Durand, took the process one step further, and developed a method of sealing food in unbreakable containers, which led to the opening of the world’s first commercial canning factory in England in 1813.  

More than 50 years later, Louis Pasteur provided the explanation for canning’s effectiveness, when he was able to demonstrate that the growth of microorganisms is the cause of food spoilage.

No additives are necessary to preserve canned food. You put the food in a tin, add some sauce, water or oil, seal and heat to kill off the germs inside. 

Having visited some of the small family canning businesses that make these products in Galicia, it was striking to see how much work and care goes into them. 

Real Conservera Española

One of these factories was the Real Conservera Española, a family run business, where the Peñas have been selling their preserved fish since 1920. We were shown around by the owner himself, who among other things told us that he often gets calls from people wanting to buy 20 year old or older tins of his fish and seafood. Like a good wine, good fish and seafood matures in the tin, and these vintage tins are highly prized.

Here the selection criteria for the fish and seafood used are high, as is the production method – fish are trimmed and immaculately arranged in the tins by hand, before being sealed and pasteurised.

We had a quick tasting of four of their products after the tour – mackerel (€6 for 150g), sardines (€7 for 120g), mussels (€8 for 85g), and small scallops (€7 for 85g). 

Particularly excellent were the small scallops in tomato sauce that surprisingly still retained a firm texture, and were beautifully seasoned. Equally good were the mussels in an escabeche sauce containing vinegar and olive oil sauce. The dish had a striking red colour, with soft textured mussels and a flavourful sauce.  

Of all the canning plants we visited on this trip, this had by far the best tinned fish and seafood I tried, they are the Rolls Royce of the fish canning industry in Spain. They were so delicious that I brought a few packs to try at home. 

La Brújula

A larger and more commercial venture than Real Conservera Española, here we again saw a very impressive production line, with a number of women trimming octopus tentacles and placing them carefully in tins. 

Again it was amazing to see how immaculately clean everything was, and how labour-intensive the process is. The produce is stunningly presented in the tins, and even the exterior looks like a work of art. 

The packaging was elegant, looking more like designer cosmetics than fish, either all in white, or in gold and black.   

To taste, we had the baby squid (€5 for 110g), the octopus (€12 for 130g), and sardines (€6 for 4 pieces). I wish we had been offered something a little more exciting than sardines, but this is what was available for tasting – unfortunately I found them to have a mushy texture, with scales still present and little discernable flavour. 

Better however were the octopus and baby squid in olive oil. Both had a fine firm texture, although again somewhat lacking in seasoning. Rather than being served on their own, I think they would make a brilliant addition to a salad or pasta dish.   

Linamar

A family run business started by a local woman after she divorced, Linamar today specializes in mussels. She discovered that mussels were not cleaned or purified before being sold to the customer, and so she set about finding a method to achieve this and some clever packaging to keep alive for days afterwards. 

At Linamar, mussels are cleaned for at least twelve hours in purified free-flowing seawater and algae to expel all toxins and dirt. 

Then they are washed and packed in airtight containers filled with carbon dioxide and oxygen so that the mussels can continue breathing and living for up to 10 days. 

The mussels are live, clean, have no additives or preservatives, and can be taken straight from the fridge to the cooking pot without any further preparation.  

I have never come across this concept of off the shelf live mussels before, and was fascinated by what the owner had achieved. 

In addition to this, cleaned mussels are also sold in the more traditional netting bags, or pasteurized and vacuum packed, or in microwaveable packaging with various sauces like Provençal or curry. 

It takes me hours to prepare mussels for my supperclub each morning, and it’s a messy job. It would be great to have access to something similar in the UK. 

How to bring Tinned Fish into Your Cooking

We spent a very enjoyable evening with the charming local food blogger Carmen Albo of GuisandomeLaVida.com for a cookery demonstration using tinned fish and seafood.

I discovered that top quality canned seafood makes for a fantastic canapé, simply served on top of a cracker or potato crisp, accompanied by a chilled glass of Spanish Vermouth. What a great way to start a party, and definitely a conversation starter in the UK!

Carmen prepared a range of lovely dishes with her no-nonsense approach to cooking -¬ everything she prepared was easy to put together, well presented and tasted delicious.  

I loved her Salmorejo, a chilled soup from Cordoba, Andalucia, made from tomatoes, bread, vinegar and olive oil, topped with chopped eggs and slices of tinned white tuna belly. 

Equally good was her guacamole-style dish with roughly mashed avocado, spring onions, coriander, tomatoes and canned cockles with a good refreshing drizzle of lime juice, served in avocado shells.

Crispy tortillas topped with ratatouille, tinned sardines and fresh mint leaves had a great melange of textures and flavours. 

Carmen’s deconstructed Russian salad was also gorgeously presented in individual glass tumblers – with layers of cubed potatoes, carrots, peas, tinned tuna all topped with mayonnaise and tinned roe, it also tasted fresh and delicious.

Tinned Fish & Seafood in the UK

On returning to the UK I decided to investigate the subject further. As well as online research, I also purchased the cookbook ‘Tin Fish Gourmet’ by Barbara-Jo McIntosh (available from Amazon at £18.99).

This innovative, if somewhat daring, cookbook features ideas not only for tinned tuna and salmon but also for other more interesting seafood like oysters, prawns and crab. There are sophisticated versions of traditional dishes as well as contemporary recipes like clam & Fontina pizza, and shiitake mushrooms stuffed with crabmeat. This is a well written and designed book and I will be trying some of its recipes.

I discovered that Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has been championing tinned fish for years in the UK. His favourites are the Pilchard Works from Cornwall, which are quite collectable because of the traditional local paintings used to decorate them (Waitrose from £2 a tin) and Fish 4 Ever (available from Ocado for under £4). 

I also came across a series of mouthwatering recipes by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall using tinned fish on the Guardian’s website, including a delicious spaghetti with anchovies, chilli and garlic I am dying to try. You can read these recipes here.

If you would like to purchase and try some of these gourmet Spanish tinned goods, I recommend reputable Spanish stores in London such as Brindisa or R Garcia & Sons, or the food halls at Selfridges and Harrods. Or keep your eyes peeled on your next trip to Spain – supermarkets have aisles packed full of them. 

I was really inspired by what I learned and tasted in Galicia, and the possibility of bringing tinned fish and seafood into my cooking. I hope it will provide you with some inspiration too, and challenge some food prejudices; it has certainly challenged mine! 

This visit to Galicia was sponsored by ANFACO (The National Association of Preserved Fish Producers), for more information about the Spanish tinned fish industry, please visit their website here. The London Foodie maintains full editorial control of the content published on this site as always.

Travel Essentials

ANFACO - The National Association of Preserved Fish Producers
Estrada Colexio Universitario, 16
36310 Pontevedra
Spain
http://www.anfaco.es/es/index.php

Pigmalion Taverna
Castelar, 9
36201
Vigo, Spain
T: 986 22 82 70

Parador Baiona - Hotel Conde de Gondomar
36300 Baiona
Pontevedra
Spain
http://www.paradores-spain.com/spain/pbaiona.html

Restaurante Bitadorno
Rua Porto 30
36780  A Guarda
Galicia
Spain
http://www.bitadorna.com

Bodegas Terras Gauda S.A. Enoturismo
Carretera General de Tui
A Guarda
36760 O Rosai
PO
Spain
http://terrasgauda.com

Real Conservera Española
Poligono Industrial Sete Pias
Rua Grenla
Parcela 30
36635 Canbados
Pontevedra
Spain
http://www.realconservera.com

Conservas La Brújula
Rua Grenla
36636 Ribadumia
Pontevedra
Spain
http://www.conservaslabrujula.com

Linamar
Porto de Tragove
s/n Apdo. 69
36630 Cambados
Pontevedra
Galicia
Spain
http://www.grupolinamar.com

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The London Foodie Goes to Taiwan – Tainan the City of Snacks

March 15, 2017, 7:14 am

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As a former imperial capital and the oldest city in Taiwan, Tainan is often compared with Kyoto in Japan, and similarly has a strong culinary heritage and all the charm of an ancient city. 

With buildings no more than 5 or 6 stories in height, quaintly narrow pedestrianized alleys and temples, historic quarters and a thriving street food scene, Tainan is a wonderful place to explore another facet of Taiwan.  

After a few exciting if rather hectic days in the capital Taipei, about which I wrote in detail here, I hopped on the ultra-sleek high-speed train, the country’s bullet train, and headed south to Tainan.

What to Do 

The best way to get around Tainan is by bicycle – the city is reasonably flat so cycling is a doddle. I was staying at the Shangri-La Hotel, which offers complimentary bike use to its guests, and I used one every day of my stay to get around the city exploring the various neighbourhoods and food markets. More details in the Where to Stay section below. 

Anping District – The Historical Heart of Tainan

Anping Old Fort 

The first place I cycled to was Anping District. One of the most popular destinations in Tainan, this is the historical heart of the city. Anping is home to the Anping Old Fort, the Anping Tree House (a warehouse with massive banyan trees growing out of it), and numerous restaurants and food stalls.

In the early 17th century, Europeans came to Asia to trade and develop colonial outposts. In 1624, the Dutch occupied today's Anping and took ten years to build this fort, at the time named "Fort Zeelandia". 

During the Japanese occupation, the fort was rebuilt and named "Anping Old Fort." Today, the only Dutch remains are the ruins of a semicircular bulwark and a section of the outer fort's brick wall; the root of an old banyan tree on the wall remains a witness to the fort's long history. 

Anping Old Fort is a great place to learn a little about the colonial history of the city, and to chill in the beautiful gardens and surroundings.

Anping Gubao Old Street Area

For me the most exciting aspect of Anping District is the area around Gubao Old Street. 

With quaint narrow alleyways, antiquated little shops and loads of food stalls everywhere, it was one of my favourite spots in Tainan. 

I spent hours here, just walking around the streets taking in the atmosphere. It reminded me very much of Kyoto, but also of the area around the historic Tokyo district of Asakusa. 

Walking around, I would sometimes come across long queues in front of unassuming houses, which I discovered were people selling street snacks. 

At one of these, I had a delicious deep-fried dumpling filled with tofu, herbs and noodles. The dough was made and stretched out, filled and deep-fried in front of me – there was a long queue but the dumpling was well worth the wait. 

