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brokentelephone

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Everything posted by brokentelephone

  1. Went to Master's Superfish today for lunch, and was rather disappointed considering the rave reviews I'd heard here, and in various other publications. I had a haddock and chips, and my companion had the cod. The fish was fresh, no doubt, but the batter was too thick, and there was a slime texture in between the fish and the batter which I would assume is the cardinal sin in fish-frying. One thing I don't enjoy is having the skin left on, and they were unwilling to skin my piece of haddock (which might've made me enjoy my meal marginally more). The atmosphere was depressing, the service was not very friendly, and overall the place seems pretty dingy. I woudl never return, and would recommend anyone to the Golden Hind far ahead of this place.
  2. Went to Luna Rossa last night. Had a Margerita with Buffalo Mozzarella... the mozzarella was far too salty, and I felt there was too much cheese / sauce which left the base extremely soggy. Not the worst pizza in London, but certainly not the best. Right now, I'd have to say that Red Pepper in Maida Vale is the best pizza in London (that I've yet tried!)
  3. I agree with the Golden Hind suggestion. I went a few nights ago, and was totally taken aback. Extremely delicious food, and excellent service (BYO with free corkage)! I will be trying a few more spots around London shortly for a full comparison.
  4. Kombiniya on Robson? I swear they used to have calorie mate! ← Was at Kombinya last night... they definitely have Calorie Mate!
  5. I went to the old location probably 2 years ago, and I must say at the time I was thoroughly disappointed. My friend had the cornish hen (which was very dry), and I had the beef ribs which were tough, and odd tasting. I've eaten a lot of BBQ in my day, and perhaps my expectations were high, but I wasn't in the least bit impressed.... even without comparing to 'real' BBQ. Coupled with the extremely slow service, and complete arrogance of the chef, I was completely in awe of the stellar reputation the place had amassed here on eGullet. The chef came over to my table to chat (I was 25 at the time, perhaps my youth gave him free reign to gloat?) , and proceeded to tell me of his experiences at Il Giardino, and how his cooking was so vastly superior to theirs. I grew up eating at Umberto's restaurants, my mother still frequents Il Giardino weekly, and considering I've never had a bad meal there (granted I've had far better meals, but its consistent and the pasta is fab) I was slightly irritated that he hadn't even asked me how my food was; he just assumed that I must've enjoyed my meal. When I finally interjected and made my opinions known, he was totally aghast, and walked away. That being said, does anyone remember that mexican chicken place on commerical drive with the rotisserie and the sombrero that came down from the ceiling when the door was opened ?
  6. Girlfriend stayed there age 12. Her response to seeing my reading of this thread "oh my god, i had food poisoning there as a child...." Some things never change!
  7. There is a place on Old Brompton Road near the corner of Earls Court Road called La Pappardella (I believe this is the name.. there are a few Italian places on that street... this one of the most West...). They make an excellent pizza, as good as my recent visit to Venice (granted not the pizza capital of Italy.. but....), and they cost about 6-8quid. I would also eat the lasagna there, but few other items have been successful.
  8. Have you guys ever been to West, TX? Its a little Czech town with many great kolache places. I'll post pics eventually when i return home from my Texas BBQ adventure!
  9. Bistrol Sakana is great with the same fish supplier as Octopus, Tojo, etc etc. and it is in Yaletown with a great patio. And the place in Aberdeen is no longer the same high-quality place (if it is even open anymore). It became a cheapo place after a few months b/c no one was purchasing the high end stuff....
