We visited here a couple of years ago, so knew what we were in for. Namely fantastic pasta (don't order anything else on the menu) and sub par service. This place is always busy, partly due to its reputation, and partly due to its location. It must be in all the Japanese and Chinese tourist guides, and it also attracts its fair share of Knightsbridge douche bags (yes, you guys behind us taking shots of Grey Goose). However, it obviously can't be that bad, since we were back for a second go. Last time, the stand out dishes were the pasta, so that's what we came for - and some culatello (the Carluccio VT snippet on Saturday Morning Kitchen made me fiend for it).

Zitoni Toscanini - Tuscan spiced sausage, tomato and pecorino

Our coats were checked, and we were seated, offered bread, provded with olives and then we settled in for a 15 minute wait. Notably, the olives were great. Fresh and tasty. A grateful diversion during our sojourn. The restaurant is a little weirdly shaped. There are 3 main areas, and both times we've been seated in the tiny area just to the right, where there are only 4 tables, and ample room to get ignored. We finally ordered the culatello to share, which comes with deep fried pecorino. The other half followed with spaghetti al pomodoro e basilico, and I went for Zitoni Toscanini - long pasta tubes made with Tuscan spiced sausage, tomato and pecorino. We also got a half bottle of Chianti (hate those ridiculous half bottles, would far prefer half a full bottle decanted to a carafe) - and some tap water, which I had to ask a few times for.

Spaghetti al pomodoro e basilico

The culatello - the "king" of parma hams, was pretty pricey, at a few pence under £15. Worth it? Nah, not really. But I just wanted to see what it was all about. Sliced thinner than proscuitto, and drier, it was certainly pleasant, but probably not worth the extra price. As mentioned, the pasta is the main attraction - so much so, we are willing to put up with the idiot neighbours and the slow service. The pasta itself is just awesome. Great texture, and the tomato just jumps so far out of the sauce at you. I was wholly satisfied with my dish, as was the better half. We didn't stick around for dessert, or even coffee. a) it would have taken too long, and b) they were on their 3rd round of shots behind us. I asked for the bill, and was presented with a tab including items we certainly didn't order, and even more importantly weren't going to pay for. The girl, whose sole job appears to be to take the money, was semi-apologetic, and returned with the correct tab. Next time, until we find better a better pasta purveyor, we'll definitely try to get in the main room in the middle.

Almost 6 months after its opening, and we only managed to get a 6:45pm table booking a week in advance. I guess this indicates it's still pretty popular, and indeed there was quite the buzz about the place. I checked my coat, picked up the other half at the bar, and we were taken to our table - bar tab was transferred with no fuss. We'd already taken a look at the menu, and read a few reviews, so had some idea of what we wanted to try. Bread, and butter arrived as soon as we sat, and a question about water. The bread was good, as was the butter. I went for a Burgundy to start, a carafe of Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru ‘Les Lavières’, Prieuré. Priced in the upper 2/3rds of the list, I got what I was looking for.

Sardines

Bacon and Snail Pie

We started with the Herefordshire snail and bacon pie, and the Cornish Sardines with chilli, lemon, toasted sour-dough and olive oil. We switched halfway through, in order to get a share of the tastes, but mainly because I don't have the patience for the fish bones. The pastry was good, just enough of it, but well cooked and nice and flaky. The béchamel sort of sauce was gooey and delicious. There didn't seem to be a whole lot of bacon, and the snails were a tad chewey, but there was enough flavour and texture to make it a decent dish all around. The sardines, although difficult to eat, were well cooked and certainly fresh. The accent of lemon worked well, but I didn't find a whole lot of chilli going on. Just too difficult for me to eat personally.





