Richard Bagnold

These were basically the best doughnuts I have ever had in my life. I was led here by Tom Kerridge’s Saturday Kitchen insert which I missed on the original broadcast and I am very grateful for seeing this short review as I have been meaning to go for weeks. The best thing about these wonderful doughnuts by a country mile was the gorgeously fluffy and yet squidgy doughnut pastry. I tried the chocolate, the caramel (with salted honeycomb) and vanilla cream options (two big bites from each did it) and although I thought they were all delicious, I do believe the vanilla version came out on top.

The only thing I wasn’t quite prepared for was the quarter of a pint of sauce in each one. I would have actually been happy to trade half of that for more of the pasty as that was truly wonderful, but all homemade sauces were very beautifully done.

The only thing I wasn’t quite prepared for was the quarter of a pint of sauce in each one. I would have actually been happy to trade half of that for more of the pasty as that was truly wonderful, but all homemade sauces were very beautifully done.

I didn’t try any of the savoury pastry / bakery products but Justin Gellatly provides cooking sessions in the bakery (where the doughnuts are made) only metres away from Borough Market and I am thoroughly tempted to go for either of these options. An absolute must for anyone who likes doughnuts with a cup of tea and a truly lovely thing to finaly sink the teeth into. Whilst there is not much morello go on other than doughnuts, they are a very fine version.

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Another chance to enjoy this cocoon of excellence to celebrate my Birthday and also my parent’s anniversary in the hands of sheer experts. The visit was frankly a knock out and even more special than my first visit 5 years ago and I would say the elegance, showmanship and design of the food and manner in which we were looked after was, a considerable step up from the already high, previous expererience. Dare I say there was also a more upbeat and relaxed, fun atmosphere and it was frankly wonderful to be back in the hands of utter professionals at the top of their game.

The food was actually far greater an experience on this occasion – there really wasn’t anything that wasn’t truly delicious and the particular bombshells were the pig done in five different and sublime ways and the frankly outstanding lemon parfait dessert which brought memories of Le Bristol in terms of supernova impression in design and wow factor in the mouth as well. But I am also struggling to think of a time when I have been this well loooked after and the hospitality was just on another level. We were even invited in to the kitchen briefly which was lovely as my folks have not had this before during their many visits at La Tante Claire before it became Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, and a really nice opportunity to say thank you to the head chef who was doing a superb effort on behalf of Clare Smyth who was enjoying her holiday. Bravo the team, and thank you so much again – that was one for the memory banks that will remain as a sublime restaurant visit forever, which, for all, is pretty much the whole point of this pursuit n’est-ce pas?

The food was actually far greater an experience on this occasion – there really wasn’t anything that wasn’t truly delicious and the particular bombshells were the pig done in five different and sublime ways and the frankly outstanding lemon parfait dessert which brought memories of Le Bristol in terms of supernova impression in design and wow factor in the mouth as well. But I am also struggling to think of a time when I have been this well loooked after and the hospitality was just on another level. We were even invited in to the kitchen briefly which was lovely as my folks have not had this before during their many visits at La Tante Claire before it became Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, and a really nice opportunity to say thank you to the head chef who was doing a superb effort on behalf of Clare Smyth who was enjoying her holiday. Bravo the team, and thank you so much again – that was one for the memory banks that will remain as a sublime restaurant visit forever, which, for all, is pretty much the whole point of this pursuit n’est-ce pas?

Once in, you are in impeccable hands and I was delighted in that our waiter was not a French waiter obsessed with his own status, or indeed a stuffy and judgemental character, but a down to earth Londoner who really looked after us well. There were plenty of waiters to each table which gave a slightly ‘monitored’ feeling and the only other aspect that didn’t shine with me was the white cloth, white walls, white ceiling, white everything in a tiny box of a dining room. It isperhaps not the place to have any loud celebration with friends I would say, as one would very easily feel it inappropriate to having too much loud fun here. This venue struck me and I believe is, a place for couples or for an intimiately special occasion.

