Magic mushroom restaurant Barleylands Road, Billericay Essex CM11 2UD

I visited this restaurant with a friend known in the facebook comments as Miss S yesterday.  The original review of this restaurant was largely written as a group of facebook comments so rather than rewriting I will post it in this way.  In brief though, the food was good and definitely above average.  The staff were really helpful and service was genrally of a very high quality.  The menu is  similar to that of a gastro pub but it is a bit on the expensive side.  We paid £47 a head for 3 courses each, a bottle of wine between us and a liqueur coffee each.  We also got mince pies and chrackers as it was the Christmas season when we visited.  To be fair, a full meal and wine in the evening there would be more like £38   if you had the 3 course set menu but that’s still quite a bit.

 

Before our starters arrived we were given a bread roll and a slice of brown bread.  the butter  at the Magic Mushroom was oddly shaped.it was ribbed like a sheet of pasta and cut into strips.  it was then rolled into a sort of snale shape.

 

my starter was probably my favourite bit of the meal.  I had Smoked Wood Pigeon

with Cinnamon & Pear Chutney and  Toasted Pine Nuts

it was a fairly small starter I suppose but the meat was really rich and gamy. the sweet anchutney set off the flavours nicely.  the pine nuts were inoffensive

but really didn't add that much to the dish I didn't think.             

 

Miss S had Mignons of Beef in Blue Cheese & Cashew Nut Cream Sauce with Tossed Watercress.  She said it was very tasty and the beef was tender which is good.

 

For main I had   Pot Roast Pheasant

with Braised Chicory, Wild Mushroom & Tarragon Jus.  this was quite nice though parts of the meat were perhaps a little dry.  the vegetables with the meal (wild mushrooms and braised  Chicory) were unusual.

the mushrooms have a different texture to those you have with a fry up.  they are a bit more chewy and they have more flavour.  Miss s and me had the

same vegetables that came with the meal but she did not have sprouts so she had just the potatoes and green beans.  they were meant to be potatoes cooked

in their skins but while they were soft enough they were not in any way fluffy like roast potatoes so I would guess they were boiled in their skins.

 

Miss s had Crispy Pork Belly, on Creamed Savoy Cabbage with Apricot & Thyme Jus.  She commented that the pork was tasty and it had crackling with it.  Belly pork is really nice but it can have a lot of fat with it.

 

Vegetables were served in separate dishes with the food.  there were sprouts, green beans and the potatoes I mentioned above.

 

For pudding I had a portion of Christmas pudding and brandy sauce which also came  with Chantilly Cream  which is nearly as thick as the devon clotted cream but it added quite nicely to the texture. Miss S had a fierce dessert which really needs more explanation.  the menu does not describe the chocolate  Marquis.  it turned out to be a really rich

chocolate mousse that was so thick it was on the verge of being solid.  it was made with dark chocolate and cocoa.  it was beautifully rich.  I have looked

on google and the pudding seems to be actually called  Chocolate Marquise and it should be actually solid.  I only tried the last couple of spoonfuls of

miss s's Marquis and then it was like very thick melted chocolate.

 

We had a bottle of house red Merlot  to share and I had a quantro coffee and miss s had a hot chocolate with rum

 

In general I thought the food was very good.  The slightly dry pheasant  and the texture of the potatoes are small complaints and I would not mention them at all if the food were not slightly expensive.  Generally I give this restaurant an 8.  I would say it may be worth going there for a set meal on Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday when you will a bit more money.

 

 

 

Graham Page

Mobile: 07753 607980

Fax:  0870 706 2773

Email: gpage@useit.plus.com

MSN: gabriel_mcbird@hotmail.com

Skype: gabriel_mcbird

 

Pride of Asia, 207 Mile End Road, London, E1 4AA

I have reviewed the Pride of Asia twice in the past.  First I reviewed it when it was a decent quality Indian restaurant and I reviewed it again when it turned into a rather expensive chicken shop.

 

Last year the grill was taken out altogether and the Pride of Asia turned into a buffet restaurant and take away.  For £7.99 a head you can eat all the curry you want.

 

The quality of food is certainly better than any other outlet selling curry in Stepney with the possible exception of the hayfield masala when a decent chef is working there.  In the pride of Asia, the food is consistently good.  There are usually 2 starters, a veggie and a meat starter, with 3 lamb curries, 3 chicken curries, a chickpea dish, a mixed vegetable curry, spicy potatoes and often a fish curry.

 

Yesterday for example the starters were spicy chicken pieces and vegetarian samosas.  On other days there are sheek kebabs vegetarian spring rolls or Alu Tikka.

The mains were jalfrezi, korma and Bhuna available in both chicken and lamb.

 

The curries are generally well flavoured with plenty of meat.  While I do think ground spices are used rather than fresh spices on some occasions, the curries do have a home   taste about them.  These curries are more like standard Asian curries rather than some of the rich creamy curries that restaurants like some of those on brick lane serve.  Some are a little greasy but nowhere near as greasy as some of the other curry shops in the area.

 

If you are still feeling that you have room after your starter and your main, a pudding is included in the price.  Generally it is Indian semolina  which comes in small rectangular bricks with jelly and fruit cocktail.  Expect to pay about £1.50 for a diet coke which is a little expensive, though many buffet places make money on drinks.

 

Staff are generally helpful.  I can visit this restaurant on my own knowing that staff will help me by reading what is available   and serving the food up from the buffet for me.  I have visited this shop with a guide dog owning friend and there weren’t any “no dogs” problems.

 

Over all I give this new pride of Asia 7 out of 10 and would recommend it if you are in the area.

Porters English Restaurant, 17 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London WC2E 8QH

I visited this restaurant last Thursday with 6 other people.  all of us were blind or we had so little sight that we couldn't read the menu but never mind, this is an English restaurant!!

 

Well when we got there things didn't look that hopeful.  the staff guiding us in were not English and we were all given menus even though it was quite clear that many of us could not see.  thankfully however things went rapidly uphill from there!

 

The manageress ended up serving us and sadly I did not get her name though she was helpful and patient.

 

It's worth commenting on the ambiance at this point.  there was taped music with pop tracks from the 1960s to the 1990s.  I don't mind a bit of background music in a restaurant but for me this was slightly loud meaning that you could hear the person next to you and opposite   you comfortably enough but a bigger group conversation was out of the question.  Personally I like conversation when eating but this does not mean the music is really that loud, it's just a preference of mine to have quiet music or even no music at all while eating in a restaurant.

