Skylon, London

Southbank Centre
Belvedere Road
London SE1 8XX Map

www.skylonrestaurant.co.uk

Our visit to Skylon was our second Toptable freebie. The offer meant that we could have two courses from a set menu for nothing, not bad when all I had to do this was to eat at other fabulous restaurants!

Skylon is in the Southbank Centre and overlooks the Thames. We were seated in the Grill right by one of the huge windows and had a wonderful view across to Embankment. It was quite dark in the restaurant (hence the bad photo) but I guess if it wasn't you wouldn't be able to see out as well.

The set menu was pretty good and we decided to go for starters and mains, then pay for dessert if we were still hungry.

I started with an Endive, Walnut and Stilton salad. There was plenty of stilton which was dotted around the outside of the plate and it was really creamy. Together with the endives, walnuts and the dressing it made for a really nice dish.

My wife ordered the Tomato Soup. From the very first sip she was raving about the flavour saying it had a flavour similar to a Thai Tom Yum soup, which she loves. I had a taste and it was really good, nice and tomatoey (if that's a word) with a hint of exotic spice.

For main course I chose one of my favourites, Melanzana Parmigiana. It was good, not too oily and the aubergines were quite tender. My wife had Salmon Fishcakes which she enjoyed.

I decided to go for a dessert and had a Fig Vanilla Brulee. This wasn't really a brulee in the way I undersand it as it was a "dome" of custard in the centre of the plate with a gentle sprinkling of sugar on the very peak of the dome. This was then surounded by a few figs. It was nice, but it didn't conform enough to a creme brulee to be added to the list.

The service was excellent - prompt and friendly - and my wife was so impressed that she's going back next week with some business collegues.

Gaztronomy Top Ten - 2008

It's the end of another year and time for me to put together a list of the favourites from all the places I visited during 2008. I didn't manage to get to everywhere that I wanted, but did make it to some really amazing places.

Choosing a favourite from the top three wasn't easy as they are all such fabulous places and the food in all of them is amazing, but in the end I plumped for the French Laundry as the location and occasion made it extra special.

1. French Laundry
Spending the afternoon of our Wedding Anniversary in the best restaurant in America was something special. The food was spectacular and the service just perfect.

2. Fat Duck
Heston Blumenthal's menu was an experience not to be forgotten. Each course was a surprise and an education in how mixing taste with our other senses can create a completely new food experience.

3. Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons
It was another perfect meal at Le Manoir. The food was superb, as was the service.

4. Caldesi in Campagna
This was my favourite Italian meal this year. The food was wonderful and it was great to be invited into the kitchen to meet Giancarlo and Gregorio.

5. Café Spice Namaste
I had a couple of really good meals here in 2008 and attended a cookery course where I met one of my veggie cookery heroes. The food is tasty and imaginative and, of course, Cyrus is just a really nice chap.

6. Thackerays
I've been to Thackeray's a couple of times this year and the food is superb. But, c'mon guys, sort out the service and you might get your Michelin Star back!

7. Drunken Duck
In the middle of the Lake District is this gem. The food is great and they even have their own brewery!

8. Benares
The best dessert I had all year!

9. Jamie's Italian
I love Carluccio's, but Jamie's Italian has pipped it to the post this year. The food was delightful and very reasonably priced.

10. Food for Friends
For a veggie Sunday lunch, there is no place better!

Woodlands, Marylebone

77 Marylebone Lane,
London W1u 2PS Map

http://www.woodlandsrestaurant.co.uk/

Woodlands South Indian vegetarian restaurant is tucked away in Marylebone Lane and looks deceptively small from the outside. Once inside, the restaurant opens out into a large, spacious and well decorated area with well laid out tables.

I popped in one lunchtime and had the Delhi Royal Thali and a Cobra (well you have to, don't you..?) The thali consisted of chappatis, paneer sabsi, Dahivada (an Indian donut in yoghurt) , channa, korma, dal, pillau rice, and a dessert.

The paneer dish was really nice, but the top prize has to go to the channa which was really good. The chick peas were nice and tender and the gravy had a wonderful taste - spicy, but not too spicy. The dal had a bit of a kick to it, which was nice as I usually find them a bit bland. The Dahivida was tasty and was perfect to take away any excess spice or to clear the palate as I hopped back and forth between the dishes. The dessert, which was a sort of coconutty thing, finished it all off nicely.

For lunch, this was the perfect dish - the selection was great and the amounts were just enough to fill you up without leaving you bloated and in danger of falling asleep at your desk in the afternoon. The welcome was friendly and the service was good and very prompt, which is just what you need at this time of the day.

If you're around Oxford Street any time and have a hankering for a curry, then I recommend you make a short detour and give Woodlands a go. You won't regret it.

L'Italia a Tavola

3B Monson Road,
Tunbridge Wells TN1 1LS Map

We've popped in to L'Italia a Tavola for a coffee occasionally and my wife picked up and excellent picnic basket in the summer so we decided to try the Christmas meal that they offered.

The subtly lit tiny restaurant and warm welcome offered a very nice cosy refuge from the cold outside and we were presented with a bellini each along with olives and bread as soon as we were seated.

My starters was a really nice lentil and vegetable soup, very Italian and an excellent beginning to the meal. My wife had a chicken broth with meat filled tortellini which she said was nice, but to be honest, mine looked and smelt a lot better.

