We eat a lot while researching the various guides and reviews you see on our site. And we want to share that food with you. Digitally, not literally, of course. This guide is where you’ll find all of our favourite things we’ve eaten recently, from memorable main courses, to sensational sides, to all the snacks and whatever else in between.
If you’ve eaten something great recently that you want to share with our team, send us an email at london@theinfatuation.com. Now, onto the dishes.
THE BEST THINGS WE ATE THIS WEEK
King prawn fried rice and hot sour soup
“There’s nothing particularly photogenic about this plate of food or, for that matter, the person eating it. But it’s what’s on the inside that counts, right? Mr. Ji certainly seems to know that. The spot, once of Soho and now of Camden, has added a few more dishes to its repertoire, which it describes as a blend of East Asian and European cuisines, and this fried rice is a standout. There’s an element of theatre to it: a bowl is lifted to reveal your rice, then the green-tinted, viscous hot and sour soup is poured over it. But, unlike Heinz’s foray into weird-coloured ketchup at the start of the millennium, there is nothing novelty about this. The hot and sour soup is gelatinous, with layers of peppery and herby flavour, while the boulder of rice is speckled with sweet corn, egg, and green peas. Made for sharing but, obviously, just as good for one.” - Jake Missing, Senior Staff Writer
Saltie Girl
Saltie Lobster roll
“If the ingredients of this lobster roll were listed on the menu in order of importance, it would read “butter, lobster, brioche roll”. The lobster is tender and, yes, buttery. The brioche roll is fluffy, toasted, and you guessed it, buttery. Overall, it’s a real butter-fest, in the best way possible. This seafood restaurant on North Audley Street is a Boston import that’s doing some seriously exciting things with crustaceans (cc: sweet and savoury lobster waffle). And yet what I found myself craving the next day (and the consecutive three days after) was the classic lobster roll. Get it warm and it’ll be a perfectly comforting dish on a sad, cold day.”- Rianne Shlebak, Staff Writer
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Bouchon Racine
Hareng, pomme à l’huile
“When things like chicken liver pâté and oysters were on the list of starters at Bouchon Racine, I almost overlooked a dish that roughly translates from French as: herring and potatoes in oil. But I’m eternally grateful to the server at the new-ish French restaurant in Farringdon, who nudged me in the direction of this dish. The morsels of herring had been ever so lightly poached in a rich, kitchen scraps broth, to give it an almost cured texture, and were presented with a tangle of sweet, sliced onion, soft baby potatoes, and petal-shaped slivers of carrot. All drenched in grassy, herby oil. Parfait.” - Daisy Meager, Senior Editor
PREVIOUSLY, ON THE BEST THINGS WE ATE THIS WEEK
Cauliflower velouté
“This dish does not photograph particularly well. But let’s not judge a soup because it doesn’t have ‘a good side’ (we’ve all been there), because it was a revelation. French restaurant Sinabro, near Clapham Common, took the humble cauliflower and turned it into something outstanding. The velouté was rich, creamy, and incredibly silky smooth, and balanced out by the pop of tangy caperberries, heady za’atar, delicate pieces of smoked haddock, and fragrant coriander. Small pieces of cauliflower and a jammy half quail’s egg brought added texture to the party. The camera might not love it, but I did.” - DM
Cédric Grolet At The Berkeley
Savoury croissant
“This is it, my last meal. Well, technically, it’s my last The Best Things We Ate This Week meal, because I am tragically leaving my post as The Infatuation’s Chief Pancake Hypewoman, or what HR refer to as, London Staff Writer. Please start crying, it’s very good for my ego. Or, follow my lead and head to this delightfully ridiculous, ridiculously expensive pâtisserie spot inside Knightsbridge’s The Berkeley hotel. This croissant is, laughably, 25 Great British pounds, and it’s flecked with truffle, packed with smoky turkey, and is all the evidence you need that the accounting team will not miss me. It also happens to be the best croissant I have ever eaten, and that’s coming from someone who spent most of 2011 following a fedora-clad Frenchman around Parisian boulangeries. It has a secret, glorious layer of rich butter at the bottom and a golden, crisp outer layer. Parfait. And, merci. Au revoir.” - Heidi Lauth Beasley, Staff Writer
Birria Taco
Birria ramen
“It’s got to that point in the year when thermal vests are everyone’s best friend and hot water bottles are working overtime. And when it gets to this level of cold, the birria ramen from Birria Tacos UK, inside Dar Marrakech on Edgware Road, is the answer. The tacos here are excellent, but the rich broth, soft ramen noodles, and tender, stringy, slow-cooked beef birria is the kind of comforting dish that will warm you from the inside out. It’s also notorious for leaving its mark on whatever you’re wearing, so I’d recommend making a makeshift bib with tissues before getting started.” - RS
Pork gyoza
“Turning up to a restaurant completely ravenous is a dangerous game. You’re in danger of over-ordering, over-eating, and sometimes, overestimating how good a place is. But the fact my stomach was doing roly-polys and begging me, Oliver-style, for just a crumb of a tasty morsel, only heightened the already superb pork gyoza from Seto. I could easily have written about the delicate miso ramen from this low-key Japanese restaurant in Camden, but, by virtue of coming first, the gyoza won. Having happily lived off frozen gyoza for close to two years now, the difference in eating freshly folded and pan-fried jiaozi was outstanding. Still springy but with a definite crunch, and filled with a moreish pork and vegetable mixture. I had four, I could’ve had six, and you’ll probably want more.” - JM
Smoked cod’s roe choux bites
“I live pretty close to this new day-to-night South Tottenham spot. And for the past couple of months, I have peered through the window of Pasero and accosted builders for menu knowledge. It’s called investigative journalism, look it up. Anyway, it’s open now and serving airy, salty focaccia, natural wine on tap, and polite little pastries during the day. I sat at the warm buzzing bar—shoutout to stools with backs, my ageing bones appreciate you—and steadily made my way through the blackboard menu. The highlight was these sweet-meet-salty, one-bite wonders. The choux pastry was thin and irresistibly light, and the smoked cod’s roe was creamy with a proper fishy zing. All in all, the perfect salty bar snack to match a crisp glass of on-tap natural white wine.” - HLB
St. John Marylebone
Deep fried rarebit
“There was no way I wasn’t going to order the deep fried rarebit at St John’s new spot in Marylebone. Those words, etched in chalk on the blackboard menu, were a siren call. A reimagining of a St John classic, the dish looked like a burnished brown croquette, but was so much more. The thick coating was stroopwafel-like, but crunchy rather than chewy, and super savoury rather than sweet. Inside, a hot, cheesy, gooey sauce. The wipe of sharp Dijon mustard on which the rarebit nugget sat, a dousing of Lea & Perrins, and a glass of crisp crémant cut through the richness for a perfectly balanced two-bite snack.” - DM
Chocolate salted caramel truffle cake
“There’s a reason I keep finding excuses to return to this Fulham bakery at least once a month. And it’s more than just the OTT buttercream designs that look like they belong in a quirky exhibition at the Tate. It’s because every version of a cake you eat here, whether it’s their top-tier red velvet or plain vanilla, is a cut above the rest. On my quest to find London’s best chocolate cakes, I found that—surprise, surprise—Flavourtown makes an excellent salted caramel chocolate cake. Moist and fluffy layers of chocolate, with a caramel sauce that’s not too sickly and actually tastes salted, this hefty four-tier slice is one of the best around.” - RS
Apricity
London red butterhead lettuce salad
“This salad from fine dining restaurant Apricity is a certified freak and I loved it. It arrives with bright little blobs of miso aioli, has the spectacular salty crunch of fried kale doing an expert job of impersonating crispy seaweed, and has the outer consistency of a cake. More power to you if you’re above repeatedly prodding it in the name of ‘salad science’. It’s the kind of inventive dish that has the power to blow your mind with each bite, and might I remind you, we’re talking about lettuce here. Short of recreating Titanic with an iceberg lettuce as the villain, I have no idea about how you could make it more delightfully dramatic than by following this Mayfair restaurant’s lead with burnt off cobnuts, that gave this snooze vegetable a rich, warming tongue surprise. Freakishly fun and wildly creative.” - HLB
