Zucca (Again)

I've been here a few times before and have posted on it here. I waxed lyrical about this restaurant as it serves delicious, simply modern Italian food at great prices. The last time I went here you could have an aperitif, three great courses with wine for £35 ish each. The only issue is that everyone else loves it too! We haven't been back for ages since you need to book weeks in advance and that's just not something I generally like to do.

With a booking 6 weeks in advance, we went back this weekend. We had a booking at 8:30pm and rushed to finish our drinks in a nearby bar so that we would be on time. Having tuned up on time, we were kept waiting for nearly 20 minutes to be seated. Not a good start.

I noticed the recent additions of table clothes (I preferred the bare white tables before) and an extra couples of pounds on the price of each main course. Had Zucca turned its back on its self proclaimed philosophy of providing excellent modern Italian food at affordable prices?

What we ate:

Bitter Greens with Pangrattato. The greens were very bitter but not unpleasantly so.

Carpaccio of Sea Bream. The chili makes this dish for me. Recommended.

Zucca Fritti. Crispy batter and sweet zucca (pumpkin) made for a tasty treat. I agreed with Mike that they needed a bit of extra salt to bring out their best. The presentation was better than it looks below as I forgot to take a picture before we started to dive in.

Bresaola with Rocket and Parmesan (forgot to take a picture). Good quality Bresaola. I enjoyed it.

For mains I went for the Veal Chop. A satisfying large hunk of meat turned up. The veal was very tender, well seasoned and had a good charred BBQ taste. The fat was sweet and had rendered down to warrant eating the majority of it. The spinach was over seasoned but well cooked. Recommended.

PJ went for the Octopus with Polenta and Covelo Nero. I didn't taste as good as the last time I had this here. There was less of a charred taste from the grill which I really like, but it was very succulent and tender as it should be.

A big gripe of ours with Zucca is that they never usually have chocolate on the dessert menu. You should always have chocolate on the dessert menu. This time however, hurrah, they had a Chocolate and Hazelnut Tart. Not being a huge dessert lover, I found it pleasant (the base slightly over done) but wouldn't necessarily order it again.

Dinner came in at £45 each, up about £10 a head I would say since our last visit 10 months ago (ish). We all really enjoyed the food and I still think that the food delivers great flavour although I would like to have seen some new dishes on the menu, with much of what was on offer this time also there last time. I would say in terms of value for money that Zucca has gone from being an absolute steal to in line with its peers. This is probably a good business decision since the place is still packed. Service was not as attentive as it once was, and we had to pour own own wine and call over waiters to order drinks/food a few times.

Zucca is still a great restaurant but has gone from a "must go" to a "recommended" destination.

Monster Munch Rating: 75%

http://www.zuccalondon.com/

Barbecoa

We went to Barbecoa a few months ago just after it launched. This new venture (apparently costing £3m to put together!) is a joint venture between the enthusiastic and likeable Jamie Oliver and some dude in the US who apparently is a bit of a legend when it comes to proper American BBQ meats. I have been dying to get some proper BBQ in the UK having been disappointed on more than one occasion with Bodean's. Where can I get pit beef, burnt ends, smoky brisket cooked long and slow over open coal and all those other mouth watering goodies that Adam Richmond of Man v.s. food schooled us on?

It makes me weep, it makes me yearn. I need a BBQ pit that puts down massive smoke rings on ribs, smoked sausages and pulled pork that has been lovingly prepared by people who baste on a secret blend of spices with mops for hours on end. Where do I get this stuff in the UK????

Needless to say I was excited at the thought of getting something resembling proper BBQ at Jamie's new joint.

I started with the Baby Back Ribs (£9.00). Fail. They were cold, hard, and just not juicy and succulent. They had clearly been sitting on the side for a while under a heat lamp. There was also too much black pepper me which overpowered the rest of the flavours. I preferred Bodean's rendition.

Ordering the mains was a bit of a fuss. I originally wanted the Pulled Pork Shoulder. No cigar. They were out. OK, how about the Bone in Strip Steak? Guess again. The Rump Steak? Nope. What! I had to settle on the Pork Belly which to be fair was pretty good, it's just not what I come to a BBQ joint for, and at £16 is pretty pricey for a piece of meat that cost no more than a few pounds.Chips were good but rich at £4.

PJ also wanted the pulled pork, but had to settle with the short rib. The picture looks great I agree, but it really did lack flavour. Where's the smoke?

