Michael Caines checks in at The Stafford November 19, 2025 Legendary chef Michael Caines is taking on his next big project – and returning to London after decades away. He speaks to Carys Sharkey Michael Caines last worked in London when he was just a teenager. Now aged 56, he’s one the UK’s most recognised chefs, – and he’s back in the capital. This time, [...]
Gorse: A star is born in Cardiff November 12, 2025 After winning Cardiff’s first Michelin star, Gorse is opening a new chapter for fine dining in the Welsh capital, writes Carys Sharkey On a quiet street in the leafy Pontcanna neighbourhood of Cardiff is Gorse. A small, unassuming restaurant with an open kitchen and just a handful of tables, Gorse is the first place to [...]
The knifemakers going a cut above September 30, 2025 From social media influencers to top chefs, artisan knives are slicing across the UK’s culinary scene. Carys Sharkey meets the makers behind the metal Translucent wafers of sea bass are topped with diaphanous slivers of grape; chives are chopped into oblivion; and steak is sliced bloody. If you’ve spent any time watching social media chefs, [...]
Is late-night dining dead in London? September 23, 2025 With more and more London restaurants banking on earlier reservations, Carys Sharkey asks whether after hours dining is a relic of London’s past Is late-night dining in London dying at the hands of tee-totalling park runners, or is it having a resurgence driven by their collective hospitality nemesis? The diagnosis is polarised and necessarily hesitant. [...]
Where to eat in Paris, from pho to foie gras August 22, 2025 It’s easy to eat badly in Paris. Of course it’s easy to eat badly in every major city, but instead of the chain restaurants that stitch together London and temper expectations, Paris eating often involves a sprawling brasserie with tiny tables and an average steak haché at far from average price. Paris Syndrome is real. [...]
Swipe for baby: Behind the app hoping to revolutionise fertility treatments July 23, 2025 How much would you pay for a vial of sperm? It’s something not many people have to consider, but this question of cost is just one of the issues at the heart of the donation industry. In the UK, donors cannot be paid more than £45 per donation, and this is ostensibly to cover travel [...]
The best sandwich in the City, from Porterford to Dilieto July 12, 2025 There is no better testament to how seriously the Square Mile takes its lunch than the queues snaking out of sandwich shop doors. Workers happily wait, shuffle and press to get their fix of bread and spread, meal deals be damned. Here is a list of City AM’s favourite sandwiches in the City, from wraps [...]
Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons: Behind the culinary icon July 2, 2025 During my first visit to Le Manoir I could neither speak nor talk. This is not hyperbole about dumbfounded luxury – I was just a baby. But my parents still tell the story of how Raymond Blanc, in full chef’s whites, came to ask them if I had enjoyed the fresh pasta and butter the [...]
The ringers keeping the bells swinging in the Square Mile March 18, 2025 As bell ringing faces an uncertain future, Carys Sharkey goes to meet the people keeping the tradition alive in the City One late Thursday afternoon I made my way down from Cheapside, passing the thronging pubs spilling out onto Watling Street amid the chatter and clatter of post-work drinks. I turned onto Garlick Hill to the [...]
A sandwich revolution and the City of London February 26, 2025 The humble sandwich is having a revolution in London, but Carys Sharkey takes a tour of the City to see if bigger is always better In the City, queues spill out of sandwich shop doors as the rigmarole of work is punctured by bread and spread. But the sandwich is no longer a humble thing. [...]
