City Lemon Featured Food Blogger | May 25th,2011 Category: Brasserie (£££)  After having read formidable reviews about Chabrot in the Metro and the blog Cheese &Biscuit this restaurant was top on my list to try,particularly as I am always a bit at loss on where to go in Knightsbridge. I don’t like to be ripped off,you see. In the end,I was not as taken with Chabrot Marina and Chris. The food was good,but it was by no means exceptional and it didn’t leave any lasting impression. The main criticism I have though,is that I found it rather overpriced. Ok,we are talking Knightsbridge here,but the only fish main on the menu £29? To be fair,there were cheaper dishes to choose from,but I really wanted fish. £29 I may pay at a Michelin star place with amazing atmosphere and great reputation,not at something that calls itself bistro…(that’s the cheapskate in me,sorry) The atmosphere was positively remarked on by most reviews I read about this place. I assume most of the reviewers must have sat downstairs which did look nice upon entering. We were however led upstairs to an empty,drafty room and apart from the checked tablecloth,I didn’t feel much of a pleasant French flair I have to say. 
Now there is one thing worth mentioning about Chabrot Bistro D’Amis. They do a Plat du Jour,I think from 6-7 pm and also for lunch. We got there at 7:30 and sadly missed it as it is very good value for money. The dish of the day,one glass of wine and a coffee for 17.50,this is such a bargain for Knightsbridge! I do have to come back for this. Back to the A La Carte menu. Read more... (619 words,9 images,estimated 2:29 mins reading time) May 21st,2011 Category: Bistro
Located just off the posh Walton Street on the boarder of Chelsea and Knightsbridge,Tartine is a pleasantly non-pretentious place in the heart of South Kensington. It has been around for almost 10 years and it is understandable why.Tartine is stylish,not budget breaking and friendly and offers a much needed contrast to the stuffy and overpriced etablissements its vicinity. And the food is lovely,the perfect place actually for a quick lunch. A tartine is a French slice of bread. At Tartine,they use freshly baked French sourdough bread (Poilâne) and serve it with a variety of toppings,either warm or cold. As someone who could never really get used to the bland and soggy English sandwich,I am very taken with both,tartine and Tartine. Which tartine to go for is a hard choice to make. Morrocan lamb and harrisa maybe,or shredded duck with plum sauce? Or choose something more French like the Goat’s cheese and grilled vegetables? We settled for the Italian option,Buffalo mozzarella,roasted tomatoes and pesto (9.50) served hot. I really enjoyed the crispy and warm bread with the melting buffalo mozzarella and plenty of flavoursome pesto.  The certainly more exciting choice was the beautiful Wild mushrooms,endive,parmesan and balsamic tartine (9.95). (Beautiful in taste I mean,not so much in looks…). The mushrooms were very well prepared and wonderfully complemented by the coarse shavings of parmesan. Read more... (447 words,7 images,estimated 1:47 mins reading time)
March 24th,2011 Category: Bistro (££)  If I don’t have time to look at blogs for restaurant recommendations,I tend to use Time Out for restaurant references. Time Out is about right most of the time and it is rare that I completely disagree with their review,but one of this rare occasions happened last weekend at My Dining Room in Fulham. I went there on Time Out’s recommendation whose reviewer experienced this restaurant as ‘friendly service and halfway house between relaxed pub and fancy restaurant:think gastropub turned chichi.’and awarded 4 out of 5 stars. Read more... (501 words,6 images,estimated 2:00 mins reading time) January 22nd,2011 Category: Brasserie (£££) Gauthier Soho is the restaurant where I went to celebrate in style the happy occasion of me having finally finished my PhD. At the same time,Gauthier Soho probably celebrated that it just got awarded its first Michelin star. Not that it is the owner’s first –Alexis Gauthier has already achieved this award as chef at his former work place Rousillon. But I think,basically,Alexis and me were both happy! Read more... (893 words,11 images,estimated 3:34 mins reading time) January 14th,2011 Category: Bistro (££)
I have to start with some food-independent whining. I have spent the last 2 weeks studying (ergo reduced posting frequency) and should still be studying for my viva on Monday but if someone mentions the word immunology to me ever again or asks me anything about gamma-delta T cells or psoriasis,I might have to kill him/her. (This in fact doesn’t bode well for my examiners.) So please keep your fingers crossed for me on Monday! Read more... (736 words,10 images,estimated 2:57 mins reading time) December 1st,2010 Category: Bistro (££) Who would have thought that there is a lovely French restaurant combined Jazz bar at the border of Elephant &Castle and Kennington? Even though I live rather close,I tend to ignore this area and if it wouldn’t be for the White Bear Theatre (a very decent pub theatre on Kennington Park Road) I would still be in ignorance about the fact that you can actually have a swell night out in Kennington. Read more... (581 words,9 images,estimated 2:19 mins reading time) November 3rd,2010 Category:Haute Cuisine (££££) I love pre-theatre menus. How else would one be able to regularly dine at Michelin starred restaurants in London without for instance being a stock broker (before the credit crunch) or a professional footballer? One of these restaurants is L’Atelier de Joel Robouchon in the middle of the theatre district in Covent Garden just next to The Ivy which offers a 2 course set menu for 22 pounds,3 courses for 27 pounds. The French chef Joel Robouchon who has achieved more Michelin stars than any other chef (25 if Wikipedia is to be believed) has restaurants all over the globe. Two of these stars are held by the London joint of L’Atelier Joel Robouchon. So believe me –my expectations were higher than high and I was looking forward to a stunning meal. Read more... (601 words,7 images,estimated 2:24 mins reading time) September 26th,2010 Catgory: Bistro (££) Clos Maggiore,a French restaurant in Covent Garden,does not only offer an incredibly well-priced set-menu (19.50 for 3 courses or 24.50 for 2 courses and a half-bottle of wine) but is also supposed to be the most romantic dining spot in London. So I dragged my better half along for a Sunday lunch. Read more... (607 words,7 images,estimated 2:26 mins reading time) August 17th,2010 Category: Brasserie 
I was invited to review Cafe Luc,which is a new restaurant in Marylebone. The Belgian restaurateur Luc van Oostende has opened Cafe Luc together with his daughter Julie. The result is a swank brasserie with Belgian/French inspired food. It is in general rather pricey but also offers cheaper options with starters ranging from 5.50 to 12.50 pounds and mains starting from 12 pounds. In addition,their three course set menu for 1 5.50 seems very good value for money. Read more... (689 words,9 images,estimated 2:45 mins reading time) August 2nd,2010 Category: Brasserie
Finally I have made it to Bar Boulud,next to Knightsbridge tube station located in the ground floor of the exceedingly posh Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Bar Boulud has been written up to death (e.g. MarinaMetro,AA Gil,Jay Rayner, and a myriad of bloggers) so I will keep myself short. 
The owner and chef,Daniel Boulud,is a successful restaurateur in New York where he doesn’t only have a restaurant with 3 Michelin stars (‘Daniel’) but is also famous for his up-market burgers . Read more... (467 words,6 images,estimated 1:52 mins reading time) | Inspiring London Food BlogsFood Blogs around the WorldDesign,Fashion and Art Blogs |
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