Omelette Arnold Bennett
“Anybody who’s watched Curb Your Enthusiasm will know that having a dish named after you is a big deal, but having a dish named after you that is unanimously agreed as delicious is the real goal. The novelist Arnold Bennett achieved this back in the 1920s when he lived at the Savoy, and the chef made him the most unhealthy (and therefore delectable) omelette in history: eggs, béchamel sauce, smoked haddock, and a mound of cheddar grilled on top. Thankfully this delicious tradition lives on and, bugger me sideways, the one at Mount St. Restaurant is wildly delicious. The swanky Marylebone spot is part-owned by the gallery Hauser & Wirth, and while the Freuds and Matisses on the wall are nice, the completely yellow, gooey, cheesy, smokey Arnold Bennett is, quite frankly, the real work of art here. It tastes like something that will either make you weep from happiness or keel over from a coronary. Which is, ultimately, the most you could hope for if a dish was named after you.” - JM
Roast chicken, fries, salad, and herb jus
“When the platter of roast chicken was put down on the table at charming French restaurant Pique-Nique, I audibly gasped. Photos do not do justice to the incredible shine, courtesy of basting, a rotisserie, and herby, meaty jus. But glistening looks most certainly aren’t everything at this Bermondsey spot. This bird had been stuffed with rosemary and thyme, imparting a sweetness to the tender, juicy meat. Sorry to the accompanying fries and salad, but my stomach space belonged to the poulet.” - DM
Classic bánh mì
“There are few things more welcomely dangerous than a good local shop, and in An’s Oriental Supermarket I have found my new best friend. It’s impossible to leave this shop in Upper Holloway unhappy or empty-handed, especially if you know about their grab-and-go menu. There are noodles, Vietnamese beef stews, and fried rice—but it’s the bánh mì that has my heart. Seven minutes is all it takes to make. I recommend ordering as you step into the shop, spending said time perusing what snacks to take with you and, before you know it, you’ll have a crispy warm baguette in your hand. There’s five-spice sausage, terrine, homemade pâté, coriander, pickles, and sauce in there. Best of all is the bread: warm, soft, and so crispy you’ll find crumbs in your socks the next day. On paper An’s is a shop, but it feels more like a second home.” - JM
Mon Plaisir
Gratinée à l’oignon
“The bar for soup season 22/23 has been set high by Covent Garden’s Mon Plaisir. The cosy, old-school French restaurant serves cosy, old-school French food, which includes a rib-sticking onion soup. A thick crust of melted cheese-smothered bread yielded to reveal a broth that was thin but umami-rich. My spoon plunged down into the ceramic tureen to scoop slivers of silky-soft onion and soup-soaked chunks of bread, via the cheesy crust, for the perfect mouthful. A proper head down, pause-the-conversation dish.” - DM
J Sheekey’s Fish Pie
“I have loved J Sheekey’s fish pie from a distance for quite some time. As someone with a personal adoration for mashed potatoes, or anything classed as ‘pie’, I have always held the suspicion that we were fated—nay, destined—to cross paths. And at 2.28pm on Monday 31st October, our meet-cute finally occurred, at the swanky bar of this classic West End restaurant. The fish pie arrived with pure unadulterated cheese charisma. The oozing, brown breadcrumb and parmesan crust was potentially the most comforting thing I’ve eaten since discovering you can successfully dip Bahlsen Choco Leibniz in cups of tea. Inside you’ve got quality cod, generous chunks of salty salmon, a dash of parsley, and a tongue-tingling dose of mustard. The rumours are true. J Sheekey’s fish pie is the ultimate winter dish.” - HLB
Buk
BUK’s special burger
"The smash burger is a special thing. To me, as someone who has never been a fan of the ultra thick beef patty, it means finally having all the right ratios. And BUK’s special burger had some outstanding ratios. A thin but substantial, flattened beef patty, a double portion of melted American cheese, plenty of that creamy, chilli house sauce, and sweet caramelised onion to top it all off. This burger laughs in the face of the Big Mac. And I laugh in the face of anyone who hasn’t been to this casual Camden spot to try it.”- RS
Mehfil Hotel Restaurant
Aloo tikki chole chat
“Miniature crispy fried potato patties, topped with a rich, slightly spicy chickpea sauce, thick green chutney, and refreshing yoghurt. At this North Indian restaurant in Southall, the part warm, part cool dish will make you neglect any other starters at the table. There’s crispiness from the shallow-fried, doughnut-like potato, butteriness from the soft chickpeas, and fruitiness from the pomegranate seeds—it’s a confusingly delicious blend of flavours.”- RS
Ezme flatbread
“When does a greedy eater become something of a Paul Hollywood-like connoisseur? It's a question I often ask myself while sticking whatever food is in front of me, in my mouth and swallowing it after two and a half chews. Having consumed a lot of bread throughout my life, I’m fairly confident at recognising, acknowledging, and triumphantly chewing Good Bread. This ezme flatbread from Carmel in Kensal Rise is just that. It’s small and podgy enough to do on your own if, like me, you’re that way inclined with doughy stuff. Otherwise you can tear it apart, smush the confit garlic into its crust, and stick a cherry and sundried tomato on top for good measure. A proverbial handshake from me.” - JM
Baltic Sea Food
Fillet mackerel in Turkish baguette
“One of the best decisions I made this week was to stretch my legs and get some fresh air during lunchtime. And not because moving further than the shuffle to the kitchen was good for my limbs. I came across Baltic Sea Food, the sandwich-slinging barge which moors up at different spots along the Regent’s Canal. The soft baguette was the ideal vehicle to soak up the juices from a freshly charred mackerel fillet. Together with tangy pickles, sharp red onion, and crunchy lettuce, it was the perfect snack-and-stroll lunch.” - DM
Soif
Rotisserie chicken
“If you happen to be a long-time reader of The Infatuation London, you might remember a deeply feral time of content that I like to call The Meal Kit Years—best-known as the pandemic. For some reason that made total sense at the time, I did an oddly sincere Instagram story called A Brief History of Roast Chicken, and referred to myself as ‘Staff Chicken Historian’. Well baby, I’m back for ‘the fans’ (my stomach). I ate this glistening pile of tender poultry at charming little Clapham bistro, Soif. I am not ashamed to admit that I picked the springy, oiled-up skin off the bone with my fingers and merrily dolloped it in aioli that had me smelling of l’eau de garlic for the rest of the night. From one chicken head to another, this is one of the best rotisserie chicken experiences in London.” - HLB
“It’s a great regret that I’ve yet to make the journey down from N5 to SE25 to watch a football game at Selhurst Park. But having made the schlep in the name of fiery, charred, truly terrific jerk… I’m inclined to make much more effort in the hope of combining my two favourite Fs: food and football. The jerk coming out of Tasty Jerk’s always-smoking, always-billowing steel drums should come with the same stark warning you see on the front of cigarettes. This stuff is quite simply as smoky and addictive as it comes. The pork—scorched, glistening, with the faintest hint of lighter fluid about it—is wonderful, but the chicken edges it. I could eat this blackened skin and tender meat all day every day, whatever the journey time.” - JM
Vijaya Krishna
Masala dosai
“As all good Men’s Health articles and chihuahuas everywhere will tell you, size doesn’t matter. Yet, when I’m met with a masala dosai that laughs in the face of a standard dinner plate and refuses to be contained in a landscape photo, I’m officially impressed. The light and crisp ground rice flour and black gram batter was stuffed with happy chunks of potato and a generous portion of slick little slices of fried onions. It became the all-enduring cheerleader of my meal at this homely old-school Indian restaurant in Tooting. Around the point I’d utilised it to mop up a deliriously rich and ginger-loaded butter chicken sauce and the remnants of my—pass the raitha please, I’m pathetic—red chilli bonanza lamb madras, I was pretty convinced that this masala dosai was not only delightfully dippable but also capable of self-regeneration. Thanks to its more-is-more portion size, I also have it on good authority that this masala dosai tastes fantastic for breakfast the following morning.” - HLB
