Duck and Waffle

Back in September, two of my very best friends came up to visit me and to see Martin Freeman in Richard III - which was absolutely excellent! All being big foodies, I took this as my opportunity to rope in a couple of dining partners for Duck and Waffle, who I have been desparate to visit since they opened their doors. So let me talk you through the best meal I've ever eaten...

We started with cocktails overlooking the incredible view that comes with having a restaurant on the 42nd floor of the Heron Tower. I had a Bacon & Caramel Manhattan (’piggy’ bourbon, DWΣ Salted Caramel Liqueur, vermouths – served sweet style), Kat had a Hemingway (Bacardi Superior rum, maraschino liqueur, lime and grapefruit juices – clarified) and Alex had a Duck & Stormy (Gosling’s dark rum, ginger beer – bottled and bagged).

It is recommended at Duck and Waffle to share smaller plates between you in order to experience as many dishes as possible.

We started with a warm Rosemary and Garlic Bread with a lovely chewy crust and a soft, fluffy centre. I could have stayed and eaten this bread alone all night. We would have had a lovely date, this bread and I.

Next was the Spicy Ox Cheek Doughnut with apricot jam and smoked paprika sugar. Cheek is one of my favourite cuts of meat and this did not dissapoint - a light and fluffy savoury doughnut stuffed with melt in the mouth meat, complimented beautifully with the slight spice of the paprika and sweetness of the jam.

 

Next came the Smoked Mozzarella with granola, sage, honey and amalfi lemon. This was the dish of the evening for me. The mozzarella was delightfully creamy and not too rich due to the addition of the lemon, which added a beautiful uplifting fragrance to the dish. The granola gave a lovely crunch and sweetness. It is unlike anything I have eaten before but was so wonderfully balanced in flavour and texture.

What followed was the dish of the night for my two fellow diners - roasted octopus with chorizo, potato, lemon and caper. Octopus is often a gateway seafood for non-seafood lovers, providing a solid and meaty texture (not too fishy). One of go-to home meals is octopus with chorizo, potatoes and green beans. The addition of capers to this dish was a stroke of genius, perhaps I will start adding them to my salads!

We finished our savoury adventure with the classic Duck and Waffle - crispy leg confit, fried duck egg and mustard maple syrup. So simple but so delicious. If you are to visit this restaurant, you cannot leave this dish off your order. The confit leg alone is divine.

We couldn't resist the dessert menu, so I opted for the Orange posset with Aperol granite and pineapple crisp. If you are too full for a rich dessert - this is ideal. The posset was light, creamy and bursting with citrus, the aperol granite was incredibly refreshing and that pineapple crisp was nearly too beautiful to eat... nearly!

We also sampled the pistachio & dark chocolate macaroon sandwich with drunken cherries and crystallised white chocolate - a dessert for anyone wanting their chocolate fix. A work of art to look at and a delight to eat.

All in all, this is probably the best meal I have ever eaten - the food was fantastic, the service was perfection and the location is beyond words. I can't wait for my next visit!

Busaba Eathai: The Start of a Saucy Relationship.

Busaba Eathai is one of those smaller chain restaurants that had always faded into the background for me. But that was because I didn't really know anything about it. What was this mysterious Asian-sounding enigma? One day I decided to do a little internet research. 

Busaba Eathai was created ten years ago by Alan Yau and calls itself a "casual dining chain" with 9 restaurants around London. But this year they've announced that they plan to double their estate over the next three years including two new London restaurants for 2014. 

Having limited experience in Thai cuisine myself, we decided to give it a try before seeing the anxiously awaited Veronica Mars film (It made my life - Veronica and Logan forever). I started with a Grapefruit Mojito with Vanilla, Mint, Lime and Chilli. I must say that I am not a fan of mojitos in general and don't understand the general excitement that surrounds them but this was absolutely delectable. Tart yet sweet and incredibly fresh grapefruit juice combined with a web of complex and intricate flavours. Plus there wasn't too much mint - my main issue with mojitos. 

To eat, I had the Sen Mee - which is only described as 'beef, capellini, spring onion and dried chilli'. I was presented with a heaving plate of fragrant, moreish noodles dispersed by tender, succulent beef, fresh spring onions, garlic and chilli with a good smack of heat. I could not stop shoveling this into my mouth. It was extremely undignified and I could have eaten a second plate (my tongue said yes, my belly said later). The most interesting part of the dish was the lashings of egg that runs through the dish. It was the perfect touch of umami to an already fantastic plate of food. 

After this first visit, I was quick to tell friends about the experience and returned just a few weeks later to a different location. This time, feeling extremely confident about what awaited me, I was less apprehensive in ordering. 

