london restaurants

10,000! https://t.co/5Bk8AhGFER

— someone on twittter (@demarionunn) September 2, 2020

hello London people, how's eating going?

We ended up taking advantage of EOTHO a few times, and it got us to a few new places, which is good. We ended up eating out a lot more than normal for us. Neither of us is up for eating inside a restaurant yet, so it's exclusively been places that have outdoor seating. We've managed to go out for lunch most Wednesday afternoons, as it's a day we can both book time off work. Long post, but thought it was worth mentioning a few places as I don't think I've seen them on this thread yet.

In August we went to:

Rochelle Canteen, which had been on Toby's list for probably a decade or more. It was that super hot week, so I was a bit grouchy, but it was a nice meal. I suspect that, like at St. John, vegetarians who are happy to cook from scratch at home will feel a little underwhelmed-- the veggie main was great, but very similar to what I'd been cooking after shopping at the farmers' market (braised courgette, tomato, and beans). The setup was smooth, and I don't know if it's rain-proof, but sitting outside there was really
nice.

Koya City in Bloomberg Arcade wasn't new for us, just arranged differently, they now take your order at the door and bring you your food sitting outside. This will be a repeat for sure after EOTHO, it's rain-safe and the outside seats are well spread out. Plus, the food is great as always.

We went to Spitalfields Market a few weeks, which obviously has lots of air flowing, but sheltered from the rain, and loads of food choices.

First time we both went to Bleecker Burger for the first time. I'd been wanting to try the "Symplicity" vegetarian burger, and Toby got a double bacon cheeseburger. Both great, I went again the following week. EOTHO definitely helped, it was a little on the pricey side for a fairly small burger and fries. But it was a very different veggie burger from anything else I've had in the UK, and Toby said his hit the spot.

The next week, Toby went to Dumpling Shack, we managed to go when the queues weren't insane, and in fact he managed to eat all of his soup DUMPLINGS! before my Bleecker order came out. He liked it and says he will eat there again, and is especially interested in trying their weekly dinner specials. I was disappointed that they don't have any veggie options other than a scallion pancake and pickles, so can't recommend it if you don't eat meat.

We also went back to Spitalfields on Bank Holiday Monday, I figured I would see what's open and Toby would aim for Dumpling Shack. But the queue for DUMPLINGS! was crazy, I think it could have been close to an hour to order? Luckily Pleasant Lady Jian Bing Trading Stall was open. We'd been to the Soho branch once, and it was a good choice for a nice lunch-- filling but not too heavy, and would be a good price even without EOTHO, felt silly that we both ate for £8. Lovely mix of textures and flavours. Toby had the pork and I had the veggie, and we were both very happy with those.

And yesterday, partly on the Eater recommendation, and partly due to this thread (thanks!), we went to Keu for banh mi, which was new to us both. I haven't had one for months, my go-to spot on Exmouth Market re-opened a few weeks ago, but only noodles, no banh mi. I was skeptical about the aubergine with tofu, but it was basically cooked down and used instead of the pate. Toby had the pork traditional one (I will recommend the mackerel next time), and we both enjoyed it sitting in Hoxton Square. I think this will be one we repeat, and if I end up back in the office, the City location is really close.

Oh, and we went to dinner at Lina Stores at Granary Square, partly because you can book outside tables, and partly because it was halfway between us and the friends we were meeting. Food was really good, and it was nice to be able to sit outside and well spread out, although it isn't rain safe (we were there during the wind storm and couldn't have stemmed wine glasses because they kept nearly blowing away!) Lots of outdoor options around there.

I think there is a pretty noticeable drop off in restaurant business since the promo ended. We'll probably keep going out for lunch once a week if we can make it work in terms of schedule/weather, and getting out to new places is fun.

(um, what the heck happened there-- is there some weird automatic dumpling function that I'm not aware of? I did not type them as all caps and exclamation mark)

lmao indeed there actually is

it's interesting that it works for DUMPLINGS! but not dumpling

!! hi colette !!