 

Back to the food anyway. the manageress was excellent and she kept us to order so we all heard and she read through the whole menu answering any questions as she went.  what I liked here was that she gave us an idea of the headings such as pies, fish dishes etc.

 

I opted for the London Particular as a starter.  this is a thick pea and bacon soup.  it had a slightly smoky taste and the name apparently refers to the thick fogs that used to happen in London when more manufacturing went on in the city and more coal was used.  the soup was only spoiled marginally by the lack of appropriate bread.  a basket of bread was given to us but the pieces of bread were made of French stick of rather thin diameter.  guys, this is an English restaurant!!!  give us slices of chunky bread that you can dip in your soup.  Yes I know some people argue this is bad manners  but it's fair to say this is a debateable point unlike, say, talking with your mouthful which most people would agree looks disgusting and is not on in most cultures.  The bread was fresh enough but not really the right thing for soup.

 

for main I had a game keepers pie.  this was a good meaty pie in a full short crust case rather than the pastry lids many put on top of a stew then call it a pie.

 

as  there was a full pastry case,  there was no need to serve the pie in a bowl as well as on a plate.  the manageress did offer to tip the pie out of the bowl which was a nice touch.

 

the pie itself was full of meat and port and red currant sauce.  It was served with a jug of gravy.  the pastry was not too thick and the pie had a rich pleasant gamy taste.  Very enjoyable.

 

I was a bit disappointed with the accompaniments.  The pies, along with other dishes, came with one side dish free.  this meant you could have potatoes or vegetables but not both unless you paid extra.  Hello!  where I come from at least, a pie would always be served potatoes and at least one vegetable.  I have no problem with offering a choice but offering one side when they know well you will need to buy another one is a bit deceitful.  the side I did choose was Covent garden vegetables  and the portion of these was quite large.  it could have been made smaller and a few new potatoes could have been included as well.  the vegetables consisted of carrots, peas, green beans and mange tout.  One English tradition which happily has fallen by the wayside is overcooking vegetables.  these vegetables were nice and crunchy, probably steamed.

 

For pudding I chose  Iced Berries served with  hot white chocolate sauce.  the manageress poured this all out onto a plate and I would have rather she left it as it was.  the key here is to give people a choice.  I'm not complaining here so much as making what I consider to be constructive comment.

 

I am pleased to say there was English beer on offer.  Draft Tetley’s and fullers London pride were available.  not that keen on these particular beers but still so many restaurants avoid English beers altogether and in an English restaurant this would be inexcusable.

 

Generally then the food was very good.  I felt that the portions were quite adequate and with a couple of side dishes included in the price the portions would have been decent and generally well worth the money. as it was, with side dishes  not even priced on the menu, I would imagine you would pay about £2.50 or so for them.  pie with potatoes and veg for £15 is a bit steep.

 

While the manageress was extremely helpful, I don't think the squad of staff had that much in strength and depth.  Some of the waiters possessed  little in the way of English which is a shame.  more side dishes and English bread would have been appropriate to.

 

2 of us had guide dogs and this caused no problem at all.  The manageress brought them some water in fact.   so chalk this up as a guide dog friendly venue.

 

 

Despite a few little negative comments, this was still an enjoyable experience however and I give the restaurant 7 out of 10 and would say it is well worth a visit.

 

For more info including menus visit

http://www.porters.uk.com

 

 

Saint George and Dragon, Clyst St. George, Exeter, EX3 0QJ

This is a nice country pub with low ceilings, an open fire and generally a good traditional pub feeling though it is really more of a restaurant  than a pub.

 

We were a little underwhelmed by the size of the portions and the quality of some of the produce left a little to be desired.

 

For starters I had seared king scallops with slow roast belly pork and Braeburn apple and mustard dressing. It was very nice but I got only 4 scallops

and a tiny piece of pork, no more than one mouthful. There was also loads of dressing poured on but no way of mopping it up so had to get an extra portion

of garlic bread. Roy and Martin had Tomato and basil soup which was the soup of the day and they said the portions were adequate and it came in small high

bowls rather than British soup bowls which is good. Debbie had the forest and flat mushrooms in white wine and herb cream with crispy bacon and toast.

The bacon was just a standard rasher and it was not smoked. She said the size of the portion was reasonable and it was quite a good starter.

 

Mains is I think where the real problem with portion size and quality came. I had venison steaks which came with caramelised onion gravy, a flat mushroom,

A plumb tomato and steak chips

 

Usually the venison would be served with a red wine sauce or perhaps a juniper berry sauce but the gravy here turned out to be no better than Bisto onion

gravy, a real disappointment. The Venison was well cooked and there was a reasonable amount of it and on the table they had a sweet garlic and onion chutney

which I used all of to create a slightly more interesting sauce by mixing it with the gravy. The chips were soggy, slightly undercooked and almost certainly

frozen. The portion was not generous. For £16 this is not really good enough and if all I had to eat was a main course I would give it a 4.

 

Martin had the mixed grill which should have consisted of lamb cutlet, black pudding, white pudding, sweet cure Bacon, rump steak, sausage, egg,

tomato, flat mushroom, garden peas and chips. He’s not that big an eater and we thought that if this meal was as good as advertised, he would probably

be overfaced and need to share his food. as it turned out he had no problem getting it down. The black and white pudding was no better than average and

there was one thin slice of each. The lamb cutlet was mainly bone and the steak was chopped up into little pieces and dotted about on the plate. The amount of each ingredient was rather small and the chips were of course the same as mine.

 

Roy had the Shropshire chicken which was a chicken breast stuffed with Shropshire blue cheese, spinach and fig on roasted route vegetable risotto. He said

it tasted good but the portion was tiny.

 

Debbie had the Sole and smoked salmon roulade on buttered wilted spinach, samphire and baby potatoes with white wine and dill cream. She also said her

food was nice and well cooked but the portion was tiny.

 

As I have often said, I do hate the practice of selling meals in a restaurant and then making people purchase extra side dishes for exorbitant prices.

It’s far better to quote a price and then give people a choice of a couple of side dishes from a list that are bundled in with the price.

