Sushi Samba

Patrick American, Asian, Japanese, New York, Restaurants

Craving some sushi rolls (the more westernised ones than the traditional ones), I decided that whilst in New York, we should head back to Sushi Samba, where latin america meets the east. I have to say that this visit wasn’t as great as the first time, but we some some nice things to eat.

My favourite dish of the night was the umami rich miso eggplant. Hearty chunks skewered and delicately roasted before being finished off with some miso sauce.

The rock shrimp tempura had a great kick, though failed to be as crisp as good tempura should be. Love rock shrimp though.

The corn fritter tempura definitely made up for that lack of crispiness and went well with the wasabi mayo they served it with. Could do with more kick.

Here’s the sushi bar.

And our yummy Samba 7 roll with lobster chunks.

And another roll that we had (can’t remember the name of this one)

I see on their website that they’ll be opening a London branch soon, so that will be interesting to watch the bloggersphere for how it’s taken. There’s a lot of brazilians in London so I hope they live up to the real thing.

Name: Sushi Samba 7
Found at: 87 7th Ave South, New York, New York.
Website: http://sushisamba.com/

Eleven Madison Park Round 2

Patrick American, Michelin Starred, New York, Restaurants

Out of all the places that I ate at last year, I was most impressed by the experience of the then, two-starred michelin restaurant. Obviously others had been as well since it’s gained an additional star in the meantime. The lunch menu is definitely a great value if you manage to get a reservation, and we were lucky that we were able to (thanks Grace!)

It was an extremely cold day when we went for lunch, made even colder by the wind chill factor. I’ll say that revolving doors make a great way of making sure that gusts of cold air don’t make their way into the dining room. Stepping through these doors, you’re welcomed almost immediately by a member of staff, coats taken and then quickly escorted to the bright, airy dining room (below). Weirdly enough, we were seated at exactly the same table we were last time!

The menu format still hasn’t changed. A four course menu depicts a journey that you get to pick the main attraction, but all scenery provided by the kitchen. This allows the restaurant to change the elements of the menu with seasonal produce and also produce some vastly different experiences (all good, rest assured).

Whilst deciding, we get to pick on some cheesy Gougère, strong in flavour, light in composition.

Followed almost immediately by the wonderfully velvety chicken veloute and parsely oil served from a teapot into a tea cup for easy drinking. It’s a great way to warm up after walking around outside.

Different from the amuse bouches of our last visit, we then received a foie gras paste perched perfectly atop brioche with chives. Yummo.

And like last time, had a wonderfully rich american sturgeon custard served in perfectly cut egg shells. The custard was more like a foam (maybe I’m getting it wrong) with the sturgeon eggs providing a wonderful contrast in flavour and texture as your spoon dips in. A little bit more flavoured oil (not sure what) sits in the bottom adding another dimension to the dish.

Fortunately there was no pork fat served with the bread, with the lighter butter made from goat’s cheese and the creamy yellow a French style. This time the bread was more like buttery croissant pastry turned into small parcels and hand delivered warm and fresh in a little pouch.

My first dish, was a crab roulade with avacado, apple and lime. Soft creamy elements and carefully adorned with fresh herbs and green leafs along its length. I really enjoyed the beautiful presentation and the flavours of this dish.

Following a seafood theme, the lobster poached with autumn mushrooms and spinach arrived looking like a work of art, carefully arranged in a single line unevenly offset on the right side of a huge plate. The pieces were generous and that mushroom/lobster foam was so rich and velvety but was carefully not overpowering the sweetness of the lobster flesh.

My final course before the desert was the guinea fowl roasted with pear, salsify and foie gras. This dish was a superb ascent to the top with rich, deep flavours that built on the previous ones. I suspect the guinea fowl had been cooked sous vie before being finished off under a broiler – there’s no other way I could imagine it retaining so much of that succulent juices.

After the previous course, a small cart got wheeled up. We had anticipated this after watching a number of other tables being served the same, wondering what it was. It’s a beautiful show. Decanters of lime juice, and cocoa milk tipped into a small glass before orange oil being dabbed in from yet another bottle. The finishing touch was a spray of seltzer water fizzing up the entire drink. I was reminded of drinking a light, liquid version of a Terry’s orange only much cleaner on the palette and an experience to remember. Now where do I find cocoa milk!

