London Restaurant Reviews - Morgan M Barbican

**THIS RESTAURANT HAS CLOSED DOWN**

Since starting my training at Cordon Bleu I am beginning to gain some understanding of the skill, technique and artistry on discreet display in our top French restaurants.  Morgan M is the first French restaurant I have visited since I started the Grand Diplome, and I looked at it with newly informed eyes.  

Morgan Meunier has an impressive CV, which included 7 years training in a variety of 3 Michelin-starred restaurants in France.  He won his first Michelin star in the UK in 1999, at Monsieur Max in Twickenham, and later worked at The Admiralty in the Strand. 

Having run a successful restaurant (also called Morgan M, an old favourite of mine) in Islington since 2003, Morgan Meunier opened his new restaurant on Long Lane near the Barbican and opposite Smithfield's Meat Market in November 2011. The new two storey restaurant offers his affordable haute cuisine but with dishes that, while meticulously crafted, are modern and simple. 

The ground floor is an accessible and informal bistro, offering an haute cuisine small plates menu. The downstairs menu is more relaxed, with a selection of smaller versions of the classic dishes served upstairs, including the raviolo of snails in Chablis, garlic froth and red wine jus and Ballotine of Foie Gras with fig caviar.

I was impressed to see that unlike most restaurants which include vegetarian dishes almost as an afterthought, Morgan M has an entire 6 -course tasting menu specifically for vegetarians, 'From the Garden' @£46. On the occasion of our visit, Dr G and I went for the 6-course tasting menu: ‘The Winter Menu’ (£50 per person), with matching wines by the glass @£30 per person.

For most courses, there were two options, and therefore between the two of us, we were able to cover the whole Winter Menu.

We started with Cream of Mojette Beans, with lemon confit and pesto, served with
Le Lesc Colombard 2010, Ugni Blanc, Vin du Gers - this was a lovely, delicate starter, and set us up nicely for the dishes to follow.

Game Terrine with Foie Gras followed, served with a French bean salad, apple chutney and toasted Poilane bread, partnered with an Oloroso sherry (Don Jose Reserves Especiales). This was a magnificent terrine, studded with a fillet of rare venison.

In my opinion, the best dish of the night was the Crayfish and Lobster Cannelloni, with tarragon, Jerusalem artichoke soubise and a shellfish capuccino. It was served with a glass of Chateau Clement-Termes Gaillac Sec, 2010, from Southwest France.  If by the end of my year at Cordon Bleu, I can create such a dish, I will be a happy man. The pasta was light, the filling delectable and perfectly seasoned, and the shellfish foam was stunning.  An absolute winner!

Next, we had the Fillet of Wild Sea Bass, served with Torroxal Albarino 2010, Rias Baixas.  Perfectly pan-fried, the sea bass was served on a bed of carrot and ginger risotto, with a lemon and saffron broth. This was an unusual combination of flavours, but delightful nonetheless. It was served with one of my favourite white wines, a lovely Albarino from Rias Baixas. 

For the main course, we had Pot Roasted Fillet of Iken Valley Venison, with Farci of hare, quince puree and sauce Grand Veneur.  The venison was splendid, and the sauce Grand Veneur was a revelation. A classic sauce for large game (it translates as 'huntsman's sauce'), it is based on a sauce poivrade, in which some game trimmings and strained marinade is added to the bouillon, and then finished with blood and redcurrant jelly. Very seasonal, this was a warming but sophisticated winter dish, served with a pleasingly stalky Bourgueil Peu Muleau 1996, Domain de la Chevalerie, from the central Loire region.

The other main course was Oven-roasted Suffolk Pheasant, the leg braised with raisins, glazed pear, served with liver croutons and bread sauce.  Beautifully presented, I really enjoyed the gamey flavours of the bird, with the sweetness of the poached pear and contrasting savoury jus.  A great combination.   

As a palate cleanser, we were served a perfect Light Vanilla Rice Pudding with orange tuile.  Tuiles are a serious technical challenge (as I know from my patisserie classes!), and these were perfectly executed, filled with an exquisitely light rice pudding.

For dessert, we had the Passion Fruit Soufflé and Sorbet with Crème Anglaise, served with Moscata d'Asti, 2010, Bera Canelli, and Dark Chocolate Moelleux and Milk Sorbet, served with a glass of Maury, 2007, Domain Mas Amiel.  Excellent dishes to round off a memorable meal.

Cost: Winter Menu priced at £50 per person (6 courses) plus 6 matching wines at £30 per person.

Likes: Outstanding French cooking, good value for money for tasting menus and pre/post theatre options at £21.50 and £25.50 for 2 or 3 courses respectively.  Well thought out matching wine flights.

Dislikes: None.

Verdict: At £50 per person for this menu, I struggle to think of many restaurants in London that can offer such great quality and cooking skill at so reasonable a price. Highly recommended.

London's Best Independent Pubs - Fox and Anchor

Whenever I feel like having well made, traditional British food with a contemporary twist I head down to Charterhouse Square. Tucked away from the excitement of Charterhouse Street and Smithfields Market, the Fox and Anchor has, for years, been my local gastro pub of choice.

