Foodepedia reviews

Wednesday, May 09, 2012 - From the kitchen came pork filet sat on vibrant greens, possibly cavolo nero, flavoured with anchovy and partnered with a blob of mayonnaise. A good match all round. Jokingly called an Italian version of the Full English, a plate of white beans, poached egg, tomato and Italian sausage was the sort of dish that was happy to trade punches with a glass of Sacromonte Montecucco Rosso. A dish to get busy with, bread wiping of plate obligatory and don't stop until the plate enamel comes off...It has the makings of a place I'd go to regularly for drinks and a tasty bite.

Monday, March 05, 2012 - Croquetas? Oh yes please. Good ones too, the bechamel creamy the exterior crispy and it's not easy to get both those right.. Finally we fought over a slice of suckling pig with parsnip and potato crisps, apple puree and, unannounced, a sorbet. Now pig is all about the crackling and it comes out best from a wood fired oven, even so Boqueria's gave good crunch...Friendly staff, a busy room and mostly up to the mark food, means Boqueria is a go-to place in what was once a bandito part of town, which should make locals, and local estate agents, very happy indeed.

Thursday, January 19, 2012 - Taste wise, no complaints, the chili-spiked black bean spare ribs were the usual gelatinous tussle but that's where the flavour is. The turnip cake was as good as any I've had and nothing disappointed, although I had forgotten how beef balls don't really do it for me. The BBQ pork buns were well textured in their usual peculiar way; some can be like forcing down savoury candy floss but these were spot on, if a little light on filling...Price wise Royal China costs no more than Chinatown and the number of Chinese people eating showed that its popularity hasn't been affected by its new look and style.

Monday, January 16, 2012 - Pasta e patate couldn't be simpler, just fresh pasta ribbons with potato, garlic, basil and celery, but it's delicious. Some of the potato has melted to become a thick sauce, the rest has stayed in al dente cubes. It's subtle, rich and filling. P has Paccheri alla Genovese; squares of pasta smothered in slow-cooked, fall-apart hunks of beef in a herb and onion sauce. Again simple, again excellent... This modern Neapolitan eatery has a lot of charm, some very good cooking and not an oversized pepper mill in sight.

Monday, December 26, 2011 - The duck egg yolk, piquillo and white truffle was another rich dish, a winner on looks alone. Break the probably baked or sous-vided, slow moving, yolk, stir it in and then ladle it mouthwards. There's a crunch of nuts against the unctuous egg and the piquillo pepper has been laid out like a carpet under this fine little picnic. The truffle adds some visible poshness but was actually a bit dry and not very truffley...Copita has certainly raised a standard in Soho; modern tapas are a wondrous thing when not taken to extremes. I would worry that some dishes can have a bit too much oil and a bit too much going on though.

Wednesday, December 07, 2011 - It provokes all the right stirrings. The breathing deepens, the arteries bulge, and a whack of full meaty flavour is released upon your chops. The Chilli Cheese Burger is just as pleasing. There is also a Bacon Cheese Burger and a Double Bubble Double Cheese Burger. Again, the thick agglomeration of meat, like Discobolus' discus, is held by two cosy buns. I fire it up further with splashes of Dave's Hot Sauce and it rips a hole through my gob and brings tears to my eyes. I take another large bite and almost soil myself.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011 - The food resembles Iberica Marylebone; the menu is the same but with more ham...I've had Iberica's remarkable Gazpacho of red berries, beetroot and anchovy before and it's still stand-out; the balance of the sweet and the savoury is perfect, a real appetite inducer. More delicate is Pan fried scallops, cauliflower puree, escabeche, fennel and apple. I like the contrast of apple and fennel, the acidity versus the liquorice, the scallops are perfect but the dish is almost too good, more a restaurant starter than a light bite.

Monday, November 28, 2011 - P was much, much happier with her slow-cooked lamb shoulder, pearl couscous and cavolo nero. The meat was properly fall-to-the fork tender and the bitter tannic bite of the Cavolo Nero, that unsung hero of winter greens, went predictably well with the meat. I love pearl couscous; it sucks up flavour into each oversized grain and has a great texture...Overall the Rookery seems to be doing the right things in the right way to become a popular neighbourhood joint, there's a lot of middle-class money in Abbeville village but the restaurants there have mostly got complacent, which gives the Rookery a chance to fly in successfully.

