Visiting London - Restaurant Recs Please

[fisherman]

you will find a write up by Origanicrime

now that's funny

[jackal10]

Closest thing to jellied eel is a prawn and jello salad, but with fish bones

Served with puie and mash, and liquor (thin mushy peas).

All this and no mention of New Tayab??

[Raj Banerjee]

Closest thing to jellied eel is a prawn and jello salad, but with fish bones

Served with puie and mash, and liquor (thin mushy peas).

All this and no mention of New Tayab??

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I second New Tayyab in Brick Lane for Indian food, London style. Southall is good for canteen/catering quality Indian, and on good days, the food at Gifto's and Tandoori Kebab Centre can be great. But they are patchy. For Indian veggie, the equivalent would be Sakonis, or of course there are the Rasa restaurants for South Indian food.

From Chiswick to Hammersmith, theres a good South Indian veg place on King Steet, I think it was called Samudra, not sure. Nice, and cheap also. If you would like to try high end Indian food, my current fave is Amaya, although Cinnamon Club and Benares are also very good. High end Indian in London would be worth trying, particularly Amaya...I just came back from India, and the nature of the cooking at Amaya is really something worth sampling even after this. If you want lunch time Indian like working folk do, you could try TiffinBites on Great Portland Street, its a nifty little concept, foods ok.

British food - St John, and also if you want eels, then why not Sweetings? I like the place anyways, the very definition of old school.

I second reccommendations for The Wolseley. Brunch on Sundays at the new Cecconi's was quite fun last week too. For a more scene-oriented weekend lunch, you could try places like the Electric Brasserie in Notting Hill.

Disoriented suggestions, but use eGullet, Squaremeal.co.uk and others and you will find all these places I'm sure.

Good luck, hope you have a great time.

Raj

[SBonner]

For South African you may want to try Vivat Bacchus just around the corner from Smiths of Smithfields. They have a stellar South African wine selection, great cheese plates, and South African inspired (Fusion?) cuisine. I have not eaten any mains there but have had a great time chatting with the South African bartenders and manager while consuming some very good international cheese boards and very interesting South African wines.

Cheers,

Stephen

Vancouver

Edited January 11, 2006 by SBonner (log)

[MobyP]

Oddly enough, there's a S. African food nostalgia store called . . . SAFRICA on the North End Road in West London. Two dooors down is a Polish food nostalgia store. Five shops down from that (which just closed) was a Russian food nostalgia store.

We obviously spend too much time waxing lyrical about the old coutries 'ere in West London.

Edited January 11, 2006 by MobyP (log)

[magnolia]

Closest thing to jellied eel is a prawn and jello salad, but with fish bones

Served with puie and mash, and liquor (thin mushy peas).

All this and no mention of New Tayab??

←

She specified Anglo-Indian, New Tayyab is neither anglo - nor Indian, Discuss.

And it's "licker", moy fren!

I had forgotten about Vivat Bacchus - it's related to Brown's in Jo'burg, but as Stephen says, above, it's more South African+French fusion - and yes, there are a lot of South African wines on the list but at least as many French ones, including old vintages. And their reverence for cheese is definitely French - they have their own cool room. Curious to know what PotjieCheffie thinks if he ever gets there...!

Edited January 11, 2006 by magnolia (log)

[lambretta76]

Hit the Borough Market on Saturday morning - some fantastic tastes but we ended up with a couple of great things (the names of the stall are long fogotten)

* cheese from Neal's Yard Dairy - including a fantastic aged cheddar that reminded me of the best goudas - it was superb. Also, a really nice goat's milk cheese and a loaf of Poilane bread

* freshly made olive tapenade

* French sea salts w/lemon

* an amazing hard cider (yes, it was only 10 but who cares!) that was aged for years in old whiskey barrels - so smooth and nuanced. Also very tasty mulled cider (non-alcoholic).

* and about fifty tastes of various meats, fowls, fish, olive oils, etc.

Thanks for the recommendation - it was fantastic!

Was going to hit Chakalaka for lunch today but unfortunately they no longer serve it. Will try for dinner soon...

[fatmat]

Glad you enjoyed the trip to Borough Market

[vytoh]

From Chiswick to Hammersmith, theres a good South Indian veg place on King Steet, I think it was called Samudra, not sure. Nice, and cheap also.

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I think you're talking about Sagar? It's fab - I moved from that neighbourhood where I was a regular, to the Brick Lane area - where I am now a regular of New Tayyabs! My body is not thanking me from the move from veg to MEAT (and lots of it)

Sagar is at 157 King St, Hammersmith

Reviews are here

Great dosa and puri, friendly and polite service. Not upscale decor - more a take on modern cafe, but I've always enjoyed my visits there. I do miss it.

