Sonny’s Kitchen Barnes

May 1, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Sonny’s Kitchen is hidden away in Barnes and has been a favourite of West Londoners for many years. If you don’t live around here, you probably would not even know of this place. Let me introduce you.

This local Barnes eatery has been owned by restauranter Rebecca Mascarenhas for a long time and she has recently partnered with Phil Howard, a long time local resident.

Sonny’s Kitchen has recently been refurbished and a new team is in place, headed by the super talented Head Chef Tommy Boland. Tommy previously worked at two star The Square with Phil for 3 years. You can see the fine dining influence on the new menu at Sonny’s.

Chef Tommy Boland, Bagpipe Champion

Chef Tommy Boland, Bagpipe Champion

Sonny’s is made up of a an upmarket deli, a stylish cocktail bar and a charming informal dining room with cosy blazing fires. The night we were there, the restaurant was full and the atmosphere was buzzing with conversations reverberating around the hard surfaces.

Our menu for the evening seemed simple on paper but was far from ordinary. We began with a grilled mackerel with fine potato salad, smoked eel and golden beetroot served with a light Montarels Viognier 2011.

Grilled mackerel with fine potato salad, smoked eel & golden beetroot

The next course of a creamy wild garlic velouté served with light and crispy ham hock beignet was an absolute delight. I could happily have a plate of the beignet all by itself.
Wild garlic velouté ham hock beignet
A taste of spring – a perfectly pan fried piece of pollock served with a vinaigrette of razor clams, barba di frate (friar’s beard) and leek hearts. Lovely firm fish with the contrasting salty bites of the barba di frate. and matched with the Seresin, Chardonnay Reserve – Marlborough 2010.
Pan fried pollock with a vinaigrette of razor clams, barba di frate & leek hearts
We then had the rather dramatically dressed roasted haunch of venison with beetroot purée, creamed cabbage, pickled pear & green peppercorns. A really robust dish of meaty venison offset by the sharp beetroot puree. This course was accompanied by a bold bottle of Gigondas, Domaine du Pesquier – Rhône 2009.
Roasted haunch of venison with beetroot purée
We had a surprise pre desert of a tangy tropical fruit salad with passionfruit, pomegranate and papayas topped with a mango sorbet. A great palate cleanser after the rich flavours of the venison dish.
Tropical fruit salad with mango sorbet
Then the pudding that was on the menu was served, an unctious crème brûlée with griottines cherries. This was served with a very lovely desert wine, the Ch Fayau Cadillac, 2008 – semillon, sauvignon blanc, muscadelle.
Crème brûlée with griottines cherries
It was a delightful meal with so many surprises. I didn’t know what to expect but the culinary talent behind this restaurant really shines through in the food. The cooking is of a standard that you would expect in the more formal fine dining establishments in Central London but how lucky that West Londoners get to enjoy such refined cooking in an informal setting. Sonny’s is also extremely popular for Sunday lunches and is usually full of local families.
Sonny's Kitchen Barnes
Do visit before the Michelin inspectors find it.
Sonny’s Kitchen
94 Church Rd
Barnes
London SW13 0DQ
Tel: 020 8748 0393
www.sonnyskitchen.co.uk

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Eat Cook Explore was a guest at Sonny’s Kitchen

 

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Dim Sum at Royal China Queensway

May 1, 2013 By Leave a Comment

This has been one of our favourite dim sum places in London for the longest time. It was one of the first Chinese restaurants that started serving dim sum in a nicer environment and with better service than the brusque approach in most Chinatown places.

Royal China in Queensway has a very big dining room, with space for many family sized round tables, each with their own lazy susans. The walls are lined with black lacquer screens which is their signature look that is replicated across the chain.

Royal China Queensway Dim Sum

I was there with my friend Fiona to review their dim sum menu which they serve daily. For those who are not too familiar with dim sum and how to order, they have pictures on their menus that help. Fiona asked me to order and this is what we had.

Dim sum being a Cantonese tradition, we had to have a soup as they do make really good soups- a nourishing Seafood coriander soup. As customary, we also ordered a pot of Oolong tea to go with our lunch.