Anping Tree House

The Anping Tree House was the office and warehouse of the Japan Salt Company. After World War II, the salt industry in Anping declined, and to this day the house is abandoned. 

Over time, the roots and branches of banyan trees wrapped around the building, combining with the soil, red brick and partial concrete wall to create one of the most popular tourist sights in the district. 

While I would not make a special visit to Anping just to see this tree house, it is just around the corner from the Fort and Gubao Old Street, so it’s worth a visit if you are in the area. 

Chihkan Tower

Four kilometres away from Anping, Chihkan Tower is Tainan’s most famous historic site. Built in 1653 by the Dutch as "Fort Provintia", and renamed the "Tower of Red-haired Barbarians" by the Chinese, its official name today is Chihkan Tower. 

Chihkan Tower has survived different historical periods, but retains a graceful architecture, and is surrounded by gorgeous gardens. 

Crammed with stone carvings of horses, tortoises and other objects, the tower is well worth a visit. I am told it is particularly attractive at night. 

Temple Hopping

There are hundreds of impressive Buddhist temples in Tainan, but just by the Chihkan Tower, there are two that are worth a special visit - Temple Guan Kong (sacrificial rites martial temple) and Grand Matsu Temple.

Dating from the 18th century, Temple Guan Kong is dedicated to the Warrior God (aka the God of Wealth). 

This was the first time I have seen devotees throwing divination tablets, asking the god ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions about decisions they were struggling with. 

The Grand Matsu Temple is also impressive - though smaller, it is highly ornate and with so many people there it has a great sense of atmosphere from those paying their respects. 

A little way from the Chihkan Tower area, the Confucius Temple is a serene 17th century building built by the Chinese, surrounded by beautiful gardens. 

Confucius Temple is a rather austere building as far as temples go, a tranquil spot ideal for contemplation and to admire the Chinese architecture. 

Across the street from Confucius Temple is Fujihon Street. This is a beautiful alley with lush green vegetation and a large number of cafes and shops selling street food, ice cream and teas. 

Fujihon Street is a great place to idle away a couple of hours, taking stock of the beautiful surroundings and cooling down with an ice cream in the shade of one of the many trees along the street. 

Ten Ren’s Tea Store

Tea is one of the major crops of Taiwan, and the country produces some of the highest quality and most prized teas anywhere in the world. 

I went to a few boutique teahouses in and around Taipei, described here, but was fortunate to have delayed making my purchases until I got to Tainan, where prices are significantly lower. 

A short bike ride from the Shangri La Hotel, Ten Ren’s Tea Store sells a great range of top quality Taiwanese teas, including my very favourite, Lishan. This is a lightly oxidised oolong grown on the Li Mountain (shan means mountain in Mandarin), one of Taiwan’s tallest, where tea grows at altitudes up to 2,400 metres.

On infusion, the tea has a pristine bright yellow colour, and an amazingly floral and sweet aroma.  Due to the altitude at which Lishan oolong is grown and the slow growth that this allows, the leaves of the tea are very large, expanding and filling the teapot after each infusion. 

Another great oolong is the Alishan tea, coming from the Ali Mountain. This tea is grown at a slightly lower altitude of 1,600 metres, and hence is more affordable. Similarly, Alishan tea leaves produce a clear amber brew, with a strong floral aroma reminiscent of lilly and orchid, and a smooth and creamy texture. 

I purchased a variety of teas at Ten Ren’s, and enjoyed a detailed and informative tasting. The owners were so helpful that they telephoned their niece to rush from her home to the shop to translate for me. I highly recommend a visit. 

Shennong Street

I found Shennong Street one of the most charming in Tainan. Part of the old port area that was a busy working class district during the Qing dynasty, the canals coming in from the ocean made this a densely populated area where goods were stored and sold. 

Today, it’s a beautiful pedestrianized street, only 100 metres long, with various exquisitely restored old houses. There are many galleries and craft shops on the street, as well as teahouses and bars.

At the west end of the street is the King of Medicine Temple, while at the east end is the Water Fairy Temple.  

Where to Stay

Shangri-La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel 

Shangri-La is one of my favourite hotel collections. What I like about the Shangri-La is the focus on great food, and for that reason whenever possible, I stay at the Shangri-La on my travels. The Tainan property is the city’s top hotel, and a huge tower that is a dominant landmark for miles around.

My room was spacious and very elegantly decorated in tones of beige and brown, with very wide, nearly floor to ceiling windows that let in plenty of natural light and allowed great views of Tainan University and the surrounding parks. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in this room, it had super-fast WiFi, a very comfortable king-sized bed, and it was so high up that there was no noise from the street below to disturb my slumber.

My room rate and type gave me access to Shangri-La’s Horizon Club. The Horizon Club guest rooms are all at the top floors of the hotel, with the best views of the city. 

The Horizon Club gives access to bespoke holiday and business travel planning, meeting room facilities, as well as a private check-in among other perks, but most importantly for me, access to the Horizon Club Lounge with complimentary alcoholic drinks and food between 5-8pm every day!

The food served in the Club Lounge was excellent, with dainty canapés and other finger food including deep fried mozzarella balls, sushi, and pork knuckle terrine. 

There was also a huge selection of pastries and breads, a cheeseboard and an array of fine patisserie.

It was hard to tear myself away from the tempting food offerings of the Horizon Club Lounge, not to mention the wines and stiff G&Ts, but the prospect of dinner and other delicacies to come enticed me away.

Shangri-La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan has two restaurants, the glamorous Shanghai Pavilion on the hotel’s 38th floor with magnificent views of the city, and the 10th floor Café at Far Eastern. I tried both restaurants and describe them in more detail in the Where to Eat section below. 

Breakfast at the Shangri-La properties is for me always one of the highlights of my stay, and it was no exception in Tainan. What I have never seen before at a Shangri-La hotel is a breakfast gourmet map, detailing all the favourite breakfast dishes available and the stations at which to find them. 

Set out in a circle, stations offered cereals and yoghurt, then Western favourites like hot oatmeal, bacon and sausages. The Japanese breakfast station had a number of options including miso soup, white rice, grilled salmon, pickles and sushi. 

There was a vegetarian station, a salad bar, a cheese and charcuterie station, an egg station, pastries and pancakes, and fresh fruits and juices.  

Best of all though were the Taiwanese and Tainanese breakfast dishes, and I decided to go for these. One of the highlights was the Tainanese beef soup with very thin slivers of beef and onions, lightly poached in a clear but well flavoured beef broth.

The Tainanese Danzi noodles with minced pork and prawn were also excellent, and this was only one of many options at the noodle station.

In addition, I just could not resist the different styles of fried rice they had each morning, the spicy mabo-dofu, a Sichuanese specialty I often make at home, as well as the selection of steamed dim sum.

Breakfast at the Shangri-La Tainan is a real feast. It can’t be rushed as it takes time to explore. Even if you are not staying at the hotel, I thoroughly recommend it as one of the culinary must-dos of Tainan. 

With so much to explore in Tainan, I must admit to not having made much use of the hotel’s other facilities including the outdoor swimming pool, the gym and the spa. 

There is a great Jacuzzi and sauna, which happily I did get to enjoy and would recommend. I was also pleased to discover that the Shangri-La offers its guests complimentary use of the hotel’s bicycles, which I made extensive use of throughout my stay. 

The Far Eastern Department Store ('FE21') on the premises of Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel is a great place for any last minute shopping, while the downstairs food court offers a good selection of restaurants, as well as the Hong Kong-based supermarket Wellcome.

The Shangri-La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel is a gorgeous property in the heart of central Tainan. I had some of the best food of my trip here, and one of the most comfortable stays. I highly recommend it as the number one place to stay for anyone visiting Tainan. 

Where to Eat

Shanghai Pavillion

Situated on the 38th floor of the Shangri-La hotel with panoramic views of Tainan, this restaurant serves authentic Huaiyang cuisine which derives from the native cooking styles of the region surrounding the lower reaches of the Huai and Yangtze Rivers in China. 

With Cantonese, Shandong and Sichuan, Huaiyang cuisine (a sub-section of Jiangsu cuisine) is considered one of the four great traditions that dominate the culinary heritage of China. Huaiyang cuisine emphasizes the harmony of colour, smell and taste with delicate craftsmanship. 

Having never eaten Huaiyang cuisine before I was intrigued, so booked myself in for dinner at the Shanghai Pavillion. This restaurant is considered the top eatery of Tainan, very popular with local families celebrating special occasions, as well as with visitors.

We started with a gorgeous chicken soup with braised beancurd (£4), skillfully shaped like a lotus flower. A light consommé, delicately flavoured, it was an auspicious start to dinner.

Equally beautiful to the eye and palate was a dish of longan fruit wrapped with sliced lotus root (£10). 

The eponymous Shanghai dumplings were excellent – freshly made, the casing was fine and delicate holding the concentrated broth that exploded in the mouth.

The restaurant’s signature dish, sliced pork belly pyramid layered with pickles (£18) was again strikingly presented. Layers of meltingly tender roast pork were encased in an aspic-like reduction, over mustard greens and crunchy baby bok choy. It brought tears to the eyes to cut through this little beauty but nothing is too cute to eat in my book!

Dinner at the Shanghai Pavillion, Shangri La Far Eastern Plaza 38th floor, is a true Tainanese spectacle combining majestic views of the city with delicious Huaiyang cuisine, and I highly recommend it.

Flower Garden Night Market

Visiting Taiwan’s numerous night markets is one of the island’s essential cultural experiences. They really bring to life Taiwanese food culture. I have written in detail about the night markets I visited in Taipei here, but I discovered that Tainan is no slouch when it comes to night markets either. 

For the visitor, Taiwanese night markets are a lot to take in. Crowded, noisy, hot and sometimes unsanitary places they may be. But on the other hand, they are incredibly vibrant, offering a multitude of affordable eating, shopping and entertainment experiences all in one place. 

Unlike in Taipei, the various night markets in Tainan do not operate every day, so you need to check before heading out.  But every night there will be at least one market open. 

The largest market in Tainan is the Hua Yuan Night Market (or Flower Garden Night Market, open from 6-11.30pm on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays). I got to the market shortly after it opened around 6pm, and it was already very busy. 

