Dawn breakfast at Duck and Waffle

Lets start with yes, I'm crazy, and no, I'm not a morning person...This is the truth about what really happens when you go to a dawn breakfast at Duck and Waffle, London's highest restaurant sitting on the 40th floor of the Heron Tower.

9.43pm (eve of) Get into bed & set alarm for 4am. Your phone almost dies in shock. Curse your cockamamie ideas.
9.51pm Snug and warm in bed, realise you haven't packed your camera, don't get up, switch your watch to your other wrist so it's a reminder in the morning.
4.00am (day of) Alarm goes off. Swear. Hit snooze....Hit snooze a few times actually.
4.15am Roll out of bed. Swear again because the hearings not on. Turn heating on, get back into bed.
4.30am Sh*t, you're probably going to run late. Roll unwillingly out of bed. Grumble. Get ready in a frenzy and bolt out the door.

4.50am Text friend and ask how many times she has cursed you this morning.

4.52am Friend texts back. 'Maybe just twice since I got up'. Could be worse.
5.10am Realise too late that you forgot your camera* and swear on the bus. Get odd looks from the only two other people on bus.
5.17am OMG you can actually get a seat on the tube! Damn, forgot to bring a book.
5.20am Moan on Twitter that you forgot your camera. Twitter cares. Twitter loves you.
5.30am Scare Warn Duck and Waffle on Twitter about your caffeine-less state and tell them to ready the flat whites!
5.50am Geez it's quiet. And why are there other people around? They can't all be going to Duck and Waffle. Are they crazy?
5.53am Crap, still at Bank. You're going to be late. Swear, quietly.
6.02am Its still dark outside. You're definitely late. Stop and take a photo anyway.

pic
6.04am Made it! Say hello to equally crazy friend. Order a coffee STAT. Hide the crazy till it arrives.

6.09am Wow. Its really something up here....

6.20am 

6.30am Oh crap, I cant eat all that.

6.31am

6.34am

7.00am

7.06am

7.09am

7.15am Order a second coffee. You need a second coffee. The first one is just to keep you awake, the second is so you can function.

7.30am Defeated by a waffle :(

8.00am Grumble about having to go in to work. Have epiphany that work pays for Duck and Waffle and other crazy ideas. Take grumbling back and replace with grudging acceptance.
8.30am Arrive at work, gloat to workmates. Bump up grudging acceptance to "it's not so bad really". Don't worry, it doesn't last.

*A big thank you to R @wildgastronomy for lending me her phone to take some pics and lending me her pics!

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Dinner on the tube - A quirky London dining experience

Finally over my jet lag and the epic delay, what better way is there to get stuck back into London life than dinner on the tube? I'm not talking about stinking up the carriage with fast food during peak hour, a big no-no in commuter London, I'm talking about the people at Basement Galley of course. Tickets to this underground supper club, held in an decommissioned 1967 Victoria line tube carriage, sell out fast so I made sure to quickly nab a couple back in November last year.

Entrance to the restaurant

I was in for a fun night. Sitting in a tube carriage with a long table covered in white linen, and set for an evening dinner is odd to say least, especially as I travel on the tube every day. The map of the Victoria line, and other typical tube insignia are all around us (thankfully all adverts have been removed!), the only thing missing, as one fellow diner said, is a copy of the Metro discarded on the window ledge. I almost expected to hear the occasional announcement advising that we are being held at a red signal, or as my friend E- said, one asking us to 'mind the gap between the plate and your mouth' ;)

E- sitting at our table for the night

While there were tables for 2, it was nice to sit with others at our long table. We got to chatting with two couples and exchanging opinions on the food for the evening. I do think that if I went on my own, while perfectly fine, I might have felt a little awkward so if you go, drag a friend along and if you want to go on your own, don't be shy, strike up a conversation with your neighbours.

A table set by the doors - you'll never see this on the tube!

Throughout the dinner, the staff were very attentive, friendly and always checking that we had everything we wanted. Tip: If you book a dinner here, take some change with you to tip the staff later, as everything was paid for beforehand, we didn't take anything with us and it was a shame.

