Apparently name-dropping the ‘cupcake revolution’ is the fashion equivalent of extolling the maxi-dress: very 2008 darling. But the cupcake trend is still on a [parchment baking] roll – except that in 2008 we were buying ’em, now we’re making ’em. Enter the cupcake class – tutorials for the disenfranchised office-worker, wondering if they too could clear four grand a month* just by knocking up a few of Nigella’s best and selling them at £2 a pop to London’s glitterati. Of course it would seem I’m suggesting that such an entreprenual venture might be as simple as it is appealing. Believe me, it’s not
A man for all seasonal food. We talk and eat with Jose Pizaro of Tierra Brindisa Soho
I love Jose Pizaro; although this may be the beer goggles talking. No, I think it’s a serious crush. The man is ‘keeping it real’ with his Tierra Brindisa; simplicity and quality and a changing menu. The train spotters have moved on, chasing the next new thing, now his restaurant has proper customers, regulars. As we leave I reflect our offices are just a Rioja fuelled stagger away, so we will regularly be back.
Courvoisier’s Café du Pique-Nique: an early taste of summer!
This event will see The Future Gallery transformed into a vast indoor picnic area. While dismal London weather prevails outside, visitors can kick back, remove their shoes and enjoy their own summery picnic.
Chino Latino, Park Plaza Riverbank Hotel, London
Chino Latino is an excellent restaurant, we enjoyed our meal there and the ambience enormously. Situated on the south bank of the Thames, diagonally opposite the Houses of Parliament, it is a little away from central London’s restaurant land, but it is well worth making the effort to seek out.
Five a day, the Spanish way
After hearing about these remarkable fruits, it was time to taste some tapas, specially created by Ibèrica Head Chef Santiago Guerrero, all using Spanish raspberries and strawberries. Not necessarily an easy task, given that these fruits aren’t renowned for pairing with meat and fish – but we had open minds.
Midnight Feasts
Midnight Feasts conjures up a misty-eyed nostalgia, which makes for an enjoyable wallow in memories, but more than that, there are ideas for everyone in here, from the novice to the more accomplished cook: and better still, 100% of the profits go to Springboard for Children.
After Eight mint chocolate chip & ginger meringue ice
One to eat late at night in front of the telly
After Eight mint and vanilla cheesecake
Something very tasty and wickedly dark
St Patrick’s Day at Aubrey’s
Aubrey in the Irish-owned Kensington Hotel have put together a traditionally Irish 3 course set menu to be served for lunch and dinner on St Patrick’s Day, priced at just £35.
London’s oldest french restaurant starts saturday lunch service for the first time in 50 years
Mon Plaisir is London’s oldest French restaurant at over half a century, a rare entity in London’s fast-changing restaurant scene. In 1942 Charles de Gaulle dined at Mon Plaisir, and for generations this family-run institution has been serving authentic French cuisine and now, after 50 years, they will be open for lunch service on a Saturday.