The Hungry Londoner Is Back!!! And feeling Korean ...

Wednesday 14th January 2015
Restaurant: Jubo at Bedroom Bar and On the Bap
Price per Person: £12 upwards
Rating: 8 out of 10

 

Well, you know me, I am a hipster at heart and proud of it, therefore I am obviously obsessed with Korean street food like the rest of the East London hip kids.  I had never had it before, and to be honest, I’m not sure if I have had anything authentic yet; however what I have eaten in two fine London eateries was delicious, so I am sorry this is where my hipster façade falls as I don’t care if it’s ‘the real deal’, it’s AMAZING!

First up I was in Bedroom Bar on Rivington Street to watch my cousin’s band play (Hi 5 to The Plastics!).  When you walk into the venue there are all these little tables to the left, and it has been set out as a Korean Canteen called Jubo.  It is all very ‘trendy’ with exposed wood and brick, dim lights and tight spaces.  We moved into the main bar to listen to sound check and have a drink.  The food smells however and the plates moving past us where too good to resist.  After enquiring about a menu at the bar I was told we would need to move to the main restaurant and put our name on a list.  She was a bit gruff and rude, the only down side of the place being that some of the staff seem to have forgotten it’s called the ‘hospitality’ business, therefore be HOSPITABLE!

I went to the host who was lovely, and quickly told me that we could eat where we want and he would be right with us.  So back in our comfy seats we decided to order the Chicken Dinner Platter between the 3 of us, which is 8 wings, 8 strips and 3 sides.  The sides all sounded amazing so we asked the lovely host who was quick to attend our table, what he would recommend.  He enthusiastically said to try the lotus root chips as they are so unusual.  We went for that, with of course some Kimchi slaw and chips for good measure.  You can always judge a place by the quality of its chips, as my dad says.  We were asked how spicy we want our chicken, to which we when to ‘hipster’ middle of the road – medium – so we got half soy garlic and half hot and sweet.  The food arrived quickly and was piping hot.  The chicken was a mix of wet and dry marinade.  The portion was MASSIVE – we struggled with three of us.  The flavour of the meat was the perfect balance of sweet, salt and spice that Korean food is known for, with fresh chopped spring onion garnish giving it a fresh lift.  The kimchi slaw was punchy and vinegary working well with the mayonnaise dressing.  The lotus chips were beautiful and crisp –not the biggest flavour, but delicious when combined with the other elements.  And chips were crispy on the outside, soft in the middle as it should be!  We even had to ask for the balance to be wrapped up – which was done with pleasure.  It was a lovely atmosphere, the food was fresh and delicious, and apart from the reluctant bartender it was an experience I can’t wait to repeat.

http://www.bedroom-bar.co.uk/assets/Uploads/Food_Menu/JUBOA2PRINT.pdf

So, now I am clearly an expert in Korean food, I decided to brave On The Bap on Old Street last week, sibling to Koba in central London.  The ‘bap’ part of the name means served with ‘rice’; not a floury bread roll in sight I regret to inform.  I say I braved it as, there was only one table at the back occupied and three expectant waitresses waiting eagerly like a personal welcoming party at the door for anyone coming in, which always intimidates me a bit.  I am also a curvy westerner, wearing a large coat and was more scarf than human, so the insanely close together tables injected another level of danger to me deciding to dine there: would I get into the seat, will my arse clear the table behind me as I was sliding in?  But god loves a risk taker and I got into my corner table safe and sound!

The deco is of course exposed brick work, with soup tins holding cutlery on the tables.  The menu was printed on brown paper and on a clip board – I was in hipster heaven!!  Service was efficient and friendly.  The menu was varied enough that I wasn’t sure what to choose from so asked for advice between two tempting dishes.  To be honest, I wasn’t sure what a lot of it was, which also didn’t help!  In the end I went in favour of Kimchi Bokeum Bap, described as Korean style bacon Paella with a fried egg on top.  I also ordered a miso soup as I am obsessed.  This arrived first in a bowl on a little wooden tray – it had a big pillow of softly friend tofu, something I had not seen treated that way before.  It was full of flavour, scattered with fresh spring onions and seaweed. 

