Ramen Seto

19 Kingly Street, W1B 5PY

Not so many posts recently. Not through lack of motivation to blog, but a bit of a period of austerity, attempting to gain and lose some pounds in the appropriate areas. So when we were thinking about somewhere to eat prior to seeing Sean Hughes at Soho Theatre (who, as an aside, was pretty awful) I fancied trying to keep within budget.

We thought about dim sum or sushi, so I had a quick look through Mr Noodles, who didn't let us down with this suggestion. Despite the rest of Soho being absolutely heaving, when we turned up they had a few tables free upstairs, and we were soon ensconsed with the menu.

The Menu:
Probably not the most authentic Japansese menu, the emphasis was mainly on the ramen. I was fairly tired, having had a very tough week at work, so the rest of the menu was, to be honest, a little bit of a blur. I know there were some rice and noodle dishes, and some sushi, but the details were vague.

Rather boringly, we both settled on the seafood ramen. The waitress suggested some gyoza to start, which tempted Mr PP, but I decided just to stick with the ramen.

Our Meal:
The food was fresh, hot and quickly delivered. I pinched one of the gyoza, which were freshly cooked and very tasty. So much so they disappeared before I could photograph them. Shortly after two very large bowls of ramen arrived.

The ramen was absolutely delicious. The broth was very flavoursome - light but with a lot of body as well. The noodles were well cooked and there was an abundance of seafood. My only slight criticism was that personally I would have loved some more greens, but that was only a minor point.

The whole experience is definitely very cheap and cheerful. All the drinks (including the glass of wine) are served in individual bottles, and it's very much like a traditional cafe in decor. Tables are set next to each other in short rows (which led to us having considerable food envy of the table next to us - next time one of us definitely has to have the chicken teryaki).

For the two of us the bill came to £23.10 including drinks (but not service).

What we liked:
The service was brisk and very efficient, but not at all rude. The food was delicious and quick, but they never attempted to rush us out either. Overall good value for money.

What we didn't like:
Honestly, not much. It delivered absolutely what we expected, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Our main annoyance was that the tables are just too close together, and Mr PP had to keep getting up to let people in to the table behind us.

Will we be back?:
Definitely. Good value, and from what we saw on the other table, plenty of other interesting looking dishes. And I do really want that chicken teryaki ...

Yum Cha

27 - 28 Chalk Farm Road, NW1 8AG

I had been very keen to go here for ages, since reading about it on somebody else's blog (sorry, but cannot remember who to credit!). But I haven't had any time off for ages, and to rub salt in the wound, Mr PP (who handily works in Camden) has taken to lunching here too often for my liking.

But today I finally managed to get some time off, and insisted that whatever else we did today, we were having dim sum for lunch.

Given that the weather was compartively nice (there was some actual, real sunshine) we walked from Finsbury Park to Camden, and arrived healthily hungry having forgotten to breakfast.

The restaurant itself was fairly spacious, and despite Camden being predictably heaving with tourists, not too busy. We settled into a spacious corner table, and as is our traditional I decided on our order.

The Menu:
The menu had a fairly standard array of buns and parcels variously deep fried and steamed. It wasn't the most extensive dim sum menu I'd ever seen, but there were plenty of favourites on there, so as ever, my main problem was working out what to try today and what to leave for next time. In the end, for the first round we ordered salt & pepper squid, scallop dumpling, chicken shumai, chiu chow dumpling, crispy duck roll, turnip cake, prawn cheung fun, five spice crispy pig ear and tea for two.

Our Meal:
Now one of the things I like about eating dim sum (apart from the obvious!) is that it's quick. Little dishes arriving as and when they're ready is absolutely what I want when I'm hungry. A 50 minute wait before anything arrived was not part of the plan! To add insult to injury, the table next to us was positively groaning with food, and it just kept on coming.

Finally, the salt & pepper squid arrived. There are of course no photographs as by this point we were so hungry it was just wolfed down. It was fresh, crispy and delicious. And then we continued to wait...

We never found out what the problem was, as staff fairly studiously avoided us, but eventually after another substantial wait (and a discussion about leaving and eating elsewhere), it all finally arrived at once.

We started with the chicken, which was fine but not terribly flavoursome, and it was only by a process of elimination that we knew what it was.






From the chicken to the scallop, which for me was much more successful. Fresh, succulent and highly flavoured, this really hit the spot, and was much more what I had been anticipating.

The chiu chow dumplings continued to hit the spot, filled with mushrooms, peanuts and crunchy vegetables, and bursting with flavour.






The duck rolls were very light, and not at all greasy. Unfortunately, I would say not highly flavoured, although the plum sauce was lovely and light, and not as sickly and overpowering as it can often be.

