Latest reviews by Jess_Hilton's friends

Chilango - review by walid

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:40:49 +0000

Chilango - review by walid

Rating: 4.2

Location: 142 Fleet Street, EC4A 2BP, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7353 6761

Website: www.chilango.co.uk

I love this place for so many reasons. The venue is funky, well laid out, and clean. The staff, are friendly, efficient and great to practice my Spanish with ;-)

Now as for the food, well so many places claim to offer authentic burritos, but too often they end up to be tasteless and soggy. The burritos at Chilango's are definitely tasty, fresh, and have a great texture. Without a doubt they are some of the best ones I've eaten in London.

It's amazing what the co-founders of Chilango have done, I'm really happy that we celebrated our "Day of the Dead" Party at Chilango and can't wait to go back there for my favourite burritos.

Pierre Victoire - review by walid

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 19:28:43 +0000

Pierre Victoire - review by walid

Rating: 3.7

Location: 5 Dean Street, W1D 3RQ, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7287 4250

Tags: french, good value, soho

I've been to Pierre Victoire a few times over the past few years and always found it to be a relative safe bet. What characterizes Pierre Victoire is pretty good food at a very good value. I went back there last weekend for a meal and had a fairly good experience. As mentioned the food at Pierre Victoire is pretty good French food but it isn't exceptional. I had one of my favourite dishes bavette with shallots. Now for me a bavette is a good fairly chunky piece of great beef. The one from PV looked as though it had been flattened. For dessert I had the tiramisu with amaretto biscuits, which was alright. Overall I like this place and would probably return there if only it didn't get as noisy as it usually does.

Busaba Eathai - review by walid

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:28:22 +0000

Busaba Eathai - review by walid

Rating: 3.8

Location: 106 Wardour St, W1F 0TR, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7255 8686

Website: http://www.busaba.com

Tags: good food, chance encounters, good value

I'll always have a very fond memory of Busaba Eathai as it's actually in this restaurant that I met this girl dinning a few tables away from my table... was a good moment.

Anyway the food is fresh, tasty, and thoroughly enjoyable. I also like the dark wood paneling across the venue. This place is obviously very popular as there's always a queue of people wanting to enjoy their great food.

The Cumberland Hotel - review by walid

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 10:38:53 +0000

The Cumberland Hotel - review by walid

Rating: 2.0

Location: Great Cumberland Place, W1H 7DL, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 0870 400 8701

Website: http://www.cumberlandhotel-london.co.uk/?gclid=CK6Ope2MkJUCFQ5NQwodEWbcgQ

Tags: bar, slow service, Marble Arch, cocktails, swanky, expensive, trendy

As you enter the Cumberland hotel you're quite impressed by its massive entrance that has this modern scifi feel to it. Anyway this review isn't about the hotel itself but the Kua Bar. The Kua Bar at first site looks trendy, spacious, comfortable, trendy and swanky. I was there attending a Courvoisier event and looked forward to trying out a few new Courvoisier cocktails including the one picture which had chocolate. The cocktails themselves were great, well prepared and well presented. Now if I stopped my review at this point I'd give the Kua Bar a 4 stars... however... and that's a big however the service was extremely slow. Not because there was too many customers or not enough staff but from what I understand misunderstandings and bad management by the staff. Both my drinks and the other guests with me took 15 - 20 minutes to arrive which is completely unacceptable, so because of this I'd give the Kua Bar a 2 star and probably won't be returning.

L'Esquisse - review by walid

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 10:30:09 +0000

L'Esquisse - review by walid

Rating: 3.0

Location: 73 avenue de Suffren, 75007, Paris, France

Phone: 01 47 34 90 56

Tags: jazz, steak, Paris, good value, italian

Had lunch at l'Esquisse with my mom last Saturday. L'Esquisse is conveniently located 200 meters from my mom's home and as it was a sunny day we decided to give this place a try.

As it's found on l'Avenue du Suffren you get quite a few tourists who come to l'Esquisse for a bite to eat. We sat outside on the terrace to have our lunch as it was sunny and not too many cars were passing by... it is August and all Parisians flee Paris.

First impression of l'Esquisse is that it's a nice clean and relaxing venue. Second impression, is was a funny waiter we had from Bayonne. He was just super friendly, funny, and entertaining, his presence tempted me to give this place a 4 star. As for the food, it was pretty good. I had ordered an onglet with shallots that was quite good, tender but I would have expected a little better.

I think the best time to try this place is at night as they regularly have a live jazz band and/or a piano player to entertain the guests.