Sudu
Beef rendang
“Another day, another rendang. Specifically the beef rendang at this new-ish Malaysian spot in Queen’s Park. A very respectable portion with hefty chunks of slow-cooked beef that break apart with the slightest pressure from a fork, or roti used to pinch some meat up. This was some of the best beef rendang I’ve had. Ever so slightly citrussy from the galangal and lemongrass it was braised in, and the kind of heat that requires a jug of water to hand. Eat it with the egg-stuffed roti, coconut rice, or even alone. Because this is so good it doesn’t need a supporting act.”- RS
Kubaneh
“The Palomar’s rotund, golden kubaneh is made for ripping and dipping, tearing and sharing. (Although, technically, one per person was eventually ordered throughout the course of the meal at the Middle Eastern restaurant.) Pulling apart the sweet bread revealed its feather-soft, melt-in-the-mouth layers which were ideal for trailing through hummus and creamy courgette machluta. Or, quite honestly, just happily enjoying it by itself. While some of the dishes at this fun, buzzy spot on the edge of Chinatown excelled at making their presence known through the char of a grill or harissa heat, the kubaneh was the quiet star of the show.” - DM
Chicken escalope sandwich
“There are few Wikipedia holes more satisfying than that of the fried chicken cinematic schnitzelverse. You begin looking at one name for a piece of flattened, breaded, and deep-fried meat, before being led to another, and then another, and then another. Tonkatsu, cotoletta, parmigiana, escalope. When I look at this chicken escalope sandwich from Norman’s in Tufnell Park—the perfect slab of crunchy and tender chicken escalope, the just-melted red Leicester cheese mixing with a wipe of spicy mayonnaise, the incomparable white sliced—I see an unimprovable type of food. I realise that whatever you call it, this, the breaded cutlet, is the world’s great unifier.” - Jake Missing, Senior Staff Writer
Lahore Karahi
Chicken biryani
“You can see mounds of biryani in silver trays as soon as you walk into this buzzing Pakistani restaurant in Tooting. And you should most definitely include it in your order. It comes as a big hill of rice on a flat plate—not the most practical choice of dish for it, as stray grains will inevitably make their way to the table. It arrives steaming, with the fragrant smell of onions and tender pieces of golden chicken scattered throughout. A wholesome, satisfying plate of rice that goes just as well with the chicken tikka masala curry as it does alone. Don’t trust anyone who tries to order plain steamed rice at Lahore Karahi.”- Rianne Shlebak, Staff Writer
Hyderabadi Spice
Dum special Hyderabadi chicken biryani
“The biryani at south Indian restaurant Hyderabadi Spice is a majestic thing—there’s a reason every table at the casual East Ham spot had one on their table when I visited on a packed-out Saturday night. Cooked dum-style and served as a glorious, generous mound of sunshine-yellow rice, the chicken biryani for two was crowned with a scattering of fried onion, chicken tikka pieces, and a halved boiled egg. Digging beneath the surface revealed tender thighs and drumsticks with flecks of the fragrant marinade throughout the rice, earthy cumin seeds, and each individual grain perfectly cooked. Leftovers were spooned into a takeaway box and brought just as much joy eaten straight from the foil container the next day.” - Daisy Meager, Senior Editor
Pepper pot
“A clean plate isn’t necessarily a sign of a good meal, but leaving lunch with not just dinner to go, but also a second dinner to go… well, that’s definitely the sign of a good meal. Walking up to Kaieteur Kitchen in Elephant and Castle, my great concern was missing out on something from the brilliant Guyanese restaurant. One greedy stomach can only go so far, after all. I enjoyed two of their staples: chicken curry and oxtail with spinach rice. Thankfully, my regret-fuelled anxieties were only matched and surpassed by Faye, owner, chef, and universal mother figure. We ensured I walked away with a bag of pepper pot pork and lamb coconut curry, alongside pumpkin and stewed spinach sides. Boy, am I happy I did. Pepper pot is the Guyanese national dish and, frankly, it makes me look at mushy peas in shame. There are all manner of cuts in this stew—beef, oxtail, lamb—and it all falls apart in the deepest brown sauces, full of cassava, cinnamon, and cloves. You’d be hard pressed to find a more warming dish, in every sense of the word, than this one.” - JM
Gilt head bream, pepper broth & uziza
“I snapped up tickets to Adejoké Bakare’s takeover of Quality Wines’ Farrington kitchen nearly two months ago, and the feast of modern West African dishes, for which Bakare has become lauded for at her Brixton restaurant Chishuru, did not disappoint. The standout plate was in fact a shallow bowl—of gently cured bream in peppery broth. The fish was mild and yielded to a spoon (all the better for scooping the broth at the same time), and the liquid was rich in flavour: salty, savoury, with an unmistakable kick. I scraped my bowl clean and dutifully helped anyone else who didn’t finish theirs.” - DM
Mille-feuille
“My mother likes to send me screenshots from those Instagram therapy accounts when I’m stressed. Breathe, they say. Get outside, they say. Eat a mille-feuille at Bermondsey’s Casse-Croûte, they definitely don’t say. But that is my own personal interpretation of ‘try to self-soothe’. A double-decker sugared incentive to leave the house, it’s serotonin by way of a rich vanilla and nutty chocolate crème pâtissière. The pastry—cliché alert—crumbles after one hard tap of your spoon, and the powdered sugar and cocoa on top makes that glorious kind of mess you mop up with your finger. I found flecks of pastry inside my handbag two days later and I’m not mad about it. A sweet little memento of a fantastic French dessert done right.” - HLB
Calf’s brain and pepper butter
“Carrots make you see in the dark, oysters are an aphrodisiac, and brains... well, I’m not sure what brains are meant to do. Shudder, maybe. But these ones from Planque in Haggerston really made me think. Soft and rich—not unlike the pepper butter they were bathing in—this poached offal barely stuck around on my tongue before it had melted away. If I closed my eyes I could’ve been eating a savoury île flottante. Or a soufflé round at Hannibal Lecter’s house. Unique and undoubtedly not for everyone, it was a dish where the brilliant flavour spoke of all the thought that had gone into it.” - JM
Banana bread
“I’ve heard things. I’ve seen pictures. I’ve salivated over Google reviews. And then I finally visited Milk in Balham to try their brunch for myself. And it did not disappoint. Everything from the silky-smooth latte, to the famous fish sando—and the many things I ate in between—were excellent. But the thing that I would make the 30-minute drive for time and time again, was the halva butter and tahini-topped banana bread. A thick wedge of banana bread topped with a whole lot of fluffy, sticky, blow-torched halva that had a marshmallow-like consistency, and a nutty, salty pumpkin seed tahini. This was less banana bread and more full-blown cake. One for the dessert-lovers out there, or for anyone looking to start their day on a sugar high.” - RS
Crab campanelle
“The first thing I saw when I walked into Chiltern Firehouse was Matt Smith. The actor, The Doctor, the man with Britain’s most generic name. It was around this point I panicked because celebrities have terrible taste in restaurants—please see The Daily Mail’s sidebar of shame. But between the exceptional service and the IRL filter of the warm amber lighting, I had a gorgeous, gorgeous meal. I looked fantastic, everyone looked fantastic, and this crab campanelle looked fantastic. Thanks to the smoky heat of the XO sauce and generous serving of rich sweet crab, it tasted fantastic too. My favourite bit was what we professionals call, the crunchy bits, courtesy of some kind of luxury breadcrumb. It costs £36 which is—’haha, what’—disgusting, but if your bank balance thinks that’s OK then, get involved and maybe take me too.” - HLB
Smoked eel cacio e pepe
“The plan was to share a bowl of pasta with my boyfriend at Bethnal Green’s Sager + Wilde. But after the smoked eel cacio e pepe arrived and we each had a forkful, our eyes locked—and not in a Lady and the Tramp kind of way. The rich, creamy sauce, spiked with nuggets of salty, smoky fish, was tossed through wonderfully al dente spaghetti. Forkfuls got bigger as we each tried to twirl more pasta in one go, and extra sauce was scooped with spoons. In short, if this dish is on and you’re thinking of sharing—just get two bowls.” - DM