The food is beautifully stylish, no question. I was surprised at how simple the pizza flavoured amuse bouche crisps were but yet how powerful they were too and the frogs legs was perfectly pleasant. But an atomic bomb of happiness occurred at the pan-roasted foie gras with amaretto foam (Italian hazelnut liquor with chocolate overtones). This was an instant moment of joy that escalated immediately in to the heights of a a death-row meal dish, rivalling that of Michelle Roux Jr’s cinnamon pancake foie gras. A true moment. The ravioli, fish and steak were all wonderfully stylish but were in danger of being only just above pleasing; thankfully faith was restored at the popping candy pineapple shot drink and subsequent chocolate dessert – simply sex on a plate. All other aspects were highly refined and the whole journey made me leave with a definite mission accomplished smile which did not produce any negative feelings. My only final thought in hindsight however is that as nice as it was, it somehow did not have as much punch as the reputation would suggest; aesthetically, it was not leagues above other Michelins, but the ingredients were clearly well thought out and utilised without overdoing in any way which is perhaps the main reason for its accolade at the highest end. An utter treat, making me leave with a big smile, but no real need to go again immediately.

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Finally I managed to get round to having lunch at Duck and Waffle and I can confirm that this is an absolutely lovely venue. Its unique selling point is clearly the wonderful view and setting (open 24hrs) combined with obvious care going in to the design of the all day dining dishes and their presentation. I really liked the fact that it was spacious for the tables and there was a distinct air of calm in the service even though it seemed to be virtually rolling at max capacity throughout our time there. Front of house seemed a touch complacent as a relative minor, but we were looked after superbly throughout the meal.

Foodwise, I thought overall it was interesting and pleasing. It was good to sample the signature duck and waffle dish which had gorgeous crispy skin and succulent meat to the duck and all combined with fried egg and maple syrup was definitely good. I was really looking forward to the foie gras creme brulee, but tastewise I simply found it a bit bland on my palate, but skillfully done never the less. The other dishes were fine but I would go back in a heart beat for the pig’s ears alone as this snack was one of the nicest I had on record – genuinely divine! In short, it is a wonderful place to go for its obvious plus, and I would say it is good for any occasion.

Foodwise, I thought overall it was interesting and pleasing. It was good to sample the signature duck and waffle dish which had gorgeous crispy skin and succulent meat to the duck and all combined with fried egg and maple syrup was definitely good. I was really looking forward to the foie gras creme brulee, but tastewise I simply found it a bit bland on my palate, but skillfully done never the less. The other dishes were fine but I would go back in a heart beat for the pig’s ears alone as this snack was one of the nicest I had on record – genuinely divine! In short, it is a wonderful place to go for its obvious plus, and I would say it is good for any occasion.

The only poor aftertaste element here being a mini retribution episode on twitter inspired by the Executive Chef who I think caught the wrong end of my tweet comment. I’ve got no time for ping pong insults on social media and I was pretty astounded how a simple observation could cause such ‘all out’ reactions. So, for the record, I never ask to speak to chefs in an impolite manner ever or expect to be fawned over, and asked to have a very brief chat with the head chef on this occasion as I saw that he was in and the Soux chef seemed to have everything completely under control. Daniel did not appear to be under any duress and I was excited at the prospect of being able to shake his hand, telling him how much I enjoyed the pig’s ears (as it gave a moment similar to that of The Sportsman scratchings) so hoped that a quick 30 second chat at the side of the kitchen would have been alright.

I have had many chats with many chefs who have all been accommodating where possible. Evidently it has been made to look like I was expecting him to come to my table and dedicate his time just for me because I think I deserve it – nothing could be further from the truth(!) as I never do or expect that. I couldn’t care less who’s got more followers than who or whether I’m in a 3 Michelin starred venue or at a street stall, it’s a genuine pleasure to enjoy good food wherever it is and an additional treat to chat to the person behind the menu when possible, allowing extra detail in these reviews.

Never mind – in summary, I thought D & W was a lovely looking venue; the surprising and very distasteful part was its choice of PR tact resulting in the paying customer not wishing to return.