I've only been doing outside seating so far too, but feels like that's gonna quickly stop being an option with the Summer over. Might just collect and eat at home.

(I've also only been meeting friends outdoors, and that's a more difficult one to adapt to once it's cold and rainy)

I haven't been to a restaurant since March, when we were going out pretty much all the time, so this is all from a prehistoric age, but the last few places we went:

The Coal Office in King's Cross, Israeli/Middle Eastern place with a superstar chef, and, on a Friday night a real party atmosphere. Largely sharing plates and the food was incredible. I guess it's considerably more restrained now. Also savouring the weirdness of having dinner somewhere where we used to go dancing 13-15 years previously (pretty sure it used to the The Cross). At the time it felt like an illustration of changing eras, we didn't really guess it was the end of another era.

Then the following night, Ekte Nordic Kitchen, a Scandinavian place in the Bloomberg Arcade in the City, pickled herring and dark meats and vodka, that sort of stuff. It was great, but totally empty and I'm guessing it's really struggling right now. We went immediately after sitting in an airless downstairs room in an underground gin distillery, thinking about it it's a miracle we didn't get covid.

Another place from this year I would go back to in a heartbeat is Namak Mandi in Tooting, it serves Pashtun food and straddles both Afghanistan and Pakistan, you sit on cushions on the floor with the 'table' in between you, basically with a small room to yourselves, and they bring up absolutely truckloads of incredible food. The evening ended with six of us literally lying horizontally on the floor unwilling to move. (NB every single aspect of this meal is very unsuited to our new reality but when this is all over I am absolutely going back).

Have a feeling that the changing of the seasons is going to be harder on restaurants than the end of the Treasury scheme, I'm not sure the extent to which people are ready to move back inside yet.

Oh also I forgot about Peckham Bazaar, I know people have been hyping Peckham Bazaar for years but it's with good reason.

Couple of agrees from the places we've been since the lockdown:

- Peckham Bazaar, which we go to from time to time but this time we were outside under an awning in a massive rainstorm. The awning worked, the food was outstanding and the whole thing was a pleasure.

- Koya City which was as good as ever and is a really good place to go if people are feeling nervous about eating inside, because it's in that high and airy arcade and all the tables are outside, also they have their sewing and ordering in good order. (Ekte seemed to have people in it that night also, Matt will be pleased to hear).

We also went to Kiln - the food was as spectacular as the food there always is, and they spaced us customers out along the bar well, but the space felt a bit cramped given the circumstances.

This thread is rapidly becoming 'restaurant reviews that will continue to haunt your thoughts' (at least until the covid era is over).

Namak Mandi sounds like my ideal restaurant. I've long had fantasies about recreating the similar sounding Baghdad House restaurant in the Fulham Road that appears in a few 1960s memoirs, but otherwise seems completely undocumented excepted for a Linda Eastman picture of the Yardbirds outside it.

Namak Mandi also has a more conventional downstairs, with tables etc. It's very much a community hub kind of place, with unidentified football on so you could take the option to sit there amid the grill smoke while old Afghan blokes argue with each other about the game.

Namak Mandi has absolutely mahoosive chapli kebab, I think I made sandwiches with the half I didn't eat for a couple of days.

My EOTHO lunch was at Noble Rot, of course.

I am hopeful that we will be able to keep enjoying Bloomberg Arcade and Spitalfields places for a good few months, just need to wear layers, maybe we'll bring our own little blankets and pretend like we're in Berlin?

Our last meal in the beforetimes was our first visit to 40 Maltby St in mid March. I knew it would be great, and it was. I think things were already dicey enough that it was much quieter than normal, and its the business that has been putting me off for so long.

