London 2013

[Yegolev]

This is a pretty good thread, even if I'm not going to London at this time.

I don't see the point in making a Hawaii thread.  I might once I get there.

[penfold]

I've got a booking at Roganic this weekend, Hedone and Clove Club over Easter, HKK (possibly best Chinese in the world right now) on the following Saturday and Kitchen Table on the Friday after. Will also be popping to see Kew Gardens after Hedone I've never been anywhere near Chiswick and Kew before so will make a nice change from the West End. It's a fair old trek from Essex though, just under 2 hours.

[palmer_eldritch]

I've got a booking at Roganic this weekend, Hedone and Clove Club over Easter, HKK (possibly best Chinese in the world right now) on the following Saturday and Kitchen Table on the Friday after. Will also be popping to see Kew Gardens after Hedone I've never been anywhere near Chiswick and Kew before so will make a nice change from the West End. It's a fair old trek from Essex though, just under 2 hours.

Please let us know how HKK is. Looks amazing but expensive.

(I basically want you to tell me to go).

[K9]

I've got a booking at Roganic this weekend, Hedone and Clove Club over Easter, HKK (possibly best Chinese in the world right now) on the following Saturday and Kitchen Table on the Friday after. Will also be popping to see Kew Gardens after Hedone I've never been anywhere near Chiswick and Kew before so will make a nice change from the West End. It's a fair old trek from Essex though, just under 2 hours.

Yeah, that's a pretty sick list. Would also love to hear about HKK, seems very high-concept food, but everything I read is pretty flattering.

[eldaec]

So, reservation at The Fat Duck next week, just received an email with their 'anticipation' video to watch - supposedly full of hints about their menu, though honestly, if you can be bothered to get the reservation you know the menu - so actually just 7 minutes of 'spot the dish you're most excited about'. Still very cool though.

[penfold]

I've been online at 10 trying to book The Fat Duck on a Fri/Sat for weeks now, no luck. I think we'll just have to go on Tues-Thurs.

[eldaec]

It doesn't get much easier for weekday evenings. I've never come across a reservation this tough.

[eldaec]

The Fat Duck.


Short review: it really is fantastic. Deserves its place in the list of restaurants people are argue about which is best in the world.

What makes it special for me was that the dishes genuinely try to operate as art as well as great food. They don’t all hit the spot perfectly but they all aim high.

Try to go as at least a foursome. Watching the reaction of friends and discussing the dishes is a big part of the experience. Also make sure you stop in at the Hind’s Head for cocktails beforehand. Heston’s grapefruit tea is a thing to behold, and they managed to make number 3 on my personal worldwide Martini ranking (behind Duke’s Hotel and Eleven Madison Park if you are interested).

Click the spoiler for the blow by blow.

[Maledict]

Has anyone eaten at Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester? Very traditional French food but the best I've ever had - the lobster / chicken / truffle / pasta starter is probably the single nicest thing I have ever eaten.

Ealdaec - that's a fantastic write up, thanks so much. Really interested in going now, and good to hear the food itself is excellent and not just gimmicky.

[Mosesandstick]

Thanks for the write-up and photos. I'll have to deal with living vicariously for now!

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Has anyone eaten at Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester? Very traditional French food but the best I've ever had - the lobster / chicken / truffle / pasta starter is probably the single nicest thing I have ever eaten.

Ealdaec - that's a fantastic write up, thanks so much. Really interested in going now, and good to hear the food itself is excellent and not just gimmicky.

Yes, AD @ Dorchester was  the first restaurant I wrote about. Loved the lobster and chicken quenelles too. Probably preferred the Waterside Inn as far as comparing classical 3 stars goes though. Having said that, the newly refurbed Gordon Ramsay/Clare Smythe at Royal Hospital Road sounds exciting, looks like they really stepped it up recently to retain the 3 stars and to keep it modern. I've got this pencilled in a few months time.

Fat Duck looks amazing, glad to see snail porridge is back on the menu. What's also cool is they do a vegetarian and a vegan version of the menu.

Had a busy few weeks. Roganic was excellent, really interesting dishes. The raw ox in coal oil was very unusual and really stood out, lots of rave reviews of that dish at his new restaurant The French in Manchester too.  Only a pop up and about until June, but a permanent home due soon.

Hedone might well beat the Fat Duck's bread. It was astonishing. We sat at the bar overlooking the open kitchen, the pastries, amuse bouche and bread was done right in front of us. Not only did bread smell and taste awesome, the sound it made as it was being cut in front of us meant you knew how good it was going to be before it had even reached us.

