Displaying items by tag: restaurant foodie

Smart Casual - jacket not required. Smart - no jeans, no trainers, no shorts but ties not necessary. Casually Smart - jeans and trainers acceptable, jacket and standard shirt collar, tie not required. No sneakers... I do not want to be told what to wear when I eat out. Daft dress codes in dining rooms make me mad. A scruffy suit, an un-ironed shirt and a bad tie can look far worse than a smart pair of jeans and sneakers. There are many different pedigrees of jeans and sneakers and who is to tell me if mine are acceptable?

We called in at AquaShard last week - you don't need to book to get into to the bar on the 31st floor! We made it through the welcome party on the door to the fast and direct lift up to the bar. 'Sorry, I can't let you in' said the Maitre D' at the door. 'You are wearing sneakers'.

'Young man', I said in my best Suffolk dialect, 'there are people inside wearing sneakers'.

'They booked a table' replied the Maitre D'. 'If you had booked, we wouldn't turn you away, but as you have not booked, I cannot let you in wearing sneakers'.

We thought for a minute, then went up one more floor, in our sneakers, to Oblix, the bookings-only restaurant. We told them we had diamonds on the soles of our shoes. They let us in.

• Cocktails at Oblix
• Our sneakers
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The Dark Horse in Stowlangtoft has re-opened.  Anyone been? Please let us know via the comment link.

I found Hudson and Hudson in Colchester when I parked in Williams and Griffin car park and walked through to North Hill.  In the most surprising location(although I admit to not knowing Colchester very well, so it might be a prime location)you can actually walk through it, in one door and out of the other, if you are not superstitious. The in house chefs prepare everything that is on the deli counter and on the menu. I had eaten a full English breakfast before I discovered it so I decided on a coffee and a takeaway pork pie and black pudding scotch egg. They were both really good. But I wished I had bought a fish cake too.  The deli is licensed and stocks all locally produced food and larder items.

• al fresco dining
• chef in the open kitchen
• deli counter
• larder shelves and it's all local
• Rosie the owner
• black pudding scotch egg
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If you get the chance to spend a day or two in Cambridge then here is my mini food tour. Arrive in the afternoon and start with Afternoon Tease in King Street.  It is very close to the bus station in Drummer Street and as the name suggests serves tea and cake.  You can also get breakfast, brunch and lunch.  It stays open until 6pm in the week. I had a big slice of stout Christmas cake with homemade marzipan and icing. The dark molasses flavoured cake had huge juicy chunks of stem ginger and figs which made me go straight out and buy figs, because sometimes you just forget how nice they are.

After a good long walk around the city, a little retail therapy perhaps and working up an appetite, then go for supper at Pint Shop, another new restaurant to the Cambridge scene and just off the market by the Corn Exchange. Meat, bread, beer, about 50 types of gin, 30 whiskies and a very good wine list. The bar was full but I got a glimpse of some scotch eggs and sausage rolls on the bar top as I walked through to the restaurant. I was by myself, but had a good time.  Staff are friendly and welcoming and bring a plate of bread to the table once you are seated. I had half a pint of so'hop moor ultra pale keg beer, with triple cooked smoked ox cheek, horseradish gremolata and sprouting broccoli.  The side order of mash was perfect to mop up the gravy. The puddings sounded really good and included a sticky figgy pudding, but you can only eat so many figs in a day. And so to bed..... there are loads of places to stay, look at Quality in Tourism for rated properties.

In the morning find your way to Norfolk Street Bakery. it is an easy walk from the Grafton shopping centre. Do not leave Cambridge without visiting this delightful, bijou, Portuguese bakery.  Adilia bakes with her cousin Daniel and the window alone just calls you in.  It is bang in the middle of a residential part of town and a little terraced property.  You can get coffee to drink in or take away.  I tried salt cod pie, a meat croquette , a suckling pork rissole and cod fish cake. Yes, I am a pig, but how can you resist, and they were still warm!  I brought home a box of  cinnamon topped pastel de nata (custard tarts) to eat later.

• pastel de nata
• suckling pork rissoles,meat croquette
• chicken and salt cod pies
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Why have we been eating so many burgers? Suddenly everyone in Bury St Edmunds has burgers on the menu so we have been out to try some.

Benson Blakes were the first on the scene and are the established burger and cocktail bar in the town. They have won many awards ( deservedly so) for their offerings and we tried the Caprese (£7.85) a dirty great burger with sweet potato fries. Cocktails are damn good too.  Staff are very friendly and the atmosphere lively and fun, especially when a band is playing.

More sedate is Graze Kitchen and Bar, known for their small plate, informal dining and established in the town for high quality, mix and match plates. But now big plates have arrived and include a Graze burger, pickles and chips. (£9.) We drank a bottle of Chenin Blanc from South Africa which was very good and added some small plates to our late evening meal.  Service was slick, but annoyingly we were reminded throughout the meal that the kitchen closed at 10pm. 

Third up is The Picturehouse cinema in Hatter Street. They serve a build your own burger.  Choose a bun, a burger, a side and salad.(£8.80).  Note pads and pens are placed on the table for you to write, then place your order at the bar and the burger is delivered to the table. Service is cheerful but it gets a bit busy when a film is about to start, so allow plenty of time to eat first. 

• Benson Blakes
• Graze
• Picturehouse
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Goodbye cupcakes, biscuits are back.  The cupcake is on the decline and we think the next baking trend will be biscuits, not cookies, but good old butter based, crisp biscuits.  Bring on the bourbons!

