Pick n' Mix: Part 1

I've been finding recently that I'm less motivated to update this poor little blog of mine, particularly in regards to restaurants. I suppose it has much to do with the pressure I put on myself in writing about them and a lot of the time I just want to recommend somewhere and direct you there, without all the guff of everything else that fills an entire blog post about it. So I'm trying something new; it might happen weekly, it might happen fortnightly, I guess it depends how often I eat out. There's no theme here, hence 'Pick n' Mix'; just places I went to and I liked. Unless I really didn't like it, and then you'll know about it. 

Quality Chop House 

This place has been slowly gathering momentum, and after a few stonking reviews from proper restaurant critics I suspect getting a table might be pretty tricky soon. Separated into two areas, the bookable main dining room operates a set 4 course menu for £35 while the no-reservations wine bar has a daily-changing menu to choose from. Sea urchin (pictured) were unadulterated, while lamb ribs cooked in mint sauce were crispy, tender and ridiculously addictive. You can rack up a fair old bill in the bar but apparently the wines are very interesting, says those in the know. We drank a very nice Albarino. I think. 

94 Farringdon Rd, London EC1R 3EA


Little Social

I was invited to the preview evening of Jason Atherton's new place, Little Social which is now open proper. He's a busy man this year what with opening up this Parisian-style bistro, as well as the larger Social Eating House later this year in Soho. Oysters from Fowey to start were briny and plump, though my date's slow-cooked egg with butternut squash and parmesan soup overshadowed them, as any slow-cooked egg would do. A cote de boeuf was a beast, served on a wooden board to share - well marbled, well charred and well seasoned, the meat was served with decent peppercorn and bearnaise sauces. Buzzy and bustling, the place will do well - at £15 for steak & frites, it's affordable Atherton cooking. 

5 Pollen Street, Mayfair, London, W1S 1ND



The Drapers Arms

I've written about The Drapers Arms a couple of times before, but mainly in a 'special event' sort of way. I've visited 3 times since Christmas now (which, given it's in North London, is actually pretty frequent for me) and it's quickly become a favourite. Definitely on the gastro side of the pub spectrum, I've had one-on-one's (beautiful and generous poussin dish), girls' night at Valentine's (an enormous steak), and, most recently, a ridiculously delicious veal lasagne (pictured) at leaving drinks. Truly a pub for every occasion. 

44 Barnsbury St.  London, N1 1ER


Fino's 10th Birthday

I'll admit that I've never visited Fino, but after their 10th birthday lunch they are firmly on my radar. Crab empinadas, braised ox tongue, pigs tails slow cooked with prawns, the above carabineros (red prawns) and the rest of the menu we were treated to were a masterclass in skillful Spanish cookery and careful ingredient sourcing. 

33 Charlotte St, London W1T 1RR

Honey & Co., Fitzrovia

Honey & Co. is a tiny little restaurant tucked away in the deepest depths of Fitzrovia. Serving food from the Middle East, chef Sarit Packer has a good pedigree for this style, having worked at Ottolenghi and Nopi. We made a late lunch booking; with only a handful of tables, the place was busy and bustling. Once squeezed in, we ordered some meze to share (£5 per person); hummus was smooth and creamy, aubergines roasted and marinated in a piquant sauce. Cheese pastry triangles I thought may have been better warmed, but little balls of a mozzerella-like cheese served with a herby green dressing were great. A tomato, bulghar wheat and caper mixture was scooped up greedily into warm pitta breads.

We had a pretty hard time trying to decide on mains and we delighted our host by opting for all of them to share (bar the vegetarian dish, because, well...). Sea bream (above) in a spiced tomato sauce, cute in its cast iron pot was spicy but balanced, the delicate flavour of the fish coming through. Lamb was pulled into soft chunks and piled on top of a flat bread, scattered with pickled vegetables and shiny pink pomegranate seeds. Pick of the bunch was a chicken dish that was topped with fried vermicelli strands; I thought the dish a little over-sweet but my friends disagreed. And that veal shank (below) was tender enough to dispose of the knife, pulling away from the bone with ease and sweetened with the fruit.  

Desserts arrived, and while not usually one for sweet things the chocolate mousse particularly took my heart; whipped into lightness, the dark chocolate was heavily flavoured with cardamom. Flakes of salt decorated the top - perhaps why I liked it so much - which gave it an interesting sweet / savoury dimension. I concentrated on this while my friends made their way through a beautiful-looking plum and mascarpone cake, and some sort of whipped cream concoction topped with blueberries and hazelnuts. 

