Tag Archives: cheap eats london

Pho, Wardour Street

20 Feb

My first experience of Vietnamese cuisine was a couple of years ago in Melbourne. We were taken to dinner by a couple of DJs that my boyfriend knew who were incredibly excited about taking us to their favourite restaurant in the city. Everything was looking good when we arrived – it was bustling with the locals and we had to fight to snag a table. The building was creaky and not perfect, everything you’d expect from a neighbourhood restaurant. We let the enthusiastic gents order and listened to them talk about how amazing the dishes were before they finally arrived, after what seemed like a lifetime. My first reaction was to almost burst into laughter, followed by tears. Just by looking at my plate I could see that my local Chinese takeaway could have done better. In front of us lay MSG ridden gloop, disgusting sticky sauces and very unhealthy looking vegetables. I couldn’t have been more disappointed and for a while it put me off trying Vietnamese in London.

When I finally braved it, I took a trip to Pho on Great Titchfield Street with a couple of friends. I tried Pho for the first time and couldn’t believe how different it was from the dishes I’d had in Melbourne. It was fresh and healthy, but I still didn’t love it.

Fast forward two years and I’m back at Pho, this time on Wardour Street. I walked in on a Thursday evening to a very busy restaurant, filled with young professionals enjoying a hearty dinner on a cold February evening. All day I had been telling myself that I would try the pho again, but on closer inspection of the menu, I decided I’d try the Bun Cha Gio Ga (£7.45). But first we delved into three starters – Goi Cuon Tom (summer rolls with chicken breast – £4.25), Banh Xeo Tom Ga (Vietnamese crepe with prawns, chicken and bean sprouts – £6.95) and Goi Du Du (papaya salad with chicken – £7.75).

None of the starters disappointed – the summer rolls were fresh, the external rice paper chewy, sticky and the inside crisp and juicy. The Goi Du Du provided a myriad of flavours, including juicy papaya, tender chicken pieces and crisp pepper slices. The Banh Xeo Tom pancake was the least impressive, but it didn’t stop me reaching over for more lettuce leaves to wrap the chicken and pancake batter in.

The Bun Cha Gio Ga arrived and consisted of a bowl of soft vermicelli rice at room temperature, sprouts, chicken, fresh herbs and a little bowl of nuoc cham, which I was told by the waitress to pour on top and mix together. Despite ordering the spicy version, it lacked spice and I had to put a good squeeze of sriracha hot chilli sauce into a bowl for dipping. Lack of spice in supposedly spicy dishes at restaurants has been a common recurrence recently – I have been ordering spicy and it has always been too mild. Maybe I’m going by my favourite local curry house standards in Wembley where a ‘medium’ spicy can blow your head off. But that’s not to say I didn’t like my main, because I did – particularly the slippery cold noodles that sat towards the bottom of the bowl.

After three starters and a main (between two), we were both pretty full. But of course the desserts were on the menu for a reason so we ordered a pandan pancake (£5.95) to share. I desperately didn’t want to be disappointed but I couldn’t help being just a little bit when the dessert arrived. The pancakes were green due to the green pandan leaf paste that is stirred into the batter and after the initial surprise, the novelty soon wore off and I was left with a mouthful of desiccated coconut and crunchy brown sugar. Perhaps I should have tried the banana fritters.

We also grabbed a couple of Vietnamese Sôn Tinh rice wines and fruit liquors, which are new to the menu, imported straight from Hanoi. I love the story behind them. Juliette & Stephen Wall, founders of Pho, take regular trips to Vietnam. They got so merry on rice wine during a recent trip to a popular bar in Hanoi called Highway 4 that they decided to ship it back over and serve it to us lucky diners. There are four fruity flavours to choose from and two traditional blends – dark and light. We ordered a plum (£4) and a traditional (£4.50). I managed a sip of each and decided not to risk the headache for work the next day. The plum was actually rather nice with hints of caramel and a deep spiced plum flavour.

As we left the restaurant, the heavens opened and white fluffy snow flurried down past our faces and we enjoyed the walk back to the tube, full, content and wondering if we would need to get the sledges out of the shed the following day.

Food For Think was a guest at Pho.

