London Restaurant Reviews - Mason & Taylor (Craft Beers and British Small-Eats in Shoreditch)

**THIS RESTAURANT HAS CLOSED DOWN**

A craft beer and real ale bar, Mason & Taylor is the Shoreditch destination for those who, like me:

1. enjoy good quality craft beers without having to pay the earth for them

2. dislike watery lagers that taste of nothing

3. just cannot drink wine all the time (maybe I can but it is nice to have options…)

4. enjoy grazing on some good nosh while drinking

Mason & Taylor is becoming one of my favourite local bars since opening in December 2010. All its beers are supplied by independent brewers directly from their country of origin, with a particular focus on London microbreweries. 

There are 12 draught beers and ales on tap at all times, and a list of about 40 bottled beers including craft North American, British and Belgian beers that changes regularly. There is also a "Brewery of the Weekend" and 5 weekly guest ales. They also serve all their draught beers in taster flights of 3 or 6 x 1/3 pint glasses.

We always get to try at least one beer we have never heard of when we go there. On our latest visit, our new beer was a bottle of Duchesse de Bourgogne @ £4.50. This is a traditional Flemish red ale, oak aged for up to 18 months and 6.2% alcohol. We enjoyed the lovely cherry and chocolate flavours in this beer and the unusual tanginess akin to citrus fruit.

We also had one beer flight each - the first was a combination of Chimay White, Westmalle Dubbel and Odell Cutthroat Porter and the second included Brooklyn Lager, Rodenbach, and Sierra Nevada Porter. Most draught beers were priced at £3.80 per pint although the Belgian and American black beers were around double that. The cost of the flight depends on the combination of beers chosen, but is essentially the price of a pint divided by three.

To accompany our selection of fine beers, we ordered a medley of small plates. Food at Mason & Taylor is served tapas style rather than as traditional starters and main dishes, the exceptions to this being the weekend brunch, and the Sunday all day menu which includes several roast dinner options. On a weekday, the recommendation is to order around 3 small plates each, but we were so tempted by the menu that we ended up with 10 dishes!

The food is classic British cooking with a modern interpretation. Dishes are reasonably priced at £4.50 - £5 each. Produce is seasonal, and the meats, fish and seafood that we ate tasted ultra-fresh and delicious. Of the 10 dishes we tried, we each had our favourites, but we both agreed that they were all good and perfect with the beers we chose. These are the dishes we had:

Potted crab with capers and toast @ £5 – scrumptious and a steal at the price!

House-smoked duck breast with ruby chard and pea salad @ £5 – the duck had a subtle smokiness that tasted well with the earthy chard.

Wild Mushrooms on Toast @ £4.50 - totally delectable but I wish there were more mushrooms!

Jersey Royal and crayfish salad with heritage tomatoes @ £5 – this was a lovely and substantial salad with great flavours and stunning presentation.

Devilled chicken livers on toast @ £5 – we really enjoyed this, the liver was meaty and perfectly cooked (very tender), and worked well with its spicy dressing.

Woodpigeon breast with carrot and beetroot salad and raisin jus @ £5 – this was delicious. I loved the combination of gamey umami with the sweetness from the beetroot and raisins.

Nettle and goat's cheese tart with red onion chutney @ £5.

Chilled Bloody Mary Soup @ £4 – the weakest link in our opinion but still good.

Eton Mess @ £4.

Chocolate Pudding @ £4.50.

Cost: Based on 3-4 dishes per person, a meal at Mason & Taylor will cost about £15 to £20 per person (excluding drinks). Many draught pints are priced from £3.80.

Likes: excellent range of craft American, Belgian and British beers. Great food. Possibility of ordering many small dishes to graze on. Friendly service. Reasonable prices. Free Wi-Fi. Good and affordable wine list with every option also sold by the glass.

Dislikes: I am not quite sure about the industrial décor, it feels more like student canteen than New York loft apartment.

Verdict: great Shoreditch destination for craft beer and British food fans, I enjoyed all the small plates on offer and the selection of reasonably priced beers. A local favourite. Very highly recommended.

London Restaurant Reviews – Moo Grill

Those who like me have worked in the City for a few years know how exciting it is to find a decent lunch spot, especially where every other food shop seems to be part of a sandwich or pizza restaurant chain. I am lucky to work close to some great independent places like the Vietnamese City Càphê (my number 1 favourite) or Bar Battu, but just around the corner I have now found another gem – Moo Grill.

I first came across Moo Grill via my friend Rachel McCormack of Catalan Cooking. More recently, having been asked to write my top 7 South American restaurant recommendations for the Vamos Guide (JungleDrumsOnline), I decided to pay Moo Grill another well deserved visit.

