Pedro Lemos (Porto, Portugal)

Three nights in Porto, three new restaurants to try. After reading some great reviews online, I decided to book Pedro Lemos for our first night out. This restaurant, which carries the name of its star chef, is somehow still without a first Michelin star. But by all reports, it should be on the shortlist to receive one soon. So we were curious to find out for ourselves if chef Lemos would live up to expectations.

The restaurant is located in the modern east side of town near the oceanside. We were seated at a quiet table downstairs, and quickly greeted by our waiter. Although most people we had dealt with so far in Port spoke enough English to get by, this gentleman spoke English exceptionally, well – in fact he was probably more well spoken than most waiters we would meet in England. In fact, it doesn’t seem quite correct to call him a waiter – he gave more of an air of a “host”, and he was assisted by other servers.

He also was apparently our expert sommelier for the evening, particularly specialising in the local wine of the Douro Valley region near Porto. We allowed him to choose a white dry port as an aperitif to start.

It then came time to order, and I explained that we wanted to try everything the chef had to offer, so we opted for the 7-course “Sete Momentos” for one of us, and the 5-course “Cinco Momentos” for the other. We also allowed our host to select wines to match each course, and soon learned that this would be not only a tour of culinary senses, but also a brilliant introduction to to the variety of wine the region has to offer.

Amuse bouche – canneloni, quail, white cream cheese sauce, green veg, watercress. This mini-canneloni was bite-size, but felt like so much more than a typical amuse bouche. Truly delicious and rich, and I could imagine having a satisfying meal of just this item.

“O Foie Gras de Pato Mullard” – the Mullard duck foie gras. Due to my allergy to certain shellfish, I had to request a substitution for the first dish in the 5 course menu (which was originally intended to be “Os moluscos, mariscos e bivalves” – The mollusc, seafood and shellfood. The chef quickly sent this dish out instead – actually a later item from the 7 course menu. The foie gras was served beautifully, with a seared, almost caramelized top of the duck fat, and on top of a crumb crust, with a spoonful of sweet honey and a sweet macaroon. This concept of serving a sweet macaroon with foie gras seems to be a trend at the moment – perhaps it accentuates the “french-ness” of the foie gras dish. It was sweet, but it definitely worked, and every component of this dish was delicious and expertly prepared. I noted that in particular the Douro late harvest 2006 port, a white, sweet, and very rich wine, was an excellent pair for the foie gras and tied the sweet elements of the dish together. An excellent start to the meal, and really set the stage for a performance of the chef and the sommelier working together in absolute harmony.

“O Lavagante Azul” – The Blue Lobster. The 7 course meal started with this pretty lobster dish. A couple of perfect chunks of lobster meat, topped with truffle caviar, and swimming in a foam that I guessed might be celeriac – light and a bit potato-like. A fresh, light dish to start this meal, quite different from the start for the 5 courses. Already we were seeing the breadth the chef had to offer.

The lobster was served with a sparkling white pinot blanc.

“A Alheira de Mirandela” – The Traditional White Portuguese Sausage. This sausage was served in something like a fried scotch egg, with an onion foam and topped with the truffle caviar. Accompanied with some mushrooms that looked so fresh they could have been picked straight from the forest, and some other fibrous vegetable, I couldn’t quite work it out, possibly eggplant, but more chewy than usual. I noted it was a very nice combination of something fried and something fresh, one of my favorites from the meal. This was accompanied by a Doura Craca Vinhas Antigas Riservas, a wood fermented wine.

“O Salmonete de Setubal” – The Red Mullet. This was served as a soup with prawn, squid, mussel, and cuttlefish. The soup had coriander and finely diced sweet red pepper. A broth was poured on at the table to complete the soup, and the result tasted of the freshness of the sea. This dish was served with a particularly interesting choice of wine, a dry jasmine rose muscatel from Da Fonseca.

Next for the 7 course meal, the foie gras was served again, but this time accompanied with a Douro Aneto sweet port from the ocean side of the region, as opposed to the wine from the central area served before. This wine was a bit more special, and hence reserved for the 7 course meal.

“O Bacalhau de Cura Portuguesa” – The Portuguese Cured Codfish. This complex dish consisted of cod served two ways, along with olive tapenade, and a small portion of the chef’s interpretation of portuguese migas, which were cooked in the codfish broth. I noted that I could eat those migas all day, and the leftover broth on the table was so good I had to soak it up with some bread. This dish was served with a Syrah red, smooth and dry, grown in the south of portugal, in Alagarve, and bottled by Hans Christian Andersen. An excellent wine, but I noted that it was a strange pairing for the cod – although the migas were so rich it did kind of work.

“O Pexe de Anzol” – Fish from the hook. This dish was basically the chef’s preparation of the fresh fish of the day, and clearly the most whimsical part of the meal conceptually. The selection for the day was “Galhina do mar” – chicken of the sea. Although in English we usually refer to tuna as the chicken of the sea, apparently in Portuguese, the chicken of the sea is a kind of Torpedinidae, a type of electric ray fish. The chef went with a play on words, and wrapped the fish in chicken skin, and then served it in a chicken broth, with cauliflower. I found this to be the most dissapointing dish of the night – although conceptually interesting, the result was to cancel out most of the fresh fish flavor of the torpedo ray (which apparently is a great fish for stews), and converted this into basically a bland chicken dish. We noted that the dish might go well in scandanavian cuisine. Too much gimmick and not enough focus on flavor here. And to top it off, there was a bone in the fish. This was served with a Douro Valley fermented white blended wine from the hotter (harsher) region of the valley, which produces richer and more unique quality of wine. It had a full minerality, with some oaky creaminess – a very special wine with a smell similar to a white port, and a creamy melting sensation on the tongue, not unsimilar of the sensation of a good red wine. I noted that the wine did accompany the chicken flavor of the dish quite well – so once again perhaps our expert sommelier had saved the day.

“O Cabrito das Terras Altas” – The Kid Goat. This was my favorite dish of the night. The presentation was lovely and colorful. The goat meat was served on a bed of couscous with parsnip, smoked bits of bacon, liver, and kidneys, and onions – this all gave that green sliced vegetable an amazing taste that complemented the cabrito. This was just amazing cooking, and simple, rich flavors that I can still recall a craving for.

“A Vitela Mirandesa” – The Mirandesa Veal. This was a selection of hearty portuguese meat dishes on a single plate. The veal filet was served quite pink and tasty, and the perfect 100g size of beef for someone like me, not being a huge steak lover, to get my fill of beef for the night. Served with a typical portuguese chourizo sausage and potatoes. I noted that for me the chourizo reminded me of a mix between mexican dishes carne guisada and barbacoa, and was “exactly what you always wished carne guisada could be”. This is what makes a meal special, things that bring you back to the good old days. Both of the meat dishes were served with an Old Vinyard Douro, which turned out to be an excellent wine pairing for beef in particular, but good for the capretto as well.

It’s not a huge suprise that dessert is when the wines truly got interesting, this being the home of port wine afterall. For the 7 course meal, an Alambre Moscatel Douro 20 years aged, which was evident in the mix of color, somwhere between dark rose and brown. For the 5 course meal, a Blandys Madeira Island Varamel, aged 10 years. We learned from our sommelier that the “stuffado” storage system of intense heat during the wine production process aims to recreate the environment of the old ships that were used to transport these wines long ago. My madeira was produced from a grape called Malmsey (or Malvasia) from Madeira island, which is “only” 19-20pct alcohol – but the taste was still very strong. The Moscatel had a lighter color and consistency, and lighter taste as well, but quite a bit of nasal fumes – while the Malmsey was deep, dark, and rich.

“Os Citrinos” – The Citrus. For the 7 course menu, the first dessert was a fruit terrine with citrus fruit sauce, orange sorbet, and fruit mousse. All very light and fresh, something like shortbread underneath. More sour than sweet.

A small pre-dessert was offered for the 5 course meal, a proftterol with chocolate sauce.

“A Banana da Madeira” – The Banana from Madeira. The 5 course meal finished with this banana brownie dessert, with a madeira reduction. Some caramel, a sugar disc on top of the banana, also a banana foam/smoothie/mousse thing. Served with a lemon sorbet on some chocolate pieces. The banana mousse was the best part of this one.

“O Chocolate” – The Chocolat. Of course, as is the trend today, the 7 course meal was served with the chef’s version of Chocolate Royale. This was very rich, chocolate/hazlenut mousse, very soft in 3 layers. Topped with a rasberry and some rasberry powder, and of course some edible silver/platinum bits.

The 7 course menu was also finished with a glass of Taylor’s vintage port. The only problem with saving the best for last in a meal like this, is after so many glasses of wine of course you’re too tipsy to fully appreciate the quality of this port. But it was very appreciated nevertheless.

If we were pressed to come up with a negative note for the restaurant, it would be that we were not impressed with the espresso coffee at the end – it was too long and lacking taste, and at that point I was really craving a nice strong espresso. Of course I’m a coffee snob, so it’s probably hard to impress me. But if they could improve their coffee, I think they would really be on to something!