  10. Actually, I do -- albeit on the wrong side of the Shepherd's Bush roundabout. I would not question that there's the wealth around the SW postcodes to support the £2 gala melon. However, I also suspect that even the absurdly wealthy will be put off by the thought of 10,000 of said melons rotting in a skip outside the staff entrance. It's a character argument, not a pecuniary one. ← I reread my inital post and I hope I didn't sound like a jerk in assuming u didn't live nearby.....! I didn't mean that in any way defamatory, but rather, was making a point that the people around Whole Foods probably don't care a damn about hte high prices, wastefulness, etc. The ex-pat American Wanker-Banker community could probably sustain this store alone, without a single Brit ever entering!!! The population around there is so diverse I think that holding the area to any british standard would be useless..... i know more americans on my road than brits..! I guess I am alone in loving this store....i was able to find smoked chipotle paste, and decent peanut butter.......to me, thats enough.
  11. Can I ask what are you basing that opinion on? If it's the old "he never writes about the restaurant" thing, it's been covered already. Personally, I thought his review skewered the main points of the argument, namely: it's a culture clash. It's a temple to the American ideal of plenty, dumped into Kensington seemingly without a moment's reflection about the British ideal of frugality. That it's trading on the same cultural bandwagon as Acorn House shows just how stupid the concept of "environmentally friendly" has become. I'll bet dollars against doughnuts, organic or otherwise, that it can't survive six months without a major revamp. ← I am assuming u dont live in South Ken, Holland Park, Chelsea, etc.? People around here are wealthy.....their levels of excess far trump the populations around most Whole Food locations in the US (aside from maybe the Beverly Hills store). Perhaps the store won't appeal to *most* British Consumers, but to survive they simply need to appeal to wealthy upper-class West/South West London families.......an easy feat for such an expensive store.
  12. I absolutely despise my local Tesco express. DESPISE. But I occasionally buy a "This Water" by Innocent on my way to the tube there...... Hating this Tesco does not affect my opinion of Innocent at all, simply being sold there doesn't undermine its deliciousness!!
  13. I was just in Italy for the weekend..... shame on VancouveR!
  14. I never quite understood this one...why Ukrainian Tire? ← Because I'd already used Cambodian Tire upthread? ← Its a colloquial name for CT in Western Canada! I've just never understood why?
  15. I never quite understood this one...why Ukrainian Tire?
  16. Anyone tried Yakitoria? I haven't heard much about it, aside from a favourable review in Time Out a few months ago... was going to try it out, but havent yet had the chance. In any event, Winot, it should fit the bill as it is very flash and high-end aesthetically, and the food *might* be great! There is also a place just off of Kensington High Street on Palace Gate called Koi which isn't bad at all.....though certainly not exceptional. It's somewhat authentic, insomuch as the chefs and waitresses are Japanese, and the menu is inventive compared with a standard sushi place! There is always Cocoon on Air Street, just off of Regent. Its somewhat past it's prime, but the food is decent, and the atmosphere very buzzy a bit later!
  17. All very true, but organic food in London is likely to taste just like organic food in New York. I'm depressed by world-wide predictability. ← I may be mistaken but organic standards in the UK (and probably Europe too) are different to the organic standards in the US. Consequently, the produce or food may taste different. One noticeable difference is that organic produce in the US is quite a bit bigger than the same organic produce in the UK. ← UK produce is SO superior to produce you find in the US. Americans grow a lot of their own produce in regions not especially suited for it, or otherwise, import it from Mexico. The UK, and the rest of Europe, seem to import from a far more varied number of countries... which in my opinion, results in far better products. In my fridge right now, i'd imagine that over 10 countries are represented in the produce bin....! ← Wholefoods or "Whole Paycheck" as it's know by some in the US may have a greater variety of fresh fruit and veg but the US stores I visit (I live in the US) also sell conventional produce too. Where I live, the local supermarkets have cottoned onto the consumer's interest in healthier/organic/locally grown food and produce so I can also buy limited varieties of what Wholefoods sells more conveniently. My local Wholefoods is a 20 mins drive from my home and if I go there, it's just for that because it's not near