This weekend, we'll check out this temporary market up in Islington where the big post office used to be. It feels a bit "ick," this is developer-led and part of the problem of private/public space, but then again I do like a St John's donut. https://www.hot-dinners.com/202008189804/Gastroblog/Latest-news/boulevard-market-islington-square-upper-street-st-john-traders-london

That Boulevard Market indeed has an uncanny valley edge to it, totally fake "town square" vibe, with a handful of vendors. I mean, I did get a donut and some cheese, but it's not worth a journey unless you are happy braving the hell of Upper St.

Any recommendations for in or near Chinatown? We're meeting Toby's sister and family this weekend, and they fancy dim sum. So, ideally we're looking for somewhere with outdoor seating, dim sum, and at least a couple vegetarian things (I would be OK with somewhere that does something like a generic veggie dumpling, crispy seaweed and rice). Moon on a stick would be the ability to book that outdoor table, since we'll be with two little kids who don't love queuing. Any ideas?

Leong's Legends on Gerrard Street is reliable and the menu is HUGE so if you have young and/or fussy eaters you should have more than enough options. No idea re: booking or even eating outside but I'm guessing Chinatown has gone big on outdoor eating?

From Private Eye.

i knew i would be in private eye one day and i absolutely knew it would be for something as dumb as this pic.twitter.com/eBjZpKPHt3

— someone on twittter (@demarionunn) September 9, 2020

Thanks, Matt, I'll add that to the list, wondering about doing a recon walk later this week to see what has outdoor seating (and maybe try to book).

I guess Din Tai Fung is also an option, they apparently have some outdoor seating as well, and I know they have stuff I can eat.

We ended up eating at Gerrard's Corner at their family's request, and it worked out in the end. All of Gerrard St restaurants have tables outside, and Gerrard Place has a ton of picnic tables available for eating food you've picked up from takeaway. It was pretty busy, I have to say!

We also got pizzas from ASAP pizza this week, after reading the Vittles interview we realised that you can buy by the pie, not just the slice. Duh. Glad we went on Wednesday, it's basically sold out soon after we collected, and then has apparently been a madhouse every day since then. So we'll have them once, but got enough for three meals of pizza.

Now starting to think about food for our "holiday" near High St Kensington next week. Ideally we'll have either an outside sit-down or takeaway meal on Monday lunchtime somewhere in the Bloomsbury/Fitzrovia/Marylebone area (so we can have a leisurely bike ride there, stop for lunch, ride the rest of the way), as well as a few lunch/dinner ideas in W8 for dining outside, or takeaway/delivery. Any brilliant ideas?

Toby was hoping to try Normah's, but they seem to have disappeared from Deliveroo, and don't have any veg options anyway, so we'll see. I'm wondering about Master Wei in Bloomsbury for Monday lunch, maybe? Haven't been and have wanted to for ages.

Master Wei is great and plenty of vegetarian options 4u.

If you want a fab/special dinner in W11 (but not far from W8 really) try Orasay. I will ask Notting Hill people for recs tomorrow at the farmer’s market - I’ll see my college pal Dodi (her family’s only vegetarian) there so I expect she will have some good ideas.

thanks, Suzy! Yeah, anywhere we could easily get to on a Santander bike from W8 is fair game, I'd say.

And Master Wei is definitely on our list, if not next week, sometime soon.

i'm eating at Cay Tre tonight. feelsgoodman

eating on the Prince Regent tonight as part of a shared birthday celebration.

and in a couple of weeks time taking my mum to the quality chop house also for a shared birthday celebration.

shared birthdays. winner.

Loved the Quality Chop House meal box! Also really good in that department: Lyle's.

https://vittles.substack.com/p/60-south-asian-dishes-every-londoner

lot of places shutting for christmas right now. was hoping to get to 40 Maltby Street next week but it’s only doing home orders. Local Lewellyn’s closed likewise Quality Chop House. Really feel for them - dedicated staff who’ve worked incredibly hard throughout the uncertainty and financial strains of the pandemic.