Hong Kong Restaurant
King prawn cheung fun
“No one eats lunch at 4:15pm. Except me, and other fabulous individuals who believe it is socially acceptable to say good morning at 2pm. So there I was at Hong Kong Restaurant, solo and slurping up soy sauce in the middle of the afternoon to a soundtrack of healing flute noises, when it occurred to me that this was the best meal I’ve had in ages. All of the dim sum I tried at this new low-key restaurant on Upper Street was up there with London’s best, but the slippery, glistening cheung fun won out. Salty, loaded with prawn perfection, and potentially the most hypnotically chewy thing I have eaten since quitting the Year 6 Fruit Winders game. FYI most of the dim sum here is available until 9—late-risers rejoice—but the cheung fun is only available until 5pm.” - HLB
Maguro sashimi
“Out of an eight-course omakase that was probably one of the 20 best meals of my life, the dish I’ve picked—after long consideration—is this tuna sashimi number. Not because any of the other dishes lacked in the taste department, but because this bowl of creamy egg yolk sauce and lean tuna melted like butter in my mouth, was an incredible first dish, and an exciting, perfectly spot-on representation of the quality of food to come. An intimate 10-seat restaurant in Mayfair that is absolutely worth the £150 price tag.” - RS
Banners
Banoffee pie
“Banoffee pie. A truly SNM plate of food. I went up to Banners in Crouch End having been tipped off about this pie, walking under the cover of darkness like Phillip Marlowe with a taste for caramel and banana. Was it the best banoffee pie I’ve ever eaten? No. Does it matter? Absolutely not. The cream was thick, and the banana and caramel cloyingly sweet in the best possible way. The biscuit base was a bit of a drilling job but it was still a delightful mouthful. That’s the thing with banoffee pie. It’s pretty much always good. In a restaurant as familial and friendly as Banners is, it was even better. And yes, that is a flake stuck on top.” - JM
Tacos Mx
Baja fish tacos
“I’m a busy gal. There are plenty of restaurants I can and should be visiting. But sometimes a dish is so good that despite it being a 20-minute drive away, and despite the fact I only ate it a few weeks ago, it’s worth a repeat visit. The baja fish taco at this takeaway spot in Fulham is one of those dishes. A perfectly crispy, golden battered fish fillet in a flour tortilla, topped with tangy coleslaw, red onion, guacamole, and chipotle. Plus generous amounts of hot habanero sauce. This is a dish you’ll try once, and then find any excuse to have again.”- RS
Channa bhatura
“Food that looks like it should float around the Turbine Hall isn’t often my kind of thing. But the channa bhatura from The Tamil Prince, a comically inflated dough ball that’s artful on the eye and in the mouth, very much is. The restaurant off Caledonian Road combines southern Indian cooking in a space that was formerly a pub. Two things that equate to two big fat ticks in my book. And this dish is a must. Initially I described it as “the big fried puffy thing” as I saw it gliding around the dining room on servers’ trays. I amend that initial description to: "delicious big fried puffy thing". It’s as light as air (because it’s full of it), crispy on the outside, but springy and chewy when ripped, and then dipped into a little bowl of tingly chickpea curry”. - JM
All Kaps Pizza
Pepperoni pizza
“The alleyway next to The Shacklewell Arms in Dalston isn’t somewhere I’ve been before in daylight hours (and sober). And it’s not somewhere I’d expected to eat an incredible slice of pizza. But a visit to All Kaps Pizza—the Sunday-only, takeaway pie pop-up at Papo’s Bagels—turned out to be a revelatory one. The focaccia-like tomato pie was very good but it was a slice of the New York-style pepperoni pizza that had me ordering a second (and OK, a third). Wonderfully stringy cheese still bubbling from the oven, glistening droplets of oil pooling in the spicy pepperoni, and a glorious flop when handled. That’s amore.” - DM
Kurisu Omakase
18 times sliced scallop with Hokkaido yuzu and scallop salt
“Omakase meals are funny things. They turn diners into something close to obedient dogs, albeit credit card-holding ones, who hang off the every word, hand movement, and mention of the next bite. Kurisu Omakase in Brixton is a particularly special place for this kind of eating. You lean in for the story as much as you do the next course. That said, I would lean in, pant, and roll over for another piece of the 18 times sliced scallop. Otherworldly in look and otherworldly in taste, the buttery threads of scallop are there until they are quickly not. They dissolve in the most satisfying, flavoursome fashion, leaving you wanting more and more. Big woof.” - JM
Chai Thali
Samosa chaat
“The first bite of these deconstructed samosas on a bed of chickpeas topped with yoghurt, tamarind, and mint chutney set my expectations for the rest of my meal at this Indian street food spot in Fulham. It was so excellent and full of flavour that nothing else I ate came close. It’s a crunchy, refreshing, and hearty starter that I low-key wish was a main.” - RS
Gratin potatoes
“Once again I stand before the humble potato and give thanks. In this case we have spud glam, or as some people call it, gratin potato. I spotted them on the menu at Jeru in Mayfair, a highly classy establishment that feels like the kind of place Edina Monsoon would go for mezze, and decided my black angus rib-eye would be lonely without them. Never in my young life have I experienced something so crispy and so soft. Although the prices at this Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant tend to lean, well, Edina Monsoon, these potatoes are six quid. If you find yourself in Mayfair, eat them solo beneath a chandelier with a glass of dry white wine for an absolutely fabulous—sorry, not sorry—evening.” - HLB
Salmon and avocado taki taki style
“On arrival at Sunda Kitchen, I already felt smug after missing a downpour by mere minutes. Then my first dish from Covent Garden’s new South East Asian spot arrived and I felt like the cat that got the cream—or the fish. Slices of meltingly tender salmon which had had the briefest of introductions to a hot pan, fresh, creamy avocado, and slivers of seaweed—bound together by the subtle heat from fresh chilli and a pool of soy-chilli oil. The ideal antidote to a humid, rainy day.” - DM
Toconoco
Karaage with sweet and sour sauce
“Apologies to anyone who saw me eating Toconoco’s karaage this week. Let’s just say, when I bit into the piece of crunchy fried chicken, the juiciness caught me by surprise. The top-tier karaage at the bright and breezy Japanese cafe in Dalston had just the right amount of time to soak up some of the sweet and sour sauce on which it sat. All the while retaining a crisp batter which cloaked that juicy meat. Alongside rice, miso soup, and cucumber salad, it made for a pretty much perfect working lunch.” - DM
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
Gola Restaurant
Margherita pizza
“In my experience pizzas are usually either just fine or immediately-order-another-pizza-after-one-slice kind of good. There seems to be no middle ground. And the classic margherita I got from this Fulham spot was the latter. With a thick doughy crust, rich tomato sauce with the perfect hint of basil, and a lot of mozzarella, this is the kind of pizza you should find the stomach space for. Trust me when I say you won’t want to split one.” - RS
Chicken katsu sando
“When I was merrily slurping up Hakata Ramen’s cold sesame chicken noodles, I thought to myself, oi oi, definite Best Things We Ate This Week status. And then the katsu sando from the Japanese spot in Bermondsey arrived. In case the image above—hand for scale, you’re welcome—doesn’t give it away, this breaded wonder has some serious weight. It’s huge, it’s obscenely meaty, and honestly, if I make it through this entry without sounding like I’ve forayed into 50 Shades fan fiction, it’ll be a good day. No major spoilers that the crunch of the chicken was deeply satisfying, but the sweet-meets-smoky charred bread really made my day.” - HLB
Lighthaus Cafe is permanently closed
Lighthaus Cafe
Roasted aubergine with feta, pomegranate, and chilli butter