The market is a maze of alleys, with food hawkers and stalls selling everything you can think of to eat, and a few things you probably haven’t, like grilled giant cuttlefish served on sticks like lollipops, or cheese sarnies wrapped up in bacon and grilled. 

For more information about all of Tainan’s night markets, their days of opening and addresses, visit the Tainan City website here. 

Café at Far Eastern

On the 10th floor of the Shangri La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel, Café at Far Easter is a more casual option than its sister restaurant Shanghai Pavilion. The café offers a mind-boggling array of Taiwanese, Tainanese and international options, served buffet-style.

Headed by Chef James Tseng, I had a great dinner here, and was able to sample a huge variety of dishes.  Some highlights were the Japanese station, serving fantastic blow-torched salmon sushi, and a seafood donburi with cod liver, ikura (salmon caviar) and ebi (sweet raw sashimi prawns). 

Then it was on to the Chinese buffet. This had a variety of typical dishes like Peking duck and roast pork and Sichuanese fish in chilli oil.

The sea urchin scrambled eggs with potatoes were also delicious, as well as the many options for stir-fried vegetables and noodles I just could not resist! 

Chihkan Peddler's Noodles

Tainan is famous for its small eats or xiaochi. Known as the capital of snacks, beyond the night markets, there is no better place than the Chihkan Peddler’s Noodles shop to try them. 

Chihkan Peddler’s Noodles is a modest café on Minzu Road, but very atmospheric with a lovely vintage look about it, and it came highly recommended. 

This is a budget place to eat, and so the perfect opportunity to try a huge number of dishes that will not cost you much but will give you a taste of Tainanese cuisine.  

The seafood stuffed fried toast (coffin toast or guāncaibǎn), a specialty of the city, featured fried bread stuffed with chicken, beans, seafood and vegetables in a béchamel sauce (£2.50). I found this uninspiring, bland and was not sure whether I was missing something. 

Better was the traditional minced pork rice (£1) – a simple dish of steamed white rice topped with minced pork cooked in soy sauce, sugar and ginger. I could have eaten many bowls of this. 

Best of all were the Danzi noodles (dānzǎi miàn, £1.60), created in Tainan around 130 years ago, made with noodles, a prawn broth, topped with beansprouts, minced pork and a single prawn.  This is the kind of dish that makes food travel so worthwhile. 

To accompany, I could not resist the generous platter of sweet potato leaves (£1.70). This is my personal favourite, which I ordered with almost every meal in Taiwan. 

Travel Essentials

High-speed rail travel time from Taipei to Tainan is 1 hour and 45 minutes. An adult ticket one-way ticket with reserved seating costs around £38 (NT$1450).

Shangri-La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel 
89 Section West
University Road
Tainan 
70146
Taiwan
http://www.shangri-la.com/tainan

Chihkan Tower
212 Sec. 2, 
Minzu Road
Central District
Tainan

Ten Ren’s Tea Store
246 Dongning Road
East District
Tainan
http://www.tenren.com.tw

Hua Yuan Night Market (Flower Garden Night Market)
Open Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays
Haian Road
Section 3
Between Lixian Road and Hewey Road
North District
Tainan

Chihkan Peddler’s Noodles 
No. 180
2 Minzu Rd
Tainan
http://www.chikan.com.tw/

Cinnamon Bazaar – The New Indian ‘Small-Eats’ Restaurant by Vivek Singh

March 17, 2017, 8:15 am

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Name: Cinnamon Bazaar

Where: 28 Maiden Lane, WC2E 7JS, http://cinnamon-bazaar.com/

Cost: Small eats cost from £4.50 to £16 with sides of greens, dal or naans from £2.80 to £4. Dishes are designed to be shared, and the average cost is around £30 to £40 per person (not including drinks).

There are set menus including lunch at £14 for two courses, or £16 for three. The pre- and post-theatre dinner menu is served from 5.30pm to 6.30pm and from 9.30pm onwards, and offers a two-course menu at £18 and three courses for £20. 

About:Cinnamon Bazaar is the latest addition to the Cinnamon Collection, a group of Indian restaurants run by Vivek Singh, restauranteur and a celebrity chef regular on a number of television cookery shows such as BBC’s Saturday Kitchen. 

Vivek first made his name with his flagship restaurant Cinnamon Club by championing a brand of modern, innovative Indian cooking. His contemporary approach has further translated into his other restaurants: Cinnamon Soho, Cinnamon Star and now, Cinnamon Bazaar. 

As the name suggests Cinnamon Bazaar plays on the idea of a “bazaar”, a central marketplace where for centuries ideas and ingredients were exchanged, and cultures converged to come together to create one big melting pot. The fusion concept translates well at Cinnamon Bazaar with the restaurant’s menu drawing inspiration from countries dotted along the trading routes of old. 

The design of the restaurant also plays on the theme of a bazaar, offering a laid back environment where diners can relax and share a varied selection of dishes and drinks. Laid over two floors, Cinnamon Bazaar is richly decorated in vibrant colours such as deep blues and fresh greens. 

The restaurant has made use of organic, natural materials which reflect the history of India. Finally, Illuminated lanterns and hanging ceiling drapes complete the eclectic bazaar ambience.

What We Ate: There are three main sections to the menu - snacks, chaat and bazaar plates made for sharing. There is a small dessert menu too. From the snack menu, we had the Crab bonda (£5.90) - this deep fried Calcutta snack blended spiced crab with scarlet coloured beetroot in chickpea batter, and served with salad and a chilli and coriander relish. 

The tapioca or cassava chips (£4.50) came with a deliciously zingy green chilli mayonnaise.

Moving on to the Chaat menu, we had the aloo tikki chaat (£4.50) – this was a spiced potato cake with curried chickpeas. I enjoyed this tangy dish with just enough spice, and a scattering of fresh pomegranate seeds. 

From the small eats section of the menu, we had 4 different dishes to share. The double cooked pork belly 'Koorg' style, with curried yoghurt (£7) was undoubtedly the best dish the meal - made with black vinegar known as Kachampuli or Coorgi vinegar, the pork was tender and unctuous, served with a cooling spiced yoghurt, and a chilli and coriander sauce.

Also excellent was the vindaloo of ox cheek, masala potato mash and pickled radish (£14.50) with just the right spicy levels for me and with meat you could cut with a spoon!

The Luknow-style chicken biryani with burhani raita (£14.50) was fragrant with cardamom, cumin, clove and saffron. This was a deliciously light, fresh dish with different layers of flavour and aroma.

Equally good was the Rajasthani lamb and corn curry with stir-fried greens (£12) – a mild curry, with tender sweet lamb and myriad spices.

For dessert, we chose the cardamom kheer creme brûlée (£4.50), a creamy, fragrant rice pudding dish, served with a soft shortbread biscuit.

The carrot halwa roll (£5), one of Vivek’s signature dishes, was served warm, with an intensely clove-flavoured iced double cream.

What We Drank: The wine list is compact (15 reds and 15 whites), but offers a range of interesting options, starting with a white Pinot Bianco / Garganega blend at £19, and the entry-level red is a Merlot-Corvina blend (£21), both from the Veneto, Italy. There are some interesting options like a native Armenian Areni Noir, and a Slovenian Malvasia. 

The cocktail list is the result of of a collaboration between chef Vivek Singh and mixologist Ryan Chetiyawardana. Cocktails range from £8.50 to £11. 

We started with a Bazaar Old Fashioned (£10.50) made from coconut-washed Indian Scotch, coconut sugar and burnt cinnamon. We also tried the Gin Julep (£10), served in a polished copper mug, blended Star of Bombay gin, mint, amchoor green mango and black cardamom.

We chose a bottle of Rioja Reserva, Isadi, 2012 (£45) to accompany our meal. Made from Tempranillo from the Alavesa area of Rioja, this was a straightforward wine with a good balance of red berry fruit and spice.

Likes: that double cooked Koorg pork curry was nothing short of sensational and warrants a return visit in its own right! It was great to see Vivek actually in the kitchen of his new restaurant Cinnamon Bazaar.

Dislikes: due to the location (Covent Garden) the restaurant does not make for a quiet night out.

Verdict: For well made, beautifully balanced Indian cooking at reasonable prices, very few places can beat the new Cinnamon Bazaar. Recommended. 

Sakagura - A Taste of Japanese Washoku Cooking in London

March 21, 2017, 9:01 am

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Name:Sakagura London

Where: 8 Heddon Street, London, W1B 4BS, https://www.sakaguralondon.com/

Cost: The menu is divided into 10 sections including appetisers, sushi, sashimi, robatayaki (grill), kushiyaki (skewers), agemono (deep-fried), rice and soup, kamameshi (flavoured rice), soba noodles and dessert. Prices vary from £3 for a miso soup to £39 for a sashimi moriawase, with an average spend of around £75 per person for 3-4 dishes each to share (drinks and service not included). 

About:Sakagura is the first joint venture among various businesses including the Japan Centre Group (the largest Japanese food retailer in the UK), Gekkeikan Sake Brewers (one of the oldest sake brewers in Japan and holders of a Japanese Royal Warrant for sake), and the Japanese plum wine brand Choya.

With such impressive backing and a Washoku (Japanese cooking) menu created by Shoryu Ramen Executive Chef Kanji Furukawa, Sakagura is one of the most exciting new restaurant openings in London recently.

Set in swanky Heddon Street behind Regent Street, no expenses were spared to create a gorgeous restaurant over two floors with an impressive long bar, Sakagura aims to serve authentic Japanese cooking known as Washoku, recently listed by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage. 

The Washoku cooking philosophy aims to provide a balanced meal, not only in terms of nutritional value but also considering other aspects such as flavour, cooking methods, colour and presentation. 

One outcome of this method is that the sheer variety helps achieve satiety without excess while stimulating all the senses. There is an emphasis on seasonality using the freshest ingredients and a minimalist but beautiful presentation. 

Sakagura aims to work with some of the best premium and exclusive sake producers in Japan. There are over 200 sake labels available, many only offered in the UK at Sakagura. The tasting menu and sake flights we tried at Sakagura gave us the opportunity to taste a whole range of dishes from the main menu, along with a comprehensive sake pairing. There is no better way to find out what Sakagura is all about!

