Category Archives: Pubs

Fowl Mouths at The King & Co

There’s nothing foul about the Fowl Mouths residency taking place now through the first week of March at Clapham’s rockin’ little indie pub, The King & Co. And without doubt a read of the Fowl Mouths’ menu jam packed with Japanese comfort food treats should ring mellifluent to any foodie within earshot. Continue reading

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Best of the Best of 2015

I hope that in some small way my 2015 blogging helped you have more fun, discover something amazing, save some money or otherwise make more of your time than you might have otherwise. Continue reading

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Best Bars of 2015 (Excluding London)

Hey globetrotters, who’s up for a drink? If you ever happen to find yourself thirsty in Barcelona, Rome, Atlanta, Bath or even tiny Hillsborough, North Carolina here’s where to go for the best flow of drinks mixed with camaraderie. Continue reading

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Finger Lickin’ Pheasant? Limited Edition Phast Phood Pheast at The Jugged Hare Pub

Popular Barbican Gastropub, The Jugged Hare, is launching a limited edition “Finger Lickin’ Pheasant Bucket” available from 16 to 22 November in celebration of National Pheasant Week. Feeling game? I was when I accepted an invitation to sample a bucket. … Continue reading

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Bombay Masterclass: Profiling the Botanicals

Maddie Salters attends a gin masterclass at The Jam Tree in Clapham. If your prohibition-era proclivities have ever led you to yearn for a night in a private bar cleverly disguised by a bookshelf, you need look no further than … Continue reading

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Spitfire Ales: Why You’ll Be Drinking Mo’ Beer for Movember

November means Movember according to Maddie Salters who celebrated with Spitfire Premium Kentish Ale to kick off the month the raising money and awareness for sufferers of prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental illnesses. It’s that time of year again. … Continue reading

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Breakfast at The Alice House Queen’s Park

A recent invitation to try the newly launched morning menu at The Alice House in Queen’s Park (its sister venue in West Hampstead has been serving breakfast for a while now) proved a great reason to get up early and enjoy that most important meal of the day recently. How do like your eggs in the morning? Go tell Alice. Continue reading

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The Bell & Brisket Kitchen Takeover at The Barley Mow, Shoreditch

I’ve known Bel Shapiro – owner of The Bell & Brisket – for a number of years now and have been a fan of her “seriously pimped up salt beef bagels” all the while. I’ve also very much admired how she’s resisted any trendy urges to “go burger” along with the hipster tide and rather has looked to more local gourmand traditions to come up with something yummy that’s no less “street” and certainly just as zeitgeist-y as any other London grub you’re apt to sink your teeth into. Continue reading

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Good Stuff #46

Good stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Lazy Arm With its 700mm … Continue reading

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Squid Kitchen Brings Madrid Street Market Style to The King & Co, Clapham

Continuing with its pop-up approach to pub grubbing, The King & Co in Clapham has opened its kitchen to Madrileño style street food vendors, Squid Kitchen. A match made in heaven? It is if crisp craft beer coupled with cones overflowing with calamari sounds like you kind of fiesta. I loved my nosh through the recent launch party and am happy to gloat … erm … share the highlights of that occasion with you. Continue reading

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The Fire Station Hots up Waterloo Once Again

After a year long refurb, The Fire Station near Waterloo Station has reopened with a new look and menu. I tagged along to the relaunch last month and liked what I saw and what I tasted. Continue reading

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Good Stuff #43

Good stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Continue reading

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Lunch at The Angel, City Road/Old Street

A few years ago I used to live just down the road from The Angel. Back then, like so many other things hovering near Old Street Roundabout, the pub was a very different place to what it is now. Following a major sprucing up, the once scruffy old boozer has reopened as a really rather clean and cosy place to have a drink. It’s still a good pub to keep in mind for enjoying a proper pint (now with a craft beer selection), you just don’t need to worry about your shoes sticking to the floor anymore. Continue reading

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Are you Sitting Comfortably? Street Food Heroes Crabbieshack Pop-up at The Hat & Tun

For three nights only from Wednesday 13th – Friday 15th May, 5.30pm to 9pm, Crabbieshack will be serving Old Bay Batter Soft-Shell Crab Burgers (£9.50) at The Hat & Tun pub in Clerkenwell. Continue reading

