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Cooksister restaurant reviews

One of the things about being a food blogger that rather reminds me of being a doctor or dentist is the fact that people often corner you at parties (or work!) and ask for “professional” advice.  But whereas doctors have to face people pulling up their sleeves and saying “I have this nasty rash…”, and dentists have to grit their teeth as someone opens wide, and points at the offending tooth halfway through chewing on a canapé, at least food bloggers do rather enjoy giving advice on food.  Sometimes the questions are about recipes, but mostly people ask about restaurant recommendations.    So I thought it was high time that I collected all my reviews together neatly in one spot so that the next time somebody asks I can just send them the hyperlink.  And I’ll keep adding to the list as I post more reviews.

Bon appetit!

 

RESTAURANTS IN GREATER LONDON

1 Lombard Street (City) 2 visits

All Star Lanes (Westfield Stratford) 1 visit

Angel & Crown (West End) 1 visit

Arbutus (Soho) 1 visit

Axis @ One Aldwych (Soho/Strand) 1 visit

Bedford & Strand (Covent Garden) 2 visits

Blue Boar Smokehouse & Bar (Westminster) 1 visit

Bob Bob Ricard (Soho) 2 visits

Brigade Bar & Bistro (London Bridge) 1 visit

Buddha Bar (Knightsbridge) 1 visit

Cabana (Westfield Stratford) 1 visit

Capability @ Waldorf Astoria Syon Park (Middlesex) 1 visit

Catch @ The Andaz Hotel (City) 1 visit

Ceviche (Soho) 2 visits

Chateau Marmot pop-up (Shadwell) 1 visit

Chenestons @ The Milestone Hotel (Kensington) 1 visit

Cheyenne Spur Steak Ranch (North Greenwich) 5+ visits

Chiswell Street Dining Rooms (City) 1 visit

Chop Shop (Piccadilly) 1 visit

Churchill’s Port House (Soho) 1 visit

Cigalon (City) 1 visit

Club Gascon (Farringdon) 2 visits

Comptoir Gascon (Clerkenwell) 1 visit

Corrigan’s  (Mayfair) 1 visit

Crussh (Canary Wharf) 1 visit

El Cantara (Soho) 1 visit

Feng Sushi (Canary Wharf) 1 visit

Fire & Stone (West End) 1 visit

Fish! (Borough Market) 1 visit

Galvin Bistrot de Luxe (South Bank) 1 visit

Giraffe Bar & Grill (Soho) 1 visit

Glas (Borough Market) 3 visits – closed and reincarnated as Upper Glas in Islington

Gordon Ramsay at Claridges (West End) 3 visits

Great Taste @ The Cadogan (Knightsbridge) 1 visit

Hawksmoor Guildhall (City) 1 visit

Imperial China (Chinatown) 2 visits

L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon and again (West End) 3 visits

Le Pain Quotidien (Southbank) 4 visits

Le Pont de la Tour (and again) (Shad Thames) 4 visits

Lots Road Pub & Dining Room (Chelsea) 1 visit

Malmaison Brasserie (Farringdon) 1 visit

Mamounia Lounge (Knightsbridge) 1 visit

Mari Vanna (Kensington) 1 visit

Min Jiang @ The Royal Garden Hotel (Kensington) 1 visit

Moro (City) 1 visit

MotiMahal (and again) (Covent Garden) 2 visits

Museum of London Cafe ( City) 5+ visits – now taken over by Benugo’s

Naga (Kensington) 1 visit

Namaaste Kitchen (Camden) 1 visit

No. 35 @ The Hempel (Bayswater) 1 visit

Olivo (Victoria) 1 visit

Ora (Mayfair) 1 visit

Palm Court @ The Park Lane Hotel (Park Lane) 1 visit

Pho (Spitalfields) 1 visit

Ping Pong (West End) 5+ visits

Plateau (Canary Wharf) 1 visit

Pret a Diner (Piccadilly) 1 visit

Rosita & The Sherry Bar (Battersea) 1 visit

Shaka Zulu (Camden) 1 visit

Sushinho City (City) 1 visit – now closed

The Balcon  (St James) 2 visits

The Bingham (Richmond) 1 visit

The Botanist (Sloane Square) 1 visit

The Cadogan Arms (Chelsea) 1 visit

The Clerkenwell Dining Rooms (Clerkenwell) 3 visits – closed

The Cube by Electrolux pop-up (Southbank) 1 visit

The Depot (Barnes) 2 visits

The Global Feast (Stratford) 1 visit

The Milestone Hotel (Kensington) i visit)