Friday, November 18, 2011 - In a flurry my Char Kway Teow, the ribs and the wontons all arrive at once. The wontons are blisteringly hot and not bad for the money, although I prefer mine to have been given a little fry off to offer some crust. The pork falls off the bones very satisfyingly and while a bit underpowered in the spice department, they have a decent flavour of their own which makes up for it...I know some people expected more from Alan Yau of Wagamama fame, and it seems Cha Cha has reverted to a slow waltz since he stopped being in charge day to day. Even so, it's cheap and it's cheerful and, unlike some of Chinatown's finest, you don't get the feeling you're a nuisance to the staff. For a fast affordable feed, everyone can comfortably keep going to the Moon.

Thursday, October 27, 2011 - First up was sea bass seared in a Josper grill, that ultra-hot 'oven' that cooks in seconds. It's ideal for steaks but a bit risky for delicates, the chances of the fish going up in flames must be very high. P's fish survived the heat but the wait and she reported a great piece of fish with good char and well supported by some tender samphire, crayfish and rouille. A portion of chips had enough heat to make up for the cool fish and were decently cooked, crispy without being crunchy. My Guinea fowl breast with confit leg was a top bird. The breast was moist and there was plenty of it and the confit was superb, this meat really responding to being slow cooked in its own fat.

Tuesday, October 04, 2011 - The squid and mackerel 'burger', parsley, razor clams and sea purslane is the same dish that was on the menu in 2006 and it's still delicious. The mackerel is fresh and subtle, the squid al dente and the razor clam chopped to remove its scary tongue appearance is buttery and beautiful. My slow cooked crisp pig's head, mustard mayonnaise, with crisp salad has also been on the menu for years and why not? The head meat pressed into a mould and then decanted is slippery, fatty and packed with porcine flavor. The salad combines thinly sliced cornichons, apple and radish to perfectly counter the fat and the mustard mayonnaise has just enough heat. It's instinctively good cooking.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011 - At Joel's the sweetbreads are served in a Le Creuset saucepan, which is a bit too rustic. If nothing else the heavy pot kept the food hot. And what food, a massively generous portion of veal sweetbreads with Pomme Maxim - layered discs of potato baked off - and some roast potatoes which had been 'turned', in other words shaped into torpedoes, something you don't see much of these days. Whatever fat they had been roasted in had infused them wonderfully so that they transcended the norm. Oh and let's not forget darkly aromatic and bouncy porcini, all paddling about in a rich jus that made me scrape the pot.

Thursday, August 11, 2011 - His 10-oz sirloin steak on a board was properly cooked the way he asked for it, juicy and with good flavour and properly seared on the outside. The string of vine cherry tomatoes hadn’t been cooked though, which was a shame, so he left them on the side. The chips came in a dinky flowerpot...It's hard to find things to truly carp about at The Drift and rather pointless to try. They've thought about what the local workers want and delivered it without cynicism and with some panache. A decent wine list, a proper bar, cocktails a go go and prices that are affordable.

Monday, August 08, 2011 - The Hamilton's Fish Stew, which is a main course but asking for a starter portion presented no problems, rendered us silent for at least three minutes. King prawns, plump mussels, salmon, deeply rich and delicious tomato sauce and the addition of smoked fish and deep fried crispy kale - inspired...It is very easy to be seduced by this place - it's got a lot going for it and the prospect of whiling away a few hours sipping cocktails, grazing on a few shared plates and not bothering to catch the last train home is the way we are going to play it next time - join us!

Thursday, July 21, 2011 - Beef Carpaccio was decent for the money, a bit too heavy on the truffle oil, a dangerous ingredient in the wrong hands. It gives the illusion of class, but is a bit suburban. I have a bottle at home. We liked the Pizzettine a lot though; a good base scattered with nuggets of spicy Tuscan sausage and, at 4.00, a pop good value too...Purists may well sneer, but Assaggetti is doing a good job at a good price and some of the dishes could actually go head to head with ones from far pricier places.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011 - I've had some legendary Porchettas in my time, that fatty, moist Swiss roll of pork with its layers of stuffing is rarely bad, often brilliant. It's a staple in restaurants in Italy and a beast of a dish, not one for slimmers, but immensely satisfying. Joe's is just right, the fat is all there but it dissolves like morning dew on the tongue, the herbs have kept their freshness and the meat is tender and alive with flavour. A big, perhaps too big dollop of peach and rosemary jelly cuts through and rosemary roast potatoes are perfect.