Seafood Coriander Soup

Seafood Coriander Soup

Followed by an appetiser portion of crispy soft shell crab.

crispy soft shell crab

Crispy soft shell crab

We had an array of dim sum, most were done well but I found that the cheung fun was not fine enough nor was the skin of the Shanghai dumplings. It does take a very skilled dim sum chef to execute these dumplings perfectly and unfortunately in London we don’t seem to have many that are trained. Besides this, everything else was delightful.

I did like their variation on crispy duck with their crispy duck rolls.

Royal China Queensway Dim Sum

Prawn Cheung Fun, Crispy duck rolls, spicy dumplings, roast pork puffs, Shanghai Xiao Long Bao

Our other assortment of steamed and fried dim sum dishes arrived including my favourite, the prawn and chive dumplings. Fiona rather gamely tried the chicken’s feet which a lot of other English friends have balked at. It really is an acquired taste as Chinese people like to chew on the bones which is more flavourful, rather than opting for a large chunk of meat.

Royal China Queensway Dim Sum

Prawn and chives dumpling, chicken’s feet, Vietnamese spring rolls

We had lovely dim sum even though we probably ordered too much for two people. Since it was her first dim sum meal in a long time, it would have been wrong not to have a breadth of dishes. One of the comments was that everything came in multiple of 3 and that made it difficult for 2 people dining.

Dim sum always works better in a bigger crowd as you can order more varieties.  On the weekends, they serve a few more special dishes than the menu we had. Dishes like crispy suckling pig is available as a dim sum dish and if you see it on the menu when you visit, you should try it. Don’t forget to get there early on the weekends to beat the crowds.

Royal China Queensway
13 Queensway
London
W2 4QJ
020 7221 2535

 

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Eat Cook Explore was a guest of Royal China

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Harrisons – A terrific local eatery in Balham

March 26, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Balham is a part of London that I have not been to before. It is one of those London neighbourhoods where you would benefit from some local knowledge.

I am now deeply envious of the locals in Balham since my recent visit to Harrison’s. They have recently undergone a  refurbishment and the new layout has an open kitchen in the middle of the dining area.

Harrisons Balham Review Open Kitchen

On the night we were there, the bar was busy with some local after work crowd and the dining area was filled with early diners. The bistro style menu is not extensive, but has a lot of seasonal choices.It might look like a bar and you would probably expect the usual offerings of burgers and fish and chips but look beyond your usual choices and you won’t be disappointed here.

We sat at one of the banquette seats facing the open kitchen where we could see the chefs assembling the dishes. The central open kitchen separated the dining area from the bar area and all the activity created a lively buzz in the room.

Moving swiftly on to our delicious meal, we started with a very generous plate of lamb belly fritters, not something that you see on menus very often. Nice crispy pieces of meat, well seasoned and a joy to eat. The other starter we had was a very sizeable the crab trifle.

lamb fritters

 

Chicken liver parfait

For mains, my friend had the Goan fish curry with rice which was again quite substantial. There was a mix of fish in the curry cooked in a light coconut curry sauce and this was served with rice, raita and some side salad.

Goan Fish curry

Goan Fish Curry

I had the day’s fish special which was a very nicely pan fried piece of fish on top of some shellfish and a lovely sauce. It was delightful.

Pan fried fish

On the side, we had the most delicious crispy kale with pickled chilli and this is possibly my favourite vegetable side dishes ever. The kale was still crunchy, slightly sweet with a spicy kick. Seriously sensational. (Not often you can say that about a plate of leafy greens).

With hardly any room left, we shared a lemon tart for pudding. The thin pastry was well executed with a super tangy lemon topping. Superb.

Harrisons Balham Review

The cooking at Harrison’s is very good. It’s not surprising as the menu has creative input from the others in the family like Sam’s Brasserie, The Square and The Ledbury.

What was most impressive is their effervescent General Manager, Jenny,  who was super friendly and enthusiastic but has now taken off on a world tour. What a great asset to this restaurant. All the other staff we encountered were very knowledgable and friendly too.

