london restaurants

had a couple of fun nights at giant robots also but think it was just the company at the time rather than the cocktails being mind-blowing

(and if you are already there you could have just gone to zetter )

it is a p nice vibe in there, ate there once after being in zetter.

i've heard experimental cocktail club is good but i've not verified this info.

went to Zoilo last night (Argentinean, multiple small plates of stuff in the current mode).

It was very good, without being completely otm - B/B+?:

squid ragu on polenta with a sausage that must have been offal was excellent, the pork cheek croquettes were a bit meh, and tasted like inferior rillettes. the empanadas were also v good, but not as good as my mum's cornish pasties, which to a certain extent they were reminiscent of (the person I was with has had an extended stay in Beunos Aires and was of the opinion that they were good but not as good as etc, which I guess is to be expected).

I had the asado (flank) with bone marrow and garlic gravy - the meat was excellently cooked but perhaps a little tasteless, (especially after the steak I had in Keens steakhouse) tho the gravy was superb.

LG's point about the rhythm of service in Zedel is a good one, and it felt off here, but then again we managed to completely misinterpret a 'you can have these seats if you're out by 8:30' as 'you can wait until 8:30 for a table or sit at the bar' (it wasn't very clear), so the urgency of the service may just have been a function of that. I can still pour my own wine tho, thanks, most of the time anyway. (the wine was excellent)

oh, and on the cocktail vibe - the gin, egg-white and cucmber cocktail i started with with superb.

Suggestions please. My wife and I are taking a couple of friends out next Sat as a thank you.
Looking for somewhere in north of Oxford St or up as far as Archway. Somewhere nice but not hella pricey. Also not so loud and buzzy on a Sat night that I'll feel irritated by it. Must be OK for dedicated meat lover and non meat eater. Have some ideas of my own but thought the ILX knowledge base would have some ideas I don't.

Re cocktails. Friend and I had nice cocktails at The Four Sisters in Islington the other night. £8/£9 range, which means it will not be a session destination for me, but nice way to end the evening. Though we did raise the average age of the clientele significantly.

'up as far as Archway': 500, on the Holloway Road, is very good, fancy Italian (not cheap but not bank-breaking).

Ah yes! I saw that in the Good Food Guide the other day and was surprised to see such a location cropping up in that book.

Have booked 500 - thanks for the reminder!

i've heard experimental cocktail club is good but i've not verified this info

Should also point out that I've only been there early on a Saturday evening (like, 6pm) when it was relatively empty, dunno what it's like when it's fuller. The cocktails were fantastic though, they have one that takes them something like three days to make (although obviously they've done most of the work by the time you order).

Went to Homage at the Waldorf on Friday, was enjoyable in a kind of generic fancy restaurant way, although the decor could use a bit of brushing up. The cocktails in the bar there are great as well.

has anyone ever done a walk-in to eg ceviche? i failed to book a table in time (AGAIN, ugh why can't i learn to organise myself properly) but was wondering how a walk-in would work. turn up at 5pm an expect a two-hour wait? 6pm? any ideas anyone?

i'd give them a call & ask. we did this w/ the smokehouse the other week (v good btw) but its obviously not as central

yeah they're understandably vague, is the thing

ah sorry, yeah i guess i was stating the obvious a bit

given that this night involves other things and other timings i really should just give up on this place but it's probably too late to book anywhere else (nice)? ughhhh no idea what to do

other places easier to rock up to in soho depending on how picky you are e.g. koya, tonkotsu...

Yeah if you can turn up at that time you can get into the non-bookable places like 10 Greek Street. I think the no-bookings policy is disgusting savagery but it has its advantages in your situation.

would "that time" be 5ish or 6ish?

(ceviche's policy is fine - it's bookable but they keep some tables open for walk-ins, which is what i'm debating with myself)

ime most of the no-bookings places are fine at 6pm sharp - it's only really after that you start to encounter the long march through the night, from place to place. depending on what night of the week too, mon-wed all fine, thurs and friday you're kinda fucked from about 7pm on - or left looking for a lucky break.

10 Greek Street tends to be emptyish at 5.30 and fill up quickly after 6, ime.

I haven't been to Ceviche (sadly) so I'm reluctant to speculate but if they do keep tables aside for walk-in I'd be surprised if they were all taken up by 6.

That was an xpost but yeah LG otm

it is v frustrating, sometimes you really are left floundering. last few times this has happened i've gone to soho diner.

it'd be a friday to make matters worse. the dream would be to turn up at 6 or so to get my name on the list - they then give you a time, and you're free to wander elsewhere to have a drink first.