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Taking it Easy with an Overnight Spa Break in Bath

Easter week, Kemey and I made a quick overnight trip to Bath for a bit of rest and relaxation with a dash of history and scaled down but nonetheless urban ease. Both of us had been to Bath before but ages ago and not together. We had so much fun during our brief stay in this compact and attractive city. It’s a great place for couples and super easy to get to from London. Of course, more time to explore Bath and the bucolic countryside nearby would have been ideal, but our overnight visit proved to be an amply replenishing pause before having to head back to the London grind. Continue reading

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Meaty New “Bunsmiths” BBQ Menu at Sebright Arms: Oh Hell Yes!

Pub grub never looked so mouthwateringly mountainous! A new (not pop-up) menu at Sebright Arms pub off Hackney Road brings some of the finest “low and slow BBQ cooked meat served fresh and fast in delicious buns” to the table to be washed down with something sudsy from one of London’s more carefully considered lists of craft and quality beers. Continue reading

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Good Stuff #40

Good stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Morty & Bob’s Pop-Up at … Continue reading

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Perfect Pies + Great Gins at Punch Tavern, Fleet Street

Not my first (or last) time to dine at Punch, I recently paid a visit to see if this 118 year old Fleet Street mainstay lived up to the 2014 Great Taste awards it had won for its pies. I can vouch for the cauliflower cheese pie (£11) and the steak and Doom Bar Ale pie (£13) – both served with ample and satisfying mash, veg and gravy. Puds are ace here too – love the sticky toffee pudding (£4.50).
Continue reading

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Bah Bah Persian Pop-up at The King & Co

For those of you who don’t know, “bah bah” is what Persians say when something is especially appetising; it’s the equivalent of “mmm” or “yummy” and a very apt name for the food at The King & Co’s latest pop-up residency. Continue reading

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Sunday Lunch at the Crown and Two Chairmen, Soho

My lunch at the Crown was ace, and I loved the upstairs dining space, which was all but empty at 1.30pm (things picked up considerably by 2.30 though with hardly a free seat in the house). Highlights? To begin with service was efficient and friendly, seating was comfy, and I got a kick out of spotting a couple of celebrities out the window walking down street (if making a reservation, ask for a table by the window looking down on Dean Street). Continue reading

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Restaurant Review: The Cavendish, Marylebone

Newly opened The Cavendish sets a dual tone for a night out. The downstairs bar (which was absolutely jam packed the Tuesday evening I was there) offers casual drinks with upscale air while a more subdued if rather swish upstairs dining room promises a more formal experience (though still quite far from stuffy). Whether it be a quick drink, bar snacks with cocktails, or a full-on feast – The Cavendish is a worthwhile venue to keep in mind next time you’re seeking a suitable place to enjoy food and drink in Marylebone. Continue reading

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Riverford at the Duke of Cambridge, Britain’s Only 100% Organic Pub

The Duke of Cambridge – Britain’s first and only certified organic pub – has teamed up with Riverford (aka the organic veg box folks from Devon) to “champion seasonal produce” and offer Londoners an ethical and healthier option for quality pub grub. I dropped by the Duke earlier this week for a low key Monday lunch – and very much enjoyed the experience. Continue reading

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Annual AllDogsMatter Halloween Dog Walk: Sunday 26 October at The Spaniards Inn

“Pups line up for this annual fur-raising AllDogsMatter Howloween Parade” weaving its way from the historic Spaniards Inn through Hampstead Heath and back to this historic and picturesquely placed pub for a “fang-tastic doggie costume contest for Best Dressed Warlock (Male), Best Dressed Witch (Female) and Spookiest in Show (Male or Female). Whether you’re a proud dog owner or just craving some cute canie action, this event promises to be a lot of fun while supporting a great cause. Continue reading

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Jack Daniel’s Master Distiller Jeff Arnett at The Macbeth in London #spiritofjack

A few weeks back I had the esteemed pleasure of sitting in on a tasting with Jack Daniel’s Master Distiller Jeff Arnett. It’s funny to think that I grew up only a couple of hours’ drive from where Jeff does his magic but wound up meeting him on the other side of the Atlantic in an East London pub. Of course, as the ‘nose’ behind one of the world’s most famous brands (and what I reckon is Tennessee’s biggest export), I suppose it’s not all that surprising that the chance to shake hands and sip whiskey with Jeff might take place anywhere across the globe. Continue reading

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The Victoria, Mile End: Everything under (and on) One Roof!

