Category: Madsen

Ebury in the rain

The place I wanted to eat at was booked for a private party, but I remembered the Ebury in Pimlico Road, just a few streets away, and managed to get there without getting wet. I don’t rate the restaurant upstairs, but the downstairs bar area is fun and lively,...

Ouder Gouda

I brought back some traditional Dutch cheese from Amsterdam, in the shape of a round of Gouda. This is a springy cheese, quite sweet, and prepared in a waxed rind. It grows more complex as it ages, and the older ones (18 months plus) are clad in black. Pleasingly,...

Dinner in Amsterdam

We had to eat slightly early in order to reach Schipol in time for our flights back. We dined at Oud Holland (Old Holland) at Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 105, which served traditional Dutch. Between us we had the green pea soup (which had unadvertised meat in it), marrowfat beans with...

A little of everything

Wow! I tried what they call the “Tasting Menu” at the Savoy Grill in the Strand. It consists of a series of consecutive dishes, each of which is served in a small portion. It kicked off with a little freebie from the chef of cheese breads, then the tiny...

Soft food for a sore mouth

Having had the back of my jaw built up in the morning ahead of a dental implant, my gum still had stitches in, and soft food was called for. Few places in the UK can deliver a soft omelet to your table, but I thought the Mediterranean Kitchen in...

Quirinale again

Back to Quirinale, the up-market Italian in the heart of Westminster (next door to the Institute of Economic Affairs). This time I had the beetroot salad with oranges, mint and Sardinian ricotta. It was very good, but the beetroot does tend to dominate the dish. Fortunately I like it....

Balancing without blinis

I wanted to serve the blinis. I couldn’t find any in a hurry, so experimented with Scottish pancakes, quartered after being oven-heated, and spread with crème fraiche and dollops of lumpfish caviar. It worked, too, but I have to say the blinis were better. Next I served mushrooms, leek...

Good Scottish

The Albanach in Trafalgar Square seems to be thriving, and full of stylishly-dressed youngsters enjoying themselves among the illuminated paper stags and the horn candelabras. The food is high quality Scottish, with never a mince and tatties in sight, never mind neeps. I began with warm tartlet of Dunsyre...

Blinis

I went over to friends for dinner. The first course they served is easily made, but keeps everyone happy while the other food is in preparation. It consisted of blinis, each one about one and a half inches in diameter, on which were placed a dollop of crème fraiche...

Riviera on the river

I dined at the Riviera on Gabriel’s Wharf, a few minutes walk from the London Eye (the big wheel) and with spectacular views across the Thames, including St Paul’s. It has outdoor seating both upstairs and down. The cuisine is Mediterranean. I started with the Panzanella, of slow roasted...