adventures in expensive taste
Morgan M Restaurant, Islington, London
The first time we visited this restaurant in July ‘08 I came away struck by what I took at the time to be its obvious vaulting ambition; something that surprised me given its location. A very French, formal and hushed service delivers from the kitchen beautiful, clever, dishes complete with requisite foams, towers, gels...
Restaurant Sophia, Amsterdam, Netherlands
We were young and in love, and we were in Amsterdam being liberal...
Borough Market slideshow
Borough Market has changed a fair amount over the years that I've been working in the area, and pleasingly, almost completely for the good. Some may find it a little busy nowadays, but I think this a healthy reflection on both the market and Londoner's increasing interest in, and indulgence of, quality food and ingredients. (Besides, aren't markets are supposed to be full of bustle, loud and fun?)
Allens of Mayfair, butchery masterclass
Looks a bit macabre when I write it down, but yesterday I spent the afternoon in the heart of London's Mayfair cutting up dead things...and I really enjoyed it. Those of you who are avid readers of this blog (that's all five of you) might remember one of my first posts where I described the butchery masterclass that I'd kindly been given as a present by my cousin and his wife at Xmas. Well, yesterday it was time for me vs the meat...banker vs bovine...trader vs tripe.
11 The Quay, Ilfracombe, Devon
It may surprise the female fatbankers out there that a boy's weekend in Devon playing golf could contain any degree of sophistication but that's exactly what was added to our Tour when we ate at 11 The Quay in Ilfracombe on Sunday evening. Buried among the mass of golf, beer, curry and karaoke this restaurant was a little nugget of classy calm.It may surprise the female fatbankers out there that a boy's weekend in Devon playing golf could contain any degree of sophistication but that's exactly what was added to our Tour when we ate at 11 The Quay in Ilfracombe on Sunday evening. Buried among the mass of golf, beer, curry and karaoke this restaurant was a little nugget of classy calm.
L’Edelweiss, Le Fornet, Val d’Isere, France
Skiing hard for a morning has to be the best excuse there is for an early, calorie-loaded lunch and it's hard to imagine a prettier mountain-side location in which to dine. Cuddled into the side of the hill and just under the brow of a hump in the piste, this restaurant has a stunning view down the valley to Val d'Isere wrapped, as it is, with its back to the pine covered mountainside.
Hix Oyster & Chop House, London
Clerkenwell feels right. For all my wanderings across this diverse city it is probably the area where I feel the most comfortable, where it feels that London has it most 'right' in terms of being a proper city. It's here, an in the surrounding streets, that you find some of the oldest (and best) history within London...
Scott’s, Mayfair, London
There are some fictional places that you wish existed in real life. Fantasy settings and locations that grab your imagination, their essence and the idea of them remaining with you over the years; an attic with a wardrobe leading to Narnia, Tom Wolfe's 80's New York, Rick's Bar in Casablanca. Occasionally, just very occasionally, life treats you to a glimpse of a real place that sustains the magic of the fantasy locations.
Bill’s Produce Store, Brighton
Bill's Produce Store can be found on North Road, just behind the sparkling new library. Styled as a fun, depot-cum-cafe, it sells fresh fruit and veg and some interesting pots of stuff and other some such, all very nice and pretty. But I come here for the food; the fresh, home made, in-cred-ib-ly delicious food. I could rattle on for ages about it, but I'll let my pictures tell their 1000 words instead. Enjoy...