Wednesday, July 06, 2011 - You may notice a theme here - BBQ. This is because Manzes' kitchen is not a restaurant kitchen as such and so the team has supplemented it in the simplest way possible with a grill. It works. The pigeon is perfectly cooked, as in barely cooked at all. Already an excellent piece of meat, it benefits from the barbecue and the sweetness of the apple. The chorizo could have done with a bit more cooking to give it a texture contrasting with the pigeon, but that's a quibble...The Bonnie and Wild is a simple idea done well - take quality, don't muck about with it and do it all in an informal fun setting.

Monday, July 04, 2011 - A had the spider crab salad with quail eggs and mayonnaise, and declared it excellent. The crab had an interesting sweetness to it, but lovely depth of flavour, and the quail eggs were glossily gorgeous. I decided on Streeton's West London smoked salmon, smoked in-house, and was very happy that I did; the salmon was thicker cut than usual, but had excellent texture and a nice punch of flavour. It was accompanied by strips of fennel, which were nice, although I preferred to have the fennel between bites of the salmon, rather than with it...The Capability struck me as a splendid choice for a celebration dinner, but it would be a shame to restrict visits there to high days and holidays.

Saturday, June 18, 2011 - The El Diablo has a real parade of flavours including chorizo, garlic butter, tomato, coriander and rocket. There's harissa in there too, apparently, but I'd have liked even more. The Diablo is in the detail. It's good though, as is the Wikileeks (groan) with its cooked down leeks, powerful knobs of goat's cheese and sprinkling of thyme making it a French tart in all but name. Maybe they should have called it the Sarkozy?...It's not a first-date restaurant, nor somewhere to take your parents for their wedding anniversary, but it's perfect for lunch, pre-flicks or a just a fast fill up on fresh food with world flavours.

Tuesday, June 07, 2011 - P's deep-fried sprats could perhaps have come out of the oil a tiny bit sooner, but there's no real harm done. My cod cheeks are very enjoyable, the tempura batter crispy, light and non-greasy and the cheeks are as firm as a favourite godson's. The 'crushed pea aioli' with them is not quite ideal...This isn't a restaurant that wants to be a place of pilgrimage for foodies, but that's fine by me. John keeps it simple, keeps it quality, keeps it good value and he will undoubtedly keep the locals coming back for more.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011 - The Duck Leg (slow roasted) when it hopped up seemed to me to be a classic confit duck leg but there's nothing wrong with that. The meat was tender and the skin crispy, the two things that have to be right. The salad of Puy lentils had a rather crude lump of red onion sitting on it but was otherwise a correct accompaniment to an essentially French dish...The menu makes no apology for offering something for everyone, the ambience is cool and the staff pleasantly unprofessional, in a good way, and relaxed. The Asian side seems to be stronger than the others, although the burgers did look good as they went past.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011 - The braised tongue is so tender it sighs wistfully when I look at it. The carrots are remarkably robust - not tasteless babies but big boys left large. A good decision. The horseradish mash is such a simple thing but couldn't be more perfect...What's already apparent is that Jason has melded the elements of inventive, creative 'Feen Deening' with the link so often missing in such food - real flavour. Add to that a relaxed 'vibe' to the New Yorky room and it all just feels right.

Thursday, April 14, 2011 - We ordered Grilled British steak with chipotle salsa - three small tacos topped with the steak. These were good, the steak juicy and rare, the chipotle zingy, and each taco happily enfolded its topping before being popped into the mouth. Less easy to eat were Tostadas of Chicken guajillo. The chunks of marinated chicken, lettuce, guacamole and smoky guajillo oil were piled high on the tostadas and when bitten half the toppings went up my nose, while the other half tumbled in pieces back down onto the plate. A bit bland too, but then chicken breast often is. The spicy sauces on the table helped take care of that though.

Friday, March 18, 2011 - Who would have guessed that under that 70s skin was so much fine original decor? Wood panels, superb tiling, glorious bowed windows, architectural features and doors and more...Sensibly the open kitchen under Chef Matt Pepperell has a short menu and one that is large on things that can be turned out by a small team. No sauces, no frippery, no drama...The Manor Arms is just what Streatham needs. If the kitchen could speed up, and the waitresses not forget things, it could be a real winner innit?

Saturday, March 12, 2011 - S's trotter had been deboned and the meat taken out and, mixed with sweetbreads and then refilled, braised and served with morel mushrooms. S liked it a lot and what I sampled seemed good but nonetheless I wouldn't order it myself. More to my taste was the Daube de bœuf provencale, a classic piece of French country cooking with a rich sauce and fall apart slow cooked meat...Boundary is unashamedly old-school and it is all very good. Boundary isn't edgy and I for one applaud that.