I think we skipped dessert and went back to the lounge and had some more drinks. The restaurant looks fantastic and the bar is a really nice place to hang out on the big couches with a spectacular view. Sorry Jamie, but I can't help but think that we should have skipped dinner and stayed in the bar.

p.s. the best bit about Barbecoa is the butchers that is attached to it. Open 6 days a week, it is really convenient and sells great quality meat. It's really quite a spectacle seeing whole sides of beef hanging up and whole ribs roasts air drying. I recommend you go down and pick something up.

Monster Munch Rating: 60%

http://www.barbecoa.com

Bull and Last

A lazy Saturday afternoon led us to the Bull and Last over in Kentish Town/Hamstead way. I had been here before after a particularly fruitful afternoon mushrooming on Hamstead Heath with Fungi to be with (recommended). Back then, the place was packed though and we didn't have a reservation so, if I remember rightly, we just had a drink and left.

This time however, with a reservation in hand, we headed back for lunch. The place does get very busy and it is worth ringing ahead, probably by a week or so. When we arrived, the menu wasn't out of the kitchen yet, but I spied some large deep fried balls on the pass and enquired as to what they were with the waiter (uber friendly, but not in a creepy way). They were either arancini or scotch eggs. They were scotch eggs. Yes. Result.

Good examples with a nice runny yolk:

We were a bit stuck as to what to order for a starter. I wanted either the fish or meat board but both were fairly punchy price wise (£12 each) so we decided to share two boards amongst the three of us. Just as well as they were pretty large.

The fish board had some cured salmon with capers, fried calamari, a croquette, smoked mackerel, potted shrimp and some rye bread. Pretty good but not amazing.

The meat board wasn't the usual assortment of charcuterie, coming with a really good rich liver pate, duck "proscuitto", some kind of terrine (I wasn't wild about it), pigs head croquette et al.

We also got a side order of "pig trotter wonton with sweet chili sauce". The batter and sauce were great but I couldn't really detect what was inside. It could have been anything. I did clean the plate though. Anything fried with sweet chili sauce floats my boat.

Feeling pretty full, I began to regret ordering the fish and chips for main. Having said that, the chips were great, the fish perfectly cooked and the batter delicious and crispy apart from the yeasty taste from the occasional soggy bit. Pretty good stuff though.

PJ had the "pork knuckle/hand" with sauerkraut which was in my opinion a little tough.

PJ then also had some kind of chocolate truffle thing for dessert which she seemed to like. I had a coffee and we were on our way. The food here is very good for a pub. It is easy to see why the place is packed. The service is the best I have ever had in a pub and strikes the perfect balance between being efficient and being intrusive.

Monster Munch Rating: 75%

Bull and Last
http://www.thebullandlast.co.uk

Le Cafe Anglais

It has been a while since my last past I know. Bad me. I will try and be better.

I have been to Le Cafe Anglais a couple of times before and have always been impressed by its solid French brasserie style food and attractive Art Deco style dining room.

We were walking around Bayswater one afternoon and didn't fancy the Chinese food we usually seek out in this part of town, so thought we would head to Le Cafe Anglais which is on the top floor of the Whitely shopping centre.

They do a good array of Hors D'oeuvres at £4.50 each so we ordered a selection of them as we thought this would be more fun that just getting a single starter each. I also couldn't find anything deep fried on the usual starter menu, which is what really persuaded me in all honesty.

Parmesan Custard and Anchovy Toast. This is a killer. Strong cheese and salty, umami filled anchovies squashed in between crispy bread. I was using my fingers to scoop out the last bits of the cheese once I ran out of the addictive toasts. Try it.

Rabbit Rilettes with Pickled Endive. This is the first time I have had rabbit rillettes. Similar to a coarse pate or confit, the meat was extremely tender. Although it was tasty, I didn't love this dish. That was until I had the pickled endive which was hiding beneath the toast. The sour and sweet endive had been pickled with a few spices of which I could make out star anise and clove (I think). This went fantastically well with the rich and fatty rilletes.

Salsify Fritters. I admit I couldn't really taste the salsify in here but the batter was delicious and went so well with the expertly made hollandaise that I didn't care. They cured my deep fried cravings, at least for a moment or two.