We were lucky enough to be greeted by Pedro himself at the end of the meal. I’m always suprised to see how young some of these chefs are, and how much they’ve already accomplished. This is a rising star to keep an eye on.

I hate to give away the ending early, but I have to go ahead and say that Pedro Lemos was the most memorable experience of our trip to Porto, and was much more special (and delicious) than the other more acclaimed restaurants. I would make another trip to Porto just to visit this restaurant again.

Pedro Lemos Restaurante
Rua do Padre Luís Cabral, 974
Foz do Douro
4150-459 Porto
Portugal
+351 220 115 986
http://www.pedrolemos.net

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Lucky Seven Diner – American Brunch in Westbourne Grove

Since I came to London from the States years ago, I spent ages searching for a decent place for brunch. I managed to find a few nice french pattiserie-style places that serve dainty omlettes and watery french-press coffees; and the lovely Balans, which serves English breakfast food with a slight American-style twist; and the Four Seasons brunch buffet, which can pretty much satisfy any craving you could possibly have within their vast buffet offering and made to order kitchen; but alas, I still woke up slightly empty inside, longing for what I always took for granted as one of those simple pleasures, something resembling a true American-style brunch.

In the States it is so easy, you wake up late and head to the nearest IHOP, they are nearly as ubiquitous as Starbucks. And open 24 hours. And insanely cheap. Or for a more special, more unique experience, there are places such as Fonda San Miguel or BreadWinners.

And then once I started to get into the know of the London foodie world, I discovered Lucky Seven. After reading about it, I had to go that next weekend. And since then I’ve been back on several occasions – afterall it’s not too far to travel for a special breakfast.

Despite the high rankings of Hache and Byron on many a burger-shootout, Lucky Seven is a strong contender for best burger in town, and really does a better job of replicating the American burger experience. However, we came for brunch this time.

The way it works is a bit different to other restaurants. Because it is a rather busy place on the weekends, there is usually a bit of a wait. And the restaurant is tiny, so there is really no place to wait inside. So they send everyone next door to the sister restaurant, Crazy Homies. Being a Mexican restaurant, this sometimes ends up with a funny result – morning margaritas. To kill the 15 minutes we usually have to wait for our table next door, we go ahead and order some margaritas (they have a wide selection) and also perhaps some chips and salsa. We invariably are only halfway through this when we are called over for breakfast. So we end up bringing our margaritas next door with us, and finishing them up as we order our breakfast. Very odd, but not bad as a hangover cure.

But for the first time ever, somehow we were seated straight away this time – so no need for the morning margaritas ritual. My liver was thanking me already.

There are truly few decent places in London for a decent offering for brunch on weekends, even fewer who are able to execute a meal that comes close to the authentic American style. Breakfast menu served here until 5pm on weekends. Sweet.

The ambiance is a bit noisy, some old Elvis or Buddy Holly music playing a bit loudly, everyone seems to be sort of yelling across the tables to make their conversation heard. The vibe in this place is a bit swinging.

No menus at the table – one big menu is presented high on the wall above the kitchen, turn around, squint, and make your choices quick! In true American service style, the waiters are at your table to take an order before you’ve even realized where the menu is!

Milkshakes – Chocolate malt extra thick, and bananana malt medium thick. I have seen a number of places that purport to offer a “milkshake” in London, but really I think this might be the only place that does it properly. If you come to Lucky 7, don’t you dare forget to order one, and for goodness sake please make it extra thick. Malt flavoring is optional. If you are not familiar with this, it is the same flavor you get in Maltesers sweets, so if you like those, you will love a malt milkshake.

Guacamole and fries. I think this was ordered by the couple sitting next to us at our table. But the guac looked so good I wanted to get a shot in there. This reminds me to mention one of the funny things about Lucky Seven. The entire restaurant is about 6 or 8 big diner-style booths, reminiscent of what we used to have at the House of Pancakes or something like that. Since this place is always in such high demand on the weekends, and since many of the patrons come in couples (ourselves included), you often end up basically sharing the booth with another couple. Now, in offstandish London, this may sound like a rather uncomfortable situation, and yes it can be if you’re not the social type, so beware. But the booths are really big, so don’t worry, it’s not as if you are actually sharing the meal with the couple next to you. Oh, and there was also some guac served with my breakfast burrito, keep reading…

Fresh squeezed orange juice. Plenty of drinks on our table, we might have also had some coffees. The orange juice is very nice, fresh, chilled, even served the American way with the straws still covered with the wrapper on the top bit.

Breakfast burrito – filled with black beans, chorizo, eggs, etc., with sour cream, guacamole, fresh salsa, and lettuce salad on the side. Ok, I’m not going to go all out and say this was truly “American”, or perhaps it was if you go to Boston and order a burrito I guess. But it certainly wouldn’t qualify in Texas. The black beans are a nice touch for authenticity, although they probably wouldn’t appeal to everyone. But the chorizo is really more in that “Spanish” chorizo category, which is basically like a more paprika-heavy version of an italian salsiccia, and nothing like a Mexican chorizo. The eggs were cooked ok but not fluffy or anything. And the salsa – what is that? basically a bunch of diced up veg including bell peppers of 3 colors and onions? No cilantro (corriander for you anglophites), parsley, cumin, lime juice, tomato juice, oil, salt, pepper, or anything else that would make this resemble any real kind of Mexican salsa or pico de gallo. This is especially distressing since Lucky Seven is the next door companion of a supposedly Mexican restaurant, “Crazy Homies”. Being honest I would probably rate the breakfast burrito at Balans higher than this one.

Pancakes, blueberry I think. Now these were nice, very thick and fluffy, even buttermilky, and almost a true American-style breakfast portion (4 big ones, where IHOP serves 5 big ones). But for London, you definitely can’t beat these pancakes. I remember when I first moved here and spent ages searching for anywhere to have pancakes, and “My Old Dutch” was the best substitute I could find. It’s nice for what it is, but you really have to stretch your imagination to call those “pancakes” from the American point of view.

Of course I’m a big fan of Lucky Seven. If it was in my neighborhood I would probably be there at least once every weekend. It’s the kind of place that you take into consideration as a potential “local spot” when you think about moving home. Service is mostly quick and no-nonsense, although when it gets very busy there does seem to be a shortage of waiters so it gets tougher to grab someone’s attention. The decor will really give you that back home feeling, although maybe moreso for someone who considers “home” Austin or San Francisco, rather than Houston or Dallas.

On this visit we paid £43 including service for two, which is excellent considering we both had fresh OJ and malt milkshakes, plus all our food, and a side of bacon. No doubt we’ll be back soon for the upteenth time, but I might not go for the breakfast burrito next time. I’ll save that for Balans, which is just a short walk down the road from me.

Lucky Seven Diner
http://www.lucky7london.co.uk
127 Westbourne Park Road
London
W2 5QL
0207 727 6771

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Sushi of Shiori

Following in the footsteps of my mentor, Kang, I decided to pay a visit to the Sushi restaurant he has declared his new favorite, since I never did manage to make it out to his old favorite Sushi Hiro. I still hold Sake no Hana on a pedestal as my gold standard for sushi, and fair or not, that’s the guideline I use for comparison. Of course for a fraction of the cost I’m not expecting to meet the same level of amazing service and surroundings, or the bar’s arsenal of sake selections, but I do hope to find at least something comparable in the quality of the fish.

My first mistake was to ignore Kang’s suggestion of pre-booking the entire meal and ordering the special set meal. But knowing that my companion might not be able to handle as much raw fish as would be on offer, I was compelled to go a la carte. But I did want to make sure I touched on at least a few of the top recommended items from the menu.

Octopus tako wasabi. Although we weren’t doing the set meal, I still wanted to venture out from the typical sushi mold and try something special this chef had to offer. But this turned out a bit weird and not as tasty as I expected. Small chopped pieces of octopus, still fairly chewy texture, some lemon and a bit of wasabi and red pepper. This really required my top skills as a chopsticks expert. It was quite syrupy, well that’s how I described it. I guess I was expecting something more akin to the “Aji sashimi with mooli” in one of Kang’s reviews, but this wasn’t it.

Miso soup. Normally I skip the soup at sushi restaurants – having had broth with tofu and seaweed more than enough times, it usually just seems like a waste. But given this was my companion’s first real sushi experience, I wanted to make sure we had this for completeness. The soup actually did turn out to be pretty nice. Very salty, brothy, and I noted “smoky” flavors. However, no toasted rice bits as in Kang’s version..

Mixed nigiri platter. We ordered 14 pieces from the menu, including 3 varieties of tuna, unagi eel, egg, scallop, and aubergine. Note the presentation with little dollops of wasabi on top of radish slices – nice touch!

Scallop with truffle nigiri. I have to admit I think I have probably not had raw scallop before, as seared in butter always seemed like the more appropriate way to eat that particular item. But this was not a bad idea, and Kang was right, with the addition of the truffle oil on top, this piece pretty much stole the show! Really delicious and elegant.

Tuna nigiri. Check. I think this is a standard requirement and you can either get it right or wrong, and this was good. Note the sinewey tissue. Nice. Also note the “tuna tartar” pieces in the back – different from what I am used to, and also good but not great.