The chef here is a former blogger and ingredients consultant who opened in 2011 and recieved a star in the 2013 guide, very impressive for a start up from someone not in the business. His obsession with ingredients shows in the food, simply presented and not too complicated, but outstanding taste, literally some of the finest examples of asparagus, morels, lamb and duck I've tasted. For example his pigeon comes from the same small supplier as AD's Louis XIII in Monaco, all wild, net caught and strangled so to keep the blood and no shot in the flesh. The white asparagus we had was from the south of France (somewhere beginning with L whose name i didnt note down) and the first of the season. The scallops are diver caught the night before being served. The turbot is so fresh its not yet at the rigor mortis stage, they usually have to keep it a day or so to get it right for cooking. Well worth the 2 hour journey across London we made.

Clove Club in Shoreditch is a very hip and difficult to get bookings place recently opened. We had a lighter lunch at last Saturday. Some nice food to be had and would like to try the full menu at some point. Buttermilk fried chicken and pine was a great dish.

Tonight we went to HKK, a fine dining Chinese concept from the Hakkasan Group. 15 courses of genius cooking; world class dim sum, a roast Peking duck so perfect it could well put some of the specialist restaurants in Beijing and Hong Kong to shame. The skin was translucent and the perfect blend of crispiness, fat and flavour. Apparently the chef went to China to get the very best method for duck, they even get the right cherry wood to roast it with. Also an awesome abalone and truffle in a beautiful abalone shell, a pork belly dish that was the best spare ribs you'll ever have. Every course was great though, even the desserts. We also had an "orchard" flight rather than a wine flight, a selection of non alcoholic fruit cocktails that came with every 2 courses, I've never enjoyed accompanying drinks so much.

Edit: Write up and pics of all 30 dishes now live

[Simond]

The Fat Duck.

It's always funny seeing people talk about the Fat Duck pubs as a (nearly-)local; it's still 'Oh yeah, that other restaurant near the Roux Bros. pub" to me (although I may be showing my age a little there) :)  Mind you, I like Heston's "food engineer in a world of artistes" thing.

Personal mini-review: The Forester's Arms in Farnham Common - very nice main courses (I think I had lightly seared scallops and tempura whitebait the last time I was there and it was wonderful...and that's from someone who likes well-cooked fish but hates it when not), but the genius is in the tapas puddings - ~£2.50 per (small) pudding and pick two or three (or more) as you fancy.

[K9]

Great write up eldeac, thanks!

[eldaec]

Very tempted by HKK. And adding a proper drinks matching makes it even more interesting.

One thing that really irritates me about fine dining is the total lack of imagination shown on the drinks service in 99% of restaurants.

[K9]

Bar Boulud has a pretty awesome drinks service.

[eldaec]

Last night, Tre Viet in Hackney.

Very relaxed Vietnamese diner, presentation is... mixed, but the food was clean, full of flavour, and good selection of interesting stuff on the menu. Reasonably priced as well, 3 small plates, 2 mains plus beer and we got out for £45.


Non-food London question. Can anyone recommend a decent cinema that hasn't been infected with 3d bullshit. I used to enjoy a trip to the bfi imax, but it has fallen to the foul demon of 3d projection.

[K9]

Prince Charles Cinema? Or do you want more current stuff.

[eldaec]

To be honest I'm mostly motivated by wanting to see current films properly projected in a room that doesn't smell of disinfectant, with an audience that does not appear to be attempting to drown out the film using synchronised sweet wrappers, and without a floor that my feet stick to.

And, obviously, without the abomination of 3d.

That said, going to try Hackney picturehouse in a couple of weeks and the not-latest-release stuff might also be interesting.

[K9]

I can't think of many places that are showing current stuff that aren't like that. The Prince Charles has always been good the times I have been, and it does seem to draw a more mature audience.

Is everything at the IMAX 3D now? That's a shame if so.

[eldaec]

Since the new screen went in, if a film can be in 3d it is.


To be fair, it isn't as bad as non-imax 3d because of the higher contrast levels, but annoying as hell nonetheless.

[K9]

I can confirm that Launceston Place deserves its Michelin Star. Iberico Pork done three ways almost felt like it was pandering, but then I realised that nothing can come between me and some good Iberico.

I really can't fault them on anything, well worth a visit.

[eldaec]

Tried the hackney picturehouse for iron man.

Features include:

2d showing.
Proper reclining comfy seats.
An actual projectionist.
Excellent cake.
Substantially reduced (though not eliminated) ambient sweet wrappers.
£7 tickets.

Was happy and will return. Would recommend the chain.

Also revisited Lardo. I thought it was great back in December, and has improved since. Standouts were the fennel salami, dandelion salad, and the locally brewed beer. Desserts were a bit mediocre.