Moo Grill specialises in Lomitos – the king of steak sandwiches in its native Argentina, - is certainly not intended for the faint-hearted. Even the basic ones will have a slab of lomo steak, tomato, lettuce, onion, chimichurri sauce, mayonnaise and a fried egg (!). Oh, and some ham too, and melted cheese, loads of melted cheese.

The main challenge of eating a lomito is to hold all these delicious ingredients together between two pieces of bread without having them drip down your elbow within 30 seconds

At Moo Grill, in addition to beef, lomitos also come with chicken, chorizo or aubergine.  They are served “simple” (with tomato and lettuce around £5), “completo” (plus ham, cheese and egg at about £6.50) and “al plato” (all of these ingredients served breadless on a plate with chips for about £6).

On my visit I tried the “Milanesa Completo”, a deliciously tender piece of steak, breadcrumbed and fried, served with ham, cheese, tomato, lettuce, egg and chimichurri sauce @ £6.60. As if that wasn’t enough, I also had some chips on the side. Truth be told, I did not manage to finish it!

I also got to try what I can only describe as one of the best beef empanadas I have ever had – now that is a big statement to make but it is no exaggeration – it was totally scrumptious. The owner’s mum, the lucky Jose Luiz de Alzaa, makes them from a well guarded family recipe. Empanadas are also filled with humita (creamy sweetcorn) or ham and cheese and are all priced at £1.80.

There are other items on the short food menu including Prime Argentine Ribeye steak with chips and egg for £14.50, and omelettes (plain, ham & cheese or mushroom & tomatoes) at £3.

The wine list is predominantly Argentinian with a few Spanish, Chilean and Australian options. It is not an extensive menu, and there are only one or two options below £20. The two times I visited, I had the Argentinian Torrontes by Tapiz, priced at £19.70 per bottle. Commendably, all wines are served by the glass, and small or large glasses can be ordered.

Cost: Lomito Completo £6.60, Chips £1.50, Beef Empanada £1.80, Glass of Torrontes £3.60 = total £13.50. Excellent VFM.

Likes: Lomito and beef empanada are a must on any visit. Small, intimate restaurant with friendly service. City location.

Dislikes: the paucity of affordable wine choices.

Verdict: one of the most interesting lunch spots in the City, Moo Grill serves excellent Argentinian Lomito and empanadas at reasonable prices. Friendly service. Highly recommended.

Grazing Asia - Forthcoming Events and Dates

Grazing Asia, a collaboration of four food bloggers from different Asian backgrounds, launched in June 2011 at the test kitchens of Jamie Oliver's Fifteen Restaurant. May (Malaysian by May), Mimi  (Meemalee's Kitchen), Uyen (Love Leluu) and I (The London Foodie) have joined forces to start Grazing Asia, a new Asian Dining concept in London.

We bring our culinary heritage - Malaysian, Burmese, Vietnamese and Japanese to the tables of Grazing Asia, doing what we love doing best - feeding our friends. We will be hosting a series of supper club nights, cooking clubs lunches, cookery demos and classes in the coming months.

Events will be organised either jointly (among the four members) or independently by any one of the members for Grazing Asia. To kick off this series of events I will be hosting a Diwali Special Supper Club at my home with Maunika Gowardhan of Cook in a Curry on 12th October 2011.

Forthcoming Grazing Asia events:

12th October 2011 - Diwali Special Supper Club

Hosted by Maunika Gowardhan of Cook in a Curry and The London Foodie for Tilda Rice
Location: My Home, Islington, from 19:30 hours.

Cost: Free Event

Book: By Invitation Only

27th October 2011 - Partnering Fine French Wine with Japanese Food

Hosted by Denise Medrano of The Wine Sleuth and Luiz Hara of The London Foodie

Location: My Home, Islington, from 19:30 hours

Cost: £50 (French wines included)

Book: e-mail denisemedrano@gmail.com and/or luizhara@hotmail.com

28th and 29th October 2011 - Malaysian by May

Hosted by May of Malaysian by May

Location: my home, Islington, from 19:30 hours

Cost: £35 donation, BYO

Book: e-mail bookings@grazingasia.com and/or luizhara@hotmail.com

Leluu & The Supper Club
7th, 14th and 21st October 2011
3rd, 4th, 10th, 18th, 19th Nov 2011

