Eating
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Jackdaw and Star/We Serve Humans
I have a theory regarding burgers which goes a little something like this. If you need to eat it with a knife and fork then it’s a good burger. Of course, that theory does fall down from time to time. I’m sure there are plenty of burgers that are stacked high and stuffed full and still taste rank. But in general, a good burger is one that you most definitely can’t pick up in your hands. Case in point: McDonalds and their teeny, shrivelled “burgers”. I can easily eat a Big Mac one-handed and my hands are positively Donald Trump-esque in their dimensions. So I don’t care if I look silly or genteel or “posh” with…
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BRGR.CO: Going back to basics
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Chi Kitchen
If I were to tell you that Debenhams on Oxford Street is the place to go for a really great meal, you would probably laugh in my face. To be fair, I wouldn’t blame you. Department store eateries are generally a little bit sad. Old ladies and bored husbands huddled around weak coffee and dry cake, surrounded by beige formica. No thank you. And Debenhams? A middle-of-the-road shop with about as much character as a clothes peg; the one that’s not as classy as John Lewis. But…department stores are realising that shopping habits are changing and that it’s going to take something extra to get customers through the door these days. And that something is…
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Miusan
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Where to eat on Seymour Place
Once upon a time, I had a truly terrible job working for a company on Seymour Place. I think I lasted all of four months, and they felt like the longest four months of my life. There wasn’t even anything exciting in the area to make up for the work woes. I spent my free time eating claggy pasta salad from the local caff or drinking cheap wine in one of the old man pubs nearby. So, funnily enough, it’s not a part of town that I tend to frequent much these days. But, London being what it is, Seymour Place has evolved and developed over the years into somewhere really rather interesting. The…
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Ognisko
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Ognisko
I generally try to avoid South Kensington as much as I can. Despite the plethora of world-class museums in the area, it still manages to feel like bit of a soulless wasteland. When I’m not being helplessly swept along by the tourist hoard, I’m aimlessly wandering around looking for a decent place to eat. Somewhere that’s not a chain or life-ruiningly expensive. So when my friend suggested we go to an exhibition at the V&A, I immediately went into panic mode. A day out is just not complete without a bloody good lunch and there was no way we were going to end up in Carluccios. Fortunately, I think I’ve managed to find the…
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Where to eat on Seymour Place
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Chifafa
You don’t mess with a man’s kebab. No, that’s not a euphemism. This was a piece of advice given to me by my teenage crush John, back when I used to hang out in the dive bars and clubs of Newport. You see, John was more interested in his post-club styrofoam container of kebab meat and chips than he was in talking to me so, in a fit of pique, I knocked it out of his hands and on to the floor. It did not have the desired effect. With his faith in the five second rule clearly intact, John gathered his food off the pavement and so spoke those words of wisdom. I have…
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10 crazy London cocktails that you need to try
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A Mexican adventure with Yelp
Everyone’s a critic these days. And with so many apps and websites around, having your say on a bar, restaurant or hotel has never been easier. But how do you pick your weapon of choice? Really, what’s the difference between them all? Well, most of you have probably heard of Yelp. But what you may not know is that they also organise events and reward their members with something other than a virtual badge. If you write lots of reviews, you eventually get made into a “Yelp Elite” which gives you access to all sorts of goodies. I’m not a “Yelper” (as they like to call themselves), but I was…
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Tayyabs
First dates are the worst. I particularly hate first dates that involve going to a restaurant because I get so nervous that eating – such a simple thing – becomes impossible. So a first date that involves not just food, but very spicy food, really is the stuff of nightmares for me. On the plus side, however, this date took place at Tayyab’s. Despite the fact that the relationship eventually crashed and burned, I will be forever grateful to him for introducing me to this gem of a restaurant. Tayyab’s is a Punjabi restaurant tucked away down a side street in Whitechapel. It is something of a local institution, with people prepared to queue…
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Artusi
London’s a strange one. You move here all bright eyed and bushy tailed, excited by the endless variety and eager to explore all that the capital has to offer. Fast forward several years and you find that the city has shrunk to a bubble of “home” and “work”. That’s why it’s great to suddenly find an excuse to venture beyond the borders of your own little world. For me, that excuse has been flat-hunting – and my search took me to Peckham and Artusi. Peckham’s association with Only Fools and Horses is long gone. These days you’re more likely to find a beardy hipster sipping on a Negroni instead of Del Boy knocking back…
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Cafe Murano
Mondays suck. There is very little doubt about this. Dragging yourself out of bed at an unreasonably early time, squishing onto the sweaty tube, dealing with emails before you’ve had a cup of coffee. No thank you. However, there are one or two things that can improve a Monday. Leaving work at lunchtime always helps. A visit from your mum and lunch at a top restaurant, like Cafe Murano, pretty much guarantees a better start to the week. Here’s the thing. Cafe Murano isn’t actually a cafe. It’s a rather sophisticated restaurant from Angela Hartnett, former chef-patron of The Connaught. The “cafe” element comes from the fact that it’s a more laid-back version of…
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Bao
I used to date a guy whose motto was “we don’t queue, we don’t pay, we just large it”. Many years later, I can safely say that I do pay and I’m not really sure that I large it. I do also often find myself queuing, much as I dislike it. Therefore queuing for a restaurant is something I try to avoid, especially when there are plenty of bookable, queue-free options around and when London weather is not exactly queue-friendly. This is why I had never been to Bao. Until now. And yes, I did have to queue. And yes, it was totally worth it. A bao is a Taiwanese steamed bun…