Le Cafe Anglais seem to specialise in rotisserie style meats. They have a big wall of rotisseries, similar to those you see in French markets. I wasn't in the mood for this though, and went with the skirt steak with red wine and shallots. Slightly gamey and served medium rare, I enjoyed the skirt steak which went well with the salty fries (£15.50)

Feeling indulgent after the Hors D'ouvres, PJ opted for the fish soup which was served with cheese, croutons and a spicy rouille. Initially we felt it wasn't quite "fishy" enough and that maybe some more shrimp heads or similar should have been included in the stock. After adding some more salt however it was suitably fishy but not overbearing as some fish soups can be (£8.50).

Rather than having pudding here, we opted for a gelato from the stall just outside (not bad).

We like Le Cafe Anglais. It's a good place for a lazy lunch on a Saturday or even a bull blown meal with aperitifs and digestifs. It is reasonably priced for French food in London and the service was friendly and efficient.

Monster Munch Rating: 75.00%

Le Cafe Anglais
8 Porchester Gardens
London
W2 4DB

0207 221 1415
http://www.lecafeanglais.co.uk

Benares

For my birthday, PJ took me to Benares. I have wanted to come here for ages as I had heard very good things about this upscale modern Indian restaurant from Atul Kochhar. It's in Berkeley square in Green Park (one of London's most exclusive areas) and you immediately know it, with door porters and a posh members' club type atmosphere on entry (I hope our names are on the list...).

We started with a cocktail in the bar. As you would expect, most of the cocktails are Asian twists on classics such as Martini with cardamon etc. Drinks we about £13 each, not cheap but we were in one of the most expensive areas of the world and they were good and strong.

We opted for the Grazing menu as we wanted to try as many different things as possible (£75 each).

Amuse Bouche was a deep fried, well spiced potato ball. It was very light and served with a coriander chutney. I could eat ten of these with a couple of beers.

Each course was a trio of little bites. First up was Prawns Pickled with Indian Five Spice, Curry Leaf and Tarragon Infused Lobster Rillet, Confit Duck Terrine with Orange Jelly. My favourite was the picked prawn. I finished it quickly but found myself going back to crunch on the prawn tail to extract every last little bit of flavour.  Everything is expertly spiced and nothing overpowers the main ingredient. A real eye opener to how spices should be used.

Tandoori Monkfish Tail with Squid Ink Mayonnaise. Juicy, meaty and as always perfectly spiced.

Chilli and Garlic Marinated Chicken Tikka. The chicken was the most tender chicken I have ever tasted. I am not sure how they did this (maybe the chicken is cooked in a gentle water bath before being pummelled in the intense heat of the tandoor?).

Tandoor Roasted Pidgeon with Vanilla Beetroot. This was a little tough after eating the chicken and the fish but still delicious.

Naan bread with sweet honey. PJ raved about these. 

Between each course of three dishes you get given some hand towels. These ones are pretty cool though and come to the table in a dish, looking like antacids. The waiter then pours water over the top and the hot towel uncurls in front of you. Novel and amusing. A nice touch.

Pan Fried Sea Bass with Kadhai Mushrooms. Oh yes this dish was fantastic.  It was served with a spiced potato mash which mopped up the sweet chutney. A real treat.

Seared Tiger Prawn with Celeriac Puree. Again I have nothing but praise. The prawn was big and juicy with the crust gave a spicy charred flavour which worked well with the sweet celeriac. Who knew curry and celeriac worked?

Spiced Lamb Kofta with Punjabi Chickpeas, Rogan  Jus. The lamb I think had been passed through a sieve which gave it an odd, extreme softness. I think this dish would be better by keeping the texture more in line with what the diner would expect from lamb.

I am not a huge dessert man and you can tell from the fact that I forgot to take pictures!  We had Pear Sorbet, Star Anise Infused Dark Chocolate Mousse and a Poached William Pear. We liked the poached pear the best. In general though we felt that the dessert and the petit four (which I managed to remember to take a picture of below) lacked the Asian influence we wanted. Don't get me wrong they were good, but were in my opinion not in the same league as the savouries.

Benares is everything I expected with a small note to work on the desserts (why not serve up a mini jalabi for example?). An elegant atmosphere and eye opening delicious Indian food. I felt very spoiled. Thanks PJ.

Monster Munch Rating: 85%

Benares
12 a Berkeley Square House
Berkeley Square
London
W1J 6BS

0207 629 8886
http://www.benaresrestaurant.com/

Fish Fragrant Aubergine

This is a recipe I got from the excellent Fuchsia Dunlop - land of plenty. If you are into Sichuan food I thoroughly recommend this book. I have tweaked a few bits to my liking. Enjoy.

