Like a virgin? The expanding world of alcohol-free cocktails May 17, 2021 I gave up drinking three years ago, after twenty-odd enthusiastic years, and so I’ve spent the time since then searching out replacements. Some people say that’s a bad idea, that you maintain the habit and tread a dangerous line: all I can say is that the habit, the ritual, the variety was one of the [...]
End of lockdown: London’s first female chef with three Michelin stars sells three months of bookings in 20 minutes May 15, 2021 As the first female British chef to win three Michelin stars, Clare Smyth sold out three months of bookings in 20 minutes when her Core restaurant said it would reopen from lockdown, underscoring her faith that London is ready to rebound. Watch the full report.
What top London chefs really think about Instagram May 14, 2021 Heston Blumenthal is famously exacting about the dining experience. He tries to create “sensory memories”, controlling not only the way his dishes look and taste, but what his diners are listening to while they eat. His The Sound of the Sea, a signature dish at The Fat Duck, came with an iPod Nano playing, well, [...]
Somebody wrote a symphony about this Arctic Circle distillery May 13, 2021 Booze experts have long sung the praises of Scandinavian spirits but Norwegian composer Alexander Aaroen Pederson has gone one step further, writing a 45-minute symphony inspired by the world’s most northerly distillery, located 350km north of the Arctic Circle. Aurora Spirit opened in 2016 under the name “Bivrost”, which means Shaking Path, a reference to [...]
Now we know what tonic the Queen puts in her royal gin May 13, 2021 Royal warrants have been issued since the 15th century to supply the royal court and royal personages with swag. The Queen has granted 686 Royal Warrants, the Prince of Wales 159, and The Duke of Edinburgh 38. This week Devon’s Luscombe’s Drinks became the official supplier of mixers. Buckingham Palace already has its own gin [...]
Yet more places to eat and drink: 70 bars and restaurants open now May 13, 2021 It’s just days until we can once more sit in a restaurant and dine like civilized human beings, albeit socially distanced ones. But where to book? To help you make this most difficult of decisions, we’ve collected a bumper list of 70 places to meet up with friends and support the hospitality industry. With spots [...]
Members’ clubs in the age of Covid, from Groucho to Boisdale May 12, 2021 Are you clubbable? Some people are, fiercely, while others disdain the whole idea. It is thought men are more clubbable than women, though that may not be supported by facts. In any event, if you are what PG Wodehouse would have called a clubman, you will be eagerly awaiting Monday 17 May and the reopening [...]
46 of the best London home delivery restaurant kits reviewed May 11, 2021 Restaurants with terraces may be open again, but bagging a reservation is another matter. With the best part of a year’s worth of pent up demand, that outdoor space is at a premium and those who don’t book ahead are likely to be disappointed. But don’t panic: you can get restaurant quality food delivered straight [...]
How Indian whisky moved from back-street dens to pride-of-place May 11, 2021 The thought of Indian whisky once made even the least discerning spirits-drinker shudder. Now the price of it does. Bangalore is a long way from Islay but its distillers have changed the way we think about Indian spirits. Leading this charge is Amrut, a distillery founded in Karnataka in 1948 and initially producing spirits including [...]
How to celebrate World Cocktail Day this Thursday May 10, 2021 This Thursday is World Cocktail Day, and what better way to celebrate than splashing out on some new glass- and silverware with which to shake and sip your mix of sugary booze? For collectors that means more than a cursory scroll through the Amazon listings: must-have items include Art Deco Parisian ‘Boston’ cocktail shakers and [...]