Anita Pati

Natural and orange – the next generation of Slovenian wines?

'What’s as orange as being Tango-ed but doesn’t give you the headache? Why, Slovenian orange wines, of course; naturally and organically produced, they result in hardly a whiff of hangover.' Anita Pati heads East with grape expectations.

Salvador and Amanda

It’s a loud, pipey bar when you first step in, with huge suit backs and a bit of braying from the nearby Holborn law chambers, but the punters seem friendly enough and were in good spirits the Thursday night we went.

Tea and Tapas at El Pirata Detapas

Miguel Angel, head chef at El Pirata Detapas, has worked closely with Lalani & Co. the boutique tea trading company to select rare teas from India and Nepal to match the tapas on the menu. Anita cocks her little finger and takes tea.

La Porte des Indes cookery afternoons

You wouldn’t think that behind Oxford Street’s Christmas huffers and sharp elbows is an oasis of south Indian charm, but that’s La Porte des Inde’s secret. Now,on the final Friday of every month, they host a master class and Anita Pati got stuck in.

York(ie) and other chocolate moments

With chocolate week upon us, Anita Pati travels to York where chocolate is in the very air and immerses herself in a Chocolate Indulgence break. All the visits are spread over a couple of days giving you time to recuperate in your wonderful four-poster bed – if you book the deluxe room – before heading out for more engorgement. So why daydream of chocolate hunks when you can stuff a cityful in

The Whisky Exchange Whisky Show

The Whisky Exchange Whisky Show takes place this year at Vinopolis on the weekend of 6th-7th October. The idea is to show how whisky can be paired with a harvest basket of foods. Anita tries a taste.

The Eighth Wahaca -London Restaurant

Mexican fast-food joint, Wahaca, has launched the UK’s reportedly first Mezcalería  or mezcal bar at its new eighth venture in London’s Charlotte Street. Presuming mezcal may have hallucinatory powers, Anita was over there like a shot.

Back in 5 Minutes, a restaurant and private dining room

Back in 5 Minutes, a restaurant and private dining room hidden at the back of a designer tailor’s, launched in June, bringing quintessentially British food to one of London’s last bastions of Bangladeshi cooking. Anita Pati disappears inside

We are sailing - a day out with Frédéric Camonin executive chef of Azamara Club Cruises

Unsure of her sea legs, Anita Pati finds she doesn't need them when she spends a day ashore with Frédéric Camonin executive chef of Azamara Club Cruises. She then gets a taste of luxury liner living without leaving dock.

Champagne + Fromage: a happy coupling on Wellington Street

Down in London’s Covent Garden, a curtain swish from the grand theatres of Drury Lane, lies a shy canoodling couple up for a bit of exhibitionism. Champagne and fromage are being served together in a little shop-cum-bistro, and they’re unashamed of their curious pairing.

The Pier – hairy historical Harwich on a sailboat

The Jugged Hare

They plan to serve actual jugged hare when it’s in season but for now, we settled on the Bath chaps and langoustine for starters, both presented beautifully.

The Zythos Belgian Beer Festival 28-29 April

Ping Pong's spring menu

This spring, Ping Pong has hit upon the city of Xi’an along the Silk Road whose dishes it showcases in its new menu. Beef, lamb, jellies and dates are pinging their way from old China to Ping Pong’s 11 locations across London.

The Lamb at Hindon by Boisdale

A Cook's Kitchen in Leominster

If you go down to the most rural backwater of Herefordshire today, you’ll probably be surprised by A Cook’s Kitchen. Situated in the enormous barn at Dunkerton’s Cider Mill and down the most crooked of country lanes is the manifest dream of a young couple, Bonnie and Tom.

Nosh Detox - a dose of cleansing

Now it’s no longer January, we’ve reallowed the “detox” word – a little spring cleaning of the gut, if you will. Anita Pati eagerly signed up to the Nosh Detox diet assuming there’d be nosh but the hardcore, four-day mainly liquid diet lost her five and a half pounds and gained her valuable dietary lessons…

Hyderabad hokum at Namaaste Kitchen

For some, February is the real cruellest month, what with its Valentine hyperbole, morbid imaginings and Arctic weather. But for others such as Namaaste Kitchen in Camden, February is about celebrating regional Indian cuisine, in this case, that from Hyderabad. And eating is a great antidote for early-year blues.

Carom at Meza

Carrom is a game I used to play when a little girl. The board had intricate patternings and holes into which you’d flick counters. It may sound delicate but the competition was sharp. Slit eyes and hexes were rife. I was expecting to see a little more carrom thematic going on at D&D’s new Carom restaurant in Soho before I realised I’d confused it with carom – that’s one "r" - the spice.

Potli

The absolute star of Potli’s show is the starter Chicken 65, tender poultry in a pungent ginger and pepper batter, like an excellent and healthy KFC. We couldn’t get enough. We also had tawa machi – tilapia fish steaks marinated in ginger, garlic and mustard which were good but we’d have liked more mustard.