Akara review – a taste of West Africa in Borough Market
A West African jack of all trades and a master of fun
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Rick Stein Barnes review – celebrity chef serves the only seafood in the village
TV CV only gets you oh so far I have little time for most TV celebrity chefs, but I’ll usually make an exception for Rick Stein. His genteel avuncular charm, childlike wonder and boundless yet measured enthusiasm make him far more watchable than the majority of his arse-clenchingly irritating peers. The big man naturally doesn’t cook in … Continue reading
Lyle’s review – minimalist Shoreditch restaurant is exquisite despite its flaws
Defies both easy categorisation and expectations If there’s been one defining cultural aesthetic in the West over the past 20 years or so, then it has to be minimalism. Paring back everything to their essentials is, depending on your point of view, either the ideal way to show off something’s true nature or a stark, monotonous … Continue reading
Jugemu review – Soho izakaya flies solo
Uniquely Japanese in more ways than one Eccentric cultural institutions usually lose something in translation when they’re transplanted outside of their home country. Monster truck rallies, Eccles cakes and Viz magazine are prime examples. The izakaya is another. A Japanese staple, these bar-cum-restaurants are often translated as pubs or gastropubs, but none of those names really quite fit as izakayas are subtly different … Continue reading
What is Activated Charcoal? Everything you need to know
London’s latest wellness food fad explained – and debunked Update 5/03/2017 – added clarification about the sourcing of Pizzicotto’s activated charcoal pizza flour and responses received, so far, from the companies covered The public backlash against the pseudoscientific ‘clean eating’ and ‘wellness’ food fad in the wake of the BBC’s highly critical documentary is well … Continue reading
Farang review – Highbury hinterland Thai residency becomes permanent
San Daniele takes on a new life Update 26/3/18 – added details of feasting menu and updated formatting Update 04/1/18 – Farang will now permanently reside at this address! Update 17/7/17 – this residency will now run until at least January 2018. As someone with a reasonably high tolerance for spiciness, I had never really … Continue reading
Le Dame de Pic, Four Seasons London review – Tower Hill hotel French needs better execution
In defence of the tasting menu. But not necessarily *this* tasting menu. There’s an unspoken rule that reviewers shouldn’t openly criticise each other’s work. This isn’t a conspiracy – we’re too competitive and too inept for such a concerted undertaking – but an acknowledgement that half-arsed writing and lapses in judgement can affect us all. … Continue reading
Little Smoke review – Moorgate Smokehouse spin-off doesn’t have the chops
‘Little’ is the operative word and not in a good way I’ve been reviewing restaurants for long enough now to see multiple restaurants rise and fall, often at the same address. The small space at the edge of City Point near Moorgate is a case in point. Six years ago it was a forgettable and now … Continue reading
Duck Duck Goose review – Brixton Cantonese roasts just in time for Chinese New Year
Quack, quack, honk If there’s one thing that London isn’t short of, it’s Cantonese restaurants. For years it was the only kind of Chinese food widely available in the capital, with other cuisines from the continent-sized country only becoming prevalent in the past decade or so. This increased regional representation makes Duck Duck Goose even more … Continue reading
Bibimbap Soho review – cheap and mostly cheerful Korean food
New Malden it ain’t The immediate area around Centre Point used to be a small hub of Korean restaurants until the Crossrail building works put the kibosh on that serendipitous gaggle of eateries. That’s left the banner for cheap Korean food in Soho-Fitzrovia-Bloomsbury (ish) to be picked up by Bibimbap, a mini chain of Korean restaurants that’s seemingly … Continue reading
Kricket Soho review – Anglo-Indian food without the omelette and chips
What’s old is new again. Indian restaurants in London have tended to go through periodic and repeated rebirths over the past few years, with numerous attempts at moving the cuisine on from the curry house clichés that it’s fallen into with varying degrees of success. The most recent wave in the capital have tended to … Continue reading
The Picky Glutton 
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