I’ve been watching Iron Chef America lately and its quite interesting what they will do with the ice cream machine on that show. I’ve seen pork and fish go through that machine so I guess in comparison my beer ice cream is nothing to exotic. I don’t know why I thought it was going to taste differently but if its a beer flavoured ice cream that you want – then definitely go for this dessert at Belgo Centraal. The praline that went it was probably what stopped me from gagging on the beer taste – definitely not one of my favourites. Otherwise it was probably a very good ice cream and strangely refreshing anyway.

Fish In A Tie is not going to jump out and grab you if you’re walking by but once you’re in you’ll find its a little treasure that may have you coming back again and again. Situated just near Clapham Junction we walked straight by the first time around and nearly missed it again on the return leg, though to be fair we didn’t have the exact address on us. Make sure to look out for the purple painted building. The restaurant also has tinted windows so at first we weren’t sure if it was even open. The waitress soon fixed that running outside to intercept us before we walked away.

I was expecting seafood to dominate the menu so I was a little surprised to find few seafood dishes. I think its classed as a Mediterranean restaurant so maybe thats why. Or maybe it was that the offer of ostrich distracted me just a little bit. Overall the food quality was excellent. Our starters of calamari were very freshly cooked with a very light batter and an extremely generous portion. My only complaint that it was just a little bit salty. My main of ostrich steak was also well-cooked (as if I would know if it wasn’t) and, though a bit gamey, was quite tasty. Chicken thought it tasted like lamb but I didn’t think so because I wouldn’t have been able to eat it otherwise. I think that Chicken was happy with her sea bass but the look on her face when it arrived with tail still intact was priceless. Speaking of prices food was very reasonably priced for the quality of the food you get. My only real qualm is with the dessert. The profiteroles were giantic and looked fresh but my dessert of apple pie seemed like it had simply come out of the microwave. Perhaps something like the tiramisu or orange cheescake would have gone down better next time.

The atmosphere is very intimate with tables very close together and rustic decoration (lots of mirrors everywhere, candles, on the dark side but with highish roof.) At first when we first walked in it would feel like more of a place where you’d take a first date (that is, if you have romance in mind) but I imagine if it got very packed you will be able to hear everything going on at the tables around you so that might intrude on the romance slightly. There are also actually three floors so they have done their very best to use every bit of space available to them.

Fish in a Tie is definitely a restaurant that I have no qualms recommending.

For something different we decided to head out to the Spitafield Market to try out the BBQ at the Arkansas Cafe. Its supposed to be fabulous for meat eaters so I was looking forward to chowing down with relish. The Cafe certainly looks the part with a very relaxed atmosphere and with decor to make it look like you would imagine a diner to look like in the deep of south the USA. The menu also appears promising with plenty of meat options – pork ribs, beef ribs, beef brisket, duck, cornfed chicken, pork sausages and of course a BBQ platter (everything is presumably grilled). Interestingly, however, when I asked about the BBQ platter what the waitress proceeded to describe was the assorted salads and veges that accompanied the platter rather than exactly what meats you would get (an ominous sign for sure.) In the end I settled on the pork ribs which is I think the best way to measure how good a BBQ is. Sad to say I was a little disappointed. Sure the meat was quite tender and tasty in its own fashion (namely fairly salty) but it contained none of that smokiness or BBQiness that I would have expected. And for a meat-eaters paradise I was not impressed to see my “salads” (assorted cabbages, slaw, beans etc.) outsizing the meat. As a result I thought the price was certainly too high for what you got. It might be a good idea if you’re there just for the meat to just order a number of the starters cause then you won’t end up paying over £5 for salad you didn’t want to eat anyway. There is a plus side – service was quick and efficient if not necessarily overly friendly (though maybe put on an American accent and the owner will be much more friendly.)

It might seem that we are quite determined to show our hand at all the seven Maroush restaurants here in London (imaginatively titled Maroush I, II, III, IV, V, Gardens, and Deli) as tonight we decided to drop in to Maroush V. (On the other hand it must be noted that there was a bit of toing and froing, mainly by Pepe, as to whether Maroush V and Levant would be the better venue.) Somehow Maroush V won hands down.

Tonight the lads were apparently up for a bit of entertainment as well so Pepe made sure to book us into the Live Entertainment section in the basement of the restaurant where we were promised live music and belly dancing. Unfortunately, it being a Monday, not many other people had their hand up for entertainment. In fact there was only us and another couple downstairs, though apparently it was heaving upstairs. As you can imagine, the restaurant didn’t bother with an entertainer tonight! The best (and only) entertainment we had was some dude in a white beret sitting at the keyboard. To top it off he didn’t even put a hand on the keyboard, as it was all pre-recorded, and he didn’t even trying to pretend to play as he was blatantly reading some mag instead! So, that was a bit of a disappointment.

