Working Lunch review: Gunpowder, E1: This humble Indian cubby-hole in Spitalfields is sure to gain a cult following January 17, 2017 Gunpowder 11 White’s Row, E1 WHAT? A home-style Indian restaurant packing a cubby-hole on the cusp of the City out with big, bold, colourful flavours. WHERE? Squeezed next to a building site between Spitalfields and Brick Lane. The name refers to the area’s former use as an Old Artillery Ground. Expect stripped walls and nudey [...]
Our resident chef Mark Hix on why it’s about time rhubarb overcame the bad reputation your mother left it with January 17, 2017 Some consider rhubarb the devil’s fruit. Well, allow me to correct you: it’s actually a vegetable, and the only reason you don’t like it is because your mother doesn’t know how to cook. We grew up in a lost generation of terrible rhubarb crumbles that never used enough sugar to balance the sharpness. I’ve grown [...]
Look away now – these are dirtiest places to eat in the City January 13, 2017 A boozy lunch (or a quick coffee) is a time-worn City tradition – but if you want to end up back at work afterwards, read on… Data from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) reveals the dirtiest places to eat in the City – and for some regular lunch spots, it doesn’t look good. Using the [...]
The best London restaurants for healthy eating January 13, 2017 Tombo Japanese food tends to be light and healthy, as long as you stay away from the kara-age (fried chicken) and whipped cream-heavy patisserie. Tombo, in South Kensington has a large menu of healthy options to choose from, with sushi, sashimi, and London’s newest fishy craze, poke (poke-ay). In case you missed it, poke is [...]
Ember, on the street where the Great Fire of London started, wants to light a fire in City workers’ bellies January 10, 2017 Opened in October of last year, Ember is a smart, subterranean drinking and dining spot on Pudding Lane with a focus on pan-Asian cuisine, original cocktails and small sharing plates. Expect contemporary presentation with carefully considered flavours and curated drinks pairings, rather than the Chinese curry from your local. In the evenings the place takes [...]
Our chef columnist Mark Hix on his enduring love for black pudding and the dish that made him fall in love with it January 10, 2017 I’ve been hooked on black pudding ever since it first passed my lips as a kid. There was just something about it I loved, even though the blood pudding I grew up with probably contained way too much rusk or filler and not enough actual meat, which was cheap and low quality. Maybe it was [...]
Dentists are calling for workplaces to cut the cake in 2017 January 3, 2017 New year, new you? Here's another reason to go on a diet this January: dentists are calling for workplaces to cut the cake in 2017. For many, the festive season will have been stuffed with rich foods and heavy drinking – both at work and at home. Read more: Retailers will need to brave fierce [...]
Get lost you old fool – the whisky is to toast at your funeral! December 28, 2016 | City Talk An old man spends his last days in his bed. Weak yet resigned, he's ready to leave the world. He smells an aroma from the kitchen downstairs. The scent is an old, blended whisky that reminds him of his youth. He just has to have one last nip. Struggling out of bed, he crawls downstairs. Reaching the kitchen, with withering hand, he [...]
The secret to scrummy seasonal seafood is a click away December 21, 2016 | City Talk Why did the fish get bad grades? Answer: Because he was below sea level… Ka-boom! You may grimace, but have you considered clipping the wings of the traditional Christmas game or fowl this year in favour of a seafood feast? Serving up a little fishy on your dishy will put you in the same school of thought as many [...]
Osteria review: An Italian diner embedded deep inside the concrete labyrinth of the Barbican December 20, 2016 A slick, bistro-style Italian restaurant embedded somewhere deep inside the concrete labyrinth of the Barbican Centre, Osteria specialises in classic pasta dishes, cocktails and wine. A vintage meat slicer makes an odd centrepiece here, looking slightly out of place on the carpeted flooring. What if a bit of ham shaving fell on the shag? Best [...]