I don’t know why I’m telling you this (because I want to win myself) but Pho is currently running a competition to win two flights to Vietnam. Click here to enter. Good luck (kind of).

Pho
163-165 Wardour Street
London
W1F 8WN

Pho on Urbanspoon

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A Korean feast at Kimchee

8 Feb

If you’re a girl and feeling a bit under the weather, there’s nothing like a good old natter with a friend to cheer you up. That’s how I was feeling on Friday before I met my friend for dinner at Kimchee.

I had walked past Kimchee numerous times but never made it in until now, perhaps because I work in Soho and quite often stick to the area. But the High Holborn location definitely doesn’t seem to be an issue for a lot of people. At 6.30pm, I walked through the front door to join a sizeable queue all eagerly awaiting a table.

We were seated and our very pleasant waitress explained the menu and recommended a few dishes to share. We ordered one portion of Kimchee, a couple of sides, a rice dish and a BBQ dish. The idea is that diners share a wealth of dishes so that they can taste more. I am a huge advocate of the sharing plate so I was excited about what was to come.

The food arrived and we were first presented with Yuk Hwae (raw beef with sliced pear and egg yolk – £4.90). The egg yolk sat in a tiny dish on the side and we were told to pour it on top. This dish really was delicious and packed full of flavour. The Kimchee (£2.50) didn’t excite quite as much and it wasn’t as spicy as I would have hoped, particularly as it was billed as spicy on the menu.

Next to arrive was the tofu dolsot bibimap (tofu, rice, vegetables, chilli sauce and raw egg yolk – £7.90), which was so pretty I didn’t want to mix it all together – so the waitress did it for us. Despite how pretty the dish looked and the impact it made on arrival at the table, we were both slightly disappointed with the flavour, or the lack of. It wasn’t particularly spicy and the rice dominated the dish once stirred.

The spicy chicken bulgogi was meant to be very spicy but I could have added a lot more chilli. I liked the way that the chicken and lettuce leaves were served on separate plates and that you had to wrap the chicken in the leaf with the accompanying sauce before eating. I was happy to do a bit of food DIY and rather enjoyed it.

After our mains, the dessert menu was kindly thrust in front of our faces and I was pleased to see a range of different flavoured ice creams. Despite having already eaten two scoops of ice cream after lunch, I couldn’t resist a scoop of black sesame (£3.40).

The scoop was the perfect size, just big enough to satisfy the post main course sweet tooth, but small enough to ensure that you don’t go overboard. I have to say, it was one of the most delicious and interesting ice cream scoops I have ever had.

I can’t write a review of Kimchee without mentioning the atmosphere and surroundings. Huge open plan kitchens sit along the right hand side of the restaurant and diners share long communal tables with well designed lighting ahead. The restaurant it busy, buzzing, fast paced and a great place to go if you want to chat loudly and enjoy well priced, well cooked food. I’m already planning my next trip back.

Food For Think was a guest at Kimchee

Kimchee
71 High Holborn
London
WC1V 6EA
0207 4300956

Kimchee on Urbanspoon

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Union Jacks

9 Jan

Jamie Oliver can do no wrong in my eyes. I admire his tireless campaigning to encourage kids to eat healthily and his recipes never fail me. And I particularly liked my brunch at Fifteen London a couple of years ago, another of his concepts that I love. But despite being a fan of the cheeky chappy that started his cheffing career at River Cafe, I have never dined at one of his Jamie’s Italian restaurants. However, as soon as I heard about Union Jacks, I was there like a flash. And that brings me to a point actually. I can’t remember how I found out about it – but I haven’t read anything about it since. Either they have been keeping the promotion very hush hush or I’m not reading the right publications anymore.

Situated in the newly developed St Giles Piazza, Union Jacks celebrate all things British, although at first glance you wouldn’t think it. The menu specifies ‘Flats’, which basically come in the form of a pizza – with a difference. British ingredients line the base with cheeses such as cheddar and Cropwell Bishop stilton replacing the classic mozzarella and roast shoulder of pork replacing the usual salami or parma ham.