Chu-toro fatty tuna. Very nice. Not sure what the garnishes were about here, and (shame on me) I admit I scraped them to the side before popping these into my mouth. Didn’t particularly like the topping on this one though, but don’t recall what it was now.

Wagyu seared beef nigiri. Another hit, absolutely delicious and tender, with a tasty topping of I can’t remember what.

Maki, salmon, tuna, and california I think – standard and forgettable, but not bad. Note again the wasabi on top of raddish piece for that extra touch.

Homemade plum-wine sorbet. Very nice, my companion had never even had plum wine, so it was interesting to see her reaction. But she liked it. And for me it definitely brought back memories of the last plum wine I had, and dare I say this is probably a better way to serve that flavor than as a glass to drink, given how sweet it is?

The bill came out to £75 and change, including service, which if I recall correctly was actually discretionary? That in itself is a nice touch, I am just so sick of seeing the pre-included “optional” service charges every time I dine out in London. Not exactly cheap considering I didn’t go all out at all on this occasion as I had done in the past – we only had a couple of rolls and a medium plate of nigiri pieces, and a small sake. I would have been happier with a charge around £60 for all that. But I guess miso soup and dessert makes a big difference..!

I could imagine returning for a few select pieces, possibly the scallop and the beef. But it’s a bit of a trek for me, and I’m still happy with Feng as a cheap local alternative, and then of course Sake no Hana when I get my next big bonus. Overall I think what we had was a fairly average Sushi meal for a slightly over average price, whereas I was expecting something a bit more extraordinary along the lines of Kang’s two meals. Maybe I should really go for the pre-ordered set meal next time and try my luck again..

Sushi of Shiori
http://www.sushiofshiori.co.uk
144 Drummond St
London
NW1 2PA
United Kingdom
020 7388 9962

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Rodizio Rico – Churrascaria in West London

The churrascaria is an intriguing example of how food culture changes across different regions, even when the actual food can stay more or less consistent. For the unitiated, a churrascaria is a Brazilian steakhouse serving all sorts of meat cuts, mostly smoked barbecue-style over charcoal. Of course for the most authentic, cost-effective, and delicious experience, one must travel to Brazil and see how it is really done. But there are fair immitations elsewhere. My first experience with churrasco was at Fogo de Chão, possibly the best known of the upscale churrascarias in the States. This place was amazing, and has been one of the restaurants I miss the most since coming over to Europe.

Later I had the opportunity to go down to Brazil and sample a churrasco the authentic way. I was surprised to learn that Churrascaria need not be excessively overpriced, and that all you can eat, amazingly cooked meat of all imaginable cuts, could be had for not much more than the cost of a normal meal. Now that’s not to say that Brazilians go out and gorge themselves on Churrasco every night of the week – but for about 20 dollars a person, I imagine many Brazilians can afford to make it a weekly or bi-weekly family occasion. Oh, and of course, the meat in Brazil…amazing!

So it’s strange that it took me so many years to venture out in London to try a local churrasco here, but I guess the explanation would be that I was already a bit aware that Churrascarias here are more in the food chain category of restaurants, not many notches up from Nandos. Ok I’m exaggerating a bit, but that was my impression. It turns out Rodizio Rico has 3 locations – Westbourne Grove, Islington, and North Greenwich. On this occasion we made a rather unplanned visit to the Westbourne Grove branch, upon realizing we happened to be in the neighborhood and hungry enough to go for an endless eating fest. I’ll just generally note that I visited one other Churrasco in London some time back, close to Bond Street if I recall, and while it was not bad, it did not compare to Rodizio – don’t have much more detail than that.

If you haven’t been to a churrascaria before, let me try to illustrate the experience for you, as it is a bit different from any other restaurant I’ve experienced. There are 2 components (well, 3 if you count the Caipirinhas beforehand). First, you make a quick trip to the salad bar to load up on salads, veggies, and rice. The trick here is really to get enough to balance out the insane amount of protein and fat you are about to consume, but not too much that you don’t have room on your plate! But the problem is, some of this stuff is so good you have got to have a bit of it, and so of course you end up getting too much, as I did:

I can’t really describe everything on this plate, but I’ll highlight a few items – note on the left side, a green chimichurri type sauce, and also I think a red chutney, indian style – these are sauces that can accompany some of the meat cuts, although most don’t really need them. The green sauce would be particularly good for lamb or perhaps chicken. On the right there is a bit of mushrooms and meat (chicken?) in creamy gravy, really nice. There are some marinated aubergines and mushrooms in the middle, a veg medely mix, marinated olives, some Brazilian lasagna dish, and others. There is also white rice somewhere I hope, or maybe I just waited until I had enough room on the plate to get the rice on after. It’s not a precise science.

So, once we are ready for the meat, we have a small disk on the table in front of us, red side up at this point. We flip it over to the green side. Interesting to note that this is the same whether we are in the chain restaurants in the UK, the more upscale ones in the US, or even the authentic ones in Brazil. So it seems that universally, green is accepted as force-feed me absurd amounts of meat. Because that is what they do – a good churrascaria should have so many Brazilian boys running around offering you meat that it pretty much never stops coming, and the best will also somehow make you feel guilty every time you refuse what they are offering, as if somehow you have offended the barbecue dish that was passed down from their own great grandmother’s family recipe. You want to have this feeling of guilt and being force-fed – it’s all part of the experience, I think.

The cuts of meat are presented on skewers – each garçom comes around with a particular cut, hopefully tells you what it is, and barely gives you time to accept or refuse before they start chopping off a couple of more than bite-size slices with an alarmingly huge carving knife. You take the meat with a small pair of tongs that are part of your place setting along with fork and knife.

Not sure what cut this is, but it was not too memorable.

This particular one is a bit too dry, like roast beef.

The best cut – juicy inside, crispy charcoal smoked flavor outside. Next time I’ll just load up on this!

Chicken hearts. I remember having these before at another churrascaria and being fairly impressed, but these did not really do much for me. I took several of them but didn’t finish them.

Now this is where I might note a few differences with the Rodizio experience, based on what I’ve become used to. First, the restaurant is simply not big enough for the scale necessary to keep every possible cut in constant play throughout the restaurant. At Fogo you pretty much have every cut somewhere on the floor at all times, and it’s just a matter of waiting for them to make their way over to you. But at Rodizio, the place is only really big enough for 3 or 4 waiters, and so they have a rapid-fire routine where the chef is always preparing the next skewers and rotating them to the waiters. But this did result in quite a bit of lag time, and a lot of dissapointment as we watched the cuts that we really wanted get finished off the skewer on the other side of the room before the waiter ever circled over to our side. This is particularly distressing towards the end of the meal, because you end up sitting there waiting and waiting for that one last piece that you really want before you decide to call it quits. Of course you can make special requests if you know what cut you want.

Pork ribs? Some kind of ribs, I enjoyed them, my companion did not.

So to summarize the experience, it was better than my initially low expectations, but still a bit hit and miss. There weren’t quite enough meat cuts that really blew your socks off, and you really had to wade through a number of mediocre ones to find them. But the meat was still pretty decent, and those couple of exceptional cuts were really amazing, and you really can’t beat all-you-can-eat meat for sunday lunch, so I’m not going to complain too much. I was not particularly impressed by the service though. For 2 adult buffets, a large bottle of water, and 2 drinks, plus service, the bill came to just under £70. A bit pricey for a Sunday lunch, but if you make the most of the meat and buffet you can get your money’s worth. I might go back when the craving becomes unbearable again, or I might just hold off until my next trip home for a Friday night dinner at Fogo.

Rodizio Rico
http://www.rodiziorico.com
111 Westbourne Grove
London
W2 4UW
020 7792 4035

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Bar Boulud, London

Once again taking a bit of inspiration from LondonEater, and then following up with a couple of the earliest reviews here and here since it’s opening a few weeks ago, we rushed to make a booking at the new Bar Boulud in London. We were hoping to catch a glimpse of star chef Daniel Boulud before he heads back home to his already well-established restaurants in New York, including the 3-starred ‘Daniel’ restaurant, and we were not disappointed.

Having enjoyed food and drink in close proximity to a number of well known celebrities, I’ve never found myself easily star-struck. But I suppose for a foodie, there is just something special about being in the presence of culinary greatness. Perhaps because it is something we can aspire to, in a more real way than, say a sports reporter might dream to dunk like Jordan or putt like Tiger. And if you can grasp for a moment that shared appreciation and love of good food, it becomes personal.

The service at Bar Boulud is outstanding, and it is clear that there are still a number of the staff visiting from the New York branch – familiar American accents compliment french ones. The hostess finds our appointment and takes us to our table in the second room, in the back half of the restaurant. We pass the first room, which is seemingly a bit more lively and shares a space with the cocktail bar. On this Tuesday evening, the bar in particular, and the restaurant more generally, is decorated with a mix of 3-piece suited businessmen, intermingled with a bit more casually dressed couples, perhaps guests of the 5-star hotel to which the restaurant is attached. We have arrived relatively casual, but the environment is relaxed, so we don’t feel particularly out-of-place, even wielding the camera in bag. Looking back, I do not recall a particular genre of music, or whether there even was music, or perhaps simply quiet voices carrying on private discussions. We are seated in between two other sets of patrons: to the right, lovers with a slight head start in front of us on the meal, and to the left a pair of businessmen discussing the syndication of a well-known fashion magazine. The second room is quieter, and includes the spectacle of the open kitchen. We gazed throughout the evening at this heavily staffed, yet immaculately clean and tightly run workshop.