We then had another pre-dessert cleanser, made up of a custard and some fresh berry sorbet. I can’t remember the other elements as I was still thinking about the wonderful glass that preceded it.

For my main dessert, I’d ordered the hazelnut meringue with sorbet, chestnuts and pistachio. I was surprised at how fruity this dish was, considering hazelnut is classically paired with chocolate but it worked out surprisingly well.

Last year, I missed not having a coffee, so thought we would try the entertaining tableside coffee.

The petite fours arrived as well just as the coffee was being prepared. A beautiful white truffle chocolate bonbon with a creamy explosive centre full of truffle-essence.

Followed by a cocoa black truffle ganache providing a complement to the white.

Ok, I’ll admit I still prefer espresso to siphon coffee but I like the spectacle of the way they prepare it here. This is a picture of the tableside siphon coffee being prepared. First they allow you to smell the coffee, explaining its origin and then all the details about the temperature and time that are needed for the perfect brew.

And voila, the final product.

Another wonderful dining experience at Eleven Madison Park, and very deserving of their three stars.

Name: Eleven Madison Park
Found at: 11 Madison Avenue New York, NY
Website: http://www.elevenmadisonpark.com/

Brunching at Giant Robot

Patrick American, Brunch, Coffee, Restaurants, UK

I remember hearing about Giant Robot when it first opened to much hurrahed fanfare. I understand there’s a shortage of restaurants serving good American food, but it seemed there was a bit more fuss than there should have been. Turning up for a Saturday morning brunch, it seems like the patrons agreed with me – we were seated pretty much immediately.

I ordered a flat white that was served in a mug. Decently flavoured and no real complaints about it.

We also ordered the brunch burger that was apparently pretty good. It had the bright yellow melty cheese one would expect from an American diner.

I went for the three-egg omelette, served with a huge slice of sourdough toast.

Perhaps it was just what I ordered, but I can’t say I was particularly impressed by the food. The dinner menu looks a bit more interesting but for brunch, I’ll have to try somewhere else next time.

Name: Giant Robot
Found at: 45-47 Clerkenwell Road, London, EC1M 5RS
Website: http://www.gntrbt.com/

SHO Shaun Hergatt

Patrick American, Asian, Michelin Starred, Restaurants

The last time I was in New York, we were going to have dinner at SHO Shaun Hergatt, one of the handful of two-michelin starred restaurants in the city. I was very pleased to see that the financial crisis and the downturn in the economy had yet to close this restaurant, although I was slightly suspicious when I found I could book a dinner for two quite easily in the next couple of days. Nevertheless, we headed on downtown to Wall Street to try it out. The location of SHO is odd, on an entire second floor building, not even inside a hotel right in the middle of the financial district.

Given the high cost of their rent, I’m surprised that their tasting menu was a reasonable US$85 for five courses (without tax, tip, supplements or wine). What they have done with the place is very chic – it’s almost very oriental in feeling and the high ceilings contribute to the air of spaciousness to the entire dining room. The tables are extremely well set apart for a NY restaurant, although it did feel like the dining table itself was pretty wide to begin with.

There was an open kitchen, and we could see the large number of chefs bustling about preparing and finalising all the intricate components for each dish, although I was sat along the wall, slightly behind a case so missed out on most of the view for the evening. A few lucky tables (I believe reserved for people on special occasions like an anniversary, etc) were seated right next to the kitchen when I believe the view would have been excellent.

Before even deciding on which five courses we wanted, a series of amuse bouches arrived. This one was a light, airy apple foam with some creamy cheese concoction, and then topped with a sprig of dill. Tiny apple cubes sat suspended in the middle of the foam, providing a nice crunchy contrast to the otherwise smooth dish.

The next arrived in a huge conch shell, effectively small balls of mashed potato with black squid ink encasing foie gras and rolled in breadcrumbs then fried. Each bite had a great amount of flavour, and contrast but each small enough for a bite full just enough to enjoy and start the appetite.

Next up were the mussels although other than being fresh, can’t remember what they were served with. Nice but obviously not particularly memorable.

Bread is generally always enjoyable in places like this. Each table received a small fresh loaf of, I’m guessing, some sort of sourdough bread. The crust was crunchy, the insides bouncy although I do think it was slightly overbaked. I could forgive this when they gave us three types of butter (truffle, classic french and a sage). My favourite of course, being the umami-rich truffle butter. The sage butter was very subtle and was overpowered by the crust of the bread.

