The Dairy - The Cream of the Clapham Crop

The Eatery: The Dairy, 15 The Pavement, Clapham Old Town, London SW4 0HY
The Site: http://the-dairy.co.uk/
The Companion: A perfect date night
The Dolla: £45 per person for a delicious tasting menu - great value
MCM Rating: 4.8/5

As a Clapham local, I'd been hearing the buzz around The Dairy for a few months. Michel Roux has famously hailed it as his favourite restaurant in South London and quite rightly. What's not to love about a small, unassuming local restaurant that totally surprises you with sophisticated food and a mean drinks menu?

The seven course tasting menu; an affordable £45 per person, is definitely the way to go if you want to experience The Dairy in all it's glory. Different dishes depending on the day. Served on a mix of heavy stoneware and contrasting pretty china bowls; the food is delicate and refined.

Snacks
The meal kick starts with a flurry of small, delectable dishes, the highlights on our menu were the Homemade sourdough bread with a bone marrow smoked butter, chicken liver mousse, cellar salami  served in a woven bag with the delicious smoky butter smeared over a smooth stone- very Game of Thrones! Followed by Chicken oyster; crispy skin, cellar kimichi, cimi de rapa - my favourite out of the snacks; great creamy flavour and texture added by the crispy chicken skin (every chefs favourite addition as of late).

Sea
Snacks were followed by lovely statement plate of Applewood smoked eel with heritage tomatoes topped with rooftop herbs (they grow their own herbs on their rooftop)! The other seaside plate was The Dairy's smoked trout served with Jersey royal potatoes, sorrel and radish - which I must admit, fell a little flat for me after the eel.

Land
There was a choice of  two meats on offer: 63 day aged White Park beef with comte, artichoke and onion treacle or Blackface lamb rump, smoked aubergine and pressed shoulder topped with miso. The beef was probably the winner here; tender and delicious - loved the artichoke and onion treacle.

Cheese
You pay a little extra to add cheese to your tasting menu, but when they bring over the Truffle Brie de Meaux, fig and walnut toast with rooftop honey, you definitely don't regret the decision so splurge!. A rich little plate with a combination of complimentary and delicious flavours.

Sweet
Finally, there was a unique selection of puddings to choose from including,; Lemon Leaf curd and Salted Carmel and malted barley ice cream!

 To top it all off and to thank you for your custom, they bring over a worn, old biscuit tin filled with warm, mini homemade doughnuts and dollops of sharp, sour apple jelly. A nice touch.

The Dairy definitely knows how to leave a sweet taste in your mouth at the end of the night; a feeling that you've found a little gem on your doorstep. A well thought out, delightful tasting menu, maybe not quite to Michelin standard yet but not a long way off.

MURAKAMI - Sushi, Sake and Skewers

The Eatery: 63-66 Saint Martin's Lane, London WC2N 4JS
The Site: http://www.murakami-london.co.uk
The Companion: A dinner date
The Dolla: A little on the pricey side..around £100 for a meal for two with a bottle of wine
MCM Rating: 3.5/5

Murakami is a modern Japanese restaurant on St Martin's Lane in Covent Garden. If you peer through the window the buzzing atmosphere and the playful decor makes you want a piece of the action.

A good list of cocktails and good fun picking out your plates with your pals. They also have pre-selected menus for groups if you don't fancy arguing over salmon vs tuna.

The menu's made up of sushi, sashimi, grilled skewers and tempura. Loved the presentation but the food was probably a little more impressive on the eye than it was on the palate. 

Everything was beautifully made and perfectly good sushi but the menu and flavours were lacking a little bit of inventiveness and oomph in comparison to the price.

Bottom line; their logo probably sums it up ' live, life, love...oh and there's some sushi too'! Not the new Nobu but you could try it out if you're looking for somewhere with some good atmosphere and satisfactory sushi!

The House Of Ho - Bringing Sexy Back To SoHo

The Eatery: The House of Ho, 57-59 Old Compton St, Soho, London W1D 6HP
The Site: http://www.houseofho.co.uk/
The Companion: Late night dinner with a date or small group of friends
The Dolla: A meal for two with drinks costs around £70

The deviously named 'House of Ho' is located in the heart of Soho on Old Compton Street. It's sleek, fun, sexy and the food isn't bad either! This is definitely a night-time venue, perfect for having a few sharing plates with friends along with some sake and a few too many delectable cocktails. I went for the cocktail of the month; the Ho'rny Devil of course; chilli vodka, lemongrass vodka, coconut water, a dangerously large Vietnamese Devil chilli floating on the top and coconut flakes frosting the rim of the glass.