It was not clear which waiter was principally responsible for our table, as several different waiters (and others who were apparently managers in suits as well) were all very attentive to our table throughout the night. We were brought a wine list, but not a cocktail list. The wines were well presented, with a proper table of contents organizing wines by colors, regions, and tastes, and I regret not having been able to order at least a glass, as I was just recovering from a cold and didn’t want to do anything to prolong the recovery. Without access to the cocktail list, and only having heard the description of the one ‘special’ cocktail of the day, my companion ventured to give it a try.

Cucumber martini

The drink had a very fresh and intense flavour of cucumber, and I suppose to a big fan of cucumber (which sadly I am not) this drink might go over quite well. It was sipped but never actually finished. So if we would have to highlight a single disappointment of the night, it would probably be this cocktail, which simply didn’t suit our tastes, and well, objectively I would say it did not seem to offer much more complexity than the overpowering taste of fresh cucumber juice. But we were aware of the risky gamble when we took it.

The menu is organized in a unique way – or perhaps this is the normal way for real country-style french bistros, I’m not sure – but we enjoyed the fact that it seemed to offer several different alternatives for the entire path of the meal. It’s not just “choose your starter, then choose your main” – it’s more like “which Boulud’s do you feel like this evening? Soup and burger? Pâte and fish? Sausage and braised meat?” There are many ways to put together a combination to suit your mood, and between two people those combinations multiply. Or of course you could skip past all the options and go with the set menu. We opted for a la carte, first for a couple of starters from different parts of the menu.

Tourte De canard

The tourte de canard is found on the Charcuterie de Gilles Verot section of the menu, where we find other pâtes and meats. It is served as a single thin slice from a large tourte, in which I counted about 8 or 9 layers, which consist of duck, foie gras, figs, and pastry crust. I tried eating it both ways – first by getting a nice thin vertical stripe across all the layers – and these complimented each other well; and then by tasting individual layers and combinations of layers. The foie gras on its own was spectacular, and I couldn’t resist grabbing a piece of bread and spreading it on. The fig layer was sweet and fruity, and made a nice complement to the fatty duck layer. I’m afraid I haven’t sampled enough tourtes from the charcuterie in my lifetime to have a good base for comparison here, but I will certainly be thinking of this one the next time I visit the patrie-mère. This was served with a spoonful of coarse mustard, which I hadn’t had for a while – I suppose it’s not that common in London?

Rillons croustillants au poivre

The crispy and tender pork belly with cracked pepper, as this dish is subtitled, is listed in the “Warm Specialties” section. This is the most memorable of the savory dishes of the meal for me, and the “cracked pepper” aspect of it did not leave as much of an impression as the accompanying Dijon mustard – a bit too strong for my companion, and really only the slightest dab was necessary to add a bit of kick to the chunks of pork belly. I particularly enjoyed the way this dish was served – on a piece of chef’s paper, really giving the dish that “country-style” feel. The four slices of pork belly each had about 5 distinct layers, a couple very meaty, one white and leaner, and one of just pure fat. It was a whole new dimension on pork for me, and quite delicious.

Coq au vin

On to the mains, my companion ordered what I probably would have otherwise selected, described as red wine braised chicken legs, with lardons, mushrooms, and onions, served with spätzle. Now, I knew I had heard the word before, but we weren’t quite sure what spätzle was – but we were pleasantly surprised when we tasted the gnocchi-like egg pasta served separately in a little pot on the side – very nice.

I’ve only really had the coq au vin from Bluebird as a comparison, but I feel secure in saying this one was equally amazing, and my only complaint might be that we were able to finish it in one sitting, while the Bluebird one was at the same time so filling and so good that we requested a doggie bag (yes, a doggie bag) so I could have it for lunch the next day. But I suppose serving correctly sized portions is not a bad thing, and admittedly I did have to finish half of it off for my companion, which I was happy to do, after finishing my own dish.

Gigot a la cuillère (?)

Well, this was a daily special, and we were really only told in English that it was a dish of “slow-cooked lamb” – so I’m only guessing that the actual French title might be Gigot a la cuillère. The name means “a joint that can be carved with a spoon”, presumably referring to how tender the meat is and how it falls off the bone after cooking for up to 7 hours. I’m going to try to describe what this dish did while I was eating it, but I’m afraid I won’t do it justice, so use your imagination. When the dish first arrived, there were a number of distinct components, as you can see in the photo. Although they were all in the same dish, it was almost as if it were served “decomposed” such that you could sample each ingredient individually, and reconstruct the combination of flavours by getting each bit on your fork. Even the sauce underlying the lamb was deconstructed into a creamy almost bechamel-like portion, and a separate brothy, meaty portion. The cherry tomatoes were cooked but still intact, and the other flavoring components – artichokes, olives, legumes, etc. all layered on top. The lamb itself was tender and delicious. Now, as the consumption of this dish proceeded, and we mix the ingredients and burst the cherry tomatoes into the creamy brothy sauce, it transforms into something like a thick soup. At this point I was tempted to beg the waiter for a big spoon, in order to get all of the ingredients in to my mouth along with the soupy sauce and the chunks of lamb. The combination was just brilliant. After finishing the dish I did what any polite foodie should do to show gratitude and appreciation in a fancy restaurant – I wiped the plate clean and soaked up any of that last remaining soupy sauce with a piece of bread, so as not to let it go to waste!

Halfway through the meal we began to study the movements of the kitchen staff, and no sooner had we started asking ourselves where Chef Boulud might be hiding, than he was approaching our table to introduce himself. Having noticed the camera, he asked if we were writers, and when it was revealed that we dabble in food blogging, he mentioned that just the evening before he had received a visit from a table of food bloggers. This has been evidenced by their reviews, promptly posted the same day we made our visit, here and here. It was an amazing experience to meet such an accomplished chef, and even better to sense the confidence and pride he has in his product – he has no fear of publicity. He did not wait for the waiter to bring around the dessert menu, and indicated that he would send a few things for us to try. Now, I assume for foodies that have been in the business for a while this happens all the time – but this was a first for me, so it was a very special gesture indeed.

We had indicated that we were both fans of chocolate, and so after the departure of the chef, and upon arrival of the menus, we were contemplating which one of the three different chocolate desserts we might want to try. Before we had a chance to choose one of the three, the waiter took our menus and presented us with three different desserts, selected by Chef Boulud himself. One was of course a chocolate selection, while the other two would tempt us into unexpected territory. At this point I’ll have to excuse myself for the poor job I’ve done at capturing the appropriate lighting for the dessert photos – but with three desserts being prepared in front of us in rapid succession, I really had no time for experimentation.

Coupe peppermint

Well, I should save the best for last, but as we must do with dessert, we indulge and do not hold back. And to say this dessert is the “best” might not actually be accurate – it is really the most interesting of the desserts. The description of flourless chocolate sponge, hot chocolate sauce, mint ice cream, and chocolate sorbet does not really do justice to this creation. I have always loved mint ice cream – as a child, a scoop of mint chocolate chip and a scoop of coffee was one of my favorite duos. So, on seeing the familiar green-shaded ice cream at the bottom of this cup, I was prepared for something familiar, and not prepared at all for the sensation that hit my tongue. Instead of the overly sweet, childlike thing that we grew up learning to call mint, something much more “adult” hit my palate. My first thought was of the mint tea you have in a Lebanese restaurant, and then of picking fresh mint from my father’s garden as a child. This mint ice cream tasted of actual fresh mint. Now, this might be completely obvious to a chef, but it was an amazing revelation to me and my preconceived notions about mint ice cream. I was so fascinated by this that I barely noticed the triple-layers of hot and cold chocolate on top and surrounding the mint, and I found myself digging to the bottom to get more spoonfuls of the glorious ice cream. This is one of the most unique and special desserts I can remember in a long time or maybe ever, and it is a must have.

Soufflé grand mariner

This was what I would guess a traditional soufflé is, which is then broken in the middle in front of you at the table and then warm crème anglaise is poured into the middle. The amazing thing about this one was the taste of the soufflé itself. I personally could have done without the cream, as it simply diluted and hid the amazing taste of the soufflé, which was buttery and rich and sweet, and certainly moist enough on its own to be eaten without more cream poured into it. But in any case, very good. If I were a soufflé person, I imagine this would rank as one of the best.

Gâteau basque

This was a custard cake with brandied cherries, with a spoonful of crème anglaise. It seemed almost boring and forgettable in comparison to the other two desserts, but on its own was of course quite yummy and notably light and fluffy for a slice of gâteau. It is much more subtle than the other two desserts.

