Lifestyle

  • Riverside views and posh Euro nosh
    Tuesday, 9th March 2010
    It’s all about the glinting lights of the big city at this nicely conceived Docklands newcomer
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Battery 34 Westferry Circus E14 8RR Tel: 020 8305 3089 Cost per person without wine: £55 YOU have to really want to go to Battery to make it inside. In the Phillipe Starck-designed space formerly occupied by the now-defunct restaurant Ubon, it’s at the top of a building within the cloistered Four Seasons complex in Canary Wharf, next to that hotel’s rather wonderful infinity pool. The entrance to the hotel (never mind the restaurant) is up some quiet stairs, off what must be Docklands’ most obscure, unwelcoming road (Westferry Circus). To access its grounds, and thus Battery, you must buzz... [Read more]

  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 9th March 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    TURKISH WINES AT TIKE A hit among the upwardly mobile of Istanbul, Tike opened last year to the delight of City folk who like a good bit of meat with fresh warm hummous.?Now a wine list has been... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER RESTAURANTS WITH KNOCK-OUT VIEWS
    Tuesday, 9th March 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    RHODES 24 Gary Rhodes’ Michelin-starred establishment sits on the 24th floor of the City’s highest building, so – unless the windows were blacked out – it would be hard to find better views at any... [Read more]
  • Food to make central London blush
    Tuesday, 2nd March 2010
    A cosy, 24-cover restaurant in Amersham, Bucks, serves food crying out for a Michelin star
    The Artichoke 9 Market Square, Old Amersham, Bucks, HP7 ODF, tel: 01494 726611 Cost per person without wine: £40 For a Tuesday evening, it wasn’t the usual sort of place to meet for dinner. From... [Read more]

  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 2nd March 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    ALICE COCKTAILS AT THE ARTESIAN The beautiful Artesian bar at the Langham Hotel is celebrating the release of the forthcoming?Alice in Wonderland film with a new cocktail, the White Rabbit. It’s... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER TOP COMMUTER RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 2nd March 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    CHAPTER ONE, BROMLEY, KENT It may be in Bromley, but with a Michelin star and four AA rosettes, Chapter One is on the same plane as London’s Pied a Terre and Cambridge’s magnificent Midsummer House.... [Read more]
  • Torode offers more sizzle than steak
    Tuesday, 23rd February 2010
    The Masterchef star has hit a dud note with his latest restaurant in Spitalfields
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    The Luxe On hearing the name of John Torode, those in the know are likely to grunt with satisfaction as the image of a large, juicy steak enters their head. Perhaps they’ve even read his book, called... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER MEATY RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 23rd February 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    MAZE GRILL Jason Atherton’s more casual offshoot of Maze, the emphasis here is on steak, though everything else is good too. A waiter appears with a bundle of raw meat, from which you choose what... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 23rd February 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    CALLING ALL FRUIT BEER LOVERS Fruit beer lovers who shop at Waitrose rejoice: a delicious new one from Liefmans has been added to the range. Based on Liefmans Cuvee Brut, a famous brown beer brewed... [Read more]
  • Missing the mark in museum land
    Tuesday, 16th February 2010
    The restaurant in an expensively-revamped hotel is too bland and unrefined to create a stir in South Ken
    AUBREY, the restaurant of The Kensington Hotel, is named after Aubrey de Vere, who I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you was a middle-ranking medieval baron and chum of William the Conqueror. He... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER KENSINGTON RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 16th February 2010
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    BABYLON Sitting seven floors up atop the Kensington Roof Gardens, Babylon has some pretty splendid views out over West London – and indeed over the gardens’ flamingo pond – to distract you from its... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 16th February 2010
