A waste of Soho real estate Update 19/06/2020 – this restaurant has now closed I haven’t heard the name Bukowski Grill in years – not since my round up of London’s best non-chain burgers. The Shoreditch branch of Bukowski fared poorly in those burger stakes, so it was no surprise when superior burger purveyors expanded far more rapidly … Continue reading
Some say it’s the best Thai in London. All we know is that we call it bloody brilliant. It’s very easy to become jaded and disillusioned when covering London’s restaurants. From the devised-by-committee initiatives to the cynical tourist trap theme parks, from overwrought concepts and dull chains to the atrocious bandwagon jumpers, there’s no shortage of mediocre and down … Continue reading
Hidden Shoreditch gem finally gives Mexican food its due Update 14/2/17 – this restaurant has now closed Britain’s continuing love affair with the US manifests itself in our culture in many ways, not least in the number of barbecue and burger restaurants springing up across the capital. The cuisine of America’s southern neighbour has been … Continue reading
Shaftesbury Avenue yakitori that deserves your support Update 14/2/17 – this restaurant has now closed Location, location and location. It’s supposed to be one of the keys to a successful London restaurant, but a spot on the West End’s bustling Shaftesbury Avenue hasn’t helped Yumi Izakaya. Nestled in between the entrance to the Piccadilly West … Continue reading
Hirst and Hix light up Waterloo The food at most art gallery and museum in-house restaurants tends to be mediocre bordering on abysmal. Club sandwiches that you wouldn’t want to be seen dead with and Caesar salads almost as old as Rome itself are usually the order of the day. Pharmacy 2 shows that doesn’t … Continue reading
The successor to Newman Street Tavern I rarely get upset when a restaurant closes, no matter how good it was. At the risk of sounding trite, nothing in this life lasts forever. Even so, I was mortified to hear that Newman Street Tavern, an elegant restaurant serving reliably well-crafted French-ish dishes, was closing to be replaced by a … Continue reading
Unutterable swear words suppressed The quality of American-style barbecue in London has made leaps and bounds in the past several years, but continual progress is by no means guaranteed. There’s no clearer example of the potential for setting back an entire genre through massive incompetence than Low, Slow and Juke. Owned by pubco Marston’s, this underground … Continue reading
Year round group dining that doesn’t cost the earth Organising a meal for a group of people can be a huge logistical pain. Finding somewhere large enough, takes bookings, is affordable, caters for vegetarians and has a kitchen that can actually cook is an epic undertaking not to be taken on lightly. Ironically, one of the … 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
Barbecue British-style Update 10/6/2019 – this restaurant has now closed The move from street food maverick to established restaurant can be a rocky one. Even if you somehow tame the logistical and financial maelstrom of setting up a London restaurant, there’s still the task of evolving your menu to keep up with the competition. That’s something The … Continue reading
The Picky Glutton 
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