Mr Bao review – New York, Taipei, Peckham
★★★★☆ / Chinese / Taiwanese

Mr Bao review – New York, Taipei, Peckham

Peckham Taiwanese small bites Update 25/2/2018 – updated formatting and corrected a few typos We Londoners like to think that we’re very cosmopolitan, open to new things and experiences, but when it comes to food we tend to prefer our exoticism in small, easily relatable bites. Chinese food is a prime example. A wealth of eating … Continue reading

Tierra y Cielo review – delightfully different Mexican fine dining
★★★★☆ / Mexican

Tierra y Cielo review – delightfully different Mexican fine dining

This review of a Chiapas, Mexico, restaurant is a break from The Picky Glutton’s usual London-based coverage Drinking while eating out can be a thoroughly disheartening experience if you don’t imbibe alcohol. Dare to wander away from the usual carbonated drinks and you’ll encounter, like I have, watered down Virgin Marys, insipid cordials and thinly-disguised … Continue reading

Le Bab review – venison kebabs and a pig’s head
★★★★☆ / Eclectic / Turkish Kebabs

Le Bab review – venison kebabs and a pig’s head

Moo, cluck and oink Disclosure: A 10% discount was applied to the bill for my fourth meal, unsolicited. This was accepted only out of politeness. I originally had no intention of reviewing Le Bab. The first thing that put me off was the location – Soho’s Kingly Court (home of the risible Whyte and Brown) is effectively … Continue reading

Biko review – glossy, classy Mexico City fine dining
★★★★☆ / Mexican / Modern European / Modernist

Biko review – glossy, classy Mexico City fine dining

This review of a Mexico City restaurant is a break from The Picky Glutton’s usual London-based coverage Biko is a glossy and sleek fine dining restaurant decked out in refined and soothing shades of beige and brown. It really could be anywhere in the world, but what it lacks in aesthetic distinctiveness it more than … Continue reading

Piquet review – classy French where you’d least expect it
★★★★☆ / British / French

Piquet review – classy French where you’d least expect it

Oxford Street has never had it so good Update 14/2/17 – this restaurant has now closed Although by no means the most incongruously positioned restaurant I’ve ever come across, Piquet is nonetheless oddly located. Wedged in-between a faceless office block and a hair salon, it sits opposite a building site and part of Oxford Street’s branch … Continue reading

Oklava review – classy Turkish food quite unlike any you’ve had before
★★★★☆ / Turkish / Turkish Kebabs

Oklava review – classy Turkish food quite unlike any you’ve had before

Another reason to stop being so pissy about Shoreditch London’s restaurant scene doesn’t stand still with an unstoppable cycle of new restaurants replacing old ones. Sometimes it’s for the worse, as when Charlotte Street’s Rasa Samudra, a very civilised Indian seafood restaurant, was replaced with a branch of Côte. A bloody, sodding, unforgivable Côte. Sometimes though, … Continue reading

Hoppers review – the Sri Lankan verdict on Soho’s new Sri Lankan restaurant
★★★★☆ / Sri Lankan

Hoppers review – the Sri Lankan verdict on Soho’s new Sri Lankan restaurant

To queue or not to queue If you hear a deep, guttural howl of despair echoing across London, then fear not. It’s probably just me triaging my email inbox. If they gave out monetary prizes for inbox restaurant buzzword bingo, then I’d be swanning about the Maldives in a hover chariot made of moonrock. ‘Seasonal British … Continue reading

Shotgun Barbecue review – sleek and inventive Kingly Street BBQ
American / ★★★★☆ / Barbecue/BBQ

Shotgun Barbecue review – sleek and inventive Kingly Street BBQ

I call shotgun Update 14/2/17 – this restaurant has now closed There’s been a small boom in American-style barbecue restaurants in London since I first started covering the cuisine in-depth. New openings tend to be fairly traditional though, at least in principle, in both cuts of meat and technique. They also tend to stick to all … Continue reading