London Questions

Bill Lundstrom

Bill Lundstrom

Bill Lundstrom
so, i am forgoing pope francis' visit to the city of brotherly love (and the absolute madness that will ensue) to spend 10 days in london. i picked up lots of good ideas from existing threads but i still have a couple questions.

we will be in clerkenwall neighborhood. any good wine shop recommendations here? i plan on hitting Sampler and Newcomer (for tschida). 259 hackney road seems to have closed. true?

based on the threads here dinner plans include Brawn, St John Maltby (what's Maltby mean? neighborhood?), RSJ Cafe, Sager & Wilde, and maybe Dinner for the splurge night.
any opinions on Ottolenghi? is it unique and good enough to warrant a visit? if so, which location?

we will have an apartment so i plan on cooking in a couple nights. Borough market and Brixton market seem to be the two best markets to buy from. any others worth checking out? any markets where i could buy game birds?
any recommendations for places to eat game birds? pheasant, grouse, pigeon...

thanks in advance.
 
The Saturday Maltby Street (Spa Terminus) market is more enjoyable than Borough Market in my opinion, less touristy. Fern Verrow (check out their Instagram) is great for vegetables if they're still going to the market and then there's Neal's Yard Dairy for British cheeses, Monmouth coffee, St John Bakery. (For French cheeses, I would make the pilgrimage to La Fromagerie on Moxon Street rather than buying from Mons at the market.) It's a little like a maze because of the railway arches but there's a good map on the Spa Terminus website.

I like to finish with lunch at 40 Maltby Street, run by the Gergovie Wines importers, where you can also buy their wines. The food there is excellent. Dynamic Vines are at the other end of the market, with some unusual if expensive producers, and they often sell bread from Hedone.

If you're staying in Clerkenwell, you should consider Moro and Morito, both wonderful and within walking distance. The Quality Chop House nearby doubles up as a butcher and restaurant - they might be able to sell you game birds.

Gymkhana is amazing and a very good restaurant for game. I love their pigeon pepper fry. Otherwise, Spring (Skye Gyngell's place) and Hedone (inconvenient for Clerkenwell, though) are other ideas for splurges and they would probably have game on the menu.

The Sampler is ok. 259 Hackney Road did close. Ottolenghi (meaning the 4 locations with that name) isn't worth going out of your way to visit but the Upper Street location is the best one to eat at.
 
In addition to Ben's excellent suggestions -- if you are looking for cocktails in Clerkenwell give The Zetter Townhouse a go -- fun by Tony Conigliaro who also runs 69 Colebrooke Row in Islington. Note -- I believe the St. John Maltby has much smaller offerings is only open a few days a week vs. the original on St. John Street and the second location on Commercial Street. And if the weather is half decent, I love lunch at Rochelle Canteen (book ahead though).
 
Had a very nice meal at Nopi last year (the more formal Ottolenghi dinner location) but like Ben, didn't think it merited going out of the way for a visit.
 
casse croute on bermondsey, 10 minutes walk from london bridge station, and chez elles on brick lane for a great bistrot dinner run by, of all things, frenchies.
 
neither ottolenghi nor dinner are worth it.

Eat at :
- Mission (newer place from Sager and Wilde), great cocktails from Marcis too
- Som Saa (isaan thai pop up)
- Clove Club (11 course tasting for the splurge)
- Paradise Garage (new from the Dairy)
- Bao
- Sunday (breakfast)
- Kitty Fisher's

Cocktails at :
- Happiness Forgets
- White Lyan
- Callooh Callay
- Satan's Whiskers
- Artesian if you want to go large (#1 bar in the world a few years running)

Saturday Broadway Market is nice.
 
originally posted by Bill Lundstrom:
originally posted by MarkS:
...Sampler and Newcomer (for tschida)...
Click to expand...

What is "tschida"?
Click to expand...

an austrian producer getting good buzz. not imported to the US. the search function here will return some past posts.
Click to expand...

Oh okay. The name is Japanese, so I thought it was some kind of food, whiskey, or something. Thanks for the clarification.
 
Can't say enough good things about Brawn and 40 Maltby. Brawn is a bit more comfortable as 40 Maltby has you perched on high stools a la Wildair. Whereas Brawn is more Four Horseman. I have had wild game at St. John Bread and Wine replete with birdshot.

I had another good meal at Primeur, 116 Petherton Road. Housed in an old auto repair garage in a quiet residential neighborhood, it is basically full Brooklyn with reservations made on Twitter and the menu on Instagram.

You might want to look into Tutto Wines to see if they are having any wine dinners. They are bringing in many of the Zev Rovine and Jenny & Francois wines to London.
 
I'll pile onto the love for 40 Maltby.

If you're looking at Clove Club for fine dining, also consider the Typing Room over near Bethnal Green. Peg + Patriot next door is an excellent choice for cocktails.

Pidgin in Hackney is making lovely food in a cozy space, although lack of storage means their wine list is a weak spot.

For game, Mac & Wild was getting some press when I was there last month. I didn't eat there and they may be more venison than game birds, but they might be worth a look.
 
Bill, I originally thought so. But as it turns out, alas no.

But if any disorderlies will be in Copenhagen, Paris or Lyon/Beaujolais during those dates, shoot me a PM.
 
the ottolenghis are, indeed, not worth a special trip: good flavours usually competently executed, but overpriced for the ingredient quality. dinner is nice if someone else is paying—in which case the ledbury and hedone are also worth consideration.

food (* = unspoofy wines available):
- 40 maltby street **
- brawn **
- lyles *
- the clove club
- bao
- zucca
- antidote **
- 10 greek street
- taberna do mercado

drinks:
- the winemakers club
- the remedy
- brilliant corners
- p franco
 
while i am far from being a london expert, i am bewildered by no mention of rsj cafe just east of waterloo station on coin street. a full three ring binder of loire valley wines and great value frenchie food.
 
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