Notorious Foodie

Creamy linguine, wagyu cecina, oscietra caviar @jais_ramatuelle_ @chefjais
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One of the highlights from Jaïs Ramatuelle: Al dente linguine, tossed in a light sauce made with cream, butter, white wine and a little lemon. The linguine is topped with an elegantly folded layer of cecina - mature, rich and smokey in flavour, sliced ultra thin so that it drapes across the pasta. In the centre, a giant quenelle of oscietra caviar. The caviar and cecina with the fairly neutral pasta work beautifully together in this one - an addictive bite #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️
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#sttropez #france #southoffrance #sof #monaco #sainttropez #cannes #pasta #caviar #finedining Less

Always the best sushi @nijulondon @kazutoshi.endo @david.sushi.london @mishka_z 🍣😮‍💨
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One of my go to spots for sushi in london. The counter here is so good for a quick hit of nigiri, sashimi and temaki. David has really perfected his technique and the produce is excellent too. Some of the best quality fish you will find in london + lots of interesting creations and bites you won’t find anywhere else. The binchotan aburi otoro is an insanely good bite! I usually grab a seat at the 4-seater counter and let him freestyle it, but there are regular tables too where you can order some larger non-sushi plates. Chef @chrisgolding80 heads up that department and man is it good. Will post a few snippets of that beautiful beef separately #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️ Less

Lasagna a sugo @isodinyc
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Been meaning to dine at I Sodi for a while and finally managed to swing by on this trip to NYC. It’s a Tuscan-focused restaurant with lots of rotating specials on the menu so make sure you ask what’s on. The bar counter is a great spot for lunch. Ordered the lasagna al forno straight away, it’s one of their most famous dishes - 12+ layers of house made pasta with sugo Di carne, béchamel and parmigiano. The meat sauce was delicious. Rich, tomato-forward and nicely reduced. A crazy bite. They also had the most amazing fried artichokes on the menu - these things were ultra crispy and well seasoned. A solid dish. This was a quick lunch before another lunch but I managed to squeeze in two more dishes: the cacio e Pepe and steak tartare. The tartare was tender and fresh. A very simple tartare made from filet mignon. The cacio though, excellent. Perfectly emulsified and super creamy with lots of pepper and chewy spaghetti chitarra. This is proper Italian cooking using great produce. My kinda place. #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️ Less

Solid @santo.taco @santiago.perez 🔥🌮
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Santo Taco’s in NYC throwing out some great bites. The menu features 5 tacos: trompo, carne asada, carnitas, chicken Al pastor and a vegetarian mushroom option. Just order at the deli-style window and collect when your name is called, then go and grab a plate and fill it with chicharrón, salsa and onions. For me, the trompo was the winner without a doubt. The meat is layered döner style, with ultra thin slices of sirloin and NY strip layered on top of each other. These are then cooked on the vertically rotating spit before being sliced and served with avocado salsa and fresh corn tortillas. It’s a well put together offering here. The tacos hold up well to the juices and generally stay in tact as you eat which I love. I would have liked some heat in that salsa, but if that’s your thing, just add your own with their house habanero sauce. Their carne asada is great too - delicious char grilled ribeye with fried cubed potatoes scattered across the top. If you’re walking by, grab a taco or two for sure. Less

Proper Basque Cooking @ibai_london @richardfoster_cook @mr_txuleta 🔥🥩
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My favourite steakhouse in London without a doubt. It had been a while since I visited and things have gotten even better. The selection of meat is vast and they really push the dry-ageing limits here more than most other places in london. Open flame grilling and really raw approach to Basque cooking - lots of interesting seasonal plates on the menu. The jamón and crisps is my favourite. So simple and so delicious with the wafer thin slices of Iberico melting over the salted crisps and the pickled peppers across the top. Their Croque Ibai is arguably the famous though - a crispy bite-sized Sando of carabinero prawns and melted mellow cheese. Off the menu, Richard sent out a test version of their new lunch time special tortilla. A dream of a bite. Perfectly cooked and addictive with the crisps tucked inside. Delicious. Now, for the beef, went for two cuts. The 120-day dry aged Galician Blond T-Bone and the dry-aged ribeye. Incredible stuff. All the steaks are very well tempered before being blasted on the grill. A lovely even cook on the beef with a beautiful Smokey crust. Tender, well rested and a little funky. You honestly only need sea salt on this beef but they had a special sauce of the day which was like a cowboy butter and it complemented very well. It’s a proper steakhouse with top quality beef and refined execution. For dessert, don’t hold back. Their Gateau Basque is my go-to, even over the basque cheesecake #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️ Less

Dinner at @josephinebouchon @claudebosi1
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A solid addition to Marylebone. This is the second site of the very french bistro from Claude boisi - a nice takeover from the old Daylesdord site. On the menu here are lots of tasty Parisian classics that are thoughtfully put together. It’s a slightly different menu to Chelsea. To start, I had two favourites. Their very well seasoned steak tartare and the Camembert soufflé. The tartare was lovely - a hand chopped texture, with speckles of chopped shallot, parsley and caper throughout. Nice and sharp in parts and served with crispy, buttery, garlic croutons. Just add some Tabasco and this thing is on the money. The cheese soufflé was super indulgent and comforting. I liked this at Chelsea too, think it was a different cheese though. Rich and decadent but light in texture. For mains, the filet of beef with bordelaise and the Dover sole meunière. The sole had a nice pink bone and meaty but tender flesh. The top was covered in coarsely chopped shallot, caper, parsley and lemon. Delicious plate. The filet was also well cooked - golden all over and a well rested pink centre. Some serious sheen to the red wine sauce - tasty stuff, perfect for dipping the pommes duchesse into. Didn’t love the chicken with morels here - found the sauce a little much. A bit too reduced and thick to eat a lot of it as the sauce settled, would have preferred a more flowy consistency for the chicken. For dessert, the strawberry cake was a winner. Dangerously addictive! Saw Callum enjoying that banana split on the next table, will save that for next time! #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️ Less