Amidst this fanfare about dessert, I note that we may have missed out on a masterpiece which was described in another review, the Gâteau Chocolat-Framboise. Along with the Boudin Blanc sausage and the burgers, this will certainly warrant a return to what must be the best new French country bistrot restaurant in London.

There is no doubt we will be returning to Bar Boulud in the near future, and the other Boulud establishments will be on the top of my list for my next visit to New York as well. The combination of stellar service and brilliant food make this one a winner. Clearly desserts are one of the shining points here, and I would say go just to sample some desserts, but honestly you really need to try the full package. And I must say, the prices are amazing, considering the quality of food – this has got to be one of the best values in london for higher-echelon cooking. My total bill came out to 70 pounds including service, for the two of us. If you consider that 10 pounds of that was for the risky cocktail we would have done better without, then 60 pounds for a dinner of this caliber is just exceptional.

Bar Boulud
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
66 Knightsbridge
London SW1X 7LA
http://www.barboulud.com/barbouludLondon.html
Tel: +44 (0)2072013899

The original set of high-res photos is here.

The Gun

I recently attended a dinner with a group of work colleagues to celebrate a project milestone. The Gun was chosen as the venue, and with several private dining rooms, a set menu, and situated just a ten-minute walk from the Canary Wharf offices, it seemed like an ideal spot for this team get-together. Knowing that this would be a well-lubricated, slow-moving event I brought my camera along, in the expectation that I would have plenty of time to get some nice shots.

We arrived direct from the office, with the sunlight still beaming in to the upstairs dining room, which afforded me plenty of natural light to begin with. This was an interesting photography exercise for me, as the sun would slowly set throughout the dinner, and we would reach sundown before the desserts arrived. My challenge was to continuously adjust exposure to capture light consistently throughout the dinner. Although a good deal of Photoshop was still required to get the finished product, I’m fairly happy with the results.

The Gun is a pub with several elegant, yet classically styled dining rooms. The theme of rifles and hunting is consistent throughout, conveyed by both paintings of rifles and by actual antique rifles hung on the walls in some rooms. The furniture is gorgeous mahogany wood, and the decor is warm and charming. The restaurant sports a very decent-looking wine list with good international selection. However, my first three choices (all Italian reds, including one of my favourites, the Primitivo di Puglia) were all out of stock. This was dissapointing, as I realized I had wasted the time I had spent preparing beforehand to research the particular producers and years on offer. We selected a few french and australian wines, more or less at random, and with some prodding by the waiter, perahps simply because those were the bottles that were actually available in stock, if for no other reason.

So for wines, we did end up with several contenders. Being an office function, the proper libation was of course an essential element of the dinner. First, we sampled a Cotes Du Rhone from Chateau Trignon (2007). Although not the favourite for everyone, I found this to be an ideal wine to start the meal off – quite full and yet still very fruity and plummy. I would have been happy to continue on with this one.

Secondly, a Shiraz from Grant Burge Filsell in Barossa Valley, Australian (2007). This was the big hit across the table. Very complex, deep earthy flavours with a spiciness that reminded me of certain Riojas that I had found a bit offputting on their own, but quite adequate when accompanied by some mature cheeses.

Next, Barbera D’Alba from Marco Porello (2008). I think I may have been alone in enjoying this one, but it came in stark contrast to the Shiraz. While the Shiraz offered a spicy shockwave with every sip, the Barbera D’Alba brought a deep but subtle complexity, and I noted that it required a more refined and mature pallete to appreciate. It required a pause for silent reflection and study to allow the layered sensations to seep through. I found it to be an ideal wine to end the night.

On to the food. The set menu offered four choices for each, starters, entrees, and desserts. For the starter, as usual I chose the foie gras.

Foie gras and prune terrine, fruit and nut bread

I’ve had foie gras served in many forms, cold, cooked, on a burger, or even as a hot soup-slash-salad dressing. But this was new to me. I described it in my notes as “chunky”. I’m not even sure whether this way of serving it was intentional, or if it may have been some odd attempt in the kitchen to salvage the last remains of some foie gras that they were able to scrape up off the kitchen floor or something. It was like several mismatched chunks of what could be described as foie gras, perhaps, if it were left sitting out for several hours or days in a dry heat; all pressed together back into the form of a single slick of a foie gras log, and then instead of being incapsulated in the natural fat around the circumference, it was encapsulated in a slice of what I think was bacon. Ok, admittedly on the menu it was labelled as a “terrine” of foie gras…so now I’ll always wonder if that is just a word that means you can get away with any kind of reconstruction of chunky bits to make a pâté that is not really a pâté. The taste was not bad, and I did eat most or all of it, but it wasn’t anything as satisfying as the usual foie gras, and the whole time I was suspiciously finishing off the oddly constructed chunky mess, trying to imagine how it could have ended up that way.

White onion soup, garlic croutons

Black Périgord truffle macaroni cheese

Grilled Cornish mackerel, config shallot tart, beetroot and horseradish cream

As for the other starters, I was told that the soup and the mackarel were both decent or good. My gut had told me to skip the foie gras and go for the truffle macaroni and cheese instead, and I am certain I should have listened. The reports from this dish were that it was very good, and I am certain that it was the best of the starters.

Organic Scottish salmon fillet, crushed new potatoes, creamed leeks, spring onions and chive butter sauce

Welsh salt marsh lamb saddle stuffed with leeks and served with lamb’s kidneys, braised red cabbage and fondant potatoes

On to the mains, I had the lamb saddle. I guess I just have high expectations for my lamb dishes, or I expect that any lamb served in the English style is going to come with enough juicy gravy to provide the necessary moisture to cover any error in cooking. But alas this dish was a failure for me. The actual lamb meat was a bit tough, but more to the point, I found it quite dry. So basically I had a plate of 3 dry, tough lamb medallions, wrapped in fat, and served with no gravy other than the light splash of juice around the edge. The livers were slightly more tasty, but also could have benefitted from a nice gravy.

Given that we had thirteen independent minds at the table, I was certain that I would have a chance to shoot at least one example of each dish. And yet that did not happen – at least one of the entrees was missed (the beef), and possibly two if my photos are not lying. It turned out that a good majority went for the lamb. In the end I concluded that the best thing I had eaten during the meal was the side of carrots and thyme with orange glaze – I didn’t snap a photo of that one, but trust me, it was delicious. The salmon dish looked nicer, and I’m betting that the dish that would have really stolen the show would have been the braised rib of Dexter beef, which no one decided to try.

Crème brûlée

Chocolate and clementine tart

Roast pineapple, coconut mousse, star anise

British cheeses, chutney, oatcakes, and grapes

Since several of my colleagues were having the chocolate and clementine tart, I opted for the cheese plate. The cheeses were good, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the buscuits that were served with them. I did particularly like the quince that was served with the cheeses, and that at least one of the English cheeses was similar to a Spanish Manchego, and so went nicely with the quince. I had a taste of the choclate tart, and I would say, first that I did not actually taste any sort of orange flavour in the chocolate itself, so I’m guessing the clementine was referring only to the fact that slices of orange were served on the side. Also, although the chocolate in this tart was not bad, I was not a fan of the crust – it was as if it were missing a key ingredient, salt or sugar or something, and so the crust almost took away from the taste of the tart, rather than complimenting it.

In conclusion, the service was polite and attentive, and the location is nice with some handsome riverside views, that is if you don’t mind looking at the hideous north greenwich water tanks to the side. But there were numerous disappoinments with the wine list and then with the food, both in terms of fundamental selection and preparation of recipies, and also in terms of cooking preparation. If I would have started with the macaroni and cheese, I suspect I would have an entirely different critique of the rest of the night.

The Gun
27 Coldharbour
Docklands, London E14 9NS
http://www.thegundocklands.com
Tel: 02075155222

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Sketch

After reading about Sketch in a few blogs, here, here, and here, I had been thinking of making a visit for some time now. This week, with my birthday coming up, seemed like a good time to start the spending spree and treat myself and a companion to this Michellin-starred art-exhibition-cum-restaurant, featuring the culinary theatrics of master chef Pierre Gagnaire.

Rather than regurgitating all of the gory details of the visit, I would first refer the reader to Kang’s review, which does an excellent job of setting the scene. My initial impressions were just as he described – overwhelming creativity and artistic inspiration radiating throughout from the moment you walk in the door. Also, in keeping with the theme, we were greeted upon arrival by name (“Good evening, Mister Glaze, welcome to Sketch…”) followed by a quick rundown of the restaurant’s plaudits as we made our way up the stairs to the lecture room. At the time I thought, ah that’s no big deal, it’s Tuesday and the place is hardly busy, and we had even called ahead to mention we were running a few minutes late, so they could have simply deduced based on the timing who we were. But I was a bit more dazzled upon leaving when we were thanked for our custom, again by name – because at this point the entrance had become quite busy with patrons heading to the trendy bar areas for some nightlife. So, in short, the restaurant design is breathtaking, and the service up to this point is brilliant.

