london restaurants

Went to 10 Greek Street last night. It was reliably excellent. No bookings of course, but I only ever get there if I'm planning to arrive by 6.15 on a weeknight.

Then went to The Star At Night, which is a gin bar in a bit of Soho slightly blighted by Crossrail digging. I love it in there - 50 kinds of gin, a super-friendly staff who love to talk to you about gin, it feels pleasingly grown-up in comparison to the relative rough and tumble of Soho boozers, but it's not a fancified cocktail bar.

Not that there's anything wrong, necessarily, with boozers, or cocktail bars.

sounds like a great tip to me.

This is them: http://www.thestaratnight.com/

If you sign up for the London Gin Club, which is free, you get a coffee shop style loyalty card which gives you a free gin and tonic for every nine stamps. You get a stamp by buying a gin and tonic, obviously.

The real top tip is to have a cask aged bathtub gin and tonic - tastes like a delicious multi-spirit cocktail but it's a G&T. Magic.

love the star at night. always had a great time there.

re: giant robot earlier upthread - the place doesn't blow your socks off but was a pleasant surprise when we first went there trying to find somewhere nice that was still open after the jerusalem kicked us out at closing.

star at night is super lovely - especially, yes, for gin conversations with the staff - but for some reason the last three times i've tried to go there it's been closed.

That's bad, C - when was that? Over Xmas / new year? This was our first time there for a month or so, for one reason and another.

One thing that always surprises me is that they keep pub hours - it seems strange to hear time caled at 11 in Soho, especially when you're drinking the gin.

Oh, once was a Monday, once was a Saturday before 6pm, that sort of thing. I keep expecting the "cafe" on the sign to mean that it has... cafe hours? But no.

That sucks. I would like to spend a Saturday afternoon in there.

going to a gig in dalston (Cafe Oto) this evening, might get a bite to eat beforehand - any recommendations?

the big traditional Chinese restaurant a few doors down from the tube station is perfectly passable, otherwise the area surrounding Cafe Oto is p much kebab shop heaven, afaik

thanks, Ward - that's p much how i remember it from when i lived round there and ate turkish 24/7. i thought that since then it had become full of exciting 'street food pop ups' and up-and-coming chefs slumming it from their day job at top European hotels. I might go to that v good, always empty 24hr Turkish place up towards Stoke Newington if it's still around.

that place is v nice

the big traditional Chinese restaurant a few doors down from the tube station is perfectly passable, otherwise the area surrounding Cafe Oto is p much kebab shop heaven, afaik

― Ward Fowler, Wednesday, February 6, 2013 10:26 AM (12 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah the shanghai is excellent and reliable

even if there were more pop-ups in dalston the turkish places would still be a million times better, only reason not to go to mangal/cirrik/evin cafe/stone cave would be if you're totally sick of turkish food.

I do enjoy eating at the Duke of Wellington just along Balls Pond Road there for better than standard pub food, though I may be biased due to having worked there and thinking it's an A1 pub.

even if there were more pop-ups in dalston the turkish places would still be a million times better

million times cheaper as well.

the welly is nice, xpost.

going to a gig in dalston (Cafe Oto) this evening, might get a bite to eat beforehand - any recommendations?

― Say Bo to a (Fizzles), Wednesday, February 6, 2013 Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Turkish all the way. Mangal 1 on Arcola St is my favourite restaurant in the area: http://www.mangal1.com

Rita's is one of the newer places that you were probably thinking of: http://www.ritasbaranddining.com

Had a coffee in White Rabbit for the first time last week and the food looked decent: http://whiterabbitdalston.com

I like the Turkish pizza place just along from Birthdays a lot too.

Has anyone tried Floyd's on Shacklewell Lane? How about Voodoo Ray's pizzas?

there was that place that looks like a ship inside that is quite fun. the name is something like TMNT but not that cos that's turtles.

ah it's LMNT

i've never been inside that noodle place on the corner of the balls pond road and the A10 but it says "NOODLE BAR" in massive fonts which is always enticing as I like noodles, and looks as thought it's dodgy enough to be worth a visit.