Onto the main, and another 250ml carafe - Rosso di Montepulciano, Cantina Crocian. I'm a fan of Montepulciano, and this delivered the fruit I desired. I opted for the Bavette of Scottish beef, shallot sauce, the better half going for Friday's special dish - Classic bouillabaisse ‘Marseille style. I stuck with the suggested medium rare, being flank steak, it's not a good idea to cook it anymore than that. It was a pretty decently sized piece of meat, served with grilled carrots, and I ordered an extra side of fries. It arrived in a pan, that I'm pretty sure it wasn't cooked in. This is a bit disingenuous feeling. Hmm. I transferred it to my plate, and our young French waiter aided by adding a last ironic cheffy smear of the shallot jus (he was a good lad, we liked the service.) The beef itself was actually very good. Nothing ground breaking, but seemed very good value at 14.95. The fries were fantastic. The better half's bouillabaisse was lacking - where were the molluscs? Shellfish? There was hint of them in the sauce, but just a massive slab of fish was all she could find in the pot. The soup had such great flavour, it's a shame she couldn't sink her teeth into any of the participating ingredients. It just didn't have the wow factor, and was a little same-y.


For dessert, a classic vanilla crème brûlé. There are a couple of basic things on the check list for a crème brûlé. First the sugar. Is it the right thickness? Has it been over or under torched? This first box was thankfully ticked. Onto the contents - it wasn't quite as set as we would have liked, a little too, milky. Where was the vanilla? Better half wants to see specks of seed all over the place. I think I could count maybe 20? I'm sure it's a personal thing, but hey, there's no accounting for taste.


Would we go back? Probably not. But that's not to say I wouldn't recommend it. It definitely has a nice atmosphere, the service is great, and the cooking is certainly competent. But eh, there are plenty of other restaurants I need to try before returning here. Go to Arbutus instead if you've never been.

Americana and Buffolina

Just a quick one...  TehBus had mentioned he was going for lunch at Sartori, since I happened to questioned him on his pick of the best pizza in London.  He said this was worth a look - and definitely one of the better pizzas around.  This is a local spot to my place of work, so thought I'd give it a go.  Looks like a regular modern italian, tables and bar upstairs.  More tables and the pizza oven downstairs.  It was pretty quiet on a Thursday night, and our waiter was nice enough to offer to move us a bench seat after seating us, since a couple of other diners were about to settle up and leave.  We were here for the pizza, so pizza it was.  The pizza comes in 2 forms - metro and, er, regular.  Metro is sold by mass/length.  ie. 250g/25cm, 500g/50cm, and so on.  Haven't seen this before.

I went for an Americana - mozarella, salami and basil.  The other half went for a Buffolina - mozarella and basil latently placed on a basic dough and sauce base. One of the antipasti items boasted that the mozarella was flown in from Naploi.  Whether that applied to her pizza, I'm not sure - but that was some damn good mozarella.  Now this is going to sound like a weird thing to comment on, but the basil was fantastic.  Herby and sweet, but smooth, with no after bite.  Whether it was super duper special organic stuff, or just straight out of a catering supply place, I don't know - but something was going on there.  On mine, the salami was, well, run of the mill salami.  Nothing special to report.  Down to the two most important components of the pizza - the dough and the sauce.  To be honest, the dough was slightly disappointing - or perhaps the actual preparation.  Although a well balanced mixture, it was somewhat soggy.  Wife thinks there was too much oil drizzled on top, which had soaked through and spoiled the bake.  I definitely wanted a little more crispiness from the base.  The sauce though was great - tomato-ey, with just enough sweetness, but not too sweet.  I'll give it another go, since it's local, and that mozarella is the best I've had in recent memory.