Three of us made the journey to Union Jacks after a quick mulled wine in Covent Garden. Due to the fact that it was the Thursday before Christmas and party / Christmas dinner season was in full swing, we anticipated a queue. But on arrival we were all surprised to see only a small number of tables occupied. Perhaps the location isn’t quite right – being close to but just far enough away from the hustle and bustle of Covent Garden and Soho. We sat by the large glass fronted window looking out onto High Holborn and were handed menus that were encased in old pub style black folders with gold writing embossed on the front. The style of the menu inside differed somewhat. Type writer font showed a range of starters, those flats that I was on about earlier and a drinks list. I was disappointed with the small selection of cocktails but happy to see that they were moderately priced at £5.50 – £6.50. I ordered a Roobarb & Custard (£5.50), which was a lovely mix of Chase rhubarb liquor, apple and cinnamon. My mum complained that she couldn’t taste the alcohol but that’s the idea isn’t it?!

For starter, we all shared the roasted beets with Westombe curd and smoked seeds (£4) and the prawn and Morecambe bay shrimp cocktail (£6). The former arrived on a small plate with a large amount of creamy goat’s curd, an increasingly popular combination and one that I keep seeing on menus around the capital. The beets were tender and sweet and this dish was an utterly delicious way to start the meal. The prawn cocktail was fancied up by being served at the table in a kilner jar. The waiter closed the lid, shook it about like you would a cocktail, reopened the lid and placed the jar in front of us on the table. I’m not overly sure that the shaking was needed and although it was better than your average pub prawn cocktail dish, it wasn’t a patch on the roasted beets.

Being a huge mozzarella pizza fan, I was sceptial about the flats. I’m not sure what possessed me to order the spiciest pizza on the menu, Chilli Freak (£9), which contains no less than six chilli varieties, but I couldn’t get enough. The pizza was hot but my mouth was kept nice and cool by the little pot of curd that accompanied the pizza. Nice touch. My companions opted for the Old Spot (£12), which consisted of roast shoulder of pig, quince and bramley sauce, Cropwell Bishop Stilton, crackling and watercress and the Woodman (£11), a mix of field and wild mushrooms, Westcome cheddar, pickled red onion, tarragon and chervil.

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I looked to my left and saw a dessert bar with a range of gelato buckets. We were sat around the corner so had a good view but I couldn’t help thinking that this feature needs to be on full show. An old cinema style board showed which desserts and ice creams were on offer. I opted for the Retro Arctic Roll (£4), while my guests went for the Sticky Treacle Tart with Clementine Soured Cream (£4) and a scoop of Earl Gray Tea and Biscuits ice cream, which is a mere £1.50 per scoop. When my Arctic Roll was placed in front of me, I started to wish I had gone for the scoop of ice cream – much better value. I didn’t think much to it; it was small, the sponge dry and generally lacking oomph. The Treacle Tart was also not completely up to scratch and we could detect only a small amount of treacle and clementine flavouring.

Despite the slight disaster on the pudding front, the flats made our visit more than worthwhile. Union Jacks flats have managed to convert even the most hardened pizza purist and I’m looking forward to both going back for a second visit and recreating some of these delights in my boyfriends parents pizza oven this summer.

Union Jacks
4 Central St. Giles Piazza
LONDON
WC2H 8AB
0203 597 7888

Union Jack's on Urbanspoon

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Meat Liquor

24 Nov

You probably don’t need to read another blog post about this place, but I’m going to write it anyway. Don’t worry; I’ll keep it short and sweet.

Meat liquor, yes yes, I know you’ve heard that this is the most amazing burger in the world right now. I think that’s a pretty bold statement but let me tell you, they’re certainly good.

Situated just off Oxford Street behind Debenhams, Meat Liquor is the new permanent fixture from meataholic Yianni Papoutsis and serves an array of fantastic, you guessed it, burgers. Also on the scraggy menu is a range of weird and wonderful cocktails, most served in jam jars. The Full English Martini (£7.50) caught our eye – billed as Bombay Original stirred with homemade vermouth and served egg and bacon. The martini was smooth and almost too easy to drink, while the hard boiled quail egg and bacon bits that arrived in a separate shooter glass acted as a perfect appetiser.