Recently renovated and reopened under new ownership, The Victoria brings a taste of farm-to-table dining and hopeful community spirit to Mile End. I had lunch here about a week and a half ago and really enjoyed it. Here’s quick look at a few of this pub’s many highlights. Continue reading

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Good Stuff – Speyside Delights!

Good Stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – in this case all yummy findings from my recent trip to Scotland’s Speyside that I thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Continue reading

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Aberlour at the Source: More than Whisky

Even when setting aside the distillery tour, cooperage visit, and the delectable chance to taste the Aberlour range of single malts in the very environment where they’re made, my Speyside time was still such a blast. The area is absolutely gorgeous, all the food I had was delish, and the hours spent outside communing with nature were as invigorating as they were relaxing. I would have loved to have been able to extend my trip at least a few more days as there was just so much great stuff to see and do. Indeed, I would be so very keen to head back that way again to get to continue discovering this lovely part of Scotland. Continue reading

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Good Stuff

Good Stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Pieminister – Brew Dog Pies British … Continue reading

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Lovely Sunday Lunch at The Latchmere, SW11

Following a major reno, The Latchmere pub on Battersea Park Road has recently reopened under the guiding hand of the Renaissance Pubs group to offer a comfortable and attractive venue (think: Victorian minus any twee fittings) for all those pubby things we like to do as Londoners. Kemey and I paid visit a couple of weekends ago for one of our most favourite of pubby activities – Sunday lunch! – and were more than pleased with our experience. Here are some of the highlights. Continue reading

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The Pear Tree Pub in Hammersmith, W6

Today (Thursday 24 July), The Pear Tree pub in Hammersmith is offering free BBQ pulled pork finger rolls at two locations. From 12.45 folks from the pub will be outside the main entrance to Charing Cross Hospital, and then from 17.45 they’ll be outside Barons Court Tube. Yum! Continue reading

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Win Dinner for Two and an Overnight Stay at The Tommyfield London Pub

Located just five minutes from London’s Waterloo and owned by Renaissance Pubs, The Tommyfield now fully embraces its coaching inn roots by becoming a luxurious city crash pad as well as a cracking London local. Tempted? Keep reading to find out how to win a free night’s stay plus dinner for two at this ace Kennington pub! Continue reading

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Win Dinner for Two at The Portman Pub & Restaurant – Courtesy of Zomato

Looking for a great night out in Central London? The Portman Pub & Restaurant near Marble Arch features a lively pub downstairs with a more subdued tablecloth serviced restaurant upstairs – not to mention an excellent menu and wine list. And thanks to a team up with online restaurant discover guide, Zomato, I’m offering one lucky reader the chance to enjoy a free dinner for two at this fine Marylebone gastropub. Continue reading

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25% Off Food and Drink at Punch Tavern, Fleet Street EC4

Yep, that’s right. There’s no typo in the title you just read. I have teamed up with Fleet Street’s historic Punch Tavern to offer you folks a sizeable discount on some properly yummy pub grub. How do you get a quarter of your food and drink bill sliced away? Just tell ’em tikichris sent ya! Continue reading

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Proper Pies and Great Pub Grub at Punch Tavern, Fleet Street

In addition to the great food and drink, Punch Tavern has a singular air about it and is a lovely spot to find yourself. There’s gorgeous natural light streaming in from a glass ceiling in the main bar area, a working fireplace, and original features from 1897 such as marble bar, dark oak panelling, and a series of original Punch and Judy themed paintings. Continue reading

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Craft Beer Rising Review by @cathiasays

A couple of Sundays ago (while I was still bumbling round in America), London blogger Cathia Randrianarivo kindly  subbed for me accepting to attend on my behalf a beer-ific event I was unable to make. As Cathia puts it, “I … Continue reading

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