Restaurants
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- Neil Walker added a new meal Lunch at Bancone at Bancone
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- Neil Walker added a new meal Lunch at Indian Accent at Indian Accent
Lunch earlier this week at the London outpost of Indian Accent. For refined and progressive Indian cuisine in London, this is at the top of the pile.
“Chef Manish Mehrotra reinterprets traditional Indian dishes with an openness towards global techniques and influences.”
With the 6 course lunch at £45 it is also great value.
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- Neil Walker added a new meal Lunch at Muse at Muse
Dinner on the opening night of Tom Aikens new restaurant, Muse by Tom Aikens in a former pizzeria in Belgravia. Spread over two floors with two open kitchens with counters plus tables, this opening has been eagerly anticipated by some. Some, including myself consider that the golden era of London favourite Pied a Terre was when Aikens was heading up... More
Dinner on the opening night of Tom Aikens new restaurant, Muse by Tom Aikens in a former pizzeria in Belgravia. Spread over two floors with two open kitchens with counters plus tables, this opening has been eagerly anticipated by some. Some, including myself consider that the golden era of London favourite Pied a Terre was when Aikens was heading up the kitchen there, so since closing his fine dining restaurant in Chelsea (Now Phil Howard’s Elystan Street) we have waited to see what he will do next.
Even with the benefit of soft openings where family and friends are invited, the first night of paying customers is always going to be a little iffy and perhaps just an idea of what the restaurant can be in months to come. Having said that, the service and overall experience was great. Paced very well, with confident chefs presenting all the dishes and a very relaxed and friendly vibe thanks to a perfectly judged play list and the confidence that Aikens radiates to his team.
About the food, I can’t complain, it was good but maybe not the kind of cooking that really gets me very excited. There were no dishes that stood out to me as exceptional, but none that stood out as bad. It was interesting to see so much influence and tribute so easily identified. For example the dish entitled “The love affair continues”, which is a dish of turbot and duck sausage but with a firm tip of the cap to Pierre Koffman and the late Joel Robuchon (Aikens has worked with them both) in the form of his classic pomme purée that is a signature all around the world (although Aikens says he has reduced the ratio of butter to ratte potato from 50/50).
Other elements that sent my mind rushing back to other meals I have had were the triple cooked chip (Heston Blumenthal) on a dish of retired dairy cow (Faviken) and a dessert of corn flakes and milk that took me straight back to DiverXO where Dabiz Munoz has a signature called ‘corn, lulo, vanille and the left over milk from the bottom of the cereal bowl’ which immediately sprang to mind.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not trying to snidely insinuate that these are rip offs. They are absolutely not in my view. I mean, how many hundreds of restaurants now triple cook chips? That’s not a rip off but the result of technique moving forward and a whole generation of chefs getting on board the triple cooked chip train, because they are better cooked that way.
Asking Tom about his plans to develop the menu, the way that it is worded allows him to change dishes in and out as they develop and as the seasons pass. This is good news for repeat customers. He says he will further develop a couple of the dishes to become permanent signatures.
Perhaps one criticism would be that putting six people at the upstairs counter is quite a squeeze. I found myself banging elbows a fair amount with the diner next to me and the wall as I was on the end. However, when booking, make sure to book upstairs as this is the main hot kitchen where Tom is doing his thing and schmoozing the punters. Down stairs seems very much like the cheap seats with just a small pastry/ cold section also with counter seating. So if you want some hot Aikens action then book upstairs for sure.