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An Amerian diner’s haven that did not fail to have a pulse through the atmosphere and was a really fun place to be. The bar was impressive in it’s own right(!) and was great to have an informal food occasion. The food itself was good old fashioned diner products that were purely a comfort and nice to try their home-made BBQ sauce which sits proudly on each table. As it was a busy and loud environment you will need to push quite hard to get the attention of the staff and be prepared to walk through a myriad of basement corridoors to get to the toilet. All in all, this was good to try, but I include this as a text book example of how £50 per person can be spent – here, with this gelatenous and deep fried comfort food, or at the same price with wine at Michelin starred The Crown. Not really a difficult choice for me how that £50 can rather be spent when it comes to food.

Food Grade: 39%

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This is a lovely place to have chanced on and one I’ve coincidentally been meaning to try for a long time. Having never been, my first reaction was that it was placed in a lovely urban village setting and inside it was certainly cosy in the narrow main dining room. Downstairs there was more room and a very relaxed feel to the place in general without losing any charm. The food itself was perfectly fine – well done, but not fussy at the same time and there were no major flavour disagreements. I enjoyed all the courses with the best parts probably being the lobster bisque and the signature giant jaffa cake.

My only negative is that after 3 courses of the a la carte I was still a little hungry later, so nibbles above olives or a slightly more imaginative amuse bouche greeting wouldn’t go amiss, or simply slightly more on the portion sizes. However, the overall food feeling was pleasant and the Morgon Marcel Lapier red Burgundy went extremely well with the meal as one of the options recommended by the sommelier. We were certainly given attention throughout the meal by the floor staff and all in all, this is a very comfortable neighbourhood restaurant to dine in which was enjoyed very much and is no doubt a very safe bet for the locals as well.

My only negative is that after 3 courses of the a la carte I was still a little hungry later, so nibbles above olives or a slightly more imaginative amuse bouche greeting wouldn’t go amiss, or simply slightly more on the portion sizes. However, the overall food feeling was pleasant and the Morgon Marcel Lapier red Burgundy went extremely well with the meal as one of the options recommended by the sommelier. We were certainly given attention throughout the meal by the floor staff and all in all, this is a very comfortable neighbourhood restaurant to dine in which was enjoyed very much and is no doubt a very safe bet for the locals as well.

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Getting the Thames Clipper to Masthouse Terrace (with a following 6 minute walk) is by far the nicest way of travelling to this restaurant located imediately opposite Greenwich on the north side of the river. It is a little gem in the otherwise mixed setting of Island Gardens (Isle of Dogs). The food is among the nicest Thai food I have had in London with the hoi sin, plum and peanut sauces all being made freshly by the chefs (although the sweet chilli sauce is a modified version of pre-package but still good). Good location as well, overlooking the river and probably one of the lesser known little finds in East London.

The Red Thai curry with thinly sliced duck was beautifully viscous and will be much more to British tastes compard to how it is authentically done in Thailand (being a lot more watery as a sauce and with a greater punch of spice). £40 for two people to share on this ocasion meant very good value as it was highly gratifying to eat and both parties were stuffed at the end for the two starters and sharing the selected main with rice.

The Red Thai curry with thinly sliced duck was beautifully viscous and will be much more to British tastes compard to how it is authentically done in Thailand (being a lot more watery as a sauce and with a greater punch of spice). £40 for two people to share on this ocasion meant very good value as it was highly gratifying to eat and both parties were stuffed at the end for the two starters and sharing the selected main with rice.

A must for me to return to sample and a very safe bet for anyone who loves Thai food and does not need to travel too far to get here. Service was speedy rather than heartfelt. A good place to find in summary.

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Of the 5 Hawksmoor options in London (at time of writing), this is the original one and as a result, the smallest. All the beef comes from Yorkshire only (as with the whole restaurant chain) and menus are more or less the same across the Hawksmoor group. This is a very safe bet for decent meats and grills, but I would put Goodman ahead based on the inclusion of fabulous foie gras starter and add on options and less salty meats. On the other hand, the sides as Hawksmoor were superior so if I had my ultimate choice, I would opt for Goodman but with the sides of Hawksmoor.