Faulkners is now a nearby visit for me too - had great grilled sardines & chips in the restaurant there. 6 fat ones for next to nothing. Some think it's pricey but you're paying for fresh fish. The owner goes down to Billingsgate every morning to buy fresh fish so the specials board is always worth a look. The chips weren't fantastic - a bit dry. Prob would have preferred them wrapped up in chippy paper and doused in salt & vinegar from their takeaway counter next door! But the fish...the fish....

Hope you're having a great time in London!

[lambretta76]

In the past few days I've hit a couple more on the list:

North Sea Fish Restaurant - great fish. So-so chips and peas. Bit on the pricey side, though they offer takeaway for about 4 quid. (Jumbo cod in the dining room, easily split by two, cost £11.95.) Overall it was good, but chips are integral part of the dish, and theirs were just OK.

'Smiths' on Smithfield - quite tast full English breakfast (served all-day) in the Ground floor room. Nice house beer (SOS), good sausage and mushrooms, ask for the fried bread.

The Devonshire House - gastropub in Chiswick. Really nice place - decent wine list, good tapas plate, nice puddings. I had a spaghetti with crab, clam, and chilli which was perfectly prepared. Shared app and dessert, two mains, a bottle of wine, bottle of sparkling water, port, and armagnac came to just under £60.

Also had a great pint of Fuller's winter ale at the Mawson Arms pub next to the Fuller Brewery.

Today for lunch it's the dreaded eels...

[lambretta76]

A couple more updates of my trip:

Milk & Honey - went to this branch of the NYC institution as it's one of my favorite cocktail bars in the world. It's a beautiful space, just like in NYC, and the person at the door was sweet. However, after placing our drink order it took nearly half an hour for our drinks. I ordered an absinthe with water, and was just brought about four shots worth of absinthe. (I know I shouldn't complain, but the stuff is 70% alcohol.) After another ten minutes and several request for water, I was brought an espresso cup of water - about 3 ounces. Ridiculous! Anyways, luckily we were able to flag down another waiter, who was much better, but this first guy was a joke. Sasha doesn't usually hire chumps like that - I wonder if he's too spread out over his three joints in NYC.

Lanesborough Hotel Library Bar -

Great ambiance - pianist playing showtunes in the corner. Drinks priced at a hefty £12.50, but well worth it. (My Sazerac was top notch.) What makes it easier is the canape plate, the homemade vegetable crisps, the spicy peanut mix, and the passed hors d'ouevres which included medium rare filet topped with a hunk of foie gras.

M Manze Pie and Mash -

So this is what people talk about when they say that British food sucks. The pies - utterly flavorless. The potatoes, even more so. And the "liquor" - man that was disgusting. However, the only thing that could possibly make this meal look good was the jellied eels, which almost everyone else was lapping up. (A couple of guys actually went up for seconds.) My first bite was enough to trigger my gag reflex - it was fishy, crunchy Jello. Utterly beyond approach. Definitely a once in a lifetime event. I do believe that this meal (save for the eels) can be done well, but the pies were of very low quality. Even once dousing the entire plate with salt and vinegar I barely tasted anything.

I'm also sad that Pret no longer has a Coronation Chicken Sandwich - man I loved those. The All-Day Breakfasts are as good as ever, and I liked the Tuna Nicoise. Though I believe the crayfish and rocket could use some flavor.

[PotjieCheffie]

PotjieCheffie -

Will you be my friend and cook me dinner? (Kidding, of course.) I may try Chakalaka, or I may just head to St. Marcus Fine Foods and see if they have any recs.

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Lambretta,

As this week is manic with other things on the go, I'd love to but will have to turn you down this time round unfortunately - barely have time to sleep let alone cook for friends LOL.

Whilst I realise getting on the Metropolitan Line would be a mission, the food at Cape Etc in Little Chalfont (Chalfont and Latimer station - if you get the Marylebone overland Chiltern Railways, Aylesbury via Amersham, then the journey would be approx 30 min) is the one I'd trust.

Magnolia, I've not had the pleasant time to indulge myself at Vivat Bacchus to date but will hopefully get there soon.

Not sure how long you're going to be here for, but drop a line if need be via PM etc

G

[wgallois]

I second the recommendation of Sagar in Hammersmith. Having tried quite a few of the better known Indian restaurants in London (Rasa in Stoke Newington, Sabras in Willesden, New Tayyab's, and places in Drummond St and Southall), I thought this was the best I'd tried here. The standouts were the chats, the paneer dosa, the samba, and the service. Although it's not pricey, this was one of the few restaurants I've been in recently where they had evidently thought about service, and the evening was marked by lots of nice touches (glasses of tap water being re-filled unasked, new plates and cutlery arriving quickly etc.).