 

My Kimchi Bokeum Bap arrived a couple of minutes after, and served in an enamel bowl, my hipster scale exploded with joy.  The dish had the flavour to back it up though, served with a raw salad of mixed cabbage and kohi rabi (I think that is what is was anyway), smothered in a smoky/spicy mayonnaise style sauce.  The bright orange yellow yoke burst forth all over the rice, with a gentle nudge, creating a rich sauce to baste the delicious tangy, umami rice that lay below.  It was pure joy in a bowl to eat, and I managed ever last mouthful with satiated happiness. 

 

 

 

My bill was £12, a total pleasure for exciting, and fresh flavoured food.  I felt relaxed, looked after, and oh so ‘hip.’  I cannot wait to dine there again, this time going for the Soondubu Jjigae, a seafood stew made Koba style … whatever that is … I better get googling Korean lingo!

 

http://onthebab.co.uk

And yes, I am moving back to London after 3.5 long years away!  I look forward to sharing all my London foodie adventures with you soon!

Much Love

The Hungry Londoner

Chatsworth RD, Brownies and Bad Service at Viet Grill

Sunday 20th March 2011

Restaurant: Viet Grill, Kingsland Rd
Price per Person: £30 upwards
Rating: 3 out of 10

It was a lovely sunny day, and thanks to the wonder that is Twitter I had got wind that The Chatsworth Road Market was on today, and was a stones throw from my home in Hackney. We wondered down and had a lovely mooch - The Chatsworth Kitchen was packed and buzzing, likewise Le Creperie on the corner. There were lovely cupcake stalls, The Vegan Peasant making yummy salads, American hot dogs, and Japanese pancake stall, fresh cheeses and organic meat...lovely, lovely, lovely neighbourhood market. I really hope this market continues to grow and grow as it is a great asset to East London. You might even see a Hungry Londoner stall there one day soon...

Next on the agenda was making brownies. After seeing a recipe for brownies using Hellman's mayonnaise in place of butter in many magazines over the last few weeks I thought I would give it a go as I am allergic to dairy so brownies are normally a 'no-no.' The recipe called for the following:

40g Flour (I used white spelt flour as I am also allergic to wheat!)
25g Cocoa
140g Chocolate
3 Eggs
225g Caster Sugar
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Vanilla Extract/Essence
55g Chopped Walnuts
8 'Dollops' Hellman's mayonnaise

You have to sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa. Then you melt the chocolate over the stove (we used Green & Blacks 70% as it is dairy free). You whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla together then whisk in the melted chocolate. Finally fold in the flour mixture, walnuts and the tablespoons of mayonnaise. Pour this into a greased tray and put into an oven heated to 160c for 30-35 mins. Leave to cool in the tray(while you go to the Viet Grill) then cut up and munch! They are incredible: and dairy and wheat free! Literally the softest, squishiest brownies ever; crispy top then proper roof sticking oozing middle. I am going to make them again but with Lindt 'Touch of Seasalt' to see how they turn out...