Intimate tube dining for two

Each course throughout the night was delicious, but the first and last courses were my favourite. The combination of flavours in the first course was perfect, the croutons crunchy, the sumac adding a surprising tang and the sweetness of the apple gel complementing the other savoury elements.

Whipped goat's curd, confit pumpkin, apple gel, sumac and rye bread

The second course was the favourite dish of our fellow diners. Turns out I'm not a huge fan of grapefruit but I did enjoy the hunks of salmon with the hazelnuts, quite a surprising and yummy combination.

Caramelised grapefruit, roasted hazelnuts, camomile syrup, cured salmon and dill

Our main was a very generous griddled duck breast served on curried parsnip drizzled with smoked porter reduction accompanied with roasted beets and topped with fortified berries. The duck was tender the reduction so delicious we all wanted more of it. We all thought that the curried parsnips was little too strong but that didn't stop any of us polishing off every last bite of this warming dish.

Are you drooling yet?

To finish up our courses, we were treated to a very unusual ice cream, citrus and rosemary, which I had misgivings about but was utterly delicious, I could have it on its own anytime! The ice cream was served on top of a crystallised almond crumb (nice crunchy texture), chocolate and pickled pear tart. The pickled pear was diced finely and had a hint of ginger which worked well. Overall, a very tasty and interesting desert dish.

The last stop - it disappeared off everyone's plates in seconds.

After dinner Chef Alex Cooper, having laboured away for our dining pleasure, came on board to chat with us and see if we enjoyed it all. It was nice of him to come out and he got resounding positive feedback from all of us. You don't always get to meet the person making your dinner at a restaurant, I think it was a nice touch. I guess that is the beauty of a small supper club and such a talented chef. You can also tell a dining success when the tables are left like this - not a morsel left, the plates almost licked clean! Blame the ice cream for this one.

The aftermath of a delicious dining experience

I hardly wanted to leave at the end of the dinner. It was such a surreal experience. I don't think I've ever spoken to another person on tube (its really not a done thing in London, if you ever try to strike up a conversation with someone, you will get some weird looks) and here we were, seated next to strangers and daring to talk to them!

The proper way to climb out of your seat on exiting after dinner...

There is one thing I don't get, and this question is perhaps for the folks at Basement Galley, or those (ladies only) who have dined here before...what on earth...'incinerator'???

London does have some unique venues to dine in, but if you don't fancy grabbing a coffee in a converted Victorian toilet or trying to guess whats on your plate while dining in the dark, then this one is for you. Give it a try, let me know what you think.

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Brunching at The Providores in Marylebone

Marylebone high street, only a short walk from Oxford Street, is a great place to escape to in central London. Its full of cafes, restaurants and shops, and retains a little bit of a 'village' feel. Because its so central, its a great half-way meeting point to catch up with friends. And that's how I came to be at The Providores for a spot of brunch with a friend of mine one weekend.

As we didn't have a reservation,we were lucky to snag a seat in the busy Tapa Room on the ground floor and quickly ordered coffee - that's the only incentive that can drag me out of bed before 10am on a Saturday - while we ummed and ahhhed over what to choose from the menu. Being run by two Kiwis, it was nice to see Vegemite on toast on the menu.

From sweetcorn and blueberry fritters, French toast, fruit salads to tortillas and fry-ups, everything seemed to have a bit of a twist. I ended up ordering a veggie fry up (my breakfast taste buds can be so boring sometimes), while my friend gave me serious food envy...

She'd ordered the Turkish eggs on whipped yoghurt with hot chilli butter and gluten free bread with a side of avocado and bacon. My gosh did it look good. It even sounds good doesn't it? I really wanted to order it too but was worried it might be too spicy. It wasn't...next time that's what I'm getting! When it arrived, everything was delicious.

