We won’t talk about my first visit to the Mariners in Rock (just a short boat ride over the estuary from Padstow) back in the day when it was owned by Nathan Outlaw. Let’s just say it left me feeling cold. Freezing cold. It was good news then to hear Paul and Emma Ainsworth were taking it over. I’ve been a fan of this husband … Continue reading The Mariners, Rock
The Guinea Grill is one of those pubs I’ve often enjoyed standing outside with a pint of Young’s Bitter listening to the suits of Mayfair talk shop. I had no idea however there was a restaurant, more importantly a steak restaurant, hidden out the back. It’s as old fashioned as it gets and it feels very London; patterned carpets, wood panel walls, framed pictures galore … Continue reading The Guinea Grill, Mayfair
If you haven’t heard of it, the Cornwall Project is a supplier of the finest produce Cornwall has to offer, to many of London’s hottest restaurants. They’ve since taken over the kitchen at the Newman Arms; a cute little pub in Fitzrovia. The small upstairs dining room is cute and it doesn’t look like it’s changed much from when it was first built.There are dark … Continue reading The Newman Arms, Fitzrovia
I don’t even think it would be rude to describe The Sportsman as a run down old boozer – if anything it might even be a compliment. But that is most certainly its charm. Along with it being by the sea, if the weather is good, it’s all rather beautiful. It’s even got a Michelin star. It’s as unpretentious as it gets; there’s a bar, … Continue reading The Sportsman, Kent
Located on the permanent building site that is Berwick Street in Soho (will they ever finish digging up that road?) this is Alan Yau’s latest restaurant. You know Alan Yau, the chap who created Wagamama and sold it for millions then did the same with Yauatcha and Hakkasan. There’s a downstairs bar/pub and a restaurant upstairs at the top of a rather tiny spiral staircase. … Continue reading Duck and Rice, Soho
The Mariners is Nathan Outlaw’s first pub in Rock, Cornwall (he also owns a two Michelin star restaurant round the corner and the one star Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen in Port Isaac) and as we were staying in Padstow which is just a short ferry ride away we thought we’d pop along for lunch. The website spoke of no reservations for the dining room upstairs but … Continue reading The Mariners, Cornwall
Russell Norman’s latest restaurant/pub Ape and Bird recently underwent a “de-furbishment” and I’m not entirely sure why – I thought it was perfectly pleasant before. It’s now filled with loads of shared tables making it feel awfully cramped and they’ve plonked a huge pizza oven in the corner which looks like it’s been rented-in temporarily. We were seated at the bar which was topped with … Continue reading Ape and Bird, Shaftesbury Avenue
The Garrison is a pub-cum-restaurant on Bermondsey Street and it’s owned by the same people as Riding House Café and Village East. After a not-so-successful lunch at the latter, I was hoping the Garrison would be a good choice for a relaxing Sunday roast on Father’s Day – but sadly it wasn’t quite so. It’s a really charming space with a bustling atmosphere which is … Continue reading The Garrison, Bermondsey Street
Based near Southwark tube station, The Anchor and Hope is the first pub/restaurant from the people behind the Canton Arms, Great Queen Street and the Camberwell Arms. We enjoyed our meals at their other restaurants and as we haven’t been to their original one for so long, we thought we’d pop along for a spot of din dins. As it’s no reservations, at 8pm on … Continue reading Anchor and Hope, Waterloo
The Ship is a rather popular Young’s pub situated right by the river in Wandsworth. As my parents were down in London for the day, I thought it might be nice to pop along for a Sunday roast – and I wasn’t wrong thank God! It’s not in the most obvious of locations and it’s certainly not the sort of place you’d stumble across. However … Continue reading The Ship, Wandsworth
The Camberwell Arms is the new pub-cum-restaurant from the guys behind Great Queen Street and the Anchor and Hope. Terrible as it might sound, I’ve never actually ventured to the area before but I’m pleased to report that Camberwell isn’t quite as rough as I’d once imagined! Based inside a former pub, it was a large space with a pub style bar at the front … Continue reading The Camberwell Arms
The Drapers Arms is a pub situated in a quiet residential street in Islington. As we pulled up outside it looked beautiful; the the sort of quintessentially British pub that you could only dream about having as your local. As I’d heard many a good thing about the food I decided to take my parents along for a spot of dinner. Inside was equally as … Continue reading The Drapers Arms, Islington
I first tasted Neil Rankin’s food during his residency at John Salt in Islington and it was easy to fall in love with. He’s since opened up nearby Smokehouse which, as you might imagine from someone who used to be the head chef at Pitt Cue Co, specialises in roasting, grilling, smoking and barbecuing. The six of us thought it would be the perfect place … Continue reading Smokehouse, Islington
Ape & Bird is Russell Norman’s latest venture and unlike his other restaurants (Polpo, Spuntino, Mishkin’s and soon to be opened Polpetto) this is a pub – and a very large pub at that. It’s situated in that bit of Cambridge Circus that’s always manically busy, right next to the Pizza Hut and it sits in the former site of the Marquis of Granby. They’ve … Continue reading The Ape & Bird Public House
Some of you might know The Royal Oak at Paley Street as the pub that Michael Parkinson co-owns with his son Nick. That along with it’s Michelin star gave me and my gentleman companion enough gusto to make the hour and fifteen minute drive from London to visit for lunch on a Saturday afternoon. Being one of only 13 pubs in the country to hold … Continue reading The Royal Oak at Paley Street
