newsbites - info with extra fluoride
Tittle tattle, rumour, deals and PR puff to digest as best you can
Stuff gets sent into us and we read it (mostly) so here are things straight from the horse's mouth without any comment from us. well maybe a bit!
Never mind le Colonel, try le Bouchon Bordelais
Fancy chicken tonight? Here's something for a great comforting weeknight supper or weekend treat, ideal for combating
the drab mid winter evenings or as a quick and easy alternative to Sunday lunch allowing for a much needed break from the stove. Le Poulet Importer is available from Le Bouchon Bordelais seven days a week between the hours of 12pm to 10pm with a 90 minute pre-ordering time on the day or night requested, packed up, all ready to go.Head chef Eric Landeau has devised a clever range of packaging, ifor takeaway, ensuring that the food tastes fresh from the oven when it arrives at your table and that the roasted bird comes cooked to perfection, with the meat tender and succulent and the skin still crisp and moreish. I can vouch for this as I fought Saturday evening traffic to bring one home to Streatham and despite pointless roadworks and certifiable lunatics on the journey back, the chicken was piping hot and really delicious.
Every chicken ordered comes with a selection of sides, which include, creamy gratin Dauphinous, French beans and of course Le Bouchon’s reduced chicken jus. Prices start from £8.95 for half a chicken, ideal for 2 people to share or £13.95 for a whole chicken for four people. Both offerings come with sides to share and the maximum number of people for a single order is up to 10.
Put your feet up, relax with a winter warming lunch or dinner, a real treat for both family and friends.
To book in to try Le Poulet Importer please call Le Bouchon Bordelais on 020 7738 0307 allowing 90 minutes for collection of your order.
say cheese at la cave au fromage
You don’t have to ask directions to La Cave Au Fromage; as you leave South Ken station you follow your nose. Literally. Failing that you can spot the shop by the people pressed up against the glass windows, staring at the cheeses like tourists in a red light district. It’s a gorgeous spread and surprisingly modern; not for these chaps the faux country look with straw and wood. This is state of the art so that the cheeses are kept at their optimum; they even have a clever device for making baguette sandwiches that ensures the baguettes are crispy and the filling at just the right temperature.
Eric Charriaux and Amnon Paldi the owners have, and I hope they don’t mind my saying so, the build of the serious gourmet. You can see these chaps don’t just know their cheese, they love it. They’ve been running a successful business supplying superb cheeses to discerning restaurants like the Le Manoir, Tom Aikens and the Fat Duck for years now but have decided to get closer to the consumers with their first shop. Here there is no counter to put a barrier between staff and customers and you’re free to wander about and ask questions and sample at your leisure. There are even a few tables where you can order a cheese tasting platter with some wine, or where you can eat your freshly made baguette sandwich.
Situated in the heart of the expat French Lycee area, not deliberately it just happened that way Amnon tells me as he slices some Comte, it’s even attracting the younger connoisseur. A teenage French boy wanders in and Amnon waves at him. “He comes in most days after school, he wants to be a chef, his mother has to drag him out!’ he laughs. He tells me how the other day a party of kids came in and pooled their loose change to buy a Camembert, which they then sat outside and happily consumed. You can tell Amnon approves wholeheartedly and, living in an area of London where the kids only sit outside shops to consume skunk, I have to agree.
There’s a drool-inducing range of sliced meats, sliced to order I should add, including a marvellous Pata Negra which is 75% fat and which melts deliciously in the heat of the mouth. Like the cheeses the meats are sourced from special suppliers in France, Britain, Ireland and Italy. It’s the sort of place you could wander in just for a bit of brie and wander out again weighed down with cheesy purchases. Wines are also coming to the shop and so all you need for a glorious night in will soon be available.
Sunday lunch in Parsons Green
The Establishment in Parsons Green is now doing a big Sunday roast to tempt locals away from the carveries and similar heat-lamped rubbish. Karl McEwan is in the kitchen and is turning out Aberdeen Angus roasts, as well as Lanarkshire lamb and quality pork from Plantation.
Brunches with delights like big porky sarnys are also available in this new bar and restaurant bang opposite the tube station.