If the fabulous food does not grab you, check out their cocktail bar in the basement. You get there by an almost medieval looking spiral stone staircase. At the bottom, you get a very intimate cosy cocktail bar with dark wood panelling, subdued lighting and  a large cocktail menu.

Harrisons Balham Review

It is obviously a real local favourite as it was packed the night we were there. The bar is open until 1am and there is a special deal where you get a free cocktail with your dinner receipt.

If you live anywhere near Balham, do check it out. It is a cut above.
Harrison’s
15-19 Bedford Hill, London SW12 9EX
Tel: 020 3589 2743

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Eat Cook Explore was a guest of Harrisons

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A glass of Chablis with your Chow Mein?

March 21, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Wine pairing is quite a tricky thing, especially when it is with non European food.

So many wines are overpowered by food with strong or spicy flavours. When trying to match wine and specifically Chablis in this case with takeaway food, the brain cells had to be awakened and taste buds had to be tingled.

The challenge was to match 2 wines, a Petit Chablis Domaine Sainte Claire and a Samuel Billaud Chablis.  In my area, the takaway choices are limited to nasty pizzas, spicy Indian or Chinese.

samuel billaud chablis

Firstly some tasting notes for the Petit Chablis: a light lemony colour, smells very fresh and tastes very light, slightly citrusy but not overly complex. This wine would be overpowered by anything spicy or overly sweet. I am a very enthusiastic student of wine tasting and am still acquiring the vocabulary and training my palate to discern those aromas and flavours that are sometimes used to describe wine like “leather”, “gooseberries”,  etc. I have to say that I have don’t have a memory of smelling anything distinctive from gooseberries but what do I know.

To  match with this Petit Chablis, I would pick a dish with light flavours to complement this wine. The ideal dish from my local Chinese would be the Sesame Prawn Toast which is slightly savoury and with no overwhelming flavours.

For the second bottle we tasted and matched the Chablis by Samuel Billaud 2011. Samuel is the nephew of a famous Chablis winemaker and used to work with his uncle at their family’s Billaud-Simon vineyard. Now he has branched out on his own buying in local grapes to make his wines. The bottles I got were 2011 vintages which was supposed to have been a great year for Chablis.

On tasting, this has a more golden yellow colour compared to the first bottle. It smells fresh, citrussy again but fruity too. On tasting, there is light acidity, a bit minerally which is characteristic of Chablis and quite rich.

This wine would go really well with  a main course of braised fish with tofu which is a slow braised fish dish with hints of oyster sauce and light soya sauce with a sprinkling of carrots, mange tout and spring onions. Served with plain white rice this would be a terrific take out meal. Anything like sweet and sour anything or spicy anything would totally render the flavours of this wine obsolete. It would go well with some lightly steamed seafood very well. Of course, the best and most natural accompaniment would be a plate of fresh oysters, preferably at a pavement cafe in Paris in the springtime.

EatCookExplore was sent the wine to review and match for this post.

 

 

 

 

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Taste of Spanish Sunshine at Zorita’s Kitchen

March 4, 2013 By 5 Comments

London never ceases to surprise me. Every now and then I still find parts of London that are a complete revelation to me. Recently I discovered this stretch of the river just down the hill from St Pauls and in the shadow of  the Millenium Bridge. Unless you had business in any of those ugly commercial buildings in the part of the City, you would never know that there are a few very nice eateries and bars along here.

Zorita's Kitchen London

One of these restaurants is Zorita’s Kitchen. It is not so much a restaurant as a wine bar, deli, organic farm shop and a casual dining room hybrid. Zorita’s is part of The Hacienda’s Company who own vineyards and organic farms in the Duero Valley in Spain.

What makes me instantly like this  place is that the Hacienda Zorita organic farm is committed to the preservation of rare and endangered species like rare breed like the sheep like curly haired Mangalita pigs. The meat from these animals costs 10 times that of the iberico pig and are used to make lomo but not the ones we were tasting that day.