Monday, February 21, 2011 - Staff are pleasingly pubby, not Micheliny and a little ragged, but then it is the first week. The menu reads simply but is full of things you want to eat such as the Herefordshire snail lasagne. When it arrives I can tell from the aroma it's going to be good and by golly it is. The pasta is silky and light, the snails generous and the mushroom, garlic and parsley sauce simply divine. This is cooking by instinct and experience, not slide rule, and what you expect from a Head Chef who learnt his trade in Lyon. P has a pork pie that is a magnificent slice of Old England. While Heston is exhuming old recipes, Bosi's team are refining them.

Thursday, February 10, 2011 - Pies are something of a speciality at the Tommyfield, as if I needed any encouragement to have one, and it had to be the steak and stout. I expected a ceramic dish with a filling topped off with pastry: wrong. What I got, perched on top of a verdant pile of greens, was a beast of a pie and not a ceramic dish in sight. It was rough-hewn, not pretty, and I could have wept with joy at the sheer unbridled pieness of it. So, full marks for appearance, but could the taste deliver? Yes it could; the short crust pastry was the perfect foil for the rich beefy filling, tangy with stout, the pie was full of flavour and literally filled to the brim. It was delicious, but more than I could manage.

Wednesday, February 09, 2011 - Food here is light on the pocket but also light on the stomach with plates of tapas-style dishes that offer a variety of choice for your money and the chance to share...The Tilapia Amritsari, Tilapia fish in light batter and of gram flour, garlic and paprika was very good, the fish tasty and the batter crisp and light. The spicing sparky but mild. We liked the Papdi Chat, a real reminder of Indian street food with the cooling yoghurt against the tamarind, the crunchy wheat crisps and the healthy dose of bean sprouts.

Friday, February 04, 2011 - The baby back ribs are gorgeous. The ribs pull apart easily, as they should, and the meat is spicy, salty and has the smoke ring under the surface that denotes good cooking. I absolutely love them and cannot understand why the option to have a much larger portion as mains is not on offer...What about the steak? Well it was almost cooked the way I like it, the waiters should learn to recognise the instruction 'a point'. It's not quite the same as medium rare, as any decent chef knows. However it had a lovely charred exterior and the meat was juicy and, after a false start at one end, became very tasty indeed. No chips for me, but instead an excellent bowl of vibrant cavolo nero.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - My Brill was absolutely brill. A great big hunk of fresh fish cooked on a charcoal grill to give it those tasty sear lines. Sat on a slightly dry herby mash potato, but moated by a superb lemon beurre blanc, it also benefitted from a handful of clams dotted about with some baby leeks. As a dish it was impossible to fault and the quality of the fish fully justified the price...Eating there feels like eating in another City; modern, tasteful, forward looking and assured. For most of us it's a destination well worth making the small effort to get to. For bankers living in the area, Fish Place is all the bonus they really need this year.

Monday, December 06, 2010 - Our burritos turn up looking like big silver bombs. These boys are enormous; a 12-inch floury and soft tortilla wraps a mega-mix of meat plus beans, rice, lettuce, cheese, sour cream and salsa and more besides...The lamb is excellent, a smoky flavour and a glorious tenderness, all offset by the starchy beans, the piquant salsa and the sour cream. We have half a one each and then eat the steak version, which is very good but the lamb is the winner by a woolly nose. Great value and very filling.

Thursday, December 02, 2010 - No complaints about the short but sweet du jour lunch and early dinner menu either, which changes every two weeks. Game terrine, fruit chutney, radish and toast sounds a bit dull, but wasn't. The terrine was as rustic as incest and as chunky as a well-loved sweater...My rabbit lasagne was so precisely brick shaped it could have come from a mould. Nothing wrong with that, it means Bryn got the sauce thickness just right as well as the ratio of pasta to meat. It was a mildly gamey ragu with the unique tones of rabbit making it rather special and with sweet carrot and smoky bacon adding familiar notes.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010 - The chicken breast in a salted vanilla crust was tender and juicy, deliciously perfumed and flavoured by its cooking crust, though care had to be taken to ensure that this salty casing was scraped off entirely. This was served with a taraxacum (dandelion) salad which went very well with the meat. The grilled tuna was a great dish. The tuna was soft and pink, an excellent piece of fish, perfectly cooked, on the rare side of medium rare, this came with nicely al dente Swiss chard and spinach, which balanced it perfectly. These were two very well executed excellent plates of food.

