Fera at Claridge's

List Dad Guest Post – I have been musing recently about my current favourite UK restaurants.  Every Tom, Dick and Harry seems to be making lists, so why not Jim?  In an approximate order, I came up with Sat Bains, Dabbous, Drake’s, Kitchen Table, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, St John, The Hand & Flowers, Club Gascon, Honey & Co, Polpetto, Barnyard and Hereford Road.  All lists of this sort are of course a reflection of the personal tastes of the compiler, and of where he or she has been lucky enough to get a table, but they are a talking point if nothing else.

To this list, and right near the top, I can now add Fera at Claridge’s where Chris and I dined on Tuesday 13 May.  Chris is getting a little deaf in his old age and thought that the delightful Melissa who served us was a Millwall supporter – I had to stop him accusing her of various acts of hooliganism since I had clearly heard her say that her allegiance was to Liverpool. This leads me to interject that Simon Rogan and his staff were all charming, and I don’t think we were ever told to enjoy - which must be a ‘first’.  A special mention for the barman who served me two delicious mocktails (one with rhubarb and berries, and the other featuring pear).  The cocktails are very much in line with the food, including pea shoots with apple, marigold and vermouth and a gin fizz with pear and honey shrub and sweet cicely.

The Art Deco dining room, previously run by Gordon Ramsay, retains its stained glass ceiling panels but has been transformed by Guy Oliver to open up the space to take in what were previously private rooms and to give a view through to the kitchen where we could watch Simon Rogan and Dan Cox at work.

Simon Rogan is of course best known for his Michelin two-starred restaurant L’Enclume at Cartmel where he has a twelve acre farm.  Fera is close to L’Enclume in philosophy and menu though none of the dishes on offer in London is an exact copy of those in Cumbria.

Simon Rogan

Like Fay Maschler, we went for the cheaper of the two tasting menu plus, in our case, a sample of the offerings from the excellent cheeseboard.  Unlike Fay, who had a few reservations about the fare, Chris (who has eaten ‘everywhere’) and I felt that pretty well every course was outstanding. As with all good tasting menus, the offerings were initially fairly small, building up in size towards the main meat and fish courses.

The ‘starters’ were a trendy pea wafer with fennel and flowers, stewed rabbit with lovage, mackerel with caviar and seawater cream, and Winslade cheese with new potatoes and duck heart (the latter particularly tasty).

Pea wafer, fennel and flowers

Stewed rabbit with lovage

Winslade cheese with duck hearts

These were followed by an ‘extra’.  Delicious smoked bone marrow butter to spread on bread, plus a beaker of perhaps a bit too strongly flavoured mushroom reduction.

Next up was raw beef, smoked broccoli cream, scallop roe and apple juice – and on to the main courses.

Raw beef, smoked broccoli cream, scallop roe and apple juioe

First came prawns with lardo, borage and chicory, followed by brill cooked in whey flavoured with hogweed, Jersey potatoes, blewit mushrooms and beach herbs. The latter were particularly unfamiliar and our enquiries resulted in (I think) Dan Cox arriving at the table with extra bits of what he called seashore grass.

Seashore grass

Lastly, middle white pork with caramelised leek, broad beans and a mead reduction (served by Simon who said that mead was a favourite flavour of his).

Next, the puddings.  By far the best was the baked yoghurt, pear poached in perry, mint and muscovado sugar.  Then, iced beech leaf, nitro sweet cheese, apple and sorrel (which might perhaps have been placed after the pork as a palate cleanser).  Another extra – a couple of small pink meringues.  To finish, a chamomile milkshake with a chocolate malt biscuit.

As we said to Simon Rogan when he invited us to see the kitchen, this was one of the best meals we have had in the UK.  We will be back!

Cartizze Bar - The Whip - Underground Drinking Club

Friday 4th April - A rambling List outing normally involves a sensible mix of cafés, pubs, breweries, restaurants and bars.  This time it went - cocktail bar, cocktail bar, cocktail bar.  Let's see how well that panned out...

The evening started in style in the heart of Mayfair with List Leader Natalie.  We made our way to Lancashire Court, the Diagon Alley of Mayfair, for the launch of Cartizze, a classy cocktail bar with a penchant for prosecco.  It is tucked underneath Mayfair Pizza Co., with Mews of Mayfair and Hush also nearby in the fairytale hidden courtyard.