What We Ate: From the appetiser menu, we chose the sashimi moraiwase (£39) - a chef's selection of assorted sashimi fish with freshly grated wasabi. This included slices of yellowtail, sea bass, sea bream, raw scallop on its shell, salmon and tuna, served on a bed of ice with micro herbs, edible flowers, and a willow 'fence' supporting the construction of the platter. Gorgeously presented, the fish was of good quality and as fresh as one could get, with the addition of fresh wasabi giving a touch of luxe to the platter.

The aburi shime saba bo sushi (£15) is one of Sakagura’s signature dishes from its sushi menu – a sushi roll topped with marinated mackerel fillets seared under flame (aburi). The presentation was again stunning, with silvery, chargrilled mackerel fillets wrapped around aromatic shiso leaf over sushi rice.  The mackerel had been marinated in rice vinegar and salt, adding a firmer texture and a layer of welcome acidity to the fatty fish.

From the robata grill, we chose the lobster (£32), blackened and served with ‘Moshio’ brown sea salt and lime. The lobster was perfectly cooked, the flesh light and fragrant and with a delicate charred flavour.

Moshio salt (shio means salt in Japanese) is an artisan Japanese sea salt, made from a mixture of sea salt and seaweed ash. It has a unique beige/brown colour with round and rich flavour due to the presence of minerals and other ingredients including calcium, potassium, magnesium, iodine and umami. Moshio salt is highly regarded in Japan and is the salt of choice for many top restaurants for dishes like tempura, sushi, sashimi or grilled seafood and meat.

The wagyu beef aburi steak (£35), from Kyushu, was served with Welsh arajio sun-dried sea salt (arajio is the Japanese word for coarse sea salt) and fresh wasabi. Very lightly grilled, the wagyu meat was unctuous, richly marbled and wonderful in both creamy mouth-feel and flavour. 

From the kamameshi section of the menu (flavoured rices), the hot rice dishes followed, served in traditional stainless steel individual cooking pots: the red seabream and salmon roe rice (£15), and the Goosnargh chicken and fragrant burdock (£14). 

I grew up eating gobo, or the Japanese burdock, in a variety of dishes in our Japanese-Nikkei home in Brazil. Gobo is one of my favourite ingredients and I have always loved its taste, it saddens me though that gobo has fallen out of fashion in the West. I loved the combination of earthy burdock and chicken in this rice dish.

Better still though was the seabream and salmon roe rice - salty, savoury, with iodine and mineral aromas, it was a winner of a dish.

For dessert, we had the raindrop cake - a delicate clear agar umeshu (plum) jelly with cherry blossom and gold flake.  Light and gorgeously presented, it brought me a smile to my face to be reminded of the Japanese affection for jelly desserts (the style of puddings I grew up eating in the 1970s and 80s).

We also shared a matcha fondant gateau (£8), served warm with cream.

What We Drank: Owned by one of the oldest Japanese sake brewers, it is not surprising to see a wide range of sakes on offer, including aged and late-harvest options. 

There are several sake flights available, priced from £9 to £17 per person, including some unusual options like unpasteurized cloudy sake, sparkling sake and yuzu sake.  

For aperitifs, we selected a John sparkling sake (£17.10 per glass), a Prosecco-style dry sake with citrus fruit and melon notes. It won the International Wine Challenge sparkling sake category in 2016.

The Tenzan sparkling, Nigori (£9.40 per glass) was an opalescent unpasteurised sake, subject to secondary fermentation in bottle like Champagne. It won the International Wine Challenge for sparkling sake in 2014, and had a creamy texture with green apple and pineapple notes. 

With the appetisers, we had a carafe of Gekkeikan Tarusake (£5.60 per glass or £16 for a 300ml carafe), from Kyoto prefecture. Matured in Japanese cedar casks, it had hints of seaweed, spice and wood.

With the lobster, we had a warm sake - Taga 'akinouta', Junmai from Taga, Shiga. This is made using akinouta rice, and served warm had a mellow sweetness and notes of roasted chestnuts.

With the rice dishes, we had a glass of 10 year old sake - the Koshoku Souzen (£13 per glass).

The matcha fondant was served with a glass of Choya Extra Years (£8.60 per glass) plum wine. With notes of marzipan and sour plum, this balanced luscious sweet fruit with bracing acidity. 

The raindrop cake with plum wine was served with a glass of Nakata Yuzu Umeshu wine (£7.20) on the rocks.  With zippy acidity from the yuzu, this made a stunning combination with the umeshu (sour plum) jelly. 

Likes: I loved the flavoured rices, the sashimi platter and wagyu beef. The mackerel sushi was also outstanding. Friendly and well informed service.

Dislikes: None.

Verdict: The Washoku cooking at Sakagura London is second to none - beautifully presented, it uses some of the best ingredients available and it is surprisingly well priced. There are some great sake flights on offer. Highly recommended.

Eneko at One Aldwych - Modern Basque Cooking at Excellent VFM!

March 28, 2017, 7:26 am

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Name: Eneko at One Aldwych

Where: One Aldwych, London, WC2B 4BZ, http://www.eneko.london/

Cost: Average cost for a three-course meal is £35 per person (not including drinks or service). From the a la carte menu, starters cost from £9 to £14, main courses from £14 to £18. The desserts are all priced at £7.

About: The Basque Country is one of my favourite foodie destinations having visited it on a number of occasions for their incredible Pintxos and 3-Michelin star fine dining which I featured here and here. I had one of the best meals of my life in San Sebastian at Martin Berasategui’s which I reviewed here. 

Thus I was excited to hear that the Basque, 3-Michelin starred Chef Eneko Atxa from Arzumendi Restaurant, just outside Bilbao, was opening a sister restaurant in London, namely Eneko at One Aldwych, just like other Basque chefs before him, Julio and Elena Arzak of Ametsa with Arzak Instruction at the Halkin, featured here. 

Located in Covent Garden at the lovely One Aldwych Hotel, the restaurant comprises of a mezzanine bar with a grand copper staircase descending into a vast underground dining area adorned in pale stone, wood and steel girders. 

Elegant, high red leather banquettes enclose triangular, cherrywood tables. A lot of thought and money has gone into the design by architects Casson Mann, a firm specialist in museums and gallery installations. The final product is a beautiful and grand restaurant with plenty of open space.

What We Ate: We started with ‘Memories of the Bay of Biscay’ (£15) – served with a dramatic hot water and seaweed infusion mixed with dry ice to give dramatic presentation and a real scent of the sea, this contained three different items. 

The highlight, the oyster with green plankton emulsion and apple blossom leaves was salty and tart tasting right out of the sea, the crab tartare with armoricaine sauce (made from onions, tomato, white wine, brandy, and cayenne pepper), and a gorgeous wild prawn tartare with spring onion and black olives herring eggs.

The second starter was the ‘Txerri Boda Pork Festival’ (£13) – this was again an assemble of three different items - chorizo on steamed and soft milk bun, glazed sweetbread and suckling pig brioche, basil and mushroom emulsions. Served in a wooden box with a pig's snout for a handle, this was as delicious to look at as it was to eat.

The ‘Traditional Talo’ (£10) was next. This was a stunningly presented crispy corn talo (a traditional Basque equivalent to the Mexican tortilla) topped with heritage tomatoes, fresh herbs, tomato emulsion, olive oil pearls, and black olive powder. We enjoyed the many different elements in this dish and the layers of texture provided by the tortilla and raw ingredients, this was a highlight of our dinner.

Cod Bizkaina (£14) was an interesting stew of cod tripe in traditional spicy bizkaina (Basque sauce aka vizcaina) sauce, with deep-fried cod bites (also cod tripe). With a seductively gelatinous texture, this was well-flavoured and seasoned dish. The bizkaina sauce had tomatoes, onions and peppers which were reduced for 4 days before any chilli being added. 

The main course of oxtail (£15), served on a large unglazed, bone-shaped ceramic serving dish, featured slow-cooked oxtail meat (off the bone), in a highly reduced, rich brown chickpea sauce, with a heady mushroom emulsion.

To accompany, the Piperrak (£7), was a lovely dish of green Gernika peppers, which look very much like Padron peppers. Mash potato (£4), served with a scattering of chopped chives, was good and creamy but a touch too salty.

The dessert menu is small but includes the lovely torrija (which we could not resist), made from Basque vanilla sponge, with a delectably crunchy caramelised topping, served with orange zest, cinnamon and caramel crumble ice cream.

We also shared the strawberry sorbet and rose marshmallow, with fresh strawberry, strawberry foam, rose petal julienne, and crystalised rose petal. This had fresh, floral flavours and was rich without being cloying. 

What We Drank: The wine list is all Spanish, including four wines made from Basque grape varietals in the chef's family winery - Gorka Izagirre which has been making wine since 2005. The entry level white is a Herencia Altes Garnatxa (Garnacha) Bianca 2015 from Terra Alta, Spain (£28).  The entry level red is a Borsao Seleccion Tinto, from Campo de Borja from Aragon, Spain (£28).

From the chef's vineyard, we had the white 42 by Eneko Atxa 2014 (£55), made from Bizkaiko Txakolina grapes. Fresh, apple, pear and citrus, good acidity and mineral. 

The red wine was a Parada de Atauta 2014 (£55) from Ribera del Duero, Castile and Leon. A youthful wine with a tinge of purple, it had a powerful aroma and flavour of black cherry, cedar and had plenty of tannin.

Likes: Excellent value for money. Fresh and original cooking. The staff were friendly, highly knowledgeable and willing to find out more.

Dislikes: None. 

Verdict: The modern Basque food at Eneko at One Aldwych is innovative and varied, and the cooking well accomplished as well as being excellent value for money. Highly Recommended.

Darbaar in The City - The Thrill of the Grill Menu Reviewed

April 4, 2017, 2:00 am

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Name: Darbaar 

Where: 1 Snowden Street, Broadgate West, London, EC2A 2DQ, http://www.darbaarrestaurants.com/

Cost: Average cost for a 3 course meal is around £35 per person (not including drinks or service). Light bites cost from £5 to £8.50, main courses range from £8 to £28. There are set menus at £40, £55 and £65.  