The Tapa room was buzzing with chatter while the staff swiftly took orders and delivered food to ravenous customers. At our window seat, my friend and I caught up while people watching. We couldn't help feeling very lucky as people came in wanting a table but having to either wait or find an alternative. It did get a little too noisy after a while due to the small space - or maybe the coffee kicked in ;) Either way, we were happy to move our catch up to the high street and wander a while, explore a bookshop or two - not a bad start to the weekend don't you think?

Any other brunch spots you think I should try? Whats your go-to brunch dish?

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Are you afraid of the dark?

I wasn’t going to tell anyone this. In fact I was very serious when I said, quite sternly to a certain Kiwi, "That never happened". But there are moments which are just too funny not to share. One such moment happened to me in the dark. Please wrench your minds out of the gutter. I said funny, not dirty. Ahem. Anyway, I was in the dark and I was having dinner. It was so pitch black that I could not see my hand in front of my face. I had to feel my way around my table, yup, there's the cutlery and…pat pat pat…yep there's the glass of water…mmmhmm, feels like a square plate…ok now the tricky part, fork in hand, lets find the food on the plate. A methodical light 'scraping' and…found something! Eureaka! Stab it! Quick! Before you lose where it is! Hahaha! *smug look* Yeah, no one can see that. Now to actually eat it. "Woohoo! I found my mouth!" Um, yeah, I actually said that last bit out loud. In a still relatively quiet restaurant. But I had to laugh, and the lovely Emma (the Kiwi in this story) had the generosity to laugh at with me too. Thankfully no one can see you go red in the dark.

Arriving at Dans Le Noir, the hostess sat us down and explained the process before asking us to choose which menu we preferred and taking our drinks order. The menus are generic (meat, seafood, veg, 'suprise me') and you can make dietary requests. Once that was sorted, we were asked to place all glowing/light generating/shiny objects, jackets, bags, scarfs and the kitchen sink into a locker before being taken to meet our blind waiter Darren. Introductions made, it was time to go in. Right hand on each others right shoulder, Darren led us beyond the heavy red velvet curtain and into the darkness. It wasn't a gradual loss of light, almost as soon as we'd stepped through, and the curtain had closed behind us, it was pitch black. I could not see a thing. I have to admit, I had a "Holy sh*t! What have I done?!" moment and maybe a bit of a "What excuse can I come up with to back out without looking like a coward" moment too. But it can be really surprising what you learn about yourself when you push through challenging moments. Have I said moment enough times yet? Moment, moment, moment.

Total trust and rationality got me to my seat. The feel of the chair and the table, oddly grounding. The voice of my fellow diner, reassuring. Especially when the both of us started giggling away at how surreal it all was. But it was fine, after the initial nerves died off, we both settled into the amusing challenge of eating in the dark. Darren was great and learning to eat without being able to see was surprisingly easy - sort of. There may have been the occasional use of fingers to find/eat/poke the food...what? Its not like anyone could see what you were doing!

What I learnt

• How to pour a glass of water without spilling.
• How much I rely on seeing someone speak to 'hear' them in a noisy room (and the restaurant did fill up and get quite noisy)
• I do things subconsciously, like gesturing when I speak, even if no one can see me.
• In a normal restaurant, I don’t think about or 'taste' what I'm eating. Its as though just knowing what I ordered, my brain supplies the flavour when it sees the food presented. Unless its an amazing restaurant where the flavours blow you away.
• Seeing food is part of the pleasure in dining out for me.
• Just how much I rely on my vision – to feel safe, to 'read' people, to get around and be independent.
• Just how little I rely on my vision – my body knows how to do stuff without my having to really think about it; think muscle memory.
• I will never stop seeking and trying such weird and wonderful experiences.

Tips to make it through the dark

1. Keep your wits about you.
• You need to trust that a) Your waiter knows his way around the room and will make sure you reach your table safely and b) You wont trip, this is a business who knows people cant see where they're going so they are not going to put anything in your way
2. Don’t Panic
• No one is going to jump out at you.
• You aren’t going to be left on your own.
• You can leave at any time.
• You will get used to the darkness once your mind builds up a mental image.
3. Feed your mind anything you can for a mental image
• Use your sense of touch to 'see' your chair, table and items on the table.
• Use your hearing to figure out where other people are, where they are and how far they are. This gives you a sense of space and your place within it.
• Use your imagination. Its like daydreaming, you can 'see' things in your daydream and this is no different.
4. Go with a friend
• You can go alone, but having someone to share the weird experience with helps it feel real. And chatting to someone distracts you from your initial discomfort.