While the brownies were cooling, my housemates and I decided to use a £50 voucher I had received from Viet Grill due to a previous bad experience of poor food and poor service in what had been until then a favourite haunt. On arriving we were seated quickly in the not even half full restaurant (it was 6pm by the way). We waited...and waited...and waited...more than ten minutes for anyone to offer us a drink (we didn't even have a drink menu mind!). When someone finally came over we were asked if we were ready to order, and on asking were finally given a drink menu. Only one of us ordered a starter, Vietnamese rolls, the rest of us wanted just prawn crackers. Three of us went for Sizzling Seafood, number four order beef cooked in a clay pot,and we had some greens in oyster sauce and a couple bowls of rice for the table. We also asked for four tap waters. We waited...and waited...the restaurant was still not even half full...the starter came...we still had no drinks...no prawn crackers...starter cleared no drinks, no crackers...Mains arrived immediately. Actually no, greens and rice arrived then almost five minutes later the rest did, so our accompaniments were already cold. We had to ask twice for our water, twice for our prawn crackers. Our one cocktail that we had ordered with our food arrived finally halfway through the meal (so twenty minutes after ordering); the place is even emptier by now as a party of 4 adults/4 children had gone. The food itself was very tasty: lots of squid and lovely fresh vegetables, a few slices of scallops and 3 fat fresh prawns in a thick and flavourful garlic sauce served on s still sizzling cast iron pot did the trick just grand. The greens were crunchy (but cold). The beef dish was literally just beef strips in a pot but flavourful. We were cleared and promptly ignored for over twenty minutes. We were not offered desserts, drinks, the bills - ignored. We finally waved our arms to get the bill. The price before discount was £82, which was for one stater, four mains with 3 sides, one cocktail and one beer. I find that really extortionate for what we had: it was good but no better than any other Vietnamese establishments on that strip. After the discount we paid £8 each which we decided was exactly what it was worth and nothing more. Considering we were going to the Viet Grill after a previously poor experience, I have concluded I will never go back again. It is over priced, poorly served and no better than any of the other restaurants on Kingsland Road - please go somewhere else!!!

Disappointing breakfast at The Breakfast Club Hoxton

Saturday 19th march 2011

Restaurant: The Breakfast Club, Hoxton
Price per Person: approx £15 per person, including a drink
Rating: 4 out of 10

Currently Munching: Ready Salted Chipsticks...mmm...

First off, I want to clarify that I love The Breakfast Club establishments. My first experience was the one on Great Marlborough Street, and I stumbled across it while killing time before a job interview. I had a huge cup of tea and watched door stop sausage sandwiches leave the kitchen with my mouth watering. I laughed at the 'we are not a fast food restaurant, please be patient or the chefs get angry' poster. I loved the kitsch decor, and I told everyone I know about this hidden jewel I had found. My sister went to the Angel branch, and raved similarly: we took my dad and HE raved. So you see, this place is a family favourite and it actually pains me to have to write negatively about the chain.

This was the first time my sister and I had been to the Hoxton Branch. First off, we joined a small queue, which was no problem; its part of the experience of The Breakfast Club I have found and causes me no qualms. What was disappointing was the amount of empty tables there were, and the fact that no one seemed to be in charge of 'hosting/seating.' The poor waiters were running all over the place, appearing to do a section and be clearing and resetting, AND be seating. We were eventaully lead to a table in a side room area. Now the front section and back section of the main restaurant are bright, chatty, lots of natural light and bustling energy. This side room however seemed like a complete after thought: almost as if it was decided 'got enough storage rooms, I guess we'll stuff an over sized sofa and the wobbliest tables and chairs in there and forget about it.' You could not even hear music, and it was dark and grey and miserable. My chair was so unstable it is a miracle it did not collapse. We decided to go back to the queue and wait for another table, which the staff didn't make us feel awkward about which was great. We were seated on a shared table quickly (one that had been empty since we got there...). I don't mind the shared table thing but I know its not for everyone.

The menu is extensive. There are loads of American influenced options, as well as traditional 'fry ups'. There are pancakes with bacon and maple syrup, breakfast burritos or porridge and fresh berries, bagels, wraps - literally think all breakfast desires are covered. There are also a great selection of fresh smoothies, milkshakes and juices too. Since we waited over ten minutues for someone to acknowledge us we decided when we finally got someones attention to order everything at once. I had a lovely fresh and spicy Bloody Mary for a very reasonable £4.70. My sister had a mango based smoothie which she nodded encouragingly towards when I asked if she approved. For the food my sister had the Green eggs and Ham, which I had at the Angel branch last time. I had the Chorizo Hash Browns. We ordered a toasted bagel on the side as well.

