Favourite Christmas Gifts for a Foodie - Part 1: Artisan du Chocolate Advent Calendar

Picture by Richard Boll

As the stores become more manic over the coming days and you wonder what to get that foodie fiend nearest and dearest to you, I thought I would invest some time and calories finding the perfect presents for the Season.

Picture by Richard Boll

Artisan du Chocolat, the purveyor of some of the finest British handmade chocolates, has through offering its Christmas Advent Calendar, proved that life is a box of chocolates - perfect on the inside and the outside.

Picture by Richard Boll

Made in Ashford, Kent by a small producer, this is a box of chocolate nirvana. I was first introduced to Artisan's wares via Ms P's love of their exceptional chocolate salted caramels. They have however, excelled themselves with the offering of these individually boxed handcrafted chocolates. This is the ultimate gift for the foodie that already has the mixer, the baker and the candle-stick maker.

Each Calendar offers a selection of flavours and textures over 25 happy days and has the best-dressed boxes of goodness to be found this side of the international dateline. The calendar costs £35 (pricey but worth every penny for the whole box and flavoursome dice).

Artisan has a number of stores in central London (Selfridges being one) and they have an online shopping portal that ships internationally. So, buy one for the foodie you love and one to treat yourself.

https://www.artisanduchocolat.com/customer/account/login/

Telephone: +44 1233 505170

Cabana London: Fulfilling all of our Protein-Fueled Brazilian BBQ Dreams

The funky interior

I am on a mission to look HOT when we step off a plane in Australia in five weeks time. Two years have passed since our last sojourn, and I don't want the punters Down Under to think that we (really me) have gone to seed owing to the excesses of London life. This means curbing all of the fun things: booze, chocolate, tasty stuff. But joy of joy, we are allowed excessive amounts of protein. You cannot imagine our excitement when we saw that James Barber, formerly of Sake No Hana, Villandry and Hush, was about to open his Brazilian BBQ joint, Cabana, in Central St Giles, Covent Garden.

Having secured some seats during the soft-launch opening, I can report that the place got multiple ticks for those looking for some protein-fueled BBQ goodness. The funky interior shows the attention to detail that we have come to expect of Barber: think soaring colourful ceilings, banquettes made from patchworks of denim jeans, distressed raw wood floors and the theatre of an open BBQ pit.

 In many ways, Cabana is a traditional Brazilian churrascaria with the staff wandering the restaurant tempting punters with skewers of BBQ abundance. The main difference, however, is that whilst at most churrascarias you pay one price (between £19 - £27 in London) for all of the meat or seafood you can eat, at Cabana you pay per large skewer consumed (between £3.35 - £5.95).  I have to admit, I found Cabana better on a food quality and price basis than other London haunts.

Chicken coxinhas: the right hint of spice

Under the street food entrees, I can heartily recommend the chicken coxinhas (croquettes of shredded chicken with the right hit of spice £4.35). I do wish however that we'd had the ability to try the sweetcorn pamonhas (grated sweetcorn with a hint of cinnamon wrapped in a corn husk and steamed in coconut milk £3.35). As for the skewers, the chimichurri black gold rump, the chilli and cumin lamb (both £5.95)  and the spicy chicken ( £5.45) were all good. Fulfilling all of my BBQ dreams were the sticky baby back ribs (£5.45) that offered a big whack of chilli and sweet spice. A little disappointing were the spicy tiger prawns (£5.95) that could perhaps have been spicier and more abundant and the chicken sausage wheel (£4.50).

Pork tenderloin with Parmesan crust

Chimicurri black gold rump

Sides and salads included offerings such as sweet potato fries (£3.45), biro-biro rice (£2.85), spicy prawn and avocado salad (£8.75) or tomato and palm hearts (£3.65). Whilst we didn't partake due to the looking HOT restrictions, dessert were a limited offering of frozen yoghurt (natural, peanut butter or caramel with funky topping £3.95), ice-cream and sorbet (vanilla, melon, banana and kiwi, mango £3.65) or banana and caramel cheesecake (£4.95). The cocktail list was extensive and will certainly tempt us back in our post Aussie holiday haze.