Next, came a mushroom crespelle with a mushroom and truffle sauce. With my love of all things fungoid, it was perfect for me and it was very, very tasty. It came with a rocket and parmesan salad and, as I'm not a huge salad lover, my wife half-inched it and declared that it was an excellent example of her favourite salad. The meat main course was venison with a redcurrant sauce (I think) which my wife enjoyed and said was very good.

I finished the meal with a cheese platter which was, again, very good although something like a fig or other sweet fruit would've been a nice accompaniment and a coffee.

All in all, it was a very pleasant evening. There were only four tables eating (it is a very small place) but everyone kept themselves very much to themselves. It would've been nice if there was some interaction between the diners, and maybe a touch more festive music or something. We made an effort by pulling our crackers and wearing our hats, but we seemed to be the only table that did. Not to worry, the food was still extremely good and, from my experience of Italian fayre, very authentic.

Il Vesuvio, Tunbridge Wells

112 Camden Road
Tunbridge Wells TN1 2QX Map

http://www.ilvesuvio.co.uk/

We were at a loose end in Tunbridge Wells one lunchtime when I remembered a review of Il Vesuvio on the Eating Out in Tunbridge Wells website.

We arrived just as it opened and were given a warm welcome and seated in the window. The restaurant itself is really airy and is decorated in a style to make you think you've just stepped off of a Neapolitan street, with murals of Vesuvious overlooking the bay and other Italianate features adorning the walls.

We weren't overly hungry and decided to share a plate of Grigliata Di Vegetali Con Pinzimonio which was a plate of grilled vegetables consisting of courgettes, aubergines and peppers marinated in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. While we were waiting, the restaurant became very smoky, so I guess it's safe to say that they were freshly grilled!

We ordered some bread to accompany the vegetable and they were really good, and the last of the bread was used to mop up the juices, which is always a good sign.

We honeymooned in Sorrento, and I have fond memories of sitting at a cafe eating gnocchi with tomato sauce and mozarella, so I decided to see what I Vesuvio's Gnocchi Sorrento was like. It was extremely hot! However, I was warned and after I let it cool down, it was very tasty. The sauce was good and "tomatoey" and the cheese very stringy. The gnocchi itself was firm and not too heavy. My wife had a spaghetti bolognaise and she said that the pasta was slightly undercooked, but not enough to spoil it.

We both enjoyed our meals and the price was pretty good. We were the only ones in there for the most part, although another table came in as we were finishing so I can't comment on the atmosphere. The service was great and the people were very friendly and Il Vesuvio is definitely on our list to go back to.

Jamie's Italian, Oxford

24 - 26 George Street,
Oxford OX1 2AE Map

www.jamieoliver.com/italian/oxford

Having loved Fifteen, when the Cheeky Mockney teamed up with Gennaro Contaldo to open a chain of High Street Italian restaurants, I just had to try one of them.

You can't book at any of the restaurants, so we turned up nice and early, to make sure we got a seat. The plan worked and we were seated straight away.

For those who aren't as lucky, there is a bar where you can wait until a table becomes available.

I started with a vegetable Antipasti “Plank” - so called as it arrives at the table on a plank of wood! Shortly before the antipasti arrived the waitress placed a couple of tins of tomatoes on the table. “Ah”, we thought. “Free tomatoes”. However the tins were for the aforementioned planks to be placed upon.

The antipasti consisted of peppers, courgette, aubergine, artichoke, olives, mozzarella, a minty coleslaw and parmesan cheese with a dollop of chilli jam. It looked great, and accompanied by the bread basket we'd ordered it tasted fantastic.

For the main course I thought I'd indulge my passion for truffles by having Black Truffle Tagliatelle. I wasn't expecting much, after all it was less than nine quid, but what turned up was a bowlful of tagliatelle absolutely covered in truffles and with a gorgous sauce to boot. I was glad that I had a spoon to finish it all off once I had finished the pasta.

For dessert I had Bakewell Tart which was served with lemon an orange crème fraiche. It was up to the standard of the rest of the meal.

The restaurant itself is very relaxed and the staff were extremely friendly. The service was great and for thirty quid each for three courses, drinks and a tip you really cannot fault it. If all the branches of Jamie's Italian are this good then watch out Carluccio's you have serious competition!

January 2009 Update.
I just thought I'd let you know that I visited the Kingston branch of Jamie's today and the service and quality matched that of the Oxford branch. I tried a couple of different dishes, the Mushroom Ravioli for main course and a Tiramisu for dessert both of which were excellent. If all the branches are as good as these two, then the cheekie chappie is on to a winner!

Return to Le Manoir

Le Manoir Aux Quat' Saisons

Church Road,Great Milton,

Oxford OX44 7PD Map

http://www.manoir.com/

Truffles with everything! That seemed to be the theme of my latest visit to Le Manoir, Raymond Blanc's two-star restaurant in rural Oxfordshire. From the moment that the taxi arrived, we were the restaurant's special guests.

Mind you, so was everyone else. That's the beauty of dining at places like this – even though the restaurant is full, you feel like everything is being done just for you, and everyone else just disappears into the background.

With our move to Australia getting ever closer, my wife had suggested that my friend John, with whom I have enjoyed many of the meals reviewed here on Gaztronomy, and I should have a Gourmet weekend together and have a huge blowout at a top restaurant somewhere.

We decided that Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons would be a suitable place for this event and so we booked rooms at the Oxford Belfry, a hotel ten minutes down the road from the restaurant.

