A cosy North London neighbourhood restaurant Until recently I’d largely become bored of Italian restaurants in London. They were either underwhelming, needlessly fussy or old-fashioned and just plain awful. What restored my faith wasn’t a glitzy haute cuisine restaurant in Mayfair or Chelsea, but a small bistro near Finsbury Park called Osteria Tufo. Osteria Tufo … Continue reading
So popular, it needs its own doorman The oddly-named Social Eating House is the latest restaurant in Jason Atherton’s empire and it’s not quite as expensive as Atherton’s flagship Pollen Street Social. Whereas Pollen Street Social has a muted, inoffensive decor suited to its Mayfair location, the Soho-based Social Eating House is a tad more … Continue reading
Simple and good value Restauranteurs must rack their brains for weeks on end to come up with the names of their restaurants. Some create vaguely Latin-sounding names, while others simply name their businesses after the address as is the case with 10 Greek Street. This small Soho-based restaurant may lack an original name, but that … Continue reading
This review of a Brighton restaurant is a break from The Picky Glutton’s usual London-based coverage On my last visit to Brighton (or London-on-Sea as some cheekily call it), I ate at Terre a Terre, a vegetarian restaurant, and was far from impressed. On my most recent visit to Brighton I dined at Terre a … Continue reading
Trying too hard, yet paradoxically needs to try harder Karpo bills itself as a diner, but apart from a small hatch through which dishes are passed from the kitchen to the main dining room, this restaurant is completely unlike any diner I’ve ever been to. This is especially true when one takes the plant-festooned wall … Continue reading
This review of a Vienna restaurant is a break from The Picky Glutton’s usual London-based coverage. Vienna, for most people, conjures up images of fat cakes, waltzes, prancing horses and perhaps a grand, but fading neoclassical imperial capital. If all of that leaves you panting for the cheesy artifice of Las Vegas, then Eisvogel could … Continue reading
A night at the opera or a bit of a Zeppo? Gauthier and Arbutus are two of my favourite restaurants in Soho, but they’re not only a bit pricey but also rather formal – Gauthier especially so. Polpetto is just as enjoyable and more affordable and that little gem is now joined by Duck Soup, … Continue reading
Gordon Ramsay’s casual dining venture goes head-to-head with Jamie Oliver’s Barbecoa Despite his fame, I’ve never had much luck at Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants. I was unimpressed by famed Grosvenor Square stalwart Maze, disappointed by his Versailles venture Trianon and underwhelmed by private dining establishment Sloane Street. Although all of these experiences were admittedly a few … Continue reading
Superb French food and wine in an unlikely location You could easily pass by Terroirs and miss it. A wine bar located on an anonymous side street off the Strand right next to an exit from the Charing Cross Tube station seems an unlikely place to find something good to eat, but it is. In … Continue reading
Salt Yard tapas in Covent Garden Updated 14/6/2020 – added details of 2020 meals and updated the Verdict as well as the formatting. Disclosure: I used a publicly available discount for some of my 2020 meals. This discount was available to the general public; as ever I did not seek any special treatment just because … Continue reading