The food

To be honest, I wasn’t blown away. It was average. But that may have something to do with the fact that I couldn’t see it and didn’t know what any of it was. I'd love to do an experiment where I did the whole thing again knowing what I was eating to see if it affected the taste. My one criticism, which has nothing to do with not being able to see, is the temperature of the food, it was warm, not hot, and one dish was actually slightly cold. So, don’t go for the food, go for the experience ;)


Would you try eating in the dark?

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Koya: The best Udon in London

Koya in Soho : source

I am being biased, I haven't really tried udon elsewhere in London, but I have been to Koya three times now and I had lots of udon when I was in Japan. The noodles in Koya are as good as the ones I had in Japan. And that's saying something.

If you don't know what udon is, it is a simple dish, thick noodles in a broth with some vegetables or meat or both. Warming and filling it makes for a hearty winter dish.

The thing I like about Koya is that it does one thing and does it well. They have some side dishes of course but really its all about the noodles. But you cant get bored either - each time I've been there, they have had seasonal specialities and on my recent visit on Friday, I ordered both my udon and small plate from there.

Small plate - Char grilled tempura turnips

Udon with mussels - seasonal special

Koya is a small restaurant based in Soho. They don't take bookings and usually, there is a line outside, but it moves fast, on my last visit I only had to wait 15 minutes to get a table. It was worth it though, I got my favourite table which over looks the kitchen. I could watch the chefs prepare each plate, see the attention to detail in each cut vegetable, garnish and plating, hear the clanking of pots, roar of the gas stoves and bubbling of water cooking the delicious noodles while devouring my own noodles.

Seating by the kitchen

I love Koya, not just because it makes great Udon, I love it because it feels like a place I could have walked into in Japan. Its small and busy and has great attention to detail. For an hour or so, I feel like I've taken a trip back to Japan minus the expensive plane fare :) If you haven't been and you love Ramen or Pho, you should definitely give Udon a try. And do let me know what you think ;)

Have you found a restaurant that takes you back to somewhere you've been?

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So-so dinner at Muriel's Kitchen, Soho, London

The warmth glows through the windows. Inside people are eating and chatting away. It looks homely, warm and welcoming. We take a peek at the menu and step from the cover of the green and white striped awnings to the bustle inside.

The staff are friendly, despite being busy, and we are seated after only waiting for 5 minutes. I order the Famous Beef Lasagne as they are out of the Chicken Harissa, and the Rainbow Orzo Salad. My friend orders Muriel's Homemade Fish Pie, the Ultimate Paprika Potato Wedges and, later, a chocolate milkshake.

It was a busy Saturday night in Soho and Muriel's Kitchen was busy. There was a comfortable level of noise, my friend and I didn't need to shout at each other to be heard. The decor inside is definitely homely, it exudes farmhouse kitchen with wooden panels, framed brass pans and cake tins.

Its almost 9.30 and when the food arrives I dig in. The first bite of my lasagne is delicious. But, sadly, the pleasure ends there. After a few more bites I notice that the lasagne is a bit salty and while the mince is generous, there's hardly any sauce. The Orzo salad is fine but a bit on the plain side with goats cheese that, while creamy, is surprisingly bland. My friend enjoys his fish pie, the fish being fresh and flavourful. The paprika potato wedges are disappointing, they are soft, no crunch or flavour and are served with plain yogurt instead of the sour cream and chives as stated in the menu.  The milkshake was also OK, not syrupy but the ice cream used wasn't very chocolaty at all.