The Real Greek (Westfield Stratford) 5+ visits

The Rivington Grill (Greenwich) 3 visits

The Salt Yard (West End) 1 visit

The Ship (Wandsworth) 1 visit

The Stockpot (SoHo) 5+ visits

The White Swan (Holborn) 1 visit

The Wine Theatre (Southwark) 1 visit – closed

Tibits (Mayfair) 1 visit

Texture (West End) 1 visit

Tom’s Kitchen (South Kensington) 1 visit

Trinity (Clapham) 1 visit

Van Lang (Wood Green) 1 visit

Vivat Bacchus (Farringdon) 5+ visits

Vivat Bacchus (London Bridge) 5+ visits

Vivat Bacchus – Club Carnivore (London Bridge) 1 visit

Westminster Kingsway College (Victoria) 1 visit

Wild Honey (Mayfair) 1 visit

Yauatcha (Soho) 1 visit

 

RESTAURANTS IN THE REST OF THE BRITISH ISLES

Babington House (Babington, Somerset) 1 visit

Cafe Belge (West Malling, Kent) 1 visit

The Fat Duck (Bray, Berkshire) 1 visit

Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons (Oxfordshire) 1 visit

Suma’s (Jersey) 1 visit

The Baskerville (Shiplake) 1 visit

The Winding Stair (Dublin) 1 visit

 

RESTAURANTS IN FRANCE

Aux Lyonnais (Paris) 1 visit

Chez Emile (Toulouse) 1 visit

Edouard Loubet @ Bastide de Capelongue (Bonnieux) 1 visit

La Maison de la Truffe et du Vin (Menerbes) 1 visit

Le Vigneron (Paris) 2 visits

 

RESTAUTRANTS IN SOUTH AFRICA

Aubergine (Cape Town) 1 visit

Belvidere Manor (Knysna) 5+ visits

Bizerca Bistro (Cape Town) 12 visits

Blue Waters Café (Port Elizabeth) 5+ visits

Bombay Brasserie (Cape Town) 1 visit

Cobblestone Bakery (Port Elizabeth) 3 visits

Cornuti al Mare (Plettenberg Bay) 5+ visits

Deli Street Café (Port Elizabeth) 1 visit

Dessie’s (Port Elizabeth) 5+ visits

Fu.Shi (Plettenberg Bay) 3 visits

Gorgeous by Graham Beck (Cape Town) 2 visits

Harbour House (Kalk Bay) 3 visits

Irene Dairy Farm (Gauteng)  2 visits

Jordan winery (Stellenbosch Winelands) 1 visit

La Colombe (Cape Town) 1 visit

Le Chameleon (Humansdorp) 3 visits

Nobu @ One&Only (Cape Town) 1 visit

Quills @ the Airport Intercontinental (Johannesburg) 4 visits

Reuben’s @ One&Only (Cape Town) 1 visit

Roots (Johannesburg) 1 visit

Ryan’s Kitchen (Franschhoek) 1 visit

Spur Steak Ranches (branches countrywide) 5+ visits

The Duckpond @Welmoed Winery (Cape Winelands) 1 visit

The Goatshed @ Fairview winery (Cape Winelands) 1 visit

The Lookout (Plettenberg Bay) 5+ visits

The Roundhouse (Cape Town) 1 visit

The Verandah, Beach Hotel (Port Elizabeth) 5+ visits

The Westcliff Hotel (Johannesburg) 1 visit

Tintswalo Atlantic Lodge (Cape Town) 2 visits

 

