El Rincon Quiteno 235 Holloway Road London N7 8HG

I did an assessment just off the Holloway road today and wondered where the hell I was going to go for food round there afterwards as this area is a bit of a desert.

 

Well I asked a couple of people who told me of a place called chicken Village.  Well the sooner places like that burn down or get shut down the better as far as I am concerned unless 10 pints have been had on Saturday and there's nowhere else open!

 

The third person I asked mentioned this south American restaurant called El Rincon Quiteno which he said was a Ecuadorian cafe.  Not surprisingly I was intrigued.

 

The person who told me about this place lead me there as he was going there himself.  He suggested a south American breakfast which I went for.  It consisted of  some kind of bread with rice and beans, plantain and 2 chunks of slightly spiced belly of pork that tasted a bit like pate.  I also had some sausages on the side which turned out to be home made  Chorizo which was really meaty and very good.  the pork was tough and fractionally dry but it had an interesting pate kind of taste and was generally quite pleasant.  the chorizo sausages were homemade and really meaty.  Coffee was fresh ground and good and strong.  I also had an orange juice and something that was described to me as south American Iron Brew.

 

Some of the food was a fraction on the dry side but over all it was a little unusual and very worth the find.  Most of the people in the cafe, though by no means all, were Spanish speakers which is often a good sign.

 

the complete meal cost me £11 which, as it was a bit unusual, I was very happy to pay.  Staff were helpful about reading the menus and I certainly did not leave hungry!

 

This is a basic cafe that is well worth a visit in what is a bit of a bleak area for fodder.  I give this cafe 7.5 out of 10. 

 

Sea Fresh Takeaway Food 8, London Rd, Twickenham, Middlesex TW1 3RR

This is a fish and chip shop that also has a table and some shelving round the walls you can sit at.

 

It is quite expensive.  A piece of haddock on its own cost £4.80 and a portion of chips was £1.40

 

The food came on cardboard plates with plastic knives and forks so I am glad there was no extra charge for the take away.  Cans of soft drink cost 70 pence which is about what I would expect.  There is a lunch time deal available.  I was charged £4.80 for the cod and chips I think and this makes the price reasonable enough at lunch.

 

the haddock was pretty good.  There was plenty of it and the batter was fresh and crispy and there was just the right amount of it for me.  The chips were crispy and well cooked and not greasy.  I think vegetable oil was used and the chips and they did lack flavour.  There was a decent portion however.

 

This was generally a decent place to grab a bite to eat and the staff were helpful enough.

 

I would very happily use this chip shop if I was passing and particularly felt like fish and chips but I couldn't get that excited about it.

 

I would give it 7 out of 10.

Sea Fish 205 Upper Street Islington London N1 1RQ

This is a fish and chip shop in Upper Street which is full of take aways and it tends to be quite expensive.  This fish and chip shop has a restaurant at the back and a traditional take away at the front.  Generally fish and chips costs about £5 in the take away part and £9 or so in the restaurant.  These prices are what I would expect for a London chip shop.  Prices in chip shop restaurants are always ridiculously hyped and this is no exception.

 

The good news however is that there is a lunch time deal that allows you to get cod and chips for £5.  After doing some work in Upper Street I was pointed towards this chip shop when I stopped someone on the street and asked about any decent places near by to eat.  I am from Yorkshire where in many cases chip shops still fry chips and fish in lard or beef dripping.  these chips tasted as though they had been cooked in dripping.  They were fairly crispy and quite freshly cooked.  The fish also tasted fresh though the batter was perhaps a little bit on the soggy side but believe me I have had a lot worse.  I also had 2 cans of ginger beer and was charged £1.75 each for them.  this is ridiculously expensive for a standard can of fizzy drink.

 

The staff working in Sea Fish were helpful and were prepared to read the menu to me which is basically standard fish and chip shop food with a decent range of fish including haddock, cod, skate and scampi.  I suspect they sell Rock fish too.  Anyone who eats here can truly say they have tried proper British fish and chips as the meal should be cooked.  You could take it away and eat it on the street if you want an even more traditional and much more cost effective fish and chip experience. 