Hosted by Uyen Luu of Leluu

Location: Uyen’s home, Hackney, from 19:30 hours

Cost: £35 donation, BYO

Book: e-mail uyen(dot)luu(at)gmail(dot)com

Vietnamese Cookery Class
9th and 16th October 2011
6th November 2011

Hosted by Uyen Luu of Leluu

Location: Uyen’s home, Hackney, from 13:00 hours

Cost: £75 donation, BYO (Includes all ingredients, lunch/dinner, take away and recipes)

Book: e-mail uyen(dot)luu(at)gmail(dot)com

21st January 2012 - Japanese Home Cooking Supper

Hosted by Luiz Hara of The London Foodie
Location: my home, Islington, from 19:30 hours

Cost: £35 donation, BYO

Book: e-mail luizhara@hotmail.com

12th February 2012 - Burmese Cooking Club

Hosted by Mimi of Meemalee's Kitchen

Location: my home, Islington, from 13:00 hours

Cost: Free Event: each participant will cook one dish & bring a bottle of wine

Book: e-mail luizhara@hotmail.com

What others are saying of Grazing Asia:

The Skinny Bib

Hungry In London

Wai Yee Hong

Fernandez & Leluu

Hot & Chilli

 

London Supper Club Review – Leluu Supper Club

One of the pioneers of the supper club movement in the UK, British-Vietnamese Uyen Luu is the brains behind Leluu Supper Club, an offshoot of the late Fernandez & Leluu (F&L) of Hackney, London.

I visited F&L countless times over the last two years and reviewed Uyen’s food and hospitality here, here and here. Evenings at F&L were always fun, with plenty of excellent food, laughter and great company. I met some of my dearest friends at F&L and spent many a night sharing meals and chatting with other diners.

Some might argue that with new supper clubs and pop-ups being launched every other day, the novelty factor is dwindling. I disagree, and if anything, nearly 3 years after the first supper clubs appeared in London, I still keep meeting people who have never experienced a supper club and would like to try one but do not know how to go about finding them.

Recently however, there were a few worrying comments that were made by friends who visited some of these new supper clubs. These varied from having to wait for hours to be served tiny amounts of food to experiencing uncaring or unprofessional service, at sometimes inappropriate venues. I would hope that if a supper club host decides to open his/her home to the public and charge for the experience, they will have worked these issues through before launching, and be confident that they can feed and provide a fun atmosphere and venue to their diners. It is true that a supper club is not a restaurant, but if I am being charged £35 for food (equivalent to what several one-Michelin starred restaurants are charging for a three course meal in London), I would expect my host to demonstrate pretty good standards of cooking and hosting skills. With so many supper clubs in London these days, some of which have been around for nearly 3 years, there is really no excuse for shoddy food or service.

So I was looking forward to returning to Uyen’s home and experiencing her new supper club incarnation Leluu Supper Club because:

1. I knew I was going to be really well fed

2. Her home and supper club are beautiful

3. It is the most professional set up of any supper club I have been

4. I really enjoy meeting the diners who frequent her supper club

5. It is a very good night out

Accompanying me on the day was Dr G, and my friends Julie Vu and her partner Ryan, owners of the Vietnamese City Caphe, my favourite lunch spot in the City. We arrived at Uyen’s to be greeted with a glass of wine, making our way to her garden to mingle and chat with the other diners until dinner was served at 8pm.

I was pleased that Uyen decided to give a more Vietnamese focus to her supper club since the demise of F&L, as I feel she provides Vietnamese dishes that are not normally found in London restaurants. Uyen will serve up to 8 courses at her supper club and if like me, you love having many different flavours and textures in your meals (as opposed to just quantity), you will be sure to find them there. Some of the delicious dishes we were served included:

Homemade Grey Feather Back Fish Cakes with Dill, Ong Choi and Chilli dip

Summer Rolls with Poached Pork Belly, Prawns, Perilla, Cockscombe, Garden Mint, Coriander and Vermicelli

Bun Bo Hue - Spicy Lemongrass & Pig's Trotter Soup with Beef, Perilla, Banana Blossom & Sweet Basil

Chicken Salad with Carrot, Banana Blossom and Hot Mint

Bo La Lot - Sirloin Steak with Lemongrass & Sesame, wrapped in Betel Leaf

Yam Noodles with Tofu, Carrots, Ong Choi, Shiitake Mushrooms and Peanuts

Banh Xeo - Coconut & Beer Crepes with Pork, Prawns & Beansprouts

Tapioca Pearls and Banana in Coconut Milk

We had a great table at Leluu Supper Club, a mix of American tourists (mother, daughter and friend) who had arrived in London on that day, a delightful Parisian couple who were sitting next to me with their Mexican friend (and if you are reading this, please get in touch for that Peruvian meal!), and my friends Julie and Ryan, and Dr G.