RESTAURANTS IN THE USA

Angelica Kitchen (New York, NY) 1 visit

The Bigger Little Place (New York, NY) 1 visit

Bubby’s Pie Company (New York, NY) 2 visits

John’s of Bleecker Street pizzeria (New York, NY) 1 visit

Katz’s Deli (New York, NY) 1 visit

Luzzo’s Coal Oven Pizza (New York, NY) 1 visit

Neptune Oyster (Boston, MA) 2 visits

 

RESTAURANTS IN DUBAI

Asateer @ Atlantis The Palm (Dubai) 1 visit

Nobu @ Atlantis The Palm (Dubai) 1 visit

Ronda Locatelli @ Atlantis The Palm (Dubai) 1 visit

 

RESTAURANTS IN SINGAPORE

DB Bistro Moderne (Marina Bay Sands) 1 visit

 

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I am not an early morning person - but when the re I am not an early morning person - but when the reason for a stupid o’clock start is a private tour of the Chelsea Flower Show & a tasting of South African wine, how could I refuse? 🌸🥂🍷 (see more about our show tour in my previous reel!)

The wine in question was a selection of 8 wines by Franschoek estate @babylonstoren . The farm itself is over 150 years old and lies at the foot of the Simonsberg mountains. It is named after one of the peaks in the range - literally translated as the Tower of Babylon - and was for much of its existence a fruit farm before being purchased by owners Koos Bekker & Karen Roos. In 2007 they commissioned architect Patrice Caravella to lay out an extensive formal garden comprising 15 clusters spanning vegetable areas, stone and pome fruits, nuts, citrus, berries, bees, herbs, ducks and chickens, a prickly pear maze, and more. Every one of the more than 300 varieties of plants in the garden is edible or has medicinal value. They are also grown as organically as possible and in a biologically sustainable manner. The garden was the first RHS accredited garden in Africa. The couple also converted the fruit orchards to vineyards which now cover 150 hectares amd produced their first harvest in 2011.

The Babylonstoren Mourvèdre rosé was enjoying its third year of being the official wine of the RHS and we were fortunate enough to have winemaker @klaasstoffberg and cellar master Charl Coetzee on hand all the way from South Africa to talk us through the range. Here’s what we tried:

🥂SPRANKEL 2017 - 100% Chardonnay Cap Classique sparkling wine with a very fine mousse and notes of brioche, green apples and grapefruit
🥂 Chenin Blanc 2022 - ripe fruit palate of pears, quince & apples with a rounded mouthfeel & very long finish
🥂 2022 Viognier - baked apples and quince but with biscuits notes and  fresh acidity to balance the fruit - rounded mouthfeel and tarte tatin finish
🥂 2022 Chardonnay all matured in oak barrels but made in a restrained Burgundian style with buttery, toasty grapefruit and subtle spice flavours & beautifully integrated oak

[Continued in first comment]
[Ad/Press sample] Love beer? Love peaty Islay whis [Ad/Press sample] Love beer? Love peaty Islay whisky? Then you need to get your hands on this delightful collaboration between @innisandgunn (their original beer is billed as a beer for wine drinkers and is one of my all-time favourites) and @laphroaig (makers of one of my favourite super peaty whiskies). 

Innis & Gunn’s limited edition Islay whisky cask beer is a Scottish red beer which is double matured - first in used Laphroaig whisky casks and then in used port casks. The result is a deeply smoky beer with notes of coffee, dark chocolate, malt and rich toffee, all balanced by a clean and almost saline finish, much like Laphroaig whisky itself.  It comes in a limited edition gift box with beautiful artwork by @scottnaismithartist and is available from the Innis & Gunn website for £6,00 for a 330ml bottle while stocks last (it’s also vegan!). 

I paired it with crostini topped with cream cheese and smoked oysters - the salty, smoky, creamy oysters complemented the flavours of the beer very well. I can also imagine it working well with green olives or smoked almonds. A perfect gift for the beer or whisky lover in your life!

