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!
Hey Shelly, Lewis at Seven Dials here :D I had absolutely no idea that YOU were The Hungry Londoner...I've read your blog a fair few times, but it never clicked.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, damn it >.< I so wanted to go to the Restaurant Show this year too, but we were doing our training week, so I had to stick around in the steak-scented dungeon :( sounds like you had a wicked time though. On my last visit, I must've plowed through every ice-cream flavour at every stall there, and consumed a fair amount of fine spirits too *pats tummy contentedly*