• Added: 30th of November 2007
• Area: Fitzrovia
• Category: Restaurants

London W1T 4JN
020 7636 9098

dzr said
A hidden gem
Ragam has been an old favourite with my foodie friends for a long time now, and used to be a closely guarded secret. These days the secret is out and Ragam seems to be in every guide to eating out in London, and is consequently packed to the rafters. Despite that it's still very much worth a visit. It's pretty tiny, and it won't exactly win any awards for its decor (although calling it shabby would be a little unfair) but the food really is excellent. Some time not too long ago they chose to focus the menu specifically on South Indian specialities such as dosas -- a crispy tortilla-like pancake made from lentil flour and stuffed with all manner of deliciousness. What came off the menu was the Rogan Josh. Now you may very well question the sanity of ordering a dish that can be had in any Indian restaurant across the country in a restaurant with a specialist menu like this, but the truth is that Ragam's Rogan Josh is like no other I have ever tasted and is frankly to die for. It was with some relief then that when I asked if they still did it, despite it not being on the menu, our waiter smiled warmly and said "Of course!"

• Added: 30th of November 2007
• Area: Cambridge
• Category: Restaurants

Cambridge CB2 8PB
01223 413000

dzr said
Exquisite dining comes to central Cambridge
Cambridge has very few really good restaurants, and for too long Midsummer House has had almost no competition. Alimentum changes all that. It may not be in the best location, and from the outside certainly looks like a more likely venue for a Nandos, but once inside the sleek modern decor and chic, simple ambience overcome the unpropitious exterior. The food was quite simply exquisite. The starters of smoked eel served with a salad of bacon and quince, and hand dived scallops with turnips and caramelized walnuts, followed by braised pork belly with parsnips, shallots, and spiced pork sauce, and slow cooked Denham Estate venison with celeriac, carrots, and gratin dauphinoise, finished off with honey crème brulée with chocolate dipped honeycomb were perfection itself. The wine list is excellent.

Eating in Cambridge is generally such a woeful experience that I honestly worry whether there is a market for somewhere like Alimentum to survive. If, like me, you've been aching for somewhere like this to eat in in Cambridge then I strongly urge you to go as soon as possible in case it ends up not being there at all anymore.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Cambridge
• Category: Restaurants

Cambridge CB1 1DG
01223 354755

dzr said
Don't judge a book by its cover
This tatty looking place serves some of the most astonishingly good Chinese food I've ever eaten. Friends of mine who've spent time in China attest to its authenticity. It is about to move new, and hopefully more appropriate, premises soon, and hopefully then it will get the recognition it deserves.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Bars and Pubs

Edinburgh EH8 9JP

dzr said
Good cafe bar, terrible service
As it's pretty much my local I'd probably go here even if it wasn't actually a pretty nice cafe bar, but luckily for me it is. The food is nothing spectacular but inexpensive and reliable (although having said that the sausage and mash really is very good). The coffees are okay, and the cocktails are average. But it makes up for most this by having a nice ambience and a good location. The one thing that does bug me is that often (it depends who's working) the service is just hopeless. I'm a regular customer there and yet I've lost count of the number of times I've popped in for a quick coffee in the afternoon when it's pretty quiet and sat there for over ten minutes waiting for someone to even notice I was there, let alone think that it might be a good thing to ask me if I wanted to purchase anything. That kind of thing annoys me, and normally would make me not ever go back, so the fact that I do means that Human Be-In must have something going for it.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Restaurants

Edinburgh EH1 1EJ
0131 226 2781

dzr said
For those about to lounge, we salute you
Just a classic bar. Very Edinburgh. I've never eaten here, but the food looks pretty good. Excellent music, very eclectic. Good crowd. Good cocktails. It's hard to describe really; modern lounge meets classic style. It's just damn cool.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Restaurants

Edinburgh EH6 6LU
0131 554 7427

dzr said
A classic Leith experience
The Waterfront Wine Bar and Grill, sister establishment of Skippers Seafood Bistro, has both a conservatory for more traditional dining overlooking the Waters of Leith and a snug bar area with secluded tables for more intimate dining. Specialising in seafood with a kind of Franco-Scottish theme and a commitment to local produce and traditional Scottish dishes, you're free to have anything from a quick pint at the bar to a three course meal. You must try a bloody Mary oyster shot.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Restaurants