I thoroughly enjoyed my evening at Leluu Supper Club, and if you are a supper club supporter as I am, there is no better place to experience this than at Uyen’s.

Cost: minimum donation of £35 per person, BYO.

Likes: best Vietnamese food in London, stylish venue, great night out. Vietnamese cooking classes.

Dislikes: None.

Verdict: One of the best supper clubs in London, Leluu Supper Club exemplifies why this movement is here to stay. Excellent food, gorgeous venue, great host. If you haven’t experienced it, just go. Highly recommended.

London Restaurant Reviews - Rodízio Preto

In my quest to find London's best rodízio restaurant, I met up with fellow Brazilian food blogger Rosana McPhee of Hot & Chilli and headed to the Victoria branch of Rodízio Preto.

For those not familiar with this style of Brazilian restaurant, there is more information in my earlier post on Rodízio Rico which you can read here. As explained, rodízio derives from the word "to rotate" and the term is most commonly applied to restaurants serving barbecued meats (also known as Churrascarias). In such restaurants, waiters go around the tables holding skewers with large pieces of barbecued meat which they will slice at your table. Green and red cards are given to each diner, and these are used to let the waiters know when you have had enough, or decide to have a break. A fixed price is paid per person, which entitles you to eat as much as you like of your favourite dishes. Prices and quality of ingredients and cooking vary tremendously from place to place in Brazil, but are generally of good standard and value since competition among this style of restaurants is fierce.

With two branches in Victoria (Wilton Street) and Putney (Putney High Street), and a third opening soon in the West End (Shaftesbury Avenue), Rodízio Preto is the second largest Brazilian rodízio restaurant in London after Rodízio Rico.

Unlike many other restaurants of this kind with their hideously fake Gaucho-style decor, their smallest branch in Victoria has a modern feel,  with brightly coloured walls, plain dark wood tables and a TV screen playing Brazilian music videos (I could have done without the latter).

The hot buffet was simple and had fewer choices than Rodizio Rico's. It was beautifully displayed containing some traditional Brazilian dishes like Salada de Chu Chu, Baiao de Dois (rice and beans, cassava flour and meats), Frango com Milho e Batata Palha (chicken and sweetcorn bake with matchstick chips) among others. 

We felt that most of the buffet dishes were good but some items, like the deep-fried polenta and the Pao de Queijo, would have been better freshly prepared and served at the table rather than being batch cooked and left on the warming tray.

A big advantage with RodízioPreto is that Feijoada, Brazil's national dish of black beans and pork stew served with rice and fried spring greens, is available at weekends along with the more usual hot buffet and barbecued meats. If you have not yet tried Feijoada, I really recommend it.

Rodízio Preto serves up to 15 different cuts of meat. Rosana and I felt that the quality of meats served at Preto was good and that they had the edge over Rodizio Rico's. There were some outstanding items including picanha (top sirloin) marinated in garlic and a very succulent and tender cut of pork fillet. All the meats were simply but well seasoned and were offered either rare, medium rare or well done.

Rodízio Preto offers a good selection of Brazilian and other international beers at around £4 including Itaipava, Bohemia, and Brahma. More impressive is their well priced wine list with a respectable range of wines from Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Italy including several bottles under £20. On our visit, Rosana and I shared a bottle of excellent 08 Chianti Classico priced at a very reasonable £18.70.

I was surprised to see the Brazilian Miolo Millesime sparkling wine (a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) offered at £25.20 while the same bottle is priced at £35 at Rodízio Rico. Again I felt that Preto offered better choices of wine and at more affordable prices than its main competitor.

Cost: £19.95 per person for unlimited hot buffet, salad bar and grilled meats (£3.55 less than Rodízio Rico @ £23.50), or £14.95 (hot buffet and salad bar), £4.95 for children under 12 years old, excluding drinks and desserts. I believe this to be great value, particularly for meat lovers and families with children.

Likes: good quality and range of Brazilian grilled meats, friendly service, Feijoada available at weekends, great value, well priced wine list.

Dislikes: some items from the buffet would be better freshly prepared and served hot from the kitchen directly at the tables including Pao de Queijo and deep fried polenta. I really dislike restaurants with television screens.

Verdict: Rodizio Preto is the best restaurant of its kind in London serving good quality barbecued meats and other traditional Brazilian dishes at very reasonable prices. Friendly service and lively atmosphere. This is the closest you will get to the real Brazilian rodizio experience in the UK. Highly recommended.