The Louisiana Jam (£7) was a syrupy sweet concoction of Southern Comfort swizzled with apricot jam, fresh lemon juice and fresh mint and could win the prize for my favourite cocktail ever. The St Lawrence (£7.50) was a refreshing and light mix of Woodford Reserve shaken with maple syrup, fresh lemon juice and a dash of bitters with an orange twist.

I kept my order simple and went for the Dead Hippie (£7.50), which is the standard burger on the menu (don’t know where it gets it title from though) – it contained two patties, sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions. Gabrielle went for the Mushroom Swiss (£7.50), which contained two patties, swiss, cheese, shrooms etc… (menus description!) I immediately had food envy, not only was hers bigger but it had a huge amount of luscious looking mushrooms and cheese!!! All of our food came on one tray, lined with red and white paper and the side of fries were similar to those at McDonalds (sorry) – salty, thin, crispy, oily, DELICIOUS!

Sides such as x3 mac n cheese, onion rings and slaw didn’t go unnoticed but we chose not to order them for fear of not being able to move out of our chairs afterwards. And we probably wouldn’t have been able to, considering the portion size of the fries. No, I’m not complaining!

Meat Liquor takes inspiration from American diners and it’s totally clear as soon as you walk through the door. Dimly lit with hints of red light, graffiti on the walls, mismatched furniture, too cool for school waiting staff carrying ten trays at once, whilst dodging the oodles of happy punters. It is laid back, fun, informal and cool.

The only downside is the queue. As winter draws in, I’m not sure I’ll be totally happy with queuing an hour to get a table but if I do (which I probably will), I’m sure it will be well worth the wait.

Meat Liquor
72 Welbeck Street
London
W1G 0BA

Meat Liquor on Urbanspoon

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Meatballs at The Quality Chop House

25 Aug

One of my earliest memories of dining out in London, before I even dreamed of moving here, was my dad taking my brother and I to a Victorian dining room in Clerkenwell to eat a roast dinner for lunch. I can’t remember what the restaurant was called but I walked into the dining room, with it’s high ceilings, and was surrounded by men in suits talking business while drinking ale from metal tankards. I was infatuated. I loved the setting – the old wooden pews, the creaky floors and of course the food.

So I was delighted when I was invited to the launch of Meatballs at The Quality Chop House last night. The Grade II listed building was built in 1870 and has operated as a restaurant for almost 150 years. Many times have I walked past and marveled at the building but never stopped to wonder what was inside. The Quality Chop House was traditionally a working men’s chophouse and was later favoured by the kind of businessmen that I mentioned earlier. But, after closing down in 2010, it was bought by Hugh Fowler (the man responsible for Wendy’s in the 80′s and more recently Hamburger Union) and the rest is history.

Step inside the restaurant and take in the surroundings. Although the building underwent a major refurbishment in the 1980′s, many of the original features have stayed the same. The beautiful but ever so uncomfortable oak benches, oak tables and ornate castings are still standing. Look to the back of the room, next to the kitchen opening and see a photograph of the previous owners. The lady in the middle of the picture (now in her 90′s) was one of the first guests to dine at Meatballs this week. I imagine she wonders what on earth a ‘slider’ is but I’m sure that she is also very proud.

Which brings me onto the food and drink. I ordered one of the blueberry gin and tonics (£5.95) to start with, plus a bowl of bread and olives (£2.95). The bread basket consisted of focaccia and mini brioche buns, which are also used for the sliders on the menu. Diners have a choice of 5 different meatballs, three sliders, a meatball burger, a few salads and a range of sides. Upon closer inspection, I realised just how cheap everything is. Three meatballs will set you back £3.95, three sliders (mini brioche bun burgers) cost just £5.95 and the sides range from £2.45 to £3.95. The salads are a bit more costly with the most expensive being the spinach and bacon at £8.95 – but who goes to an establishment called Meatballs and orders a salad?! Everything on the menu (except from the ice cream) is made on the premises.

We ordered a selection – three sliders with a mixture of fillings (pork, beef and ricotta with tomato sauce and Greek lamb with cucumber, dill and yoghurt sauce), the vegetarian courgette balls with a mild curry sauce and an extra ball of chicken with a caperberry sauce. An extra, or bonus ball as they are called will set you back £1 each.