Friday, November 19, 2010 - A segment of pink grapefruit added a zing to lightly chargrilled scallops served not with the usual slice of black pudding but with morcilla, Spain's smoother, richer but more delicately flavoured blood sausage. Shallot puree added contrasting sweetness. Pickled pear, toasted walnut, gorgonzola and mache was a perfect melding of sweet, sour, salt, smooth and crunch, rich and light - as was crisp pork belly, pickled cabbage, apple puree and poached quince...Puddings were even more beautiful and delicious.

Monday, November 01, 2010 - The croquettes were dull but the Scamorza, an aged Italian smoked cheese, was astounding; it tasted almost like smoked bacon with a saltiness to match. I had Machheroni alla Sicilliana (giant macaroni pasta with a squash, sage and chilli sauce), whilst my guest had Battered Seitan with Cabbage. Again, one dish was divine the other barely recognisable as restaurant food...While some of the dishes were off the mark, the one's that were good were very good. When they got it right the food at Amico Bio was inspiring, unusual and interesting, just steer clear of the seitan.

Monday, October 25, 2010 - Nilgiri lamb is full of flavour and a darkly spiced contrast to the cashew nut sweetness of saffron chicken korma. I hope it isn't long before I can try the lobster balchao, a goan dish that promises to be at my favourite level of spiciness. Side dishes are unusual and exotic - dudhee bhopia and chana (bottle gourd and pumpkin cooked with lentils, tempered with mustard seeds and a lemon and ginger rice - as well as reassuringly familiar though never prosaic. A choice of dals, bread of the day and an inventive raita confirm that this is much more than a neighbourhood Indian.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010 - Salmon cubes steeped in lemon juice, ginger, garlic, cinnamon and Kashmiri chillies were moist and sensitively spiced. Murg and mirch ka guchi to them; baby Padron peppers to you and me - stuffed with tiny cubes of chicken steeped in a herby, ground chestnut sauce - were perfectly balanced for colour, texture and taste. Butterflied prawns slicked with crunchy sesame seeds became heavenly with a dollop of a light, creamy pink fish sauce. Chunks of lamb marinaded in garam masala and slow-cooked can so often turn to mush; these richly flavoured mouthfuls retained texture and bite.

Thursday, September 09, 2010 - We started with a chicken liver and foie gras parfait with shallot chutney and brioche, which was beautifully balanced. The bread was sweet enough to counter the creamy pate, the chutney with its cutesy cornichons, was not too sweet to rage with the bread or anything else. Steak tartar with toasted sourdough, however, was lacking taste...Tourists will enjoy Tom's Kitchen with its elegant decor and views down a terrace to the Thames. And the food, on the whole, is good. But it won't blow you away.

Friday, July 23, 2010 - We tried the mixed meat platter, a wooden board groaning with goodies: delicious parma ham, generous slices of smoked salmon and tranches of stuffed chicken breast, served with pitta and dips, including hummus and a really good baba ganoush...For our mains, we had fish and chips, which was super stuff; the fish lightly battered and full of flavour, the chips fatly generous and nicely crisp. We also went for a dish from the specials menu, pork medallions, which had been well cooked and were served with a rocket salad, dressed with some glazed balsamic vinegar.

Friday, July 16, 2010 - Inside Le Cafe du Marche you don't feel lost, you feel right at home; this is a tranche of France that is as Gallic as surrendering without a shot. The walls are bare brick and you can scent the cooking on the air, something sadly lacking in restaurants where the trendy chef is cooking via Twitter.

Friday, July 16, 2010 - Nozomi is battling to bring down costs by offering special Bento box deals at lunchtime as a way of luring in locals. Bento boxes are boxes of of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, originally designed as take out meals or lunch packs prepared at home for people to carry to work or school. In the UK we call them Tupperware Boxes.

Tuesday, July 06, 2010 - Pork belly was quality from Denham Estate, very tenderly slow-cooked and confited and coming away in juicy, straggly forkfuls. A bit more crackle in the well-seasoned crackling is all that could have been done to improve it. The apple sauce helped cut the fattiness, but I still think apple sauce is baby food. P's hunk of cod sat on bed of broad and borlotti beans, with tomato, fennel, lemon zest and asparagus spears thrown into the bisque sauce to create a tricolore summery setting. She liked the veg but reckoned the cod itself, though cooked to a T, was a teensy bit bland.

