• Added: 25th of November 2008
• Area: Mayfair
• Category: Restaurants

London W1S 3PR
020 7534 7000

Guy_Hutch said
Good italian food - ambience?
Recently came here on a top-table fixed price deal.
The restaurant looks very smart but is a little tucked away a bit off the bright lights of Regent Street.
The menu is excellent and the kitchen's execution is superb. In terms of value for money you couldn't be dissapointed.
However the restaurant was very quiet on the Saturday night we went and with the large open dining room the atmosphere was not as welcoming at is should have been.
The aircon was a bit OTT too - and when we highlighted it the staff didn't really seem to believe there was much they could do to ease the chill. Which didn't make much sense as it was snowing outside.
Great food, good value on fixed price menu but so many details to work on otherwise.

• Added: 3rd of February 2008
• Area: Southwark
• Category: Restaurants

London SE1 8HA
020 7928 1111

Guy_Hutch said
Better than Wodka or just funkier?
Went to Baltic for the second time yesterday. The first time had been a few years back and it had been a relatively boozey lunch. So I was delighted that the place was looking as modern as fresh as I remember.
As you come in there is a long thin bar area, nicely lit and with a sharp looking staff knocking out well executed cocktails. In fact my Mojito was the best I'd had since my stop at Maze last summer.
You in turn go through to the dining area which has a new york loft feel with the bare brick and exposed wooden beams.
As for the food the menu is certainly unusual with a series of eastern european inspired items that are a rarity on the london restaurant scene. My Siberian Pelmini were exceptional - perfect for a frosty night and my partners pierogi were also exceptional.
The mains were all good sold fare. I made an ethical choice and went with the Pollock. Not quite as good as I expected and it might have needed some stronger flavours with it to really make it work.
But overall this is a stunning place. Suitable for almost any occasion and the lively bar area is a huge plus and one that other restauranteurs would do well to emulate.

• Added: 19th of January 2008
• Area: Paddington
• Category: Food and Drink

London W2 1JX
020 7724 7358

Guy_Hutch said
Great little japanese cafe cum restaurant
Great little place. I often drop by for soup or the glass noodle salad at lunchtime. If you dine in the restaurant their dumplings and buns are exceptional.
However it always seems too quiet - I guess it's a little off the beaten track and the paddington basin neighbourhood hasn't taken off yet.
Staff are friendly food consistently good so hoping they get busier soon.

• Added: 17th of October 2007
• Area: Kensington
• Category: Restaurants

London W8 5PN
020 7937 6513

Guy_Hutch said
the secret star of kensington
This is perhaps my favorite restaurant in London. It’s tucked away in a quiet/exclusive neighborhood with a menu that seems completely at odds with the postcode.
The menu is a delight in every sense - it will challenge you and delight you with some superb polish dishes. More than half the offering wouldn't feature on any other menu.
They have a cracking and fairly price wine list and the stunning list of vodkas is a delight when you come with a big party. Trust me it doesn't take too many bison grass vodka's to go from lively to boisterous.
The only downside with this place is that I never want to tell too many people how good it really is …. I wouldn’t want it to get any harder to get a table.

• Added: 15th of October 2007
• Area: Chiswick
• Category: Restaurants

London W4 4PH
020 8987 0555

Guy_Hutch said
disapointed
I had been here for drinks quite a few times and genuinely rated it as having the best atmosphere of any of the Chiswick High Road drinking joints.
Ate here with my partner last weekend for the first time and was hugely disapointed. To cut a long story short it was a tale of sloppy (and Lazy!) service, poorly presented squid, dreary risoto and a rather lame dessert that just succeded in being, well, dry.
These guys have a cracking wine list and the premises look lovely. So why is the food here such a huge disapointment?

• Added: 15th of October 2007
• Area: West Ealing
• Category: Restaurants

London W13 9QT
020 85671719

Guy_Hutch said
Observer rated top 5 chinese restaurant in the UK
I'm not one to buy the Observer. I mean really I wouldn't want to make the wrong impression now. But according to them Alan Yau (of Yautacha and Hakkasan fame) rates this one of the top 5 chinese in the country.
Now I used to walk past this place every day. Have dined here more often then I can remember and I must say Msr Yau isn't to far off the mark.
The ambience is pleasant enough, service abrupt but endearing in the way only chinese restaurants can be. The menu is littered with classics but I must say that the bang bang chicken and the prawn with ginger and springonion are both brilliantly executed. The menu gets far more exotic than this in fact ... but you don't need to venture to far into the selection to be very pleasantly surprised.
This really is a place for locals. In fact most people would drive straight by given the way it is hidden behind the discrete brick work.
But if you happen to be in W13 make sure you follow Mr Yau's advice.

• Added: 15th of October 2007
• Area: Ealing
• Category: Restaurants

London W5 2NX
020 8810 7066

Guy_Hutch said
best noodle bar in ealing (if not London)
Firstly I have to say I am a little bias - I've been coming here for more than 5 years. The staff always treat us fantastically - even when they are super busy, which they almost always are.
The food here is stunning favourites include spiced wingsticks, edamame and some of the most delicious gyoza you'll find this side of Harajuku. The portions are generous and atmosphere pleasantly buzzy. They offer a variety of Japanese beers (try the Kirin Ichiban) and the freshly made apple juice is a good call for the designated driver.