Upon being seated at a nice corner table with full view of the room, I noted that the restaurant was indeed quiet – only a few other tables seated at that point. But we appreciated the tranquility, and it was almost like having the kitchen to ourselves, as the other tables were mostly just sipping wine at this point. Noting that I had arrived with camera in hand, my usual trepidation was immediately relieved, as our helpful French garçon informed me that I may feel free to take any photos I like, as long as I promise to not use flash, which would disturb the other patrons. I was armed with my Nikon 55mm f/1.4 AF-S, and so this suited me fine, as my intention was to conquer the dimly lit room and capture my shots in natural light. The wait staff were all very courteous and helpful, yet young enough and relaxed in appearance to set those of us at ease, who aren’t exactly frequent diners in Michelin restaurants. Even somewhat under-dressed (it is Regent’s street after all, on a Tuesday!) and certainly not sporting the same accessories (such as the Armani suit or £20k Breitling wrapped around my neighbor’s wrist), the waiters put us completely at ease and honestly we didn’t feel uncomfortable for a second. There were a couple of poignantly humorous moments, such as when the waiter asked whether we had come from far, and we replied, “well…Chelsea”… and then towards the end of the meal, when the waiter asked the purpose of the photographs, and I explained that I was critiquing the restaurant for my food blog – but hey, I’m sure they’ve seen it all before.

So we were seated, side tables were brought for her purse and my camera bag, and we were immediately served a big selection of amuse bouches, canapes, or hors’d'oeuvres – not sure which one this qualifies as. But it was a lot. I didn’t have time to jot down everything the waiter was saying about each item, and with my lens I couldn’t quite get a wide shot of all the items on the table at once. But I have some nice shots of the individual plates. So look at all of these, and then reconstruct the picture in your head, of the table practically covered with fun little dishes to taste.

One was what has been described as a powder-version of hummous or maybe cassava powder, served with something like strips of flatbread or biscuit sticks – I guess that’s about right.

Two small pieces of what appeared to be cucumber were served chilled on a block of ice. However these were not cucumber at all – but rather either a grape or a combination of grape and other fresh fruit tastes perhaps. Surprising.

While waiting for starters, we were served a selection of bread, mostly fresh apparently, from a nice bread basket. I had the “italian” bread, which was something like a light airy foccaccia, while my companion had the white bread, which was almost like a sourdough roll. Two sorts of butter were served, one ordinary and yellow, and possibly unsalted. The other, heavily salted, and green and infused with what is apparently seaweed – it had a very distinctly seafoody if not possibly fishy taste. Interesting.

For starters, we decided to share something called Perfume of the Earth, which was a selection of small starter dishes, again served to cover the table in choices. This selection is apparently named for its inspiration from the chef’s favourite perfume. The flavor combinations were unique and intriguing – nothing was quite what you were expecting. Some dishes seemed to be deconstructions, others more like unexpected amalgamations of tastes. It was truly a theme park for the taste buds. And I suppose this is where we really see the difference from the set lunch menu. Here I could really feel the chef pouring out heart and soul into a symphony of flavours to dazzle us.

White beetroot purée with redcurrant, red beetroot syrup, purslane salad, foie gras soup with sarawak pepper

The beetroot and pursalane salad was doused by the waiter in what appeared to be a cold brown vinagrette, but on taste surprised us as it turned out to be the warm foie gras soup. It took a few tastes before I could put my finger on what it actually was. The foie gras taste was very nice, but hard to recognize straight away in liquid form. I felt just slightly decadent as I slopped up spoonfuls of the foie gras with bits of salad and beetroot.

Cocotte of vegetables, smoked orange peel and bay laurel

Goat’s cheese and black olives from Nyon

Almond tart

The almond tart had a sweet marzipan taste to it, and it was slightly odd to have what was essentially a small dessert in the middle between the other starter dishes and the main course.

Moving on to the mains, I opted for the Challans Duck, which came as one of the waiters recommendations.

Duck fillet with cinnamon and cumin

The duck meat itself was served in a small hot covered pot, and was sliced to bite size pieces in a rich brown sauce. Following the waiter’s suggestion, we left the meat covered to keep it warm, and spooned out small bits onto the bigger plate to eat together with the accompanying sautée.

Sautéed crosnes, salsify and grapes with sauternes

The sautée dish was something like a chutney, but not as bitter or savoury. Crosnes are apparently something known as chinese artichokes. Salsify is a sort of flower, and sauternes is a sweet French dessert wine. The combination of these flavours made an odd and tasty accompaniment to the duck. But really, where do they come up with this stuff?!

Sologne stuffing on toast

Sologne is a place in France, and so I assume Sologne stuffing is a colloquial way of saying foie gras, and it was delicious.

Kimchi and lamb’s lettuce

For me personally this was one of the most memorable parts of the meal. I suppose I hadn’t read the menu enough to be expecting it, and I probably didn’t pay enough attention to the waiter when he explained it – but when I bit in to the kimchi, I was immediately transported somewhere else, to memories of the last time I ate Korean barbeque. And, well I’m no expert, but I would dare say this was the best Kimchi I had ever had. Mixed in with what I think were a few pieces of tangerine or apricot, it was just an awesome flavour, and I gobbled it all down quickly.

Pear sorbet with Beaujolais jelly

Once again we had a sort of sweet dessert type of dish served alongside the savory dishes. And I’m certain I tasted more here than just pear and wine flavour. I believe there was a hint of rhubarb in there as well.

My companion decided on the Quercy Lamb.

Unlike my main, which was once again a selection of unrelated but perhaps complimentary dishes, the lamb was just that – lamb, served every which way, and how!

Roast leg with Indian spices, aubergine, sorrel, dried tomatoes

First, we had the tender lamb bites, served in a covered warm bowl, similar to the duck. This was certainly my favorite dish of the entire night. Although the waiter had recommended the duck, I found this dish to be more outstanding in terms of flavour explosion. The spices and the taste of the lamb meat were just amazing and so delicious, and I couldn’t get enough. I finished off the last bits my companion couldn’t fit.

Ewe cheese and spinach velouté, Granny Smith apple julienne

Grilled rack and saddle

Shoulder dumpling, white horseradish velouté

For dessert, we decided to share something that was being called either the Chocolate Soup or the Chocolate Puddle, depending on who you talked to. But it was a great chocolate dish in any case.

Chocolate soup: bitter chocolate ganache with ginger, crunchy samana chocolate leaf, cocoa spun sugar

Although not mentioned on the menu, there was a definite orange-chocolate tint going on here, and I swear I found a chunk of orange buried in the moist chocolate fondant part in the middle. The cocoa spun sugar was very different, and made eating this dish interesting. I liked this dessert a lot, because unlike what you get at many restaurants, there was no mistaking this for something that could easily be store-bought and re-plated. This was an in-house concoction, and it was prepared fresh to order. And it was super chocolatey, which we loved.

Some petit fours chocolates and other sweets were served at the end with the bill.

Now, I have to say something about the bill. First, note the ingenious presentation of the bill itself – served in a carved out void inside a literary classic. We did not order any wine or other beverages, and opted only for some (still and sparkling) water. Also note we only went for one shared starter, and one shared dessert. Despite that, it was a good amount of food, and we certainly weren’t left hungry at any point the rest of the evening. In particular I would note that the amount of meat served with each main in the principal warmed bowl was abundant, and defied the theme of the rest of the meal with small tasting dishes. I should also note that, although I probably had it printed out and laying around somewhere, I failed to bring in the well-known £50 off voucher, or to check if it would have still been valid. And despite the possibility of a tasting menu (which would cost more actually) we did decide to go for the a la carte option, so we could pick and choose exactly what we wanted. And so, our bill came out to £160, or £80 per person. Considering we had loads of food and that still came out cheaper than the tasting menu, I suppose we did ok. But it also probably comes out to one of my biggest bills ever, per person without having ordered wine or drinks to go with the meal. So I’m still debating whether it was worth it, and whether I would go again. Certainly as a one-time experience, you should do it if you can afford it.

Sketch
9 Conduit Street
London
W1S 2XG
http://www.sketch.uk.com
Phone: 02076594500

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Chutney Mary

After a glowing recommendation from a friend, I had been waiting for a chance to go check out Chutney Mary. It’s hard to explain the idea of this restaurant – you really need to just go there and see it. Basically it is an indian restaurant that just about stretches into the gourmet category. The interior has quite a bit more elegance than the usual curry house, and the service was far more professional than what I’ve come to expect. So on arrival everything was spot on, and all that remained was to see if the food could also excel beyond the usual calibre.

The actual restaurant is downstairs, and there appear to be one or two private banquet rooms upstairs for private parties. The space downstairs is decorated with plants and flowers. The wine list was very good, and we ordered some French wines by the glass. There was a nice looking wine cellar, which was in plain sight since we were already underground. Between the three of us, we decided to order three starters to share around and then three mains.

Potato basket with mixed ‘street food’ topped with yoghurt and pomegranate seeds

This turned out to be the most interesting of the three starters, both visually and in terms of taste. The “basket” was a delicate but crunchy web of potato, which was filled with what seemed to be 10 or more ingredients all mixed together in layers. There were some spicy flavors, and also some colder layers on the top with the yoghurt. I can’t really describe what it tasted like, and I wouldn’t say it was amazing – but it was interesting.