Zorita’s occupy a stunning location overlooking the Thames and across the bridge from the Tate Modern and of course with spectacular river views. (Tip- a great place for lunch if you are off to see a show at the Tate Modern).

The “restaurant” is dominated by a semi circular table in the middle of the room which is where they do wine tastings. One wall is lined with a selection of their own organic wines, other Spanish wines and organic produce from their farm like this organic olive oil and cheese.

32-Zorita's Kitchen London (12)

Sheeps milk cheese aged 6 months in Syrah

Sheeps milk cheese aged 6 months in Syrah

Dotted around the room in a casual fashion are rustic zinc topped tables in keeping with the rustic style of the food and what they term “farm cooking”.

Zorita’s Kitchen has a menu that is a showcase of the all the best produce from the region. There are a lot of choices of their special cheeses and cured meats. In addition to that there are a few hot dishes and a menu for Tostas, hot toasted bread with a variety of toppings.

We kicked off with 2 platters, one of cured meat and one of cheese. My favourite was the delicate lomo followed by the meltingly soft and piquant chorizo.

Chorizo, jamon, salchichon and lomo from free range Iberico pigs

Chorizo, jamon, salchichon and lomo from free range Iberico pigs

Payoyo, Torta de Dehesa, Queso Curado, Syrah and Tomillo served with some quince jelly.

Artisan raw milk cheeses : From the top, Payoyo, Torta de Dehesa, Queso Curado, Syrah and Tomillo served with some quince jelly.

Then followed a bowl of warming beans and chorizo.

39-Zorita's Kitchen London (8)

The most delicious dish was this combination of ingredients which came in the form of a ripe figs, jamon and goats cheese, dressed with a balsamic vinegar glaze. Fresh flavours, perfectly balanced.

42-Zorita's Kitchen London (6)

Just to make sure we had a sample of every section of the menu, we also had a Tosta Hacienda Zorita which is toasted bread topped with tomato, garlic, olive oil, torta de dehesa soft ewe’s cheese and jamon.

Tosta with jamon, goats cheese and ripe figs

For pudding, we had the specially flown in Torta de Santiago, an almond cake which is a specialty of the region and difficult to reproduce with the required authenticity outside of the region. We also had a crema catalan ice cream and a glass of Pedro Ximinez to finish off the meal with a flourish. The chef Pedro had a little chat with us on the menu and it was clear that all the staff were passionate about the produce that they were working with. It reminds me of In Parma that I review recently.

Zorita's Kitchen Spanish

Torta de Santiago

Besides the wine tasting and dining room on the ground floor, the 1st floor houses their new member’s lounge for their Wine Club, tasting rooms and also the offices for their parent company’s wine business.

Zorita’s Kitchen are about to revamp their menu with a little help from Michelin starred chef Victor Guttierrez who will bring the soul of the Duero Valley to London.

Zorita’s Kitchen
Broken Wharf House,
2 Broken Wharf,
London EC4V 3DT
Tel: 020 7429 3253

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Thanks to Zorita’s Kitchen for hosting our delicious lunch.

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Yasmine’s debut with her Syrian Supperclub

February 26, 2013 By 1 Comment

I love to learn about different cultures and their cuisine. One that is quite alien to me is Syrian food until recently. I was invited along to a supperclub hosted by a newcomer to the supperclub scene, Yasmine.

This evening was held at her elegant family home in Holland Park. Yasmine Syrian heritage comes from her mum and the food we had is what they would cook at home.

Syrian Supperclub London Melba

In their beautifully decorated dining room hung with a lot of original art, she had laid out all the dishes she had spend the whole day cooking. Unlike other supperclubs I have been to, this one was done buffet style and more like a dinner party at a friends. It was very casual and very friendly as we all sat around the living room, chatting like old friends.

On the dining table was a colourful array of dishes, from swordfish, prawns, stuffed vine leaves (with the secret ingredient -dill), a very unusual orange, beetroot and pomegranate salad, a delicious smokey aubergine dip (baba ghanoush), lots of stuffed baby vegetables.