After confirming our booking we were shown into the lounge where where were given the menus to peruse. We both chose the ten course Menu Decouverte, I had the vegetarian one, John had the standard menu. I will describe the vegetarian dishes here, but suffice to say John enjoyed the standard dishes just as much as I enjoyed the meat free ones.

After some hors d'ouevres and a brief chat with the sommelier who we left to choose the wines for us, we were shown to our table and shortly after the first course arrived.

This was a potato a black truffle soup, which was a great way to start. After this came a cheese soufflé which was just about perfect. No, it was better than that, as somehow they managed to get a ball of melted cheese into the middle of the soufflé, rather like a cheesy version of a chocolate fondant.

Next up was a leek and Jerusalem artichoke salad. The vegetables at Le Manoir are always so fresh and tasty, and this salad was no exception.

It was good to see that the vegetarian menu was pretty much completely different to the one I had the previous time I went. Sure, there was a risotto and pasta, but both were different to last time, with different vegetables, oh and plenty of truffles! The only dish that was the same was the roasted sweet Romano perpper with tabbouleh, although it was presented slightly differently.

Once the various mains had finished, we treated ourselves to a cheese course, with some spectacular cheeses and then we went on to desserts.

The first of the desserts was Kaffir lime leaf and coconut tapioca with passion fruit and banana sorbet. This was a million miles away from the tapioca you remember from old school dinners and tasted wonderful.

The next dish was described as “Tiramisu Flavours”. This was what I can only describe as a deconstructed version of the famous Italian dessert as all the tastes were there but it was presented quite spectacularly as you can see from the picture.

Finally (sadly) the final dish, a chocolate mousse with lemon butterscotch sauce and almond milk cream glacée was delivered to the table. It was lovely, but the milk cream glacée really stood out – it was lovely.

A coffee and petit fours later and it was all over. We both agreed that the meal was fantastic, the sommelier did a superb job matching the wines to the various courses and the service was excellent and very friendly which all added up to a great afternoon.

We then took some time to wander around the gardens before our taxi arrived to ferry us away.

Paul Gayler's Sauce Book

If you've been following this blog, you'll know that Paul Gayler is a favourite chef of mine, and this is his latest book. It's a collection of 300 sauces from around the world ranging from the classics (Hollandaise, Bearnaise) to the exotic (Nam Jim, Sambal Oelek) to dessert (Creme Anglaise, Butterscotch). Not all the sauces are vegetarian, but a large amount are and many of the others could be adapted.

I made the Sicilian Tomato Sauce which was fantastic. The flavour was so rich and deep, and it was perfect with spaghetti.

Many of the sauce recipes have suggestions on how to use them. One that took my eye was Skordalia, a sort of potato mayonnaise made with potatoes, olive oil, garlic and lemon juice. The recipe alongside, Roasted Beets with Rocket, Soft Egg and Skordalia, sounded interesting so I gave it a go. The results are pictured below, and it tasted pretty good.

The Sauce Book is excellent, well laid out with some great pictures and I expect it to be a constant reference and source of inspiration for me in the future.

Mint Leaf, London

Suffolk Place

Haymarket

London SW1Y 4HX Map

www.mintleafrestaurant.com

I've walked past Mint Leaf once or twice a month for the last two years without realising it was there. A friend had it recommended to him so when we were trying to decide where to go to for our monthly (or so) Beer and Curry night he mentioned that we should give it a try.

So we did.

Mint Leaf is down in the basement and that, combined with the lighting gives it quite a cosy atmosphere. The room is long and partitioned in the middle. One side of the partition is the bar, the other side is the restaurant.

They do a couple of tasting platters on the menu, one of which is vegetarian, so I chose to have that with a side of baby aubergines stuffed with cumin mash and goats' cheese. 

The tasting platter consisted of baby bell peppers filled with spiced potato and paneer, potato cakes cased with green pea and raisin and paneer stuffed with rose petal confit.

The food was very tasty, however special mention must go to the aubergine which was lovely and if visit Mint Leaf, I recommend you try it.

The dessert menu had a coconut creme brulee on it, and it was pretty good, getting an 8 on the scale.

The service was good and, pricewise it's fairly average for London. We were on a discount offer from Toptable which made it quite a bargain and we had a really good evening.

Fat Duck, Bray

High Street,

Bray, SL6 2AQ Map

http://www.fatduck.co.uk/

The Fat Duck was voted the best restaurant in the world in 2005 and, since then, has made the number two spot its permanent home, behind El Bulli.

I've heard many wonderful stories about the food at the "Duck", and have always wondered whether they would do a version of their menu that was suitable for a vegetarian. Well, I can happily tell you that they do, and it is an experience that, whether you enjoy it or not, you are unlikely to forget.

We arrived early enough to have a quick drink in the Hinds Head, Heston Blumenthal's pub/restaurant, which is a few doors away from the Fat Duck restaurant. As our allotted time drew close, we wandered down to the restaurant and were shown to our table.

We then ordered a champagne to start the meal.

We had decided to do the tasting menu and I informed the maitre'd that I didn't eat meat or fish, to which she replied that wouldn't be a problem. The sommelier arrived shortly after and we told him that we would have the choice of wines matched to the dishes.

I'm going to concentrate on the vegetarian dishes that arrived, although I may mention in passing the dish on the main menu if I think it would be of interest.

A wooden bench was brought alongside our table and one of the waiting staff arrived with an array of shiny equipment. The stage was set for Nitro Poached Green Tea and Lime Mousse. Foam was dropped into liquid nitrogen and then sprinkled with green tea powder. You then placed this straight in your mouth to cleanse your palate. Which it did. It was very refreshing. It also caused faint jets of steam to come out of your nose.