I *hate* no-bookings policies. They're discriminatory against people who physically can't queue for a long time and it really hacks me off when I want to take my Mum somewhere for Sunday lunch and they *still* won't reserve a table even after I phone to explain about her arthritis. One of these days I hope a vocal disability organisation tests a no-bookings restaurant's knowledge of what "reasonable adjustment" means.

zetter street townhouse: advisable booking (for 2) or ok to just rock up on a fri night?

also, not restaurant-related, but may as well pick some brains: what are good early-evening things to do in that area? apart from the barbican. i'm having to REJIG SOME PLANS here

If you can book, you should.

much of the good stuff around there is food/drink related ime.

anyone know anywhere near marylebone i can go for an hour this evening while i wait to meet some friends - a café or quiet bar would be good, somewhere where i can write.

Cafe on the corner across from the main entrance to the station is friendly, if not always quiet.

Re: Clerkenwell, the Barbican is probably your best bet if not booze-related, otherwise just go to the Dovetail Bar or somewhere and have pre-dinner drinks. There are dozens of good drinking options round that part of town.

ok so i ended up at honey & co in the end and holy shit was that the right choice. cannot recommend this place highly enough. the food!!!!!!

the mezze set is the best option, like a taster menu for the starters, and if there's a starter not on it they'll happily swap it in (which we did for what turned out to be the star dish of the night - chicken liver baklava with grape molasses). the artichoke heart salad was really incredible too. main courses were so deep and rich and warming (slow cooked chicken in currants and pomegranates for me, slow cooked lamb with rice and almonds for him). the pistachio cake (served with sour cream, which actually really worked) was a hit too. only -ve was that our main courses arrived just as we were finishing our starters - we did take our sweet time over the mezze set but it would have been nice to have a break between courses.

but the food, oh my god, made up for it x 1000.

has anyone been to archipelago restaurant on cleveland st? we passed it on the way back from honey & co, it seems to specialise in strange/exotic meats (alpaca, python carpaccio etc). looks intriguing and all but there's the worry it might be gimmicky/the food might not be the best? can't find much in the way of reviews.

has anyone been to smokehouse in islington yet?

went to hoi polloi last week and that was pretty great - little bit try-hard with the smart-casual-hipster vibe but when it came down to it the food was very good

(nowhere near as mindblowingly excellent as honey & co though, have literally been having dreams about returning)

lex i went to archipelago once (on a groupon deal.. when it was nearer warren street) - It was kooky but the food was quite good, it was enjoyable as far as I remember! The 'eccentric' decor reminded me of LMNT a bit

At the time there was a very attentive waitress who seemed like she's been there for years (told us the restaurant used to be called the birdcage and served normal food then owners decided to do something different).

any recommendations for mid-range places in the West End, good on a Saturday evening, modern British/French/steak house? Cheers!

brasserie zedel? mid-range prices in high-end setting

oooh that looks good, thanks lex

I've been to Archipelago as well - the food is actually pretty good when it could be just gimmicky, and cosign the point about the friendliness of the staff. It's reasonably expensive and the portions aren't huge though.

So Zedel is booked out on Saturday, any other suggestions anyone?

Just so I'm not all "take, take, take", I went to Bone Daddy's in Soho the other week, and had just about the best Ramen ever, with a soft-boiled egg. Also a side of really great fried chicken, and good beer to boot. They do make a thing of playing hard rock/hair metal which I can live with personally, but might put others off.

Yeah it puts me right off, esp when Koya (which I love so much) is just round the corner.

As far as good modern British in Soho goes, it is probably worth trying 10 Greek Street, we were in there last Friday from 6ish and there were tables available through to about 7.45 when we left. I'm used to a permaqueue there, but maybe that's died off a bit. Could have been a weirdly quiet night, of course.

Great ramen there alright. Flesh and Buns is owned by Bone Daddies, I've heard it's good but not been yet myself. Not Brit/French/steak tho obviously.

xpost

I've heard good things about Koyo too, though apparently the fried chicken isn't as good.

Will have a look at 10 Greek St, thanks!

Andrew Edmond will likely do you a decent steak too, and it's a charming place AND you can book.

hello hello, meeting my brother for pre-gig meal in camden, am thinking byron becz we are povvos and also lol like burgers, but is there anything better we could eat, like maybe fried chicken or something? i haven't really hung out in camden for half a decade or so.

Haché, just off Camden High Street, does pretty good burgers as well.

The Crown & Goose, which is further down towards Mornington Crescent is really good as well and not too pricey, sort of gastro but very pubby with it. It's closing down soon but as far as I know is still open.

lovely, thanks Matt