Syrian Supperclub London Melba

The flavours were very fresh and even though there was so much food (everyone had seconds) it wasn’t heavy. Nice contrast of sharp flavours in the salads, with the contrast of the creamy and smokey aubergine dip (my favourite dish of the night).

For pudding we had a very sweet pumpkin cake with ice cream.

We learnt that Syrian food takes a lot of influence from Turkish food being once part of the Ottoman empire. Over the years, Syrian cuisine has taken a lot of influence from the cultures that settled in Syria. The food is not dissimilar to that of Lebanon and other Mediterranean neighbours.

Syrian Supperclub London Melba

My friends and I felt like we had been invited to a family dinner with friends, it was so casual and the food was plentiful and delicious. Yasmine had even made some fabulous florentines with specks of lavender and hidden bites of crystallised ginger to go with little glasses of mint tea.

For her first attempt at hosting a supperclub, I think Yasmine did a grand job. The food was fabulous, the other guests were all very friendly, chatty foodies and she was a very gracious host. A total success and if she does some more, this is a supperclub not to miss.

Eat Cook Explore was a guest Yasmine’s supperclub courtesy of Melba, a new website that brings together new culinary talent to host foodie events at supperclubs and pop ups around London. It’s only a few months old and has already attracted a very impressive group of cooks and hosts. You can find more supperclubs like Yasmine’s on their platform.

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Hearty Pies and Real Ales at The Foundry Camden

February 19, 2013 By 5 Comments

Camden Town, is the land of endless kebab and fried chicken shops and where there really aren’t many real restaurants at all. Then there is The Foundry, which is a nice little restaurant off the main stretch and away from the crowds, on Delancey  Street.

Walking in off the street, your in the bar area which also incorporates the casual dining area. The portraits of jazz musicians on the walls hints at the theme of this restaurant and live music venue. This rooms leads onto a buffer space with a glass roof and a living wall which then opens up into the auditorium built for classical music performances. This “The Forge” which is run as a non profit organisation to gives young musicians a venue to showcase their talents.

The Foundry Camden

Upstairs, there is a spacious restaurant space with windows that can be opened up for the nights when there are live acts performing. The walls are clad in sustainable wood and like downstairs, more jazz singers watch over you as you eat.

Now on to the pies. The Foundry recently introduced Pie Day on Fridays where they will have a variety of pies on the menu.

A group of cold of hungry bloggers were ushered into the kitchen where the head chef did a quick demo on how they make their steak and ale pies and a sweet pear tart. The meat in the pie is slow cooked for about 2 -3 hours in a veal jus, Meantime real ale and a variety of aromatics until tender before it is used to fill butter puff pastry cases.

The Foundry Steak and Ale Pie

The sweet pear and frangipane tarts are made with a puff pastry base and filled with frangipane cream and topped with slices of pear before being baked for 15 ins in a medium oven.

Each pie we tasted was paired with a real ale from Meantime Brewing Company, the 2nd largest craft beer brewery in London. Rob from Meantime, a passionate beer brewer, shared some great historical stories on beer and how they make their beers and what inspires them to create their new beers.

meantime brewing company

When we sat down for the tasting, the first pie was an unexpectly robust vegetarian pie made with mushroom, spinach, parmesan and cream, seen here drenched in their delicious onion gravy.

Vegetarian Pie

This was paired with the London Pale Ale, made from an original Victorian recipe.

Meantime brewing company

Then we had a chicken pie which was paired with the Light Indian Pale Ale. This one had a fruity flavour and a citrusy tang. This was my favourite of all the beer we tasted that night as it tasted more like a soft drink than a beer.

Lastly, we had the steak and ale pie with the rich succulent slow cooked meat, crispy buttery pastry and lashings of onion gravy. Rich and unctious. Delicious. They paired this with the Meantime stout which is derived from the London Porter beer. which has a dark brown colour which has a slight balsamic flavour, with burnt toast and chocolate notes.