"For me, humid, end of summer days are spent mouth open, brow sweaty, staring at the inside of the fridge. Is there anything I want to eat? The answer is usually no, or a cucumber. But then something like this plate of roasted aubergine from Lighthaus Cafe in Walthamstow is put in front of me and before I know it there’s bread involved as well. It came with whipped feta, chilli butter, and sweet little pickled pomegranate. There were layers of flavour going on—smoky char, to pink piquancy, to a creamy and salty cheese blanket bathing in a tingly butter pool. Completely perfect to be picked at over the course of an hour, which is how I like to eat when I stupidly don’t think I’m hungry." - JM
Barrafina Borough Yards
POWERED BY
Butifarró and mahón sándwich, patatas paja
"Rich sausage patty, melted cheese, and fluffy toasted brioche—there was never much doubt that the butifarró and mahón sándwich from Barrafina’s new Borough Yards outpost was going to disappoint. But each three-bite soldier stack was greater than the sum of its parts. Each element brought pleasant sweetness to the party—the black pudding-like butifarró, fruity mahón cheese, and the enriched bread. Then the charred edges of the sausage and crispy, fried brioche exterior injected much-needed savoury richness. Greasy hands guaranteed." - DM
Coco beans, tomato, tagette
“The optimum temperature at which certain foods reach their peak is a weird obsession of mine. Lasagne, for instance, is best when blasted in the oven the next day: crispy bits still crispy, stodgy centre not entirely warm, flavour heightened after time in the fridge. Other food should be piping hot: things from the deep-fried family, fried rice and other beneficiaries of wok hei. Then there’s something like this bowl of coco beans from Newington Green wine bar and restaurant Cadet. Room temperature (or warm, given how the weather’s been recently), soft, sweet, and gloriously spoonable. All those sweet juices for mopping, mixing with the citric hit of tiny tagette leaves. Neither hot, neither cold, but so good a second bowl was ordered midway through the first.” - JM
Pascor
Samneh challah
“Please enjoy this comprehensive list of the things I ate at Pascor, a new charming little Levantine restaurant: a zesty pickle-party duck breast salad, crispy anchovy falafel, a herb-tastic ‘reverse tabbouleh’ with pine nuts, some winning smoke-meet-spices lamb chops, and an intriguing charcoaled mushroom ‘hummus’. But throughout the meal the samneh challah was my official dinnertime mascot. I merrily tore pieces off the glistening loaf of sweet braided bread and used it to mop up tahini, buttermilk vinaigrette, and an oh-so-rich whipped za’atar butter as I got all excited for the next dish to arrive. Begin your meal with the samneh challah, end your meal with the samneh challah, and you’re set for one of the best dinners in Kensington.” - HLB
Crispy rice, spicy avocado
“I’ve had crispy rice a handful of times, usually topped with tuna or salmon, and although in theory it spoke to me, in reality I was always a little disappointed. There was always something wrong. Either the rice to fish ratio was off, or it was over-fried and more of a Gobstopper challenge than a starter. But the crispy rice with spicy avocado from this sushi restaurant in Fulham hit all the right spots. Sesame-crusted fried crispy rice topped with citrusy avocado—these bites were crunchy, fun, and something I could very easily eat 10 pieces of.”- RS
The Baring
££££
55 Baring St, LondonCharred mackerel, salmorejo, and courgette
“On a night thick with anticipation of impending rain and heavy with humidity, I was seeking something refreshing. The crisp, hogweed-infused martini at new Islington pub The Baring first hit the spot as I settled into the relaxed but humming, whitewashed dining room. Then came along the starter of mackerel with salmorejo. Candlelight bounced off the lightly charred surface of the fish and the glossy, gazpacho-like chilled tomato soup. The mackerel was cooked to a fall-apart tee but it was the salmorejo that held my attention. Heady with garlic, olive oil, and peak-summer tomatoes, it was the kind of soup where the shallow bowl was scraped as clean as possible with cutlery and extra bread was ordered to soak up every last drop.” - DM
Antepliler Künefe
Künefe with ice cream
“A hot day and a fuzzy brain calls for two things: shade and sugar. Antepliler Künefe offers both but the latter, particularly, in ladlefuls. I wandered into the dessert specialist on Green Lanes needing a pick-me-up and knew that the cheesy pastry bathing in sugar syrup would very much do the job. The crispy edges of wiry pastry—crunchy from the heat of the copper the pud is cooked in—are my favourite bites. Did I need a pot of no-churn clotted cream ice cream beside it? Probably not. But it’s a combination that is as tooth-achingly good as it sounds.” - JM
Trivet
‘Drunk lobster’ & Trivet noodles
“A lobster and a food writer walk into a bar… not entirely sure where I’m going with this but the point is, this lobster comes in a little bath of sweet white miso, kombu, and sake. The noodles, al dente. The lobster tails, rich and surprisingly sophisticated given its drunk status. The £39 price tag, really quite obnoxious. But you know what, sometimes I like to eat eye-wateringly expensive tiny portions on a Bermondsey terrace because it makes me feel like a cast member of The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills. Basically, a fantastic way to consume seafood, carbs, and booze under the premise of lunch.” - HLB
Omo Tuo & Nkatekwnan
“My perpetual issue with soup is that I’m often satisfied for all of the 60 seconds it takes to eat it, which is all fun and games until the hunger creeps in half an hour later. But this groundnut soup with mashed rice from new pan-African restaurant Tatale in Southwark, is the answer. The Ghanaian soup is creamy from the nuts, slightly sweet from the prekese, and incredibly wholesome and comforting thanks to the island of tightly compact white rice topped with sesame seeds. It’s got the warming factor of a soup and is still satisfying thanks to the carby rice, which when mixed into the soup makes for a savoury, spicy, and delightful dish that I already want to eat again.” - RS
Frank's
Anchovies, pain grillé à l’ail
“Look, there is nothing in my contract that says I can’t choose anchovy toast as the best thing I ate for two weeks in a row. Julia Fox has more-is-more black eyeshadow, Anna Wintour has her bob, and I am quietly leaving my mark on pop culture with a statement allure of smelling like the inside of an Ortiz can. Good for me. The real star of this particular anchovy toast from Frank's, the slick moody wine bar beneath Maison François in St James’s, was the glorious eye-watering intensity of the accompanying garlic sauce. I also dipped my onglet and saucisson in it and dutifully mopped any post-toast remnants up with my finger. It’s a solid 9.5 from this fish fan.” - HLB
The Quarter Kitchen
Barbacoa tacos
“It was a close call to pick a favourite this week. I had A Moment with The Quarter Kitchen’s breakfast burrito—a proper situation with tortilla-swaddled scrambled eggs, sausage, hash brown, American cheese, and salsa roja. But it was the barbacoa tacos, also from the Mexican kiosk in St John at Hackney’s churchyard, that nudged top spot. A heap of tender, juicy, shredded lamb, laced with tiny nuggets of fat, plus smoky ancho chile sauce, diced onion, wafer-thin radish, and coriander atop a beautifully rough-around-the-edges housemade corn tortilla. Devoured in a couple of minutes but remembered for much longer.” - DM
Bag of green beans
“With a menu that reads like it’s been written by E. L. James and enough comic sans to make Clippy twerk in the corner of your Word document, Miznon is already ‘winning’. The international Israeli pitta mini-chain has long been due a London location—it’s in Soho, of course—but it wasn’t the bread or the roasted cauliflower that got me going here. It was a bag of beans. Green ones, specifically. Cold and crunchy, covered in lemon juice and garlic. Summer food is all about picking and I could pick on these until the end of time.” - JM
Flor Bakery is permanently closed
photo credit: Daisy Meager
Flor Bakery
Mangalitsa sausage roll
“I hadn’t intended to have a sausage roll for breakfast. But after ordering a croissant at Spa Terminus bakery Flor, the burnished brown and fennel seed-flecked mangalitsa sausage roll caught my eye. It was love at first sight. Then came the first bite, what was meant to be a little taster before tearing into the morning-appropriate croissant. But before I knew it, I was head over heels—the thick, flaky pastry giving way to roughly minced, well-seasoned pork mixed with carrot and onion. The prized mangalitsa meat adding its unique fatty richness. WhatsApp messages were fired off declaring I’d found ‘the one’ and the croissant was relegated to afternoon snack. Mangalitsa sausage roll—you’re 100% my type.” - DM