About: Opened in November 2015, and run by Chef Abdul Yaseen from Jaipur, formerly Head Chef of the Cinnamon Club and Cinnamon Kitchen, the restaurant is set in a modern commercial building behind Liverpool Street station. Darbaar aims to offer a menu inspired by the banquets of the Indian Royal Court, with signature dishes like hunter-style guineafowl, and spiced kid goat biriyani. 

The restaurant has a sleek design with grey slate flooring, bare wood tables and chairs, a large open-plan kitchen along the length of the dining room, and eye-catching golden lamps. 

But despite the lavish decor and the chef's pedigree, Darbaar's tricky location does not make it a restaurant diners would simply stumble upon. On the mid-week evening we dined there, the place was less than half full apart from two large and rowdy tables of City folk having an office night out. 

What We Ate: We opted for the "Thrill of the Grill' set menu, with 6 courses at £65 per person. The appetiser was a famous street snack from northern India - Tawa Hari Tikki Chat - a deep-fried green pea and apricot cake (£7), served on a chickpea curry bed with tamarind and yoghurt, pomegranate seeds and micro-coriander. It was crunchy and had a lovely zingyness from the tamarind and yoghurt. 

The first starter was a large royal Madagascar prawn with griddled king scallop and a fried wild mushroom, coconut cream, tomato salsa.  With a delicious charred flavour from the tandoori grill, and top quality seafood - this was a great dish. 

Next was Murgh Malai - a kebab of chicken in a yoghurt marinade, served with Punjabi lamb chops and coriander curry, served in a dinky copper and steel serving dish. The chicken was excellent - succulent and well flavoured, and the lamb was tender, richly flavoured and gently spiced. 

The middle course was Tawa Macchli -  sea bream in banana leaf, served with a tomato and coconut chutney, yoghurt and rice. I wanted to love this dish, but for me, the fish was overcooked, and the marinade (coriander root, coconut and curry leaves) under seasoned. The yoghurt rice was at room temperature and had a very odd texture in my opinion. 

Better though was the main course - Raan-e-Mussalam, a double-roasted leg of lamb, with potatoes. Slow braised, then roasted for a crispy skin, the lamb was served on the bone. The meat was superbly soft and well flavoured with tomato and Indian spices - coriander seeds, cumin, curry leaf as well as onions and malt vinegar. This was the highlight of our dinner.

The accompanying side dishes were a naan bread basket, a creamy daal of black lentils in tomato sauce, and cumin saag (potatoes in spinach purée, chickpea flower, garlic and whole mustard grains).

Dessert was Shahi Kulfi (Indian ice cream) with pistacchio and saffron, served with an array of lightly crushed fruits of the forest. Flavoured with cardamon, the kulfi was well made, and prettily presented with ripe fruit and a scattering of pistacchio.  

What We Drank: We shared a bottle of Alsatian Riesling from Arthur Metz 2015 (£40). With aromas of orange, mandarin and mineral, this was good but seemed a little steeply priced given its quality level. 

Likes: The Murgh Malai (chicken and lamb kebab) and the Raan-e-Mussalam double-roasted leg of lamb were superb. 

Dislikes: The Tawa Macchli sea bream in banana leaf needed a bit more development from my perspective. Tucked away behind Liverpool Street Station, Darbaar is a little tricky to find. It is a large restaurant, and when it is not full there is a knock-on effect on the atmosphere.  

Verdict: If you work in the City of London, and fancy some good quality Indian cooking, Darbaar ticks most boxes. Recommended.

Les 110 de Taillevent - Fine French Cooking with 110 Wines by the Glass

April 7, 2017, 2:00 am

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Name: Les 110 de Taillevent

Where: 16 Cavendish Square, London W1G 9DD, http://www.les-110-taillevent-london.com/

Cost: Average cost for a 3-course meal is around £40 per person (not including drinks or service). There is a set menu of 2 courses for £20 or 3 courses for £25, available both at lunch and at dinner. Each dish on the menu is colour-coded to match with suggested wines available by the glass at price points from £8, £14, £20 or above £20. From the à la carte menu, starters cost from £8 to £14, main courses from £8 to £35, and desserts from £7 to £11. 

About: Les 110 de Taillevent London is a classic French brasserie which brings the cooking championed by other restaurants in the group, the most well-known of which is the two-Michelin starred Le Taillevent, along with Les Caves de Taillevent and the similarly named Les 110 de Taillevent in Paris.

But what makes Les 110 de Taillevent unique is its wine offering - no fewer than 110 wines by the glass or half glass. The menu has been designed to facilitate ease of choice, with four different wine suggestions in four different price categories listed for each dish.

Les 110 de Taillevent, situated in a listed building on Cavendish Square, is a beautifully designed restaurant, with an elegant colour palate of sage green, cream leather and polished wood. It is an stylish place to enjoy some fine French cooking and wines after a day’s shopping on Oxford Street (it faces the back of John Lewis). 

What We Ate and Drank: Our dinner started with a deceptively simple dish of truffled scrambled eggs. Heady with the aroma of fresh truffle, the dish had complex vegetal farmyard notes and was, I think, the finest scrambled eggs I have ever eaten. We got off to a very good start.

We were helped to make our choices by the logically presented food and wine pairings, and by the guidance of Head Sommelier Christophe Lecoufle. We kicked off with a welcome glass of Champagne Laurent Perrier Brut NV.

With the scrambled egg, we had a Chardonnay, from IGP Cotes du Lot, 'Montaigne' 2014, Domaine Belmont (£14 per 125ml glass), which had a lovely fresh, smoky, elegant quality, with green apple and mineral on the finish. 

Next came John Dory mousseline, glazed in lobster bisque under a salamander, served with romaine salad and Espelette pepper. This was nothing short of sublime.

The Cornish Point Pinot Noir 2014, from Felton Road, New Zealand, came with the John Dory. Partnering white fish with red wine is perhaps unusual, but the red was delicate enough not to overwhelm the fish and its delectable lobster bisque. An Alsatian Reisling or Pinot Gris might have been a more traditional dish choice, but I really enjoyed the Pinot Noir.

The truffled veal rump (£35) was for me the highlight of the evening. Stuffed with truffle and with extra slices of fresh truffle on top, it was served with a classic béchamel sauce, artichoke puree, and stuffed, deep-fried baby artichoke, this was a delectable dish of great refinement. 

With the veal, we had a glass of Pomerol 2009, Fugue de Nenin (£19). The second wine of Chateau Nenin, this Cabernet Franc/Merlot blend had intense blackberry fruit, a nose of blackcurrant, cherries, cedar and vanilla, with complex fruit flavours, plenty of tannins and a long, complex finish. 

For dessert, we had the calamansi lemon, with passion fruit, meringue, shortbread, tequila and lime sorbet, sprinkled with passionfruit flowers. Beautifully presented  and intensely tart and refreshing, this featured the lovely Filipino calamansi fruit - one of my favourites, and thought to be a hybrid of the mandarin orange and kumquat. This was a delicious, complex dessert, and a tribute to the skill of the patissiere.

The chocolate dome was also excellent - truffled chocolate mascarpone cream made with Valrona chocolate was paired with a sorbet of chocolate, salted caramel sauce and fresh truffle. It was stunning to the eye, while on the palate the sorbet was intensely rich and concentrated, with a contrast in texture from a chocolate tuille brittle. 

To accompany our desserts, we had a Loire Valley Coteaux de L'Aubance, Les Trois Schistes, 2014, from Domain de Montgilet (£6 for 70ml). With acidity, minerality and sweetness in equal measure, this was a deliciously complex dessert wine.

Likes: The truffled scrambled egg, the truffled veal rump and the desserts were spectacularly good. The menu partnering each dish with matched wines by the glass to suit a range of budgets is both innovative and well considered.

Dislikes: the name, I can't pronounce it!

Verdict: With fine French cooking and a vast selection of wines by the glass at 4 different price points, Les 110 de Taillevent is my top restaurant recommendation this month! Highly recommended.

Seymour Place - Restaurant Hopping at London's New Foodie Destination

May 5, 2017, 7:29 am

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Words & photography by Caroline Ghera and Luiz Hara

Situated in trendy Marylebone, Seymour Place is home to a small collection of shops, cafes and restaurants, between Seymour Street and Upper Berkeley Street, that have transformed the area into an attractive destination for foodies. I was thrilled to be invited and join a group of food writers on a food safari at Seymour Place, and here I present some of the highlights of that evening.

At the very start of Seymour Place, at the elegant Italian restaurant Bernardi’s, we kicked off proceedings (62 Seymour Street, www.bernardis.co.uk) with a selection of antipasti. Created by brothers Gabriel and Marcello Bernardi, from Melbourne, the restaurant has an outdoor terrace, a casual dining room on the ground floor and a stylish cocktail and cicchetti bar in the basement. Focusing on prime produce from Italy and the UK, head chef Sabrina Gidda presented a fine spread to illustrate some of the specialities of her kitchen.

We enjoyed two well-made pizzettas (£8.00-£9.50), the first topped with prosciutto de Parma and rocket; the second, an unusual but successful combination of Taleggio cheese, sweet confit leek and crunchy celery. The pizzetta base was feather-light with pillowy edges.

Another highlight was the creamy Burratina with finely chopped sweet Marinda tomatoes and tasty Taggiasche black olives – this was a simple and delectable dish with high quality ingredients that could not be faulted (£9.50).

Equally good was the squid served in a flavourful sauce of chunky pieces of tomato, garlic, parsley and a good measure of pepperoncino (chilli), altogether vibrant in flavour and heat (£12.50).

However, the star antipasti was the suppli all' Amatriciana (£4.50 for 2 pieces). A speciality from Rome, and smaller than Sicilian arancini (small fried rice balls), the suppli were made with creamy rice grains, filled with four cheeses and had a delicious thin crisp skin - they were truly moreish - a must at Bernardi's!

Moving on to our second stop, we were introduced to Sandy's, a small and cozy Corsican pizzeria and restaurant where we sampled a board of Corsican charcuterie, bread sticks and flavoursome house-made fig jam (£10.50).

Sandy's uses French T45 flour for their pizza dough and Gruyère cheese for all their toppings. Their pizza base was thin and crisp, but without the raised and charred edges of their Italian Neapolitan counterparts. I enjoyed the French-inspired “Pizza Oignon” with tomato, Gruyère and caramelised onions (£10.25) and the flavourful Pizza Ajaccio with tomato, Gruyère, red onions, oregano and chicken (£12.75).