For each course, you get to choose one of three different dishes. The first, Hudson Valley Foie Gras Sandwich with pain d’Epice Wafers, Banyuls Reduction, Sicilian Pistachios is the one that I didn’t order so can’t really comment on the flavour.

I selected the Chef’s Garden Beets with Hibiscus Tuile, Vermont Creamery Goat Cheese Pave’, Beet Dust, a classic combination of sweet and salty that was beautifully presented and even more delightfully tasty. The pave, like a small cheesecake was the perfect size to accompany the red beet, the crisp tuile working to contrast the soft textures.

The next dish that I didn’t personally order was the Griggstown Farm Coxcomb with Veal Tounge Ribbons, Chicken Skin, Autumn Mushroom Pave’. We had no idea what a coxcomb was before ordering this dish (it’s the fleshy bit on top of a rooster’s head, for example), let alone that you could eat it. I tried a little bit of this one and was surprised at how tender it was. No comment on the other elements.

Instead, for my next course, I ordered the Satur Farms Celeriac Espuma with Crispy Potato Curls, Black Truffle Powder, Truffle Creme. They brought the bowl to the table where you could see all the small tiny components, before they carefully spooned the celeriac espuma (foam) on to the plate where it settled down into a rich, creamy sauce. The balances in this dish were fine – truffle flavours rising to the top with each spoonful, a rich velvety and tasty foam with three, tiny but perfectly crisp potato curls floating around. I could have had a whole bowlful of that celeriac foam.

Next up was the East Coast Flounder with Langoustine, Black Truffle Cauliflower Puree, Romanesco, once again not my dish.

I had gone for the Nova Scotia Lobster with Garlic Chives, African Basil Seeds, Chilli, Coconut. This tasted a lot more like a rich, red curry sauce (chilli and coconut), though it was a perfect combination with the sweet lobster flesh. It definitely had some kick to it, but more of that type that gets going as soon as it touches the tongue, leaving a lingering impression for a good time to follow. Also, not listed was the crispy rice balls that helped provide additional contrast.

Next up, the Three Day Beef Cheek with Baby Leek, Potato Parchment, Perigourdine Sauce (not my dish).

Instead I went for the Upstate New York Guinea Hen with Caramelised Salsify, Quinoa, Garlic Cream, Rillette. The quinoa was much smaller than I anticipated, and though slightly more like oatmeal in appearance, was a much better size for the dish. Crispy skin perched atop the perfectly round rillettes and the meat was amazing soft and gorgeous, no doubt cooked sous vide to keep all that juiciness in. They did well to reduce the sauce to a really thick concentrated texture that literally stuck to the meat as we wiped it through. Delicious.

I didn’t order the Satur Farms Candided Yam with Canadian Maple Mallow, Cranberry, Burnt Milk but the dish certainly looked impressive.

Instead I went for the Blue Cheese Roulade with White Wine, Quince Puree, Walnut, Celery, something a little bit different. There wasn’t a huge amount of cheese, instead this dish was perfectly balanced with all the components you would assemble yourself, but much more lovingly arranged.

I ordered some fresh mint tea to finish off the evening and the petite fours arrived. Fresh, tiny cinnamon donuts (no bigger than a thumbnail) and deceivingly big in the picture below. Fresh, light and airy.

Accompanying them were freshly made hazelnut macaroons that I’m sure the French would be very happy to eat. I don’t claim to be an expert in these delicate bites, but this one was definitely great – not too sweet, light and flavourful.

Finishing off the trio was a black sesame truffle, the earthy elements almost hidden away by the bitter cocoa dust surrounding them. A great way to finish off the meal.

Whilst not the cheapest of dinners, I was very impressed by the entire experience. Service was impeccable – topping up tap water without us even realising it, dishes being whisked away not too quickly, but not too slowly and we even noticed the small details like having two staff put down the plates at almost the same time. In a place like this, there is definitely the slight airy of pompousness – napkins appear refolded on the dining table when you return from the restrooms although I’m pleased they didn’t go to the extent of replacing them entirely. There was no pressure to drink if you didn’t want to and the food, most importantly was a wonder to enjoy. The only thing to note if you go is the supplements they add on if you order the dishes with more expensive ingredients (fair enough). Total for two of us with tax and tip (no alcoholic drinks was US$306).