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    RAMSAY REOPENS PETRUS Petrus, the Knightsbridge restaurant that under Marcus Wareing became the most prestigious venue in Gordon Ramsay’s empire after his own Hospital Road flagship, will re-open on... [Read more]
  • WHERE ACROBATS ARE SERVED WITH STEAK
    Tuesday, 2nd February 2010
    A super-glamorous American restaurant dazzles as much with its entertainment as with its gutsy food
    Zoe Strimpel
    OVER the past two years, there’s been much talk from restaurateurs of “adding value” in order to entice cash-stripped punters. Great meal deals, the chance to eat at Michelin-starred restaurants... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER SUPPERCLUB-STYLE RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 2nd February 2010
    Zoe Strimpel
    PROUD CABARET Modelled on a 1920s Hollywood supperclub, this City venture offers well-sourced British food from a set menu, a heapin’ helpin’ of atmosphere (think velvet curtains, gilded booths and... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 2nd February 2010
    Zoe Strimpel
    FILM NIGHT AT CINNAMON CLUB Westminster’s favourite Indian restaurant will be hosting cinema nights on Mondays, with a touch more class than a regular night at the movies. Trade popcorn for spiced... [Read more]
  • The raw and the cooked rock at Roka
    Tuesday, 26th January 2010
    The new branch of this sleek Japanese operation is a paradise for those with expense accounts to spend
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    Roka 1st Floor, 4 Park Pavilion, 40 Canada Square, E14 5FW FOOD ***** SERVICE **** ATMOSPHERE **** Cost per person without wine: £55 HAVE you ever been to Roka before?” asked our waiter, poised to... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER SLEEK CANARY WHARF RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 26th January 2010
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    PARLOUR Canada Square’s Park Pavillion is a new building that’s transforming Canary Wharf’s culinary scene by hosting four new restaurants. Parlour is one of them, a design-heavy cocktail bar and... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 26th January 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    MASTER OF MACAROONS COMES TO LONDON Parisian pâtissière to the stars Pierre Hermé is to come to London. Naturally he’ll have a Knightsbridge boutique – but that’s scheduled for summer. In the... [Read more]
  • London’s hippest new pizza joint
    Tuesday, 19th January 2010
    Italian rusticity meets Shoreditch warehouse cool in the latest place to be launched by the Soho House Group
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Pizza East 56 Shoreditch High Street, E1 6JJ Tel: 020 7729 1888 FOOD SERVICE ATMOSPHERE Cost per person without wine: £30 AFTER visits last week to both Pizza East in Shoreditch and the Soho House... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 19th January 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    LOW-CAL MENU FOR FASHION WEEK The Buddha Bar, home of London’s most overtly glamorous sushi, is reprising its Fashion Week menu with a selection of dishes that are perfect for calorie conscious... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER TOP PIZZERIAS
    Tuesday, 19th January 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    PORTOBELLO RISTORANTE PIZZERIA Much-loved local pizzeria that specialises in something called “pizzametro”, which means ‘pizza metre’ – an idea born in a small town in Sorrento as a way for the whole... [Read more]
  • Old school cool in the heart of Soho
    Tuesday, 12th January 2010
    This smart tribute to traditional British dining is much more than an exercise in culinary nostalgia
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    Dean Street Townhouse 69-71 Dean Street, W1D 3SE Tel: 020 7434 1775 Cost per person without wine: £33 EVERY really good restaurant shares one essential ingredient – a sense of effortlessness. A place... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 12th January 2010
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    THE CIRCUS COMES TO COVENT GARDEN In the midst of all this frozen gloom, Covent Garden’s newest restaurant and bar – opening tonight – might be just the thing to inject some warmth and colour. Circus... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER ‘BEST OF BRITISH’ RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 12th January 2010