Has anyone been?

haha i know what you mean, i'm always curious about that place as well (but havent been).

new (to me) noodle place is chang's noodle in holburn, i think they're made in house & there's lots of other unusual regional chinese things on the menu

haha i've always noted but never been to that noodle place on the corner as well - there's something slightly terrifying about it

cosign LMNT, it's more of an old reliable than mindblowingly good but it's a v cosy place. toilet deco is NSFW

talking of noodles, wound up at new cultural revolution in angel at the weekend - forgot how great it is

forgot to mention it here i think, but have any of you been to tozino at maltby st market? really cool little tapas bar, v authentic feel.

another SECRET WEAPON i went to at the weekend: paolina's, a thai place on king's x road. looks vaguely grotty and is def on the "cosy" side inside (and not in the actually cosy, comfortable sense) but omgggg the food. melt-in-the-mouth calamari>>>>>>>>>>>

I used to go to that NOODLE BAR with my GF when we got drunk in town and she lived in Clapton, so we would get off the 38 at Dalston Junction. The food was... edible.

LOVE Paolina's! I've been going there pre-Scala gigs for ten years now.

NOODLE BAR is probably about level with that palace of botulism on Bethnal Green Road we've been to, Lex.

Paolina is excellent, but not exactly an ILX secret!

NOODLE BAR is probably about level with that palace of botulism on Bethnal Green Road we've been to, Lex.

do you mean NOODLE KING? I've been there now and again, it's incredibly cheap, admittedly sort of nasty, but some of the dishes are okay. Always full of coppers. Literally if you ever walk by, take a look in, almost guaranteed to be 5/6 "old bill" closing the book on the mystery of the special curry.

Hahahaha yes, NOODLE KING. Let's just say I wouldn't trust the Met to recommend food, I just assume garbage in from all the garbage out. Places like NOODLE KING generally have *one* good dish and there, I cannot be arsed to find it.

I am hearing good things about Chang's Noodle, in one of the dodgy streets south of the British Museum. Szechuan/Hunan apparently.

Hahahaha yes, NOODLE KING. Let's just say I wouldn't trust the Met to recommend food, I just assume garbage in from all the garbage out. Places like NOODLE KING generally have *one* good dish and there, I cannot be arsed to find it.

true and all, but did you see the recent hygiene grades when they came out? quite surprising. "a little of what you fancy" was in the lowest of the low 1 camp along with a few kingsland road viets, no surprise with the latter.

yea i saw shanghai got the same

NOODLE KING.

no. one i was looking for seems to have gone, thought I'd try the stone cave, already feelin it may have been a mistake. empty. should have gone for one of the numerous less restauranty busier ones.

On this track, I'd just like to hurl down a shoutout to Charlton Church Lane's very own Cattleya, the only Thai/Spanish fusion restaurant that I know of

it's really, really good - REALLY good, even - delightful and very generous tapas with what appear to be ingredients sourced from Spain (there are also Thai tapas), flavoursome Thai mains and crispy churros to round off, all at a low price

the two cuisines merge really nicely (especially at the tapas phase), despite the spice differential

We went to a Japanese/Peruvian fusion place in Beunos Aires so I see exactly how the cuisines merge. It was Argentina's big restaurant trend a year ago.

i always keep meaning to try out that old polish-mexican bistro in shepherds square in mayfair

not sure if it's quite fusion exactly tho

i mean i just walk past and picture like a burrito stuffed with kabanos

yeah I think 'fusion' is a slight embellishment - there aren't many dishes (although there are a couple - you'll be amazed what chorizo can do!) that actually combine techniques

all gets mixed up in your stomach though, as my mum used to say

any recommendations for somewhere quickish and pescetarian-friendly near tate modern?

the river thames

tate modern cafe. table on southwark st. leon.

not in order of speed, quality, or distance.

http://thetablecafe.com/ prob the best nearby tbh.

you're a ledge

Taz Pide opposite the globe is quite cheap and ok. They have tiny chairs though.

The table isn't as good as it used to be now that they actually have table service.

anyone been to the shed in notting hill yet? was in last night, very nice small plates of british food, really excellent start to finish and quite a cool little room.

The Orchard by Brockley Station is a lovely place to while away a Sunday afternoon (books, board games, nice beer, giant fish tank, excellent food). You'll probably need to reserve a table though, it's really popular.

― Matt DC, Tuesday, 15 January 2013 14:11 (4 weeks ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

also i work here

ate in Gujarati Rasoi on Bradbury St a few weeks back. it's run by the same dude has the excellent veggie thali stall on Exmouth Market. might be tricky to get a table at without booking as the place is so dinky, but the size also means the menu is basically option #1 or option #2 for mains. the upside of that is that you get to try everything if you go with a partner, which is great if like me, you suffer from terminal post-menu-choice regret.

haha, no way Plax. I live on Tyrwhitt Rd so am always walking past the Orchard. Is it ALWAYS full of babes or do I just walk past at good times?

not to be creepy, but i live on Tressillian Rd.

RIP 'Sounds Around' Dave