Icecream is also on the up and together with the biscuit we guess the ice-cream sandwich could be the new dessert craze.

Tea will be trending, not just the current resurgence of the vintage cuppa but in cocktails and as iced teas.  Think rooibos, jasmine, hibiscus and green tea in your cocktails.  This is our Fresh Red with Mint.  Rooibis espresso, apple juice, mint and squeeze of lemon.

Vermouth has been neglected despite being an essential component of the current trend of cocktail making. It is a great aperitif in its own right and you will see the real vermouth action in Spain where it is poured straight from the barrel to the glass.  Look out for this Italian vermouth bianco made by chemist Mauro Vergano.  It is made from a base of Cortese and Moscato grapes, steeped in citrus and herbs.  Subtle aromas of orange blossom over a base of herbs. Delicious! Justin and Jurga Sharpe have it on the menu at Pea Porridge restaurant in Bury St Edmundsl

If 2013 was the year of Quinoa then 2014 will be the year of Buckwheat. Usually referred to as a cereal grain, buckwheat is a superfood and actually a type of fruit. A relative of the rhubarb plant, buckwheat has a mild nutty flavour and a slightly softer texture than other grains. Well known uses for buckwheat are the flour (great for pancakes), soba noodles and kasha. Kasha are the whole buckwheat kernel; you can find them roasted or unroasted at most health food stores. The buckwheat plant's flowers are also used to make a dark, rich honey. Originally from China, the main producer today is Japan, where people eat soba noodles on New Year's Eve as a symbol of longevity. Buckwheat is high in magnesium, good for healthy muscles. One cup of soba noodles has about half the calories of a cup of regular pasta. Buckwheat also contains the antioxidant rutin, known to help lower cholesterol and strengthen small blood vessels. Buckwheat is also a gluten-free food, which makes it a perfect substitute for those who have trouble digesting wheat. The fascination with Asian food will also continue into 2014 with rice playing a big part in the return of the carbs.

 Will goat be the new kid in town? We think so.  With the increase in goat dairy produce it only makes sense to eat the goat meat itself. A staple in the Caribbean with curried goat being a Suffolkfoodie favourite, we always have some goat meat in the deep freeze. Kid goat is actually very versatile and has a great subtle flavour. Slow roast shoulder or leg grilled over a charcoal fire served Greek style with lemon and herbs, yum

Home brewing could prove to be popular next year  How about a Great British Brew Off?  Not beer or wine, but VINEGAR.  Yes, you heard it. Vinegar is easy to make and we will be starting a brew soon here at Suffolkfoodie HQ.  Many years ago a friend with a wine shop kept a barrel for the bottle ends and left overs and brewed wonderful vinegar.  We fancy this hand thrown vinaigrier. Drinking vinegars, or shrubs as they were known in the 17th Century are becoming trendy and light vinegar chasers ( yuk?) and savoury cocktails are going to trend soon.  Chicken Tikka Martini anyone?

Clucking good chicken restaurants have been appearing throughout 2013 and they will continue to develop out of London. Chicken is still an economical meat and we have also been predicting eggs as a trend for the past year. Scotch eggs are back on the bars in many guises.  How about devilled and curried eggs next? New cuts of meat will appear. In 2013 we saw a move towards the American cuts such as the flat iron steak (shoulder blade, known as Butler's Steak in good old Blighty.)  Expect the Pork Porterhouse and Ribeye Chops.  Out with the lamb shank and in with the lamb short ribs and lamb brisket. Pictured is The Tramshed chicken. 

Finally, the last prediction is Wine Bars...  Wine bars that really know about the wine and are happy to share their knowledge. Wine bars that are cosy and unpretenious and don't make you feel that you need to swirl, sniff and spit to enjoy a good glass of wine.  Our favourite in London is Sager and Wilde.  Looking for one in East Anglia please?

This is one you need to book ahead.  On Friday and Saturday nights only at 7.45pm in Middlewood Green, it's a farmhouse (converted farm building) with fine dining at a set time, with a set menu and a set price £35.50. There is a formula here, and as "newbies" we were welcomed by the patron/chef and given the format and The Rules. 

"Help yourself to wine and serve it yourself" - Bravo for the affordable quality choice of wines.

"Food will be served, water topped up and bang on the kitchen door if you need anything during the meal"

Plate after plate of competently cooked food came out of the kitchen, but nothing blew us away. Service did the job, food was delivered, plates were cleared, more food delivered, plates cleared... but no interaction from the young and efficient staff, get the jist? We duly knocked on the kitchen door requesting another roll to mop up the pate, but there were no more available and anyway we would be "filled up with the other courses"  This is the perfect place to go with a small party of friends when you want to have a good chat and be fed together, but I did feel that we were expected to say "thank you for having us" as we left.     

• Allium
• Risotto
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• Triple citrus pudding
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Why are the British embarrassed about asking for a Doggy Bag at a restaurant?  Why do we still pretend that we are taking the leftover food home for the dog?

Do we like this idea? Are things moving in foodie-world or am I just distracted by that really fit waiter with no shirt on...?

Wow!  I just ate Plaice Florentine at Zest; the training restaurant attached to West Suffolk College. It was absolutely perfect.  They have a sweet trolley too, and today it featured a Malted Chocolate Tart, Strawberry Bavarois, Rose scented Creme Brulee and a hot option of Sticky Toffee Pudding.  You can't buy the ingredients for the £9.50 charged for 3 courses. Book a table and see for yourself.  They also do a fabulous new takeaway menu.