Next, a plate arrived containing one square of red jelly and one square of orange jelly. This, we were told was Orange and Beetroot Jelly. "Try the orange one first," we were told. So we did. The orange jelly tasted of beetroot. The red tasted of orange. Very clever and a good amusing start to the meal.

Next came the first change to the set menu. I had Lentils, Peach Puree and Mint. Who would've thought that lentils and peach puree would work together. Take it from me, they do. Although the dish was only a couple of teaspoonfuls the flavour was intense.

Then we were back to the set menu with Mustard Ice Cream and Red Cabbage Gazpacho. Again, the combination of the flavours was superb. Tried separately however both did nothing for me. Once again, I am reminded that it is the combination of flavours that make up the overall experience and for me refusing a dish because I don't like one of the ingredients is something that I now try never to do.

Then came a piece of theatre as the next dish was delivered to the table. They were both themed around the truffle and mine was Butternut Squash and Truffle Veloute with Truffle Toast. As the truffle is dug from under the ground, to evoke the experience we were given a thin film to put on our tongue that had a very earthy taste. A box containing moss was put in the middle of the table and water poured over it. Mist and smoke began to pour from the box and covered the table. It was quite spectacular. Oh yeah, in all the excitement I almost forgot - the veloute was excellent.

Probably the most famous dish at the Fat Duck is the Snail Porridge. Now, as much as I detest snails when they eat my lettuces they're still not part of my diet, so I was wondering what I might get as a replacement for this course. A plate of what was described with a smile as Parsley Porridge was placed in front of me. This was the same porridge without the snails and with some of the thinnest slithers of sundried tomato that you can imagine mixed into the green porridge. On top of this were ribbons of celeriac. It was really tasty and had a very mild curry flavour. I was glad that I was able to share in at least part of the famous dish.

Next to arrive was Cep Mushroom, Almond Gel, Cherry and Chamomile. This was delivered as a substitute for a foie gras dish and was very nice. I'm a huge fungus fan and the “king of mushrooms” was a fantastic substitute. As you can see from the photo, the presentation was excellent.

And so it was time again for another piece of theatre. Two shells were brought to the table each with a pair of earphones coming from them. This was Sound of the Sea. Through the earphones we could hear the sounds of seagulls and the noise of waves crashing to shore. The dish that accompanied the aural experience was a culinary impression of the seaside with edible “sand” made, apparently, of tapioca, along with seaweed, various seafood (in my case it was mushroom slithers and bamboo shoots) and foam. The presentation was superb but most surprising was the reaction I had while I was eating it.

Initially the dish was quite interesting, but then I bit into a piece of what I think was some kind of seaweed. Suddenly my mouth was full of the flavour of the sea and I was transported back to the Leigh Cockle sheds where I used to go with my parents and grandparents when I was a young boy about 35 years or more ago. It was amazing, and a lump came to my throat as the memories came flooding back. I have never had a reaction like that to any food before – it was quite unexpected. Of all the wines that we had accompanying each dish, the Sake that we had with this one was the best match of the meal.

My next dish was Cauliflower Risotto, Carpaccio of Cauliflower and Cocoa Powder. This was the second time in a couple of weeks that I had had cauliflower with cocoa powder as Paul Gayler made a similar dish when I saw him at Café Spice Namaste. Needless to say, the risotto was lovely – the rice had a perfect al-dente texture and it had the perfect “gloopy” consistency that I love.

My next course was Vegetables with black truffle, celeriac foam and lemon and thyme veloute. The vegetables included baby turnips, chargrilled fennel, spring onions and mushrooms among others and they were wonderfully crispy and fresh. The foam and veloute complimented them perfectly. I love dishes like this that show how tasty fresh vegetables can be when cooked well.

Imagine a cup of tea where half of the tea in the cup is hot and the other half is cold. Now, imagine that when you drink it half you mouth is hot and the other half cold. Got that? Now, go to the Fat Duck and try the Hot and Iced Tea where your imagination is turned into reality. Amazing!

Next, it was time for a history lesson and a trip back to our childhood. We were handed a small parchment booklet telling the life story of Mrs Agnes B. Marshall. According to the booklet, Mrs Marshall was one of the greatest Victorian cooks and was the first person in England to write about the edible ice cream cone. We were then presented with a tiny ice cream cornet which was then followed by a miniature sherbet fountain.

It was now time for desserts and first up was Mango and Douglas Fir Puree and Blackcurrant Sorbet. It was beautifully presented and had a fabulous combination of flavours.

The other dish that is a Fat Duck staple is Nitro-Scrambled Egg and Bacon Ice Cream. My wife had this, preceded by Parsnip Cereal and Parsnip Milk which was delivered in a small "Fat Duck Cereals" box! She said at the time that it was nice, however now, due to the amount of wine we had, she cannot remember it!

I missed out on “Breakfast” and instead I had Blackforest Gateaux. This was the dish that Heston did on his TV show In Search of Perfection. Needless to say it was pretty much perfect. It looked good and tasted wonderful. The whole thing was really light and the chocolate layer in the centre was marvellously crunchy.

And so with the delivery of some coffee and petit fours which included Carrot and Orange Lolly and Apple Pie Caramel in an edible wrapper our Fat Duck experience came to an end. It was pretty much unlike any other meal I've ever had. Sure, it's gimmicky, but that I think, is the point. It's about seeing what you can do with food, turning conventions on their heads but most of all about presented beautifully tasting food.