[penfold]

My quest to find the best pasta full of liquid that bursts open when you bite into it continues, with the Fagotelli Carbonara at Apsleys just about edging past Hedone's Liquid Parmesan ravioli.  Some very clever pastry work too, with the dish of a raspberry liquid inside a chocolate shell inside a vanilla semifreddo inside a chocolate sphere, sheets of chocolate wafer so thin as to be translucent, chocolate mousse and chocolate sorbet tasting as good as it sounds. Last week was The Ledbury, which justified its 3 month waiting list and sterling reputation by delivering a pretty much perfect meal. The posh cheese on toast and curd and grilled onion broth dish was awesome.

Heading back to Galvin La Chapelle this weekend, gonna try their Sunday lunch, and then off to Gordon Ramsay in the week, it was refurbed in Feb and had a change of menu's, as well as making it more of a Clare Smyth and Gordon Ramsay joint venture, deservedly so I think. Considering I've been going to a load of restaurants for some time now, I'm yet to even head into one of Gordon's pubs let alone any of the fine dining places.

[K9]

I'd be interested to see what you think of Ramsay's places; everything I read suggests that other than Royal Hospital Road they're all a bit uninteresting.

[penfold]

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay surprised me, not only because it's a tiny room with a dozen tables, but because the meal was better than I thought it would be. The lack of buzz on the food blogs and that it never appears on the top 100 lists had thrown me a bit, and I guess it's that the classic dishes and formal service are the opposite of street food or modernist 10 courses of foraged wizardry that tend to grab the glory. I had 2 fantastic courses, and the dessert, an innocuous sounding "Assiette de l'Aubergine (for two)" turned out to be a table filling selection of nearly every dessert on the menu. We shared 6 desserts, each one totally awesome and fantastic in their own right. Gordon might not work on the line any more, but he employs the best he can, Clare Smyth is a real talent (I didn't go back to meet her or see the kitchens, but heard her yelling at someone in Ramsay-esque fashion) and his front of house are as good as it comes.

http://edesiaishungry.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/restaurant-gordon-ramsay.html

[eldaec]

Bunch more places I keep meaning to post about here, but it is Taste of London tonight so I may well forget about everywhere in the process 

Basically starving myself right now. Gluttony commences in 1 hour.

[K9]

I've been to John Salt recently, and back to the Heron and Goodmans. The Goodman burger is as glorious as ever, and saved me from having to eat mediocre pub food when I happened to be stuck out at Canary Wharf recently. John Salt is really good, the food isn't the best in London, but it isn't the most expensive either. For £20-25 you can eat yourself full on a nice range of dishes. Razor clams were excellent, kimchi hollandaise ditto; the cocktails were great, the quail was so-so. Definitely worth a look.

Also, Shake Shack and Five Guys are going to be good staples of central-London convenience eating I think. Queues aside, the service at Shake Shack is really good, and very prompt. I'm really glad they're using the same Pennsylvania potato bread that they use in their East Coast locations, it really makes for a great burger bun imho.

Now I'm just getting excited for Flesh and Buns opening next week!

[penfold]

Since Gordon Ramsey I've had a couple of meals at Tom Aikens Restaurant. I like his style, and some real stand out dishes to be had and bloody hell the tasting menu is a real stomach filler, the closest Ive been to Mr Creosote for a long time.  We've also been back to Dinner, which was fun, although not as good as the first visit due to a nice but not outstanding main course.

We've also been to The Fat Duck which was pretty much as above, although my wife had veggie versions or  original dishes that were all spectacular in particular a beetroot risotto I rate above the salmon I had, even though it was really really great in its  own right. For me there was a lamb dish instead of pigeon, and strawberries instead of the BFG, which im slightly gutted Ive missed even though the strawberries were fab. That egg thing was crazy good though.

[eldaec]

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay .... front of house are as good as it comes.

Long time since I've been but that was the one thing that stands out about the place beyond anywhere else I've tried in Europe.

If you have never done 3 star dining before and want somewhere you can trust to give the full experience without being in any way intimidating - this is where I'd recommend.

Other London stuff since I last posted here.


Terroirs

Primarily a wine bar in theatreland, but the food is no slouch. Stick to the small sharing plates, and despite the informal style, the waiters are worth talking to about wine. They managed to dig out wines that were genuinely unusual (to me at least, orange wine?) as well as great. It is possible to order badly, but the food is never boring. It's permanantly on our rotation for pre-theatre/cinema. Only critism is that not enough of the wine list is available in carafe format.


Polpo

Not sure how I had failed to try polpo until a couple of months back, but holy christ this place is good. Firmly in the Italian style small plates that everyone does nuts for these days, but as well as being equal to the best I've found, it is fairly affordable, we got in an out with 3 dishes per person plus a cocktail, glass of wine, and dessert for £35pp. No booking - which is good or bad depending - but pre-theatre it is never full.


Flat Iron

Their gimmick is they only sell Butler's Steak plus sides. It's a good steak, properly cooked, and a salad for £10. That said by no means the best and you can probably do it as well yourself, but honestly for £10, tell me where else that isn't the case. Doesn't need a reservation.