The food in general was hearty and as cosy as the interior with some satisfying starters and decent sides to accompany the very good fillet, sliced and served in an iron pan to conserve heat. All in all I did feel it was quite a salty affair and I wasn’t too keen with the bacon (more like cured thick cuts of pork belly that was tender) but the highlights by a long shot were the grilled marrow to be scooped on to the fillet (was actually a better ‘sauce’ than the béarnaise) and the homemade ketcup to go with the chips. Service was a little scattered on occasion with two wrong sauces being brought to the table throughout the meal, however, these were minor points and dealt with in a very good manner and hospitality was very welcoming in the main.

The food in general was hearty and as cosy as the interior with some satisfying starters and decent sides to accompany the very good fillet, sliced and served in an iron pan to conserve heat. All in all I did feel it was quite a salty affair and I wasn’t too keen with the bacon (more like cured thick cuts of pork belly that was tender) but the highlights by a long shot were the grilled marrow to be scooped on to the fillet (was actually a better ‘sauce’ than the béarnaise) and the homemade ketcup to go with the chips. Service was a little scattered on occasion with two wrong sauces being brought to the table throughout the meal, however, these were minor points and dealt with in a very good manner and hospitality was very welcoming in the main.

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This is my second visit to Chapter One and remains a serene and stylish restaurant with its own convenient car park and situated immediately off the A21. Unfortunately the restaurant lost its Michelin star in late 2014 and the food on this visit did not seem very different at all to my last visit in 2012 (when it held a Michelin star) so I am unsure why this has been removed. On this visit the food was just as stylish with some very nice moments including the chicken dish being sumptuous and the olive oil mash puree being absolutely wonderful, however the mash was every so slightly too salty and the poached egg in the starter was over cooked resulting in only half being able to mix with the pea velouté. Service remained very welcoming but quite inconsistent in terms of expediency. Still a very nice venue if one wishes style and can forgive a lack of polish here and there.

Food Grade: 67%

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Finally I’ve got back to do Sketch at The Lecture Room and Library properly since its promotion to two stars. The main features that hit me on this venue were the fabulously modern design of the restaurant and the theatre that was laid on in terms of the elegant service and food. The sommelier deserves a special mention as he was one of the best ones I have experienced in years and was frankly one of the best components of the evening – enough to want to go back on this count alone. The tasting menu at £110 per person (£276pp all in) was without question technically at 2 Michelin starred level and showed stylish flare in the seemingly never-ending treats afforded. I thought the food was sublimely stylish and very skillful but I honestly only got two real wonder-moments of happiness from the food and they were the seabass and pigeon dishes (possibly the nicest pigeon I have ever had). An unfortunate episode of crab shell in one of the dishes has also not helped the overall food grade but a very pleasant experience overall and you will be very well looked after here. A quality affair with genuine panache. The detailed food review is below the photos.

The opening nibbles were entitled Feuilletés as opposed to amuse bouche – on asking what the difference is there was a mixed response from the service as to the explanation; google has it as a puff pastry case with sweet or savoury filling, but certainly none seen on our nibbles. Not a massive point but showed the quirkiness going a step too far as it was not the case. Anyhow, the dirty martini gels, cheese puffs, squid ink sticks with oil dip and chocolate foie gras opening bites were very pleasant indeed – no question on the refinement of these little opening bites as was the brown butter (beurre noisette with cream creating a soft butter sauce). The breads were beautifully fresh as well but the clear winner of the three was the butter bread.

The opening nibbles were entitled Feuilletés as opposed to amuse bouche – on asking what the difference is there was a mixed response from the service as to the explanation; google has it as a puff pastry case with sweet or savoury filling, but certainly none seen on our nibbles. Not a massive point but showed the quirkiness going a step too far as it was not the case. Anyhow, the dirty martini gels, cheese puffs, squid ink sticks with oil dip and chocolate foie gras opening bites were very pleasant indeed – no question on the refinement of these little opening bites as was the brown butter (beurre noisette with cream creating a soft butter sauce). The breads were beautifully fresh as well but the clear winner of the three was the butter bread.