The service was friendly and timely and was never "snooty", which is a criticism I've seen in other reviews. In fact, there doesn't appear to be a dress code at the Fat Duck as there were people in the restaurant in jeans.

If you're vegetarian, there doesn't seem to be any compromise on quality or taste, and I was never made to feel that I was having a second class menu; it was just a fabulous afternoon.

Caldesi in Campagna, Bray

Old Mill Lane, 
Bray, SL6 2BG Map

www.campagna.caldesi.com

A while back I did a course at La Cucina Caldesi in Marylebone and I've always promised myself that I would visit one of Giancarlo Caldesi's restaurants. On one of the bread courses at the Bertinet Kitchen I met Gregorio Piazza, the head chef at the new Caldesi restaurant in Bray, Berkshire.

When we were planning a weekend away for my birthday we decided that we would book a meal at Caldesi in Campagna.

Bray is a lovely little village about ten minutes from Maidenhead and is blessed with some of the best restaurants in Britain, if not the world.

Caldesi in Campagna is in a quiet little road off of the high street and is well set out. The tables are nicely spaced giving a good amount of privacy. The building is an old cottage and is well decorated and the original brick fireplaces and well done lighting give the place a really comfortable and “homely” atmosphere.

We had a drink at the bar when we arrived and Gregorio popped out to see us and have a quick chat. While we were talking, Giancarlo arrived and also said hello before they both disappeared to the kitchen.

We were then shown to our table and our orders taken.

I started with Uovo con asparagi e tartufo which was asparagus, truffle and poached egg. The asparagus, despite not being in season, was really tasty. It was slightly chargrilled which gave it a great flavour and the texture was nice and crunchy. The large slithers of truffle just added to the whole experience – I really enjoyed it. My wife had scallops which she said were really good. She is quite fussy about her seafood and said that this dish was one of only three that she has had in Britain where she can really taste the sea.

My main course was Tortelloni con mozzarella e melanzane - aubergine and mozzarella tortelloni in a cherry tomato sauce. The sauce was superb, it had a wonderful aftertaste of chilli that, while not very hot, added an edge to the dish that raised above it above other pasta in sauce dishes. I mentioned this to Giancarlo, who had been wandering around the tables, and he said that I should mop up the rest of it with some bread, which I duly did.

For dessert I had Stecche di Bombalini which were doughnut sticks with a crème patisserie and jam and my wife had a tiramisu of which I had a spoonful. Both were excellent and it was a perfect end to the meal.

Caldesi in Campagna is a really nice restaurant, very friendly and welcoming and with some great food.

As an added bonus, Giancarlo popped over again and invited us into the kitchen to say goodbye to Gregorio and we took some photos. It was a fabulous end to a great evening which we both thoroughly enjoyed.

Saf, London

152-154 Curtain Road,

Shoreditch EC2A 3AT Map

http://www.safrestaurant.co.uk/

Saf is a relatively new restaurant in Shoreditch, about a five minute walk from Old Street tube. Its advertising, menus and website are quite clever and never mention that the food is vegan, they all refer to "Botanical Cuisine". To many diners this will hopefully remove the preconceptions of boring and bland unimaginative food that seems to dog the "vegan" description as Saf blows these ideas completely out of the water and if you decide not to go because of the "vegan" label, you will have missed out on some great food. In addition to being vegan, most of the food on the menu is raw and I was extremely interested to see what they offered.

We were seated at a large table that overlooked the kitchen which, at times, was quite interesting. We started with a round of cocktails and then moved onto the food.

I started with Beetroot Ravioli, which was very thin slices of beetroot served around cashew herb ricotta with balsamic figs and a side salad. It was very tasty, the beetroot was crisp and the balsamic figs were great. One of the others at our table had a dish described as Caviar. This consisted of "chive pearls" which were tiny little bubbles of chive. I've no idea how they did it, but they were quite impressive, reminding me of the kind of thing that Ferran Adria of El Bulli is famous for.

Next up we shared a "cheese" course between us. A cheese course? I hear you cry. In a vegan restaurant? Well, the"cheeses" are made from nuts and have a "cream cheese" consistency. The cheese plate consisted of a macadamia "cheese" an almond "cheese" and a cashew "boursin".

They were served with olives and some rather nice crackers. It was something a bit different and novel and, it was quite tasty.

For my main course I had Mixed Wild Mushroom Croquette, Truffle Alfredo and Baby Vegetables. This was presented nicely with a cylindrical tower of mushroom croquette alongside a large "teardrop" of truffle sauce. This was served on a slate slab and some carrots and baby turnips finished it of. As you know I'm a big fungus fan so any dish with mushrooms and truffles is a no-brainer. However, I wasn't sure what a raw mushroom dish would be like. Happily, it was great. It tasted cooked and it was served slightly warmed, so I wasn't sure how raw it was. However the menu marks any dish that has been heated over 48 degrees, and this wasn't one of them, so however it was done, it worked.

The desserts all sounded great and we tried a few different ones around the table. The apple sorbet was very strong and the vegan ice cream was a bit grainy. However, the peaches with courgette cake and "cream" was really nice and I had good reports of the chocolate tart too.

The service was extremely friendly and the waiting staff were very knowledgeable about all of the dishes and made some good recommendations, especially for their cocktail list.