The turnip cake however was an absolute triumph. This is one of my favourite dishes, and they had absolutely done it justice. Light and tasty, it was only improved by a little of the sauce from the cheung fun, although it didn't really need it.



I'm not much of a fan of cheung fun, it being Mr PP's choice, but this was fine, and he enjoyed it very much.

There was no sign of the pig's ear, but we decided not to pursue that one. Mr PP was ready to move on, but I had a real yearning for a custard bun. He was a little sceptical about the time, but I decided to have faith and we ordered the custard tarts and sweet custard buns. Mr PP had another try for the pig's ear, and was this time told that they didn't have it anyway.

These last two dishes arrived very quickly. The tarts were absolutely beautiful. The pastry was incredibly light and flaky, and the custard was perfect. Not too runny and not set too hard, it had a surprisingly delicate flavour and we both really enjoyed them.

The buns were also beautifully light, and although they looked a bit dry when they were opened, were not at all. The custard flavour was stronger and sweeter than the tarts, but also tasted quite strongly of coconut, which worked really well.


Having had one each, Mr PP had the last bun, and I scoffed the last tart.

After a poor start, we were very happy with the food, the majority of the dishes being extremely good. Even those that didn't completely make the mark were still of good quality.

The bill, including 12.5% service (which I wouldn't have paid but it was up to Mr PP) came to just under £30.

What we liked:
The food, the location, the sunshine!

What we didn't like:
The initial wait (although they did get this sorted for round two, and - although not much comfort to us - it did seem to be specific to us, and everybody else was eating!)

Will we be back?:
Definitely. Lots of other dishes to try. I just need to get some more time off soon ...

Canteen

Royal Festival Hall, Belvedere Rd, SE1 8XX

I debated about reviewing chains. You do have to draw the line somewhere. The point of this is not to record every single place I eat out. But on balance, when I went back to the core reason for doing this, I felt it should be included.

Lunch with friends on the South Bank would normally have filled me with a little bit of dread at trying to find somewhere decent to eat. I never seem to get it right round here. Luckily they chose, and thus we ended up at Canteen.

It was a good place for a nice, relaxed lunch. Unlike the rather full, hectic looking Ping Pong next door, it felt airy, bright and calm.

We got a couple of pints ordered and turned our attention to the menu.

The Menu:
If I had to sum it up, I would say comfort food. Roasts, pies, and childhood food like fish finger sandwiches. Perfect for Saturday lunch.

I ordered the macaroni cheese (as I knew I would the minute I clocked it - a fine, fine dish which I pride myself I can cook rather well). Mr PP did likewise with the addition of a side of chips. Our friends ordered the roast duck, and the pie of the day.

Our Meal:
The food arrived in good time, and was as good as we'd hoped. The macaroni cheese was delicious, cheesy but not stodgy, and great with a few of Mr PP's chips. I was impressed with the pie, which was a proper pie and not a stew with a crust on top. The roast duck was reported to be good, and certainly looked lovely.

Washed down with some ice-cold beers, it certainly made for a pleasant, leisurely afternoon. So much so, that I can't remember what the bill was. Mr PP generously took care of it while I went to the ladies - what a gent!

What we liked:
The restaurant, the food, the service.

What we didn't like:
Nothing really. It delivered exactly what it promised - can't say fairer than that.

Will we be back?:
Yes. I wouldn't make a special trip, but for a reliable lunch with a range of small and larger meals, it's certainly a convenient option.

Bistro Bruno Loubet at The Zetter

St John’s Square, 86 - 88 Clerkenwell Road, EC1M 5RJ

This night out was courtesy of our my very generous in-laws. We went with some of their friends who remembered Bruno Loubet from before, and were full of anticipation.

Mr PP and I arrived last, through the rather dreary drizzle, and were immediately whisked off to the table. The restaurant itself is quite comfortable, but a little cramped. Once all the tables were seated around us, we were blocked in and had to disturb at least two tables to get to the loo.

Service was a little slow at first, and I was rather desperate for a drink, but they soon seemed to catch up with themselves, and was smooth for the rest of the evening.

The Menu:
We liked the look of the menu, and there were quite a few dishes that tempted us. For starters, most of us ended up opting for the Onion and Cider Soup, upside-down Emmenthal soufflé. Mr PP chose the Mauricette snails and meat balls, royale de champignon and my namesake ordered Potted shrimps and mackerel, cucumber salad, Melba toast.