Goose mince with blueberry chutney

(Please forgive the crazy variation in exposure and balance in some of these shots – I had very low light to work with, and not every picture came out as I would have liked!)

I ordered this one thinking that firstly I hadn’t had goose meat before, and also that blueberry chutney sounded interesting. The dish turned out to be a bit of a flop – someone described it as a soft meatball, and although it had some spices, I’m not convinced that the spices were appropriate for the meat. The dish was either too plain, or too unpleasant for some at the table. This did not get finished, and would probably not be ordered again next time.

Yam cakes with strawberry chutney

According to some at the table, this was the best tasting of the three starters. I was very skeptical after the goose mince, and this dish didn’t do much to bring me back into good humour. I found it a bit bland, and perhaps a bit dry – hence needing the strawberry chutney. Like the other starters, it just wasn’t that special to be worth ordering again.

Green curry lamb

Moving on to the main dishes – three different curries, with rice and naan bread, and the pleasant surprises began. The lamb was served in a very green, very herby curry. It was something akin to a pesto, but made from particularly strong green herbs such as parsley or coriander. This was not quite pleasant enough for everyone at the table, and I would be lying to say I wasn’t a bit put off by the herbiness of the curry myself. But the meat made the difference – the quality of this braised lamb was amazing – perfectly cooked, falling off the bone, and tasty enough to make up for any fault in the green curry sauce. I probably wouldn’t order this particular dish again, but we did finish off every piece of lamb, leaving a nice plate of completely stripped bones on the side.

Butter chicken

Speaking to some of my Indian colleagues, I have understood that what we know as “Chicken Tikka Masala” is probably not an actual traditional Indian dish, but is actually quite similar to a real Punjabi dish called “Butter Chicken”. I guess the difference is that Butter Chicken isn’t quite as spicy, although there was a little spice – but it was so tasty that it just didn’t need it. Despite my natural inclination towards spicier dishes, I would have to conclude that this butter chicken dish was actually the most tasty Chicken Tikka Masala I have ever had. The sauce was creamy and delicious, with the flavors of tomato and almond, just as you expect in the Masala sauce. I couldn’t stop sopping up the extra sauce with my bread after the meat was all gone.

Chicken korma

Playing it safe, we ordered yet another well-known curry dish. And again, this was executed beyond perfection. I have had plenty of Chicken Kormas, and nothing has come close to this before – the tastes buried in the curry sauce were more complex than what I usually expect from the simplest of curry dishes, and there were more green herbs and other flavours in every bite.

So, in hindsight we might have done better to just give the starters a miss and go straight to the mains – we were over-stuffed after the meal. Chutney Mary prepares some of the tastiest curry dishes I have had, and really sets a new standard. But the starters are either tedious, boring, bland, or just unneccessary. In a way this is disappointing – there are plenty of typical curry places out there where we can go to find a nice curry, and I’m not sure there is really that much difference between a good curry and a great curry. I had expectations for something more from Chutney Mary – something new that might dazzle me or change my ideas about what Indian cuisine is about. Instead, we got a slightly better and much more expensive and pretentiously presented version of the same. If I return, we’ll surely go straight to the curries, nothing more.

Chutney Mary
535 Kings Road, Chelsea
London SW10 0SZ
http://www.chutneymary.com
Tel: 02073513113

The original set of high-res photos is here.

Kösebasi – Best Kebabs in Istanbul?

In the second in my two-part series on restaurants in Istanbul, following on from our New Years Eve dinner at Reina, we take on Kösebasi, one of the top restaurants in Istanbul for “real” Turkish food.

According to the website, Kösebasi specializes in traditional Turkish cuisine from the southern part of the country. Apparently that means kebabs, mezes, and dough-based desserts, as opposed to the northern cuisine which is based on corn and anchovies.

This was my third visit to Kösebasi, in as many trips to Istanbul, and I’m not ashamed to call it my outstanding favorite in the city. The back-story on this place is that, last summer on my first trip to Istanbul, after two evenings of being sent by the hotel concierge to posh, elegant, and decidedly not authentic Turkish restaurants, I finally decided to make my intentions as clear as possible. “Send us to the most authentically turkish restaurant you can think of”. “…no, no belly dancers required – just great Turkish food, please.” And so we were sent to Kösebasi, which is located on Levent street, on the same side of the city as the Bosphorus, but not exactly close to the hotels. In fact, I would warn to watch out – this seems like one of the biggest taxi traps we encountered in the city. Not that cab fares are particularly expensive, but the driver can really waste your time trying to milk those last few lira out of you on the scenic route.

Anyways, once you arrive at the restaurant (which on at least 2 occasions that driver apparently didn’t know how to find), the entrance is not particularly impressive from the outside. Past the valet’s office and glowing sign, and up some stairs, and we meet the friendly maître d’, who speaks English that is at least better than average here. The staff are all dressed in uniform, and the ambiance is casual and charming. On my earlier visits, Kösebasi was an excellent summer destination, with outdoor patio seating that reminded me of a seaside restaurant somewhere on the coast of Italy. So I was curious to see how this would change in the middle of winter. In any case, it wasn’t too cold, and we saw enough other patrons sitting outside under heat lamps, appearing to be comfortable, so we also requested a table outside. And that turned out to be an excellent decision – the wind was blocked by the tent surrounding the patio, and the heat from the lamps was just enough to bring sensations of hot sun beating down on the shoulders. Jackets and scarves came off immediately. Thus far, I’ve never tried to sit inside at Kösebasi, but as far as I’m concerned, rule number one is: Always sit outside.

So, once seated, you order wine – go for the house red of course.

And then we come to rule number two: Don’t bother asking for the menu. I think they do have one, and I’m pretty sure I even saw one table looking at it. But in general, this is the kind of place where the menu is not necessary, and the first two times I came I didn’t even realize there was one. They start by bringing a huge platter of selections of meze directly to the table, and you just point at the plates you want. On this occasion we chose four meze plates, which was only slightly excessive for the three of us.

First we have the roasted peppers. Not the most amazing of the dishes, but still tasty.

Next, my absolute favorite meze dish, I believe this is what they call patlican salatasi, and is basically a cold salad of chunky pureed aubergine.

Now, I have no idea what this one was, but I recall it as a (warm?) salad of possibly spinach, peppers, onions, cabbage, and pine nuts. Very tasty actually, would love to know what it is so I can order it again.

And then we have the most forgettable one, a sort of cheese thing. A bit dry, nothing special here, I doubt we finished the whole plate.

They also asked at this point if we would like the “meatballs”, and of course we consented. These turn out to be something called çig köfte, and were made of raw lamb. They are very heavily spiced, and remind me of a sort of raw meat carpaccio, except quite spicy. They are served with lettuce leaves, presumably to make wraps with or something. But if you like any sort of carpaccio dish, I really recommend giving this a try – unique tastes and probably the most memorable part of the meal for me.

Now, you think you’ve done well to order quite a few meze before the main course comes. What you have taken for granted are the extras that they bring to the table right after the meze. First, we have something called gavurdagi, which is their house salad of tomato, onion, spices, and lemon juice. It is very spicy, and very tasty with some flat bread.

To accompany the gavurdagi comes another house salad called toros, made from rocket, cress, green onion, and mint, in pomegranate syrup. The mintiness is very strong here, as are all of the flavors – so if that’s your thing, you might love this one.

And before the main course, one more treat is brought straight to the table – everyone gets a serving of findik lahmacun, which is basically a small, thin turkish meat pizza. These are yummy. Unfortunately I didn’t manage to snap my own photo of this before I shoved the whole thing in my mouth, but here’s a picture from the website.

And it doesn’t stop. Some accompaniments are brought before the main course itself – first, another salad of red onion, shredded lettuce, and spices.

Another accompanying plate was brought with some not-too-hot chilli peppers and grilled tomatoes. Apologies, I was already well into this before I thought to snap a picture.

And finally we get to the main course. Yes, I know it seems a bit much, all this ingested among only three people. But anything is possible on vacation I suppose. So of course the choices for main course are various types of kebabs. We went for some lamb and some beef, and decided to steer clear of chicken on this particular visit. The meat is normally served a bit spicy, so if that’s not your thing, make sure to ask for the mild version.

So what we see on the plate is, from left to right, the lamb kebab, sliced into more traditional kebab-chunk pieces; the minced lamb kebab, served as one big kebab; and the beef kebab, sliced into small bite-size pieces, and served with some of the other grilled vegetables from the skewer. This plate is huge, and there is no way we were going to finish it, even for the three of us with our ravenous holiday appetites. But we did our best. Personally I like the lamb kebab the best – it is so juicy and delicious, it taste likes you are popping individual pieces off the skewer while it is still on the grill. The second for me is the minced lamb, which is just packed with flavor and spices. I could probably eat this three days a week if it was this good every time. And the beef kebab wasn’t bad, but just not as mind-blowingly tasty for me as the lamb. For anyone who is a big fan of beef, I’m sure this would blow you away.