Our drinks arrived about ten minutes after ordering. The food then appeared within 30 seconds of that which was a shame, as we had sat there empty handed that whole time. As I said I have had the Green Egg dish before so I know how much better it can be. The portion was smaller than I had experienced, it was very dry, there was merely a suggestion of green herbs and it was cold. The accompanying wedges were over cooked, misshapen and looked like they were on their fourth or fifth re-fry. The bagel was a bagel...bit over priced at £2.40. My food was also disappointing. The hash browns were again soggy and squishy potato chunks that seemed on their last 're-heating' legs. The pepper cutting through them was raw and therefore very crunchy, which created a strange contrast with the luke warm and soggy potato in my mouth. The chorizo sausages were two big fat ones, and were delicious. The fried eggs were runny but on the underside they were brown and dry, like they had a toasted skin on them. If this dish was done by throwing potatoes, onions, chili, peppers and diced chorizo all together in a pan to be warmed through then served with a bursting poached egg on top you would have a winning dish. Instead, I finished my plate confused about what just happened.

We asked the girl who cleared the table for the bill. She responded with "I will tell your waiter", which I always find a bit rude; don't make me feel bad because I have asked the wrong person for a service! We waited...five minutes...ten minutes...toilet break...fifteen minutes...twenty minutes...We then did the waving arms in the air thing as subtle eye contact was lost on the staff. Now, the whole time we are waiting, the girl who cleared our table was simply standing there doing nothing. A guy with face piercings finally came to our aid, but with an attitude of 'what you want to pay, I am a bit to cool to talk to you but I will.' There seemed to be 2 waiters on the whole floor actually doing anything, the rest seemed more concerned with how 'Shoreditch' their outfits were today. The man with the piercings even criticised how our very nervous (clearly first shift) waiter was serving us IN FRONT of us, not making eye contact with us, perhaps explaining why he was belittling the waiter in front of customers; pierced face boy simply had a really bad attitude.

So I left disappointed in this branch, it was such a shame. The decor rocked, the music was great but the staff largely were stuck up and had terrible attitudes and the food was really below standards. I recommend the Angel branch out of all of them, go if your mates are a bit funky, and I am looking forward to the Spitalfields branch opening soon...as long as they drop the 'we're so East Londoner sceners' attitude and sort the kitchen out!

Sunday Lunch at Brawn

Sunday 6th February 2010

Restaurant: Brawn, Columbia Road
Price Per Peron: £40 inc service and couple glasses wine
Rating: 4 out of 5

Currently Munching: Nothing! I am on detox :-(

I went to Brawn this week after it was recommended to me by a good friend. Brawn is the new offering behind the team at Terriors in Covent Garden. I have not been to Terriors but having read mixed reviews I was not sure about Brawn. I booked a table for Sunday and was told that there was a £25 set menu operated on this day only. Disappointed after my taste buds had been excited by their full menu, I thought this was still a very economically priced 3 course meal and that at least the options on the set menu would probably be their best offerings. We got there for our 3pm table, a time I would recommend going as that is when the flower market starts marking down the blooms and I got a great couple of bunches for a fiver!

The exterior of Brawn is understated and unassuming. It took us a moment to understand if we were outside the correct restaurant. The bar area was none existent so we were lead straight to the table to wait for the rest of our party. The interior is reminiscent of St Johns, if St Johns threw caution to the wind and became a bit 'cluttered': The cutlery was impressive heavy duty silverware, the bathrooms had expensive soaps and cotton hand towels. There is a lovely feeling of quality and detail to the restaurant. If there was a fault, I would say the tables are a little close together: I had a small child on my lap almost as his chair was so close to mine. On settling down with a glass of tap water, we were given the set menu...by 'Set' it turns out Brawn means no options at all. That is pretty set...alarm bells were ringing a tune that sounded like the word 'pretentious'. I will give points to the team though for their care and attention as one of our party was on a gluten free diet, and one was on a wheat and dairy free one. The kitchen and wait staff went out of there way to ensure we all knew what food was suitable and cooked alternatives even. This is very impressive.