 

Presentation generally seemed to be more important than ensuring that people got value for money. I do accept that presentation does matter but at the

end of the day you are eating the meal not keeping it for posterity in a glass cabinet. Decent restaurants look after the eyes but consider the belly first!

 

The puddings fared rather better on the whole. Roy and martin had Apple, pear and sultana crumble. This was described as being ideal for sharing but they

said they got a decent portion of it though it was still really only a generous portion for one.

 

Debbie had the cheese board. . It was supposed to consist of local cheddar, brie and stilton served with celery, chutney and Bath Oliver biscuits.

 

Amusingly, the stilton was not available because it had gone mouldy but Debbie was given a choice of which cheese to have as an extra. I have never heard

of bath Oliver biscuits but they turned out to be a bit like Cornish wafers. These have a slightly soggy consistency and would not be my choice of biscuit.

Only having one kind of biscuit is also rather lacking in imagination. She said the portion size was quite reasonable.

 

Before the meal, I joked about the possibility of having the chocolate trio. This cost almost twice as much as the other puddings and was meant to be for

sharing. Oh dear. It was lightweight!!

 

It consisted of Double chocolate torte, which turned out to be chocolate flavoured clotted cream with a thin layer of sponge at the bottom, giant profiterole

which was rather dry with a little cream in it and a chocolate brownie which was a touch dry but the richest part of the pudding. This was for me a real

disappointment and I heartily wish I had gone for one of the ordinary puddings, the raspberry crème brulee perhaps.

 

This eatery is a pub and the drinks are well kept and there is a decent range of real ales and wines. 2 of us had pints of St Austell tribute ale which was very well kept.

We also had a bottle of rose which was an Italian merlet. It was fairly dry but fruity and for £10.75 a bottle it was well worth the money.

 

2 of us went for liqueur coffees and these were a real disappointment. The coffee was low quality instant coffee and there was no cream. Measures of spirit

seemed to be very minimal and I even wondered if my Irish coffee contained real whisky at all or just some kind of syrup or essence. Debbie had a brandy

coffee and she seemed no more impressed than I was.

 

Staff were generally friendly and reasonably helpful but the service was rather slow considering how quiet the restaurant was. There were other people

eating for sure but it was not crammed full.

 

Over all then our view of the food was that, with the exception of the chips and the way in which the venison was served, it was well cooked though portion

size was underwhelming to say the least with emphasis put on presentation at the expense of the actual eating experience. It should be possible to do rather

better than this for the money. The bill for 4 of us came to £129.00 including drinks. Drinks were generally well priced and of high quality but avoid the

liqueur coffee. The unanimously agreed mark was 6 out of 10 though looking back on the experience over all this could be a touch generous.

 

for more info including menus visit

http://www.vintageinn.co.uk/thesaintgeorgeanddragonclystsaintgeorge/

 

Merlins Tandori 193 Wellingborough Road Northampton NN1 4EA

                this is a curry house in Northampton.  This is not really a review of the food but a warning about the restaurant itself.  If I know a restaurant accepts guide dogs then I mention it.  This restaurant however recently refused 2 friends service on the basis that they were trying to get in with a guide dog.  this happens quite often most of the time when restaurant owners express reservations, they are generally amazed at how calm and well behaved the dog is once they have been persuaded to let the person stay.  My friends were able to record the event of them being thrown out and I have included the Audioboo link to the audio at the end of this post.  I understand they have already taken the story to the local press and I understand they intend to carry on the fight until the owner of Merlins either unreservedly  apologises  or the restaurant closes through lack of visitors.  The reviews I can find are not very complementary about Merlins anyway and there are plenty of other good restaurants including curry houses near by on the same street.  The reaction of one customer in Merlins when Adam appeals for support is also fairly disgraceful.  for more visit

http://audioboo.fm/boos/500542-no-guide-dogs-allowed?playlist_direction=forward

The Chronicle, 3 Chapel Hill, Exmouth Devon EX8 1NY

Last month 3 of us went to the Chronicle to celebrate a friend’s birthday.  The Chronicle is a new restaurant in Exmouth which sells food similar to that which you might find in a decent gastro pub.  Prices are reasonable and the chef prepares the food herself.   This is genuinely a family run restaurant.  There is the chef, Kathy and her partner Ricardo and that’s it.  Both of them were friendly and they made us feel welcome. 

 

For starters Debbie and myself had a cold starter of Smoked Trout served with pickled onions and Celeriac.  Martin and Roy had the soup of the day which was Celeriac and apple soup.  The soup was good and thick.  Our starter was a generous portion with plenty of trout.  The starters came with brown bread and home made warm soda bread.  For Main I was undecided.  I wanted scallops with black pudding mash and leaks and also rather fancied the pork seared in cider with   potatoes gratin and cabbage.  I had fish for my starter so the pork won.  The  potatoes were really nice and creamy and the cabbage was till crispy.

 

Debbie had the duck which had plenty of meat on it.  Roy had chicken and Martin had a pasta dish with minced pork and beef.

 

All the dishes were fresh.  Martin didn’t have a pudding.  Roy and myself had chocolate not together pudding which was a chocolate sponge with clotted cream and chocolate sauce in separate pots.  This was very pleasant but not as exciting as I would have thought.  Debbie had cheese and biscuits and the portion was huge.  It came with brie,, Devon blue cheese and cheddar with plenty of water biscuits, celery, pickled onion, gherkins  and walnuts, grapes and apple slices.  There was loads  of it and my only criticism was that there was only rather boring water biscuits. A variety would have been nice.

 

After our meal Debbie got chatting with Kathy the chef who was happy to discuss the way she cooked dishes such as the soup which was particularly thick and warming.  Ricardo  was also a friendly talkative front of house person.  This restaurant is perhaps a little off the main drag and it has a lot of competition.  I see that it has some very good reviews on trip advisor and I wish them well.  The website is

http://www.chronicalrestaurant.co.uk

 

On this page it says the restaurant is open at lunch time.  For the time being at least this is not true and they should correct this.  This restaurant would certainly not be out of place in any city in the UK and I hope it succeeds.  I give it 9 out of 10 and would certainly visit it if you are in the area.  My only criticisms were the slightly boring chocolate pudding and the lack of a biscuit choice but these really are minor points.

