All reader reviews by ponderousfoodie

Little Sardegna

I just had a delectable meal at this fine *Sardinian* restaurant! The food is very typical of the island of Sardinia in South Western Italy.

I had a smoked swordfish carpaccio that exceeded all of the cooked swordfish I've ever had, much more flavourful this way. We were also given olives and complimentary bread, a wide selection including a traditional Sardinian flatbread that's very crispy. My two dinner companions (both Sardinians) had the antipasti platter and the pumpkin ravioli with sage, both of which I sampled. The antipasti was very generous and included some cheese too, highly aromatic; you really have to chew it and let the delicate cured aromas percolate up to your olfactory zone to fully appreciate it although the texture is very velvety as well. The Pumpkin ravioli had an almost tropical fruit smell, the sweetness of the pumpkin complimented the sage and tomato sauce beautifully.

For a main dish I had Malloreddus served with a minced pork sauce; Malloreddus is a kind of gnocchi traditionally served in Sardinia and which has a good "meaty" texture, ie although it was not served al dente it didn't simply disintegrate in one's mouth. My dinner companions had the mussels and clams that came in a rich tomato broth.

To drink I had Abbaia, a Sardinian red that was very rich and smooth going down, with satiny tannins and an aroma akin to a young Amarone. My friend had Sardinian beer.

The service was very friendly, and there was a live accodionist who sporadically played and sang throughout the evening. Although it became packed after we'd arrived the service was still surprisingly attentive considering how inundated with orders they were.

Finally, as a digestif we were given a delicious Sardinian Liqueur that contained berries from the ubiquitous myrtle tree (ubiquitous to Sardinia that is); it was reminiscent of the Greek liturgical and dessert wine made with the Mavrodaphne grape but infused with juniper. I noticed other diners had been given Limoncello so I put our Myrtle drink down to the fact that my dinner companions were Sardinian.

All in all a very good restaurant, we stayed for 3.5 hours amazingly, and they never once made us feel rushed. More people should experience this authentic slice of Sardinia here in London.

It's NOT Spanish, none of the dishes were Spanish in any way, shape, or form.

Sunday, September 07, 2008
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9

Kokeb Ethiopian Cuisine

I went to Kokeb today with a friend and her 13 year old son; we'd passed the place many times and always remarked that we should visit it; finally one day we did and it was an amazing experience unlike anything I had ever experienced in a London restaurant (with the possible exception of the Gay Hussar).

The food was reasonably priced and delicious, it had that full bodied, marinated and tender taste that you usually get with homecooked food one prepares a day in advance purposefully, like boeuff bourgignon and coq au vin. I had the ethiopian steak tartare which was intriguingly spiced, very delicate and with a light afterburn, it was served with this crumbly cheese and collard green dish. To start I had the fule (dried fava beans cooked for a long time served with chopped tomatoes) and injera bread. My friend had the lamb and chicken soup for a starter.

The lady was very sympathetic to her son's needs as she is a mother too so knows how picky young people can be. She gave him rice (basmati) as it was the most "normal" thing on the menu. I wish I had ordered rice too as it looked ethereally perfect, every grain glistened, enevloped as it was lightly in butter, and was fluffy and separate with just a hint of bite.

We both had Ethiopian beers to drink, I had the St George (4.5%) which was mild tasting, aromatic, and subtly sweet. My friend had the Castel (5.5% I think) that had an aroma of wild honey and was terribly moreish. To finish we both had spicy tea that had a strong scent of cinnamon but also a finish of sandalwood or something similar. I recommend it to be drunk quite sweet.

I cannot really find a fault with this place, it felt as though we were guests in someone's home who hadn't seen us for a long time. We were made to feel very welcome and shall definitely be returning there.

It's a truly authentic experience and the chef makes no consolation to squeamish English palates as other restaurants do with chips and mushy peas and fried fish. We did not, alas, experience the coffee ceremony but we're all looking forward to it on our next visit.

I think everyone should eat here at least once to just experience this rare hospitality, but also it's an olfactory orgy of seductive scents and beguiling textures.

Thursday, July 31, 2008
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10

Cafe Sol

We were in Greenwich today and passed the café sol; it looked like a nice place so we decided to go there later for lunch but this was, as it later turned out, a big mistake.

The main problem I had with it was the waiters who, throughout the meal, completely ignored us. The whole experience was highly unprofessional, we had approximately three different people serving us, one of whom was ignorant of the food she was serving; I came to that conclusion due to her inability to differentiate between the different items on the menu (of course, it may be that their chimichanga is identical to their burrito but simply fried, in which case I doubly loathe the place).

The other waiter resembled a charmless automaton who nervously paced up and down from the bar to our table repeatedly; he exuded a vaguely piscine aura and didn't know how to pull a decent espresso. The desserts were an utter shambles too, one which had been asked for warm arriving as cold as a corpse in the middle and another which had been asked to be served cool almost melting the plate it was so hot in the middle.

We enjoyed ourselves inside the restaurant until the robotic waiter decided we needed ambience, whereupon they subjected us to a raucous cacophony.

The most amusing thing was how, as we were finishing dessert, the robot had apparently undergone some reprogramming and suddenly became highly attentive to us but of course it was too late (after seeing the untouched mints on the change plate he obvliviously asked us if we would like some more!). Obviously his unctuousness sprang from his desire to attain a tip from us, well here's a tip: loosen up! I don't know if he's just not a people person or if he has a pathological hatred of humanity but he was without doubt one of the worst waiters I have ever encountered in a London restaurant. Even the staff at Wong Kei (notorious of course for it's *lack* of service) were more attentive and charming than the uncoordinated miasma that is café sol. We would have been better off purchasing mexican ready meals and microwaving them ourselves, sigh...

Avoid at all costs, it's overpriced, its schtick is pulled off with a painfully discernible lack of aplomb, it's unprofessional, and there are much much nicer restaurants (which give more bang for your buck) in the area that we later stumbled across such as an old fashioned seafood café and a lovely Italian place. They had the gall to put a service charge on the bill which was the final insult.

Thursday, July 24, 2008
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2