The wine list was equally impressive, organised refreshingly into 'soft' or 'full' reds and 'citric' or 'stone' whites - this way of categorising an extensive list was very enjoyable to read. We were having a selection of white pork belly terrine, north Atlantic prawns and home made mayonnaise and sheeps milk and herb cheese, the actual name I can no longer remember! The bread and butter was plentiful. I chose a lovely bottle of Picpol, which the waitress was able to assure me was a good choice, clearly demonstrating that Brawn train their staff in wine highly - another thing I was very impressed with. The prawns were fine...they were nothing to write home about. The cheese was lovely and creamy, again enjoyable but forgettable. The terrine was exquisite though, soft and full of meaty flavour, lovely texture and extremely moreish. The main course was Blade of Bourguignon was melt in the mouth perfection. Those who were avoiding certain items were given a small Staubb pot of the stew to share, whilst the rest of the party had a huge steaming cast iron stove placed between. It was a lovely 'family style' dining experience with everyone helping themselves to mashed potatoes and delicious, rich, juicy bourguignon- my mouth is watering just thinking of it. To avoid the dairy in the mash, the chef prepared some boiled potatoes on a bed of finely chopped and sauteed savoy cabbage - such extra effort I feel was really generous of the chef. I would suggest a portion of something green for the rest of the party would have been good: just something to cut through the richness of meat and potato. We had a delicious 'Faberges' red which was aromatic and smoky, matching the sweet, soft meat to perfection.

Dessert should have been a big bowl of Rhubarb Crumble and Custard in the middle of the table but the kitchen were out, so the choice was either a chocolate mousse or a treacle tart. The tart had a paper thin and crisp base, with a deliciously balanced sweet sugar topping. The chocolate mousse did its job, being both chocolaty and light as air. We called it a day at that. The atmosphere for the afternoon had been lovely and relaxed, the staff, particularly our french speaking waitress were professional and charming, and the food was the right side of better than you could cook yourself. Brawn is a lovely place to spend a lazy afternoon when you want good, honest and reassuring food. I will be back to try Brawn again when I get to choose from the full menu - but I have to hand it to them, when you take choice away from the customer you better deliver, and that they certainly did.

Franny's Pop Up, Frith Street

Happy belated New Year to all! As ever, my work schedule has meant I have not been out anywhere hence the lack of posts! I did manage to finally get out into the world last weekend. It started with a very cultural morning of short films at the Curzon in Soho. From there we decided to attempt the impossible: find food that was not Chinese in China Town! Remarkably we found a lovely Vietnamese place and enjoyed huge bowls of noodle soup with tofu and vegetables; all very healthy and virtuous. As we were so impressed by our cultured path so far that day we decided to continue on to the National Portrait Gallery. After taking in the art we headed upstairs for a glass of prosecco in the restaurant, whilst watching the sunset over London...well that was the plan but it was rammed! It is such a lovely restaurant though; I highly recommend it. The price is really good value, especially the set menu, it has the best cheese board I have ever had, and the views across London are breath-taking. The service is pretty stiff but it does the job.

So the next plan was to head over to Sketch and have some early drinks in their bar. We made our way in that direction, cutting up to Carnaby Street. We then remembered that the Arts Theatre club was there on Frith Street and how much we love it there...but it was not open...by now we were getting desperate and couldn't face walking on to sketch without one drink inside us!

We decided to just go into this place on the opposite side of the road called 'Franny's Pop Up' for a quick drink before moving on, as we weren't to sure what to make of it from the outside. Well what a lovely surprise it turned out to be! We entered thinking we would be told we couldn't have a table just for drinks, but the warm reception from the staff who assured us we could just drink eased us instantly. The bubbly waiter pulled up a chair, cheekily suggesting he might join us - he was very personable and just the right side of casual with us and upsold 3 shots of some concuction within moments due to his charm. We ordered a bottle of prosecco costing....wait for it...£21! It was dry, hints of apple, lots of fizz - what more could we ask for! The food coming to the tables around us looked great: big stonebaked pizza's and huge bowls of pasta, again ridiculously cheap considering we were in central Soho, and that the food was of a very high quality. The decor is really nice, it is kind of 1950's seaside caravan in style, with kitsch touches all over. I felt like I was in a trendy student hang out in Brighton rather than middle of London. We had some olives, fries, fried courgette, and calamari to nibble on. We were assured several times that they did not need the table back for reservations. The staff were always there the moment we needed something and yet we never felt pressurised to keep ordering. The half price happy hour cocktails were palatable and made very well - they only do a handful of classics, but for the style of the place I think it is all you should expect (head back across the road to The Arts Theatre club for more exotic cocktail offerings). We left very happy, with our wallets still full of money because everything was so cheap. All the staff said goodbye as we left. There was an absolute genuineness of the service that was a real joy to experience and I will be going back before it closes for a refurb in March for sure - I believe they have a quiz night of 1st February...get that bottle of prosecco on ice Franny!