Going by the menu and the number of people I was expecting a bit more flavour in the dishes and I was let down. I also think that for a Saturday night in Soho, to run out of the Chicken Harissa dish shows little planning in the kitchen. Plus I would expect the staff to offer alternatives to the dip accompanying the wedges rather than substituting without advice. Admittedly, the waiter did apologise and offer an alternative but only after I had brought it to his attention.

On the bright side. The atmosphere is lovely, the staff friendly and unflustered. They served a bottle of tap water and didn't include a service charge on the bill - big bonus points in my book. Oh and the brownies, they gave a sample as we were waiting to be seated, and they are delicious! I think that maybe Muriel's Kitchen would be better for breakfast/brunch or lunch, I'd give it a miss for dinner.

Have you been? What did you think?

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Mama Lan at Brixton Village

The busy 'back entrance' to Brixton Village

Brixton Village is fast becoming a popular London "cheap eats" hotspot. It doesn't take much twisting of my arm to get me to try a new foodie spot so when my friend Em suggested we head there for a dumpling dinner on Friday I could not wait.

An impressive line outside Mama Lan

We must have arrived at the perfect time (just after 7pm in case you are wondering) because, not long after we placed our order, a line started forming. I kid you not. This was no fancy-pants restaurant but yes, there was a line full of hungry onlookers staring at or delicious dumplings.

Prime seats! Watch the Mama Lan chefs in action

The lovely thing about Brixton Village is that you can sit outside without actually being outside thanks to the covered market. The outside space is also useful for the restaurants as actual indoor space can be limited. This ends up creating a a really nice vibe for dining out amongst chatter and provides ample opportunity to steal glances at your neighbours food who are at the next restaurant over.

You have to try the Prawn dumplings at Mama Lan

Em and I plonked down at a table just outside the main door to Mama Lan and were immediately provided with their simple menu. We ordered the steamed prawn and water chestnut dumplings, the pan fried beef dumpling, seaweed salad with sesame oil dressing and the spicy fried tofu and  Chinese mushroom and noodle soup. Plus drinks of course. I love eating out with Em, she is a big foodie and is always happy to share food. By the way, if you are not a fan of spicy food, like me, you can ask for it to be left out of the soup. Everything was good. The prawn dumplings though, were by far my favourite. And at the end, the bill for everything including drinks was under £15 pounds. Not too bad for London!

After paying we took a wander around the market hall to see what else was on offer. The popular eats were easy to spot with lines clogging up the avenue. There were all sorts of cuisines, Caribbean, Asian, Italian French, Mexican being cooked up in restaurants, their tantalising scents wafting out to lure in the hungry. People were everywhere digging into a plate of yummy-ness, chatting over a drink or mulling over which delectable dish they should try. 

If you haven't been to Brixton Village, give it a try, you are bound to find something that will have you salivating - just take a friend, coz, lets face it, we all want to try more than one thing on the menu ;)

Tips for visiting Brixton Village:

• Don't confuse it with Brixton Market, they have different operating times
• Take cash! Some restaurants operate a cash only policy
• Most restaurants are open for dinner rather than lunch so its best to go on a Friday night
• Best station is Brixton on the Victoria line (Brixton rail station will also work) and its only a few minutes walk from there.
• All the info you need can be found on the Brixton Village website.

Have you been to Brixton Village? What did you think?

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Birdhouse Cafe - St Johns Hill

Stepping off St Johns Hill into the the hum of the Birdhouse cafe we're greeted with the warm smell of coffee. It's busy, almost all the tables are full but we find one towards the back and take a seat. A staff member appears provides us with sunny yellow menus on clipboards and a jug of water.

I scan the menu, all day breakfast and a selection of Bocaditos are on offer. Everything looks good but I narrow it down to the avocado with mint and feta on toast or the mushroom and goats cheese bocadito. Both are tempting but the feta/avo combo is calling to me. 

My friend decides on the butternut squash, caramelised pecans, spinach, roasted peppers and roquefort bocadito. Along with two flat whites, we settle in for a cosy catch up. The Bocadito is a good size and they must have used up an entire avocado for mine though it could have been better with a little more feta. The coffee is good, leaning more to the bitter brew than I prefer, but full of flavour all the same.