Onto the mains, and there was a bit more diversity on order. I chose Hare Royale, onion raviolo, pumpkin and dried mandarin purée and Mr PP went for Pan-fried breast of wood pigeon, cauliflower, almond and quinoa, giblet sauce. Our friends variously ordered Beef daube Provencal and mousseline potatoes, Confit lamb shoulder, white beans and preserved lemon, green harissa, and the fish special.

Our Meal:
I think we were all slightly disappointed with our soup - it was woefully underseasoned and really lacked flavour. Even the soufflé was bland, although it was technically very accomplished. The potted shrimps were better, but for me the star was the snails, which were beautifully cooked and very flavoursome.

The mains were also good, but not amazing. Mr PPs pigeon tasted delicious but I was glad in a way that I hadn't ordered it, as I didn't really like the combination of the constituent parts of the dish as a whole.

The beef daube was fine, and the mouselline potatoes were a beautiful texture but were served at a fairly tepid temperature. The lamb looked rather odd, like a big reconstituted lamb burger, and although I didn't try it, my friend told us it was delicious.

The hare, on the other hand, was fairly special, and my only comment would be that it was so rich, I shouldn't really have eaten it all - but I did. Strong, complex but complimentary flavours combined well in the hare, although the onion ravioli was neither here nor there, despite the excellence of the pasta.

The ladies passed on desserts, while Mr PP and his brother tucked into Rice pudding pannacotta and marmalade and Valrhona chocolate tartlet, caramel and salted butter ice cream respectively. The rice pudding pannacotta seemed like plain old rice pudding to me - but absolutely delicious for all that. Personally, I'm not a fan of marmalade (an adult taste that unlike anchovy and olives I've never developed a liking for) but Mr PP reported that it worked well. By this point, the richness of the hare was too much, and I couldn't even have a taste of the chocolate tart. At the speed it disappeared, I assume it was good. And my sister-in-law was very impressed by the ice-cream.

We finished off with coffees - I can't comment on the bill as didn't see it. As I say, very generous in-laws ...

What we liked:
Great service, nice surroundings, and great company. It's a very busy place, and good for big groups. I can imagine it's not so nice for a quiet meal for two. It was also nice to see Bruno Loubet actually working in the kitchen, rather than it just being his name over the door.

What we didnt like:
The food wasn't top-notch, and some of the dishes did disappoint. And it was a little cramped. Whilst I found that a bit of an issue, I am also cognisant of the fact that, due to the amount we drank, that the tables around us probably found us more irritating than we did them.

Will we be back:
I would safely say no. I thought it was fine, can imagine there will always be other places that are higher up the "To Visit" list.

The Old Dairy

1 - 3 Crouch Hill, N4 4AP

I've had a very on and off relationship with The Old Dairy. Mainly off.

When we first moved into the area, we ate here for Sunday lunch. And it was fab. So we came back a few times. And despite a complete inability to serve a decent roast potato, the Sunday lunches were great.

So obviously we invited friends to join us for a great Sunday lunch. Except it wasn't. And ever since they have been so inconsistent, I really can never trust them.

But my main beef with them is that they very often serve you food that isn't exactly what you ordered from the menu. Bits are missing, or have been subsituted. And they never, ever tell you in advance. Which I completely find insulting. If they just said "We've run out of houmous, can we give you some olives instead" fine. Instead you get a plate of half what you ordered plonked in front of you without so much as an apology.

And generally, it's hideously overpriced.

So why am I there? Well, yet again it wasn't my choice. We were meeting friends for dinner, and despite also living locally, they had never eaten there. So, off we went.

The Menu:
It was only on my way home from work, that I noticed the pubs were very busy. My initial thoughts that Arsenal must be playing were quickly replaced by the more accurate realisation that it was St Patrick's day. Luckily The Dairy wasn't too rammed, but they did have live Irish music (bugger) and as we were informed on arrival, an "Irish" menu.

What's that then? both Mr PP and I asked in unison. It basically amounted to stews, soda bread and colcannon.

It honestly didn't look much different from usual. Steak, burger and fish 'n' chips staples were there, alongside various typical British/"Irish" fare. They do have a good range of fish and vegetarian dishes, which was good as one of our friends doesn't eat meat.

We skipped starters and went straight to the mains. I had the burger, Mr PP had the (Irish sirloin) steak with (Irish) whiskey sauce, and our friends had the Irish stew and the vegetable tian. A rather nice bottle of pinot noir washed it all down, with Mr PP sticking steadfastly to the Heinekin.

Our Meal:
The service was prompt and efficient, if somewhat over-friendly. They always insist on calling us "guys". I'm 42. I'm so not "guys". But otherwise, it was very good - attentive to our needs without being all over us.