Graham Page

Mobile: 07753 607980

Fax:  0870 706 2773

Email: gpage@useit.plus.com

MSN: gabriel_mcbird@hotmail.com

Skype: gabriel_mcbird

 

The Mexican, 17 - 19 The Parade, Exmouth, Devon, EX8 1RS

This restaurant  is a Mexican restaurant in the centre of Exmouth.  Menus are available at the website http://www.eatmexican.co.uk

 

I visited this restaurant yesterday with 2 friends.  In brief, the menu is a little limited but the portions are large, the quality of food is good and the staff were generally attentive and professional.

 

For starters I had grilled spicy sausage  which came with bread and a bit of salad.  The sausage was cooked in red wine  which brought out the spicy meaty flavour nicely.  The bread was really a bit like bloomer bread, quite thick but nothing really memorable.

 

One of my friends had the corn tortilla chips which came with Guacamole, tomato salsa and sour cream.  The corn tortilla chips were fresh and the dips were quite plentiful.  Another friend had  Mixed Jalapenos and Jalapenos stuffed with  Jalapenos stuffed with Feta.  These were really tasty and the chillies were again fresh and not soggy.

 

For main Myself and one of my friends had the  Chicken Mexicana.  This is described on the menu as A chicken breast cooked in a sauce of hot chillies, garlic, white wine and tomatoes and accompanied with chilli potato wedges and salad garnish.  This is typical of the rest of the menu which is descriptive and helpful without being over flowery or making false claims for the food.  I found the chicken quite spicy without   being killer hot but Debbie, who does not eat hot food, found the chicken quite fierce I think.  Debbie went for the lamb Burrito.  This was filled with lamb stew cooked with almonds and the flavour reminded me a bit of Moroccan   food.  It was very tender and quite rich.

 

None of us had a main course as we were all quite full.  I ate some of Debbie’s main course in fact.

 

Instead of a dessert, we had Liqueur coffees.  Myself and Martin had Irish coffee and I think Debbie had Quantreau    coffee.

 

We also had a beer each.  Mexican beers are really nothing special and they insist on putting a piece of lime in the top.  I am told this is done in Mexico to keep flies out of the beer and this could make sense in hot climates.

 

The wine list looks quite extensive with house wine costing £12.95 a bottle.  This is a fair price and wines were not generally dearer  than about£16 a bottle.

 

The staff were helpful and knowledgeable about the food.  Our server warned us that the Chicken Mexicana was hot and she advised us that we would probably not need extra side dishes unless we were particularly hungry.  I appreciate this degree of honesty.

 

Our meal came to just over £67 for 3 of us. This may seem quite expensive but as I have said the portions were generous and the food was high quality.  Even though the menu is a little limited, I would go back to this place at least one more time.  I would like to try the Fajitas and possibly the Devilled mushrooms and the lunch time menu also looks quite appealing.

 

Over all then, the menu is rather limited particularly in the area of main meals but the quality of the food and helpfulness of the staff compensate for this.  I give the  Mexican 7.5 out of 10 and would certainly recommend it even for those like me who generally find Mexican food in the UK to be rather lacking in variety and expensive.

 

 

salsa restaurant 34-36 London Road, Southend

Last week I visited the Salsa Restaurant in Southend.  Generally the food was good, staff were helpful and while the prices were maybe a little high they weren’t totally unreasonable.

 

The menu offers Mexican, Portuguese and Italian food.  I went there with 2 other people.

 

for starters I had mushrooms stuffed with pate. the menu did not say what kind of pate was used and I would have liked a little more of it perhaps. the mushrooms were served in a thick crushed tomato and garlic mixture which also had a hint of chilli in it. Ideally the pate could have been slightly more strongly flavoured but I suppose it's hard to please all people and I'm not saying that this dish was bad in any way. I'm just expressing personal preference. One friend had prawns cooked in garlic and white wine and the other had calamari. Both liked their starters.

 

for main I had a Portuguese casserole containing Tomato, mixed meat, sausage, red kidney beans and spices. I had this with sauté potatoes. This was really quite nice though I would have liked a bit more spice in the sauce. I eat anything so mixed meats to me were not a problem. some of the meat had a kidney kind of taste with a more meat like texture. I wonder if this was heart? Nothing wrong with that as far as I am concerned but if you are fussy it is worth asking. Black pudding was also included in this dish and though I am not worried about this, the black pudding was not mentioned on the menu. in general This was a basic really hearty dish and the quality of the meats was quite high. a bit of black pepper might have improved things a bit, I could have asked for some. The sauté potatoes were also fresh and made from real potato rather than frozen and they were well cooked. One of my friends had Beef in a wine and garlic sauce which and the other had Chicken, bacon and broccoli in creamy Parmesan sauce with penne. both people liked their dishes and commented on freshness and quality of ingredients.

 

For pudding I had Crème Brulee which was home made and full of rich thick custard. it was meant to be flavoured with baileys and though you could tell the flavour was there it was very much in the background. the waitress advised me that this is because children can eat this pudding so understandably the amount of baileys had to be kept to a minimum. one of my 2 friends also had this pudding and we agree that it was still quite rich and satisfying.  It was served with vanilla ice cream which was quite acceptable but not remarkable in any way.

 

The other person with me had a vanilla cheese cake and again liked it.

 

to end the meal (there is a posh French term for this I am sure) I had an Irish coffee which was made with good strong fresh coffee and plenty of whiskey with cream. I think there should really be some sugar in it as well but in many places poor quality instant coffee is used so the good fresh coffee was a nice touch.  2 of us had Irish coffee with the third having rum and hot chocolate. Normally rum and hot chocolate is not on the menu but hot chocolate is so making one with rum was not a problem for the staff. this flexibility is certainly a plus point. the measure of rum in the chocolate seemed very generous indeed and I wonder if the required amount of rum accidentally got added twice? no complaints there though!

 

The waitress who helped us was very friendly and patient. she went through the whole menu with us and we did not feel rushed. She also seemed reasonably knowledgeable about the food and in general she was attentive without being too in your face. we did not have to wait ages for the bill and she calculated our bills separately as well as giving us the price of the lot. this was thorough and it gave us full flexibility in deciding how we should split the bill.