Monday, May 24, 2010 - What tempted me to Boulud's burger joint was the promise of 'made on the premises charcuterie' by Gilles Verot who is rumoured to turn out terrific terrines, powerfully good pates. Our shared plate for two was a bit light on quantity, but was spot on for quality. Lapin de garrigue was a light slice of Provencal pulled rabbit with carrot, courgette and herbs, all bonded by a delicate jelly. The rabbit in particular was superb. Compote de joue de boeuf - shredded slow-braised beef cheek with onion confit and pistachio was deeply unctuous.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 - Then come the steaks. It's a shock, they're even bigger than I imagined they'd be and my Tomahawk has a bone the size of an axe handle on it...We slice and chew, chew and slice. The steaks are good, the fries are a bit soggy, the salad of tomato and Gorgonzola fine but almost untouched. Mainly because we cant reach across our steaks to get to it. Not at all sure about the sweet potato with marshmallows though, very sweet and sickly to UK palettes. Slowly the massive meat disappears and we start to make puffing noises and put A&E on speed dial. Can anyone eat like this more than once a year?

Tuesday, April 13, 2010 - My starter of Heaven and Earth, which I actually do need to have explained to me, is Black Pudding with potatoes - a cannonball set on mashed spuds. Elegant it is not, with the skin of the pudding peeling away gently. I didn't know black puddings came this big to be honest, but it's big on flavour. I like it, but I can't say it's anything more than likeable. Not so sure about my mains though...Hix Soho at lunch caters to the needs of men not into fancy food, those who want to simply eat and relax. Maybe sink a drink or three.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010 - I was invited to inspect a row of bottles on a shelf right behind me. This I couldn't do without imitating Lynda Blair in The Exorcist and doing a full 360 with my head. So the wife picked one. It's a novel idea, but I think I still prefer seeing a wine list...Steak and frites is something every French restaurant should get right or go home. Here a decent bit of entrecote had the all important fat for flavour and was done 'a point' as asked. A perfect lemon tart finished me off and Aubaine left the right impression. It's a place that wants to fit local needs and it does it well and with that extra bit of effort that's all too often lacking in the area.

Thursday, January 21, 2010 - I had one of my favourites, Mafaldine with spicy sausage. (Traditionally the scraps of pasta left over). The sausage meat had been slow cooked but still had the crispy caramelised bits that are so vital to the flavour. Nutmeg and fennel wafted out too and it was a real belly liner, as pasta should be...It's not the spot for a romantic dinner a deux, but for honest, flavour packed, well-priced Italian food I can't think of anywhere that competes in London right now. Rush in and waddle out.

Sunday, January 10, 2010 - The Beef Mooli has braised beef so it doesn't put up a fight when you bite into it, just demurely melts away. The cucumber and coconut offsets the spices well, possibly just nudging the spice to the sideline. It's subtle...The Chicken Mooli has crunchy apple inside, which is great, as well as coriander and mint chutney. I long for a dusting of fresh green chilli inside, but as this is authentic who I am to complain? Finally and gloriously, asparagus, potato and tamarind mooli. This is the best of all, the soft potato and crunchy asparagus just perfect. Vegetarians rejoice, here is a snack you can really savour.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009 - The table opposite took delivery of the Cote de Boeuf and I started fretting that I had made the wrong choice. However worries disappeared when the Slow cooked lamb shoulder a la Basquaise and herb ravioli turned up. Literally falling off the bone every single thing was lapped up. Tagine of Squab pigeon and harissa sauce was also very good, and argument raged over which was the better dish. The Harissa providing a lovely kick, I was guilty of stealing some for my lamb.

Monday, October 05, 2009 - A main of Lamb rump, breast, tongue and sweetbread with warm summer bean salad and aubergine was an excellent piece of cooking, the offal working very well with the more routine cuts. Little tip, if you feel full right about now, cancel pudding and just have the cheese. Chez Bruce is famed for its cheese board and it is richly deserved...

Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - Take a short walk from the Earls Court Exhibition Centre and you are spoilt for culinary choice. However, Seasonings Restaurant & Lounge stands out with its clean and simple decor of funky perspex chairs, white walls and contemporary Indian music.

Sunday, June 21, 2009 - The arrival of Keelung in London has certainly attracted instant attention. The night we went a national critic pompously waddled in soon after. Memo to national critics; if you're serious about reviewing anonymously don't let them print your picture next to your column.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009 - Same story with the rib eye steak - perfect meat, perfectly cooked. Served on a wooden board, which I am always a bit dubious about, but here there was paper between board and beef and I found that a lot more attractive. A tin pail of perfect golden fries was attractive if a little passé, but I was too busy stealing them off the wife to worry about fashion…All in all Harrison’s goes up against a restaurant group like Locale (also in Balham) and wins by classy mains cooking and a far more central, buzzy, location.