Across the street, we next entered the elegant, minimalist interior of Basque cuisine restaurant Lurra. With its white walls, pale woodwork and brass fittings, the cool decor contrasted with the open kitchen right at the centre of the restaurant which specialises in charcoal and wood grills - known as "Erretegia" in the Basque Country.

We were served a glass of refreshing Agerre Txakoli 2015, Getaria (£6), a lightly sparkling, dry white wine which was, in the traditional Basque manner, theatrically poured from a height into our glasses to produce extra bubbles.

We also tried two types of croquettas - the cheese variety were made with Basque Ossau-Iraty and Idiazabal cheeses, black onion seeds and béchamel sauce, and were exceptionally creamy in the centre with a very light and crisp golden exterior. Similarly good were the jamon croquettas but for the addition of tiny specks of ham.

Our main course was the house specialty: 14-year Rubia Gallega "Gallician Blond" Txuleta (£65.00 for 2 people). This was a generous serving of 800 grams of beef aged 25 to 45 days. Lurra's owners, Nemanja Borjanovik and Melody Adams import the Galician Blond beef to supply not only their restaurants (they also own Donostia at 10 Seymour Place) but other top spots in the London too. 

The beef comes from rare breed Basque cattle, slaughtered not at the usual age of under 3, but at a minimum of 14 years old and up to 18 years old.  During their lengthy growth, the cattle produces meat finely speckled with droplets of fat. At Lurra, the Txuleta is grilled on the charcoals and sprinkled with rock salt to emphasize the full flavour of the meat. Served rare and with an intensely rich and complex flavour, this was exceptional and worth every penny of its price tag. For me, this dish was the highlight of the whole evening of Seymour Place.

Our final stop was the third and newest branch of The Gate. Following the success of its Notting Hill and Islington restaurants, Adrian and Michael Daniel took over the site previously occupied by The Lockhart and converted it into a modern and beautiful restaurant with white walls, dark wood flooring, black-painted metalwork and wood tables and chairs, paired with mustard-green banquettes. The basement has also gained a stylish bar and a wine cellar. 

Our by now somewhat jaded palates were lifted by a Jalapeno Margarita (£9.00) made with jalapeno-infused tequila, Cointreau and lime. Extremely refreshing, citric and very spicy, this was the perfect way to revive the senses. 

The Gate is a vegetarian restaurant influenced by the Indo-Iraqi Jewish background of its owners and therefore, the cuisine fuses Middle-Eastern, Western Asian and European ingredients and techniques. We completed our evening of tastings with The Gate's take on potato dauphinoise: a generous butternut rotolo (£15) was shaped with thyme-infused thin slices of potatoes wrapped around a filling of butternut squash, celery, sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts, sitting on a bed of maple parsnip purée, and topped with a cep sauce and thin strips of pumpkin fries. This was a carbohydrate-loaded feast, warm and comforting on a wintry evening.

Verdict: Only a few minutes from Marble Arch tube station, Seymour Place is a hidden gem in the London gastronomic map. Both Bernardi's and The Gate have stylish cocktail bars that are worth a visit in their own right. Bernardi's impressed with simple but masterful execution of Italian classics, while The Gate will appeal to vegetarians seeking dishes that go past the current trend for quinoa salad or avocado on toast. However, the star of the evening for me was Lurra with its outstanding 14 year Rubia Galegga Txuleta, for me arguably some of the best beef in London right now, which I highly recommend.

Find out more:

Bernardi's
62 Seymour Street, W1H 5BN
tel 020 3826 7940
www.bernardis.co.uk

Sandy's
14 Seymour Place, W1H 7NF
tel 020 7723 8833
www.sandys.uk.com

Lurra
9 Seymour Place, W1H 5BA
tel 020 7724 4545
www.lurra.co.uk

The Gate
22-24 Seymour Place, W1H 7NL
tel. 020 7724 6656
www.thegaterestaurants.com

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Gaylord's Golden Anniversary - Fifty Years On and Still One of the Top Indian Restaurants in London

May 16, 2017, 7:47 am

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Name:Gaylord Restaurant

Where: 79 Mortimer Street, London, W1W 7SJ, http://www.gaylordlondon.com/

Cost: Average cost is £40 per person, not including drinks or service. From the à la carte menu, starters are priced from £7.50 to £12, tandoori dishes from £12 to £16.50, and mains from £15 to £20. Biryanis of king prawn, lamb or chicken are priced at £18.50 to £21.  There are two, three-course set menus: the Maharaja Feast (£30) and the vegetarian Maharani Feast  (£27).

About: The Gaylord Restaurant in London opened in 1966, and in 2016 celebrated its 50th anniversary.  Said to have the first tandoor (charcoal clay oven) in London, it still serves the same fragrant fresh breads and kebabs, Indian and Punjabi fare it did at the height of the Swinging Sixties. Photographs of George Harrison and Peter Sellers posing with restaurant staff in 1966 are on proud display in the restaurant’s entrance. 

The 1966 menu is still available for diners to see, and it was a shock to see that portions of chicken tikka masala were priced at 30p, and lamb rogan josh at 40p!

The Gaylord Restaurant is an elegant establishment in the heart of Central London, serving both traditional and modern Indian cooking to a varied clientele of locals, shoppers, families and tourists. The mid-week evening we were there, the restaurant was nearly completely full.

What We Ate: We started with a few delicious golgappa shots (£6.50) – fresh and spicy little pani puri, these are round, hollow puri fried crispy pastry shells, filled with a mixture of flavoured water and fillings like tamarind chutney, chili, chaat masala, potato, onion and chickpeas. At Gaylord, they are served over shot glasses of chilled herbal infusion.

The murg gilafi seekh (£8.50), fragrant portions of minced smoked chicken topped with bell-peppers and chargrilled on skewers, were delectable. 

Tandoori tiger prawns (£10) were jumbo-sized and succulent, having been marinated with saffron and Indian spices, then grilled in a clay oven. 

In a departure from the original 1966 menu, Gaylord now offers Mexican tacos with an Indian twist. We had the spicy rajma (kidney bean) taco (£7.50) – jauntily served (recalling the colours of the Indian flag) on a gold, green and red toy wire car. 

Still on the starter menu, we were tempted by the pao bhaji (£10) - soft buttered buns with mashed potato, vegetable curry, chopped onion and coriander, capsicum. Served in a fondue pot, these were delectable.  

Crab cake dakshini (£11) came with a generous amount of meat, deliciously flavoured with curry leaves, aromatic Indian spices and mustard cress. 

The lamb chops Anardana (£11), served on a sizzling plate, had been marinated in spices and pomegranate juice, then charcoal grilled to give an irresistible smoky flavour and aroma. 

The Makhani Paneer (£11.50), dating right back to 1966, combined cubes of fresh cheese made on the premises, simmered in a creamy tomato sauce.  I could see why this had lasted the duration – simple, good quality ingredients, delicately cooked and well presented.

Equally good was the soft shell baby crab (£7), in light batter with spicy Goan masala. This came with slices of toasted coconut (a combination I thoroughly enjoyed) beautifully served in a large seashell.

Gaylord’s butter chicken (£16) was a lip-smacking classic - a deboned tandoori chicken, cooked in a tomato-based sauce enriched with butter and double cream, flavoured with aromatic herbs and spices, including one of my favourites, fenugreek. 

Lamb shank (£19), came meltingly tender, delicately spiced and served with a subtle onion and tomato curry.

The fish tak-a-tak (at seasonal price) was a whole grilled fish, filleted (tilapia on the day we were there) and spiced with mustard seeds, curry leaves, red chilli and caraway seeds, served in a tin-lined copper pan. 

To accompany, we had a paratha (£4), a piazi kulcha (leavened bread stuffed with onion and coriander, £4.25), and basmati rice (£6), cooked with lemon, mustard seeds and curry leaves. Best of all though was the house speciality of dal bukhara (£9.70). This had black lentils slow-cooked for 8 hours over charcoal, and was deliciously rich and creamy. 

For dessert, the carrot pudding - gajar ka halwa (£5.50) blended a hot, sweet carrot pudding with pistachio slivers. The gulab jamun (£9) had fresh cheese spheres, deep-fried and served with a delectable sugar syrup laced with spiced dark rum, flambéed. 

What We Drank: Cocktails are priced at £9 to £12. The entry level wines, both white and red, are Beaujolais from George Duboeuf, Le Bouquet de George, priced at £19.90. Indian Kingfisher and Cobra beers are also available. 

We were keen to explore the range of Indian wines which Gaylord has just launched under their own label, all from Akluj in Maharashtra.  The house sparkling white wine, a Fratelli Grand Cuvée Brut NV, Chenin Blanc (£35) was very well made - bone dry, with refreshing citrus acidity and minerality. 

The Gaylord Sangiovesi Bianci (£36.50) was palatable and off-dry, but for my palate lacked complexity. 

Better was the Gaylord Fratelli Sangiovesi red wine (£36.50) - fruity and well made, when enjoyed with the restaurant’s spicy food, the cherry fruit and sweetness were accentuated. 

Likes: There were so many highlights in this meal – the tandoori lamb and prawns, the paneer, the whole tilapia, the meltingly tender lamb shank and the carrot dessert were all excellent. 

Dislikes: None

Verdict: With a 50-year history, there are few restaurants in London that have stood the test of time as well as Gaylords. But this is no surprise - the classic Indian dishes are hard to fault, while service is friendly and well informed. I would love to return to Gaylord soon. Highly recommended. 

Sexy Fish & the 12-Dish Sekushi Menu Reviewed

May 19, 2017, 12:49 am

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Name:Sexy Fish

Where: Berkeley Square London England W1J, https://www.sexyfish.com/

Cost: Average spend is around £50 per person (not including drinks or service). From the a la carte menu, cold starters cost from £12 to £38, with main meat, fish and seafood dishes costing from £17 to £89. The Sekushi menu, a tasting selection of 12 dishes chosen by the Head Chef is priced at £82 per person. 

About: Set on one of the swankiest of Mayfair squares, Sexy Fish offers an Asian-inspired fish and seafood menu developed by Chef Director Bjoern Weissgerber. 

