THEGAYUK

Tag: Brasserie Food in London

  • RESTAURANT REVIEW | The Meat Co.

    Getting to The Meat Co. is super easy. Tube to Shepherd’s Bush turn left out the station and 3 minutes away is The Meat Co. a huge dining vicinity, perhaps a spacial reflection of their slabs of meat. With a fantastic menu, high ceilings and cool décor, with tables next to a large glassed front, perfect for people watching. With my arrival being fed over an intercom and an option to have a lift take me up to the restaurant I had high hopes for their service.

    Unfortunately, I was left with my menu for quite some time and with a pretty much empty restaurant floor over an early lunch, this was pretty disappointing. At first I thought this may be due to them thinking I was waiting for another diner to join me but the table behind me had to shout to get the waiter’s attention so I was not the only diner being neglected.

    There were about 5 members of staff in the area, all appeared to be busy preparing for the evening shift, but this did give me an opportunity to observe that they all seemed to get along extremely well and clearly enjoyed working with one another. When I did have interaction with them they were all really friendly and smiley.

    I decided to start lunch with an Apple Crumble vodka cocktail- it was Thursday so it counts as the weekend! It was strong and made well so I later in the meal decided to try another being the Strawberry Basil Martini, which was even better. A perfect balance of flavours, it beckoned me to take the afternoon off and have another, but I reluctantly resisted.

    With The Meat Co’s menu boasting interesting international dishes like Braised Rib Meat Cigars & Balsamic Mayo, Eggplant & Mascarpone Tart, and South African Sausage Boerewors, I asked to try the Chef’s Soup of the Day. The soup was some version of leek & potato which was okay, but I was really hoping for something a little more exotic and in tune with the rest of the menu.

    I chose the South African sausage Boerewors to start. The sausage was laced with interesting spices served curled up with polenta that was cooked very well, which can be a difficult thing to get just right. Alongside was a smoky sweet glossy tomato sauce that brought the dish together – all in all, a good starting point.

    For main I chose the Kangaroo steak which comes with a potato dauphinoise stack, and ordered grilled asparagus on the side. The potato stack was not cooked through and tasted of just raw potato. Luckily, the kangaroo steak which came in a generous portion was cooked perfectly, easy to slice and adorned in a deep red, rich lightly spiced sauce. The asparagus was also cooked well.

    The dessert menu is full of goodies with interesting twists; Passionfruit brulee, Peanut butter cheesecake, Tiramisu with Churros. I went for the Toasted Coconut and Raspberry Vacharin – which was fantastic. It arrived in 3 small tasting experience bowls.

    One a sharp raspberry sorbet, terrine style, with toasted coconut. Lovely textures and flavours. The next a coconut cream with a sharp raspberry jam-syrup, and finally chewy-crispy morsels of meringue (just how I like them) with fresh berries. A very clever, pretty, sweet toothsome dessert from The Meat Co. I would be tempted to revisit The Meat Co and explore the rest of their dessert menu.

    I genuinely believe The Meat Co. serves great food- but on this occasion, it is such a shame that simple points such as; a bland soup, uncooked potato, and pre-occupied staff let them down. Unfortunately, I cannot score based on a belief and have to go by the experience that I had, which is why I have scored two stars. The meal did have some fantastic qualities; the spices in the South African sausage, kicking kangaroo meat and a beautiful dessert so I would still say to check this place out, but perhaps do not go at lunchtime as I did, and head for dinner time where there hopefully will be a little more focus.

    Reviewed by Jordan Lohan
    ADDRESS: Unit 1026, Westfield London, Ariel Way
    VENUE PHONE: 0207 930 8408
    PRICE: ££££
    WEBSITE: http://themeatco.com/index.php/visit-london
    STAR RATING: ★★
    TIPPING POLICY: Discretionary service charge of 12.5% added to bill

  • RESTAURANT REVIEW | Bistrot on the Square @ Eccleston Square Hotel

    Bistrot on the Square @ Eccleston Square Hotel

    Just a brief walk from the chaos of Victoria Station lies the calm, stylish, uber-cool and uber-tech hotel within Eccleston Square. I am not a natural-born Londoner and can sometimes find the “buzz” a bit overwhelming. Eccleston Square manages to create an ambience to instantly chill and transports you to a peaceful place.

    Ambient music played throughout even fed through to their guest toilet decked with L’occitane products (as are there hotel rooms), and fresh hand towels. It’s simple luxuries like this that take the experience to another level.

    From the moment you walk through the door, it’s clear that presentation and design is key and comes easily to the Eccleston Square Hotel. It was lovely to see this being held consistently and conveyed through their food with each course being presented to perfection in the Bistrot.

    To start we had spiced squid & prawn fritters with sweet chilli sauce. Brilliantly bestowed on top of a newspaper cutting of an article about the Eccleston Square Hotel. It felt like we had constant smiles on our faces as the Bistrot laid on a dining experience to remember.

    Also to start, a salad of burrata (made from mozzarella & cream), parma ham, and walnut balsamic dressing. Burrata. Where have you been all my life? I often find mozzarella out of place in salads or anything where it’s not molten and hot essentially. But burrata solves that by giving the creamy-ness of mozzarella but being silky and smooth, and melts in the mouth- a perfect partner for the parma ham.

    Next, the traditional fish (3 different types) and spinach Xacuti Indian curry. Spicy, warming and as vibrant in it’s flavour as it is colour. Served along side steamed cumin rice and fantastic shards of poppadum. A lovely dish.