Almeida redesigned and reopened
Almeida restaurant and bar opened in December 200 and now, six years later, it has been revitalised with refreshed interiors from Conran & Partners and a new modern French menu from Head Chef Alan Jones.
Under the new scheme, an informal dining area has been created at the bar, the timbered floor area has been widened offering more casual and lounge seating space. The new tables are marble topped, reinforcing the brasserie-style feel. Half height screens have been added to separate the bar from the rest of the dining room.[1].jpg)
The existing private dining room which seats 20 has also been refurbished to include new fully upholstered chairs and dark walls, creating a more intimate atmosphere. Head Chef Alan Jones, age 27, who joined from Michelin starred Lucknam Park in Bath in summer 2007, has created a menu with influences from his classical French background, with a modern touch. Many dishes are now steamed or poached, providing customers with a lighter experience and more elegant presentation. Examples include baked Scottish scallop and langoustine, horseradish nage; pot au feu of poached Landes chicken and dumplings; glazed Champagne rhubarb tart, rhubarb and ginger sorbet.
On opening, Almeida became renowned for its revival of trolley service; this has been retained and the popular charcuterie trolley features home made rillettes, terrines and patés served with cornichons and homemade pickles.
As well as the fixed price à la carte menu there are a variety of menu options such as a menu du jour available at lunch and pre- and post- theatre ideal for visitors to the Almeida Theatre and Sadler’s Wells
The Countryside Comes to Spitalfields for Taste East 2008
A two day free festival of food, fun and entertainment
Following the success of Taste East 2007, Spitalfields Estate have announced Taste East 2008 which will take place on Friday 7th and Saturday 8th March in the fully covered Crispin Place. Spitalfields will be transformed into a countryside idyll with straw bales, storytelling, a spinner, felt-making, spit roasts and over 40 carefully selected quality food stalls many of which have an East London connection. Visitors will have an abundance of amazing produce to sample, eat and buy. Spitalfields City Farm will be giving talks and Bishops Square will home some of their farmyard animals over the 2 days. Free entertainment includes food demonstrations by chefs from The Rivington, Café Spice Namaste and Peter Gott from Sillfield farm, food themed drawing workshops run by The Big Draw, stilt walkers, balloon-makers, a glitter tattooist and acoustic music from festival favourites the Cosmic Sausages; plus Mimbre, a renowned Hackney based state-of-the-art movement theatre/dance trio, will keep visitors spell bound with their poetic agility and immense physical and acrobatic skills.
Taste East is part of East, a 6 day cultural festival championing the best of East London www.findeast.co.uk
SUNDAY BRUNCH MENU LAUNCHED AT NUMBER TWELVE
Number Twelve bar and restaurant is launching Sunday brunch from 2nd March 2008 and will be the perfect place to celebrate Mother’s Day. The menu, created by head chef Santino Busciglio, will reflect the à la carte menu by serving dishes with a definite Italian influence, made from the best available - British where possible - ingredients. Brunch will be served between 11.30am and 3pm every Sunday from 2nd March. 
Brunch at Number Twelve offers a selection of breakfast dishes from boiled eggs with brioche and asparagus soldiers; to Santino’s take on a ‘full English’ including soft poached duck eggs, pancetta, crispy boudin, wild mushrooms, bubble & squeak, a virgin Mary, cherry tomatoes, cannellini beans and toasted brioche.
There are also light dishes, served in two portion sizes, such as a warm salad of roasted beetroot, fresh horseradish and pan-fried Cornish mackerel; and dishes for the larger appetite including grilled darne of Scottish halibut with nut crust, aubergine caviar and green beans. Furthermore, the menu features traditional roasts, such as baby chicken roasted with root vegetables, sausage & sage stuffing, bread sauce, roasting juices; or roast gigot of Cumbrian lamb, mint & garlic dressing, fondant potatoes, roasted vegetables, lamb jus.
Sunday brunch should appeal to families, with its child-friendly smaller portions of many dishes on the menu, and also to those looking for a sophisticated spot to enjoy a meal before or after shopping, or exploring some of the local culture, such as the British Museum.