Despite its discreet location, the pub is always popular with regulars ranging from the nearby meat traders and City professionals, to students and tourists. There is a fine suite of six luxury hotel rooms above the pub. I have not stayed there myself but they look elegant from their website pictures and at £95 for a special "Lazy Weekend" rate, I feel it is also good value considering the central location (click here for details).

On a busy autumnal evening, Dr G and I found ourselves perusing once again the familiar menu. To kick off proceedings, we shared a delicious bowl of "Crab and Seafood Bisque" @ £6.95. The broth was creamy and rich, and unlike the more usual smooth bisques, it had small pieces of fish and seafood.

This was followed by another favourite Fox and Anchor dish - "Potted shrimp on toasted crumpets" @ £6.50. I really loved the texture and flavour of the Morecambe Bay brown shrimps served on toasted/buttered crumpets, and the delicious aromas of mace and nutmeg. I would struggle to find a better accompaniment to our first round of pale ales than this dish.

I am always slightly at a loss as what to drink when I visit the Fox and Anchor - the choices of draft and bottled beers can sometimes be mind boggling. The staff are always at hand and are more than happy to advise on their range of beers. On that evening, Dr G and I started on a couple of pale ales, "Sierra Nevada" and "Mad Goose" which were both excellent.

Being a real "Steak Tartare" fan, I just had to have a small "starter" portion @ £7.50. The meat tasted fresh and had been finely chopped - it was well seasoned with onions, gherkins and fresh herbs and was delicious.

The "English asparagus with poached duck egg & hollandaise sauce" @ £7.50 was also very good. The asparagus spears were tender but not overcooked and the accompanying duck egg and the hollandaise sauce were richly contrasting.

For main course, Dr G opted for "Calf's liver, onion gravy and mashed potatoes" @ £14.50. The liver was yielding but still slightly bloody, with the mashed potatoes creamy and perfectly textured to soak up the onion gravy.

Every time I visit the Fox and Anchor, I try and order something other than their burger, and as always, I failed on this occasion. "The Fox and Anchor burger with goose fat chips" @ £12.50 is in my opinion usually one of the best in London. On this visit however I felt the patty was minced a little too finely, making it rather dense, dry and hard. On the other hand, the goose fat chips were faultless.

To accompany our main courses, we shared a large bottle of "Meantime Indian Pale Ale" @ £6. Made in Greenwich, the brewery has its own pub - "Greenwich Union Bar" on Royal Hill which is another favourite of mine south of the River.

The wine list at the Fox and Anchor is comprehensive and well thought out, with many bottles below the £20 mark. On that evening Dr G and I struck up a conversation with Christine, Rob and Estelle, a friendly trio who were merrily working their way through a few of the bottles on offer.

Cost: Around £25 for a 3-course British meal per person excluding drinks.

Likes: Unfussy British cooking, seasonal ingredients at reasonable prices. Excellent range of beers on tap and bottle as well as a decent and well price wine list. I would strongly recommend the goose fat chips, the steak tartare, and the seafood bisque. I also love their pies, particularly the steak and ale.

Dislikes: The large TV screen in the main bar area feels somewhat out of place and can be rather intrusive for those after a relaxing dinner. The burger patty was not up to their usual high standards on this visit.

Verdict: One of my favourite gastro pubs in London, serving great food and a wide selection of beers and wines at very reasonable prices. A very good place to experience what British cooking is all about. Highly recommended.

London’s Best Independent Cafés – Dose Café

Dose Café

I was recently invited with other Qypers and fellow food bloggers to visit this delightful independent Coffee House on Long Lane, EC1. Dose is a small café, simply but stylishly decorated, and set in a great central location by Smithfields Market.

Run by owner James, his passion and enthusiasm for real coffee are contagious. We were given the low-down on how the perfect cup of coffee should be sourced, roasted, prepared, and drunk.

Dose’s coffee is fairtrade and biodynamic (a concept I had only previously known in wine production) and sourced from Square Mile Roasters; their milk is organically farmed and most packaging used is recycled or biodegradable.

The food on offer was tempting, and their blueberry muffin, which I personally tried, was quite good. Dose’s prices are also reasonable considering the affluent and trendy location.

 

We had cup after cup of wonderful cappuccini as James patiently taught us how to draw patterns from the hot milk froth. I had always wondered how baristas could do that.

 

A competition for the best heart shape was organised; it was a fun evening despite my best attempts at a heart looking more like an ill-formed kidney! Meeting some of the faces behind my favourite blogs was an added bonus, like Neil Davey from The Lambshank Redemption.

 

 

Most importantly, the experience has made me rethink my ideas about what makes a perfect cup of coffee – the quality and origin of the beans, the water which should not boil, the quality of the organic milk to name just a few of the concepts not fully appreciated at many coffee chains.

A big “Thank You” goes to Eammon, from the Qype team, for organising this wonderful event, and another to James for his generosity on the evening and for serving possibly the BEST cup of coffee in the Capital.