Paani puri
“A fun and refreshing street food dish from New Malden Indian restaurant Moksha, the paani puri arrives at your table as a DIY situation. Pick up the hollow puri, scoop in the cold chickpea filling, pour in the citrusy pani, pop it in your mouth whole, and repeat. So good that I very well could have eaten another portion of this light, cooling starter on my own—and probably will do, as I was already mentally planning my next visit before the mains arrived.” - RS
Cantabrian anchovies on toast
“I started the week nibbling a dry piece of toast with chilli flakes while crying. It was the chilli flakes (narrator: it was not the chilli flakes). I ended my week eating an anchovy toast at Bottle + Rye that was sticky sweet, beautifully salty, with a touch of smoky charred flavour. This my friends, is growth. This is the power of a little Basque fishy on fluffy bread. We all know that anchovies are officially Very Sexy now and this new Brixton wine bar is not only a proper little charmer, it has also truly given the anchovy her moment. I also think it is deeply chic that the dish is presented in childhood nostalgia ‘soldiers’ form. In my humble opinion, a true power toast.” - HLB
Garlic bread
“In the mid-2000s Heinz had a product range called Toast Toppers. The toppers—a sort of gungeish mixture you spread onto toast before throwing it under a grill—were foul in sight and theory. Nonetheless they tasted alright. My dad and I loved it. This week at Chet’s (the Thai-American pop-up at Rondo La Cave) I had a Toast Toppers throwback in the best possible way. Their garlic bread is a viscous, gooey, delicious delight. A slab of milk bread slathered with a spicy mixture, fierce with bird’s-eye chilli, pungent from garlic and fish sauce, bubbling after time under the grill. A toast topper for the ages.” - JM
Feta and honey swirl
“Although I may have crumbled under the stress of crossing London in a heatwave, my precious cargo from The Dusty Knuckle Bakery in Dalston did not. The sweet, salty, and aniseedy swirled pastry kept it together: flaky on the outside, tight coiled formation, with chunks of feta and sticky honey layered throughout. Sesame and nigella seeds were a nice aesthetic touch but the generous scattering of fennel seeds really brought the flavour party. It might even rival the bakery’s morning bun for my number one must-order item…” - DM
Zephyr
Beef Tomatoes
“As someone who removes tomatoes from burgers and looks disapprovingly at anyone who eats cherry tomatoes like they’re Skittles, I’m not used to getting excited about eating tomatoes in their raw form. But the salad at this new Greek-inspired spot in Notting Hill made me feel things I didn’t think I could for a beef tomato. Imperfect chunks of red and yellow tomatoes with a simple lemon and olive oil dressing, and topped with spring onion—every bite of this excellent bowl was refreshing, citrusy, and addictive. The bonus? Using warm pitta to soak up the leftover sauce.” - RS
Roti and beef rendang
“Having ordered in from Hawker’s Kitchen a few times I made the momentous decision and effort to slither out of my cave and visit the little Malaysian spot in King’s Cross IRL. It’s a very good thing I did. The roti was already among the best I’d had (albeit via delivery) but here, freshly made and warm from the hot plate, it superseded all expectations—flaky and intricate, warm and nourishing. I got it with a highly fragrant beef rendang that sings with lemongrass. Rip and dip into sauce. Tear and share the bread with the beef. Food this good deserves pause. A second thought must be given to this artful bread. And possibly a third and a fourth.” - JM
The Place
Honey bread
“Given honey bread’s four basic ingredients—bread, honey, cinnamon, and whipped cream—there was never much uncertainty that I wasn’t going to finish every last mouthful. But New Malden cafe The Place’s execution of the Korean dessert was particularly sublime. The thick doorstep square of white sandwich bread was toasted on top but soft and fluffy inside. Ideal for soaking up the generous dousing of honey and perfect peaks of whipped cream which slowly yielded and melted as the minutes ticked by. A heavy dusting of cinnamon meant I could smell the dish before I saw it being brought to my table. The whole thing was cut into precise fork-sized squares—skewer, scoop, eat, repeat.” - DM
Pa jeon
“Some pancakes are round. Some are fluffy. Some are thin and used as a vehicle to stuff as much shredded duck as you physically can in your mouth. However, this pancake at Korean restaurant Imone on New Malden High Street, might just be my favourite of all. An attractive, pan-fried creation, filled with green spring onions and calamari, and golden brown in the centre with dark, crispy edges. This is the best pajeon I’ve ever had… and I grew up in New Malden, so that’s saying something.” - RS
Chick and Beers
Half and half fried / glazed chicken
“This week I discovered two things. One: a miniature of a rabbit tucked up in a little bed in a charity shop in New Malden. Two: some of London’s best fried chicken, also in New Malden. I have a feeling you’re here for intel on the latter so I will get right down to our Chick and Beers buzzword: skin. Yes, the skin on the Korean fried chicken here has the kind of crunch that would make for some truly hypnotic ASMR. The sweet chilli sauce on the glazed chicken was also deeply satisfying, but it’s the fried stuff I can’t stop thinking about, hearing those crunchy bites on a loop in my head. Combine with a pint of Asahi and a couple of friends for peak fried chicken fun.” - HLB
Firebird
POWERED BY
Choux bun
“I am currently on my second Coronavirus Comeback Tour. I’ve been playing the hits like Baby, I’m Leaving The House and I’m Tired (So Tired). This is important background intel because there’s a high likelihood that anything I ate this week that hadn’t been decimated by a microwave could have been considered a 10/10 dish. But I have it on good authority—from my mate who isn’t recovering from covid—that this pastry and pâté medley is just as sophisticated and rich as I thought it was. A lot of the dishes from Soho’s latest barbecue restaurant Firebird missed the mark but this creative little starter was an instant winner, especially thanks to the dose of hazelnut alongside all that smooth chicken liver pâté. I’ll be adding a song about choux buns to my discography, thank you for asking.” - HLB
Lucky's Hot Chicken
Nashville Sando
“This may look like any old chicken sando. But to call it that would be like calling Ekin-Su any old Love Island contestant. A barefaced lie. This flattened piece of deep-fried chicken thigh comes with tangy slaw, a spicy mayo sauce, and a generous amount of pickles all stuffed between two thick slices of buttered brioche toast. It’s a Nashville-style sando that’s worth going out of your way for. You can choose your heat level, from ‘country’ to an extra spicy ‘good luck’, but the medium (which I opted for) was smoky, spicy, and tasted so good I wasn't even tempted to dip it into any of their £1 sauces.” - RS
Ikan Assam Pedas
“Lunch at Mambow in Peckham consisted of many excellent Malaysian small plates that had my fork scooping and twirling between spicy noodles, creamy jackfruit curry, and sharp pickles. But it was this skate curry that I kept coming back to. Soft okra, courgette chunks, and the delicate fish—which slid off the bone at the most gentle touch—sat in a metal dish, bathing in an earthy and sour sauce thanks to fragrant laksa leaf and tamarind. Reader—the plate was scraped clean.” - DM
Beef stew with rice
“A half-arsed Google search of JSTOR led me to learn that the spoon predates both the knife and the fork. This makes sense because it is the CEO of cutlery. Spooning something delicious into your mouth adds an inexplicable layer of ergonomic satisfaction. The pointy one and the stabby one simply can’t compete. Spooning something as delicious as Viet Café’s viscous and fragrant beef stew into your gob proves the point. It’s the colour of the ground at wetter Glastonburys past and the beef is ludicrously feeble. Combined with a handful of gently cooked carrots and dolloped onto a bed of steamed rice, it’s a delicious and almost school-like plate of food. Made for shovelling and spooning.” - JM
Wowshee Egyptian Falafel Bar
Falafel Pitta