The menu at House of Ho is split into Light & Raw dishes, Hot & Grilled dishes, Ho’s Dishes, Sides and Dessert. All the plates here are designed to share which adds to the fun and games.

Starting with the Light & Raw dishes the Crab Pomelo Salad is definitely a good option, it's light and fresh and is made up of a variety of different textures.

Crab Pomelo Salad, Vegetable Noodles, Mint, Lemon Oil & Crispy Vietnamese crackers

I also enjoyed the Spicy Salmon Tartar. Beautifully presented and again featuring a good range of different textures on the plate. However, I have to say I was slightly disappointed with the depth of flavours, for me Vietnamese is all about strong fresh flavours and fiery chilli - I found these dishes falling slightly short in this arena.

Spicy Salmon Tartar - Chopped Pistachio, Shiso, Jicama with Asian Vinagrette

If you're feeling like satisfying your guilty pleasures then go for the Spicy Chicken Wings and BBQ Baby Back ribs from the Hot and Spicy section of the menu! Probably give the Hanoi 5 Spice Quail a miss as it was fairly dry and bland!

Now onto the star of the show, mixed reviews on how delicious it might be based on this photograph, but I have to rave about the Shaking Beef one of the 'Ho's Dishes'. Tender, tasty and one of my favourite dishes of recent months - definitely worth giving it a go!

'Shaking Beef', grass-fed, 21 day-aged fillet

PLEASE give it a try with some Morning Glory, in my opinion one of the most delicious Asian vegetables you can find -I'm addicted.

Morning Glory

If you're feeling extra naughty, go for the Molten Marou Chocolate Cake (basically a chocolate fondant) - I couldn't resist.

The verdict - although head chef Bobby Chin owns restaurants in both Saigon and Hanoi, I have to agree with many of the other critics when I say that this is not the most authentic of Vietnamese restaurants, not necessarily always a bad thing, for example the elements of fusion such as ceviche are delicious and give the menu a good range, but for me it lacked the explosions of flavour you tend to expect from Vietnamese cuisine. However, I have to say that I did enjoy the food overall especially the different components that feature on the plates and the sharing element. The drinks have certainly kept me coming back for more and I can confirm that with it's sleek style House of Ho has brought a little bit of sexy back to Soho.


Food photographed by my gurl Amandine Powell

Flesh & Buns - a tasty combination

The Eatery: Flesh & Buns, 41 Earlham St, London WC2H 9LX
The Site: www.fleshandbuns.com
The Companion: Dinner with a SMALL group of friends or a casual dinner date (this is no place for a DMC or a romantic meal)
The Dolla: Meal for two including 2 cocktails, one small plate, two flesh and a dessert to share was £77 including service - not too shabby

You're not too sure what to expect when you descend the steep stairs into the basement of 41 Earlham Street, but with the music blaring and with the knowledge that this eatery comes from the same team as Bone Daddies around the corner you can't help but be just a LITTLE bit excited.

I have to admit I wasn't too crazy about the layout, the whole room is dissected in half by one long, communal table, you hop onto a tall chair (always a challenge for me) and find yourself getting rather cosy with the people either side of you. But after a little bit of maneuvering and the acceptance that at several points during your meal you may be elbowed by the nervous guy on your right trying to salvage his Tinder date, you're ready to get stuck in.

Watermelon & Kaffir Lime Collins and Lychee & Pomegranate Martini

The drinks menu is definitely something to get excited about; with  a huge selection of both cold and warm sakes served by the masu (cup) or by the carafe, or if sake isn't your tipple of choice then there are a variety of cocktails that won't disappoint. This time we went for the sweeter options served ice cold with fresh fruit; the Lychee and Pomegranate Martini (vodka, lychee juice, pomegranate syrup & orange extract) and the Watermelon and Kaffir Lime Collins (vodka, watermelon, kaffir lime syrup, soda). If you're a fan of tequila be sure to try the Frozen Yuzu Margarita (tequila, yuzu & lime juice, agave syrup, orange liqueur) - delicious.

Softshell Crab  - Jalapeno Mayo

Now onto the small dishes, you can go for the cold dishes such as the sushi rolls, sashimi or tataki or opt for one of the hot options, for me the crispy, juicy, softshell crab served with a spicy, tangy jalapeno mayo wins every time. I was also really surprised by how much I enjoyed the grilled corn - served on the cob with delicious lime spice butter.