Cafe Arabe - review by walid

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 10:14:29 +0000

Cafe Arabe - review by walid

Rating: 4.0

Location: 184 Rue el Mouassine, , Marrakech, Morocco

Phone: +212(0)24429728

Website: http://www.cafearabe.com

Tags: moroccan, mergez, marrakesh, couscous, free wifi, middle eastern, good value, lounge, cocktails, romantic

My brother, his wife, my friend and I were in Marrakesh about a month ago and whilst walking around in the Medina we came across this attractive looking entrance. It instantly reminded me, from the outside, Buddah Bar in Paris. So without further to do we went in and climbed the steps to go to the terrace. There we sat down on the comfy white sofas with a beautiful view of the old city of Marrakesh with the Atlas mountains in the background. The setting was perfect. As it was night we ordered a few cocktails, me having my traditional mojito which turned out to be pretty good.

The overall ambiance of this place is definitely one of a cool lounge with a mixture of tourists and Moroccans. The place is owned by an Italian and you can see some Italian influence in the decoration but also in the food, as I came back the following day to try out the restaurant. I ordered a Mergez Couscous which was divine, the couscous was perfectly cooked and the Mergez were very tasty, juicy and not overly spicy.

I'd strongly recommend you try out Cafe Arabe if you're in Marrakesh whether if you'd like a nice meal or simply an oasis of peace upstairs in the terrace with a few cocktails.

They also had free wifi which is great if you can't stay away from your work whilst on holiday ;-)

Maison Bertaux - review by walid

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:30:51 +0000

Maison Bertaux - review by walid

Rating: 4.5

Location: 28 Greek Street, W1D 5DQ, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7437 6007

Have been there for coffee and cakes a few weeks ago with a few friends. I love the decoration, it's quite original. As for the cakes I found them to be average and overpriced for the quality. If I wanted just cakes and no funky decoration then I would have gone to Paul down the street.

Le Pain Quotidien - review by walid

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:29:28 +0000

Le Pain Quotidien - review by walid

Rating: 4.0

Location: 18 Great Marlborough St, W1F 7HS, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7486 6154

Website: http://www.painquotidien.com/

Not to bad, but I personally prefer Paul which is close to Le Pain Quotidien

Gerry's Off Licence - review by walid

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:28:41 +0000

Gerry's Off Licence - review by walid

Rating: 4.4

Location: 74 Old Compton Street, W1D 4UW, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7734 4215

Friendly off license place run by a Greek I believe. Seems to know a lot about the area.

Hunan - review by sokratis

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 19:16:45 +0000

Hunan - review by sokratis

Rating: 4.8

Location: 51 Pimlico Road, SW1W 8LL, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7730 5712

Tags: chinese, best Chinese in Chelsea, best chinese in London, chinese gourmet

Gastro1 is absolutely right. Don't try too hard to decide on the menu. Youâ¬"re much better to allow the very friendly and discrete staff to take care of you. Let them know how hungry you are and if you have any general preferences and they will happily oblige. I went there with one of the venueâ¬"s best customers who knows the owner for about 20 years now, so had even more reason to sit back and simply enjoy.
Of course you have to be prepared for the downside. The food is so good and the atmosphere so relaxed that you will find yourself spending much longer than you planned for.
Our dinner started at 7pm sharp and finished at 11:15pm. During those four hours we proceeded to eat a wide variety of things that walk the earth, swim the oceans and fly the skies. I couldnâ¬"t possibly go through the list, but I would recommend that you try the shoulder of pork, which melts away at the slightest of spoon nudges and the crab with crispy noodle. We finished our meal with some greatly refreshing, frozen lychee liqueur served as a compliment. Great way to end the meal, which surprisingly (given the amount of food and drink consumed) did not leave me feeling bloated at all.
Towards the end of the night Mr Peng also walked the floor and greeted the customers personally. Itâ¬"s a very small, family-run place and such personal touches add very nicely to the whole atmosphere. Highly recommended.

Comptoir Gascon - review by sokratis

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:57:11 +0000

Comptoir Gascon - review by sokratis

Rating: 4.4

Location: 63 Charterhouse Street, EC1M 6HJ, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7608 0851