Its a small establishment but it has a continuous stream of customers. Some take a seat, others ogle the dessert cabinet and some stop by for a takeaway coffee. Its a pleasant place, and aside from the lady at the register when we went to pay (maybe she was having a bad day but she seemed a little grumpy) the staff are nice and dont rush you.

I enjoyed the Birdhouse cafe because it has a chilled atmosphere, good coffee and they serve you water without you having to ask - something loads of "good" restaurants dont do. If you find yourself in Clapham Junction one day fancying a cafe that is not a chain and does a decent coffee, take a walk up St Johns Hill and try a cuppa there.

What cafes in London do you like? Any I should try?

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Dinner at Sushi Samba

Monday night i went to Sushi Samba for a friends birthday. He had been wanting to go there for a while and booked weeks in advance. Sushi Samba is located on the 38th floor of Heron Tower near Liverpool Street in London. It also has branches in New York, Miami, Chicago and Las Vegas. It describes its cuisine as a blend of Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian.

View from Sushi Samba

Arriving at the roped off entrance we were asked if we had a reservation before being let in to take the glass elevator to the top - boy was it fast. Its not one for those who are afraid of heights, but if you don't mind them, a spectacular view across London awaits.

Bar at Sushi Samba

Despite our booking, there was a 20 minute wait before we were shown to our table, but the food was worth the wait! Also, the bar area was an interesting place to while away the time, quirky chandeliers hung from the ceiling, there were views out over the city and in an outdoor area a tree took centre stage, lit up bright and orange and a bit whimsical.

Whimsical tree in outdoor area

Once shown to our table our waiter introduced himself. Jimmy, was professional yet friendly, attentive and very knowledgeable. My friend suffers from a few allergies and Jimmy was able to tell him what the ingredients were for each dish and offer customisation so he could still have the dish he wanted. Not once did Jimmy make my friend feel like he was doing him a favour. Simply brilliant. That's what i call real service. Jimmy also offered us little riddles to entertain us while we waited for the next dish to be brought out, we were so engrossed in solving them, we forgot to enjoy the views!!

Riddle me this...moving only two sticks how do you get the card outside the "glass" - you have to keep the shape of the glass

We decided to share and ordered two small plates and one main. When the food arrived, it was simply delicious. We started with the Yellowtail Taquitoes with lemongrass, avocado, aji panca, lime. They were on the small side but they were an explosion of flavour, the fish succulent and all the flavours complementing each other. I could easily have had five and still asked for more!

The next dish was a sushi hand roll, the Sasa. It was shrimp tempura, shishito (a small Japanese pepper), coriander, spicy mayo and red onion. They used quinoa instead of rice. I'm not kidding, I had my doubts, but heck yes, it really worked and it was oh so good :)

Our main, the Churrasco Rio Grande was divine. Three different types of meat cooked to perfection served on hot stones that made them sizzle as they were being brought out. We had a set of accompaniments (Farofa, fresh tomato/onion/cucumber salsa, Chimmichurri and spinich) but the meat tasted just as good on its own. The wagyu picanha was delicate and soft, if the whole dish was just that, i would have been OK with it! The ribeye was subt but could handle some of the stronger sauces. We substituted the chorizo for skewers that packed a punch with their herbs and spices. There was so much meat we didn't think we'd get through it but we were determined ;)

For desert we shared the chocolate banana cake with maple butter, curled plantain chips decorating top, and rum ice cream on the side. It had a crunchy caramelised top like a creme brulee and you could see pieces of banana underneath, it wasn't too rich or heavy but was sweet and light enough to enjoy (and manage to fit in) after our big meal.

All in all, it was a good experience, the food and service was exactly what i would expect from such a place and we weren't disappointed. Sushi Samba isn't an every day place but if you are looking to go somewhere for that special occasion, you wont be disappointed. My only complaint (if you can call it that) was the lighting, it was atmospheric but it was horrid to take photos of food so these photos don't do the dishes justice.

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