 

for 3 courses, a bottle of wine and a liqueur coffee each we paid just over £30 a head excluding service charge. Tips go directly to the person who serves you by the way. this is not dirt cheap but you can pay a lot more for a meal of this quality. portions were generous and, importantly, the staff were helpful and knowledgeable. Good staff can make all the difference between a good night and a disaster so examples of good practice are very much worth a mention. I gave this restaurant 8 out of 10 and at least one of my friends thinks I am being a bit harsh. it is true that my criticisms are minor but for me an 8 means very much worth a visit. If anyone else who has visited this restaurant puts together a well justified argument for an extra half mark then maybe I can be persuaded.

 

Graham Page

Mobile: 07753 607980

Fax:  0870 706 2773

Email: gpage@useit.plus.com

MSN: gabriel_mcbird@hotmail.com

Skype: gabriel_mcbird

 

Albion Cafe, 2-4 Boundary Street, Shoreditch, London E2 7DD

I visited this eatery about a month ago after an assessment in the area.  Albion Café describes itself as selling:

Typical British caff food, nothing challenging or complicated, just straightforward hearty ingredients and recipes.   First of all, some of the foods such as Rabbit stew are hard to find in most if not all British cafes.    The menu includes breakfast served throughout the day, fish and chips, pies, sandwiches, puddings and fruit crumbles. Open all day for coffees, teas, English ales, juices, biscuits and cakes. The late-night menu includes Welsh rabbit, kedgeree and hot chocolate with shortbread.

 

Secondly, the food might be basic British but the prices are quite fierce.  I had a full breakfast, a dessert of mixed berries and pastry with cream, a coffee, a grapefruit  juice and  a ginger beer.  That little lot ended up costing me over £28.

 

It’s worth looking at prices in detail where I have them.  In particular the breakfast came to a rather heavy £10.00.  a typical greasy spoon will sell something similar for half that price so is the extra £5 really worth it?

 

My breakfast consisted of:  one egg, 2 rashers of bacon, one sausage, a tomato cut in half, a large flat mushroom, black pudding, bubble   and squeak and beans.  I also got 2 slices of fresh bread and all the butter I needed.

 

The egg was fried and the yoke was hard.  This is how I like it but that might not please everyone.

 

The bacon was of good quality and had quite a porky taste which I liked.  It could have been thicker.

The sausage was certainly of good quality and better than  most cafes have to offer but it wasn’t absolutely premium by any means.  I have had similar quality sausages from the co-op where you get 8 Cumberland sausages for about  2 pounds.  One sausage seemed a bit stingy to me as well.

 

The tomato was unremarkable.  Just an average tomato cut in 2.

The flat mushroom was equally unremarkable.

 

The black pudding was spicy and it had a nice crumbly texture.  This was pretty good quality and this was some of the best black pudding I have had in London.

 

The bubble tasted as though it had been made with coleslaw.  It seemed to contain mainly mashed potatoes with cabbage that had a slight hint of vinegar to it.  Not that nice at all I’m afraid.

The baked beans were also rubbish.  They were quite hard like some of the cheapest brands of baked beans and they had a rather watery tasteless sauce.

 

The bread was fresh crusty bread which tasted really nice.  It was sliced thick and generally quite satisfying.

 

So in general, this breakfast was a mixed bag with better than average parts to it.  £10 seems far too much to pay for what you actually get.  I think a price of £7 might have been more realistic though this is the top end of what I think the breakfast is worth.

 

The dessert was a bit of a disappointment.   It was described as mixed berries with Chantilly cream and puff pastry.  Chantilly Cream is whipped cream with added sugar and vanilla.

 

The  berries and cream was separate to the puff pastry which came in a block like a small croissant.  The pastry was rather tough and though it tasted ok the texture felt less than fresh.  I would have thought the berries and possibly the cream would have been inside the pastry.

 

The coffee was fresh ground and of a decent quality.  The ginger beer was just a standard bottle though the grapefruit juice came in a half pint glass making it quite generous compared to the small glasses  of juice you often get with breakfasts in the UK.

 

 

I would have considered £20 or £21 acceptable for the amount I had if perhaps on the expensive side.  I do not know what the other parts of the meal cost individually though I did get the waitress to go through it at the time to make sure that no mistake  had been made.

 

Staff were generally quite helpful and prepared to go through the menu.  At this price I would certainly expect nothing less.

 

More information including some sample menus can be found by visiting the website at http://www.albioncaff.co.uk/

 

Even the website has a pretentious name.  the couple on the table next to me were in the process of selecting a honeymoon apartment  in the Seychelles with a rep for example.  Don’t pretend it’s a basic caff when it isn’t, it only makes it look more pretentious.

 

In brief, the food was quite good and staff were very helpful but the place is simply far too expensive.  I can only give it 4 out of 10.

 

 

Update, Soma Kitchen, 230 Mile End Road, Stepney, London, E1 4LJ

The Soma Kitchen has started to lower some of its prices and they have started selling kebab wraps for £5.50 which includes a can of coke.  Also you can get a Lamb Shawama for £6.45 where as the price used to be £8.45.  This is more sensible pricing I think.  People still do complain of long waiting times however.

Soma Kitchen, 230 Mile End Road, Stepney, London, E1 4LJ

This is a new restaurant in Stepney green describing itself as an exclusive Mediterranean restaurant.  It is in the same building as the old Soma Bar and it follows a trend of pubs turning into halal eateries.

 

Really it’s a rather expensive kebab shop that also sells a few soft drinks as well as freshly made juices which are also on the pricey side   .

 

The kebabs are really very good and they are some of the best in the area.  The Lamb Shawamas and lamb shish kebabs are certainly the best you will find in Stepney but the bar is hardly set particularly high by the competition!!

 

I visited Soma Kitchen with a friend and despite the good quality of the kebabs I have some concerns about this restaurant.  There are problems that need to be addressed if the Soma Kitchen is to be a success.

 

We had  Falafel, lambs liver and Dolma as a starter.  The Dolma was described as stuffed pepper and indeed Dolma is stuffed vegetables which can include peppers.  We got stuffed vine leaves however and my friend wanted the peppers in particular as stated on the menu so she asked for them and what came back was like something from out of a tin.  We think it probably was tinned and this is not good.  Initially we were also given pastry stuffed with cheese rather than the liver so we had to send that back too.  Some of the staff seemed to have problems with the menu and I ended up wondering if they could actually read or maybe they had just not bothered to familiarise themselves with the menu.