What do you think of combining the flavours of beer and peaty whisky? Let me know in the comments 🍺

#innisandgunn #laphroaig #islaywhisky #beerlove #beerloversofinstagram
This week I made a flying visit to the RHS Chelsea This week I made a flying visit to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in  London’s leafy Chelsea, courtesy of @babylonstoren and @thenewtinsomerset [INVITED] I was fortunate to have an early morning tour of the beautiful show gardens and by far the most inspiring was the Best in Show winner, Horatio’s Garden, designed by Charlotte Harris and Hugo Bugg. Horatio’s Garden is an initiative to provide spinal injury patients in NHS hospitals with an accessible garden and private respite rooms within the garden. There are 8 across the UK and the design we saw at the show will be rolled out in Sheffield once the remaining funds needed are raised. Have you visited the Chelsea Flower Show? Let me know in the comments 🌺🌷🪷🪻🌼🌸 #rhschelseaflowershow2023 #rhschelsea #horatiosgarden #horatiosgardenchelsea
Today is the official coronation of King Charles I Today is the official coronation of King Charles III and London is literally awash with red, white and blue flags, bunting and souvenirs. I don’t have bunting… but in celebration I can offer you this plate of red, white and blue deliciousness that is sticky toffee pudding with berries! I had this last weekend at the @bristolbarbrighton - the pudding alone makes the trip from London worthwhile 😍👑🇬🇧 Long live sticky toffee pudding!!
Happy Easter to everyone celebrating! My Easter ch Happy Easter to everyone celebrating! My Easter chocolates are from Ukrainian chocolate producer @roshen_ukraine - gorgeous hazelnut praline-filled dark chocolates, and how beautiful is the packaging? #easter2023 #easterchocolate #easterchocolates #roshen #ukrainiantraditions #roshenchocolate
Great exhibition on at the V&A Museum in London ri Great exhibition on at the V&A Museum in London right now for anybody interested in textiles, fashion or Africa. Such fascinating info about the cultural significance of various traditional African cloths (kente, kuba, bògòlanfini and many more) and a great display of modern African designers from around the continent. It’s on till 16 April so catch it if you can! #africafashion #thingstodoinlondon #londonexhibitions #londontourist #londonbylondoners #kentecloth #kubacloth #bogolanfini #chrisseydou #ladumangxokolo
The wonderful Museum of the Moon installation - a The wonderful Museum of the Moon installation - a 7 metre diameter scale model of the moon suspended in the Painted Hall at the  @oldroyalnavalcollege in Greenwich this week, by @lukejerramartist. A surreal and fabulous sight!
Do you enjoy free art installations? Then you need Do you enjoy free art installations? Then you need to get down to @canarywharflondon between now and Saturday 28 Jan to catch the free Winter Lights 2023 event, back for the seventh year.

My favourites include @lukejerramartist ‘s Floating Earth; Tom Lambert’s Out of the Dark; Fluorescent Firs; Toroid by This is Loop; and the surreal and mesmerising Anima by MEATS - a tunnel filled with hundreds of thin optical fibre lights that change colour and move in the breeze 😍 

Have you been to Winter Lights? What was your favourite?
“When we look down at the Earth from space, we s “When we look down at the Earth from space, we see this amazing, indescribably beautiful planet. It looks like a living, breathing organism. But it also, at the same time, looks extremely fragile.” - International Space Station astronaut Ron Garamond

To experience the “overview effect” (a phenomenon experienced by astronauts viewing the earth from space), head down to Canary Wharf in the London docklands this week where you can see @lukejerramartist ‘s beautiful Floating Earth installation as part of the Winter Lights event. 

This giant 10m diameter installation is created using high resolution NASA images to create a floating scale model of the Earth, lit from within so that it glows from its current home on the Middle Dock, surrounded by the headquarters of international banking and finance corporations.

The artist hopes that viewed in this context, the installation will make visitors and the bankers working in surrounding buildings question how their money in savings and pensions is invested, and whether investments can be greener.

Aside from being a thought provoking piece, it is also mesmerising and surreally beautiful, so make sure you visit the free Winter Lights event before ends on Saturday 28 Jan.
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Jeanne Horak is a freelance food and travel writer; recipe developer and photographer. South African by birth and Londoner by choice, Jeanne has been writing about food and travel on Cooksister since 2004. She is a popular speaker on food photography and writing has also contributed articles, recipes and photos to a number of online and print publications. Jeanne has also worked with a number of destination marketers to promote their city or region. Please get in touch to work with her Read More…

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