other businesses that I'd go to. Therefore, I tend to buy more organic produce from my local supermarkets than Wholefoods. As for the country of origin for produce, much is from Mexico but a lot is from Canada (like British style cucumbers) and other South American nations. It does bother me that US organic strawberries are pretty much no different in size than conventional strawberries and flavorwise, they don't taste that much different. Oh how I miss the annual family day trips to Tiptree to pick strawberries... ← Canada??? I am actually from Canada, not US, and truth be told, Canadian produce is horrible. Tomatoes are grown in 'hot-houses' which results in a beautiful, albeit tasteless speciman.....peaches have the texture of a hard apple which has been bruised all around, as do nectarines. Apples and pears are really our only saving grace, and even those, are not exceptional. Mexican produce...its alright, but the large scale farms owned by american businesses there trump anything else you'll find elsewhere, and in my opinion, the quality definitely suffers. American strawberries are, again, tasteless. Californian farms pump out enormous strawberries, with a brilliant red hue, but the flavour is always disappointing (plus u never know if they are GMO)...! I recall moving to the UK a few years ago, and going to my local Waitrose. I couldn't believe how excellent everything tasted. My father, a South African native, was equally surprised.... said he hadn't purchased produce so delicious since his youth in SA. Perhaps the UK doens't have the world best produce.... but i contend it is far better than in North America.....!
  18. All very true, but organic food in London is likely to taste just like organic food in New York. I'm depressed by world-wide predictability. ← I may be mistaken but organic standards in the UK (and probably Europe too) are different to the organic standards in the US. Consequently, the produce or food may taste different. One noticeable difference is that organic produce in the US is quite a bit bigger than the same organic produce in the UK. ← UK produce is SO superior to produce you find in the US. Americans grow a lot of their own produce in regions not especially suited for it, or otherwise, import it from Mexico. The UK, and the rest of Europe, seem to import from a far more varied number of countries... which in my opinion, results in far better products. In my fridge right now, i'd imagine that over 10 countries are represented in the produce bin....!
  19. I am personally overjoyed that Freish and Wild is opening. I hear they have a 'peanut butter bar' which will hopefully stock Maranatha Brand peanut butter... the worlds finest! I don't have the time to shop from market to market, and I like the fact that Whole Foods trys to support as many organic/small farm-type producers of goods as possible. I would prefer to see small markets close down than have the small producers close... in the end, its all about the food quality, rather than the shopping experience!
  20. The Ganache at La Terrazza is delicious! I often eat there for the Bolognese (best in the city, without question.. their best dish by far), followed by a ganache! Too bad during my recent trip to Vancouver I didn't have the opportunity to partake!
  21. I have a book by Steve Raichlen... not sure the title, but I believe he has 2 definitive BBQ books, one of which is called the BBQ Bible (or thereabouts) and the other is the one i have. He tells you everything you'd ever need to know about BBQ and sets out exactly what temps u need for smoking various meats, etc. Plus, the guy is a bit inventive, and includes BBQed veg, and lots of random but delicious recipes. I have a few other BBQ books (I come from Canada and have a smoker at home there.... hence the collection) but none really come close to Raichlen, esp. for an occasional BBQ chef..! Regards.
  22. There is a great new-ish bakery in Kerrisdale (near Red Onion) called Sweet-E's or something along those lines... excellent products... have a chocolate layer cake there and it vaguely reminded me of a Betty Crocker cake, albeit far more gourmet.
  23. Really??? I am under the opposite impression....
  24. I am inclined to disagree. Chinese food in london is generally dismal. Hakkasan is excellent, no doubt, but it is hardly authentic dim sum, and I do not consider such a trendy restaurant to be a great place to get dim-sum generally. I'm from Vancouver in Canada, and we have an enormous ex-pat HK community. The food there is widely considered to be as good as HK because many of the top chefs moved there from HK prior to the handover. London chinese/dim sum isn't nearly as good as Vancouver, and Vancouver isn't as good as the best in HK. That being said, for good cheap diner-style chinese food, I really like Cafe TPT in Chinatown~~
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