The champagne (Jacquesson) was recommended by the superb sommelier (so genuinely hospitable and attentive to our needs) and worked well with all seafood and light dishes had and was somehow with depth and lightness at the same time. The langoustine was superb with a wonderful glaze and the crab with asparagus jelly, cucumber and seaweed with supporting mousseline with fresh coriander were light and sumptuous but had freshness as the main forte and one dish was unfortunately let down by crab shell being in the dish. This of course can happen, but when one is paying £110 at 2 michelin starred level, this is a definite glitch which impacted on the overall score.

The pike dish was again skillful and pleasant but the pike itself was effectively a mousseline and almost a supporting act for the morels and mushroom sauce which was without question the dominant factor of the dish, therefore the descritption on the menu (again) could possibly do with a tweak. The octopus and squid with tomato was very well balanced and again, the tuna with turnip velouté was utterly fresh – just no sparks of joy for the mouth happening as a result.

However, and I am glad to say a big however, the seabass with pea puree was an absolute triumph. The lightness and tenderness of the fish with just enough zing from the lemon to be powerful but without being overbearing was a delight and the pea puree was sheer silk. This was a fabulous dish and I loved every mouthful as it really doesn’t get much fresher than that. The whole roasted French pigeon was also an immaculately done dish. This was the most tender portions of pigeon with wonderfully well done jus to accompany and comprised of cherry bigarade spring cabbage and bhubarb with maple syrup – as pigeon dishes go, this could not be faulted for exquisite happiness. The supporting semolina with cinnamon and orange was also very good. The Morrocan red wine (Orlian Le Val D’Argan) was surpringly pleasant and had plenty of full bodied punch and hints of sweet cherry to accmpany the pigeon. There was also a clever contraption used that pierced right through the cork of the bottle and somehow made the vaccum allow slow pouring direct from the bottle to minimise oxidation. Clever, but somehow pointless if one goes by the theory of allowing a wine to breath before being served.

Finally, came the conveyor belt of desserts and these were all extremely well done from the lemon and lime foam with ginger sponge to the ‘dragon’s blood’ sugar and crisp and jelly, to the yoghurt sorbet and strawberry jus and the chocolate biscuit and mousse. Pierre Gagne really does seem to do these dessert collections well as was also seen at Reflets in Dubai. The vanilla turkish delights as petis fours were lovely, as were the milk chocolate bites but the chartruse mini pastries were not immediate favourites. The coffee cup and saucers from St Petersberg and the 1700s will undoubtedly please female diners and coffee drinkers alike and the receipt served in book (from the old library) is another quirky touch to this elaborately stylish venue.

As already summised, this was a wonderfully refined dinner and certainly was not a regret in anyway. Wonderful service and carefully prepared dishes were had all round – if only I had more moments in the meal up there with the seabass and the pigeon as these were the only two experiences that gave joy; the remainder gave simple pleasure. I would say Sketch at the Lecture Room and Library is a very good option to go for in order to treat someone to a special experience, with food being the bonus rather than the forté.

The overall score in the above grade bar is as per all reviews in that it is the average of all visits.

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This is a charming pub that is listed in the Michelin Guide (2015) with ample parking space and a welcoming smile. The set menu of 2 courses for £16 and 3 courses for £20 proved to be very good value for money experiencing the quality of the food. Unfortunately the delivery was a bit hit a miss with two incorrect courses being served (in a group of 11) and one not being remembered. There were simple errors of judgement as well such as the poached eggs being overcooked; I felt the duck was very bland without any dressing or sauce to accompany the salad and I was surprised that the hollondaise was not freshly made and seemingly from a packet. However, the lasagne and lemon posset were both very good. Overall, a very pleasant pub, with some carefully presented food, but some that clearly required a little more finesse.

Food Grade: 48%

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