Saf, as a concept, is great. I had to keep reminding myself that this was vegan food, it was so tasty. All the food was presented really well and arrived on a variety of different plates and dishes.

If you're looking for a tasty meal and something a little bit different then get yourself down to Shoreditch and give Saf a try.

Adventure Gourmet – Cafe Spice Namaste, London

16 Prescot Street,

London E1 8AZ Map

http://www.adventuregourmet.com/

Adventure Gourmet is a new venture by Cafe Spice Namaste where they offer masterclass demonstrations by well known chefs. The one I attended was a demonstration of vegetarian dishes by Paul Gayler, the Executive Chef of the Lanesborough near Hyde Park Corner.

Paul Gayler has been one of my favourite chefs ever since I discovered his Pure Vegetarian cookery book on a trip to Australia, and I'd used one of his recipes in my Cordon Vert Diploma exam so I didn't want to miss a chance to meet him and see him in action.

I arrived in good time and he came over and introduced himself to me and the others that had arrived. Cyrus Todiwala, the owner of Cafe Spice Namaste came over shortly and very soon we were all chatting and joking.

Very shortly we were off and Paul was demonstrating how to make various vegetarian dishes. The audience was a mixture of enthusiastic amateurs like myself and professional chefs and others with a connection to the catering industry who were interested in diversifying their menus to include some really good vegetarian dishes. It is really encouraging to hear this and it was interesting to be able to chat to a couple of the chefs and to be able to exchange ideas.

The first dish that he made was Fonduta of Celeriac, Mushrooms and Compte on Truffle French Toast. It was basically a mushroom and cheese terrine wrapped in very thinly sliced celeriac. This was served on French toast, made with brioche (a truffle puree was beaten into the egg) and it was fantastic.

It was like feeding time at the zoo when he finished each dish as everyone gathered around to taste it.

Next up was Soft Goats Cheese with Roasted Apricot Chutney, Cracked Pepper Pastry and Banyuls. Again, this was another tasty and well presented dish. The pastry was made with filo with crushed peppercorns between each sheet. During the preparation of each dish Paul Gayler offered various tips on alternate ingredients, especially when cooking the dishes at home, what could be prepared in advance, as well as various amusing stories.

After everyone had demolished the goats' cheese it was time for a Cauliflower Risotto with Liquorice and Raisins. The risotto is mixed with a cauliflower puree to give it the creaminess as well as having a few florets in there and, at the last minute a liquorice jus is drizzled on the risotto. Oh, and just to give it a final twist the dish is given a dusting of cocoa powder. It sounds really weird doesn't it, but take my word for it, it works.

From the risotto we moved on to Brik of Aubergine and Squash, Green Couscous, Tagine, "Ras al Hanout" with Pomegranate Labna. This is a Morroccan dish consisting of aubergine, feta and squash enveloped in a thin pastry and it tasted great. The couscous was flavoured with a coriander oil and it was served with a harissa sauce and the pomegranite labne.

Finally, he made a Vegetable Thai Green Curry with Lychees, Green Peppercorns and Beetroot Jasmine Rice.

The curry paste was very hot, but a great recipe. The lychees gave an interesting texture to the dishes and the beetroot rice added an extra dimension.

After the demonstrations were finished, we all sat down for a lunch provided by Cafe Spice Namaste. This was a three course meal that consisted of a selection of starters including Cyrus's acclaimed beetroot and coconut samosas and a wonderful paneer tikka. This was followed by a thali that included a superb aubergine dish and finished with a rose kulfi. During the meal we all had a chance to chat with Paul Gayler as he joined us for the meal. Cyrus was also there for part of it too.

It was a really enjoyable morning, the atmosphere was informal and friendly and I learnt quite a bit. It was great to be able to meet one of my favourite chefs and to taste some of his dishes first hand.

Bignell Park Hotel, Bicester

Chesterton,
Nr Bicester OX26 1UE Map

http://www.bignellparkhotel.co.uk/

I stayed at the Bignell Park Hotel for a few days for work earlier this week. The hotel itself is okay, the staff are a bit grumpy, but the rooms are spacious and clean.

The restaurant boasts an AA Rosette and the food isn't bad at all. The restaurant somehow manages to have no atmosphere and I can only put this down to the wooden floor, tables, and high ceiling that manages to give it a feeling of a really unloved pub. It's odd, because for breakfast they put white cloths on the tables that makes it so much better, but these are removed for dinner service and you eat off of plain wooden tables.

The food, however, is very good. They have a separate vegetarian menu with three or four choices for each course. I stayed for two nights so was able to sample a couple of dishes which were pretty good.

The highlight of the main courses was a homemade wild mushroom flan with a white wine sauce. It was very nice and had plenty of mushrooms, which suited me down to the ground. It was served with a selection of vegetables and presented very nicely. The best dessert I had was a Panettone Bread and Butter pudding which was superb - very light and extremely tasty.

The breakfasts were good, consisting of a selection of cereals, croissants etc followed by a cooked breakfast. My favourite was a mushroom and cheese omelette that came with oodles of mushrooms, so that set me up for the day nicely.

Although the overall hotel service wasn't that friendly (although it wasn't unfriendly - just nothing special) if you're in the Oxford area, you could do worse than stay at Bignell Park.

The Brew House Hotel, Tunbridge Wells

1 Warwick Park

Tunbridge Wells TN2 5TA Map

http://www.thebrewhousehotel.net/

I've wandered past the back door of the Brew House many times without realising it was there. Just recently however, they have been putting hoardings up and adverts on the walls of the Cumberland Function Rooms (formerly the Gracelands Palace).