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    ALBERMARLE Formerly the venerable Grill at Brown’s, the restaurant of this august Mayfair hotel was revitalised in 2008 with a smart makeover and a menu based around the best UK produce from head... [Read more]
  • The deep south comes to Camden
    Tuesday, 5th January 2010
    Great American soul food is washed down with a good deal of bourbon and jazz at this low-key diner
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    The Blues Kitchen 111-113 Camden High Street, NW1 7JN Tel: 020 7387 5277 Cost per person without wine: £25 WHAT is it with fatty food these days? Low-fat dining – dressing on the side, steamed... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 5th January 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    PARADISE PUB’S BOOT CAMP Every Sunday morning throughout January, devotees of West London’s plushest boho gastropub, Paradise By Way of Kensal Green, can work off their Christmas roasts with a... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER AMERICAN EATERIES
    Tuesday, 5th January 2010
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    LOWER EAST BAR AND BISTRO Another pretender to the throne of American diner, this new addition to Canary Wharf is sleeker than the diner-style food it purveys. So while supping on your yellowtail... [Read more]
  • Galvins open a temple to fine food
    Tuesday, 8th December 2009
    London's famous foodie brothers bring their up-scale French dining to the City, with great results
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Galvin La Chapelle35 Spital Square, E1 6DY, tel: 020 7299 0400FOODSERVICEATMOSPHERECost per person without wine: £50 THE Galvin brothers first struck gold with their close-to-perfect Bistrot De... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 8th December 2009
    LE BOUCHON’S FESTIVE CHEESEBOARDIf you’re short of ideas of what to put alongside the stilton on the Christmas cheeseboard, help is at hand from Spitalifields’ Le Bouchon Breton.... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER FRENCH BISTROS
    Tuesday, 8th December 2009
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    MON PLAISIRNo one does the classics better than London’s oldest French restaurant, which serves up seriously hearty dishes like French onion soup, entrecote with “pommes allumettes... [Read more]
  • Italian food like mama used to do
    Tuesday, 1st December 2009
    The cooking at this Mayfair restaurant may be traditional, but the extravagant prices are not
    Babbo39 Albemarle Street, W1S 4JQCost per person without wine: £50 THERE’S something pleasingly old-fashioned about the latest addition to Mayfair’s culinary family. With its... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER ITALIAN FAVOURITES
    Tuesday, 1st December 2009
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    RISTORANTE SEMPLICEJust round the corner from Bond Street, Semplice has quickly established itself as a real Italian stunner, gaining a Michelin star this year. It’s a sleek and luxurious place... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 1st December 2009
    FOOD AND MUSIC IN CAMDENA taste of Sicily is coming to Camden Town, in the shape of new restaurant Caponata, which opens tomorrow night. And Camden being the centre of London's live music scene, it's... [Read more]
  • An East End gastropub on the up
    Tuesday, 24th November 2009
    This historic venue has charm on its side, but be prepared to pay restaurant prices to eat here
    The Princess of Shoreditch76 Paul Street EC2A 4NE,Tel: 020 7729 9270Cost per person without wine: £34 THE NEWLY revamped Princess of Shoreditch describes itself as a “gastropub and... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 24th November 2009
    QUAGLINO’S BACK ON FORMQuaglino’s, the vast St James’s dining establishment that was the fashionable cornerstone of the Conran empire in the nineties, is aiming to bring back the... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER EAST END FAVOURITES
    Tuesday, 24th November 2009
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    BOUNDARYConran’s smooth Shoreditch cellar has become one of East London’s favourite restaurants in which to see and be seen while eating classic French food with the odd twist, such as a... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER HOTEL RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 17th November 2009