Look at all of that BBQ goodness

Go for the great inexpensive BBQ and cocktails, funky interior and soaring ceilings and the friendly and attentive staff.

Have Jamie Oliver & Chris Bianco at Union Jack's created the Best Pizza in London?

Praise be to Jesus, I have been doing a jig because restaurants have begun to open in Renzo Piano's ground-breaking St Giles development in Covent Garden, London. For months, I have excitedly passed the five large double-height glass box restaurant spaces in the courtyard, hoping that something fantastic, independent and unique will come of such a talked about space. Unfortunately, my jigging has not turned into jiving, as I fear that the space is most likely going the way of most High Streets in the UK or America - choca-block-full of (higher quality) chain restaurants (think Zizzi, Byron, Fishworks, Sofra......).

Post-industrial distressed interior

Ms P and I were however dancing a tango after we learnt that Chris Bianco of Pizzeria Bianco, the man who supposedly makes the best pizza in US was teaming-up with Jamie Oliver to open a new joint in one of Renzo's glass boxes.  Our dance steps were slowed slightly when we discovered that they would be offering British-themed retro inspired food - including pizza (Ms P's nonna would be turning over in her very Italian grave).

Simple sausage and bacon

We were still excited to launch ourselves on the venue this week, during its soft-launch period. The once cavernous glass box has now been filled with a retro-fit post-industrial distressed furniture look that only partially succeeds (making new look old is an art form best left to Chinese and Italian antique dealers - otherwise try to buy some of the real thing). The large wood fired pizza ovens and BBQ station did add a warming note and a sense of theatre.

Bloody mary mussels

On the food front, I can report that London's obsession with small plates has not abated. Union Jack's is offering small mini morsels such as prawn & Morcambe bay shrimp cocktail (£6),  smoked trout pate with feisty horseradish on baby Yorkshire puddings (£5) or Cumbrian ham hock terrine with radishes and piccalilli (£4). Ms P opted for the wood-grilled sausage and bacon with ale and mustard sauce (£4.50). She noted that the sausages went down a treat,  offering the right mixture of meaty-smokey flavours but that they were a little overcome with the strong mustard sauce. My bloody mary mussels in a bag (£5) offered all the great parts of a the drink (tomato with Tabasco but perhaps too strong celery overtones) with fantastic mussels. (I couldn't however see a bag anywhere - I presumed that they would be baked and presented in a parchment bag). Perhaps a slight change to the menu is required).

The Stargazy Pizza

The Old Spot

Union Jack's doesn't 'do' mains in the traditional sense, but offers a selection of 'flats' from its roaring wood-fired pizza oven. We were assured by the staff that these were very different to pizzas and owing to Mr Bianco's reputation, we took their word for it. Ultimately the offering is pizza. I can report happily that my Stargazy pizza of sweet melted onions, fennel seeds, squashed tomatoes, Cornish sardines, rocket and shaved fennel (£10) was delicious, with a very thin crisp base that you associate with pizza that you find throughout Italy. Ms P opted for the porky goodness offered by the 'Old Spot' that mixed roasted shoulder pork, quince & Bramley sauce, Bishop Stilton, crackling & watercress (£12). The crackling was a winning note, and even though it mixed meat and fruit (a no-no for Ms P's palate), she lapped it up.

Puddings were a glorious sounding mix of such things as sticky treacle tart with clementine soured cream (£4), bitter chocolate mousse with "gary-baldy" biscuits (£4) or a retro take on an Arctic roll (£4). I had heard that the cheese on offer was some of the best British cheese in town, and I can assure you that the huge hunk of Stilton I was presented had the right mix of acidic, salty creaminess (I also really liked the homemade crackers and fruit paste) especially for the cheap price on the menu.

Coffee and tea (proper pot, not teabag!) were on the right side of good and I can report that the wine list is sensibly priced for punters on a budget.