 

.  With the exception of the stuffed peppers, the starters were of a reasonable quality when we finally got them.

 

I have had the Lamb Shawama kebab here in the past and it was very good.  This time I had a lamb dish fried with tomato and peppers.  It tasted too much of tomato for my liking , as though it had lots of tomato puree  in it.  I don’t know how the dish should taste however so this is not a criticism.  My friend had chicken Shish which was plentiful though she commented that the rice was a bit cold.

 

We also had a fresh carrot juice with Ginger which was made in the restaurant.  It tasted a bit watered down to me.

 

 

We ended up paying about £14 for a starter, a main, a carrot and ginger juice and a tea.  Some money was deducted for the difficulty we had with service.

 

If the service had been good we would have been happy to pay the full price which would have been about £17. I would have given it about 6.5 out of 10.  Chaotic ordering procedures and staff with little knowledge of the menu and poor English who sound like would-be local Asian gangsters does little in the way of making the restaurant feel exclusive or even high quality and I really think these serious teething problems will need to be addressed if the restaurant is to attract students, lecturers, hospital staff and other locals that will need to use it if the place is to thrive or even survive long term.  It is unlikely that the chicken shop masses of Stepney will even give the Soma Kitchen a look in as it is probably beyond their price range.  This is  fair enough when it comes to the kebabs.  I have had a Lamb Shawama in the Soma Kitchen and it was nice and very large.   There was loads of everything. the meet was spicy and of good quality.  There was also plenty of salad and pita bread.  At £8.95 it is not something most people would eat regularly and a smaller kebab for £5 might be a good seller.

 

My friend and me both agreed that we could give the Soma Kitchen no more than 4 out of 10.  If they sort things out in a month or 2 I will report back.

 

brilliant restaurant Southall

This review was posted by Adam Holdsworth on his blog

http://daggersdukc.blogspot.com/

 

This contains comments from Adam about whatever he is doing at the time.

 

The article below is a review of the Brilliant Restaurant which I will certainly visit if I am in the area.

 

 

 

Food: Indian

Contact details:

72-76 Western Road, Southall, Middlesex UB2 5DZ

www.brilliantrestaurant.com

 

We visited The Brilliant in Southall, Middlesex, today. As I grew up in nearby Hayes, I was miffied that during my time there, my parents had never taken

me here, as it had a good rep even back in the early 80s - it is actually a Southall institution, having been in the same area since the early 70s. As

Southall is one of the demographically "Indian" suburbs in Britain, let alone London, calling your restaurant The Brilliant in this environment is almost

a taunt: "come, criticise me, tell me I'm not brilliant, tell me I'm rubbish". In its favour, it has won plenty of awards. But the only award that matters

to us (insofar we came from distant suburban East London to be here) is what we think of it. Will we return? Will we recommend it to our friends? Was it

in fact, brilliant?

 

Let's find out.

 

Firstly, the guide dog situation. It is really, really difficult to eat Indian or Chinse while being accompanied by a guiding beast. There is a point,

after you've had maybe the third or forth row about whether the dog is allowed in, when you just assume that you will go into an eating establishment,

all guns blazing. Though I refuse to take nonsense from anyone about this (to refuse a guide dog is breaking the law and ignorance is no defence in my

opinion). Not a problem in The Brilliant, perhaps aided by the fact that one of the staff was obviously a dog lover and wanted to pet Nicki the Labrador

while she was being good beneath the table. They get a huge brownie point for the no-fuss welcome. What a relief.

 

The decor here is cool but in a friendly, inviting way, with dark wooden floorboards, spotlights and a clean, no-fuss style that doesn't intimidate but

still has enough sophistication, suggesting this interior design has been thought through. No job lot tables here - everything is in dark brown and dark

orange. All just-so. (9 out of 10).

 

Our service was friendly and the food arrived in a timely manner without any hanging around (a pet hate of mine is being left for ages after the main course

before your dessert order is taken). Service then was brisk and polite. (9 out of 10).

 

We ordered poppadoms as a pre-starter. I tend to find that a good, crisp, not-too-greasy poppadom indicates how the rest of the meal will turn out I was

right on this occasion, as we'll see. By the way, we ordered spicy poppadoms and blow me down, they were peppery. Fortunately, we both love pepper and

there are plenty of chutneys to dump them in to assist sweetening them up and bringing down the heat level a bit.

 

Our starters were tilapia fish pakora (9 out of 10). The high mark is given for the light batter made of gram flour, which didn't in any way kill off the

delicate flavour of the fish. I had meat samosas, filled with finely minced lamb. I give these 7 out of 10 - better than average and good quality meat.

 

For the main course, we had a lamb curry which Lynn described as basic but tasty and awarded it 6 out of 10. I had the lamb masala which on the menu, was

described as coming with a thick sauce flavoured with ginger, tomato and garlic. It left nothing to be desired: this was a dish delivered exactly what

was promised. I can barely think of anything to fault it on and will give it a full 10 out of 10 because it really was that good. Bravo. If my stomach

had been any larger I would have gone for second helpings.

 

Desert was a better than average pistachio kulfi which I'll give 7 marks for. It was served on an unusual long plate which didn't do anything for the flavour,

but did add a little interest presentation-wise.

 

So overall, was the Brilliant, brilliant. I think so. It is one of those establishments where you think every award was justified and gained from hard

work and attention to detail, as well as old fashioned customer service, rather than from "I'll scratch your back if you give me a plaudit" mentality.

There are few Indian restaurants this good in my view and I would go there far more often if only had the fortune to live closer.

wok and grill, Chronos Building, mile end road London

This restaurant used to be part of a small chain called Pandoos which was clearly designed to be a bit like Nandos.  It sells a range of grilled dishes and stir fries.  When it was Pandoos it sold curries but now it concentrates more on the stir fries.  Unusually for halal food outlets, the Wok and Grill also sells beef and steaks.

 

I had crispy chicken as a starter followed by stir fried spicy beef and rice.  The chicken was crispy though its texture was rather watery.  The beef was good and spicy but there wasn’t much of it.

 

It seems that most of the staff are the same as those who ran Pandoos so many of the same problems apply.  One member of staff speaks half decent English but the others don’t and they don’t seem to care much about what they do either.  I tried to ask what pudding they had and a member of staff babbled through about 4 of them.  I asked for descriptions and he either didn’t understand my question or didn’t want to understand so I decided not to bother with a  pudding.