It popped up during a search on Toptable I did a few weeks back. As they were doing a promotion where, if you booked two meals in August, you got enough rewards points for a free meal my wife and I decided that Sunday lunch there was in order as this, along with a return visit to Imli earlier this month, would earn us a free meal.

Inside, the restaurant is very bright and modern. We were shown to a table next to the window and given three menus and the wine list. These comprised of the a la carte menu, the Sunday Lunch set menu and a Summer Special set menu. We decided to go for the Summer menu which was £9 for two courses plus a glass of wine.

Some home baked bread was brought to the table and we both started with a Goats Cheese, Walnut and Rocket salad. The cheese was really creamy and it combined very well with the other ingredients.

My main course was Tagliatelle with Tomato, Chilli and Rocket. My wife had a burger which had even more rocket - it did seem to embellish every dish... I thought, initially, that the tagliatelle might be boring but it was nicely spiced with chilli and quite tasty.

We decided to add dessert to the bill and for me there was but one choice as, on the menu was a Bourbon Creme Brulee. It ranked 7 on the chart. It was tasty, but let down by the consistency of he custard, which was just a bit too runny and the lack of any taste of bourbon.

My wife chose a Chocolate Fondant with Cappuccino Ice Cream and Vanilla Cappuccino of which I had a taste. It was gorgeous and I highly recommend it. The fondant was perfectly gooey and the ice cream was lovely. I didn't get a proper taste of the Vanilla Cappuccino as my wife woofed it down marvelling at how good it was!

The service was very friendly and the waiting staff were all very knowledgeable about the contents of the menu.

Compared to the a la carte menu prices (which were high, but not astronomically so) the set menu we had was a real bargain, and we'll back sometime to sample more sometime.

Prezzo, Tunbridge Wells

84 Mount Pleasant Road
Tunbridge Wells TN1 1RT Map

www.prezzoplc.co.uk

Prezzo is a national chain of restaurants serving Italian food. Like most Italian restaurants there are plenty of choices on the menu for vegetarians. I've been there a couple of times and had some really good dishes. The Pane Con Cipolla is well worth having. It's garlic pizza bread with caramelised balsamic onions and melted mozzarella cheese and is great to share at the top of a meal. The baked mushrooms on the Antipasti menu are very tasty and last time I went I had the Crespolina Porcini which consists of crepes filled with mushrooms and ricotta in a cream sauce.

One thing to note when tipping in Prezzo is that I have it on good authority that any tips left on a credit card are used to make up the wages rather than go to the staff as an extra for good service. There is new legislation coming in that will help to stop this practise, but now we always check when we eat out and leave cash tips if we are at all unsure as cash tips are not legally the property of the employer and cannot be used this way. There is a good article about it here. Having read it I was disappointed to see that Carluccio's, a favourite restaurant of mine, follows this practice, so I will now make sure to only leave cash tips when visiting there in future.

Drunken Duck Inn, Cumbria

Barngates

Ambleside

Cumbria LA22 0NG Map

www.drunkenduckinn.co.uk

From the outside, the Drunken Duck looks like your average country pub, except that, despite its position - effectively in the middle of nowhere - there are an inordinate amount of people filling the bar and all the outside tables. So one may assume, quite rightly in this case, that the pub has a good reputation.

Inside, the bar is fairly narrow, but well laid out. The staff are very friendly and knowledgeable and they have a great range of wines and beers, the beers brewed at their own brewery which was initially set up to provide the Duck with its own beers and now supplies many other inns throughout the north of England.

The bar offers its own food menu, however it was the restaurant that we had come to sample. We visited twice, once at lunch and then for an evening meal a couple of days later so this review will be a mix of both visits.

So, lets start at the beginning. The restaurant is well laid out, with the tables far enough apart to allow quite a bit of privacy.

For lunchtime starters I had Goats Cheese with Celeriac Remoulade and Baked Pear. The celeriac was delicately flavoured with mustard and complimented the creamy goat cheese. Similarly, the goats cheese and pear were gorgeous. For starters at dinner, I had another cheese dish. This time it was a mousse with a fig chutney. It was nice, but nowhere near as good as the previous dish. My wife had scallops which she said were fantastic.


My main course on both days was fabulous. For lunch I had Pea & Mint Risotto. It was really good, the rice was cooked with just the right amount of bite and had a pea puree mixed into the rice as well as whole fresh peas. From the evening dinner menu I had Roasted Butternut Squash and Wild Mushrooms. As you know I have a bit of a mushroom fixation, so when this dish turned up I was in heaven. It consisted of two halves of a roasted butternut squash with the bulbs filled to overflowing with chanterelles and trompe-de-morte mushrooms in a lovely white wine sauce. It tasted as good as it sounds (provided I made it sound good enough) and the squash was wonderfully tender. My wife had a venison dish which she said was a little dry and overcooked. However, we saw others coming out that looked perfect, so I guess she was just unlucky.

Instead of dessert for dinner, we shared a cheese platter between us. This had eight different cheeses made from sheep, goats and cows served with various crackers, fruit and chutney. It was all very tasty and, along with a coffee, it ended the meal perfectly.

If you go for lunch, the menu prices are good value, in the evening it is a bit more expensive. If you're in the Lakes looking for a great place to eat, then a visit to the Drunken Duck is well worth fitting into your diary. As I mentioned at the beginning it gets busy so make sure you book ahead, especially for an evening meal.

