June Newsletter

Hi Fellow Foodie,

I hope all is well with you.

Since our last newsletter, we added just one review, but it was a good one: lunch at the Eastern Mediterranean restaurant Jeru London.

Read review here

In addition to the review, following my guide to Heddon Street, I continued my tour of my favourite hidden streets in Mayfair. This time, it’s Bruton Place, a lovely little street off Berekely Square.

 It boasts a Michelin-starred restaurant, a pub that ranks among the top 100 steak restaurants in the world, no less, fine dining restaurants, delis, cafes, and even a gorgonzola bar—all in one tiny street (if you can call it a street, it's that small). 

I've been in the kitchen, adding new recipes. Also, in time for summer, our friends at Hedonism Wines have suggested six wines we should be drinking this summer; the list includes some unexpected choices. 

As well as all the above, I did find time to pop into The Rex Deli while working on my Bruton Place article for breakfast, which was lovely; I can recommend the scotch egg and sausage rolls. Larry Jayasekara, head chef at the deli and The Cocochine, was in the deli during my visit and mentioned that they take as much care and attention in producing the sausage rolls as they do in their beef Wellington. It looked like a mini beef Wellington, and although they are not the cheapest sausage rolls, they are well worth the it.

So, on to some industry news;

Claude Bosi’s Socca has launched a fixed-price lunch menu. The French Mediterranean restaurant offers three courses for £35 and two for £28. I have heard through the grapevine that the restaurant is rethinking its a la carte menu and pricing, which hopefully means some more affordable dishes.

Talking of new menus just down the road in St.James at the Corinthia Hotel, Tom Kerridge Bar and Grill announced a new menu to coincide with a new head chef, Tom Childs. Tom was a sous chef with an impressive CV, having previously worked for Paul Ainsworth and Heston Blumenthal. The new menu is now available. I’m hoping to be road-testing the new menu next month, and between you and me, I can’t wait.

While at The Corinthia, I visited the summer pop-up bar Velvet Alfresco on its opening night, 19th June. The bar, themed in Campari red, offers classic cocktails, including the Negroni (my drink of choice on the night), wines, and champagnes. The bar is open 4-8 p.m. every day during summer. In a nice touch, along with cocktails, you can expect to be offered Sicilian olives, salami Milano, grissini, and a slice of pizza.

The Berkeley Hotel re-opens its rooftop bar for the summer. The Berkeley Rooftop Bar will be open for the season from the evening of 11th July, offering the ultimate alfresco destination for Londoners to soak up sweeping sunset views over Hyde Park and enjoy cocktails featuring Tequila and a new menu of Tacos. You only need to bring your sunglasses and sombrero.

Piccolino Heddon Street is collaborating with Molton Brown for a special night on Friday 19th July from 6.00 pm onwards at the Molton Brown store, then onto Piccolino Heddon Street for a 2-course meal after a Molton Brown masterclass. Full details of this very special evening and tickets

The new hot ticket in town, which has received glowing reviews from the well-respected judges in the industry, is Josephine Bouchon on Fulham Road; it describes itself as a simple French bistro and features dishes from Claude Bosi’s hometown of Lyon. Friends that have been said it is excellent. I hope to visit soon. Also outside of Mayfair and after a successful opening of Arlington, Jeremey King has opened his version of a Cafe called The Park, serving breakfast, brunch and an all-day menu. Again, I have only heard good things about this Queensway-based eatery. 

In our next newsletter, expect to hear about my exploits sampling a typical Indian brunch, a tasting session involving burgers and rock music—big clue—and an afternoon sea, a seafood version of traditional Afternoon tea. I plan to write a guide to the best Mayfair wine bars. Hopefully, I will find time to add a couple of new recipes before a week away at the end of the month, enjoying food and wine in the southwest region of France. I can’t wait; I’m a lucky boy.

Thanks as always for reading; if you have 5 minutes spare, can I recommend Jay Rayners lovely interview with Si King? Jay and Si have been friends for a long time, and the interview reflects that, as well as the pain of Si losing his best friend, Dave Myers, and moving forward without Dave. Si recounts a lovely quote from Dave about the Hairy Bikers:” We were never clever enough to be anybody else but ourselves” I think that is why we loved them so much.

Have a lovely July, and I look forward to catching up with you at the end of the month.

Best wishes

Martin

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