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Marcus Wareing at The BerkeleyWareing broke loose of his boss Gordon Ramsay earlier last year and since then, his double Michelin-starred restaurant has been a major draw. It is critically adored for... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 17th November 2009
    SERPENTINE BAR & KITCHEN GOES FESTIVEHyde Park’s Serpentine Bar & Kitchen has opened a Christmas restaurant to coincide with the park’s Winter Wonderland. The restaurant, in its... [Read more]
  • Italian food by a superstar chef just doesn't cut it in a downturn
    Tuesday, 17th November 2009
    The new incarnation of the Lanesborough Hotel's restaurant is inconsistent, and feels too ostentatious in the middle of a recession
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Apsleys 1 Lanesborough Pl, SW1X 7TATel: 020 7333 7254FOODSERVICEATMOSPHERECost per person without wine: £75 APSLEYS at the Lanesborough is doing its best to be classed as a restaurant in its... [Read more]
  • Koffman's pop-up proves that he's still the king of London fine dining
    Tuesday, 10th November 2009
    Restaurant on the roof of Selfridges is easily the top table
    NOSTALGIA is a wonderful thing. When it was announced that Pierre Koffman would come out of retirement to run a restaurant on the roof of Selfridges for one week only, the phones rang off the hook... [Read more]
  • TOP FRENCH RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 10th November 2009
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    HELENE DARROZE AT THE CONNAUGHTThe holder of two Michelin stars for her Parisian restaurant, Darroze picked up her first star for the Connaught restaurant this year. The food is inspired by her... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 10th November 2009
    SKETCH POPS UP IN THE ART WORLDMayfair destination restaurant Sketch is going to be getting in with the art crowd next month by launching a pop-up café at the Royal Academy of Arts. It’s... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 3rd November 2009
    WINTER COCKTAILS AT PEARLCosy up with Pearl Bar’s four new wintry cocktails – two hot, two cold. Winter Snug is a blend of Tia Maria, Meukow liqueur, double cream, jivara chocolate and... [Read more]
  • Japanese food goes global at this buzzy, brash new lounge in Soho
    Tuesday, 3rd November 2009
    It's not a bastion of fine dining, but if you're up for decent food and a fun night out, this is your place
    TIMOTHY BARBER
    Aqua KyotoFifth floor, 240 Regent Street, W1B 3BR020 7478 0540, www.aqua.com.hkCost per person without wine: £42 AQUA KYOTO is a Japanese restaurant opened by a Chinese company, sharing its... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER JAPANESE RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 3rd November 2009
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    ROKARoka is rightly Soho’s favourite, buzziest Japanese and one of the area’s best restaurants. The sushi, sashimi and goodies from the Robata grill are all divine and choosing one dish... [Read more]
  • A buzzy slice of Venice seduces the WestEnd
    Tuesday, 27th October 2009
    This well-priced, bustling new eatery is charming punters with its odd array of Italian delights
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Polpo41 Beak Street, W1F 9SBtel: 020 7734 4479Cost in restaurant per person without wine: £25 DO you know what a bacaro is? Neither did I, nor – I’ll wager – do most of the... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 27th October 2009
    ROKA OPENING IN CANARY WHARFCanary Wharf is becoming the talk of the town for its buzzing food scene.?With restaurants flinging open their doors faster than you can say “bruschetta”, it... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER SOHO SCENE SETTERS
    Tuesday, 27th October 2009
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    ARBUTUSMichelin-starred yet affordable, Arbutus has come to symbolise London’s food revolution. The food is gourmet French but not pompous – think cod brandade and slow cooked lamb breast... [Read more]
  • Smart British food brightens Soho
    Tuesday, 20th October 2009
    Lovely fish and impeccable meat, but the service at this chic Hix outpost needs major improvement
    JEREMY HAZLEHURST
    Hix66-70, Brewer Street, London, W1F 9TRTel: 020 7292 3518 www.hixsoho.co.uk FOOD SERVICE ATMOSPHERE Cost in restaurant per person without wine: £55 IF I had a friend who was sceptical about... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 20th October 2009