Name: SHO Shaun Hergatt
Found at: 40 Broad St, New York, New York
Website: http://www.shoshaunhergatt.com/

The Little Owl

Patrick American, New York, Restaurants

On one of my previous Foods of New York tour, they brought us to The Little Owl, a small non-de-script tenement building made famous by the Friends TV show, and also just highly recommended as a great place to eat.

As you can see from the picture below, there were heaps of people being shown the same famous building, though it didn’t really detract from our overall dining experience.

We were really lucky, turning up shortly after midday, and only being told a table wait would be about a half hour. I was a bit worried since it was a really popular restaurant with only 28 people and reservations generally recommended. They did mention they reserve some tables for walk-ins, and we were lucky enough to nab one. We walked around the area for a bit, before returning for a short five minute wait before being seated.

There’s not a lot of room for movement, and with my back turned to the rest of the restaurant found my chair constantly niggled, either by the patrons leaving and going, or the waitress coming and going as well. It’s your typical, NY tight style seating where people were almost sitting on top of each other.

The menu is pretty interesting, definitely inspired by the Mediterranean but brought up to American standards with items such as the burgers, and their famous gravy meatball slides that I had to order.

My sister order the bacon cheese burger (US$16) that came with a series of condiments.

As you can see, it was a pretty big burger, served with melting american, bright yellow cheese, and then the pickles and salad sitting on the plate.

I ordered two appetisers opting for the crunchy artichoke heart (US$15) and the gravy meatball sliders (US$12). The artichoke was served with a light, lemon black pepper parmesan broth and some tasty green rocket leaves. Superbly crunchy and a delicious combination.

The sliders, or mini-burgers were rightfully famous. Each was moist, juicy and packed full of flavour. The meat combo was a mince of beef, pork and veal and then topped with grated pecorino and then topped with a bit of sauce to keep it really moist.

We also shared a side of mushrooms served with truffled breadcrumbs (US$6), a delicious rich, but probably not needed accompaniment.

To finish off the meal, we split the beignets served with raspberry sauce and nutella (US$9) that were beautifully made super fresh. The raspberry sauce brought a good level of tartness to the dish and the nutella, an additional richness to the dish. I definitely enjoyed the food overall. Everything was very well made and service overall very good – water topped up all the time and we didn’t ever feel rushed to be moved off our table. Highly recommended! Total price with tax, tip (no alcoholic drinks) for two people was US$77.41.

Name: The Little Owl
Found at: 90 Bedford Street, New York, New York
Website: http://www.thelittleowlnyc.com/

Brunching at Norma’s

Patrick American, Brunch, New York, Restaurants

As I mentioned in a previous post, we were definitely returning to places that I enjoyed and Norma’s is a fantastic place if you’re hungering for an American style brunch or breakfast menu. At lunchtime, it’s worth booking – we were lucky we got a table in about half an hour as some people after us were told they’d be seated after a whole hour!

The menu is divided into plenty of sections but their real strength is in their very large breakfast menu, all of it orderable 24 hours a day. Prices are steep although be warned that the portions are even larger than most American style portions. This time, we went for a real brunch instead of a breakfast, so my sister thought it’d be more appropriate for the lobster mac and cheese (US$28). Though being pricy, the dish was literally chock-full of lobster – each spoonful bringing a healthy chunk. The only bad thing that we experienced was half-way through the dish, finding a bit of foil-like wrapper (we think it may have been the foil-wrapper that typically covers butter). Nothing extreme or what not, but kudos to the waiter – as soon as we told him, they went back to the kitchen to make a new one and took the dish off the menu!

Last time I went for the Irresistible Banana-Macadamia Nut Flap Jacks With Whipped Banana Brown Sugar Butter (US$21) and they were really good that I thought I’d try them again. I’m pleased to say, despite the price tag, they were really just as good as last time, a very good sign about the consistency of the restaurant. It was served with caramelised walnuts and macadamia and the banana brown sugar butter really went well with the huge pancakes, lasting the entire amount. I remind myself I’m on holidays and not worrying too much about the amount of working out I’ll have to do to burn this dish off.