Saturday, May 30, 2009 - All the snobs will tell you not to order chicken in a restaurant, unless you’re in Nandos obviously. No worries here though; moist flavoursome chicken with a bone proudly sticking out like a leg in a plaster cast, a seasoned crispy skin with the fat rendered well, rather too many, but well-cooked, fine beans, unctuous gratin and a jus that, to be honest, tasted more of wine than mushroom but went great with the gratin anyway…Twotwentytwo has above standard food and cooking at its target level and is well priced too. They could turn down that annoying music a bit though.

Saturday, May 30, 2009 - The catch of the day choice was a good sized fillet of cod that was cooked perfectly, moist and flaky, in a tasty batter and served with a generous portion of chips. From the specials menu, the lamb with garlic and rosemary, one of my personal favourites, had great flavour and was cooked medium rare, exactly as ordered… Apart from the extensive range of beers Brouge has a good selection wines on offer, the house white and red each priced at just under £13. Well worth a visit.

Saturday, May 30, 2009 - With a pint of draught Kingfisher nicely freezing my hand, the menu at Hason Raja looked reassuring. So did the room, a standard Indian restaurant of the late 80s with lots of light ersatz wood about and waiters in dinky uniforms. I asked one what he would recommend as a main course, ‘oh the chicken tikka masala!’ he said, quick as a flash. I searched his features for signs of irony, but he seemed completely serious…This is an Indian that plays by old skool rules with mostly Bangladeshi dishes and it does the job well. Not fine dining but fill you up food with a subtlety that marks it out from more suburban ‘Indians’.

Saturday, May 30, 2009 - On to mains, and the rack of lamb, beautifully pink and tender, served with a generous portion of good dauphinoise potatoes, al dente spring greens and salsa verde, was a tasty dish. The roast cod with pancetta, braised lettuce, leeks and peas was another winner, the smoky cod working really well with the pancetta and other ingredients…Despite local competition, Sam's clearly stands out from the crowd, delivering excellent food and service in a comfortable space. It is definitely worth visiting.

Monday, April 27, 2009 - The restaurant was busy and apparently has been so since opening, with local suits finding it just right for non-showy business lunches and connoisseurs coming in for the food, the view and that remarkable wine cellar. Unpretentious, modern, well-priced and friendly, this place is just what London, or at least this particular reporter, wants right now.

Tuesday, March 31, 2009 - Enjoying the effect of black vodka Momos, my friend and his girl, who have been to the Congo, authenticated kitchen aromas. Four pairs of hands efficiently flew across a colourful collage of homely, heart-warming food from the Congolese menu. Sweetly wiry, spinach like aubergine was scattered with UFOs (unidentifiable fishy objects). Part caramelised plantains were as welcomingly biteable and softly perfumed as mini doughnuts. Giant ‘schrimps’ were fleshy, silty and vividly spiced specimens. Goat curry enveloped in yam leaf was slightly moist and rustically leathery like mutton. The highlight was an edible definition of fodder for the credit crunch: white bean casserole with pig trotters, scooped with smoky bread…

Friday, March 13, 2009 - Eschewing antelope, we bought the marketing of steaks to ‘leave home for’. Mission statements mostly mean the opposite, although our 28 days dead beef rewarded the pledge. Armed with knives like weapons and advised “not to argue”, I immediately tucked into my best of British fillet. Although a touch overdone, it was still a pleasurably chewy, part bloody cushion…Clean chips were easily pierced, onion rings were clearly outstanding. As crisp as late autumn leaves and finely floury, I imagine I could eat 100s without nausea. Portions were edible rather than epic.

Friday, March 13, 2009 - Richard Corrigan is great at dining room rhetoric. Like Bentley’s, he has collaged a classy, clubby, man’s-man sanctuary served by sweetly inclined but occasionally inexperienced staff. Game for game, Corrigan’s appears to be struggling during the pause in shooting, however. Whilst everything was edible, and two dishes outstanding, slow cooked aspects suffered. And despite big talk, portions were small. Providing that the kitchen bothers a bit more with basics, I will gladly return.

Thursday, March 05, 2009 - The refurb of this perennial favourite has seen the sunken bar area disappear as well as the fish tank although you have to wonder what happened to the fish… What doesn’t change is the view. This has always been the Gardens’ main claim to fame and still impresses. How they got full size trees to grow here is a talking point, as is the fun of trying to work out what buildings can be spotted… Overall, as we disembarked past cheerful staff, we felt that the a la carte wasn’t quite the full ticket at those prices but the set menu, together with the décor and view, equaled a very pleasant flight.