A big jug of iced tapwater and glasses arrived unbidden, which in my anti-bottled-water world is a big, big plus. Food arrived in good time, and there were no complaints. Everybody enjoyed it well enough, and there were four empty plates at the end.

But for what they charge, I would just expect so much more. It really isn't cheap, and just isn't good enough. They either need to improve the quality, or lower the prices.

In the end, mains for four, a bottle of Pinot Noir and a pint of Heinekin came in at just under £80.

What we liked:
The tapwater, the wine, efficient service, and the nice big booths in the dining area of the bar - very comfortable.

What we didn't like:
The music (Achy Breaky Heart? Irish? Really???), and the fact they couldn't serve us any hot drinks. The coffee machine was broken, so fair enough that they couldn't do coffees. But our friends asked for tea. To which they also said no, as they couldn't make tea with hot water from the tap. Could a fully equipped, functioning retaurant kitchen really not rustle up two cups of boiling water? Unbelievable.

Will we be back?:
The more the prices go up, the less inclined I am to go back. There are pubs I prefer which are closer to home, and I don't think the food is good enough. But I'm sure we'll be back sometime.

Hélène Darroze at the Connaught

Carlos Place, W1K 2AL

This wasn't my choice of restaurant. We were dining with long standing friends, and it was their turn to pick the venue. If being very honest, I would have to say I had reservations about eating here. The menu I looked at online did not appeal to me, and it seemed very expensive. I went in hope the information I'd looked at online was out of date (unlikely and a faint hope, I know, but still ...).

On arrival we were whisked through to a lovely table for four in the window. The dining room is very beautiful. Lots of dark wood and period features suggests a stuffy atmosphere, but it wasn't. It was beautifully lit, and created a lovely atmosphere. We started not with the champagne suggested, but with martinis. They took rather a long time to arrive, but were worth the wait. As ever in such establishments, the question was still or sparkling water. Thankfully we have long got over any intimidation into such waste, and duly requested our tapwater.

And then the menus arrived ...

The Menu:
... and it was the same as the online one. Bugger!

It didn't appeal to me, I guess because it included a lot of flavours I'm not keen on. It was also very fish oriented. If you didn't want to eat fish or seafood, you were left with two starters and three mains to choose from. A lot of the dishes were for two people, and a lot attracted a supplement on top of the fairly stiff £75 for three courses (coffee not included).

We fairly quickly moved on from considering the tasting menu, as a lot of the dishes didn't appeal. For starter I ordered Jerusalem artichoke cooked in a velouté perfumed with Iberico ham, fine ravioli of Basque black pudding, chestnut crumbs, lardons and croutons, traditional Balsamic vinegar from Modéna – 12 year old. Mr PP chose Blue lobster cooked in a large ravioli perfumed with tandoori spices, carrot and confit citrus mousseline, wild sorrel, spring onions reduction with fresh coriander and beurre noisette. Our companions both opted for XXL scallop with black truffle from Périgord, steamed around a Swiss chard leave, roasted Swiss chard, ham jus (£8 supplement).

Onto the mains, and I plumped for Irish salmon pink cooked pavé, green cabbage with bacon, Brussels sprouts, smoked herring emulsion with salmon’s roe. Mr PP and one of our friends both picked Black Basque pork, roasted with black truffle from Périgord, mashed potatoes, braised lettuce with carrot, roasting jus (£15 supplement). Our other friend chose Racan farmed pigeon, spit-roasted and “flambé au capucin”, grilled foie gras from les Landes, quinoa with Medjul dates and Sicilian pistachio, intense jus spiced up with Mexican mollé. Under most circumstances I would have had the pigeon, but I'm not a fan of quinoa.

Rather annoyingly, we had to order dessert at the start. I've never had to do that before, and didn't really like it. I didn't know whether I wanted cheese, or dessert, or how full I'd be, or any of the other things that you take into account at the end of the meal. Still, if them's the rules you've got to play by them.

I went for champagne rhubarb compote and meringue, Sarawak pepper ice cream, almond crumble. Mr PP and one of our friends picked hazelnut roasted and cooked in a praliné mousse, chocolate cream, lemon and thyme foam. And our other friend chose Manjari chocolate dark ganache, passion fruit wafer, passion fruit and orange sorbet.

Given the fish emphasis to the meal, we opted for white wine and settled back in anticipation ...

Our Meal:
As expected, the service was impeccable. Efficient, but personable, with no hint of stuffiness. Glasses were never anywhere close to empty, and any items we finished with removed promptly.

Our first amuse bouche arrived with the menus, consisting of courgette velouté with a parmesan foam, some breadstick type things and some ham on a slate. The velouté and breadsticks were the least of it, but the ham was delicious.

