Time Out's "101 Best Things to Do in London" - My Top 5 Recommendations

To see my recommendations for Time Out's "101 Best Things to Do in London", click here. 

On a perfect weekend in London, what are your top 5 things to do? 

London Restaurant Reviews - Brawn

Terroirs Goes East...

Brawn is the much anticipated new offshoot of Terroirs in the East of London, on trendy Columbia Road, E2. Terroirs has become a regular haunt (reviewed it here) for its great quality and excellent value cooking in the West End. So I was thrilled to hear of their new venture a stone's throw from my home.
 

Brawn has a more laid-back feel than Terroirs, being more like a cafe-style restaurant. It has whitewashed brick walls, wooden floors, mismatched tables and chairs and some eye catching art work.

The menu is divided into 6 sections containing mainly smaller dishes to share but also some more substantial choices. "Taste Tickler" had such items as Maldon oysters @ £1.50 each and Parmigiano Reggiano @ £3. The section on "Pig" had Lardo di Colonnata @ £8 (cured pork fat) among others, while "Plancha" had Dorset Palourde Clams & Manzanilla @ £8 or Red Mullet & Chanterelles @ £13. The other sections were "Raw", "Slow Cooked" and "Pudding and Cheese".

It was noteworthy that provenance of most items was shown on the menu from their Hackney Wild Sourdough by the E5 Bakehouse to the cheeses purchased from Androuet in Spitalfields. Dr G and I ordered one dish from each section (apart from Plancha).

"Cervelle de Canut" @ £3 - a speciality of Lyon, this was a soft white cheese dip seasoned with freshly chopped herbs, shallots, olive oil and vinegar and served with toasted soldiers.

"Suffolk Pork Rillettes" @ £6 - is rustic French cuisine at its best - the meat is cubed or chopped, salted heavily and cooked slowly in fat until it is tender enough to be easily shredded. It is then cooled with enough of the fat to form a paste. It is normally spread on bread and served at room temperature.
 

"Garfagnana" (from the Bellandi Family, Tuscany)" @ £8 - a traditional Tuscan cured salame, Garfagnana is made from various pork cuts and offal such as brawn (head meat), lungs, kidneys, heart and tongue meats as well as lard and blood. The meats are seasoned with cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, fennel seeds among other spices, and stuffed into pig's stomach. It is slowly boiled for many hours and then cured in lard for about 6 months. It appeared to be an acquired taste!
 

"Hand Chopped Tuscan Style Beef" @ £8 - this was my favourite dish of the evening - roughly chopped pieces of ultra fresh raw steak seasoned very simply with rosemary and sea salt crystals. Delicious served with bread and drizzled with some extra virgin olive oil.
 

"Soft Polenta with Wild Mushrooms" @ £7 - I love polenta, particularly deep fried for polenta chips. Brawn's was soft but still very delicious and creamy. I also liked the addition of fried chanterelle mushrooms.
 

Dr G and I also had a couple of their cheeses - there are only 3 available. We had "Gouda" (from Utrecht, Holland) @ £3.50 and "Saint Nectaire" (from Auvergne, France) @ £3.50. These were both good but at those prices I would have expected a more generous serving.
 

The wine menu is very good (around 120 bottles) although it is not nearly as extensive as Terroirs'. We ordered a bottle of 09 Marcillac @ £20 (Dne du Cros, Philippe Teulier, Marcillac) which went well with most dishes we ordered. We also noted with approval that the mark up on this bottle was less than twice the High Street price. This is unusual when a mark up of 4, and sometimes 5 fold, seems to be the norm these days.
 

Cost: £65.81 for two including wine and 12.5% service (or just over £30 per person) which I believe to be relatively good value.

Likes: the Tuscan style raw beef and soft polenta dishes were excellent. I also liked the laid back atmosphere and the very attentive, charming service by our French waiter.

Dislikes: the selection of cheeses on the menu (3) is very limited for a French wine bar. I wish they had a Chez Bruce style cheese board or at least more choices.

Verdict: simple but quirky menu, authentic French and Italian produce expertly served at reasonable prices. Very good, predominantly French wine list with sensible mark ups. Highly recommended.

The Best Pizza in London - Stringray Globe Cafe

Stringray Globe Cafe 

I have been to Stringray many times and have enjoyed my pizze there on most occasions – the few times I didn’t were when I was turned away as Stringray is nearly always full with locals and Columbia Road shoppers.  Every time I visit, the waiting staff seems to have changed. This is not a good sign, but despite this and the erratic service, Stringray’s pizze are good, and so I return.

Luckily, I was not turned away last Wednesday as my old friends Eduardo and Gary of Columbia Road’s Start Cafe invited me to join them for a pizza there.

The decor is quite simple but warm and welcoming – this is a cheap and cheerful pizzeria, with a lively atmosphere and no frills. It has a fireplace and a long-bar, and discreet lighting. This is great place to enjoy a nicely made pizza and beer on tap in a relaxed setting.

We ordered a bottle of “Italian Prosecco” @ £16.95, and “garlic bread with cheese” @ £4.50 whilst we mulled over our pizze choices. The garlic bread was fantastic – a “sauceless” and very thin pizza base had been covered with mozzarella cheese and chopped fresh garlic to make a simple but delicious starter.

Stringray’s menu is rather straight forward and well priced – in addition to about 9 “antipasti” choices, the menu comprises pizza and pasta options and three meat choices (fish, chicken and steak). Pizza prices vary from £4.95 to £6.95.

As always, we went for pizza, our choices were “Four Cheeses” @ £6.25, “American Hot” @ £6.25, and “Neptuno” @ £5.95.

I love their Four Cheeses pizza and order it regularly. This time was no exception – the pizza was as good as ever – cheesy and delicious with an ultra thin base. Stringray’s pizza has a completely different style than Pizza East or Rossopomodoro’s where the bases are thicker and have more of a bite to them (which I also love).

Gary’s “American Hot” was reasonably good although I felt that the pepperoni meat tasted slightly too processed for my liking.

Eduardo’s choice “Neptuno” was topped with tuna, olives, capers and onions. The tuna tasted like it had been taken straight out of a tin and contained no cheese which detracted from the overall experience.

Other pizze that I have sometimes are “Boscaiola” (tomato, mozzarella, mushroom, bacon and onions) @ £5.95, and “Quattro Stagione” (tomato, mozzarella, mushroom, capers & olives, anchovies and ham) @ £6.50, they are usually pretty good too.

Verdict – If you can get a table at this very popular East End Pizzeria, you will enjoy a competently made, thin crust pizza at very reasonable prices. Quality of ingredients can be variable and service erratic.