Overall good, I’ll probably head back in 6 months. Less
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- Neil Walker added a new meal dinner at Coque at Coque
More happy memories of eating in Madrid in January at ⭐️⭐️ Coque. A culinary journey through 4 spaces, starting with snacks at the cocktail bar then through to the “bottle coliseum” where over 3000 varieties of wine are on display. Then we moved into the kitchen for some more treats before finally ending up in the main dining room. A thoroughly... More
More happy memories of eating in Madrid in January at ⭐️⭐️ Coque. A culinary journey through 4 spaces, starting with snacks at the cocktail bar then through to the “bottle coliseum” where over 3000 varieties of wine are on display. Then we moved into the kitchen for some more treats before finally ending up in the main dining room. A thoroughly theatrical experience, but one that is backed up by some stunning cookery. Definitely worth visiting when in Madrid. Less
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I revisit La Tasquita de Enfrente in Madrid a few weeks ago. I’m glad to say that it is still the small local place that serves food using ‘100% Spanish produce to create a menu that not only looks forward to the future but has great respect for the traditions of the past’.
Still not quite sure about the meat balls, but the rest is excellent.... More
I revisit La Tasquita de Enfrente in Madrid a few weeks ago. I’m glad to say that it is still the small local place that serves food using ‘100% Spanish produce to create a menu that not only looks forward to the future but has great respect for the traditions of the past’.
Still not quite sure about the meat balls, but the rest is excellent. Definitely worth making the effort while in Madrid. Less
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- Neil Walker added a new meal Dinner at Punto MX at Punto Mx
I continue to look back on happier times as a reminder of what hopefully lies ahead once this is all over. Of course a lot of restaurants will struggle and many will and have closed but I am confident that the industry will rise from the ashes and I will endeavour to be one of the first to beat a path to their doors for some tasty food. This particular... More
I continue to look back on happier times as a reminder of what hopefully lies ahead once this is all over. Of course a lot of restaurants will struggle and many will and have closed but I am confident that the industry will rise from the ashes and I will endeavour to be one of the first to beat a path to their doors for some tasty food. This particular meal was a vibrant and delicious Mexican lunch in Madrid at ⭐️ PuntoMX. Less
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- Neil Walker added a new meal Lunch at Sacha Botilleria y Fogon at Sacha
One of the absolute highlights of my food tour was a lunch at Sacha in Madrid. An unassuming bistro in the Chamartin neighbourhood founded in 1972. Charismatic chef Sacha Hormaechea took over the reigns from his parents Carlos and Pitila and cooks uncomplicated traditional dishes with Catalan and Galician influences.
I have had many a 30 course tasting... More
One of the absolute highlights of my food tour was a lunch at Sacha in Madrid. An unassuming bistro in the Chamartin neighbourhood founded in 1972. Charismatic chef Sacha Hormaechea took over the reigns from his parents Carlos and Pitila and cooks uncomplicated traditional dishes with Catalan and Galician influences.
I have had many a 30 course tasting menu but I have to say that a lot of those pale into insignificance when comparing the food based simply on flavour.
Dishes such as the false sea urchin lasagne or the Suquet de Carabinero, prepared in front of you (see video) and then eaten using the head shell as a spoon, were an absolute revelation. But the dish that I remember most clearly, and that instantly went into my top 10 of the year, was a dessert that Sacha himself brought to the table. Placing it in front of us with a mischievous glint in his eye he refused to tell us what we were about to eat but urged us to tuck in quickly. The innocuous looking disks of golden brown sugaryness were in fact slices of veal brain and were without a doubt one of the most incredible desserts I have ever had. Anyway....go and eat there. That is all. Less
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- Neil Walker added a new meal Lunch at DiverXO at DiverXO
Another visit in January to the incredible ⭐️⭐️⭐️ DiverXO in Madrid. I forgot to get the menu but as always the level of creativity here is astounding, with most of the dishes being different from my last visit just a couple of months prior. Let’s hope Dabiz and the crew there are keeping themselves safe and that they can reopen their... More
Another visit in January to the incredible ⭐️⭐️⭐️ DiverXO in Madrid. I forgot to get the menu but as always the level of creativity here is astounding, with most of the dishes being different from my last visit just a couple of months prior. Let’s hope Dabiz and the crew there are keeping themselves safe and that they can reopen their doors again soon. Less
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