Table Cafe

South of the river.... So we're in Southwark, the only conceivable reason to be in Southwark is the Globe and the Tate, but you need to eat, right? Happily Southwark has this entirely incongruous place on the highstreet that looks like part of a typical plastic chain, but unaccountably serves great food. I don't know how long it will stay open since there is never anyone in it. Awful ambience, terrible location, but I've visited a couple times now and never been disappointed. Also, they serve Meantime beer brewed locally and worth a  particular mention.


Elliot's Cafe

Borough Market has never had somewhere to eat I've been entirely happy with - but Elliots might qualify. Small sharing plates once again though with a more British feel than usual. No compliants at all about the food, inventive, fresh, interesting - OTOH service was slow, and I get that small plates come whenever, but all the protein followed by 20 minute gap then all the veg isn't cool, that said hey they gave us a free dessert. Burger bar they run out front is worth particular mention.

Benares

More authentic and flat out better than Cinnamon Club, probably the best Indian meal I've had. The Meen Moillee (Stone Bass in Curry Leaf sauce) stood out in particular, I've never come across anyone able to squeeze so much flavour out of the spice in every dish without ever threatening to overheat anything. But, starter, main, bread, glass of wine and a masala chai (better than anything I've ever drank in Mumbai) was £75pp, and honestly even for the best Indian meal of my life, it was overpriced.

Harwood Arms

This place has been through 2 head chefs since I last visited in 2011. It's still great. I love the understated 'proper pub' look of this place, not a painted-on blackboard in sight, and absolutely no 'witty' aphorisms scrawled on the wall. The food is a notch above anything we have in east london gastropubs - so its a shame I have to schelp all the way to Fulham for it. Standouts we ordered were the venison scotch egg (legendary), dandelion & pigeon salad, (both fresh and substantial), and homemade blackcurrant ice cream. Bread was also something special. We were in on the glorious 12th, which added an element of theatre as the staff would breathlessly remind us of the grouse that would be delivered 'at any moment' - we stuck to the regular menu.



Away from the dining room:

Prom 34 - Nigel Kennedy & the Palestine Strings - Vivaldi's four seasons

If you are around London and haven't ever been to a prom it's something you should try. Concerts cost £5 if you just show up on the day at the Royal Albert Hall, and you are generally hearing the best classical performers there are. I know nothing about classical music but still manage to enjoy a couple of visits each year (I also have last night tickets this year, which I'm p smug about)

Anyway - this particular show was pretty damn remarkable. Nigel Kennedy plus a group of young Palestinians playing through Vivaldi's concertos interspersed with Arabic music and jazz, which sounds utterly ridiculous but Kennedy's genius is in somehow making it seamless. It's being shown on BBC Four on Friday 23rd. You can't go see it live again, but if you have any interest in any kind of music I'd recommend recording it.

Private Lives

Noel Coward's Private Lives turns up in London practically every year, what makes this production worthwhile is taking guilty pleasure in the sheer violence and self indulgence of the leads. For better or worse it lacks the rhythm of dialog that most 1930s plays spend so much energy on, but makes up with it pure chemistry.

Fences

Lenny Henry does Tennessee Williams. Turns out Henry can act, but chooses not to in the first half, instead he plays for laughs too often, the second half makes up for it though - the whole cast is excellent through the whole family breakdown arc.

A Chorus Line

Holy crap this is bad. I was dragged to this, don't make the same mistake unless you enjoy watching people attempt terrible american accents and dance the same goddamn number for 2 hours. The show has no story as far as I tell, some people introduce themselves, tell us (not show us) how terribly hard life is in the theatre, then 8 of them get picked, after which they unaccountably all take part in the final number that the 8 were picked for.

[K9]

So, I meant to post this the other day but I forgot.

Comment on Marina O'Loughlin's review of The Dairy in Clapham. Lady went there and left without paying because the service was so terrible, by her standards.

In essence, a lady suffers the indignity of crossing south of the river and then has to suffer waiters who won't supervise her child while she and her friends go for a fag, and then have the bare-faced cheek to refuse to serve her brandy while she breastfeeds her child! You'd think this was a joke post, but the restaurant confirmed that this did happen via twitter.

Some of the subsequent comments make for fun reading; I mean, who do these people think they are!

[Khaldun]

I had a great meal at Arbutus in Soho when I was in London this summer. Very austere but excellent. Also a great time at Randall & Aubin.

[penfold]

Some of the subsequent comments make for fun reading; I mean, who do these people think they are!

That's shocking, The Ritz refused to let my prostitute companion blow me under the table, got upset when I tried shooting up H, apparently heating it up over a candle ruined their silver spoons, and then tried to remove me from the restaurant when i started a brawl with Lord and Lady Davenport, so it's not just you!

[/spoiler]

Oh, it's me