Lancashire Court by day

Cartizze is named after the revered 1000 foot high Prosecco vineyards in Veneto, and some Italian class has been brought to the bar with a Nero Marquina marble fireplace, just one detail amongst many in a stunning bar.  Vintage cocktail shakers are dotted around, and the backbar is a treasure trove of glassware rather than the usual overwhelming rows of bottles one can't afford.

Cartizze Bar

We were shown to our seats (table service only so worth booking ahead) and greeted with some delightful bar snacks.  Master mixologist Rich Woods (UK winner of the Bombay Sapphire ‘World’s Most Imaginative Bartender’ 2014) was on hand to talk through some of his cocktail creations.  

We started off with the silky smooth Olive Oil Gin Fizz (Gin, lemon, lemon sugar, olive oil, egg white prosecco) and the quirky Truffled Liquorice Sour (Chivas Whisky, lemon, egg white, liquorice, sugar, truffle).  The strong truffle flavour was particularly present in the foamy head of the sour, and will definitely divide opinions.  We were both very taken with it, though agreed that one might be enough.  The Olive Oil Gin Fizz was sublime and Natalie was tempted to stick to it all night.

Olive Oil Gin Fizz

Truffled Liquorice Sour

Bar snacks at Cartizze

We worked our way through several more impressive cocktails, including the delicious Amor y Amargo (amaretto, cynar, apricot liqueur, lemon, egg white, vanilla sugar, prosecco), a seasonal Rhubarb (rhubarb liqueur, fresh rhubarb, prosecco), a boozy Mayfair Elegante (light rum, gin, blood orange liqueur, clarified citrus, bitters), and a seasonal Sicilian Gimlet (blood orange gin, blood orange and lemon cordial)

I took an enjoyably bitter path with a Barrel Aged Negroni, a Sbagliato (Campari, Sweet Vermouth, Prosecco) and a Mayfair Aperitivo (Punt e Mes, fresh grapefruit, orange, tonic).  The barrel aged cocktails will change every now and then - ask on the night for more details.

The palate cleansing Sgroppino (limoncello sorbet, lemon verbena liqueur, prosecco) was attractively presented as three scoops of sorbet bathing in a pool of lemon liqueur & prosecco.

Mayfair Elegante

Five more fantastic cocktails from Cartizze Bar

A lot of effort has also been put into the concise food menu, with the likes of Truffled Salted Peanuts, Tuna Tartare with Candied Chilli and Cucumber and San Daniele Ham wrapped figs with Truffle Honey & Roquette making it on to the list.  

The two most theatrical dishes were the 36 month old parmesan with 12 year old balsamic vinegar and the Hand Dived Orkney Isles Scallops & Smoked Pancetta in Brioche Buns.  There was enough parmesan for most of the room, and it turned up with its own smoking chamber.  Meanwhile, the scallop & pancetta sliders arrived on a Himalayan salt board.  Only a few months ago I had been mocking Natalie for buying one as a gift, having never heard of it before, and here one was in all its glory!

Be prepared for Mayfair prices and you will have a fantastic time at Cartizze.  The location is date heaven, the cocktails & food are top notch, and the service is charming.  One waitress was particularly attentive, or so we thought until we realised there were twins working the floor!  The jazz soundtrack was the icing on the cake.  Highly recommended!

Rich Woods - The Cocktail Guy at Cartizze

Lancashire Court by night

I had somewhere to be at 11pm, so we had time for one more drink in the neighbourhood.  We decided to call in at The Whip, a Kentucky Derby inspired julep bar tucked away above The Running Horse pub.  The classic Mayfair boozer (dating back to 1738) was reopened at the end of 2013 by James Chase (Chase Distillery) and Dominic Jacobs (former bar director at Sketch), and the 1st floor cocktail bar followed in early 2014.

The pub itself has an exciting cocktail list including Beetroot Lemon Balm Sours (Williams Chase GB Gin, Beetroot Juice, Pressed Lemon, Lemon Balm, Egg White, Honey) and Blackberry & IPA Tankard (Fresh Blackberries, Stem Ginger, Chase Rhubarb Vodka, Pressed Lemon, IPA) amongst other Chase-based concoctions.  Masterchef (The Professionals) quarter-finalist Andrew Justice's food menu is also very appealing with the likes of Hand Chopped Rump Skirt Of Beef with Triple Cooked Chips & Onion Marmalade and Steamed Toffee Banana Pudding with Salted Toffee Sauce, Banana Crisp & Clotted Iced Cream making me want to come back for a second visit.  Downstairs was rather busy though, so we plodded up to The Whip which was an oasis of calm in comparison.