 

I had to ask for the bill twice and finally got given a bill for £18.99 which seemed rather a lot for 2 main courses and a drink so I questioned it.  It turns out my bill was really £14.68.

 

That £18.99 looks like a figure the guy serving me just made up.   I don’t appreciate being deliberately overcharged by someone who either does not have the brains to calculate the bill or the prices to hand.

 

The food was fairly poor anyway but as I was nearly overcharged I don’t think I will be going back to this restaurant unless I get evidence that the quality of the staff have improved significantly.

 

I can only give this restaurant 3 out of 10

Delish Deli, 2, The Chronos Building, 9-25 Mile End Road, Stepney, London, E1 4TP

Delish is clearly an eatery which is trying to make itself a bit different from the rest.  It sells breakfasts, salads, a range of hot dishes, sandwiches and jacket potatoes.  So far I have tried the salad bowl, a shepherds  and a breakfast.  The salad bowl consist of choices of vegetables and cheese.  You have the usual lettuce tomato and onions but you also have carrots, sweetcorn, mushrooms peppers, sun dried tomatoes and also things like bean sprouts and bits of fruit.  It was really quite an extensive salad bowl which can be mixed with various meats such as chicken or turkey or you could have Tuna or prawn.  These ingredients  are available on their own or spicy so there is, for example, a Mexican spicy chicken.

 

The only hot lunch I have tried so far is the shepherds pie was quite good.  The potatoes were creamy and well mashed.  There was plenty of mince gravy and peas but I would have liked a richer tastier gravy.  Still I have had a lot worse.

 

The breakfasts  are acceptable though The sausages are really just average café quality.  There is no bacon though you can get turkey ham instead. coffee is filter coffee.  It is acceptable but it won’t blow your mind away! I find they tend to make it a little weak.  This may not be my first choice for breakfast.

 

Delish is really a cut above most of the rubbish found in Stepney.  It attracts a wide range of people including students and hospital workers and it seems to be quite successful. 

 

I was impressed by the range of food and the helpfulness of the staff.  Men and women work there and the level of English spoken by the staff is certainly reasonable.

 

In general then this is a decent place to eat and I would give it 7 out of 10.

A Passage To India, 76 Bold Street , Liverpool L1 4HR

The Passage to India has the reputation of being one of the best curry houses in Liverpool though it is said to be on the expensive side.  I had a prawn puri for starter and a Lamb  Jalfrezi with garlic rice as a main.  The quality of the ingredients were really quite good but there was absolutely no spice so I ended up feeling rather disappointed.  I have since seen an online menu available from Just-eat which suggests that the Jalfrezi dishes  are available  mild, medium or spicy.  On most menus Jalfrezi is cooked with chilli so I expected this dish to be quite hot.  We really should have been asked whether we wanted our curry mild medium or hot.  Neither myself or the friend I was with could see enough to read the menu in detail though he could read the dish names.  We therefore knew nothing about the different spice options available.

 

My starter and main dishes both came in a thick slightly creamy sauce which is typical of many of the posher Bangladeshi restaurants.  The portions were very generously sized  and I could probably have done with a bit less rice.

 

Over all then the quality of ingredients and portion size were excellent but the food was not spicy enough and we really should have been asked..

 

I give this restaurant 5 out of 10.  If the food had been a bit more spicy or we had been asked for our preferences then a score of 7 may well have been possible.

Mexigo Mexican Grill 72 Bold Street Liverpool L1 4HR

This is a take away which sells various kinds of soft pancakes full of beef or chicken with guacamole  salsa rice and beans.  The pancakes which include tacos  and Burritos.    It’s the usual British Mexican restaurant type of thing.  Not bad if you want a quick bite though all the food is a bit similar.

 

I call this a takeaway but it does have a lot of tables and chairs inside, it’s just that all the food comes in boxes with plastic knives and forks as though you were going to take it away.  I’ve never been a fan of this kind of food as a take away, particularly if you want to eat it on the go as it’s so messy to eat.  If I’m going to eat this kind of food I want it on a plate with some decent cutlery.

 

A friend and me both had beef with all the usual accompaniments with extra mushrooms and a soft drink.  The person serving us was quiet and didn’t seem particularly enthusiastic about being there.  eating the food from the box was less than ideal.  I can’t say the food was horrible, and at £8.00 the price was acceptable though it is on the high side given the poor presentation.

 

So Mexigo served Average food with poor presentation and barely adequate service.   This made this takeaway a fairly forgettable place  so I give it 5 out of 10.

 

Cookies and Cream 7 Mile End Road, London E1 4TP

Cookies and cream is essentially an Ice-cream  parlour  which sells a few other things such as waffles and milk shakes.

 

When I went there I had 1 scoop of coconut ice cream  and one scoop of pistachio ice cream.  The coconut ice cream did contain actual coconut but there was no evident of the pistachio nuts in the pistachio ice cream.  2 scoops cost £2.25 which is quite expensive.  Yes the bowls are very impressive but I’m more interested in what’s in the bowl to be honest.

 

I also had an Oreos  milk shake.  This is a milk shake with Oreo biscuits ground up in it to give the milkshake a chocolate flavour.  Oreos are definitely one of America’s better chocolate biscuits in my opinion and the Oreo milk shake worked well as a concept  The milkshake was nice an thick.  The only problem was that little chunks of Oreo tended to block the straw.

 

This ice cream parlour is surprisingly busy even in the winter.  It seems to be well used by local Asians even though it is not cheap so for them it’s quite a trendy hang out joint.

 

Cookies and Cream only sells about 25 flavours of ice cream which is nothing compared to many ice cream parlours.  Food is well presented but a little limited in substance.  I don’t mind this place but it is not interesting enough to travel to it from a great distance.  I can’t say any of the food I had was unpleasant and the guy behind the counter read out all the flavours.  I give this place 6 out of 10

King Eddies, 47 Broadway, Stratford, London E15 4BQ

 

This pub is actually called King Edward VII but all locals know it as King Eddies and the website is actually www.kingeddie.co.uk

 

I visited this pub with a friend on Sunday.  A policeman guiding me across the road recommended the chips saying they were home made and cooked in goose fat.  My friend and myself  therefore ordered fish and chips which at £11 was rather expensive.