Straight for the hard stuff, I ordered a Green Tea infused Whisky Cocktail with Pineapple and Honey. Again the flavour combinations were spectacular and the usual bitter taste of green tea was enhanced perfectly by the honeys sweetness. I was so infatuated by my memories of Sen Mee that I did order it again, this time with a side of Chicken Wings with Pandan Leaf. Although appearing measly in size, these crispy and rich little morsels were not lacking in taste. There were different to any chicken wings I have tried before and I welcomed the change, proving an extremely versatile dish. My dining partner ordered the Southern Fish Curry made with Tilapia, which had a beautifully fragrant and silky sauce. Tilapia is one of my favourite fish and it brings back memories of when I first moved to London - everyone should visit Club 182, Wembley. This curry was served with a very generous fillet, which did the fish justice.

So as Busaba Eathai expands it's empire, I hope that they a.) open a restaurant near to my house - please come to South West London, and b.) I also thoroughly suggest you give them a visit. Even if it's for a quick bite to eat - the atmosphere is lovely, the food sumptuous and the prices great value. 

Smokehouse Rock

Here's a little back story for you:

 

Once upon a time, in a galaxy far far away, I was a vegetarian for a year. It started due to my unhealthy weight obsession and the purchase of the book 'Skinny Bitch'. A NY Times bestseller, this book's blurb reads "A no-nonsense tough love guide for savvy girls who want to stop eating crap and start looking fabulous'. Being at a vulnerable age in my personal development, I absorbed it's horror stories about anything other than completely organic vegetables. I immediately stopped eating meat - it's main victim. Before this I could have told anyone that my favourite food was beef (I especially loved steak), so it was a shock to the system but I was completely dedicated to my cause. At the time, I was goaded that I would never do it, that I loved meat too much, that I would fail. Word of advice: Never challenge me. If something is made into a competition, I become a very different, serious person. And thus, Vegetarian Georgie was born. Now I look back on this part of my life with disbelief. 

This Sunday, Rob and I went for dinner at the Soho branch of Bodean's - a barbecue smoke house that boasts the best ribs this side of the Atlantic. We'd been itching to try them out since our move last summer, but hadn't found the time or the money. 

The Soho branch is set into two floors - the top floor is a bar/deli with communal tables, a fridge full of take home products and (at our time of arrival) ESPN on their screens. People sit around drinking beer, eating barbeque and laughing. It is a good atmosphere. The lower floor is the restaurant, where we ventured down to. Sunday was a horrible windy and wet day and so the warmth and cosyness of the Bodean's restaurant floor was exactly what we needed. The first thing I was impressed by here (despite the rain shelter it was providing) was their playlist. It was an eclectic mix of everything I love: Rainbow, Metallic, Simple Minds... I don't believe I've been to restaurant before that played this sort of music and over the course of the evening, it was impossible not to be biased towards the other aspects of the place, purely based on their playlist choices. 

Bodean's cocktail menu was a treat in itself, a mix of classic and innovative at reasonable prices. Alongside this, I could choose from a huge variety of soft drinks, wines or even a root beer float (I was extremely tempted). We both settled for Pepsi, which was ultimately shown to be a good choice after our food had arrived. We opted for a Nachos Supreme to start us off, which we dug into with pleasure. They got the salsa/guacamole/sour cream/cheese balance down to a T. The menu at Bodean's is a menagerie of US classics. They've got all bases covered. Burgers, Hotdogs, Ribs, Meatloaf, Shrimp, Deli Sandwiches, Burritos, Enchiladas, Mac and Cheese and Steaks. We, of course, wanted a bit of everything and ordered the Meat Platter for two - "A selection of our finest meats from the smoke pit served with fries and coleslaw". On ordered, we inquired as to what was included with the platter... our server told us "all the meats". Everything I've ever wanted to hear.

A true test of a restaurant is whether or not they can do good fries. Bodean's thankfully passed this test. I breathed a sigh of relief. And so to the meat platter... Short and Long Pork Ribs, Pulled Pork, BBQ Chicken, Burnt Ends and Beef Rib. It was like I was tasting every episode of Man V. Food at once. It was on tucking into this that I reflected on my prior vegetarianism. What was I thinking? 

This meal was the closest thing I have ever had to a religious experience. The meat... the sauce... the creamy and crunchy coleslaw that cuts through the richness of the meat perfectly... It was heavenly. When the bill arrived, it was the first time in a very long time where I didn't die inside on reading the figure. I was happy to pay for this food and I will happily return to Bodean's whenever I can.  

Everyone need's to put down whatever they are doing and run to Bodean's. NOW.