With luxuriously painted ceilings dotted with abstract scarlet motifs by Michael Roberts, rich onyx floors, original Damian Hurst artwork on the walls, and huge, floor-to-ceiling tanks with the most beautiful coral and exotic fish, I dread to think what Sexy Fish would have cost, but I hear it was around the £20m mark! It is an impressively looking restaurant no doubt, but a tad OTT.

I must admit that facing such opulence, I had my reservations about Sexy Fish (style over substance?), but my experience proved me wrong – the food on the Sekushi Menu (£82pp) was actually pretty good though I could have done with a little more carbs.

The man behind Sexy Fish’s menu, German-born Bjoern Weissgerber, trained at some of the most prestigious kitchens in the world including Thomas Keller’s French Laundry in California and El Bulli in Spain. 

Sexy Fish's Open Plan Kitchen

He earned his first Michelin star at the age of 27 when he was running Ca’s Puers in Mallorca, and has been setting up new restaurants all over the world for the Zuma Group for the past 11 years.

Damien Hirst Artwork Commissioned for Sexy Fish

I have read some criticism of the restaurant’s greeting desk and front of house staff, but in my experience we were warmly welcomed and quickly shown to my table, and service continued in that vein throughout our dinner.

The most glitzy toilet in London?

Sexy Fish is not a place for a quiet meal out - the soundtrack is loud and raunchy, so come prepared for a buzzy atmosphere. The clientele ranges from young, 20-something couples celebrating birthdays or other special occasions to a mixture of expense accounts and well-heeled folks dressed to impress.

What We Ate: We opted for the Sekushi menu, a tasting selection of 12 dishes chosen by the Head Chef, most of which were brought to our table together or in quick succession.

Watermelon and crispy duck salad was delicious with good contrasting textures and depth of flavour. It had mitzuna leaves, mint and tarragon, seasoned in a refreshing dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar and lime.

Equally good was the salt and pepper squid (£11.50), dusted with katakuri Ko (Japanese potato starch), pepper and spring onion. Well seasoned, the squid was crunchy and tasted fresh, I just wished the portion were a tad more generous! 

We enjoyed the smoked cured salmon rolls filled with fresh pear and crispy curly kale, served with a delectable and creamy dressing of lemon, mustard and olive oil. 

The paper thin slices of yellowtail were transformed by a stunning and zingy green mandarin ponzu dressing, topped with a light filling of myoga mixed with avocado, purple shiso and a slice of green chilli, the fish slices were folded over these and quickly devoured! I was scraping my plate for more.

A trio of prawn, squid and dried tofu gyoza dumplings was served in a light but well-made dashi broth with hints of ginger. 

Next up was the sashimi platter – this contained a slice each of salmon, tuna and yellowtail – the fish was of excellent quality and freshness, although again we felt the portion rather ungenerous.

The sashimi platter was followed by a sushi roll filled with soft shell crab, coriander and tobiko fish eggs. It was wrapped in nori seaweed as well as a paper-thin layer of daikon skin for added texture and flavour. Served with a bracingly spicy sauce of gochuchan, rice vinegar and mirin, we thoroughly enjoyed this.

We were offered two main courses to share - the first was a fish main of Thai-spiced stone bass, marinated in coriander and cooked in pandan leaf. Served with a zingy green curry sauce, and garnishes of green papaya and ginger, the fish was fresh and bursting with flavour. To accompany it, we were also served Japanese white miso soup, tofu, wakame and spring onions, spiked with fragrant sancho salt (from Sancho peppercorns).

The second main course was beef tenderloin with black pepper and smoked onions – it came with a side serving of sauce made from soy sauce, mirin (sweetened sake) and sugar. The beef was bloody, tender and delicious, but for my palate the sauce was a little too sweet. 

I loved the presentation of the dessert platter – this included an unctuous warm chocolate fondant, slices of fresh fruit like pineapple, star fruit, physalis and lychee as well as coconut cake and rose sorbet. 

What We Drank: We started with a Big Four (£18), combining the national spirits of the big four fashion capitals of the world - from London (Beefeater Crown Jewel Gin), Milan (Campari), Paris (Dubonnet), and New York (Hudson Manhattan Rye). This was a strong, well made and highly alcoholic cocktail akin to a Negroni, and I loved it. 

The Sexy Fish Champagne Cocktail included the classic Martell Cordon Bleu cognac, with Gyejacquot Champagne, Merlet peach liqueur, rosemary bitters, a sugar cube and Angostura bitters.

With the meal, we shared a bottle of Albariño Leira Reyero, Pascual 2015 (£50). With fresh citrus fruit, good minerality and a crisp finish, this was a good partner for most fish dishes. 

Likes: The yellowtail tiradito with green mandarin ponzu was exceptional; we also liked the crispy salt & pepper squid and the watermelon and crispy duck salad. Strong, well made cocktails and informative and friendly waiting staff.

Dislikes: I must admit I was still a tad hungry as I left Sexy Fish, and this was after 12 dishes! I wish we had been served some carbs like bread or perhaps two big bowls of Japanese white rice with our mains and to line our stomachs before the end of our meal. In my opinion each guest should have had one of the 12 dishes rather than sharing each dish between 2 people.

Verdict: Love or hate it, you will not be left indifferent to Sexy Fish. We had some great food, cocktails and service here and for a bit of Mayfair glam and people watching, few London places can beat it! Recommended.

Galvin at The Athenaeum - British Ingredients & Cooking at Their Absolute Best!

May 24, 2017, 2:10 pm

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Name:Galvin at The Athenaeum

Where:The Athenaeum Hotel & Residencies, 116 Piccadilly, London, W1J 7BL, https://www.athenaeumhotel.com/restaurant-bar/galvin-at-the-athenaeum/

Cost: Average cost per person for a three course meal is £35 (not including drinks or service). From the à la carte menu, starters cost from £7.50 to £15.50, main courses from £16 to £28, and desserts from £5 to £8.50, with a platter of English cheeses for £12.50. There is a great value Prix Fixe menu at £23.50 for 3 courses, served at lunchtime and from 17.30 to 19.00.

About: Located on Piccadilly right opposite Green Park, the latest venture by the Galvin Brothers occupies much of the ground floor of the 5-star Athenaeum Hotel & Residencies.

Re-opened in July 2016, following a multi-million pound refurbishment, the family-run and independent The Athenaeum is the first hotel in London to have its entire food and beverage offering under the guidance of Chris and Jeff Galvin, and Executive Chef William Lloyd-Baker, who was Head Chef at Galvin La Chapelle for 4 years. 

In a first for the Galvin brothers, rather than focus on French classic cooking, the menu has a strong emphasis on fresh seasonal British produce (think Dorset crab lasagne, Dedham Vale beef steak tartare, Orkney scallops, Dingley Dell pork faggots and roast breast of Goosnargh chicken).

Despite its swanky Mayfair location, the Galvin at The Athenaeum is elegant though straightforward in design, reminiscent of Scandinavian 1970s chic, with light wood parquet floors, dark oak tables, wood and leather chairs, chrome and brown glass chandeliers.

I'm a big fan of the Galvin brothers’ cooking, and have been following their careers over the years - you can see some of my reviews from as early as 2010 for the gorgeous Galvin La Chapelle here, and more recently for Spitalfield's Galvin HOP here and Galvin at Windows (The Hilton Park Lane) here.

But how does their newest venture Galvin at The Athenaeum stack up? Read on to find out more!

What We Ate: We started with their signature dish of Dorset crab lasagne with Nantais butter sauce (£15.50). Fine looking though it was, the true beauty of the dish became apparent on cutting it open. With layers of the softest fresh pasta interleaved with pure white crab meat and scallop mousse, it was served with a tarragon-infused beurre blanc and cayenne pepper. Refined, elegant and delicious, I couldn’t have wished for a better start to our meal.

Next up was the risotto of parsley, Herefordshire snails and smoked eel (£12.50) - with English sensibility and ingredients and Burgundian inspiration, this had crispy fish crowns for contrasting crunch and tiny cubes of Granny Smith apple for freshness, paired with a rich smokiness from the eel. This was a complex, beautifully flavoured and textured dish and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

It is rare that I do not know what to order at a restaurant, but with so many enticing options available on the new Galvin menu, we struggled to make our choices.

So when in doubt, order the lot, and we went for a cheeky intercourse - the short rib of beef (£18.50). Served with fluffy potato gnocchi, Portobello mushrooms and purple sprouting broccoli, the beef was unctuously tender and yielding, served with a thick, glossy beef and red wine reduction and slivers of English Berkswell cheese from the West Midlands. I was completely blown away by the flavours and textures in this dish, and so glad we had it!

Then on to the main courses. The Denham Estate venison (£24.50) was tender and medium rare, served with scattered jewel-like pomegranate seeds, smoked potato mash, red cabbage and mace, and a delectable chocolate sauce.  This was another magnificent dish.

The Rose county beef rib eye (£28) was soft and deliciously pink, served with a handful of mini-capers and a flavoursome green peppercorn butter. The accompanying chips were chunky, hand-cut and expertly cooked, with a side order of fine green beans (£4.50).

How I love restaurants with a proper cheese trolley, and Galvin at The Athenaeum’s was just impossible to resist. The cheese course is priced at £12.50 and I highly recommend it for a great selection of English cheeses. 

Served with celery, chutney and pickled walnuts, we chose a mixture of sheep, goat and cows cheeses including creamy Tunworth, some Lancashire bomb, the Innes (goats cheese) as well as the Beenleigh Blue (sheeps cheese). 

To finish off on a sweet note, we had the rum baba (£8) – this came with golden raisins and a dainty side-serving of Chantilly cream. Served warm and ridiculously soft and airy, this was a spectacular end to a very impressive meal. 

What We Drank: The wine list is comprehensive. The entry-level white wine is a Costieres de Nimes from Chateau Saint-Cyrgues at £28.50, while the red is a Carignan from Languedoc at £27. There is a good selection of sweet wines and Ports by the glass or bottle, and the house Champagne is an Ayala Brut Majeur NV at £14.75 per glass, which was a great choice for our aperitif. 

With our main course and cheese course, we had a bottle of Galvin Rasteau, Domaine Andre Romero, Rhone 2015 (£41.50). A Merlot/Cabernet Franc blend, this had a youthful tinge of purple, powerful berry fruit, soft tannins and a long finish.   