Indeed. Although if 40 Maltby St manages to stay open for takeaway I can say that both of the sandwiches, the mince pies, and the cep/celariac gratin are all superb, though.

great. great. i will be getting those things.

yes, the veg sandwich was the best "christmas" sandwich I've had, despite not sounding appealing when just reading the ingredients. that's pretty consistent with them, I've learned to just give it a go and it's usually excellent.

gratin was surprisingly filling and delicious, enough for a meal for two with a salad, which made it good value.

Currently in Mes Amis, a Lebanese restaurant in Fulham. It has the greatest interior of any restaurant in the world, I think

Yeah this is the best restaurant in London I think

Opposite the River Cafe if I recall. Any thoughts on the food and service?

Very close to it, yes. The food was extremely good and the service was both pleasant* and attentive. Some would have found the constant tea refilling a bit much maybe? I was a big fan

*at one point the elderly proprietor told me I was eating the mezze too fast, and that 'mezze' is Arabic for 'slow', but I accepted it as entirely fair criticism

They did a tabbouleh but with beans instead of tomatoes. It was insanely great

'mezze' is Arabic for 'slow'

lol no it isn't

I have a cousin in london who, when asked by American tourists what the English call umbrellas, deadpanned "clooglehoppers".

I think elderly proprietor (who sounds rad btw) was similarly yanking your chain. afaik 'mezze' means the same thing to him that it means to you.

'slowly' in Arabic is 'ye'wash'.

You were right by here Louis!

xp
Reminiscent of yavaş in Turkish, and seems to be the same in Persian as well. What I see when I try to go to Arabic itself though, is, ببطء, which is completely different.

Lots of different varieties of Arabic of course.

I grew up in a Persian and Arabic-speaking household. So it's possible I'm getting the two mixed up, but I doubt it. Different dialect is much more likely.

Alas, I can't read the script. Mived here when i was like 5.

Anyway I do think the proprietor was kidding around :)

More good sandwiches from 40 Maltby St today, I don't love eggs but the fritatta sandwich was still pretty good. squash salad was excellent. Toby rated the fish finger salad.

Other places we've been that were really good recently were Tofu Vegan on Upper St (this place is so exciting to me and I want to try everything on the menu eventually), and also finally made it to Master Wei in Bloomsbury, which was also great (and we both noted that one bowl of noodles would have been plenty of food for a lunch, so potentially a nice weekend combo with the British Museum)

Interested to learn as I need a replacement noodle place in Bloomsbury. I made a nostalgic visit to the Hare and Tortoise at Brunswick Square- a staple of the early 2000s for me - and wasn't too impressed.

The laksa at H&T is still better than it has any right to be.

Try Chang’s Noodle on New Oxford Street too.

Anyone been to any of the Ottolenghi restaurants (or deli)?

We went to the one in Spitalfields a few years ago for lunch, it was good but expensive, kind of what I would have expected? I think we've also done takeaway from one of the delis and again, it's all very tasty but is more per person that I'd tend to expect for salad-y stuff. I seem to remember both were a kind of "pick three of our salad/dish of the day" plates.

I wish I liked bitty salads but I don’t; in other news, the space that was Cigala is about to open as another Honey & Co - also along Israeli/Levantine/Palestinian lines.

Ottolenghis are fine, but go to Honey & Co instead imo

went to chisuru in brixton last week and it was *v good*. best was probably Ebiripo (Celeriac, Mushroom Shitto, Bitter Leaves & Pickled Oyster Mushroom).

but the pickled carrots, fermented rice and tangerine sauce was a+ and Ekuru (Wild Watermelon Seeds, Black Eyed Beans, Pumpkin Pesto & Scotch Bonnet Sauce) also v good.

my date juice negroni also spectacularly good.

https://i.imgur.com/GtfiKDN.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/GtfiKDN.jpg

will that work i do not know

yes! handy.