Like some big cities in Italy, Istanbul seems to have a bit of a problem with stray cats. And so we were joined by a friend, who was of course happy to keep us company almost the whole evening after my companion fed him a few bits from their plate!

Finally, as with any good Turkish meal, we finished off with some of the best turkish coffee I have ever had. If you make it to the bottom of the cup, you’ll find that this it’s like drinking a thick, bitter yet sweet, dark cream. If you’re a fan of espresso at all, you have got to try this, it just takes it to a whole new level.

We were offered, but obviously declined, a selection of desserts, having already left a shameful quantity of food remaining on the table as we left, quite full and satisfied. With the wine and everything else, our meal came out to exactly 100 turkish lira per person, which works out to about 42 pounds per person. Ok, that’s not cheap at all, but if the pictures could really give a proper perspective on how much food we really ordered, you would see why I call it the bargain of the century. Or at least of the new year!

The website promotes the restaurant with quotes from Conde Nast and Time magazine, “best kebab restaurant in Istanbul”. I don’t have enough experience in the city to qualify this, but something tells me maybe I never will – because I’ll certainly be returning to Kösebasi each and every time I get a chance to revisit The City on Seven Hills.

Kösebasi
Levent Mh. Çamlik Cd.
Besiktas
Istanbul
34330
Turkey
http://www.kosebasi.com
Phone: +90 2122702433

Reina – Istanbul for NYE 2009

One of the biggest dilemmas of the year: Where to spend New Years Eve? Especially since coming to London, where hideous weather conditions, extortionate prices, and inadequate transportation will invariably lead to an evening best forgotten. So this year, we decided to pick up and get out of dodge for a couple of days, and since I have been on an Istanbul kick during 2009, what better way to finish off the year than one more pilgrimage (my third this year) back to The City on Seven Hills.

In previous visits we found a fantastic bar / night club called Reina, which also apparently has a nice restaurant, although we never had the chance to sample it. Well, those were summer visits, when the outdoors open-air patio bar scene is bustling with what seem to be the city’s elite. So, having not actually sampled the cuisine, and being aware that the winter scene might deliver a radically different experience, we were slightly sceptical. But hey, we figured, anything is going to be better than recession-heavy and dreary-weathered London this year!

I should note, from my first experiences at Reina, I recall that prices were insane, not because they were anything more than what you might pay for a night at a top club in central London, but that they could even be on the same scale! According to the CIA, Turkey ranks #92 in the world in terms of purchasing power, with GDP Per Capita of $11,900 (USD). This ranks below Portugal, Mexico, Iran, and Romania, to name a few! It is less than 1/3 of that of the UK, or less than 1/4 of that in the US. Then again, in terms of population and economic growth, Istanbul ranks at the very top of the scale for OECD regions. So in summary, if you go to a top club or restaurant in Turkey, don’t be surprised to spend as much as you would if you stayed home in London!

So we went into this fully aware that we were not going to Istanbul for a cheaper alternative to our NYE, but rather just for something different, and hopefully better.

The price for dinner plus the night at the club, quoted by our hotel concierge, who was helpful to set up the reservation for us, was 200 euro per person, plus service and VAT, totalling out at 253 euro. Now, I should mention that something interesting happened at the end of the meal. They brought us a bill, at a flat 200 per person, with no additional charges. Unfortunately I could only explain that we had already paid in advance for that original full price – so who knows, perhaps we could have gotten away without having to pay the additional charges? In any case, the hotel told us they demanded pre-payment for the reservation, so it didn’t seem like we had a choice. Still, not bad at all considering our alternatives in London were upwards of 150-200 pounds for the club only, before even thinking about dinner.

Now, the best thing about this night turned out to be that the 200 euros price turned out to be inclusive of not only the meal and wine with the meal, and not only a few glasses of champagne or cocktails – but a truly free, open bar. And I do mean OPEN. It was a free-for-all in there, and I’ve never seen such decadence at the bar, with drinks of all sorts being handed over on demand. Those who know me best know that I am a big fan of Tequila – it’s practically the only thing I enjoy drinking. So, as usual being stuck at a table with bottles of vodka and whisky, once I saw that everyone else was comfortably sipping their cocktails, I thought it might be time to stop by the bar and beg a shot or glass of tequila for myself. So, I asked the bartender, who clearly didn’t understand my english or possibly just couldn’t hear me well, for some tequila. Once he understood what I wanted, he asked me a question which seemed to be about how many shots I wanted. I thought, what the heck, how about two? So he pulls out two shot glasses. I was already thinking, ah this is going well! Then as I’m pulling out my wallet, imagining I’ll have to pay up for this off-the-menu item, he sits the entire unopened bottle in front of me, along with the two empty shot glasses, gives me a quick look, and walks off to serve another customer. I didn’t ask any questions. Big smile for the rest of the night.

So this is turkish hospitality. Friendly, accommodating, and excessive. I highly recommend it!

The restaurant was decorated from top to bottom for the season, with some Christmas decorations still up as well. Candles lit up every table, and place settings included face masks, hats, sparklers, and other fun stuff.

Now, on to the food. We showed up for our 8pm reservation, which was apparently very early – most tables didn’t seem to start filling up until 9pm or so. But that was just fine for us – we had arrived that morning, gotten some rest, and were ready to get the evening started. Also this meant that we had a lot of attention from the weight staff, which was at that point still under-utilized.

We were immediately brought an amuse bouche. Now, I should mention that, being New Years Eve, I was more focused on enjoying myself, and so this is the only part of the meal that I actually managed to take down any notes for – so I can tell you that it was a chestnut and coconut cream soup. Flavors were nice, creamy, warm, and a bit sweet. I didn’t hear any complaints.

Although we were brought a full wine list with mostly Turkish choices but also a few expensive European choices, we were prodded towards, and willingly opted for, one of the two house reds being offered, which was also Turkish of course. Medium bodied, but practically full-bodied by the standards I expect for a wine coming from that region. It was good.

The first course arrived – and unfortunately I didn’t manage to take any notes about what was on this plate, but from memory and the picture, there was a fish tower of some sort, consisting of salmon, possibly cod and other things. Also a light crispy cracker topped with a thick veloute of avocado and possibly pea, and also some roe, spring onion, and cherry tomato. And finally a large grilled prawn, with some sauces on the plate. All decent, my favorite was the cracker.

There was an addendum to the first course, brought out halfway through and put on the same plate. I recall this seemed like a sort of “Turkish lasagna”, where the ricotta might be replaced by some kind of turkish cheese, and instead of pasta perhaps we had some sort of sliced potato? I suspect this was actually some sort of Su Boregi, which is a Turkish “water pastry”.

(Sorry about the photos, this was my first experiment with my new 1.4 lens, so not all of them came out great!)

The second course was the only one where we were presented with a choice. The choice was either fish (Dover sole I’m thinking) or turkey. I think we all went for the turkey, so I didn’t get a chance to try the fish. The turkey was served in a sort of stuffed-medallion style, where the stuffing was rich with thick, chunky vegetables. The turkey meat had an outer skin surrounding the medallion. It was tasty, but a bit dry as you would expect – it is turkey after all. I would have massively preferred something to moisten this up, such as some cranberry sauce. But there were some cooked apple slices, slightly caramelised. Not bad, but not spectacular. The turkey at my actual christmas dinner back home with the family was far more tasty to tell the truth.

Finally a dessert was served – a sort of white chocolate mouse on chocolate cracker crumb base, dusted with chocolate on top, with a white chocolate and milk chocolate twisted straw. Also some fruit sauces, rasberry, possibly lemon? And on the far side there is a lemon sorbet. It was strange to have these two served on the same plate, as usually I would expect the sorbet alone (and preferably as a palette cleanser after the fish, rather than before the dessert?). These two flavors didn’t go together, so you had to basically choose which one to eat first, and which to eat after. I did it backwards and had the dessert first, and then the sorbet at the end, to leave my palette nice and clean for the tequila to follow! Of course we also had turkish coffee, which I didn’t manage to photograph, but was delicious as always. Don’t worry, I did manage to get some photos of the turkish coffee on our second night in Istanbul.

Ok, so we went to a club which happens to have a restaurant, so I suppose this is better than should be expected. But my impressions when booking were that this was actually a big deal restaurant in Istanbul as well, with big deal Istanbul chefs. Well, if that’s the case, then I would say I’m a bit disappointed with the meal. But in the end, at 250 Euros for a pretty decent meal, a top class location, plus the absurd amount of alcohol we managed to squeeze out of the bar, I would say this was actually a steal for NYE. But when returning to Istanbul, I’ll probably stick to the proper restaurants for the meal, and then hit Reina later for the nightlife.

P.S. I should mention that although my interior photos of the place look nice, they definitely do not do it justice. You really have to check out the photos on Reina’s website to get a feel for the outside view – on the riverside, facing across to the Asian continent, and with the massive bridge just overhead, it is close to breathtaking and awe-inspiring.

Reina
44 Muallim Naci Caddesi
Ortaköy
Istanbul
Turkey
http://www.reina.com.tr
Phone: +90 0212 259 59 19

The original set of high-res photos is here.