 

 

King Eddies is really a gastro pub though it is a lot more relaxed and pub like than many.  During our visit there was a pub quiz and people were also enjoying what seemed to be a rather posher do in the function room upstairs.  The beers on offer included 2 from Warys and I think Marsdens pedigree.  There also seemed to be a wide range of spirits available.  At £3.20 a pint it was not that cheap but the prices are by no means unheard of in London.  Staff were very helpful and they read us out the menu.  Waiting time at the bar was short even when the pub was quite busy.  These were all good signs and had it not been for the food I would have given it 7.5 out of 10.  There are pubs with a bigger range of ale at cheaper prices which would have upped  the score further.

 

Coming back   to the food, I was disappointed to find that the fish came with thin fries.  No sign of home made chips cooked in goose fat!  The fish was large  but although the batter was quite thin  there was more batter than fish.

 

The meal was advertised as coming with mushy  peas.  This meant a little pot of peas ground do a pure mixed with mint and a few other things in a small pot.  If your going to do northern style mushy peas do it properly otherwise just stick to a portion of garden peas or similar.  The home made Tartar sauce was nice.  It had capers in it.

 

The size of the portion was large on the whole and so it should be for £11.  I just felt that quality was rather lacking.  I can have fries in McDonalds  for much less money.

 

This pub does sell other food such as Venison so maybe at some point I will go back there, but I will be on the lookout for other reviews.

 

Given the poor quality of the food I can only give this pub 5.5 out of 10.  If I can get something of better quality then the mark could easily go up by another couple of points.

 

 

Zanes 588 Mile End Road, London E3 4PH

Zanes used to be the Mile Stone which used to be a pub. No alcohol there now however. It’s one of the many halal restaurants in the area.

This restaurant sells a typical range of curries, starters and other Bangladeshi/Indian food but it also sells steaks as well along with a range of desserts. One person who worked there, the owner I believe, spoke great English and he was knowledgeable and helpful. His colleague, however who served me first, seemed to speak virtually no English. He seemed unable to read the menu and it took a lot of coaxing to get details of the food available out of him. Normally I would have turned straight around and left. I am blind and I cannot read their menu and I do have a problem with staff who choose to live and work in a restaurant when they can’t even speak enough of the language to read a menu. As it was I did not ask the price, but more of this later. A friend told me this restaurant looked nice so rather than just walking out I bit my tongue and persevered.

This meal formed the only food intake of the day so I was out for a big feed! I was curious about what the steak would be like so I ordered this first. It came with nicely cooked new potatoes in their skins. They were sold to me as roast potatoes but never mind, they were nice. The steak came with peppers, onions, pieces of cauliflower and a few carrots. So, the accompaniments were fine. The steak was another matter. It was tough and maybe slightly over cooked. Certainly it was rather dry. I am told that Halal meat tends to have all blood drained from it but surely, steak needs some blood. I’m no expert so can’t say if this was the problem but whatever the problem the steak was a disgrace. They could have at least tenderised it.

I still decided to go with some more typical food however to see how it was prepared. I had a portion of sheek kebabs, that’s the mince kebabs in a sausage shape. The kebabs were juicy and fresh. The samosas were well filled and pleasantly spiced and generally much better than the steak.

I then went for dessert. I chose the Halva and what was supposed to be a Crème Brulé. The Crème Brullé was nice though it was in fact a Crème Caramel rather than the Crème Brullé which is thick custard type stuff under a hard caramel lid in a bowl. Crème Caramel is a bit like a caramelised egg custard. The Halva contained chocolate and was nice and gloopy. I do not know what Halva should be like so I can’t comment on authenticity. For drinks I had 2 glasses of lemonade which just came from a plastic bottle.

My bill came to £31.00. With the exception of the steak, the food was very good. The owner spoke good English and was helpful. However the steak was dreadful, the Crème Brullé was not as it should have been and the other staff were not knowledgeable and service didn’t seem to be part of their culture. I therefore give this restaurant 4.5 out of 10. The food does show some good potential however. The quality of some of the food does make me want to go back but this will be either with a sighted person who can read the menu or if not, I will only eat if I can get the help of a staff member who speaks good enough English to go through the menu with me.

Lexus cafe mile end road

This is a new Moroccan café that has recently opened on Mile End road.

 

Inside the seating is quite low and there are pillows to lean on.  The range of products sold however seems to be very poor.  They do not have any kind of on-site kitchen yet so the food is cooked outside and just warmed up when you want it.  When I visited they seemed to have a lamb or a chicken tagine, a salad with onions pickle beetroot   and lettuce.  There were also muffins   available as well as coffee, hot chocolate and cold drinks.

 

I understand the boss is trying to buy up the rest of the building but tenants live there so it may be a while.  I always think a restaurant where the food is not cooked on the premises is a bit suspect.

 

I had the Lamb Tagine with the salad and some bread which was all quite pleasant though I would have liked a little more choice.  The coffee I had was poor.  The first one was very weak and the second one, while somewhat better, was still not a top class coffee.  It was a bit weak.

 

Until this café gets a bigger range I can’t give it more than 5 out of 10.  There needs to be more choice and the coffee needs to improve.

 

 

King William iv 816 Leyton High Road London E10 6AE

When you first walk in to this pub it has the atmosphere of many a typical local.  It is carpeted and the radio is playing quietly in the background.  We wondered in there just before mid day and not surprisingly at that time it was quiet.  If you like your real ale however this pub is well worth a visit.  It has a micro brewery attached which brews a wide range of beers including hoppy light coloured ales and strong robust stouts.  At £1.99 this represents great value for money.  The food comprises a range of British favourites, sausage and mash, steak, mixed grill,  burgers, cottage pie etc.  The quality of the mixed grill I had was very acceptable though I probably wouldn’t visit this pub just for the food though the most expensive dishes, the mixed grill and the steak cost £7 and dishes such as 3 Cumberland sausages and mash cost £4.99 which is very reasonable.  With all the beers costing £1.99 however it is this along with the unusual ingredients used in many of the beers which really makes this pub stand out.  For more information about the beers and the brewery visit www.brodiesbeers.co.uk

 

I found the staff and the locals in this pub to be very friendly and I am definitely looking forward to returning to it in the near future.  I give this pub 8 out of 10 and highly recommend it.