For sides we ordered egg pappardelle and the pearl barley and tomato risotto. I was very intrigued by the pearl barley side as I have been cooking with it a lot recently (See recent recipes here and here)

The brioche buns are an absolute delight, light, fluffy and buttery. Pair them with a ball of meat and you have a winner. The beef and lamb were slightly on the dry side, both could have done with a tad less cooking but the flavours were fantastic.

I wasn’t sure about having a single chicken meatball in a bowl, I think it would have been better in a slider. But luckiy we had the bowl of pappardelle to eat it with and together they were delicious.

One of my favourites was the pearl barley and tomato risotto. It was absolutely divine – the pearl barley had a slight crunch and the tomato sauce was tangy. There was also a very welcome couple of slices of melted parmesan sat on top.

After sharing all of our savoury dishes, we were pretty full but that certainly did not deter us from ordering a chocolate brownie ice cream sandwich with hot chocolate sauce and a malt chocolate milkshake for dessert. The pudding arrived and my smile dropped a bit when I saw the size – I thought it looked pretty small and as I was sharing, I thought I’d walk out unsatisfied. How wrong I was! We tucked in and were both immediately in heaven. The crunchy and fudgey chocolate brownie, encased in warm chocolate sauce and cold vanilla icea cream (and proper ice cream too) was one of the best desserts I have had in a long time. The malt chocolate milkshake could have been a tiny bit thicker but it too went down a treat.

We were given a goody bag as we left, which contained a beatutiful bottle of blueberry gin. Giddy, full and with a smile on my face, I walked to the tube station already planning my return visit.

Meatballs also do takeaway, so if you work around the area, be sure to try it out. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Meatballs at The Quality Chop House opens to the public on Friday 26th August.

Food For Think was a guest at Meatballs at the Quality Chop House.

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Tortilla burrito master class

11 Jul

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to a burrito master class at Tortilla, a chain of Mexican burrito restaurants in London. I wasn’t feeling too well a couple of days leading up to the event and I had been to the doctors that morning and was told I had a kidney infection. Lovely. Still, I went partly because I didn’t want to let anyone down and partly because I love a good burrito.

We arrived at the Market Place branch just off Oxford Street and joined the group waiting downstairs. The evening started with a talk from the founder Brandon Stephens and the Brazillian head chef Bruno Pires. I was really happy to see that Brandon is obviously an avid burrito fan and his enthusiasm really won me over.

After the talk, they brought a load of ingredients for guacamole and we had a go at making our own. All of the ingredients were there for us to use – avocado, green chillies, garlic, coriander, lime, tomatoes, salt and pepper and we could use as many or little of the ingredients as we wished. Jack went for the minimalist approach – he mashed the avocado to a pulp, added chillies, garlic and coriander, plus salt and black pepper. I went for lots of everything. I quite often have coriander cravings so I piled it in, along with a lot of tomatoes (another one of my favourite foods). I added a tonne of garlic, chillies and lime and then a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Brandon was very impressed with Jacks and I was told that mine was very spicy – just how I like it!

We were then shown upstairs to the counter where we made our own burritos, two people at a time. I chose the large burrito but know just how horrible I have felt in the past after eating a burrito the size of a football so I didn’t pack it too full. I added half grilled chicken, half braised pork, romaine lettuce, pinto beans, black beans, lime and coriander rice, monterey jack cheese, guacoamole, salsa roja and sour cream. We were shown how to roll it correctly and then placed it in a warmer so that we could all eat together at the end.

Burritos have a bad reputation for being bad for the waistline but that reputation has come from America where they deep fry everything and even boil the rice in oil. Oof. At Tortilla, healthy food and cooking methods are employed but without compromising on taste. The pork is quality assured and reared outside, the chicken is barn reared and their lime and coriander rice is steamed. The guacamole is utterly delicious (they wouldn’t give their recipe away) and I thoroughly enjoyed my burrito.

For now they only run the master classes for bloggers but I would think that they would do well if they offered the experience to the public. It’s not somewhere that I would go for a proper dinner but I would definitely choose Tortilla over Pret or Eat as an on the go lunch or quick lunchtime pit stop.