You can’t really have pancakes with a side of bacon, and this one was perfect as well. The streaky, British style bacon, slightly peppered and bring a great saltiness to an overall sweet dish.

The only thing to be warned about is the US$9 orange juice and US$4 coffees that you’re offered as soon as you sit down. Sure the juice was good, but a glass for that much is a bit of a stretch.

Name: Norma’s
Found in: Inside the Le Parker Meridien, 119 W 56th St, New York, New York.
Website: http://www.parkermeridien.com/normas.htm

The Good (and not so Good) at Goodman’s

Patrick American, Restaurants, Steak

I’d heard a lot of great things about Goodman’s. It’s one of the two steak groups in that competes for the “best steak” places in London, at least according to a number of foodies. Last year, we had our Christmas gathering at Hawksmoor last year and opted to try Goodman’s this year instead.

We had a reservation for 8:30pm but decided to meet up for a drink at Aqua first. To call that place heaving would have been an understatement with the bar full of very beautiful people, and many others simply preening themselves. It passed 8pm and we decided to try for a drink at the bar at Goodman’s rather than another one at Aqua. We arrived early. Just after 8pm and, as expected, were told that our table wasn’t yet ready. We didn’t really mind this, as we figured we were a bit early, but looking back, we really should have simply had another drink at Aqua because the bar area isn’t particularly suited for waiting, filled with other guests dining at the counter.

Time passed and at 8:30pm, one of our party decided to ask if our table was ready. The maitre de assured us that the party occupying our table was simply paying and that we would have our table after five more minutes. Five minutes passed and nothing. So we waited five minutes more before deciding to ask again. One of my dining companions asked the maitre de again who repeated back exactly the same statement, “five more minutes.” We were seated at 8:50pm. He was not impressed.

Finally getting seated (after having a reservation!), we were starting to get a bit hungry. I’m pleased that bread was placed on the table, shortly after all the menus made their way down. Soft, creamy salted butter and slightly warm rolls made good partners to tame the building hunger. Our waitress, a friendly lady, told us about the various cuts on offer and took our orders of the steak, sides and wine. A pleasant and efficient experience that would prove not to last the rest of the night.

Being with a group of Italians, we all ended up ordering the Burrata. I’d never had this rich dish before (mozzarella mixed with cream). Served with crispy chorizo, small tomatoes and a small bit of crispy sourdough (£12), I was very impressed with this dish. Unfortunately my dining partners (and I) were less impressed that we had to ask for our wine after the round of appetizers sat at our table for a while.

We finished our decadent, delicious starter with the plates sitting there for a good twenty minutes before they were taken away. Fair enough they were busy but for 12.5% service, I expect much better.

Like other, well regarded restaurants, Goodman’s have their won steak knives.

Our waitress came up to us, just before all the food arrived, apologising she hadn’t asked if we wanted any sauces. We ordered some (stilton, pepper, and bernaise) but by then all of our food arrived. It was an impressive collection of food. The four of us split a 1kg steak (Scottish grass fed only!) (£120), and unlike last year’s Hawksmoor experience, this one had been cooked perfectly. Pink and juicy, charred on the outside. Given all the sides we’d ordered, it was a good thing we didn’t order bigger steaks.

The downside was when the maitre de arrived ten minutes later, asking us how everything was going and still those sauces had not yet arrived.

Fortunately the side dishes were pretty good, worth tucking into while we waited. Above is the creamed spinach with blue cheese (£4.50).

And a delicious truffle mac and cheese (£4), though being italians and disliked pasta being treated this way, only one of my companions was tempted to try it. I found it delicious though. Eventually our sauces arrived and everything was rather complete. The steak was excellent – juicy and smoky, and did just the job.

Our dessert menu arrived, and though full, convinced ourselves rather quickly that it was worth trying some of the dessert menu. Well, we would have if someone came to took our order. It was a good half hour before our waitress returned to take our order. On top of that, our water bottle had been taken away, and not refilled during this time.

I went for the calorie dense, Brownie sundae (£6.50) (minus the whipped cream). Chunky and delicious.

A couple of of the creme brulees (£6.50) were ordered. Pretty good reports on this.

And finally a cheesecake (£6.50), also apparently very well made.