So have Jamie Oliver and Chris Bianco created something fantastic, independent and unique? Will Ms P and I be tangoing down there constantly for many years to come? Well, I can assure you that the staff we engaged with were some of the most enthusiastic and friendly that we have come across in our many years in London (Store Street Espresso should take classes from them). Generally the food was good, very well priced and I can say that the pizzas were a shining light. Independent and unique, perhaps, owing to the marriage of British themes and pizza - but overall the twining of the two just doesn't gel for me. Whilst a British topped pizza and Mr Bianco's reputation enticed me through the door, I will return, but I won't make it my regular. I am sure others will flock, if you are in the area try them out, but alas alack, whilst we will return there will not be a constant tango from us at the front door. Not London's best pizza, but in the days and months ahead, perhaps with changes to what's on top of the pizzas, that assessment will change.


Union Jack's
Central St Giles,
St Giles High Street
Covent Garden
London WC1H 8AG
Web: http://www.unionjacksrestaurants.com/

Store Street Espresso: Go for great coffee and hope the service improves

Hip, Happening Store Street

I have been through one revolution and now I am living through another. Twenty years ago I worked as a barrista in cafes and restaurants in Melbourne, just as the independent cafe culture hit town. (Prior to then were the Dark Ages where cafes were unheard of outside of Little Italy and coffee meant Nescafe). Way back then, we were trying to provide excellent coffee and food in simple environs whilst giving friendly and enthusiastic service. It was a revelation for a small-town boy who didn't know his ristrettos from his flat whites. I Loved it - the coffee, the food and most of all the customers.

For the past couple of years we have been seeing a similar revolution in London with the opening of independent Aussie/NZ-style cafes: think Flat White and Providores, Tapped & Packed, Lantana, Nude Espresso, St Ali and the rest. Most of them are following the same common themes that I saw in Australia all those years ago: cool environment, great coffee, simple food and friendly service. Get it right and you'll have the punters flocking at your door (have you seen the crowds at Lantana on a Saturday morning).

The coffee is the main draw

 Store Street Espresso is very much in the Aussie/NZ-style cafe groove. Located near Oxford Street and off Tottenham Court Road, in some ways, it offers more than its competitors. It has a spacious interior that evokes the feeling of being back in an architecture student lab: natural light, ever-changing art work, deconstructed tables and chair and great tunes. It offers a comfortable environment where you don't feel that you are being crushed by a throng of others. It has hit the jackpot in this sense.

Great cakes

It gets a very big tick for its extremely well made flat whites and cappuccinos, for which its barristas should be applauded. This place shows how far London's coffee culture has come in the past couple of years. Food-wise, it offers simple, but well made fare such as delicious homemade cakes, muffins, pastries and good sandwiches. This is not stuff that blows you away, but in comparison to London's well-known coffee chains, it's a great offering.

Unfortunately, whilst SSE is winning the battle owing to its coffee, food and environment, it may be losing the revolution on some fronts as service can be patchy with some staff appearing to be disinterested in their customers (at both busy and quiet times).

Go for the coffee and the art student vibe. Applaud them for the courage to start a business and hope that they clear-up problems with service.

Foodland's Welcome to Autumn and Salute to Halloween: Chocolate Spiced Fresh Fig Cake with Chocolate Ganache

As things turn cold in Londontown and with Halloween just days away,  its time to celebrate with all of my favourite things in the kitchen: spices, chocolate and fresh figs. The basis for this recipe came from the fantastic blog by pastry studio (with some of my own additions such as the ganache and hazelnuts). Ms P and my colleagues noted that it was moist, chocolately with the right hint of spice. 

CAKE INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups self raising flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup crushed toasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup & 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1/2 cup & 1 tablespoon hot water
1/4 cup & 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (and extra for greasing)
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup & 2 tablespoons buttermilk
(if you can't find buttermilk add 1 teaspoon of white vinegar to the milk)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 
8 fresh figs (and 2-3 extra figs to decorate)


CHOCOLATE GANACHE
250g dark chocolate, chopped
250ml double cream


1. Preheat the oven at 180 degree c/350 degrees f. Oil and place baking paper on the base and sides of a 24 inch round/springform cake tin..

2. Slice the bottoms and tops off the figs and then cut in half. Set aside.


3. Sift the flour, baking soda, salt and spices together. Whisk the cocoa and hot water together until thoroughly blended and smooth. Combine the buttermilk and vanilla.