Other fantastic burritos in London that I have had were from Daddy Donkey and Benitos Hat. There are others that I have tried but haven’t been so fond of but Tortilla is up there with the greats.

I’d definitely recommend visiting Tortilla if you’re around the area of their five locations, Oxford Circus, Islington, Southwark, Leadenhall Market, Canary Wharf or Hammersmith.

At roughly £5.95 for a large burrito, Tortilla is good value, well sourced, tasty Mexican grub.

Tortilla
6 Market Place
London
W1W 8AH
0207 637 2800

Tortilla -Market Place on Urbanspoon

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Da Polpo

8 Jun

You may think that I like to harp on about Russell Norman and his range (yes I can say range now) of London eating establishments. Well, that’s because I do. Already a fan of Polpo, Spuntino and Polpetto, I was quick to try his newest venture.

At first I Da Polpo was a joke – I read on Twitter that this is what the fourth restaurant from Russell Norman would be called. I couldn’t quite believe that he’d open another restaurant and just put a ‘Da’ in front of an already existing restaurant name. But he did and I don’t mind because as far as I am concerned, he could have called it whatever he wanted and I wouldn’t give a monkeys because I don’t go for the name, I go for the bloomin delicious grub.

I met a friend one evening after work in the first week of opening and I’m pleased to say that I walked in and sat straight down. Probably because it was in the first week of opening but another reason is that Da Polpo is a lot bigger than its predecessors. Set over two floors, the restaurant seats 70 and has a bar seating area on both floors, perfect for those casual small plates and carafe dinners.

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So, the food. I would be lying if I said that the menu was very different to Polpo and Polpetto because it isn’t. The only real difference is that there are expanded meatball and pizetta sections. Great. Really great. While we were pondering the menu, the waitress brought over a complimentary dish of whipped ricotta, black sesame seeds and focaccia, which was a very welcome addition. I would have prefered my bread to be slightly toasted but nevertheless I still wolfed it down.

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We went on to choose the rest of our dishes for the evening and had one from nearly every section. First up was the anchovy and olive pizzetta. I couldnt fault this at all. The perfect ratio of cheese, anchovies and crust thickness. The olives added a lot. I’m not sure what variety they were but were definitely creamy.

We had to go for one of the meatball dishes so chose the classic pork and beef. Three large meatballs arrived in lashings of delicious slow cooked tomato sauce. The meatballs were juicy, tender, melt in mouth and were gone very quickly.

Next up was grilled asparagus with buttered eggs and parmesan – basically scrambled eggs with asparagus and parmesan. I found this dish interesting as I had never considered scrambling eggs and eating them with asparagus before. I have dipped a spear into a soft boiled egg but that’s as far as I have gone. Nevertheless, I loved it. The parmesan was just the icing on the cake. Despite the main ingredient being a vegetable, this isn’t a healthy dish!

We also enjoyed a courgette salad with rocket and yet more cheese. We both felt that the courgette didn’t have a lot of taste but the texture more than made up for it. Not quite raw, it had a great crunch to it.

Although the table next to us seemed to be enjoying their desserts very much, including one scoop of gelato in a lovely looking cone, we decided to pay up and retreat to Gelupo to see what fantastical flavours were in store that evening.

I am in awe of Russell Norman. He has created something very special here in London and I would be happy if one of these restaurants opened on every street corner. Each one has managed to retain its own character and I would go to each one for different occasions. The food is spot on. Simple, fresh ingredients cooked perfectly. Massive thumbs up from me.

Da Polpo
6 Maiden Lane
London
WC2E 7NA
020 7836 8448

Dinner for two with a 50cl carafe of wine came to £40, service included.

Da Polpo only takes lunch bookings.

da Polpo on Urbanspoon

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Mooli’s summer menu

16 May

Mooli’s opened nearly two years ago on Frith Street in Soho, one of London’s busiest restaurant areas. Born out of a passion and a pining for good Indian street food, founders Sam and Mathew traveled around India for months for recipe inspiration.

I live in an area with a large Indian community and while fantastic authentic food is plentiful at cheap restaurants nearby, I have noticed that these are somewhat lacking in Central London. The only other good value (and by this I mean cheap) Indian restaurant (apart from Mooli’s) that I could recommend is Dishoom, who, by the way, has a pop up restaurant on the Southbank this summer.