    ALLENS BUTCHER GOES ONLINETime-poor, meat-loving Londoners will rejoice to know that they can now order their meat online from the famous Mount Street butchers. Alongside a stellar selection of beef... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER BASTIONS OF BRITISH CUISINE
    Tuesday, 20th October 2009
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    SCOTT’SThis restaurant and oyster bar is almost as much about seeing and being seen as it is about the food. That said, the menu is considered one of the finest examples of soophisticated... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 13th October 2009
    SOHO GOES AQUAHere’s ambition. Having opened a slew of stylish, modern restaurants in Hong Kong – including one that garnered a Michelin star – former Credit Suisse laywer-turned-... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER DOCKLANDS RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 13th October 2009
    JAMIE’S ITALIANJamie’s successful chain has brought colour – and extremely good pasta – to Canary Wharf. It doesn’t take bookings and its busy, but its worth trying your... [Read more]
  • New York comes to Docklands
    Tuesday, 13th October 2009
    A well-priced menu of diner-style comfort food hits the spot, and the river views are a big bonus
    ZOE STRIMPEL
    Lower East Liquor Bar28 Westferry Circus, E14 8RRTel: 020 7536 2862 FOODSERVICEATMOSPHERECost in restaurant per person without wine: £25 THE Docklands’ great trump card, when it comes to... [Read more]
  • A new star appears in the East
    Tuesday, 6th October 2009
    A top chef comes to Farringdon with superb cooking that should tick all the City dining boxes
    JEREMY HAZLEHURST
    Eastside Inn38-42 St John Street, Farringdon, EC1M 4AY; tel: 020 7490 9240, www.esilondon.comFOOD *****SERVICE ****ATMOSPHERE ***Cost in restaurant per person without wine: £70 WALKING into the... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 6th October 2009
    QUO VADIS OPENS ON SUNDAYSFashionable Soho restaurant Quo Vadis is now open for business throughout the weekend, with Sunday lunch and dinner on the menu. Owners Sam and Eddie Hart are aiming for a... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER SMITHFIELD GEMS
    Tuesday, 6th October 2009
    ST JOHN BAR & RESTAURANTThe back-to-basics meat lovers’ favourite that spurred the revival of Smithfield as a foodie haven, Fergus Henderson’s restaurant in a former smokehouse is the... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 29th September 2009
    Zoe Strimpel
    ASIAN COOKING SCHOOLHooray – a cooking school that focuses on Asian food. Instead of sweet or savoury, mains or dessert, Angela Malik’s new cookery course will focus on the tastes: hot,... [Read more]
  • Where the cool suits go to play
    Tuesday, 29th September 2009
    The new Eight club feels more Shoreditch than Square Mile and attracts a newer, younger City type
    Zoe Strimpel
    EIGHT Moorgate is the essence of the new City. Rather than being brash and in-your-face, everything about it says discretion, from the near-impossible to find location (behind Liverpool Street) to... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER CITY SLICKERS
    Tuesday, 29th September 2009
    Zoe Strimpel
    RHODES 24Sitting at the top of Tower 42, Gary Rhodes has got himself a perfect spot in which to dazzle City high-flyers. Dishes are named after their bare ingredients, from lobster (glazed lobster... [Read more]
  • Bank on Green's for top-notch nosh
    Tuesday, 22nd September 2009
    Parker Bowles Snr certainly knows how to push a City boy's buttons
    Jeremy Hazlehurst
    Green’s Restaurant and Oyster Bar14 Cornhill, London, EC3V 3NDTel: 020 7220 6300FOODSERVICEATMOSPHERECost per person without wine: £35 THERE are precious few dinings rooms in the City... [Read more]
  • OTHER TOP OYSTER RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 22nd September 2009
    WRIGHT BROSBorough Market can be a bit variable, but this venerable (well, seven-year-old) oyster bar is one that you can guarantee to deliver, especially when there’s an R in the month. It... [Read more]
  • FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
    Tuesday, 22nd September 2009
    TASTEITALYATHARVEYNICKSHarvey Nichols is hosting a food market throughout October, featuring the likes of the chicest Puglian tomato paste you’ll ever see, Piedmontese rocket and lemon pesto... [Read more]
  • THREE OTHER HEALTHY RESTAURANTS
    Tuesday, 15th September 2009
    SAF152-154 Curtain Rd, EC2A 3AT. Tel: 020 7613 0007London’s chicest vegan restaurant (it calls itself a “botanical” for crying out loud) is for hipsters, not hippies. A rainbow of... [Read more]