Wine was served in stubby glasses, a Verdiccio that was startlingly easy to drink as we whiled away the afternoon there. It's not fancy; we sat slightly cramped amongst paper tablecloths, but it was comfortable and casual; Itamar who served us was so jolly and friendly. They have the most adorable bathroom so make sure you visit it. For roughly £30 a head, we ate handsomely and left happy. 

Other people have been for breakfast which looks equally as good - pastries are clearly their strong point. They do have slightly odd opening hours (see below) though. 

Honey & Co. 
25a Warren Street
W1T 5LZ
0207 388 6175

Mon-Wed 7:30 - 19:00 
Thu-Fri 7:30 - 22:30
Sat 9:00 - 17:00 
Closed Sunday

Zucca

The problem with a really great, affordable restaurant opening is that it's difficult to get a table on a Friday night on a whim. Even though I called up to book Zucca on the Tuesday previous, 9pm was the only table for two available. I don't know about you, but that's pretty late to be having dinner, especially when there are post work beers involved. We turned up tipsy to a crowded and nicely noisy restaurant.

It's easy to order at Zucca as there aren't many menu options - perfect for the indecisive of us. We went all out with starters, pasta, mains and dessert. Flagging a waiter down, he apologetically told us we couldn't order for the moment as the kitchen was inundated. We got right stuck into a bottle of delicious Barolo, decanted into a huge vase-like contraption. Gorgeous salty foccacia kept the hunger pangs at bay. 20 minutes later, chilli-flecked, oil drizzled sea bass carpaccio arrived and it was was generous with thin slivers fanned over the plate.

I can never resist clams when they are on the menu, and these didn't disappoint. At around £4 for the dish, these were stupidly good value. We slurped up the buttery, winey sauce using empty shells.

There were only two pasta options; pappardelle with peas, lemon and Parmesan had rather too much pea and not enough pasta. What there was of the noodle was toothsome and well made.

Taglierini with courgettes and brown shrimp was subtly flavoured and utterly gorgeous. Again, I wished for more of the pasta which might be testament for how good what we had of it was. I'm an absolute pasta fiend though, and my companion thought it adequate.

I was disappointed to find that they had run out of the lamb main course, but as it was such a balmy night it was probably a good idea I had the grilled prawns with a rocket salad. It was messy business extracting the meat from the shells and I got good and properly in there with my hands. The veal chop, huge and with a strip of glistening fat, was tender and well cooked to pink.

Almond and cherry tart was moist and not overly sweet. Cannoli stuffed with cream and served with raspberries was crumbly and light, the tart fruit cutting through the richness of the cream. We finished late in the evening, by now a bit more than tipsy. We left with smiles on our faces, but not without illiciting some gasps of horror; we tried to open the front door which was a bit stuck and I bent over to see if there was a latch to turn just as my friend yanked it open smashing it into my head. Peals of laughter could be heard all the way down Bermondsey Street as we waddled off to the train station. I woke up the next day with both an internal and external headache.

Zucca

184 Bermondsey Street,
London SE1 3TQ

Tel: 020 7378 6809



My photos are all really odd. It was dark, I was drunk. For some better ones, have a look here, here and here.

Veal

Veal can sometimes provoke a strong reaction from people. Images of little baby cows being kept in tiny boxes usually springs to mind, but I recenty saw some rosé veal being sold in Tescos.

Rosé veal is from calves raised to the highest welfare standards. The pack I bought was labelled as being produced in accordance to the RSPCA's stringent programme, Freedom Foods. This means the calf may be anything up to 8 months old and is raised in an ethically sound environment.

I've never cooked veal before, but having a quick Google I saw that it was best to give it a quick cooking. I wanted to keep it simple for my first veal cooking experience, so I decided to breadcrumb the escalopes and simply fry them, serving it with a more flavoursome vegetable side dish.

Basil, Lemon & Chilli Courgettes

For two

2 courgettes, sliced into batons

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 very ripe tomatoes, deseeded and diced

1 red chilli, deseeded and chopped finely

1 stalk of spring onion, sliced

Zest of 1 small lemon

A handful of basil leaves

A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

In a little oil, firstly add the chilli and then fry the courgette batons until softened. This should take about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and fry slowly for a further minute. Add the lemon zest and mix to combine, then add the tomatoes and the spring onions. Cook on a very low heat, seasoning with salt and pepper as you go until the tomatoes are hot. Take off the heat and upon serving, scatter the basil leaves on top. Finally, drizzle the olive oil over the vegetables.

The veal was simply breaded and fried. While it was very tender, I'm not sure I'd buy it again due to the high cost of it, at around £4.40 for two small escalopes. It was definitely worth a try though, and I'd love to try a different cut of veal. Perhaps Osso Bucco...