January Flavours
Hurrah January is over! The days are getting longer and spring no longer seems so far away
Article by Jonathan Phang
For me January was as depressing as always, but it did have some culinary highlights. Here are ten of the best things that I tasted in January.
KUROBUTA
This bustling and informal eatery in Connaught Village (a stones throw away from Edgware Road) has much going for it, the effervescent staff, the informal ambience and most importantly the inspired food. Australian chef, Scott Hallsworth, former head chef at Nobu has created a truly satisfying and inventive Japanese and Pacific Rim menu.
The BBQ Pork Belly in Steamed Buns is, without doubt, one of the best things that I have ever eaten. I sank my lips into the slightly sweet doughy, yet lightly steamed pillow of a bun, before then tasting the most tender and flavourful belly pork.
Tuna Sashimi pizza with truffle ponzu, red onion and green chillies, was another wonderful dish, full of subtle and harmonious fresh flavours and textures.
JINJUU
My glamorous and extremely talented mate, Chef Judy Joo, has finally taken the plunge and opened her first bar/restaurant in London called Jinjuu, meaning Pearl. It is an upstairs downstairs affair, with the ground floor serving small sharing plates to soak up an exotic soju cocktail list! Tasting plates are a great way to get to know a new restaurant and to experience a new cuisine and boy did I get to know this place! My two favourites dishes were the Sae-woo pops, prawn balls and the Jin Chick, fried chicken. The chicken was cooked and seasoned to perfection, with the lightest and crunchiest of batters, served with Judy’s secret signature sauces (both utterly delicious, one sweet one spicy).
Downstairs showcases a more extensive dining experience. Don’t make the same mistake that I made of eating too much upstairs at the bar, before descending to the dining room, where more treats are in store.
Judy is best described as a Korean, American, Londoner and at Jinjuu she bravely delivers us her take on the Korean Mexican street food trends from LA and New York as well as Korean classics like Fried Chicken, Hotteok, Bibimpap, Korean BBQ, noodle dishes and of course, there is a healthy helping of the ubiquitous Korean classic, Kimchee.
Judy is a stickler for detail, the more you look, the more you will discover. It’s her creative flair, in presentation and bold flavour choices, (along with the friendliest front of house duo in town) which makes Jinjuu an elegant addition to Soho.
FIVE GUYS
Just after Christmas I decided to brave the crowds, in search of New Year’s bargains and went to the Westfield sales. I shopped for hours, but bought nothing so, with a sour face, I decided to leave. Just by one of the exits I was overcome with the pleasurable odours of frying food and caramelising onions. I looked up and saw the Five Guys sign. Despite my excess Christmas weight, I thought sod it, I want one, and went in. I have to confess that I found the place itself annoying. Relentlessly loud heavy metal music blared, orders were screamed, across the kitchen between staff members and I was worried that the blindingly bright light may have brought on one of my migraines. Having to wait around the counter, shoulder-to-shoulder with shoppers shoving in to one another with their shopping bags, was not my thing either and I was nearly ready to walk out.
Eventually I collected my brown bag, sat down (outside, to avoid the terrible music) and unwrapped my burger. It looked and smelled fantastic, and it tasted even better. Sweet, moist buns, beef patties that actually tasted beefy, marbled with exactly the “right” amount of fat. My toppings (bacon, cheese, grilled onions, tomato and lettuce) were fresh, complimentary and tasty. The fries were generous, well cooked, too salty and addictive.
Five Guys is great value for money and serves fantastic burgers. Despite disliking the overall experience, I will put in my earplugs, arrive at opening time and be back soon.
OUTSIDER TART and BLUE PLATE
There is nothing more comforting than cake and luckily for me, living in Chiswick, I am never far away from a slice. For baking that tastes like the home you wish you were from, and for the ultimate in Americana comfort food, head for Outsider Tart. David Muniz and David Lesniak have turned their hobby into an award winning American bakeshop and café that truly deserves its accolades and loyal clientele.
The Davids clearly love what they do and take pride in their “hand me down” family recipes. They serve delicious authentic American classics such as muffins, brownies and blondies, red velvet cake, whoopie pies, coconut cream pies, cookies, celebration cakes, schmoos and bundts and even savoury dog biscuits!
The boys have recently opened Blue Plate, next door, serving good ‘ole fashioned soul food, weekend brunches and speciality themed dinners on Thursday through Saturday (for example Friday is meatloaf night).
On a cold, miserable January afternoon I popped in with a few friends and tried their New York Crumb Cake. I nearly wept with joy! My hunk of sponge was crumbly, yet not dry, perfectly balanced (approximately two thirds vanilla and one third cinnamon) with a delicate milk frosting. We sat silently in the Blue Plate, engrossed in trying each other’s cakes, watching plate upon plate of amazing food coming up from the kitchen. “We’d better go, “ I said, woefully. “I love this place, but it is dangerous…”
No32 THE OLD TOWN
Sunday Roasts in many restaurants and gastro pubs in London sadden me. Considering it’s one of our few, actual British, national dishes it appals me when it is done badly.
Roast potatoes and stuffing balls are often frozen and should be renamed Bessie’s Bullets! Half a chicken really means two pieces and the trend for stacking everything up and shoving a sprig of watercress on top of it, really gets on my nerves. It looks plentiful but, by the time it collapses, one sees how little one is actually paying for.
I remember once having a risibly expensive Christmas roast, at a top Mayfair hotel, the roast potatoes were shaped with a melon baller and the chipolatas belonged on a cocktail stick. The turkey was fine, but that is not really what a Christmas roast is all about is it?
To my delight, No 32 The Old Town in Clapham was every thing that a good Sunday ought to be. Roast potatoes - crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle - succulent well-rested meat, homemade gravy, honey glazed al dente veggies, hardly room for pudding and no washing up.
CAKE BOY
The words cupcake and macaroon bring me out in hives. I love them both, but my God, you’d think that someone had reinvented the wheel with all the attention they have received in recent years. Apparently, most food magazines fly off the shelves when a seasonal macaroon or a decorative cupcake, features on the cover
Eric Lanlard is a highly skilled, classically trained pastry chef and there isn’t anything that this cake boy to the stars doesn’t know about patisserie. I can just imagine a cheeky 10-year-old Eric, creating a croquembouche, with spun sugar netting, just because, pourquoi pas? Eric’s riverside cake boutique is luxurious, yet relaxed and great fun. If I ever lose my Christmas weight, I am going back to try everything, but the double chocolate macaroons I tried the other day were to die for.
SWISSÔTEL
I have just returned from a couple of weeks in Moscow and Sofia, where I have been cooking for platform heads at the CSTB television conference and introducing Caribbean flavours to one of the coldest regions on earth. I also cooked for celebrity chef, Uti Bachvarov, on his Saturday night television show. Russians and Bulgarians are not used to spicy food, and I am not sure that my efforts did much to sway them.
I ate great food in Moscow however. Upon my arrival at the Swissôtel, I was offered a pre dinner snack by the hotel. Naturally, I accepted and a smoked salmon, with cream cheese and chive, blinis stack, dripping with beluga caviar arrived at my door. It was divine and just what the doctor ordered after my long journey.
SAXON +PAROLE
On my last night we went to the wonderful Saxon +Parole, (a New York restaurant famous for grilled meat and aquatic delights, named after two race horses) I opted for a braised beef short rib, which was melt in the mouth, flavourful and winter warming, accompanied by crispy Brussels sprouts in chilli caramel which was outstanding. My fellow twenty diners,and me gasped with surprised delight and vowed to only eat sprouts cooked that way, from that moment on. 