And for all those curious as to why I refuse to take photo's of the food and split my writing with these images, food writers in magazines never have them and I don't intend to either! I hope my words paint a clear enough picture for you. If not, you'll just have to head down to the restaurant yourselves!

The Hungry New Yorker!

Monday 25th October 2010

Restaurant: Highlands, West Village, NY
Price per person: $$$
Rating: 4 out of 5

Currently munching: Home made super green soup

One of my best friends Katerine Stephens (Kat) is traveling in the big apple and had such an amazing experience at Highlands I asked her to write us a review; Big thanks for that Kat, I can actually taste that beef wellington as I read...mmmm...

It's always a wonderful turn of events when that 'quick bite' you grab on the way to your evening's destination, turns into one of the most amazing dining experiences you have ever had. I’m in New York visiting my friend Simon, with whom I went to university and who now lives in Harlem. Speaking to a Scottish friend online, I found out that his sister went to school in Glasgow with a man who now resides here and works in the restaurant industry. “Check out Double Crown,” I was told, and dutifully googled it to get the information. The place looked amazing - but the man in question, Brian McGrory, no longer worked there. He had opened his own Scottish themed restaurant in the West Village called Highlands. Even though the concept of themed restaurants makes me shudder a little inside, I felt obliged to check Highlands out, and suggested to Simon that we go, with the promise that if it was terrible we could go back to his tried-and-tested favourite eatery. We got there around 7.30pm on a Saturday night. It looked fairly classy; dimly lit with a busy bar of well-dressed folks. We were sat immediately by a charmingly efficient maitre d' and presented with a glass bottle of tap water (I liked that; no attempt to charge us, but no having to catch anyone’s eye for a refill) along with the menus. The decor was nice: grownup soft brown leather banquettes and token tartan seat covers, feature wallpaper and sturdy, comforting tables. There was a slightly odd enormous painting of two wolves with a Scottish flag, but it did prompt conversation which is never a bad thing!

To the menus: Just the right size, with five or six options for starter and for main, plus a few specials mentioned by our waiter. All fairly typical Scots dishes, such as Scotch eggs, cod, pork belly, mussels, barley, salmon, mushroom pie. I was disappointed not to see Cullen Skink as I had read about it in a review, but it shows they change their menu fairly frequently. The drinks menu was startlingly Scottish, however not in the whisky-centric way that most themed bars tend to rely on. There was my dad’s favourite beer, Belhaven, along with bottled Brewdog (a brewery rapidly making a good name for themselves worldwide, despite being based in a tiny fishing town on the edge of the North Sea) and a good selection of cocktails and wines. Simon had a perfectly acceptable beer from Long Island, and I went for the Scotch Pear Martini - Hendrick’s combined with Glenfiddich 12yr and pear, lemon and agave syrups - which is possibly overtaking the Hawksmoor’s Artist’s Special as my favourite ever cocktail! Food wise, we weren't sure what to expect and not too hungry anyway, so decided to share a starter of lamb and pork sausage rolls and a main course of Beef Wellington with mini roasted potatoes. The fact that I’m only now realizing that we had two courses which were literally just pastry and meat speaks volumes for the amount of flavour in the dishes. The starter arrived with a harissa aioli which was really tasty and unusual. The sausage rolls themselves were beautifully crisp with tender meat, very simple, although the ubiquitous inclusion of a few salad leaves on the side irritated me - that’s not the Scottish way! The main course, though, was the star: Nestled on a bed of well-seasoned potatoes and mushroom gravy was a perfect, fist-sized parcel of crunchy, flaky pastry encasing a chunk of beef, the likes of which had never been so well cared for in a kitchen. It was cooked on the rare side of medium-rare - the way it should be! The smell was incredible enough, but one bite and I was in heaven! The pastry was solidly crispy on top and just beginning to go soggy on the underside with the glorious drippings of the gravy, and the meat was buttery, creamy, manly and melt-in-the-mouth amazing! There was no mention of where the meat had come from, but given their policy of using local produce as well as importing from Scotland, I would hope it was American and hadn’t traveled the globe before landing on our plates.