 

This is certainly one of the better fish and chip shops I have visited in London and I would certainly suggest giving it a go if you are in the area.

 

If you eat here you will know what proper fish and chips should taste like.  You'll pay a considerable premium to use the restaurant and I was particularly surprised by the price of ordinary cans of fizzy drink.  I still give this place 7 out of 10 because of relatively reasonably prices in the take away part of the business and the quality of the food.  This place is run by people from Turkey and it is to their credit that they have took time to learn to fry proper fish and chips in the British way.

 

Queen Victoria, Tudor Street, Exeter, Devon EX4 3BR

The Queen Victoria, I am told, used to be a pub for local people that did quite well.  About 4 years ago it was taken over by someone who wanted to change the image of the pub.  She banned smoking before the legal smoking ban and got rid of quizzes,karaoke etc.  She did not introduce gastro pub food and the pub is a bit out of the way being down near the key.  Unsurprisingly the venture finally failed.

 

The Queen Victoria has recently reopened under new management and it seems they are trying to make it back into a pub again, designing it to meet the wants of local residents who's support  will always be required if this pub is to prosper.

 

I went to the Queen Victoria on Sunday with 2 friends.  There were 3 of us and we went to try the Sunday roast.  It cost £4.95 and includes a dessert.  This is great value for money so we wondered what we would get for that.

 

This pub is just opened and there only seemed to be 4 or 5 other people eating.  Not surprisingly therefore we got decent service with food arriving promptly.  The roast is available between 12 and 5 at the moment so you don't have to rush to be right there at lunch time.  I have to say that for the money the roast was excellent and could quite reasonably be served at this price without a dessert.  The choice of meats this week was Pork or Beef.  2 of us including myself had pork and one of us had beef.  Both the pork and the beef came in a generous  thick cut slab.  Both were well cooked and tender.  the meal came with roast potatoes, mashed potatoes, Yorkshire Pudding, carrots cauliflower and peas.  The pork also came with apple sauce and there was crackling.

 

The roast potatoes were crispy enough.  I have had better but I have had many worse.  They were real potatoes  rather than frozen ones.  the mash was also proper mashed potatoes and not instant mash.    It was a little lumpy perhaps but quite acceptable.  The vegetables were not overcooked.

 

This was a good big meal and well worth the price on its own.  When we had eaten the meal we were told that apple pie was available as a dessert for no extra price.  This was a bit of a disaster owing to a cooking error.  the pie was home made.  It had plenty of apple in it and the pastry was nice and light but the chef put far too much salt in the pastry  making it inedible.  I pointed this out. the chef tried it and the pie was taken off the menu and ice cream was offered instead.

 

This is a new pub and the error with the dessert was unfortunate but the chef took the right course of action once the error was pointed out.  The pie would have been very acceptable with less Sault so I suspect that in future weeks the dessert will be every bit as good as the roast.

 

This pub should also be commended on its policy on real ales.  Trade is relatively slow at the moment as the pub is newly reopened after closure and a period of what some would call misguided management.  Instead of trying to maintain draft cask ales, the Queen Victoria sells Speckled Hen and another ale, possibly London Pride, in bottles.  This is an good compromise and I wish more pubs could offer draft ales in bottles to give those of us who do not like lager something to drink.

 

I would strongly encourage anyone in the Exeter area to come and support this pub and give the roast a go on Sundays.  The roast is available at an amazingly good price and in my opinion far better than the roasts offered by large chains such as Whetherspoons.

 

I give this pub 8 out of 10 and say it is well worth a visit.  If trade gets better and draft real ale can be

viably sold then the mark could increase further.

Graham Page
Home Phone: 0207 265 9493
Mobile: 07753 607980
Fax:  0870 706 2773
Email: gpage@useit.plus.com
MSN: gabriel_mcbird@hotmail.com
Skype: gabriel_mcbird

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Denise's Restaurant, 79 Southampton Roe, Holborn London WC1B 4ET

This restaurant is about 5 minutes walk from Holborn station.  A friend of mine uses this restaurant quite often so I thought I'd give it a go.  there is a website 

http://www.denisesrestaurant.co.uk/

with all the details you need including a full menu.