The Forge and The Foundry Camden

For pudding, we were served the Frangipane and pear pie that we saw them make earlier. A very light and crispy pastry and not overly sweet. The chocolate porter sweet beer they served with this complemented the sweetness of the pudding. This is one of the more modern beers that they make and was brewed using some secrets tips including using chocolate in the brewing process unlike some others who add in chocolate syrup or chocolate essence to an already brewed beer. There are hints of raisin and coffee flavours. Quite interesting.

If you fancy some great tasting home made pies, you must try the steak and ale pie. It is well worth the trip to Camden. Better yet, buy a few to takeaway too. Fridays are pie days at the Foundry.

The Forge has a full programme of musical events and there are some that include a dining option too. Check it out on their webstie.

The Forge and The Foundry
3-7 Delancey St  London
London NW1 7NL
020 7387 5959

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In Parma By Food Roots Fitrovia

February 6, 2013 By 8 Comments

The best thing about London is the never ending choice of great places to eat. Once in a while, we come across restaurants that are truly unique with delicious honest food that you just want to tell all your foodie friends.

Recently, I had the great pleasure of experiencing the food at In Parma by Food Roots in Fitrovia. This unique Italian restaurant is tucked away on a small quiet pedestrian lane parallel to Charlotte Street. Unusually, this place was conceived as a business idea while the owner was embarking on his MBA and was not dreamed up by an aspiring chef. As all Italians, they are passionately  loyal to their own local region, foodwise and we are so lucky in London that they like to share their abundance produce and specialties.

In Parma Fitrovia Italian Restaurant

In Parma is not a very big restaurant. At lunch time, it doubles as deli where you can buy food to takeaway too. It’s not a very big space,  the room is dominated with a bar on the right, a cosy nook in the window and a few smaller tables at the back.  The back wall is dominated by a revolving slide show of happy customers drinking their lambrusco, served in the traditional way in a bowl.

The decor is contemporary with a rustic twist, hams hanging from the ceiling and unfinished woods shelves to emphasise the artisanal nature of their food. The menu is like a culinary tour of the best of small producer in and around Parma in Italy. They have handpicked the products that they serve in the restaurant and most have the PDO or PGI designation. At first glance, the  menu might seem to be dominated by just cheese and cold meats but they do have a selection of hot dishes which are changed daily.

The wine list is eclectic and is also hand selected from small producers with prices starting at £20 and quite a few are served by the glass too.

After a lengthy explanation of the concept and the menu, our meal kicks off with a selection of aged Parmigiano  which is served on a wooden tray and is arranged by age, from 12 months to 36 months.  I love my aged Parmigiano and this tasting included a sublime example of the rarer cheese made with milk from the red cow.

Selection of Aged parmiggiano

We then had an antipasti plate of salamis and ham. On this plate we had my absolute favourite, Culatello which is not that easy to find in London. It is the most prestigious of the salumi from Italy and after maturing, its sweet musky flavour tastes a lot more complex than your average ham and makes the others seem so mundane. We also had some Parma ham and slivers of thin, melt in the mouth lardo of pure pig fat. Pig heaven! This was served with toasted bread and some pieces of Mostarda, candied mustard fruits, normally eating with boiled meat.

In Parma Fitrovia Italian (18)

We then shared a plate of pasta with walnut pesto and a plate of polenta with ragu from their daily specials. The walnut pesto made with crushed walnuts, cream and parmesan was a total delight. Quite simple yet packed with flavour. I am not a big fan of polenta as it is usually a soggy and tasteless mess. The polenta here was nothing like that and served with a slow cooked rich meat ragu was the first polenta dish that I might order again.

In Parma Fitrovia Italian

In Parma Fitrovia Italian

For pudding, they make a wicked tiramisu and the not-to-be-missed chocolate salami.  They also make a mean machiatto that only the Italian can.

Chocolate Salami

Chocolate Salami

tiramisu

 

In Parma is a little jewel of a restaurant. It’s really refreshing to find something like this in London. On the night we were there it was buzzing with a few cozy couples and a big office party. There was a nice buzz in the room, with terrific food, friendly service, all in all a fab local Italian.