4. Whisk together the oil and sugars. Add the eggs and blend well. Whisk in the dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk and beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Add the hazelnuts. Mix just until well blended.


5. Pour into the prepared pan and gently tap the bottom of the pan on the work surface to remove any air bubbles. Submerge the fig halves into the cake.


6. Bake for between 40 - 55 minutes (mine took 55 but recipes vary) or until a skewer inserted comes out almost clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges and gently remove the main component of the cake tin. Place cake on a wire rack for an hour/until completely cool.


7.Whilst the cake is cooling, place the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to just before the boil, take off the heat and add the chocolate and whisk vigorously until smooth. Set the ganache aside for approximately 20 minutes to cool. 


8. Slowly pour the ganache over the centre of the cake. So as to ensure that the ganache holds its sheen, try not to work it with a knife or spatula. Simply tilt the cake to ensure that the ganache spreads evenly.


9. Allow the ganache to set for five minutes and then decorate with additional figs (if desired).


Enjoy

8. 

The Cellar Bar at Alfred Dunhill:EB Perfection

The stately pile

Has your partner ever chosen a department store over you? On a Saturday morning does a pair of Louboutins at Selfridges (or the whole shoe lounge) win out over your sterling personality? I can at times empathise with the feeling. But what to do when your fashion cred is down and you need a cup of joe to cheer you on your way (and let me admit, clothes or shoe shopping is not for me and I would always rather take the cup of joe than hit the shops).

Central Mayfair (near Selfridges) is not an area I think of when I consider great brunch venues. Fitzrovia has Riding House Cafe, Marylebone has Providors and Soho has a plethora of Aussie/NZ cafes offering the best coffee this town can fathom. Mayfair is for hedge funds and those who wear braces, pin stripe suits and cardinal red socks. But the times they are partially changing.

A secret garden

For many years now, I have wondered past a perfectly formed Georgian mansion in Mayfair that offers the most impossible of things - a secret garden behind a high brick fence, that is actually open to the public for brunch or a tipple or two. So recently, I wondered in and found it to be Dunhill's flagship store. It doesn't offer' cutting edge modernist design or fusion food gone wild, but perfectly executed eggs (and more) in a supremely comfortable setting that would make Lord Grantham smile.

A comfortable, slightly cool interior

The Cellar Bar has a limited and a pretty traditional jolly hockey sticks kind of menu - think bacon rolls, granola and poached fruit or eggs florentine, benedict or arlington (that's the one with smoked salmon - who knew). Sounds not terribly compelling stuff? Think you should just lounge at Pret? Don't. I am going to make a bold statement - The Cellar Bar at Alfdred Dunhill might just make some of the best eggs benedict in central London. It's all about great produce being cooked to perfection: think faultlessly poached organic eggs, hand carved ham, muffins on the right side of toasted and a hollandaise sauce offering the ultimate balance of buttery, lemony, vinegary tastiness. Throw in the fact that you can sit in the garden, that the eggs are a reasonable £8 (remember this is Mayfair) and that the wait staff are friendly and helpful to a fault then you have a winning combination. The only fault, and OK it might be a substantial one, is that the coffee is just well OK and at £3.50 is highway robbery. There is no kick in their cup (something that they really need to rectify to fulfill those Dunhill brand values of offering a fashion conscious urban perspective).

These are damn fine eggs

There is no kick in that cup!

So the next time Ms P leaves me on a Saturday morning for a red-soled boot or a Beatrix Ong heel, then I know where I will be heading (as long as they improve the coffee).

The Cellar Bar @ Alfred Dunhill
2 Davies Street
Mayfair, London W1K 3DJ
T: +44 845 458 0779
W: http://www.dunhill.com/en-gb/thehomes/london/services/cellarbar/

Machiavelli: The Italian Escape Pod

Taupe tones, sharing tables and great books

I have always wanted a villa in Tuscany or Umbria. One of those places decked to the rafters in taupe tones, lots of books, natural linen, hand sawn wood and interesting furniture. A place that would be focused around cooking, eating, reading and escaping the rate-race that London can sometimes become.