 

Although this restaurant describes itself as a French restaurant on the web page, this description is rather inaccurate.  there are certainly plenty of French dishes but there are lots of Italian pasta dishes such as various kinds of pasta and dishes such as mixed grill and strawberries and cream which are quite English.  Traditional European might be a better description.

 

Prices at lunch time are the same as those in the evening.  I tried this restaurant at lunch time because it was more convenient to do this but you it's a labour of love!  I wouldn't generally suggest going here for lunch because of the prices.

 

Staff were generally helpful.  they were prepared to read the whole menu and explain dishes where necessary.

 

I had scampi salad to start with.  this was pleasant enough but the scampi was only frozen breadcrumbed stuff with a bit of ordinary salad leaves.  Leaves
may look great but generally they are not a taste sensation in my book.  Lettuce would almost be banned if I had my way!   The tartar sauce was acceptable
with a few bits in it and maybe home made. 

 

The main course I selected was called   Boeuf de Normandie.
This was prime sirloin
stake in a garlic and tomato sauce which was really very pleasant.  There was a decent amount of sauce and I was also asked if I wanted them to cut up
the steak.  I am happy cutting my own meat but when there is a lot of sauce having the meat  cut up for me without having to really ask makes things
easier and I was pleased I was given the choice. 

 

This dish should have come with French fries and when I asked I was told these were frozen.  Now I appreciate the honesty but for the price which I will
reveal in a bit, I think it would be reasonable to expect home cooked fresh potato products.  I asked if sautéed potatoes could be given instead and these
were provided.  I think they were home cooked and they were done in olive oil with a few herbs, Italian style I would say.  The sautéed potatoes were also very nice.  The veg was a few bits of cauliflower
and a few carrots.  Not overcooked but a little miserly.  I always like a decent amount of veg. 

 

For dessert I had fresh strawberries and cream.  Nothing to say about these though of course they were chopped into pieces to make it look as though you
got more of them.  I also had 2 glasses of lemonade and a coffee.  I felt nicely full after the meal but I didn't go in to the restaurant ravenously hungry.  I would say that portions were acceptable in size but not massive.

 

That lot came to just over £36.00. including 12.5 percent service charge which was added to the bill.  I think adding service to the bill is outragious.  You can't serve yourself so I think restaurants should just charge a fixed price which takes into account the cost of employing serving staff and let the customer decide whether or not service goes beyond the call of duty and so deserves a tip.

 

It was great that staff were helpful and honest.  Guide dogs are welcome and this is a place you could take people knowing you will get good service.

 

Portions were acceptable though  they could have been bigger and veg could have been a bit more plentiful
and varied.  frozen Scampi and frozen fries should be nowhere to be found at this price. 

the menu looks a little bit old-hat and on the unadventurous side.  at this price, I feel customers should expect top quality cuts of meat as well as plenty of vegetables.  While the service was good, the food fell a little below expectations though the steak was done perfectly and I liked the sauce it came with.

 

In short, if you find yourself in the Holborn area and you need a reliable place to eat in a hurry consider Denises.  while not being that adventurous, there is something most can eat.   It's rather expensive however.

 

Over all I give Denises 6 out of 10.

 

The Ship and Mitre, 113 Dale Street, Liverpool

The Ship and Mitre is primarily a pub selling British real ale and beers from around the world.  Expect to find 10 or more real British beers available as well as draft and bottled imported beers.  Beers are well kept by people who know what they are doing so the pub is worth a visit for the beer alone, even though it is a bit out of the way for many people.

 

I visited this pub last Sunday while staying with a friend.  we had a few beers and a bite to eat!

 

Food is served at lunch times.  the pub specialises in home made burgers and there are also a few starters and things such as chilli that can be served with bread, rice, salad or wraps.  The burgers were, however, the most interesting part of the menu.

