Restaurant reviews.

Catalan Cooking’s Calçotada

I had never heard of a calçot let alone a calçotada until Rachel from Catalan Cooking decided it was high time Londoners learned more. She teamed up with Nick at The Drapers Arms and hosted a fabulous Calçotada one sunny evening at the end of March. So what exactly is a calçot? Unlike the true ... Read more »

Vy Nam Cafe

London is a great place to live if you love food. Whether you prefer restaurant dining or cooking at home, you can find eateries and groceries representing many of the world’s cuisines. Of course, I live in North Finchley, which is out in zone 4 and definitely suburban territory. Don’t get me wrong, I am ... Read more »

Pearl Liang: A Pearl in Paddington

Bloggers whose opinions I trust have been recommending Pearl Liang for some years now, but its Paddington location has put me off. It’s not that Paddington is all that hard to get to but it just feels so out of the way to me; it’s probably a mental block… But it popped into my mind ... Read more »

Viajante: A Journey Of Flavours, Textures and Unusual Combinations

A few years back, I read blog posts about Bacchus, a Hoxton restaurant offering exciting, unusual cooking from chef Nuno Mendes. He was using avant-garde techniques I’d come to associate with chefs such as Ferran Adria and Heston Blumenthal – spherification, distillation, liquid nitrogen, sous-vide (water baths) and more. I was intrigued and I meant ... Read more »

Ben Tunnicliffe at The Scarlet

The Scarlet Hotel‘s restaurant is in the very capable hands of Ben Tunnicliffe, formerly of The Abbey in Penzance, where he earned a Michelin star for his cooking. Ben gives a frank, informative and sometimes amusing account of his cooking career on the hotel’s website. He also reveals his food philosophy which boils down to ... Read more »