Ms P and I can't quite stretch to the villa-dream this decade, but we can stretch to walking to Covent Garden to sample the delights on offer at Machiavelli. It is a bakery, bar, restaurant, delicatessen and book shop  all rolled-up into one offering that fulfills my need for an Italian escape pod. Owned by the Italian restaurant group and food importer that run Manicomio Chelsea and Gutter Lane, it offers reasonably priced Northern Italian cooking in convivial surrounds.

My recent visit coincided with my return from a prolonged period of gorging in Italy and Lebanon (more on that later), and therefore unfortunately I couldn't partake in the entree of salmon tartar with capers and lemon or the buffalo mozzarella with roast beetroot (there were numerous other great choices all between £5 - 7.50).

The crunchiest of crackling but where is me stuffin

There were many offerings in the main menu that tickled my fancy - Tuscan sausages with banana shallots, sage and borlotti beans or the parcel of sea bream steamed with potato and fennel. Ultimately I settled on the stuffed rolled belly of pork with mostardo di Cremona (mustard fruits). I have a fondness for mostardo (I've always enjoyed its addition to pumpkin ravioli) and I wanted to try it with one of my favourite cuts of pork. Machiavelli offered perfectly cooked and presented, generous portions of belly pork with the crunchiest crackling I've had for a long time. Unfortunately on the night I visited, it appeared to be missing its stuffing. I was advised by staff that there my have been fresh herbs added during the cooking process, but these were not apparent in the tasting. I think if they had been added or added in greater quantity this would have increased the levels of flavour in the dish and taken it from good to great.

Perfectly presented and the moscato jelly was a revelation

The dessert menu offered a tantalising mix of all of my favourite sweet things: think salted caramel tartlets with cape gooseberries or roasted quince with spices and ginger biscuits (all between £3.50 - £5). I chose a duo of Italian cheeses with freshly made pane carasau (the thinnest of thin bread) and homemade moscato jelly. The cheeses (pecorino and a strong blue) were perfectly aged and the moscato jelly was a revelation.

Whilst I didn't partake, cocktails and wines by the glass or carafe are all reasonably prices; with all wine coming from the main producing regions of Italy.

On the whole Machiavelli offers great value well cooked Italian-inspired food, with enthusiastic staff in a comfortable escape pod environment.

Machiavelli

69 Long Acre

London WC2E 9JS

T: +442072402125

W: http://www.machiavellifood.co.uk/machiavelli_restaurant

The TF and the Best Gelati in Rome

What could be better - a sunny day, the TF and some San Crispino

For me, there is almost nothing in Rome to better the sight of the Trevi Fountain. You can have your St Peter's and ancient ruins, but there is little to beat the sights and sounds of the gushing water and action-heroesque white marble figures carved so many centuries ago.  It has drama and history all rolled into one elaborate over the top picture.

There is only one thing that can better the TF, and that's gazing upon it whilst woofing down some of the best gelati the Eternal City has to offer. Luckily, on my recent trip I was joined by locals, Roman Fra and Greek Georgia, who gave me the word on the best gelateria in the Old City. 

Steer clear of the tourist tat iridescent ice cream offerings near the fountain and head to the artisan gelati made fresh throughout the day by Il Gelato di San Crispino. It is literally a hop, skip and a jump away from all of the action of the TF, but in gelati terms it is a world away owing to the quality of their ices. 

Meringa al caramello - the best flavour in Rome

From sampling experience, I can tell you that nothing beats  meringa al caramello - delicious fresh meringue pieces in vanilla ice cream with the added extra of burnt toffee shards or the sensational zenzero e cannella - a fantastic ginger and cinnamon combo. Servings are generous (but not over the top) and are only provided in cups (not cones) ranging from one to eight scoops.

For those needing their gelati fix at other monuments, Il Gelato di San Crispino has two other locations in central Rome and one shop at Rome Fiumicino Airport.

So, get licking.

Il Gelato di San Crispino

via della Panetteria 42

Rome 00187

www.ilgelatodisancrispino.it