 

Often with different flavoured burgers you just get a beef burger with different toppings. Here the burgers were home made and the flavourings were mixed in with the beef before it was cooked.  I was with 3 other people.  2 of us had beef burger with coriander and chilli and the other 2, including me, had a Moroccan lamb burger with apricots.

 

These burgers contained decent quality mince meat that was well flavoured.  they came in a bread bun and were served with chips that I think were freshly made rather than frozen.  I wanted a soup starter but there was none left so the chef sorted us out some spicy prawns with good thick hot chilli sauce instead.

 

The range of beers served in the Ship and Mitre is well known in Liverpool and this alone makes it well worth a visit.  the time during which food is served is quite limited at just 12:00 to 2:30 each day but prices are very fair at about £6 for the burger with chips.  I regard this as primarily a food blog but I assure readers that the Ship and Mitre is really worth visiting for its beers.  I had a couple of pints of TopBank Bowltown and it was kept faultlessly.

 

Staff were generally helpful though wan person was serving food in 2 bars which meant service was a bit slow.  this is a proper pub with a carpeted lounge bit and what would have been the public bar in the past.  I think that prices are the same in all parts of the pub now however.  I assume that in times when they know it will be busy they have the staff to cope.

 

Not surprisingly, as it is a pub, there was no problem with guide dogs.

 

I give this pub 7.5 out of 10.  the ale is great and varied, it would be good though if they served food for a few more hours each day.

Graham Page
Home Phone: 0207 265 9493
Mobile: 07753 607980
Fax:  0870 706 2773
Email: gpage@useit.plus.com
MSN: gabriel_mcbird@hotmail.com
Skype: gabriel_mcbird

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the Well House, 16 -17 Cathedral Yard, Exeter EX1 1HB

I visited this pub last month with 2 friends to try out the Sunday Roast.

 

This is quite a famous pub near the Cathedral in central Exeter and so I expected it to be rather expensive.  In fact, a roast dinner was £5.99 which is quite reasonable.  the portion was quite acceptable rather than being really generous, but considering that for this price you also get a soup of the day with bread you really can't complain.  I had Lamb and I would say the meat was particularly good.  It was thick, tender and really tasty.  vegetables were not overdone though I would have liked a few more of them as they were really nice.  MangeTout and carrots were among themm.  The soup was curried vegetable which was an unusual and quite welcome choice.  I may well eat here again and would certainly give it 6.5 out of 10 for the food I have tried given its price.  I would not have minded paying a couple of pounds more and getting a larger meal however.

 

 

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Banger Brothers, The Piazza, Euston Station

I first visited this sausage shop wile travelling home from    euston station after working nearby.
Since then, another branch has opened up at London Bridge station.  banger brothers is a small stall located on the piazza just outside the station.
Lets cut the pretentious crap, its the place where people gather for a quick fag before getting their trains.
I was offered a choice of sausages served in a bun and wile for testing purposes I should perhaps have gone for the basic British sausage, I actually chose the polish smoky sausage instead.
The sausage was of high quality with a really smokie flavour and it came with crispy shallots and pickles.
At 3 pounds 95 its not cheap but I would rather pay that 4 a really good sausage than 2 pounds 50 for something of poor quality.  Since then I have also tried the Chorizo sausage which I also liked and the British sausage which impressed me somewhat less.  It tasted a bit spongy and was no better than Sainsbury butchers choice!

 

Staff were reasonably helpful though not particularly enthusiastic.
I must say I am really looking forward to trying the other kinds of sausage available at this store as well as the bacon. This is a really welcome addition to the food on offer at euston station. For more info including the menu visit http://www.banger-brothers.co.uk
I hope this stall keeps up the quality and proves to be successful. I give it 7out of 10.

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Chutney's, 124 Drummond Street London NW1 2PA

chutneys is a vegetarian restaurant that specialises in Indian food, particularly from south India.

you will find dishes such as dosas that you will not normally find in typical Bangladesh style restaurants.  A Dosa by the way is a kind of pancake rolled around a filling such as potatoes and chick peas.