The other thing with sitting in the Live Entertainment section is that you are forced to have their set menu. At £25 for food only (that is, not including drinks and not including service) it seemed quite steep. We had a hard time imagining what we’d actually get for that price. What we were handed was a whole lot of starters, an average size main course and then two giant platters of fruit.

• Starters. The starters were extremely generous with a selection of Cold Mezzes including Hommos, Moutabal, Tabouleh, and Warak Inab and a selection of Hot Mezzes including Falafel, Soujouk, Batata Harra, and Fatayer. The starters were quite good but we ended up with a lot being left over. Not sure if its because everyone was trying to conserve space for their main course or were just genuinely full.
• Main Course. The main course was slightly disappointing from a serving size perspective. We had basically two mixed grill platters and two mixed shawarma platters. Delicious but I felt they only gave us enough for what would normally feed four people, not seven.
• Dessert. Dessert was this which was good I guess from a healthy eating perspective but it would have been nice if they had thrown in some Lebanese sweets. Maybe.

Overall I would say that £25 was probably more than I’d normally pay for what I ate tonight. It was good quality food but I wouldn’t rate it as value for money. Also, we didn’t even get the entertainment that we paid for so if you want to experience Maroush V properly make sure you go on a busy night.

But all I’ve spoken about is the food. As a night out, tonight was quite a bit of fun and a lot of laughter – mainly at the expense of Chicken and maybe things got out of hand slightly with the teasing but hey, better her than me! Here is what we all looked like after/during dessert:

Outback Steakhouse is not, as you might believe when you walk in, an Australian concept. It was founded nearly 20 years ago in Florida so its an American restaurant with an Australian theme. You’ll find pictures of Australian wildlife, boomerangs, etc. decorating the restaurants and the theme even carries to the restaurants with toilets for the Blokes and the Sheilas.

Although its a steakhouse there’s a huge variety on the menu other than steak and also although a lot of menu is named for Australia the food is not really Australian – just Australian dressing on American food. But I didn’t mind. As an example after a long day on the beach out in the sun I was looking forward to a large rack of ribs to end the night – you can’t get more American than that. The ribs were fabulous and I would definitely recommend them to anyone. The Bloomin’ Onion gets my recommendation too. Its deep fried goodness but darn tasty. I didn’t have it tonight but I’ve tasted them in America and you should try it at least once.

Overall its a fun restaurant. Good service, great food, and good atmosphere (low lighting and comfortable booths even if the tables are a little high.) The only drawback is its awkward location away from Central London.

At the beginning of the year we thought it would be funny to collect M&Ms from around the world. Today’s post held a present surprise in our latest acquisition – a delivery all the way from HM Forces in Iraq! In all the excitement of actually getting the delivery I forgot to check out the stats on the back of the packet itself but Chicken said that they seemed to have been imported from America so I’m presuming its the same as a couple of the packets of M&Ms we already had from America. I still can’t believe that he took time out from his serious duties to track the M&Ms down and then send it to us. Just in time too to replenish the diminishing stocks … 🙂

Tucked away in Museum Street Abeno is a Japanese restuarant is fairly discreet so you’ll be eating there either because someone has told you about it or because you have accidentally stumbled upon it. Its a cute little restuarant (and it filled very quickly) and is bright, clean and interesting for the cooktops that serve as your table. Additionally staff are extremely friendly and efficient.

Why go to Abeno? I’m sure there are decent Japanese offerings on the menu but I was there for its specialty – okonomiyaki. Okonomiyaki is like a savoury pancake and can best be compared with a Spanish Omelette. You start with the basic ingredients of cabbage, egg and batter and then you can choose the combination of ingredients from a range including pork, prawn, squid, cheese, bacon, salmon, lotus root etc. The best thing is that the friendly staff cook it right in front of you on the teppenyaki grill and so its freshness is guaranteed. Once cooked the okonomiyaki are finished off with a brown sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes.

The okonomiyaki (we went for the Tokyo combo of pork, prawn and squid) was delicious and as the okonomiyaki stays on the grill (you get mini spatulas to scoop it up) every bite you eat is guaranteed to be hot. The only drawback is that after eating my meal there today I have felt constantly thirsty. It really was tasty though. Super deluxe okonomiyaki are priced at around £11ish so its not cheap but it is fairly filling and worth trying for its novelty factor.