The warm prawns never disappoint @lpmlondon 🦐
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Can’t really go wrong choosing LPM for lunch or dinner. Although their menu stays pretty much the same all year round (bar a few flecks of truffle here and there when in season), you can count on things being fresh, tasty and consistent. The warm prawns are my favourite - split down the middle and simply served with olive oil, lemon and basil. Such pure flavours in this one. The perfect dish. The veal chop here (no photo) is the second favourite. Always with a wonderful crust and perfectly juicy, almost bouncy centre. When ordering, I would say to cook this to medium at least, otherwise it can be a little too rare. Very good on this visit. Lots of light sides and indulgent mains but save space for that vanilla speckled crème brûlée. One of the best in town #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️
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#london #londonfood #londonfoodie #londoneats #prawn #prawns #shrimp #mayfair #finedining Less

Dim sum lunch at @awongsw1 @a.wong_londonuk 😍
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Had an incredible lunch at A Wong the other day. They offer an extensive dim sum menu at lunch and so it’s a very good idea to visit during the day. It’s a place where you can experience refined Chinese cooking with so much depth of flavour. I’ve been coming here since they first opened and it’s nice to see lots of their iconic dishes still on the menu. The Shanghai dumplings here are some of the best you’ll find in london. Translucent skins and a delicate but flavourful warm broth packed inside. One of my favourites is the wonton with garlic, chilli oil and gooey poached yolk. An addictive plate - a perfectly balanced mix of spice and acidity with the rich gooey yolk almost emulsifying into the punchy sauce. Ordered two rounds of this it was just so delicious. That sauce goes great on the rice too. Crazy layers in this one. All of the dim sum is prepared so carefully. Nothing in there that doesn’t need to be and everything singing together for the perfect bite. The sweet and sour rib has long been a favourite of mine and still is, but this time the bbq pork crackling with prawn, plum and truffle stole the show this time. New on the menu for me was the garlic poached prawns with mung bean vermicelli and superior soy. Again, the sauce was so complex but balanced. Tender prawns and chewy vermicelli made it all the more satisfying. I pretty much ordered every single dim sum so can’t talk about them all - just go here for lunch and see for yourself. Great food, great service. Good to be back! #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️ Less

Chicken and morels @noblerotsoho 😍
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One of my favourites. Was walking past the Noble Rot in Soho and decided to pop in for one of my favourite dishes. The roast chicken here is perfect. A whole HG Walter chicken, slowly roasted, carved and served with a rich, velvety smooth sauce made from vin jaune. It’s a distinctive, slightly oxidised wine from the Jura region. Lots of funky notes in this sauce. Spongey morels are scattered across the top and they just absorb the juices so perfectly. This thing comes with a fragrant pilaf rice but you should also order the crispy potatoes on the side too. Perfect for dunking into the sauce. Every time I come here, I order this - consistent and satisfying. Tender chicken, a rich, creamy sauce and the perfect sides to soak it all up. The morels add a real earthiness to this dish. Lots more on the menu here so go to town on the other bits too. I’ll be doing a recipe for this one soon. Stay tuned. #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️
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#chicken #roastchicken #london #londonfood #londonfoodie #soho #french #frenchfood #finedining Less

Been a while, but so good to be back! @lemaschou ♥️🥩
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A few days in Cannes, never complete without a trip to Le Maschou. These guys have been open since the 60’s and it’s a favourite amongst many of my friends. It’s very much a meat forward restaurant, with the vegan menu priced alot higher than everything else. The crudités basket to start is huge - lots of fresh vegetables and a side of classic creamy vinaigrette and two types of anchovy sauce. Delicious in itself. On the side, lots of cold cuts on offer but the prosciutto with melon and Wagyu bresaola (when available) are amazing - seasoned table side. For mains, a selection of meats to choose from. Steak is at the forefront with lots of cuts available but their roast chicken is popular too. I ended up going for the two steaks pictured: a 60-day matured Simmental beef rib and a USDA prime black Angus rib. One boneless and one on the bone. The beef is cooked over Woodfire till it’s perfectly charred and pink. Well rested and super tasty beef. It’s a little bit of a mixed bag in terms of how tender the beef will be here. The black Angus was utterly soft, the Simmental not so much but it won on flavour. Served with woodfired potato and a cream cheese sauce. If meat and potatoes is your thing, this is the spot. Properly rustic and local. I’ve been going here for years and it’s just a hit every time. For dessert, two things the apple tart and the lemon tart are what to go for! #notoriousfoodie 🙅🏽‍♂️
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#steak #steakdinner #steakhouse #cannes #southoffrance #monaco #nice #finedining Less