Posted by Katrin on October 31st, 2006 — Posted in Restaurants, Pubs
A friend of mine came to visit last weekend and we decided to go to Brick Lane for dinner. She has been to London but it is ages ago and showing her something different than the usual tourist attractions seemed a good option.
We started off with some drinks and headed towards Piccadilly where we met some more friends. Piccadilly is really not a good place to hang out in the evening, so we made our way away from the crowds to find a nice pub. The Leicester Arms is close by but you don’t feel the crowds out there. It is cosy and was definitely a good place to kickstart the evening!
The Leicester Arms
44 Glasshouse St
London, W1B 5DP
020 7734 7641
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The second one we went to was also nice, although I can’t be entirely sure whether it was the pub or just the company I was in. I can’t bring myself to remember the name, but it was close to Liberty, a great store for fashion - so I’ve been told - on Regent Street. It was just around the corner and I made a mental note to go and check out the store as soon as I can.
After we said goodbye to the friends who had joined us for drinks we finally headed towards Brick Lane. I have never been there before and was curious what it would be like. Unfortunately they were doing some work on some parts of the street, but it was still quite a buzzing atmosphere. Brick Lane is full of mostly Indian restaurants and they will try to lure you in whenever you stop somewhere to have a look at the menu. They will also start to offer you discounts and especially if you are in a larger group that might come in handy.
Normally I don’t like this “fishing for customers” but in this particular setting it was enjoyable and interesting. We walked along the street, stopping here and there to have a closer look and finally settled on one where you could buy your own wine at the store next door and bring it with you. This is done in Sydney very often as alcohol licenses are expensive and it brought back sweet memories of starting the night in a bottle shop where you can take your time to choose your favourite wine, before heading to the restaurant. I don’t have to mention that this is much less expensive as well!
The restaurant was packed with people it was loud and the air was already filled with the scents of Indian spices. It was exactly what we had in mind. Don’t go there if you like fancy surroundings - this is a very simple place and not much care is given to how the tabel is set. But it is just the right place to have a relaxed night out with friends.
The food was absolutely fabulous! I had my doubts to be honest. My Chicken Boohna was delicious and we had a Balti Lamb dish (I don’t remember the exact name) which was great as well. I also recommend the Sag Aloo - in this case I have had better, but it was still tasty and it remains my favourite Indian side dish. The portions were generous and the three of us paid for a starter which we shared, three main courses, a vegetable side dish, two portions of rice and one naan only about GBP 25,-. I think that is a very good price for a dinner out in London!
And when you go and buy your own wine: Try the Jacob’s Creek Chardonnay! Since my time in Sydney I have this thing for Australian wines and this is one of my favourites!
Preem
Restaurant and Balti House
120 Brick Lane
London, E1 6RL
020 7247 0397
open seven days a week
12 noon till midnight
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Posted by Katrin on October 26th, 2006 — Posted in Pubs
Last night we tried one of the many pubs in the Hammersmith area. Getting there can already be very nice if you walk along the side of the river, following the Thames Path! The pub is called the Crabtree Tavern and was mainly picked for its location as everyone coming along worked more or less close by.
We were greeted with a surprise: The whole place has been refurbished and looks completely different now than just a few weeks ago. Some pictures on the internet still show the old colour scheme which has changed from white and blue to the more pub-like dark brown and wood. I can’t really judge the change as this was my first time there, however I think that the white and blue must have been nice just because it is a little different and stands out.
The staff was very friendly although a bit confused when it came to the food ordering. Our appetizers were walked around the room first until they found its way to us. I have read in one of the reviews that this happens quite regularly but I didn’t find it annoying. There were actually quite a few unhappy reviewers. Maybe with the refurbishment the management changed as well and things are improving now - I really can’t complain. I tried the South African white wine which was nice and I thouroughly enjoyed the evening. I have also been told that they have a very nice outdoor area by the river which I didn’t check out given the wheather conditions.
In all I would say it is a good place to drop by if you live or work not far away from it, but I wouldn’t travel just to get there.