You must go and feast on the Culatello, aged red cow Parmigiano and if they have it the walnut pesto pasta. One visit will not be enough.

In Parma By Food Roots
10 Charlotte Place London
London W1T 1SH
020 8127 4277

 Eat Cook Explore was a guest at In Parma

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New burger joint BRGR Soho

December 24, 2012 By 2 Comments

Another week, another new burger joint. This time it is BRGR in Soho. It is an expansion of a chain from Lebanon, strangely enough.

I was there on the first week. There was a queue at the door and a buzzy if cramped dining room. There are a few casual tables as you walk in, an open kitchen on the right where the burgers are cooked and second dining room at the back. There are also a few seats in the window to maximise the seating in this small space.

BRGR Soho Burgers

I dropped by for a quick lunch en route to a meeting. They squeezed me into the last free seat by the window felt by being wedged in by a shoe horn. There is no where to hang your coat or a handbag which is a big minus in my books. It felt like I was practically sitting on top of the tables behind me. Must have been uncomfortable for them.

I promptly ordered the 6oz Gourmet Signature BRGR (6.95 without the extras) and a Lebanese home made lemonade. The waitress informed me that the meat for the burgers are from the Duke of Buccleuch estate in Scotland. This sounds grand but doesn’t tell me much about breed or welfare. I guess at this price range, that could be asking for too much.

The head chef from Lebanon came over to train the new brigade in “brgrology” and to mix up their secret recipe for the burger patties which is made up of their bespoke blend of cuts. The meat patties are made up of hanger steak, rib eye, etc although this is not disclosed on the menu.

BRGR Soho Burgers

I didn’t order any sides as they were all enormous and way too much for one person at lunch time. They had a choice of chips, cheesy chips onions rings, the usual stuff.

BRGR Soho Burgers

The meat, served in glazed brioche, was served medium rare and was quite nice and chunky, good meaty flavour, well seasoned but drips all over the trendy tray that it is served on as you eat it. As far as burgers go it’s not bad, unlike the opinion of other reviewers on the net. Maybe because the boss was in the kitchen.

For the price I prefer Byron.

187 Wardour Street,
London W1F 8ZB

BRGR Co. on Urbanspoon
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The QOOQ Tablet Roadtest

December 21, 2012 By 2 Comments

If you are a regular cook, you would probably have struggled to keep your laptop or tablet away from the food and liquids in the kitchen while trying to read a recipe or watch a cooking video.

The answer to this is the QOOQ tablet that is a rugged, waterproof tablet designed for to be used in the kitchen and comes filled with thousands of professional cooking videos and recipes.

Qooq waterproof tablet review

Squeezing lemon juice over the QOOQ tablet

What is the QOOQ Tablet?

The QOOQ Tablet is the first multi media culinary tablet designed for cooks. It comes preloaded with thousands of recipes and accompanying videos.

The QOOQ is the first 10 inch touch screen tablet on the market and was launched even before the iPad. This product was created by its French founder as he wanted to learn to cook his mum’s famous cous cous and was afraid that the skill and recipe would be lost. As it happens, his mum is one of the featured chefs and her cous cous recipe can be found on this app/ tablet.

It is quite a nice looking gadget and is soon to launch in a multitude of trendy colours from lime green to fuschia. It is a bit chunkier than an iPad but it has taken other considerations in mind as it was designed to be used in a kitchen. The QOOQ has robust construction, is waterproof and quite durable according to the manufacturers, though don’t drop it from a height. It comes with an inbuilt stand with non slip rubber feet, so no need to prop that cook book or tablet on the nearest can to be able to read it while cooking.

Here are the specs:

  • It is linux based with it’s own operating system
  • It has an built browser
  • It has a high speed USB
  • You can connect via the ethernet
  • 8gb of memory and a SD memory card reader
  • Can subsitute as a digital photo frame when not in use
  • Has wifi
  • Proprietary smart software which will learn what you like and your cooking ability levels
  • 60% thicker glass than other tablets

What content comes in the QOOQ?