After ordering we were offered bread from a fairly impressive selection, and the second amuse bouche arrived. Foie gras with an apple sorbet and a peanut foam. I couldn't taste the apple at all, and the peanut rather overwhelmed the foie gras, but it was tasty.

On to the starters. There was a lot I liked about mine, but also a lot that I didn't. The Jerusalem artichoke velouté was beautiful. It had a lovely taste, and rich, smooth texture. But it was served slightly tepid - not cold, but not warm either. The ravioli were not terribly tasty and the pasta was a little bit crunchy at the seams. The lardons, chestnut and croutons were lovely, and did lift the dish. Our friends were not terribly impressed by the scallop, both feeling it didn't taste of much. The most flavoursome starter belonged to Mr PP. I tried some, but hadn't fancied curried lobster and I think I was right. Overall, an underwhelming start.

Before the mains arrived, we had a palate cleanser of avocado mousse with pepper and nuts. I don't like avocado, particularly the texture. I thought that might be improved by the mousse texture, but it wasn't and Mr PP had his palate cleansed twice.

I thought they rather missed a trick with the mains. The pork chop, ordered by two of us, was carved at the table. The table behind us. We didn't realise it was ours, so we weren't really watching. A little bit of theatre missed, which was a shame. The star of the mains was the pigeon (and I really regretted my decision not to have it). It was supposed to be served blue, but our friend had it pink. It was, for me, still very pink but perfectly cooked. The pork chop was also delicious and flavoursome. Also served pink, it was moist, tender and surprisingly flavoursome. The mash served with it was smooth and very rich. All this was nicely balanced with the braised lettuce.

In comparison, I was disappointed by my main. It was fine, but it didn't blow me away. I was a bit taken aback that the advertised brussel sprouts were actually five (I counted) leaves peeled from a brussel sprout (that'll keep your costs down - they could serve the whole restaurant using two sprouts). The salmon was cooked perfectly, the skin was gorgeously crispy, and the sauce was full of flavour. The consensus was that the mains were much better than the starters.

If I could have chosen at this point, I'd have had cheese. The rhubarb that I did have was fine but again, I wasn't blown away. The ice-cream tasted very bland, and I don't remember finding the almonds. The hazelnut went down well, but the star of the show was the chocolate, for the passion fruit wafers. They were really rather spectacular looking (apparently they require very particular skills) and tasted delicious.

Overall, for me, I think I found most of the dishes did not have the complexity of flavours that I expect from Michelin starred establishments. And as a fairly expensive menu, I had hoped for better.

We then retired with armagnacs, from the very impressive Darozze collection (I'd missed a table with at least 40 bottles on it on the way in!) and petit fours, to a comfortable lounge, with a fire and the Duchess of York at the table next to us. The armagnacs were delicious and actually rather heady. After that, instead of going on, we were ready to head home on a high.

The bill, including two bottles of wine with dinner and service at 12.5%, was £568.69 for the four of us. To me, far too much really. All those supplements really add up!

What we liked:
The company, the armagnacs, the dining room, the service.

What we didn't like:
The lack of complexity of flavours, and of course, the bill.

Will we go back?:
I can't speak for our friends but I'm afraid to say I wouldn't. Not even if somebody else was paying. I just think there are better places out there.

The Sandwich Box

4a Gillespie Road, N5 1LN

Back up Blackstock Road, to see a man about a door, again ...

Mainly because I wanted a long lie, and stayed in bed until the last possible moment, I ended up at 11.15am in Blackstock Road not having had a thing to eat or drink since I got up at 9am. So before finishing up with the door man and heading home, I decided breakfast was in order.

I popped over to the Star Express, cheerfully contemplating some nice bubble and squeak, blithely forgetting that Arsenal were at home today. It was rammed. Thankfully last week, we had walked down Gillespie Road for the tube, so I remembered The Sandwich Box.

The Menu:
As the name suggests, it's more of a sandwich/lunch type place, but they do a breakfast and a breakfast bap in amongst the baked potatoes, sandwiches and cafe specials. Full breakfast with tea and toast for £3.95 fit the bill.

The Meal:
It's a tiny place, and the only seating is outside, but they have some heaters and the sun is shining so I don't feel the cold too much. Tea, toast and breakfast arrive fairly promptly, all elements hot and tasty. The staff are friendly and the older ladies working there fuss over the young men having breakfast beside me.

The tea was so good another mug was required before heading off, so the whole lot came to £4.85.

What I liked:
The friendly service, good value for money, sitting in the sunshine.

What I didn't like:
Nothing really - it delivered exactly what it promised.

Will I go back?:
If I'm in that neck of the woods, yes. I doubt you'd get a better brew anywhere.