    Also we had the Moroccan spiced lamb and apricot tagine. The lamb was amazing. Trouble with tagines’ can be that they are overly fruity, or too much spice added- but the chef, clearly is very good with spices as it was a perfect marriage of fruity and spicy along-side luxuriously tender lamb. With the lamb you have a refreshing raw slaw of tomato, cucumber, and pomegranate in a mint dressing, which was so lovely and in-line with the chef’s nutritious, vitamin-rich approach to food, adding some needed crunch against tender lamb and warm fluffy lemon couscous. My only criticism would be that the tomato was slightly watery so took away from the crisp crunch.

    To finish, I had the Madagascan vanilla crème brulee. It was literally the best brulee I have ever had. It was fresh and spiked with vanilla pod throughout it’s set, warm custard. I don’t know how many brulees are spoilt by the custard being cold so that it conjours images of brulee en masse sat in a fridge waiting for a customer to order them and be blow-torched. Not this one. Simple, but beautiful when done right, as they have done here. The Valhrona fondant is one to order too with an intense chocolate hit bound to surpass the requirements of any chocolate lover.

    Post dinner coffees are served with home-made biscuits which was a lovely little touch and executed well. The service throughout was impeccable and friendly with our waiter engaging in polite conversation, asking what we had done in the day etc. he also ensured our courses came within our time-frame due to travel commitments.

    I have given the Bistrot on the Square five stars as they demonstrated being experts in my two favourite loves; design and food. And being able to do so with such grace and good taste is hard to find.

    Reviewed by: Jordan Lohan
    ADDRESS: 37 Eccleston Square Hotel, London, SW1V 1PB
    VENUE PHONE: 020 3489 1000
    WEBSITE: http://www.ecclestonsquarehotel.com
    PRICE: £££
    RATING: ★★★★★
    TIPPING POLICY: Discretionary service charge of 12.5% added to bill

  • RESTAURANT REVIEW | The Manhattan Grill

    The Manhattan Grill sits very comfortably on the West India Quay of Canary Wharf. This place is brimming with style, but most importantly a talented team who know exactly what they are doing, and you can tell that they love what they do. With head chef, Damian Trejo having cooked for the likes of Barack Obama and the Dalai Lama, the Manhattan Grill provides a star factor at every angle from start to finish.

    Our experience starts in their G&Tea bar where we have a gin tasting session with the lovely Sam. Sam takes us through the tasting and stories of 7 gins where we hear of London’s first distillery, olden porn sellers, and where “Soho” originates from, to name a few.

    Tasting highlights for me were the French Saffron gin, the Monkey47 (a Black Forest German gin sold only in 500ml bottles, giving it the exclusive edge), and the Opihr (a gin where the recipe was based on a spice being taken and infused into the gin from every port on its journey).

    The bar was fairly busy for a Tuesday evening with a mix of cosy couples and booted businessmen. The restaurant was extremely quiet with the majority of tables being taken by solo suited chaps.

    We couldn’t decide what to have for starter so our friendly (and rather good looking, a recurring theme in the staff) offered to have the kitchen do us a tasting platter of the starters. Juicy King prawns in mixed chilli garlic butter, Black pearl scallops with pea puree, Devonshire pork belly, and Baked Blue Swimmer crab cake. So pretty all together on the plate this should feature on their menu as a tasting platter.

    The pork belly was far too salty for me although it was matched with a fruity cabbage- the flesh itself was heaven. The scallop with pea puree was insanely good – if I had to pick just one out of their starters, it would be this. Very closely followed by the crab cake; meaty, light and just the right amount of herbs. I also tried the clam chowder which tasted like a holiday I once had in the U.S – lovely.

    In between courses you are invited to join a sommelier (free of charge), to try some classic wines and some interesting wines from South America, South Africa and Australia. Again, here the Manhattan Grill reinforces that they know their stuff and are going to make you feel special along the way. It also came to light that this company invest in their employees, sending them on courses and trips that are of interest, which clearly adds to the staff’s happy and passionate buzz.

    Following our waiter’s suggestion on his favourite main I went for the Rib-Eye and my friend had the Fillet. The meat was superb and cooked to perfection- I asked for mine to be cooked however the chef wanted me to have the meat and it was a winner. Restaurant’s such as the Manhattan Grill that revolve around one important ingredient, means that it has to be on point. The meat was faultless.

    For sides we had the macaroni cheese (although I wish we had opted for the version they do with lobster), seared mushrooms, and onion rings. I am a sauce monster – gravy, dips, marinades the lot. So I naturally asked to taste a selection of the restaurant’s sauces; Chimichurri, Bearnaise, Bourbon Peppercorn, and red wine. Unfortunately, the sauces were a let down- I found the Chimichurri over oily and the Bearnaise bland. Bourbon Peppercorn saved the day on the sauces and it went particularly well with the Mac N Cheese.

    After both gin and wine tasting, a starter platter and a hunk of meat we decided to share the restaurant’s Key Lime Pie for dessert – light pastry and super citrus filling it was the perfect way to end the meal.

    The experience from start to finish was 5 stars, there is no doubt about that. However I cannot forgive the issue with the sauces and over salted pork I’m afraid, hence a star has been deducted. You will certainly both arrive and leave with a smile on your face, and a slightly bigger belly than when you entered! Both myself and my friend said we would be back to dine and drink again. We had a fantastic time.

    REVIEWED BY: Jordan Lohan
    ADDRESS: 22 Hertsmere Road, Canary Wharf London, E14 4ED
    VENUE PHONE:
    WEBSITE: http://manhattangrill.co.uk
    PRICE: £££ (explained)
    STAR RATING: ★★★★ (explained)
    TIPPING POLICY: Discretionary service charge of 12.5% added to bill