 

The website for chutneys is http://www.chutneyseuston.co.uk/

 

 

there is a link to a menu here which is helpful though rather short on descriptions of dishes.  Don't let this put you off though.  staff are really helpful and they will explain the dishes to you

 

I visited this restaurant with 6 other people on Friday.  the restaurant gets quite full so it is worth booking, particularly at weekends.  We had 4 guide dogs with us and getting in was  not a problem at all.

 

I had the Chutneys special Puri as a starter.  this contains crispy bread bits and slightly larger bready bits in a spicy sweet and sour sauce followed by Aloo Tikka Chat which is potato cakes with chick peas.  I then had a masala dosa which is a dosa filled with potatoes and vegetables.

 

I was bursting full after this lot.  I had 2 bottles of cobra with the meal and it came to just under
£20.

 

In general the staff at Chutneys are helpful.  the food is of good quality and it is not greasy. service is quick and efficient.  my only real complaint is that the menu should have a bit more description to help those new to this kind of cuisine.  guide dogs are welcome as they should be everywhere

I give Chutneys 8 out of 10 and highly recommend it.

 

Tarantino's Italian Restaurant, 51 High Street, Hornchurch, Essex RM11

Guest contributor: Adam

For our 9th wedding anniversary, my wife and I headed to Tarantino's
Italian restaurant in Hornchurch, after being recommended it by a
work colleague.

Well, thumbs up to her, for this place was everything I'd been told it
would be. Firstly, the service was really friendly. I think this is
partly due to the place being local, with another branch in Brentwood.
Very much a family affair then, and all the better for it. It avoids
any sense of corporate blandness you sometimes find in Italian
restaurants, though nearby Zizzi doesn't do too badly in this respect
despite it being part of the ASK group. Tarantino's has a regular menu
plus a couple of weekly changing specials.

I was told that the portions would be large, and that the quality
would be high. Both assertions were not wrong. I'm a big lad.

For my starter, I ordered baby back ribs with honey barbecue sauce,
and that's exactly what I got - the taste was both tangy and sweet - ,
with the ribs falling off the bone. The portion on the platter was
main meal sized. My Dearly Beloved had meatballs which were the best
I've tasted, made of a combination of beef and veal, very finely
minced and evidentially made using quality meat. Again, a larger than
average portion. So far so good.

Next we both had a tagliatele dish. Mine was served with creamy tomato
and garlic sauce, with strips of scotch steak. The beef tasted like it
was not from the cheapest cut - I guess it came from sirloin, and was
very tasty and perfectly cooked, so chewy enough without arguing with
the teeth. This was, perhaps, the best pasta dish I've ever eaten. The
sauce was delicious and robust, matching the steak strips perfectly,
and the pasta firm and not claggy in the slightest. The Wife also gave
her pasta dish eight out of ten, though I never tasted any of hers as
it contained broccoli. I'd rather die before eating this.

Mrs Wife was full up after this extravaganza of flavour and so went
straight to coffee. I ploughed on with strawberry cheesecake, which I
would rate highly, though it didn't have the wow factor of the pasta.
Big portion though, so gets 7 out of 10.

Overall, I'm going to give this place a highly recommended rating. I
do love Italian and it is quite easy to get a pasta dish right. But
it is very difficult to make a pasta meal exceptionally well, and
that's just what they've done here. Its won two awards, one being the
"Best Regional Italian Restaurant" award. With good reason.

Despite Essex's reputation of being a food desert, Hornchurch is an
area of well-kept secrets, with Bonaparte being better than most
French restaurants in London I've tried. Tarantino's has barged its
way into my "restaurants I now love" list. Out on a limb in the RM
postcode area, all these delights are skipped by the London critics
who tend to stick around the West End, Mayfair and Kensington, plus a
few of what I'd imagine can only be the local haunts of particular
journalists. Great if you live or work there. However, for us in the
far eastern suburbs, Hornchurch is an unsung oasis.

Ssssshh. We'll keep it to ourselves before all those peasants further
west discover it.