The QOOQ is basically a multi media cookbook and cooking coach. It currently has about 3700 English recipes written by about 100 chefs. Got 1000 recipes when you buy and you can buy upgrade packages for specific chefs. You can also add own recipes and share them with friends who also own QOOQ.

Each recipe has accompanying videos which teach you how to prepare the ingredients and takes you through each step of the recipe. The videos film the chefs hands in close up so you can see exactly what is happening which is quite helpful as most of the time, it is quite hard to decipher what a recipe means if you have never done it before.

You can also plan meals with the software and if you plan your meals a week in advance, the software can generate a shopping list for that week too which is quite a cool function.

They plan to keep filming new recipes in their purpose built kitchen studio in Paris. Currently, the videos available to the English speaking market are the original French ones voiced over in English. To expand into the English speaking market, they are going to be working with some British chefs, filming in English and will be adding more recipes in 2013.

How the QOOQ software works

  • You can browse by new recipes or by chefs
    The list of ingredients willl automatically be rewritten according to the number of people you want to cook for
  • You can watch the recipe videos as you go or even follow the links to generic technique videos too which is a nice touch
    The software gnerates a shopping list and it can send it to your smartphone

Roadtesting the recipes on a QOOQ tablet

A group of us were invited to the QOOQ HQ in Paris to test out the tablet. They set up up a little cooking competition for us where we had to make 2 recipes by the delightful Farida the Foodista, who is a TV personality in France. She is a lawyer by day and as a TV chef she says that she wanted to share her love of cooking simple delicious food with her recipes.

Qooq tablet Paris Farida

We got to meet another of the featured chefs in Paris that day, Chloewho also has her own TV shows on Cuisine TV. She is an ex fashion photographer, is a  judge on the French version of the Great British Bakeoff and opened her first cupcake shop in an old strip joint in Pigalle.

Here we get to find our way around the interface to find the chef and then to find the recipe. It all very intuitive so far with obvious menus and navigation tabs.

The first recipe we make is a Beetroot soup with goats cheese and the second one we make is a mango crumble.

Qooq tablet review

When we find the recipe, it has a tab for ingredients and this is where you can change the number of portions and the recipe will automatically adjust to the new amount of ingredients needed.

The recipe is laid out in steps and as we go down through the steps we can watch an accompanying video for that step. The videos are filmed in close up, so you see the hands of the chef and follow exactly what they are doing.

Review of the QOOQ tablet

At the moment, the recipes have been translated from French into American English, so the measures and terms will not work well with a British audience. The original French recipes have been voiced over in American English but they are working on a British version in the new year and the addition of new English recipes.

Alongside each step of the recipe, there are links to specific techniques like how to peel a mango in our second recipe. You can touch on the link and it opens up a pop up video with the technique video. When you finish watching this, you get taken back to the main recipe.

I think the content on the QOOQ is great and the interactive recipes and technique videos will be great for a beginner to an intermediate cook. You can learn about ingredients and how to prep them. But it will be even better when they have more recipes that are relevant to the British market and audience.

Qooq tablet review

You can also learn how to cook a variety of recipes that range from easy to cheffy. This would be a great gift for students and beginners to learn basic cooking skills on their own.

You can search for recipes by ingredients or by chefs. It has a built in glossary of ingredients. There is also a vast amount of information about wines too. On top of the recipes, there are a lot of chef interviews and a food magazine with lots of foodie features.

If you already own a tablet, you might not be tempted to buy another one just for the kitchen but if you are a real foodie, this is a great toy.

If you don’t buy the tablet, you can access their content via their website (currently only in French). They are working on a web version in English which will run on a subscription basis and this is expected in Q1 2013. The proposed subscriptions costs are at a monthly rate of £7.90 or £79 for 1 year.

The QOOQ tablet is available on Amazon in the US ($399), France (€349.90) and soon in the UK too.

Our day in Paris was not complete without some touristy pics of the beautiful city.

Views of Paris 2012

 

 

 

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