2 x aubergines, regular i.e. non Asian ones are fine
1.5 x table spoons of Pixian Chilli Bean Paste
3 x table spoons minced ginger
3 x table spoons minced garlic
0.5 x cup of chicken stock
3 x teaspoons of white sugar
2 x teaspoons of light soy sauce
1.5 x teaspoons corn flour mixed with 1 x tablespoon of cold water
3 x teaspoons Chinese black rice vinegar
4 x spring onions
3 x teaspoons of sesame oil

1. Cut the aubergines lengthways in half and then half these lengthways again. Then cut into small slices about 1cm thick
2. Heat up a wok with vegetable oil until good and hot. It needs to be deep enough to fully submerge the aubergines
3. Deep fry for a few minutes in batches. Do not overcrowd the wok or the oil will cool down too much and the end result will be too greasy
4. Remove the aubergines from the oil and drain onto kitchen towel
5. Discard the frying oil or set aside for some other frying use
6. Clean the wok and put in 2 x table spoons of fresh vegetable oil. Heat to a medium heat and add the chilli bean paste and stir fry for 20 seconds
7. Add the ginger and garlic to the bean paste and fry for 10 seconds
8. Add the stock, sugar, soy sauce and mix
9. Add the aubergines back and simmer gently for a few minutes
10. Add the corn flour mixture and cook out for a minute
11. Stir in the vinegar, spring onions and sesame oil
12. Serve

A note about Chilli Bean Paste: there are a few different widely available varieties in London. Mainly, Lee Kum Kee which seems to be everywhere. Fuschia Dunlop advises that for the authentic Sichuan dish, you should use fava bean (broad bean) chili paste. The good stuff comes from the Pixian Chili Bean Factory. I searched for this in London's China town and found it in the small Chinese super market opposite Baozi Inn just off Charing Cross Road. More info from Fuchsia Dunlop.

Red and Hot

Like most Londoners, I am loving Sichuan food right now. There are a few to choose from in central from the swankier Bar Shu and Bar Shan in Soho, to the less glitzy, more cafe style of My Old Place (City) and Gourmet San (Bethnal Green).

I was taken to Red and Hot a couple of times by a friend who grew up in China and have become a huge fan of this place. It's the best Sichuan place I've ever been to. The food is fantastic, but equally as important, their menu is very extensive and fully translated into English. It is very annoying to see plates of steaming dumplings and endlessly appetising dishes pass your table onto those of Chinese diners "in the know" whilst the English only menu offers uninspiring Anglo-Chinese dishes and only a few authentic Sichuan examples.  Full marks to Red and Hot for inclusivity.

For eats, we had:

A cold appetiser of "Mouth watering Sichuan Chicken with Lip Tingling Spicy Sauce (£7.80)". Cold appetisers took a bit to get used to but now I love them. The sauce is fiery and addictive, laden with numbing Sichuan pepper and sesame oil.

Onto one of the Sichuan classics and a firm favourite of PJ and mine, "Aubergine in Fish Flavoured Sauce £7.80". If you haven't had this before, don't let the strange name put you off. Fish Flavoured is just a staple set of ingredients normally used for flavouring fish. The frying of the aubergines makes them buttery on the inside and the morsels melt into a sweet, tangy and delicious mouthful. It is insanely good with rice. You will soon find yourself fighting over this dish with your fellow diners. This is my favourite version in London.

"Dry Stewed Sea Bass in Soya Bean Paste (£14.80)". A bit of a splurge on price admittedly but deep fried fish with sweet and beany sauce gets me going. Frying the fish keeps the flesh moist and delicate. It was a nice balance against the spicy chicken.

A final dish from the "Snack" menu. "Chengdu Dan Dan Noodles (£3.80)". I've never had Dan Dan noodles from Chengdu admittedly, but coming from the capital of Sichuan province, I expected these to be uber fiery, which they weren't. The noddles themselves were perfectly cooked though.

I thoroughly recommend Red and Hot and I will be going back again and again. The menu is so extensive I feel I could never get bored here.

