Iranian stews and kebabs in Soho It’s strange to begin a restaurant review by talking about another restaurant, but bear with me for a moment. Some of the best dishes at Brigadiers, an Indian restaurant in the City, were the kebabs which meant it was immediately noticeable when the kebab chef responsible, Kian Samyani, left … Continue reading
Mr Bao’s classy sequel There’s an old cliché that second albums are more difficult for bands to produce than their debut disc. All sorts of factors are blamed, from newly inflated egos to overindulgent budgets. None of that appears to have affected Daddy Bao, the follow-up to the rather splendid Mr Bao in Peckham. Although … Continue reading
Cheap Chinese regional mega bites reviewed in rhyming couplets and haiku I’ve written before how about the under-representation of China’s numerous regional cuisines in London’s restaurants. If you needed a singular, illustrative example of the effects of that disappointing trend then it would be noodles. Veal Smasher and Happy Buddha have had to put up with my rants about … Continue reading
Smoke and fire that didn’t really rock my world Thanks to the recent and growing popularity of American barbecue in London, restaurants serving other cuisines have jumped onto the barbecue and smoking branded bandwagon. It wouldn’t be completely fair to ascribe such cynical opportunism to the people behind Rök, as they do serve dishes inspired by the … Continue reading
The best meal of the year and inexcusably overlooked by the Michelin Guide I encountered a fellow travelling Brit with some interesting views on food during my recent jaunt around Jordan. Although he had a broad palate, this didn’t extend to Modernist cuisine, especially multi-course tasting menus. ‘Artsy fartsy’ ‘nouvelle cuisine’ wasn’t ‘proper food’ he contended. Like … Continue reading
This review of a Taiwan restaurant is a break from The Picky Glutton’s usual London-based coverage During my recent visit to Shanghai I sadly neglected to have any xiaolongbao, the city’s trademark soup-filled dumplings. I had previously and mistakenly believed that these delicious little dumplings were from Taiwan and that’s due in large part to … Continue reading
This review of a Shanghai restaurant is a break from The Picky Glutton’s usual London-based coverage Eating out in a non-Western place like Shanghai with other Brits can be a miserable experience. For every one person that’s open-minded enough to give almost anything a try, there will be another five that would make Karl Pilkington … Continue reading
West End bar food with a difference There are plenty of chain and independent restaurants in London, but some straddle this distinction such as the various, apparently independent Polpo restaurants that are all actually part of the same group. Although I have yet to make my way to Polpo or Da Polpo, I have dined … Continue reading
The Picky Glutton 