The Crabtree Tavern
Rainville Road
London
W6 9HL
020 7385 3929
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Posted by Katrin on October 23rd, 2006 — Posted in Food supply
After trying the real thing, dropping hints about a certain Spanish supermarket in Notting Hill, revisiting the store and putting on my most lovely smile, I got lucky:
Note: Having a man in the house who can cook does come in handy!
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Posted by Katrin on October 22nd, 2006 — Posted in Restaurants, Cafés
Well, I was contemplating about doing this blog post or not as I was not pleased with the place we tried. But then I figured even negative reviews are good as it might save somebody else from making the same mistake.
Close to where I live is this cute looking French style café. I had always wanted to go there for some coffee, but as you know time flies by and you never do what you always wanted to do. So this Saturday we decided to go out for breakfast and we picked Café Rouge hoping for some good coffee in a beautiful ambiance. Sadly they let us down.
We ordered two Café au Lait, a Croque Madame and Oeufs Benedikte. I had my doubts about the place once the coffee was brought to our table. I had quietly hoped for a cup with steaming espresso and a small jug of hot milk on the side, this being the way I have had coffee in Paris numerous times. Instead two milkshake-like glasses were used. I’m not much of a fan of coffee in glasses in general and it is certainly not a very French way of drinking it. (Am I wrong? Please correct me if I am!)
But the coffee was just a side note, the dissapointing thing was the food. Although both dishes tasted ok (as did the coffee by the way - it was not the taste of things that put us off) the presentation was very poor. There was no garnish whatsoever and the plates looked simply dull. I intended to take a picture but then didn’t because it would have looked awful. My Oeufs Benedikte consisted of one slice of brioche, a rather dry slice of ham and two small poached eggs which were pressed in some kind of oval form and looked manufactured. The sauce hollandaise was ok, but I just wonder how they can place all this in the middle of a plate and not get the idea that some green leaves on the side might look nice. Or a slice of tomato, anything really. When I go out to eat I do expect some effort in presentation! Even if it tastes not bad (as this experience proves again) what sticks with me is how food is treated and presented, especially when you are trying to resemble a French café/ restaurant.
I took a flyer with me when we left, in order to do some research for this blog. I was completely surprised to learn that it actually is a chain! I hadn’t been aware of it at all but apparently there are over 80 of these Café Rouge’s in Britain. Well, this certainly can mean that we were just unlucky to experience one that wasn’t well managed. However I won’t find out as I don’t intend to go back and try again.
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Posted by Katrin on October 21st, 2006 — Posted in Pubs
Yesterday I met with some friends at De Hems, which is a Dutch Pub in Soho (I’m still recovering a bit to be honest). I had never been there before but picked it because I learned that it used to be the place where Dutch resistance met during the Second World War after the Dutch government and the Queen had fled to London. That’s quite a story for a Pub, don’t you think?
I was surprised by the large crowd, gathering outside! Everybody had a beer in their hands and enjoyed the still quite warm weather - at least for an October evening. “Gezellig” comes to mind, a word with which the Dutch describe a gathering of friends celebrating anything or just sitting together having fun.
The inside of the Pub is cosy but different to English Pubs in some ways. Not so much “Plüsch” - I just can’t think of the English word for it. We managed to get a table on the wall opposite the bar. The tables and chairs were high and very comfortable. This also has the effect that you are the same height as people standing! I had white wine which was nice but unfortunately only the first glass was nicely chilled. But then again, who orders wine in a Dutch Pub in the first place…
They serve a variety of Dutch and Belgian beer of which my favourites are Heineken and Hoegaarden. Especially Hoegaarden is very refreshing and usually served with a slice of lemon. I used to be not much of a beer person, but after spending a year at University in Amsterdam it kind of grew on me. You can’t help it really.
The other fun thing is that you can order some Dutch specialties like Bitterballen. I really don’t want to know what they put in these little fried crusty balls, but they taste very good, especially if you crave something harty along with your beer. You can order 6 for £3,- if you want to try them first. I was missing a portie kaas though, (rather large) cubes of Gouda which are come with mustard to dip them in.
I felt very comfortable in this Pub! We stayed until the last round was served, the lights were turned on (a pretty cruel way to end an evening…) and took the night bus home.
De Hems
11 Macclesfield Street
London W1D 5BW
020 7437 2494
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