Monster Munch Rating: 90%

Red and Hot
59 Charing Cross Road
London
WC2H 0NE
0207 734 8796

www.rednhotgroup.com

HK Diner

There are many good posts about the abundant cafes in London's Chinatown. One of my favourite haunts though is HK Diner. Sure there are a few things in here that irk me. Namely the fact that there is a Chinese only menu, grrr. You have to ask for dishes by name or point at a fellow diner's table to get some of the better stuff. Secondly, you do not get an English, itemised bill. Cue over charging, pretending they can't speak English properly and general annoyance. I will say they have got a little friendly here than they used to be, though avoid going after say 10pm if you want to be treated in a civilised fashion (it's open until about 3am I think).

So why do I go then? Well, it's very casual which I love. The food is also pretty decent too. Not amazing, but decent.

Dishes I had recently:

Wonton Noodle Soup - a reasonably sized bowl and a good rendition. I had this as more of a starter but the porky dumplings would be a satisfying lunch on a chilly day in town. (£5 ish).

Red Chili Stuffed with Minced Prawn in Black Bean Sauce (£9 ish). I have no idea if this is traditional or not but it sure is tasty. It is obviously a spicy dish but it's definitely manageable if you are a "Madras" eater. I also recommend a similar dish of aubergine and tofu stuffed with minced prawn in black bean sauce at Gold Mine restaurant in Baystwater. It's immense with rice.

Sea Spiced Aubergine (£9 ish)- a bit of a classic. Sweet and tasty, the aubergine stews down and baths the rice in sticky goodness. One of  favourite versions of this dish can be found at Red and Hot down the road.

For a casual, tasty bite to eat check out HK Diner.

Monster Munch Rating: 75%

HK Diner
22 Wardour Street
London

No need to book.

Caravan

Caravan opened to much fanfare and has been given great reviews in the blogosphere. A friend works right by Exmouth Market, where Caravan is situated, where I had never been before, so we thought we would grab a few Thursday beers and food here.

The weather was good and the streets were full of arty cool people and there was a pleasant al fresco buzz about the street. The road is lined with restaurants and bars and I definitely want to come back and explore some of the others, in particular Moro which I hear is great.

So Caravan. I arrived on my own and was seated by a polite young waiter. The place was light and airy with the doors open and tables spilling out onto the street. I ordered a bottle of Whitstable Bay beer. Ta very much. Light and refreshing. A good start.

Joined by my friend, we were asked if we had been here before. We hadn't. We were then told about the "Caravan Concept" which is basically a tapas style grazing menu that is so popular nowadays. "How many dishes do two hungry lads need?" we asked. Apparently 3 each should be plenty. More about that later...

A shot of miso soup as a complimentary "amuse bouche". Not too much of the amuse here, it was too salty for me.

Rich oxtail was pretty decent and sticky (£7.50). I can't quite remember what the stuff underneath was (it was a few weeks ago) but I remember it being good at soaking up the meat juices.

Goat's curd, tomato, lentils and a sumac cracker (£5.50). Not a whole lot going on to be honest. It lacked any real flavour.

Rabbit Terrine (£5.00). This was the stand out dish of the meal and was rich, moist and delicious. Interestingly, this was also the cheapest proper dish we had and has since been taken off the menu. Shame.

Chargrilled spiced mutton chop with mint yoghurt  (£7.50). You can see why we ordered it. Whoever writes the menu should be given a raise because they hooked us in good and proper. What we got was one bony chop with a minuscule amount of meat. How are we meant to share that? And the price? At £7.50, someone is becoming rich, fast. Avoid.

A side of fries. Thank the Lord for the fries or my stomach would have been consuming itself to maintain my core bodily functions (£3.00).

The meal left us both starving. I was literally eyeing up kebab shops on the way home. At £40 for two I admit it didn't break the bank but it would have if we filled up. Caravan is a clever concept. It charges lots of money for small amounts of food. I guess that's why "grazing style" concepts are so popular today. The food was competent , the service great, and the atmosphere young cool and buzzy. Having said that, I go to dinner to eat. Yes the former attributes are important clearly, but at £20 each with one beer each, I don't expect to feel short changed. And I did.

There is a limited number of "big plates" and perhaps that's the way to go here but with so much fierce competition in London, I would probably only go back for drinks and a few picky bits, not dinner.

p.s. Dear Caravan, why is your website still under constructions months after your launch?! Sort it out.

Monster Munch Rating: 60%

Caravan Restaurant Bar and Roastery
11 - 13 Exmouth Market
London
EC1R 4QD
0207 833 8115

http://www.caravanonexmouth.co.uk/