“Discovering a new lunch spot might be the most exciting of discoveries. Because it’s the kind of meal you can convince yourself is acceptable to have three days in a row. And that’s exactly what happened when I stood in the queue at this Egyptian falafel stall in Berwick Street Market. Labelled on Google Maps as ‘Best Falafel In London’, and with a queue that made it awkward for passers-by to get through, expectations were set. But taking a bite into the glorious and huge pitta that was overfilled with three flattened falafels, fried aubergine, cubes of fried halloumi, pickles, tahini, and chilli sauce exceeded all expectations. Crispy, wholesome, and so generously filled that I was full three-quarters of the way through—yet so good that I obviously finished every last bite. If you’re around Soho at lunchtime: Get. This. Pitta.” - RS
Doms Club
“This isn’t just any club sandwich. This is a Dom’s Subs club sub sandwich (try saying that after a couple of mouthfuls). Just as onions and green ogres have layers, this roll is stacked—with wafer-thin ham, sliced turkey, bacon, and Swiss cheese, plus cool, creamy guacamole, lashings of mayonnaise, and tomato. Piled in a soft, sweet sub roll and expertly swaddled in a sturdy foil wrapper, it’s frankly a marvel of construction—and just what a muggy-but-kinda-chilly Wednesday called for. An oldie but a goodie.” - DM
Honey & Co Bloomsbury
Taramosalata
“Forget everything you thought you knew about taramasalata (i.e. the lurid pink supermarket stuff) and try Honey & Co’s version asap. First of all, it’s outrageously pretty. The smooth, pale pink cod’s roe dip comes topped with slivers of delicately pickled radish and finely chopped red onion, chopped egg, and orange pearls of cod’s roe. And the dish isn’t just a looker. It’s light and smooth, salty and savoury. The sharp pickles cut through the creamy dip but it’s the chopped egg that’s the real game-changer—the yolks making it all the more rich. It came with toasted pitta on the side but in all honesty I abandoned the bread for scooping up as much as I could with a fork. My official Taramasalata Fan Club merch is in the post.” - DM
Nasi Lemak Beef Rendang
“Hi my name is Rianne and I’m addicted to rendang. That’s right, this is my third beef rendang entry in this guide. And I’m not even embarrassed. I have unofficially appointed myself the head researcher in London, which involves a lot of ups and very few downs. This lunch at Dapur was a particularly high moment in my investigation (and life). I ordered a nasi lemak with beef rendang from the canteen-like lunch section of the menu. Sat on one of their umbrella-covered tables opposite the small cafe, I had one of the most enjoyable lunches I’ve had in a while. And it wasn’t the 27 degree weather, or the warm and friendly service (although both of those helped), it was the tender slow-cooked beef in a rich nutty sauce, combined with spoonfuls of the coconut rice and boiled egg, that I can’t stop thinking about.” - RS
Mousakas
“At the age of nine I became obsessed with mousakas. I’d never tried it, I’d never knowingly seen it. I had, however, watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding with my mum and was deeply intrigued by the reference to this mystical ‘mousakas’. Twenty years later and I might not be John Corbett’s wife but I have finally found a mousakas I am willing to be exclusive with. My friend has raved about this upmarket Greek restaurant’s version for years and the combination of the smoky slow-braised beef ragu and light béchamel sauce is definitely worthy of declaring it a must-eat on your WhatsApp group. Plus, those naughty little potato crisps on top add some exciting crunch factor to that soft and herby aubergine—26 quid but entirely worth it.” - HLB
Blankita
Beef tongue in sauce
“The idea of a tongue may put some people off, but a slow-cooked and tender slab has me licking my lips. Blankita’s is covered in a fruity and mildly spiced yellow sauce, slowly cooked with starchy potatoes and sweet onions in there as well. But the star of this Columbian show is the meat. A careless whisper could break the pink strands of meat down and a mouthful alongside rice, plantain, and a dollop of Blankita’s sharp red chilli salsa had me humming with the happiness.” - JM
Smoked sausage, apple, sage
“Now, a sausage can come in many forms. Alongside mash, inside bread, deep-fried on a stick—yes, I am also now a certified Bunsik fan. But the one at Fallow stole my heart. Because when a sausage is this herby and so gloriously rotund that you feel like the pork is trying to break out through the skin, all you need is a little pile of shining apple jam on the side. The sage said comfort, the apple said HELLO SUNSHINE, and that sausage was the ultimate pay-off for every barbecue me and my flatmate have had that has resulted in us trying to figure out how to get a chiminea to stop smelling of raw meat. Simple summer sharing perfection.” - HLB
Kothu Sri Lankan Restaurant & Bar
Mutton cheese rolls
“Mutton rolls are exciting enough: potatoes and spicy minced lamb, wrapped in a breadcrumb coating and deep-fried for good measure—what’s not to like? Finding a great mutton roll within 20 minutes of my house is a very dangerous thing. But finding an excellent mutton roll with melted cheese, at this Sri Lankan restaurant in Tooting, is absolutely lethal. It’s got all the great qualities of a regular roll, with the addition of my kryptonite: mozzarella. It’s fun, it’s addictive, and it goes surprisingly well with regular tomato ketchup. Order some, then order some more—because it’s genuinely that good.” - RS
Pulled pork plate, slaw, and Texas toast
“Any temperature above 20 degrees is oppressive in my book. So, it was a great relief when I briefly escaped Soho to sit down for lunch at Rita’s. People, myself included, tend to think certain foods thrive in certain temperatures. Ice cream in the summer, hot pot in the winter. That sort of thing. Well, now I can safely say that a plate of pig and bread hits the spot remarkably well on a roaster of a day. The pulled pork—so horribly bastardised by chain pubs and sugary sauces—was magnificent. Tender as you like and topped with a Cajun-leaning spice mix. A tear of buttery and golden Texas toast, topped with that spiced pork, and a few strands of vinegary slaw—that’s my kind of dish on a sweltering day.” - JM
Potato corn dog
“Kebabs, yakitori, chicken satay. Some of the best meats are served on a stick—and that goes for Bunsik’s Korean-style potato corn dog too. The potato cube-encrusted batter came drizzled in ketchup, and in the Soho sunshine was reminiscent of a deep-fried cheese and pineapple hedgehog. It gets even better after a couple of bites. The crunchy, golden exterior gave way to a thick, fluffy, and surprisingly light doughy layer with a pork sausage at the centre. Think sausage and chips on a skewer, with extra deep-fried carbs. She’s beauty and she’s grace. What more could you want for lunch on a London summer’s day?” - DM
Pla plaa style lao, fish salad
“This week I had the pleasure of saying two incredibly sophisticated things. One: “No I haven’t started the new Love Island yet, I’ve just been too busy’. Two: “I had a salad for lunch’. Stop clapping, I’m a saint of adulthood, I know. But the truth is, the salad I had involved crispy fried red sea bream, toasted ground rice, dried chillis, and some chilli paste thrown in too. Is it a salad? There was also lemongrass and mint present, so maybe. Frankly, I don’t care. It was salty and spicy, with a perfectly sour aftertaste that kept returning to me throughout the afternoon like the memory of a delightful summer holiday in-joke. In all honesty, everything at this casual Thai restaurant in Hammersmith deserves a round of applause but for this fish salad, I’ll happily spend another hour on the District line to crunch my way through the thin crispy skin of that sea bream. It’s a 10 from me.” - HLB
Kampai Kensington
Hotate nigiri
“There are plenty of restaurants to choose from on that strip between Hammersmith and Kensington High Street but at this particular one, you’ll find some excellent hotate nigiri. Warm vinegared rice is topped with a hefty slice of scallop and a piece of seaweed to aesthetically tie it all together. There wasn’t a single fault with this nigiri: the fish immediately melts in the mouth, the rice is sticky and delicious, and we’d be perfectly content if we ate a meal that consisted entirely of these delicious bites.” - RS
"Nothing says 'Sunday after a four-day British bank holiday' like grey skies and drizzle. So I walked to Bright in London Fields, musing about the weather, my hangover, and plans for a glass of fizzy red. But it was a plate of sunshine-yellow fried fish that put the world to rights again. The deep-fried morsels of skate, topped with vinegary anchovies and a generous squeeze of lemon, were hot, crunchy, salty, and sharp. I didn’t even care that the fresh-out-the-fryer batter burnt the roof of my greedy mouth—a sip of sparkling barbera (basically alcoholic Ribena) took care of that." - DM
KO Salad!