Juleps are the order of the day and we struggled to choose from a very strong list.  In the end, I put a tenner on a No.1 Whip Julep (Chase Rhubarb Vodka, Williams Chase GB Extra Dry Gin, Lemon, Sugar Syrup, Mint Leaves, Basil Leaves, Cracked Black Pepper, Soda Water) which performed admirably.  I consulted the 3 step Julep drinking guide in the menu before holding down the strainer and sipping from the pewter cup.

No.5 (with Compass Box Aslya & Compass Box Spice Tree) and No.6 (with Plantation Gran Anejo, Tawny Port and Nutmeg) will have to wait for another time, as will the enticing bar menu that features Scallop Ceviche, Lamb Cutlets and Duck Ham & Rhubarb.  The perfect time to return is the weekend of the Kentucky Derby, coming soon on 2nd-3rd May.  See you then.

Bar food at The Whip

I had to rush off early as I had secured a booking for an 11pm-1am slot at the mysterious Underground Drinking Club (UDC) that was popping up for one night only somewhere in Old Street Station.  I parted company with Natalie and headed East to meet up with Tim, Andy and Roban, not knowing quite what to expect.  All we knew was that we had 2 hours of cocktail-based entertainment for £20/head.  I had faith in Offbeat Network responsible for UDC having previously been to their highly enjoyable Drink Feast event in late 2013.  

It was easy enough to find within the station as a queue was forming outside a normally empty shop space, making passers by feel out of the loop. 

Underground Drinking Club in Old Street Station

Once the 9-11pm punters had cleared the room, we made our way in and settled down on communal tables, with cross party socialising highly encouraged by Grouper Social Club, the other company behind UDC which is soon to launch in London after success in New York.  We befriended Charles and Estelle, making use of some entertaining flash cards with facts & questions on that were left on the table.  I had a hunch that the final 11-1 slot would be the most entertaining as the bartenders started to let their hair down at the end of an intense session that started at 5pm, and I wasn't wrong as you might deduce from some of the photos.  

Tim arrived late and had a disturbing flirtatious interaction with a bartender across the room in an attempt to catch up with one of the opening cocktails - a "welcome dance" sealed the deal.  The bartender eventually came over and introduced himself as William Pineapple, before encouraging us to choose some cocktail ingredients from the herbs & fruit left on the table.  The base spirits sponsoring the event were Langley's, Johnnie Walker and Russian Standard - we stuck to gin and whisky (as far as we know).

It all got a bit weird after the first round, and I won't go into too much detail as the photos say more than I ever could.  Drinks were spilled, plants were abused, lemons were eaten, shirts were swapped, bartenders were topless (Mr.Pineapple), fire was created, and shots were consumed.  The drinks were different (and very drinkable) every time, and by the end we had definitely made some new friends, which I imagine was half the point.  Two hours flew by but we absolutely got our £20 worth, both in terms of entertainment and booze.  Keep your ears to the ground for news on the next pop-up (or sign up to the mailing list). 

Wide range of drinks from the Underground Drinking Club

Lemons and tomatoes are tasty. No idea who bottom left is.

Tim & Charles bottom right ; Tomato based cocktail top right

Charles, our new best friend

William Pineapple dishing out the shots

William, Roban and some Langley's

The topless guy was our bartender.

Lanes of London - Moo Cantina

Tuesday 14th January - For me, a trip to Park Lane usually means paying my sister about £2000 for all of her bloody hotels before losing another £200 to Income Tax straight afterwards, but I took a chance and advanced straight to Lanes of London, a new bar and restaurant next to the Marriott Hotel.

I was a tad early for my 6.30 appointment so I hung around outside watching the Aston Martins and Bentleys roll by, wondering whether I was slightly out of my depth.  But as I entered the attractive bar and was warmly greeted by Angharad from Luchford PR and Bar Manager Francesco, it quickly became clear that Lanes of London is a very welcoming place.  I was shown to a table of thirsty bloggers, including Le Cool, Beetroot & Beluga and We Love Food, where we worked our way through Francesco's finest.

Lanes of London's aim is to represent several areas of London's diverse food (and drink) scene all under one roof, focusing on Brick Lane (Indian), Kingsland Road (Vietnamese), Edgware Road (Lebanese) and Portobello Road (British).  The cocktail menu is split up accordingly.  

