Mayfair Foodie Newsletter

Hello Fellow Foodies,

Newsletter number 4, and the 1st of August, the year is going so quickly.

With a lot of Europe suffering a heatwave here in the UK, we are still waiting & hoping for some summer sun.

As is the norm nowadays, the last weeks have been eventful. Our trip to Porto & Lisbon was delightful, and both are perfect for a foodie break.

The river Duro runs through the centre of Porto, adding to its charm with the main town built on the bank on one side on the other is where the Port Houses live. We went on a Port tour and can also recommend going to Taylors’ Port bar, restaurant & gardens. It’s a bit of a climb but well worth it.

Lisbon is a bigger city & offers a wide choice of restaurants & bars, including a big craft beer scene. The highlight for me was the Time Out food market. It seemed busy at any time of day and was stuffed full of food outlets & bars. Great choice and excellent quality.

Dishoom offers its Summer BBQ box for a limited period, serving four people. Our friends invited us to try the BBQ pack, and it was excellent. Lamb Chops, Murgh Malal, and Chicken Tikka arrived. The pack also can with a sachet of Kabab Masala spices & a Dishoom Tea towel.

It also allowed us to dip into our Dishoom cookbooks (I can highly recommend) to add spicy slaw, homemade chapati & a couple of vegetable dishes, all from the excellent Dishoom recipe book.

So website news, we have added three new articles, including my interview with the very talented Taiji Maruyama, 3rd generation Sushi chef & co-owner of Maru.

Our review of Mayfairs Secret Garden & restaurant, the excellent Hush.

Finally, we had the tough job of researching “Best Pub Grub in Mayfair”, a task I freely accepted.

Latest News

The Berkeley

The Berkeley opens its new rooftop cocktail bar.

The Berkeley, perfectly nestled between bustling Knightsbridge and leafy Belgravia, will open its rooftop – usually reserved for staying guests – to all for the rest of the Summer, with a brand new bar. The Berkeley Rooftop Bar will open for evenings, offering the ultimate alfresco destination for Londoners to soak up sweeping sunset views over Hyde Park, whilst sitting by the glistening pool. Unrivalled views of London’s skyline will be complemented with a menu of refreshing spritz’ and Mediterranean small plates.

 Pavyllon

Pavyllon opened earlier this month at the Four Seasons Hotel in Park Lane, Yannick Alleno is one of the most decorated chefs with 15 Michelin stars across his stable of and heads up global restaurants & for the first time, opens in London.

With such a pedigree, expect the food to be very agreeable but the bill not so. The cuisine is artistically described as a British expression of French dining. Looking at the menu, it basically is whatever Yannick fancied to put on the menu with dishes from France, Italy and maybe a nod to the UK.

Il Gattopardo

Due to open in September, Il Gattopardo comes from the same restaurant group that brought us Zuma, Poka & Bar De Pres. The Executive Chef is Massiomo Pasquarelli, who’s worked with Alain Decasse in the past and comes via Ritz Carlton Singapore. We are told 1960s Italy inspires Italian cuisine, so pasta, I’m guessing!

We are also told the restaurant will have a hidden courtyard with a retractable roof. Judging by the weather in August, this is a very smart move.

Address 27 Albermarle Street, Mayfair W1S 4HZ

Mayfair Chippy

Afernoon Sea Week 7th-13th August

A traditional Afternoon Tea is associated with finger sandwiches, scones, pastries and cakes. However, The Mayfair Chippy, an award-winning, 1AA Rosette, Michelin Guide, quintessentially British restaurant located in the heart of Mayfair, has put its own special twist on the traditional offering. Afternoon Sea, a tower of incredible seafood for those looking for something a little more adventurous this Afternoon Tea Week.

Guests can feast on some of the freshest seafood in London. Tuck into the chilled seafood platter with Cornish crab on toast, Severn & Wye smoked salmon, pickled cockles, dressed Cornish crab, Atlantic crab claws, King prawns with Maldon rock oysters, and cooked mussels.

.To book visit: www.mayfairchippy.com 

The Afternoon Sea is priced at £38.00 per person with a booking for two people minimum and must be pre-booked.

Take a look at our review of the Mayfair Chippy.

Tendril

We mentioned in a previous newsletter that Tendril has a new permanent home & I can now confirm they opened the doors last week. We wish Rishim & the team good luck. You can find Tendril, 5 Princess Street, W1B 2LQ.

St Mary’s Gate

Many thanks to everybody enquiring about my friend's pub St Mary’s Gate Inn in Arundel West Sussex, a quick update for you.

For those who don’t know, a dear friend has taken over “The Gate” and, as we speak & has just completed six months at the pub.

A quick update: despite the challenges of running any new business, the Pub is going from strength to strength. Scott, Sam (the manager), & the team have put in so much hard work. They have transformed the decor inside & out, created a fantastic food menu focusing on using local Sussex suppliers, and are renovating the guest bedrooms.

The locals have responded & the food sales are booming. Also, previously, the pub hardly sold any wine & now wine sales form a big part of the drink sales. Something that the team knew would happen if they provided good food.

If you are in that part of the world, could you pop in and say hello? They would love to see you.

Address, St Mary’s Gate Inn, London Rd, Arundel BN18 9BA

Coming Up

Lots planned for the next few months, and dare I mention the “C” word, I need to plan content for the end-of-year festivities. My plans for the next few months are plenty of restaurant visits, I’m eating at Sketch Gallery restaurant tomorrow & next week at Ginza St James. I have been looking forward to visiting both restaurants for a long time & so looking forward to reporting back.

Plenty of new articles planned; I’m finishing a piece on “Best Cocktails in Mayfair”; it's been a lot of fun to write.

I want to include more recipes, and I've been so busy with other articles that I've neglected the recipes section. However, I’m adding my recent interpretation of my risotto at Hush this week I think you might like it.

I’m planning to start running competitions with amazing prizes, I will restrict these to my subscribers & Instagram followers. It would be much appreciated if you can follow me on @themayfairfoodie. Watch this space first comp to be announced soon.

Finally, I plan to announce some exciting news about a new collaboration for the website, a new monthly column. I’m sorry I can’t say more now, but you will know first.

Please let me know how to improve the website, I do value your input & love receiving your feedback, good or bad.

Thanks again for your valued support

Have a good few weeks & until next time.

Martin, the Mayfair Foodie

www.mayfairfoodie.com

Instagram @themayfairfoodie.com