Website: http://www.comptoirgascon.com

Tags: french, romantic meal for two, Farringdon, good value, bistro

Blink and youâ¬"ll miss the Comptoir Gascon. That would be a shame though, as this little bistro in one of the best, hidden gems in Farringdon. The place is tiny, with probably 25-30 covers that can be served at any one time and serves as a deli as well.
Itâ¬"s frequently very busy. However, if you find yourself with another person and have not booked then ask the staff if you can eat at the bar, which is most often free. It makes for a much more intimate, romantic setting if thatâ¬"s what youâ¬"re there for or a fantastic place to catch up with a friend over some hearty, French food, beautiful wine and a relaxed setting.
I had the oysters with chipolatas to start, which exploded with flavour, although Iâ¬"d skip the chipolatas next time as they take away some of the freshness of the oyster. We shared some foie gras and as the Cooksister suggest it was superb. Seriously one of the best Iâ¬"ve tried.
For mains we both had the Beef Onglet with Bordelaise sauce. I was intrigued by the name of the sauce and immediately thought of French debauchery and some interesting background about a Madame offering a special sauce for her clients. However, after a bit of research it turns that (rather disappointingly) Bordelaise refers to someone/thing that originates from the area of Bordeaux. The origin may be mundane, but I assure you the flavour is not. Bordelaise is made with red wine, bone marrow (a chunk of which was also present on the dish), shallots and a rich brown sauce called demi-glace (thank you Wikipedia). Itâ¬"s rich, intense and will make you pause for a couple of seconds after youâ¬"ve put a bite in your mouth to really enjoy all those endorphins having a party in your brain. The meat was expectedly cooked a perfect medium-rare and was full of flavour.
Finally, I have to make a special mention for the chips, or French fries in this case. They were excellent, but the true superstar of the show was the ketchup. Apologies. Ketchup is too demeaning. This is the best chilly, 5-start, A+tomato sauce you can find. Itâ¬"s Basque and called â¬ÜBiPiA, Euskal Ketxupa, Bazkâ¬" Onaâ¬" . I have taken a picture of it, which you can see above and Iâ¬"d strongly recommend trying it. Even if youâ¬"re not hungry go to Comptoir Gascon and order chips with ketchup.
Minor gripe about the place is that there is only one toilet for boys and girls and itâ¬"s a little bit too close to the dining area. Iâ¬"m sure they would have changed that if they could, but the space does seem to be at a premium.
Next time you find yourself in Farringdon do try this place out. In fact make sure that you find yourself in Farringdon so that you do.

Eatzone Noodle House - review by sokratis

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:09:55 +0000

Eatzone Noodle House - review by sokratis

Rating: 4.7

Location: 18 Fortess Road, NW5 2HB, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7485 0152

One of the best take-aways around Tufnell Park/North Kentish Town, Eat Zone offers a variety of Singaporean, Malayesian and generally south-east flavoured dishes. It's quite unique, as I'd never had Laksa before and quite enjoyed it. Very generous portions and you can easily feed four of you for about Â£20-Â£25.
Added bonus: I've bumnped into Julian Barratt twice when there. Unfortunately, I just managed a respectful node, which was reciprocated, but not much of a conversation. If you don't know who Julian Barratt is then please google him as you've been missing some great comedy from your lives.

Pasta Habit - review by sokratis

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:00:12 +0000

Pasta Habit - review by sokratis

Rating: 3.0

Location: 103 Highgate Road, NW5 1TR, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7267 9239

It used to be one of local takeaways when Indian or Chinese were just too exotic and we fancied some simple pasta or Italian food. Desceptively the owner is Greek, but don't let that put you off as they make all your typical Italian spaghettin (or other pasta dished) remarkably well. The portions are huge and you can trust the quality of the place as it's been there for years and is regularly busy with a bunch of locals.

Cafe Renoir - review by sokratis

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 17:57:19 +0000

Cafe Renoir - review by sokratis

Rating: 3.2

Location: 244 Kentish Town Road, NW5 2AB, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7485 7186

One of Kentish Town's independent eateries the Renoir does a selection of light meals along with serving pretty good coffee. There is some external seating as well for the smokers amongst you. A bit different to the other cafes as they serve a variety of continental dishes, such as crepes for example. They do of course your typical English breakfast as well.

Piada - review by walid

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:17:40 +0000

Piada - review by walid

Rating: 4.0

Location: 12-14 St John Street, EC1M 4AY, London, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 7253 0472

Website: http://www.piada.co.uk

Tags: italian, piadine, farringdon, good value, crowded

As littlevegemite's review explains, paidines are filled flatbread which with the right ingredients taste delicious. I've been there before and today had the chance to have another bite at one of their famous Piadines. They have 16 different varieties of piadines. Piadine zero for example has salame milanese and stracchine cheese, piadine nove has bresaola and parmesan and the one I had today is the piadine uno which comes with prosciutto and mozzarella. Whatever piadine you take you can pretty much guaranteed that the filling ingredients are quite fresh and tasty.

Prices are reasonable and vary between Â£4.10 and Â£5.00. If you find yourself in the area and want a little something different then try out Piada.