However, Mooli’s isn’t your typical curry house. They serve a range of Indian wraps, which they call Mooli’s. Also on the menu are a fantastic range of side dishes, plus delicious lassi. They even have an alcohol license so you can enjoy a nice cold bottle of beer or a crisp glass of wine with your dinner, or lunch if you like that kind of thing. All food is freshly made on site – even the bread in a machine that they call their ‘Moolita’, which is basically a roti making machine. It is fired up every morning to create fresh, delicious roti breads that do not contain any nasties.

I have dined at Mooli’s many times and recommended it to many friends but last week I was invited to try their new menu, which was created to reflect the recent spate of sunshine that we have been having and celebrate the warm (hopefully) months ahead.

It’s a good job that I turned up hungry. I was greeted by Mathew who told me that he wanted me to try everything. So I sat down on my own and was stared at by the lunch customers behind me queuing to get their lunch time fix. On my tray was a mini pork Mooli (this is not new but is my favourite so Mathew threw one into the mix), a new chicken Mooli, a superfood salad, cool cucumber Raita, a superfood salad and a rose and cinnamon lassi.

The new chicken Mooli was delicious. The chicken is cooked with herby and aromatic fenugreek leaves and lentils. I particularly enjoted the crunchy pickled turnips. All of this is joined by a tangy and cooling yoghurt raita. This is replacement for the old chicken Mooli and although I never tried to old one, I’m hoping this one is around to stay.

I was also lucky enough to get a portion of the aloo papdi chaat, which isn’t usually available until after 3pm. I love potato curries so this dish went down very well, even more so because it contained chick peas. This is a slight change from their old potato and chick pea side and is topped off with crisp papdi and ruby red pomegranate seeds.

Also on the side was the cooling cucumber raita. Now, I don’t think that any of Mooli’s dishes are too spicy so I didn’t exactly NEED the raita. But want and need are two different things and I definitely wanted it. Cucumber is one of my favourite foods (I have taken a stick and peeled it with a knife in my hand to eat it as a snack for as long as I can remember) and teamed with yoghurt makes for a cooling, refreshing side dish.

The rose and cinnamon lassi was utterly delicious. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t finish it off due to the amount of food on my tray. I am not one to EVER leave food on my plate so was disappointed when I took my last mouthful – the food had defeated me.

I love this place. It has great food at fantastic prices, a good array of music blares out and every customer looks as though they are thoroughly enjoying what they are putting in their mouths.

Mooli’s
50 Frith Street
London
W1D 4SQ

Mooli's on Urbanspoon

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Bar du Marche, Soho

27 Jan

Bar du Marche is an intimate no frills French restaurant in Soho. Don’t go expecting haute cuisine because you won’t get it. Instead what you will get is reasonably well cooked simple French food.

Six Snails arrived swimming in a welcome Garlicky and Parsley Butter and we used the left over Bread from the basket presented to you upon arrival (which you are actually charged £1.60 for!) to soak up the remnants of the dish… It went back to the kitchen spotless.

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I chose Moule Marinière for main as I’d had a heavy lunch and needed something light. I wouldn’t say it’s the best dish I’ve ever eaten, nor would I say it’s the worst. It was good – if only slightly too much celery for my liking.

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The Tarte Tatin dessert was nothing to write home about – the pastry was soggy but the apples had a nice caramel taste (although my fellow diner thought that it was burnt!) I was unsure as to why a suspicious looking Mr Whippy style strawberry sauce had been poured over the whipped cream. I was also slightly alarmed at how quickly it came out after we had placed the order (about 2 minutes!)

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I didn’t try the wine but my companion did and she wasn’t complaining. I stuck to the tap water and I wasn’t complaining either.

The service was faultless, a very happy and hospitable French man was on hand to provide us with entertainment and make us feel very welcome.

If you want to retreat to a cosy restaurant in Soho with good honest simple food and no 45 minute waiting time, Bar Du Marche is your place.

19 Berwick Street
London
W1F 0PX

Bar Du Marche on Urbanspoon

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