Overall I have to say that the food was definitely very good, but our experience of the evening was tainted by far too many incidents. When the bill arrived, we informed our waitress that we weren’t going to pay the service. Interestingly, her reaction was first to ask what was wrong, and then after explaining the events of the evening, said that she had to go to the manager to get her to “take the amount off the bill”. This was fascinating, because for us, the bill already showed the amount that needed paying without service. We waited, another ten minutes for the manager to return.

At the point of the evening (almost midnight and after some very nice wine and dessert wine), I can’t really remember if we had to re-explain our circumstances. She came back and said that she took off a round of drinks apologising for the service. We explained back that it wasn’t necessary, and all we really wanted to do was to not pay the service, but she insisted.

Would I come back? Given the quality of the food I think I would. Service is a funny thing, variable on lots of different factors. They did a good job to redeem themselves, and just hope that they actually took the feedback on board, rather than simply not pass it on to our waitress.

Name: Goodman Steak Restaurant
Website: http://www.goodmanrestaurants.com/
Found at: 24-26 Maddox Street, W1S 1QH

The Publican

Patrick American, Brunch, Chicago, Restaurants

I was due to meet Danilo and Jenny in Chicago on the short weekend I had there. Thanks to Jenny we decided to have lunch at the Publican. They also invited Matt along who happened to be in town. Let me emphasise that this is a good thing. It’s a nice bustling place and one where you definitely have to book in advance. Or plan to wait for a long time.

Jenny and Matt below.

We tried far too much for a brunch, starting with one of their sticky pecan rolls. Topped with nuts, thankfully not too excessively sweet (at least compared to their Cinnabon brethren) yet surprisingly filling.

The pork rinds had been recommended, dusted with a slightly picante (calling it spicy is not quite fair) dusting of spices and a cone of chips that were supposed to accompany the chicken fried chicken.

Highlight of all the sides was the recommended maple glazed bacon. I’m not normally a fan of thick cut bacon – it turns out to be to excessively fatty to a point it dominates the smoky and salty flavours that make it a wonder to behold. And besides, if something is going to be so fatty, it’s best that it crisps up from that benefit. There’s a good reason people who like fried chicken expect a crispy crust.

I opted for a bit more of a twist on a classic, the eggs benedict. The eggs, poached in red wine and served with prosciutto and toasted bread. I appreciated the attempt at something different, but the red wine flavouring kind of dominated the rest of the dish.

The toast wasn’t quite toasted enough or maybe they really should have chosen a sourdough instead of plain bread because I think what the dish lacked was a contrast of flavours. That perfect maple glazed bacon, crispy on the outside, would have made the perfect accompaniment but instead everything seemed a little bit soft. Picture of an overcooked egg.

Other people ordered interesting dishes including a massive weisswurst (white sausage) that came poaching in a big copper pot.

Matt was brave enough to order the artery clogging chicken fried steak with two fried eggs.

And Danilo opted for a more sensibly portioned Ploughman’s platter.

Name: The Publican
Found at: 837 W. Fulton Market, Chicago, IL 60607
Website: http://thepublicanrestaurant.com/

Spuntino

Patrick American, Restaurants, UK

Alright I’m a little behind the times about eating and blogging about Spuntino. It’s hard given that I’ve spent most of my year working in another country for a different client. Fortunately I managed to agree to catch up with my sister for an early dinner (just before 6pm) on a Sunday. It’s a good thing too with the queue for seats starting almost as soon as we sat down.

Saying that there’s not much space is a bit of an understatement. It’s pretty much just a U-shaped countertop serving probably about twenty people. With the young hipsters behind the bar mixing cocktails and various things to drink it’s quite all up for show.

The waiting area behind the “dining area”.

As soon as we sat down, they served us some popcorn with chilli oil. You can see them pop the corn with a proper cinema popcorn maker although it really felt a bit too greasy for me. Didn’t really taste the spice either.

The idea behind this New York inspired dining eating is small plates for sharing. It works in a whole lot of ways. You can eat progressively, as much as you like or as little as you like without feeling like you’re constrained to a normal two or three course meal, though you can do that as well. My recommendation to you is to do make progressive orders as the space on the countertop doesn’t really let you stack that many plates. Now on to the food that we ordered.