Thursday, March 05, 2009 - The large room has the feel of somewhere from Grand Designs and eyes are kept off the industrial ceiling by the magnetic effect of dark woods and candles placed lower down. Tables are big and at the back a large glass wall conceals what glimpses suggest must be a massive kitchen…The cooking here is elegant and refined which means no massive portions and it’s possible to indulge freely and not need a lie down afterwards. While its location may be somewhat secret, the Cinnamon Kitchen, and its accompanying bar Anise, should be shared with all those who want an unique and classy Indian experience.

Monday, February 23, 2009 - The plate appears a bit sparse when it arrives, plenty of porcelain visible around the big-bunned hefty burger. A few more of those attractive chips would cure that. The burger looks the business though, a demi brioche bun that has a soft texture but not so soft that it’s indistinguishable from the meat…The important thing is that it looks possible to get the whole thing in the mouth for the first bite, which I do and shortly after experience the cheerful sensation of warm juices running down both my forearms.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009 - With bills that come in lower than a Peking Duck on final approach and a laudable focus on authenticity, Rasa Sayang is a great ambassador for its cuisine and the ideal place for a fast lunch or a more leisurely dinner. Dieters beware of the pork fat though, it’s easy to make a pig of yourself.

Monday, January 26, 2009 - The menu with the old style fonts is standard Brasserie size so you have to peer around it to talk to your dining companion but is packed with things you really want to eat. So much so in fact that you know you’re going to be able to come here time after time (income permitting) to try them all. Which is pretty much how the Parisian Brasserie of your dreams should be. Oysters? Langoustines? Crabs? I love them but today we have to try the cooking and blow me, but there are frittered frogs’ legs on the menu so one of us has to taste that while I go for smoked eel, a dish I have come to love over the last year.

Monday, January 26, 2009 - Fish here comes on the bone and that’s a good thing. Okay, it may trouble people unused to cutlery and dear old Croydon does have a fair few people who eat with their hands, but the flavour is far better. The wife’s Dover sole was perfectly cooked and slipped away from its bones to be dunked in a decent tartare sauce. A small bucket of proper chips also got the cheerful dunking treatment. Calves liver, mash and bacon is a classic I never tire of and here it was done right; pink in the centre and frazzled on the outside.

Thursday, December 18, 2008 - Rooburoo perfectly mixes Western and Indian ingredients and should thrill Western palates. While not all flavours are strictly authentic, the ingredients are fresh and perky, vegetables distinct, and whole spices such as cardamom and cinnamon are kept in tact within the dishes...Mains-wise, the lamb chop biriani from Lucknow was generous in volume and plucky in flavour. We liked that. Spicy fish stew with oily fish and chickpeas tasted much better the next day - again, bold contrasts in flavour and texture.

Thursday, December 18, 2008 - That dining companion was to write in a text to me later that day, ‘whatever happened to long lunches like that? Where did it all go wrong? That was really excellent.’ And he was absolutely right, it really was.

Friday, December 05, 2008 - We couldn’t complain about the huge and largely satisfying portions but gastropub it ain’t – it’s pub lunch nosh with efficient and friendly service in a quaint, décor’d setting. If you want practical cheery rather than fine dining, this at the moment works.

Friday, December 05, 2008 - The day’s special of pork belly with red cabbage comes as one piece on a big red bed. I’d have liked to have seen it divided up a bit to show off the layers of pork but it’s been slow-cooked well so that the fat has reduced and resolved into flavour, while the meat tears away easily in fibrous forkfuls.

Friday, December 05, 2008 - The skewered quail looked disturbingly like the baby from Eraserhead, but it was perfectly cooked and spicy and tender with the flavour of the marinade/rub well seeped in. The pork tendons, call them knuckles to avoid shock, were perhaps the best dish of all. Salty and spicy and we chewed them down to the bone with glee.

Friday, December 05, 2008 - It's nice to be able to wax lyrical about a proper 'pub with grub', because they're few and far between these days - often lost in the sea of fussy gastro-bars with daunting menus and designer furniture. The Stag just has a team of great staff serving up honest food at reasonable prices and that's really all you need from your local.

Friday, December 05, 2008 - And The Exhibition Rooms proves there’s life in SE19 too, a place to come back to regularly for well-priced, well cooked food and, if you’re in a party mood, what look like great cocktails too. Plus there's a breakfast and brunch menu and Sunday roast too.