[cbarre02]

My sister in law will be staying in south bloomburg vicinity for quite a while in july, and ne a bit of input on modarte priced restaurants in the area. Tasty food for a reasonable price around 20 GBP per person, any style or cuisine

[Emma M]

There's a Bloomburg Street and a Bloomberg Street in Westminster, but I have never actually heard of South Bloomburg. New to me.

Edited May 31, 2006 by Emma M (log)

[naebody]

My sister in law will be staying in south bloomburg vicinity for quite a while in july, and ne a bit of input on modarte priced restaurants in the area.  Tasty food for a reasonable price around 20 GBP per person, any style or cuisine

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... umm .... Bloomsbury perhaps?

As ever with London, the best plan when starting anywhere is to walk for 10 minutes and get to somewhere else.

Nevertheless, in your immediate vicinity may (or may not) be Fino and Salt Yard, both excellent and well worth booking. For fewer bucks and considerably less bang, you could try the cafe at the Royal Institute of British Architects (Med-ish), Ikkyu on Tottenham Court Road (Japanese), the Perseverance on Lamb's Conduit Street (British) and Busaba Eathai on Store Street (Thai). And if you are really freaking out at our currency's strength against your own, The Fryer's Delight on Theobalds Road is your best local chip shop.

That's Bloomburg covered pretty comprehensively, I feel.

[gethin]

My sister in law will be staying in south bloomburg vicinity for quite a while in july, and ne a bit of input on modarte priced restaurants in the area.  Tasty food for a reasonable price around 20 GBP per person, any style or cuisine

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...umm .... Bloomsbury perhaps?

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Assuming that we are indeed looking at the southern part of Bloomsbury, it's very short stroll to Lincoln Inns Field where she will find The Terrace (modern British with a Carribean slant). There's a three course lunch and pre theatre menu at around £15 which is pretty good value and it's a really nice space on a summer's day.

Heading west from Bloomsbury it's not far to Soho so a visit to Arbutus should definately feature in her itinery.

Apart from The Fryer's Delight, another economy option is the refectory at the School of Oriental and African Studies. I haven't eaten there for a while, but it used to be pretty decent and very very cheap.The October Gallery (in the street that runs parallel to Southamton Row , one block east,) is another possibility for a cheap lunch, if she decides to alternate real economy with splashing out (which I think might be a better plan than sticking to places around the £20.00 mark).

Gethin

[jakob nielsen]

Hi,

I am looking for suggestions in the London Area in late June.

We like fancy food, but not fancy manners. No jacket and tie places, but would love to try something new.

We've been to Hakkasan, River Cafe, Neal St, in recent years, and loved them all.

Thanks

Jakob

[cbarre02]

sorry about that, it is indeed south bloomsbury

[jakob nielsen]

People...please!

57 views and notta one place worth visiting.

Who are people raving about. Who's the new Jamie. Something. I am begging.

[Janice]

How about St John?

There's plenty of discussion of it in this forum.

It is a definitely not a 'jacket and tie' place, but few in London are, especially in late June.

Janice

[Clerkenwellian]

People...please! 

57 views and notta one place worth visiting.

Who are people raving about. Who's the new Jamie. Something. I am begging.

←

If you're willing to splash out, Galvin at Windows might fit the bill (see reviews here, here, here and here

[naebody]

Informal buzz and fancy food are available at Ledbury, Amaya, Galvin, Club Gascon and its Sloane cousin Le Cercle. The Belvedere is also a very nice summer option for out-of-towners. But the table to be seen at this summer will likely be La Noisette, Bjorn Van Der Horst's new place. Not sure if it'll be open by the end of June, but they had a recruitment day about a fortnight ago and the PR puffery has started, suggesting things are progressing.

Edit update: La Noisette scheduled to open on July 17. So forget that bit.

Edited June 2, 2006 by naebody (log)

[davecap]

Informal buzz and fancy food are available at Ledbury, Amaya, Galvin, Club Gascon and its Sloane cousin Le Cercle. The Belvedere is also a very nice summer option for out-of-towners. But the table to be seen at this summer will likely be La Noisette, Bjorn Van Der Horst's new place. Not sure if it'll be open by the end of June, but they had a recruitment day about a fortnight ago and the PR puffery has started, suggesting things are progressing.

Edit update: La Noisette scheduled to open on July 17. So forget that bit.

←

How about high class Thai - Patara on Fulham Road - excellent food and really creative dishes - when we went over thewinter were serving some vension and wild boar

[cbarre02]

thanks for the help!