With cheese, we had a glass of Vinho Madeira Barbeito (£9.50). A medium-sweet wine, this had fresh tangy aromas of marmalade as well as nuts, raisins and spice.  

To accompany the rum baba, we tried a glass of Domain des Chenes from Ambre Rivesaltes, Roussilon 2006 (£7.75). This was fresher, with peach, apricot and vanilla flavours. 

Likes: The Dorset crab lasagna was to die-for and warrants a return to Galvin at The Athenaeum on its own right. There were so many other highlights too, including the short rib of beef, the parsley risotto with snails and smoked eel, the marvelous rib-eye steak and chunky, properly made chips. The rum baba was also spectacular. Great wine list.

Dislikes: None.

Verdict: With top-quality, seasonal British ingredients in the capable hands of brothers Jeff and Chris Galvin, our dinner at Galvin at The Athenaeum was one of the most memorable meals I have enjoyed so far this year. For me, this is British cooking at its absolute best. Very highly recommended.

The New Tea and Dim Sum Menu at Hakkasan Mayfair

May 30, 2017, 8:27 am

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Name:Hakkasan Mayfair - Tea and Dim Sum Menu

Where: 17 Bruton Street, London, W1J 6QB, http://hakkasan.com/locations/hakkasan-mayfair/

Cost:Hakkasan Mayfair Tea and Dim Sum Lunch Menu is priced at £38 per person for 7 classic dim sum dishes plus a platter containing 3 types of dessert, or £42 for all the above plus a choice of two teas and one fruit blend per person. Available from 12 midday to 6.15pm for parties of two to seven.

About: Hakkasan Mayfair opened in 2011, and within a year was awarded a Michelin star, which it has maintained ever since. It updates it menus regularly, and is now offering a new tea and dim sum menu, available daily from 12 noon to 6.15 pm. 

Hakkasan Mayfair spans over two floors for up to 220 guests - the lower ground floor has the familiar and intimate Hakkasan setting as in the original Hanway Place, made up of a number of rooms partitioned by intricate wooden screens, whilst the ground floor features a relaxed dining space with high chairs and tables and a bar area.

Executive Head Chef Tong Chee Hwee oversees the kitchen, where dishes unique to Hakkasan Mayfair have been created, such as steamed New Zealand mini lobster, Black truffle roast duck, and Sliced blue abalone in Hakka sauce.

I visited Hakkasan Mayfair earlier this year for a taste of their Year of the Rooster Chinese New Year Menu, for more information, read the review here.

What We Ate: The new Tea and Dim Sum menu was served in rapid succession. Char sui buns were well made, with light and fluffy rice pastry and a richly aromatic, sweet barbecue pork filling. 

The har gau were filled with little cubes of bamboo shoot as well as prawn, giving another layer of flavour and contrasting crunchy texture. 

Topped with goji berries, the XO scallop and prawn dumplings were served each on its own little queenie scallop shell. The casing pastry was delicate and very fresh, while the XO sauce, made from chopped dried seafood and chilli pepper, imparted an exhilarating whack of heat and shellfish flavour.

Black truffle and chicken roll came gorgeously presented, in a crisp deep-fried rice paper case, with a single pomegranate seed, in a richly flavoured chicken stock and truffle reduction. This was the highlight of our dim sum lunch!

The baked venison puff had rich, sweet and tender meat in a light, crumbly pastry. 

Equally good were the crispy bean curd cheung fun – this had a layer of super-fine cheung fun (rice noodle) wrapped around crispy beancurd, filled with aromatic vegetables - mushroom, baby corn, and gai lan (Chinese broccoli).  With an unusual crunchy texture and complex flavours, this was another highlight of our meal.   

I was pleased to see a platter of greens among the dim sum offerings - the stir-fried asparagus was flavoursome, vibrant green and retaining some crunch. 

For dessert, there is a platter of three dishes. The matcha apple custard bun had a crisp choux pastry case, filled with cubes of fresh green apple, and in the centre a crisp dark chocolate truffle filled with green tea. It came decorated with gold leaf, little cubes of fresh apple, and an apple sorbet. The dessert was beautifully presented but in my opinion, it didn't quite come together as a whole.

The seasonal fruit platter included a selection of tropical fruit, including melon, dragon fruit, lychee, watermelon and physalis. The Macarons were violet and rose petal on the day we visited and were superb as usual.

What We Drank: For our mock cocktails, we chose the Kumquat Pomme Fizz, a mixture of kumquat, apple, lime and ginger ale. The Coco Passion was a blend of coconut, passion fruit, almond and coconut water.  Both were very sweet for my palate and I wished I had saved them to drink with my dessert.

The menu also comes with a choice of dragons well green tea or white peony tea, and we had the latter delicately scented white tea with our dim sum lunch. 

Likes: the highlights for us were the black truffle and chicken rolls, the crispy beancurd cheung fun, and the gorgeous macarons!

Dislikes: the mock cocktails were very sweet (perhaps they should be offered with dessert). I could have done with some more starch in the meal, perhaps a small bowl of rice, I must admit being still a tad hungry as I left the restaurant. I loved the food and the experience as usual at Hakkasan Mayfair, but I do not feel this menu compares favourably to others offered by the same group, for example – the Dim Sum Sundays menu at Hakkasan Hanway is priced at £58 per person but includes 2 alcoholic cocktails plus ½ a bottle of Champagne per person plus starters, dim sum, main course and dessert.

Verdict: For top quality, modern Cantonese dim sum in one of the most glamorous parts of London, few places can beat Hakkasan Mayfair. Their dim sum dumplings are superb, utterly fresh and I highly recommend them.

Tsukiji Sushi – Tasting Menu Reviewed

June 8, 2017, 4:44 am

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Name:Tsukiji Sushi

Where: 38 Conduit Street, Mayfair, London, W1S 2YF, http://tsukijimayfair.com/

Cost: Average cost per person is £45 not including drinks or service charge. There is a set dinner including tempura, a main course and dessert for £45. We opted for the tasting menu at £65 per person, or £95 with a matching sake flight. Or if you fancy just an assorted platter of sushi or sashimi, they are available in platters at either £23.50 or £36.50.  

About: Set in Conduit Street inside the swanky Westbury Hotel, this intimate Japanese restaurant seats just 14 people at sleek red wood tables, plus another 6 at the sushi bar counter.

With Head Chef Show Choong at the helm, Tsukiji Sushi, oozes elegant restraint, and has a sushi chef beavering away behind the bar. 

Simply decorated with white wall panels broken up by red wood borders like a Kandinsky painting, minimalist artwork and an unobtrusive backing track of lounge music, the restaurant has a restful feel.   

What We Ate: The first dish of the Tasting Menu (£65pp) was named buna shimeji (brown beach mushroom). Simply pan-fried, these lovely little funghi were served with a fabulous green sauce of parsley, coriander and spring onions, vinegar, olive oil and garlic. The sauce reminded me of a Mediterranean bagnet vert, it was fresh and with great acidity.

Next up was hamachi (yellowtail) usuzukuri (thinly sliced), served with yuzu ponzu (a zingy citrus dressing made with soy and yuzu juice), topped with a small amount of oroshi (shredded daikon and chilli), and thinly sliced spring onion. 

The tataki chu toro (lightly seared fatty tuna), was served with a delectable and refreshing jalapeño salsa made with onion, vinegar, garlic, ponzu, and an intensely herbaceous Japanese kinomi leaf. With a rich and creamy mouthfeel I thoroughly enjoyed this dish, I just wished there was more of it!

To follow, we had the octopus carpaccio served with a truffle mustard, saikyo miso and vinegar dressing, all on a bed of fennel shavings. The octopus was softly textured, with a thrilling heat from the mustard, tart vinegar notes and sweet miso. This was another refreshing and very well seasoned dish.

A single grilled oyster with creamy sauce and tobiko egg followed. With Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise, sweet chilli and rice vinegar, this had the fresh mineral aroma of the sea, and a lovely creaminess. 

Equally good was the unakyu maki, served with a few splashes of rich, sweet teriyaki sauce. A lovely eel sushi, the rice was soft and yielding, and tasted fresh and expertly cooked. 

Better still were the nigiri sushi - the chef's omakase selection of five different types. On the evening of our visit, the chef had chosen a variety of fresh and blowtorched sushi. The tuna belly with sea urchin was exquisite - complex, minerally, with layers of texture and flavour.  The salmon belly with wasabi was also good, as was the prawn, but the seared butterfish was better still, with an aromatic, smoky finish and creaminess only highly fatty fish can give. Best of all for me though was the scallop. I have always loved the outlandishly huge and creamy scallops served in Tokyo, and the scallops at Tsukiji Sushi with black tobiko eggs were not too far off!

The last dish before dessert was a fine piece of black cod with saikyo miso sauce and a slice of grilled red pepper. There was a time in my life when I ate so much black cod that I went off it, but this dish reminded me what I had been missing. It was rich, soft as caramel, and exquisitely buttery. 

In Japanese restaurants in the West, the almost inevitable dessert is green tea ice cream. However, at Tsukiji Sushi, this was served with a lovely crisp of white chocolate embossed with a Japanese traditional floral design, plus chocolate ripple, raspberry compote, dried raspberry crumb and Cantonese cocoa nibs. 

What We Drank: We opted for a bottle of Sancerre Rose 2015, from Pascal Jolivet. Made from 100% Pinot Noir, this had peach and ripe red berry fruit, with a distinctive mineral character, with a fresh acidity and elegance. It was clean and refreshing, and made an excellent partner for the sashimi and sushi. 

Likes: I enjoyed every single dish on Tsukiji Sushi’s Tasting Menu, but some of the highlights included the omakaze sushi platter, the tataki of fatty tuna, and the octopus carpaccio as well as the grilled oyster!

Dislikes: I would have loved a little rice dish and a bowl of soup to finish the savoury part of the meal, this is knows as the shime, and is customary, specially with tasting menus like this. I must admit being still a tad hungry as I left the restaurant but this could have been avoided.

Verdict: Tsukiji Sushi is an intimate restaurant serving great quality and well-made sushi, sashimi and cooked Japanese dishes. Just by manic Oxford Circus, this is a little haven of tranquility and a real find. Recommended.