Francesco has had fun creating twists on classics to fit into different sections, including a refreshing Raita Gin Fizz, the amusingly named Vietnamito and Pi-Nam Colada, and a peaty Hung Que Sour (a whisky sour with Hung Que - aka Thai Basil).  The Brick Lane Bruv cleverly makes use of Paul John Brilliance, an Indian whiskey, which is boldly combined with pineapple, lime juice, chai syrup and Meantime pale ale.  Each section has its own sharing punch (priced at £18.50) which can be stacked on top of one another, creating a multicoloured Lanes of London punch selection.

There is room for more interesting beers than Meantime, Hue and Kingfisher behind the bar - surely they are missing the Lebanese Almaza beer for starters?

We moved to the restaurant where the lively Roger took over proceedings, talking us through the menu. Whilst it is again split up into sections, the idea is that you order from all corners and get a bonkers mix of dishes turning up to share.  It is a system that benefits larger groups as you can get through a lot more of the menu as a team.

Roger and friends proceeded to bring us all manner of tasty treats, cooked up by the capable Anshu Anghotra who handled the massive range of styles admirably.  Highlights included the Fattoush Salad (Sumac, lemon & olive oil dressing), Cornish Lamb Cutlets (with peas & beans, and mint pesto), Salt Baked Pumpkin Salad (with Black quinoa, goat's cheese, pumpkin seeds) and Samosa Chat (with chickpeas, yoghurt, pomegranate, and tamarind & mint chutney).  The Beef Brisket Sliders with Roasted Bone Marrow to dip into were so popular that they were reordered several times.

For dessert, we were presented with several decadent Double Chocolate Brownie Gateaux (one of which I took home in a doggie bag for hungry flatmates!) and some quirky miniature tins of ice creams and sorbets. A refreshing lychee sorbet hit the spot, but the chocolate banana crunch ice cream was too reminiscent of sweet shop bananas.

There are plenty more tempting sweet options, including posh Jammy Dodgers.  In a nice touch, you are given a postcard with the full dessert menu on to fill out if you wish which they will send out for you for free.

Francesco popped by before we left and brought along some of his interesting gin collection.  As his Langley's No.8 hadn't yet been opened, we decided it was time and he created a very boozy "G&T" which was mostly G with a couple of dashes of this and that.  If you are very nice to Francesco, he might even let you sip from his limited edition William Chase hip flask that he keeps on him at all times!

It was a lovely evening of top quality food and drink from the Lanes of London team, and very affordable given its location.  They open bright and early for breakfast at 6.30am I believe, and they also run an afternoon tea and Sunday roasts - many excuses to try it out!

Thursday 16th January - I can never resist a good soft launch, especially when somewhere decides to open up just down the road from where I rehearse with Kensington Symphony Orchestra.  I managed to convince 18 hungry musicians to head over to Moo Cantina for half priced Argentinean steaks and snacks, late on a Thursday night after a 3 hour rehearsal.  The 50% offer is running til January 31st so there is plenty of time for you all to pop in!

We were pleased to find that Moo Cantina is actually run by Argentineans rather than British imitators, and our hosts were extremely winning throughout our stay.  They have confidently set up in a very large site in Pimlico, with a big central bar area and plenty of room for diners around, all decorated very nicely.  They show live sport, though the TVs don't dominate the restaurant - this could be a very fun place to come next summer for Argentina matches.

Anywhere that has a piano instantly gets extra points from me, though this one needs a bit of a tune - I would stick to some honky tonk / Scott Joplin saloon style playing, rather than four hands Rite of Spring that two of our party launched into.

On to the food, nearly everyone went for steaks which are quirkily priced per 100g - make sure you order enough!  Steaks received thumbs up down the table - as their sister site Moo Grill says, "Argentina is like a spa for cows", hence tasty meat!  As well as steaks, they have a wide range of gourmet sandwiches and classic Argentinean dishes, most of which are under £10.  If you are feeling particularly peckish (as one viola player was), order the Moo Grill (for 2) complete with steak, sausage, sweetbread (not what you think), roasted peppers and provolone cheese.  Hats off to the chefs for delivering 18 meals at the same time, right at the end of a busy evening.

The drinks menu is also pretty extensive with a wide range of wines, interesting beers (including offerings from Moncada in Notting Hill and Oregon based Rogue, and a massive 970ml bottle of Quilmes), and a Moo G&T menu too.  

Thanks to the staff for a fun evening - we will return with some Piazzolla tangos next time!  Does anybody have Yo Yo Ma's number? (Email users click through to the blog to see video below)

Also, points for the best meat / composer based pun that KSO hasn't already thought of. So far - Beefhoven, Shosteakovich, Rackoflambinov, Moosorgsky and Porkofiev are my favourites.