Crispy Piglet Belly - Mustard Miso and Pickled Apple

At this point you probably will have realised that Flesh & Buns isn't the most authentic of Japanese restaurants, there's a bit of a fusion going on and they're definitely catering to customers who are drawn in by the latest ‘food trends'. However, I happen to be a sucker for a gimmick and in this case their gimmick has definitely payed off. For your main course, F&B serve homemade, soft and fluffy Hirata buns filled with your choice of 'flesh'. Each dish is served with lettuce, cucumber, pickle and two buns per person but you can always order more if you feel the need. Definitely, pick different fillings amongst you so you can try as much as possible!

Crispy Duck Leg - sour plum soy (beetroot pickle)

 The crispy piglet belly is their signature dish, incredibly tasty and perfectly paired with a spicy miso and tart pickled apple. Another popular dish is the crispy duck leg with sour plum soy and beetroot pickle - for me this wasn't too different from the crispy duck you would get at a fairly decent Chinese restaurant - nice but nothing special.

 Grilled Seabass - coriander, miso (kimchi pickle)

My absolute favourite 'flesh' is the grilled seabass, I've had it a few times and it's always cooked perfectly with the skin salty and crispy and the fish tender and tasty. I also love the little bowl of kimchee you get on the side.

Kinako Doughnuts - black sugar custard

Final bit of advice, this is a place where you should always leave room for dessert because F&B offers up a few which are pretty unique. I'm yet to try the S'more which I must say really intrigues me (marshmallow, chocolate and green tea in a biscuit) but I have absolutely devoured the Kinako (soybean flour) doughnuts which are oozing with warm black sugar custard; light and delicious. The sorbets (these tend to change depending on the day) are also a great option. I got three scoops of mango and kiwi, lychee and raspberry and tangerine - incredible.

Sorbet - 1.Raspberry and Tangerine, 2. Lychee 3. Mango and Kiwi

So the verdict? Yes, it is a bit gimmicky and yes, the noisy, busy basement venue might not be everyone's cup of tea but Flesh & Buns is always a lot of fun and boy are those buns TASTY! Jump on the band wagon....

Rum Kitchen - fun but a little bit more punch please

The Eatery: Rum Kitchen, Kingly Court Carnaby Street, W1B 5PW
The Site: www.therumkitchen.com
The Companion:Post work drinks and tipples with your mates or a boozy date
The Dolla: Around £25 per head for a side, a main and a cocktail (tip: don't bail on the cocktail)

A couple of weeks ago I decided to see what all the hype surrounding Rum Kitchen was about and went to check out their recently opened restaurant tucked away behind Carnaby Street in Kingly Court, Soho.

The atmosphere in there is great, you step in and feel like you're in a little beach shack in the Caribbean. Covered in beach hut planks and colourful plaques and with some pretty good Reggae and Calypso tunes playing, Rum Kitchen takes you away to a happy place.

Best to tackle the most important element first: THE RUM. They stock over 100 varieties of Rum at this glorious establishment and they've got a pretty hefty cocktail list which makes your drink selection a pretty hard decision. We went for the Grog - pussers rum, grog cordial lime & bitters with a splash of ginger beer and the Rubin Carter - their take on the Hurricane; dark rum, passion fruit and tropical juice - both had the perfect level of punch and were rather tasty.

Now onto the food, to start the freckley boyfriend and I shared the saltfish fritters with grilled lime and chilli jam - these were REALLY tasty and had a great texture; crispy outer and an amazing light and fluffy inner - hadn't had anything quite like them before.

For mains, we avoided giving into our usual soft shell crab weakness (a soft shell crab burger was calling out to me on the menu) and  ordered the Jerk Fried Chicken Thighs with shoe-string onion rings, pineapple slaw & rum jerk bbq ketchup. Jerk chicken is a personal favourite of mine and I have had a fair few in my time so my expectations were quite high. I thought the sides were fantastic - particularly the pineapple slaw (crunchy, tangy, TASTY) BUT for me there just wasn't enough flavour or spice to the chicken.

We also went for their classic; curried mutton with rice, peas and slaw. Again, the sides were tasty, the texture of the mutton was  pretty perfect  but it was lacking that extra Caribbean kick that you get for £5 at Notting Hill Carnival!

It was all going swimmingly until the mains which left me just a LITTLE bit disappointed - maybe I should have had the soft shell crab?!

Verdict is: this place is fun, different, serves some great cocktails and some pretty good food. I'd go here again and would definitely recommend it as a fun place to go with friends (or lovers) BUT in terms of achieving that rich Caribbean flavour - they really need to take it up a notch please - thank you kindly RUM KITCHEN.