Yewfield B&B, Hawkshead

Hawkshead Hill,

Hawkshead Ambleside,

Cumbria, LA22 0PR Map

http://www.yewfield.co.uk/

Last weekend we went up to the Lake District. The Bed & Breakfast we picked was Yewfield, a vegetarian B&B near Hawkshead, a short distance from Ambleside.

When we arrived, no one was there, and we were greeted with an envelope with the room keys and a note apologising for no one being available to greet us and instructions on how to get to our room.

The room itself was very nice, spacious and clean and had a qonderful view from the full length window/door which opened onto a very small Juliet balcony.

It's pretty well situated, being about a 20 minute walk from Hawkshead down a small country lane, where you have to squash into the hedge should a car come along. It's also about a 10 minute walk from Tarn Hows.

We did two walks, one from Hawkshead to Latterbarrow and one around Tarn Hows and up Black Crag. We were pretty lucky with the weather as it stayed dry all the Bank Holiday weekend and only started to rain on the way home.

To be honest, the advertising of this place as a "vegetarian" B&B only really refers to the breakfast, as that is the only meal that is provided. Other than that, this could be any B&B. The breakfasts were good, but nothing more than I could get at any other hotel or guesthouse by asking for an English breakfast without the sausage, bacon etc. I guess that you do have the peace of mind that everything is cooked correctly and that there is no contamination by meat products. Other than that, there is no added bonus for vegetarians, which is a shame.

Having said that, it is a very nice place, the staff are very friendly and the rooms are clean and comfortable. If you are looking for somewhere in the Lakes to stay, you could do worse than Yewfield.

Hand and Sceptre, Southborough

21 London Road,
Southborough TN4 0QB

www.thehandandsceptre.co.uk

We were planning to go to the Italian deli in Southborough for a coffee and a bit for lunch, but when we got there it was shut with a "Gone Fishing" sign on the door. So we drove up the hill to the Hand and Sceptre pub to give it a try.

This is a place that I drive past twice a day on my way to and from Tunbridge Wells and never really considered visiting. Now I know what I've been missing, I can see it being a regular choice.

The setting of the pub is really nice, sitting as it does opposite the green so on sunny summer days (if we ever get any) you could sit on the terrace and watch the cricket. Inside it is well decorated with wooden floors, well spaced tables and a few "olde worlde" ovens and such-like to add some atmosphere.

We were only there for lunch, so we didn't eat a lot. I ordered a quatro formaggi pizza and my wife had fish and chips. The pizza was great. As well as the cheese, there were slices of pear on it which went really well with the gorgonzola which I thought was a great idea. My wife really enjoyed her fish and chips and I had a taste of the mushy peas that came with them and they tasted really sweet - not unlike a pea soup. It was the first time that I've ever seen my wife eat mushy peas, they are normally just pushed to the side of the plate, so I think that is a great recommendation.

The service was quick and very friendly and we couldn't fault it at all. The prices are a little higher that I would expect for a pub lunch (my pizza was £9) but it was all very good quality and very well presented. To be honest I'd rather pay that little bit more for the quality of food and service than save a couple of quid and have tasteless, unimaginative food and poor service, so I'll forgive them.

They also offer accommodation, so if the rooms and breakfast match up to the quality of the restaurant it would be a good place to stay if you're visiting the area.

All in all, we were both very pleased that the deli was shut and we'll be back at the Hand and Sceptre before too long.

Christmas in July

For Christmas last year, my sister gave my wife and I a "show and dinner" package. Finally, last weekend we went up to London for the day to finally partake of her present.


We started with lunch at El Cantara, a Spanish/Moroccan restaurant near Shaftesbury Avenue in Frith Street. We arrived around 2.30pm and were the only people in the place. The welcome and service was very friendly and we sat at a table where we could watch the rest of the world go by out of the window.

We chose a couple of dishes to start, Zaalouk which was smoked aubergine with mixed spices, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic, and Piquillo de Patatas which was a baby pepper stuffed with a potato and carrot purée. We had some Moroccan bread to accompany them, and it was all really tasty. For main course I had a vegetable tagine, accompanied by a really good bowl of couscous, flavoured with cinnamon. There was just one thing that annoyed me. Service was included on the bill and yet the credit card machine still offered us the chance to add a tip. What's more, the waiter asked if we wanted to add a tip when he handed me the machine to which I politely pointed out that he'd already included it on the bill.

From there we made our way to Covent Garden and to the theatre to watch the Woman in Black. It's a great play and the tiny size of the Fortune Theatre makes it more spooky.

Once the play had finished we made our way to Maxwell's which was the restaurant where we were to enjoy the meal that came along with the theatre in our present. It's a burger and grill bar and, to be honest, I quite fancied a burger and fries to finish the day off.

When we arrived, we splashed out on a cocktail each and I ordered potato skins for starters. I was brought ones with bacon, but these were replaced without fuss when I pointed out the error. My wife had crab cakes, which she enjoyed.

For the main course we both had burgers; I had a spicy bean burger, my wife had a meat one. Both came with salad and fries and we both enjoyed them. We were both too full for dessert, so we ordered the bill. We both enjoyed the meal and the service was friendly and very prompt. It's a great place for a pre or post theatre meal if you want something quick, simple and reasonably tasty.

All in all, we had a very enjoyable day. Thanks Sis, and Happy Christmas!