“You know when you come back from a trip and realise the only vegetable you’ve eaten over the last couple of weeks is that gherkin in your airport McDonald’s double cheeseburger? It’s why my tired eyes were drawn to the KO Salad! at Hackney’s Koya Ko, a refreshing, cold udon with pickled aubergine and crunchy salad. Carbs—yes. Tangy—affirmative. GREENS—give them to me now. When the deep bowl arrived with a bottle of cold Asahi (for balance), it was everything I needed. I inhaled the peppery leaves and thick noodles in the chilled, salty, thin broth, which had subtly taken on the pickle kick. With each mouthful, I felt more restored—this is the official cure for jet lag.” - DM
Beef Rendang
“After something bad happens, like my new white trainers getting scuffed or running into an ex and their new girlfriend (it’s always the ones they tell you not to worry about), I need comfort food. Stat. And that’s exactly what I found at this Malaysian spot in Chinatown. Particularly the beef rendang. Hearty with a slight sweetness, the six-hour slow-cooked beef comes in a spicy coconut heavy sauce. A hastily-teared piece of roti canai, a tender piece of beef, and plenty of that sauce all made for a delicious and satisfying meal with the potential to improve any bad day.” - RS
Someday
Honey Pie pizza
“I am a New Yorker now. Well, technically we went on a work trip to see The Infatuation New York and I have decided that my one true calling in life is saying “I need a slice of pie”. London, I was not ready for slice life to end when I came back so off I went on a pizza pilgrimage to Someday, an all-day spot in the new City North development in Finsbury Park. It’s a big space with that whole cool band posters and low-slung ‘70s couches—sorry, that means sofa in New York—thing going on. Cooked up by street food brand Ace Pizza, it serves all of the pizzas by the slice and the Honey Pie was the instant winner here. Chillies, spicy salami, chewy crust just the way I like it. Oh, and it’s drizzled in a sticky chilli honey which ensures my other great love of America, sugar, was covered too. Just four quid for a hefty slice, I love to see it.” - HLB
Ognisko
Pierogi
“A flute of champagne and a plate of pierogis is a shamelessly decadent way to start a meal, but I’m not often in South Ken and it feels like the area for it. Also, Ognisko is full of white tablecloths and people wearing Chelsea boots—so one has to do their best to integrate. That said, the pierogis from this classic Polish restaurant weren’t just for performance. Four palm-sized pierogis, crisped to a perfect level of brownness, the pastry lovingly crimped. What’s going on inside matters as well, and the potato, cheese and onion filling hits all the right notes—specifically the ones marked gooey, comfortingly stodgy and caramelised. The perfect way to start a meal of Polish opulence.” - JM
Suffolk chicken roast with pork stuffing
“Behold, a roast that will make you say “Aunt Bessie, you’re just not trying hard enough hun”. I am generally a fan of this Tooting pub because there are always cute dogs on the prowl for scraps and the kitchen’s approach is more is more. The roasts here are huge and not a single bite feels like padding. The carrots are herby and the chicken skin tastes like it’s haunted by the memory of 40 litres of olive oil, in the best way possible. But it’s the carbohydrates where this pub really comes into its own. The crunch of the potatoes hits just on the right side of is-this-burnt and lovely crispy carb fluff and then there’s that XXL yorkshire. Does anyone really need a yorkshire pudding that’s this large? No. Should you order it anyway? Absolutely.” - HLB
Lamb hummus
“Can I ever justify spending £25.50 on a bowl of mashed chickpeas covered in meat? I’m not sure I can, but I will say that this overpriced dip that I ate in Harrod’s new fine dining Lebanese restaurant was excellent. Possibly the best version of this dish I’ve eaten outside Beirut, it was a thick, creamy, earthy bowl that was wiped clean with the bread that comes alongside it. Should you pay £25+ for it? That depends how much you think the best hummus in London is worth.” - RS
Original fried chicken
"If you know me, or have ever even seen me try and remove a baked camembert from the oven with a beach towel, you know that I should never be trusted with a hot plate. Alas, I put my own safety and the safety of others aside in the name of a much more noble cause—eating DIY BBQ food at Korean spot, Cedar. The hot plate table experience at this laid-back Hammersmith restaurant is great but it was their served-and-ready fried chicken that was my favourite thing here. The audible crunch of the crispy skin was frankly, intoxicating and I refused my own father the last piece. Zero regrets in the name of top fried chicken." - HLB
Plaza Khao Gaeng
Miang Phuket
"Above the bustling, somewhat overwhelming, mania of the Arcade Food Hall is Plaza Khao Gaeng. It’s a new Thai spot decked out to the nines in the everyday stuff you find in roadside spots all over Thailand. There’s officious light, lurid plastic table cloths and a cocktail so neon, so pumped full of energy drink, you might well suggest sprinting home from Tottenham Court Road. That’s what I was thinking. At least, it was until the food came and I realised I needed to stay put and eat much, much more. The first plate was one of many favourites. Miang Phuket, a starter of coconut and cashews mixed with palm sugar would’ve been Wonka-ish if it wasn’t for the unforgiving slaps of bird’s eye chilli, ginger, and lime throughout. You pile the mixture into betel leaves before popping it into your gob. No polite bite. No dabbing with your napkin. No blinking, because you don’t want to miss this plate of excitement." - JM
Oak cocktail
“Everyone remain calm, but I am once again humbly standing before you and declaring that the best thing I ‘ate’ this week was a cocktail. Soma, a sleek, deeply civilised bar in Soho from the people behind Kricket, has quickly become one of my favourite bars in London. Partially because of the expert service and partially because it’s open until the early hours throughout the week and I have the self-control of a hyena, but mostly because of this cocktail. I generally find kooky takes on the negroni a bit of a let down but the Oak is certified genius. Cardamon, aged gin, Mondino Amaro, sherry, literal oak, and a stonking ice cube that keeps it at that perfect temperature where you don’t even notice that you’re shotting cascara vermouth. It’s smoky, sweet, bitter, and perilously gluggable. Right now, it’s my favourite cocktail in London and I have a feeling it will be for some time to come.” - HLB
Mahdi Restaurant
Chelo jujeh
“Everyone has a go-to order. Mine, when eating at a Persian restaurant, is a jujeh skewer from the grill. And this particular one from Mahdi, a Hammersmith restaurant that has long been on my personal must-visit list, was excellent. Citrussy, moist on the inside, and nicely charred on the outside, it was pretty much the perfect version of my go-to. Combined with a mouthful of buttery saffron rice, it made the 15 minute wait for a table seem like no time.” - RS
Patron
Duck confit and a dirty martini
"Arsenal fans tend to have a slightly precious and pretentious reputation. I’ve been a fan all my life and, quite frankly, I don’t know where it comes from. Anyway, before watching the ladies team beat Tottenham the other night, as a pre-match warmup, I treated myself to a gorgeously fatty duck confit and a dirty gin martini from Patron on Blackstock Road. It’s the second location of the wine bar that’s such a favourite with Kentish Town locals and it feels extremely comfortable in N5. There are nibbles to have with wine or bigger and more buttery plates such as duck confit and gratin. Regardless of who you support, you’re likely to be a fan." - JM
Arcade Food Hall
Sate marrangi
“Feed me a miserable overpriced taco in a chaotic food hall once, shame on you. Feed me a miserable overpriced taco in a chaotic food hall over and over again, shame on me. What I’m trying to say is, food halls have burnt me before so I’m always anxious about trying a new one. That’s all changed now because I ate some very good things at the revamped Arcade Food Hall and no one stood on my foot or tried to elbow me off a table once. Fabulous, right? With everything from saucy Nepalese momos to hefty Margot Henderson sandwiches on offer, my stand-out favourite was the sate marrangi from Indonesian counter Bebek! Bebek!. Tender little pieces of beef rump served on skewers, I would merrily ghost Whole Earth crunchy peanut butter for this sauce any day. Highly, highly addictive." - HLB
Chicken liver pâté
"Almost everything about Caravel had me swooning. It’s a candlelit red barge in Angel called Poppy that serves cocktails as well as jelly and cream. What’s not to love? However one thing really captured the hearts of everyone around the table. It was this unfashionable-looking boulder of chicken liver pâté. Once you’ve had one memorable pâté you may think you’ve had them all, but this one was something else. Ludicrously smooth to the point of being silken, any visiting plasterers to Caravel will no doubt look on in admiration as this meaty spread glides across their slice of toasted brioche. It may look like an enormous serving of Bonne Maman chocolate mousse but, make no mistake, this is very savoury and completely seductive." - JM
Normah's roti beef rendang
"When it comes to the food at this Malaysian spot in Queensway market, it’s hard to pick a favourite dish. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that everything is made by Normah herself in the small kitchen at the back, but you know it’s special when between slurps of king prawn laksa and mouthfuls of mee goreng, you’re strategizing which dish to reach for next. And of all these delightful dishes, the one that sent the whole table into silent eating—and convinced me that it’s not the end of the world if the brown stew got on my white trousers— was the roti beef rendang. Arriving in a small bowl filled to the brim with a thick beef stew topped with crispy onion and fully covered by two pieces of flaky and lightly charred roti, this braised beef curry is wholesome and comforting, and scooped up with the thick, layered roti makes for perfect bites." - RS
