ketchupkid's Profile
[London] Tea and tearooms...
Maison Bertaux, Greek St in Soho has an adorable, unreconstructed retro tea room ...order your drinks and cakes at the counter then wind your way upstairs. There's also seating outside under a stripey awning, on the ground floor and a new tea room next door. It's historic (Charles de Gaulle drank thimbles of coffee here while organising the French resistance during WWII) and the cakes (esp the macaroons) are proper old skool patisserie baked on the premises. It is my favourite café in London.
Cupcakes in London?
Hey! You must try Ms Cupcake's delights...she makes *vegan* cupcakes though you would never know...her flavour combinations are inspired...at the moment she's just doing private orders but she does seem to pop up at different hip events around london giving out free cupcake love...
http://www.mscupcake.co.uk/
Work emergency! Private dining rooms
Hibiscus in in the centre of town, has a michelin star and a private dining room...and the food is superb.
http://www.hibiscusrestaurant.co.uk/
Also Le Cafe Anglais has a delightful private room, and chef Rowley Leigh *is* a star- he writes for the FT and his restaurant lifts the spirits and feeds the soul
http://www.lecafeanglais.co.uk/
Poor college students need cheap eats in Central London!
what about cha cha moon off carnaby street? pretty much everything on the menu is £3.50 and deee-lish. Food is Malaysian/Chinese/Singaporean, atmosphere is cool...
Also Imli on Wardour Street and Masala Zone both do great Indian at v reasonable prices, and v fresh too. These two often have special offers on (2 for 1 at Imli at the moment) If you're hanging in Soho, I'd recommend these three!
And If you're interested in street food, check out Whitecross Street, not far from Kings Cross. On Thurs & Fri they have a brilliant food market with stalls selling prepared food from every corner of the world served from decorated vintage vans! Cheap and atmospheric...plus there are some cool shops & galleries on Whitecross Street so you can window shop while you stuff your face.
Franco Manca - Underwhelming
maybe not your neck of the woods, but the pizza at Il Bordello in Wapping is fantastic- and there's a great Italian deli cafe - Gastronomica Wapping- just up the street. And have you tried Maletti in Soho?
I'm ex-Brixton and remember when Franco Manca was just Franco's- and eating pizza surrounded by pink polyester knickers and cut-price socks made for great atmosphere. Back then, Franco's had the best pizza in London....this was about 10 yrs ago. Am intrigued by Franco Manca and will make the effort to get down there and try it. Thanks for the pizza riff- i'm originally from New Jersey where pizza is SERIOUS, and have spent the better part of my 16 yrs here in London trying to find the best pie in the city.
Need recs for Dublin restaurant gift cert
How about the newly opened Bentley's? It's an outpost of the amazing London restaurant of the same name, with michelin-starred chef Richard Corrigan at the helm. Bentley’s Dublin is in romantic Georgian townhouse right in the centre of town, it offers a boutique hotel, restaurant, oyster bar and cocktail lounge....sounds just great! I've eaten many times in Bentley's here in London and it is superb- fish, seafood, trad dishes with a definite modern twist, and an impressive wine list.
