It’s hidden place Saki. In the evening the shop above closes and you could be forgiven for thinking there was no restaurant there at all. This shyness, combined with the Dickensian darkness of West Smithfield at night, means you might never venture down the stairs to the bar and restaurant beneath. You’d be slapping yourself forcefully with a wet tuna if you didn’t though because this is a very good restaurant indeed.

I ventured to ‘The Double Club’ on a double date. The west meets the Congo (and vice versa) in this temporary venture, produced by Prada. Down a dark cobbled alley behind Angel tube, it was an unlikely find. A Victorian warehouse is awning to three spaces woven by artists and graced by fashionistas. The mind behind is Carsten Höller, a German gripped by Congo-mania..

Knowing my fondness for frippery and resistance to retail, I was surprised when Foodepedia’s Führer posted me to the ‘Meat & Wine Co.’. Established on the approach to Westfield, London’s latest shopping juggernaut, it represents a South African firms first stake (and steaks) in the U.K.

Recession what recession? Those in work are having it large, with ever decreasing mortgage repayments giving them more cash to splash. Maybe that’s why here in Gilgamesh on a Wednesday night the bar is pretty full and the restaurant is too. In the private dining room, a hundred and fifty people are tucking into chef Ian Pengelley’s Pan Asian food and the man himself can be seen in his open kitchen toiling away happily.