Koshihikari Echigo Beer

Nouvelle cuisine du Japon!  This was some seriously good food, but certainly not adhering to the traditional methods of preparing sushi - rice-fish-wasabi-soy-ginger.  Add blow torching, cross hatched scoring, ponzu jelly topping, spring onion garnish, shiso petals and wasabi leaves into the mix - and that little list is an indication of what Yashin is doing with its fish.  Yashin looks pretty pretentious from the outside, but stepping up into the restaurant we were welcomed by the classic chant of "Irasshaimase!" from the chefs behind the counter, and the beaming smile of the hostess.  The décor is a mix of technological Tokyo and old school London gentleman's club.  Sounds a bit incongruous, but it kind of works.  I'd booked earlier in the week, and had been assigned a table downstairs, instead of at the high ceilinged main room.  Our coats and bags were taken when we arrived at the table, and we sat at a chesterfield style banquette, one of 6 or 7 tables downstairs.  That vaguely pretentious atmosphere pervaded a little downstairs, with deep house emanating from the B&W speakers in the walls.  But hey, I like a bit of that, so I'm not complaining, just noting for those that hate that kind of thing. Please excuse the awful photos too, because it was a little too dark to expect decent images out of my phone.

Wagyu and wasabi sauce carpaccio

I ordered a Koshihikari Echigo beer, apparenty made with a prestigious brand of rice.  My better half plumped for a regular old Kirin.  We started with Wagyu and wasabi sauce carpaccio.  We think there was maybe a little myoga in the sauce, which was essentially delicious.  The beef itself was seared and topped with cracked black pepper and julienne Shiraga-Negi onion.  As you might expect, the meat melted in the mouth, with the pepper and onion beautifully complementing the beef.  A truly accomplished dish.

Goona Mandoo

I've only ever had Korean BBQ in Tokyo. And I don't mean to name drop, I'm just trying to put this post into context, that the only comparison I have is from that side of the world. I couldn't say whether that makes the Japanese brand of Korean BBQ more authentic or not.  I guess the only way to find out is to go to Korea?  Anyway, I booked in at the counter, since it was rather a last minute decision to eat out on Friday, and there were no tables available in the main restaurant.  The counter is just inside the door and there are 10-12 seats available and 4-5 BBQ grill circles.  It was bitterly cold last night, and the manager decided to lock the door, to prevent a breeze coming in.  An interesting decision, as then he obviously had to run to the door any time a patron showed up and wanted to enter.  However, it did indicate a consideration for us counter sitters that was nice to see.

Pajun

We sat, and ordered drinks.  I went for an "OB" beer, but that was out, so settled for a "Hite" - which I'd seen at the local Korea Foods, but never tried.  It's pretty much a run of the mill lager, but had a distinguishing taste that was certainly pleasant enough.  Jasmine tea comes in asian style mugs, not your little Japanese cups.

We started with Goona Mandoo, which are pretty much Gyoza - as I know them, just wrapped slightly looser.  Certainly tasty enough, served with what looked like a soy based dipping sauce. We also went for an order of Pajun, translated on the menu as Korean pancake with spring onion & seafood.  Personally I think this dish is more about texture than taste.  The octopus dotted around the pancake was relatively chewy, but the texture of the dough was thick and satisfying.

Pickles and such.

A side order of pickles and bits and bobs arrived, much to my better half's delight.  The plate comprised orders of Sookjoo Namool (mildly seasoned beansprouts), Sigeumchi Namool (seasoned spinach), and Kkakdoogi (spicy pickled daikon).  So then onto the meat!  We went for Kalbi (marinated beef spare ribs) and Samgyupsal (thinly sliced pork belly) with a side of rice.  The rice arrived a few minutes before the meat showed up, and I fear may have been sitting around a little while before it arrived beside my chopsticks.  I only discovered this when I came to eat, but it was swiftly replaced with a fresh bowl without the slightest hesitation when I requested.  I was expecting the meat to arrive and be placed next to the grill, as I have always experienced in Japan.  But it was duly laid upon the heat, and tended well by the very busy girl behind the counter.

Meat on the grill.  Note the "Alien" influenced telescopic extractor fan.