Although the dessert menu looked equally incredible, with seckel pears, Millionaire’s shortbread and Scottish cheeses, we were sadly just not hungry enough. No doubt about it, chef William Hickox has stepped up to the plate here and delivered a fantastically high quality Scottish experience without overdoing the theme. Service was friendly and attentive, with the only minor irritation being that we were asked three or four times if we’d finished yet. If you’re in the city, go to Highlands. I‘m certainly not leaving without paying it another visit. (an additional note - their pop-rock playlist was genuinely fantastic. I haven’t heard Edwyn Collins in years!)

The Restaurant Show rocked!

Tuesday 12th October 2010
Currently munching: my Graze box!

I had the best day ever last week with my two friends Jen and Sarah. We started last Tuesday at The Restaurant Show at Earls Court, a fantastic trade event where you can see new products, drink lots of wine, watch chefs in action and eat free cheese samples. It was brilliant, we started the day with a shot of quinoa Vodka...not the best choice at 12noon but it was lovely and smooth and weirdly actually tasted of quinoa. We then drank lots of lovely Hungarian Tokaji, which were syrupy and full of raisin and honey caramel notes. Next, we identified that the green stands were the ones offering free food, and made a killing on the free samples, trying delicious olives and breads followed by a bit more wine. We decided to then dump our bags in the VIP club, and had a glass of bubbly before heading out again. We tried incredible ice creams made by Oddono's: a lemon and prosecco flavour that sparkled on our tongues, a fresh basil sorbet begging to be dropped into a chilled gazpacho and an insane smoked salmon ice cream that I can still taste now! It was so creamy, so subtle, and so surprisingly delicious - throw that amid a spring shoot salad with broad beans and avocado and I would be a happy eater. I can't wait to order some of their mental flavours and use them in cocktails too.

The other highlight of the show Koppert Cress, an amazing company that stock the most beautiful micro vegetables and natural cress' from the Himalayas. They had mini cucumbers the size of a boiled sweet, soft grey 'oyster' leaves that tasted of the sea, tiny yellow flowers that tasted like aniseed, honey cress that dripped sweetness and Tahoon Cress that actually tasted like you were walking through the forest. The most amazing thing was sechaun buttons, a tiny yellow flower, the affects of which must be experienced to be believed! It made my mouth sparkled like i had sucked a battery, then go numb, then crackle - totally mad and a fantastic cocktail ingredient.

After an inspiring afternoon we decided to have sushi in Covent Garden. We chanced bumped into James from The London Cocktail Club and went for delicious Tommy's margarita's at Pacifico - this is the only place to go now for good margarita's since the sad news Green and Red is on the way out, but they are by no means a second best choice: Pacifico is one of the coolest hangout in London. We walked past the brand new Hawksmoor site, situated opposite Pacifico and looking spectacular through the windows. This new venue will be a restaurant unlike anything London has ever seen if the exterior is anything to go by; I spied a giant antique metal cage to store coats and an elevator that would make Willy Wonka green. We all walked around to Kyashii, a sushi restaurant I had heard great things about. We sat in a room where 3 walls were glass fish tanks and had the most delicious vegetable tempura and dragon rolls I have ever had in this country. The service was amazing, the waitress was a total sweetheart - it was truly one of the best dining experiences I have ever had in London. We finished the evening in the fantastic London Cocktail Club, surrounded by leather sofas and mismatched kitsch gentleman's club knick-knacks drinking aviation's and giggling like school girls - a day where London truly showed us what it has to offer!