Edinburgh EH6 6LU
0131 554 1018

dzr said
Great Seafood Bistro
Skippers Seafood Bistro, sister establishment to The Waterfront Wine Bar and Grill, was one of the first seafood Bistros to open in Leith during the early stages of its gentrification in the 80s, and, along with The Waterfront and The Shore, is one of my favourite restaurants in Leith. The menu changes twice daily and is entirely informed by the day's catch. The Cullen Skink, the Shetland mussels, the Loch Etive oysters, and the Arbroath smokie reflect the commitment to local produce and traditional Scottish fair, and the rest of the menu is Franco-Scottish seafood and game. The restaurant has a lovely ambience, and shares with The Waterfront some outside seating by the Waters of Leith for when the weather is more clement.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Restaurants

Edinburgh EH6 6QW
0131 553 5080

dzr said
Beautiful pub serving great seafood
The Shore is a lovely prize-winning 18th century wood-paneled pub, overlooking the docks, with a wonderful cozy atmosphere, a roaring coal fire in winter, and tables on the pavement outside in the summer. You can eat at the bar, or choose to eat in the dining room from the longer a la carte menu. The food is Franco-Scottish, with an emphasis on seafood and game. Probably one of my favourite places to go on a Sunday.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Restaurants

Edinburgh EH8 9PY

dzr said
Simply wonderful
Chef Gursel Bahar has created a wonderful, friendly, inviting little restaurant, and the food is simply exquisite. The chargrilled lamb cutlets are to die for (Gursel sources his meat very carefully), and the moussaka is one of the best I've ever had. The service is so friendly, and Gursel cooks at the front of the restaurant, greeting everyone as they enter. The food is ridiculously cheap, but don't let that fool you (along with the dreaded word "kebab") that this is anything like a kebab shop. Everything I've eaten here has been the kind of thing I would have willingly paid twice as much for. I highly recommend it.

• Added: 18th of November 2007
• Area: Edinburgh
• Category: Restaurants

Edinburgh EH1 2HE
0131 220 0057

dzr said
Edinburgh's oldest Indian restaurant gets revamped
I first discovered Khushi's back in its days in Drummond Street. Back in those days Khushi's was a little diner, with formica tables, and none of the dreadful decor and faux "days of the Raj" nonsense that many Indian restaurants still indulge in. Instead it was the home of the finest Punjabi home cooking I've ever tasted. There were very very few dishes on the menu: a couple of lamb dishes, a couple of chicken dishes, and maybe four or five vegetable dishes. The advantage to such a small menu in an Indian restaurant is that all the dishes have been cooking and marinating for hours, and you could really taste it. The food was simple, but just exquisite. I'm not sure if this is really correct, but I believe the chef was the Mohammed brothers mother: Indian home cooking indeed!

In 1999 they moved to more modern premises at Potterow, and slightly revamped the menu. All the original dishes were still there (marked with an "Original Khushi's" icon) but supplemented with some new dishes that their larger more modern kitchen made possible.

In 2006 they moved again to their current location on Victoria Street. I'm afraid to say that they are "Original Khushis" in name only. The food really is still very good, and if I'm going to eat Indian food in Edinburgh I would probably choose Khushi's. But it's just not the same anymore. The menu is enormous in comparison to days of yore (although still nowhere near as ridiculously big as many other Indian restaurants). My main concern with that is that I just cannot believe that the dishes have been marinating and cooking slowly for hours and hours. Also the whole ethos of the menu is now much more modern Indian cooking, and frankly all that does is make them harder to differentiate themselves from the many other good Indian restaurants in Edinburgh. Basically, I miss the old Punjabi home cooking. Ironically the Lamb Bhuna is one of the only original dishes still on the menu, and last time I was at Khushi's and tried to order it my waiter strongly suggested I have something else!

I wish the Mohammed brothers the best in their endeavours. The restaurant is still very good. But I'm afraid to say that I miss their Mum's cooking. If you read this guys is there any chance I could come round for tea one day?