The Kalbi came with one lonely rib all on its own, and I'm not entirely sure it really cooked through.  I tried knawing some of the flesh from the bone, but I was a little wary of the shade of red I exposed.  I thought I better leave it.  The pork was delciously fatty, and crisped up nicely on the grill.  We followed up with a round of Bulgogi (marinated sliced sirloin beef), which was sliced more thinly than any I had tried before, but I'm not complaining, just noting a difference. My other half finished her meal (I was replete by this point) with Kimchi Kooksu (noodle in cold soup with spicy Kimchi).  She tells me it's common in Japan to finish up your meal with some sort of carbs, so this is what she went for.  It was surprisingly spicy, and took a while to prepare, but by the looks of the other parts of the restaurant, they were slammed by this time in the evening. One last odd touch to the evening... the urinals in the men's room are filled with ice.  All in all, the best Korean BBQ we've tried in the UK.  :-)

For anyone who feels they have the the slightest hint of America-phile about themselves, they may find this pretty awesome.....

http://eater.com/archives/2011/01/14/eater-doomsday-map.php#pointmap

Soupe de poisson au safran saffron, red mullet, shellfish  rouille croûton

For a Wednesday night, this place was happening.  I guess I should have known that it would be, from a few previous failed attempts to book at short notice.  Entering from the street, you essentially step straight into the bar.  There were quite a few people milling around at the bar, and a queue to get my coat into the coat check.  A quick scan of the taps revealed eight or so draft beers are available, including Bitter & Twisted and Levibonds.  A later peek at the wine list suggested the cellar focuses squarely on Rhone and Burgundy.  Walking through the restaurant we were seated close to the open kitchen, at one of a set of 3 tables for couples, comprising a running banquette and chair at each table.  We felt incredibly close to our neighbours (to the lady on my right, FYI if the guy you are dating is still maintaining a "single" status on Facebook, then you're not a couple).  The environment can be a little noisy, and if you are seated next to other diners who are a bottle or two down already, this could spoil your evening somewhat.  However, there were many enticing options available on the menu, with specialities in seafood, chacuterie and sausage - but we had come for the burger.  It may seem like a waste to some, with such an expansive menu of refined items on offer, but we'd heard that the burger was worth a look, or even a taste.  So this is what we had promised ourselves.  But like even the best of plans, this one was subject to change.

Steak frites - sirloin with sauce béarnaise, served with pommes frites

Earlier in the evening, while I was making my way through my second half pint of beer (all beers are half pints, and served in a slightly bizarrely shaped glass that makes the last quarter potentially hazardous to drink), a neighbour's main course of steak was placed upon the her table.  This is when my personal plan changed.  The delicious waft of sizzling beef filled my nostrils.  I was hooked.  My partner ordered Soupe de poisson au safran to start, which was pretty much a bouillabaisse by another name.  This apparently delivered all that it should.  A delicate broth, healthily stocked with chunks of red mullet, prawn and mussel.  I supped my beer, saving room for all the beef I could possibly manage.  Incidentally, I didn't care for the Levibonds.  It was a little too dark of flavour, with an after taste that lingered a little longer than I invited it to.

Yankee burger

Our main courses arrived, both accompanied with fantastic pommes frites, obviously fried in the hottest of fats.  Crispy, and heavily seasoned, they were the perfect accomplice to our chunks of beef.  My partner stuck to the plan, and plumped for the Yankee Burger - grilled beef patty with iceberg lettuce, tomato, sweet onion, sesame bun, and pickle.  Ordered medium, this is a medium you will only find in the bravest of Yankee establishments (Corner Bistro, West Greenwich, NYC springs to mind as a notable example).  Such a delicate, melt in the mouth patty, was worth braving the mid week media floozies.  My steak lived up to expectations.  Fantastically seasoned, perfectly grilled with just the right amount of charring, I took my time cutting against the grain and savouring every mouthful.  Also on the plate was something that resembled a mini Caesar salad in some respects.  Garnished with some inexplicably delicious crispy onions or shallots (I'm afraid I'm not sure which), it was a welcome change from the thicker textures of beef and potato.
There was no room, for anything other than a coffee to finish.  Bar Boulud is definitely worth a trip.  If there's a next time, I'd love to see what the charcuterie is all about.  Or maybe the massive crab who spent the evening beadily eyeing us from his bed of ice.  Just try and make sure you don't get seated next to the louder variety restaurant goer for the best experience possible.