Although the both of us aren’t particularly fond of olives, I’d read good reviews of their stuffed olives (£4). Imagine a mini version of scotch egg except that instead of an egg, they use an olive and the stuffing is an anchovy mix. I can’t really say that worked for us and I found myself eating them all myself. Terribly salty (olives + anchovies) and honestly a little bit greasy. But hey, that could work for you if you’ve been waiting in line and drinking for a little bit already.

A huge winner and something I don’t think that you can indulge in everyday was the truffled egg toast (£5.50). What arrived was a huge piece of bread, with melted cheese and aromatic melted cheese enriched (like it needed any more!) with a puddle of egg yolk on top just to add that extra bit of egginess. It was good to split this between two people as I can imagine as a dish for yourself might be a bit much.

We ordered a couple of the “sliders” that are basically an American name for almost bite sized burgers. I say almost because these were pretty big and you would hope so for the prices. We tried the ground beef and bone marrow (£4.50) and the lamb and picked cucumber (£5). Both tasty, moist and served on a nice tasty bun that wasn’t too dry.

The next few dishes almost arrived at the same time meaning we struggled for counter top space – swapping drinks for meals and lightly arranging dishes so they maximised the tiny counter top that we had. We split the next dish, the zucchini, chill and mint pizzeta (£6.50) in half. Thin base, perfectly balanced spicy, cool and fresh vegetables made this dish a big winner in my eyes. Probably one of the better valued dishes as well.

Like we didn’t have enough stodge in our meal, my sister wanted to try the famous mac and cheese (£8) that we probably should have split with our neighbours that there was so much and so rich. Whilst good, I think we were craving the small bigs of truffle shavings of truffle oil that has made this dish an even bigger winner for me in other restaurants.

Pretty much full after this huge amount of food, I opted out for dessert, instead just trying a bit of the peanut butter and jelly “sandwich” (£6.50) dessert that my sister ordered. It’s a cleverly constructed dish with the “bread” made out of slabs of peanut butter ice cream, filled with jam and sprinklings of crunchy, sweet peanut brittle providing the perfect amount of crunch to the dish. Had I not eaten so much, I probably would have enjoyed this dessert although my only criticism is that it was far too sweet for my taste and I barely even touched the jam with the small amount of ice cream I had.

I can see why this place gets great reviews. I think the bill was reasonable considering the amount of food we ordered. The price would obviously go up as soon as you hit the alcoholic drinks, and if you’re interested in some of the interesting bourbon based whiskey cocktails, there were definitely a few interesting ones to go for. Service was cordial, prompt and much deserved of their 12.5% service I think. Be warned that it’s worth going early if you don’t want to wait, but I guess half the fun could be indulging in the tiny crowded space imagining that you’ve been transported to some part of New York.

Name: Spuntino
Found at: 61 Rupert Street, Soho, London, W1D 7PW (it’s not very well signed and we walked right by it but maybe look out for the large group of people that may be queuing.
Website: http://spuntino.co.uk/

Chipps No. 2

Patrick American, Berlin, Brunch

Apparently there are two of these places now set up in Berlin, started by the very same and well respected chef who started the fantastic Cookies Cream experience. The one I visited was the most accessible from Hackescher Markt where Oranienburgerstrasse meets Friedrichstrasse.

The concept for meals for lunch and dinner – a kind of playful cooking with numbers style where you pick a number of ingredients and they make a playful dish out of it. It reminds me a little bit about those crazy Mongolian BBQ buffet places where you pile everything into a bowl, hand it to a chef and they mix it up. Fortunately unlike those Mongolian BBQ places they don’t let you step too far out of the bounds of what makes sense you rather than ending up with bowls that all taste the same you actually end up with some pretty good dishes.

Strangely enough I didn’t go for the main, hungry for some decent breakfast stuff. The menu here is much easier where you can literally order by the number. Tempted as I was by the infrequently offered, eggs benedict that they playfully call “Bed Head” (€8.50) I decided for the french toast with scrambled eggs and bacon, the “Lumber Jack” (€8) . Just as rich, if not probably much worse for me, it was the perfect cure for the hangover hovering on the horizon.

Unfortunately I can’t really recommend the (milky) coffees with a cappuccino being more foam than coffee, although the espresso tasted pretty good on its own.

From what I can tell, they even do deliveries of their food in their tiny food delivery truck.

Name: Chipps No. 2
Address: Friedrichstraße 120, Mitte, Berlin, Germany
Website: http://www.chipps.eu/