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Enjoy the last of the sunset cocktails at the Boundary rooftop - such as the lovely Belle Vue Cocktail (vodka, plum jam, cinnamon syrup, lemon juice) which was created especially for this year’s London Cocktail Week. Be quick though. By the end of this week the rooftop bar will close until next Spring…..
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Fika - the Swedish cafe with a secluded rooftop bar
You’ll find Fika, the Swedish cafe and grill, at the top end of Brick Lane in London - wedged between the two bagel shops (the ones with the queues out the door). Give the wood-panelled sauna-like interior space a miss and head straight to the set of stairs at the back which leads you up to a bijou summer terrace - complete with views over the City skyline, and a west-facing sun trap, sheltered from the rain and wind (though not from the smells of the bagels and salt beef next door which will have your stomach grumbling!). Settle back with a Swedish pear cider or cocktail and indulge in a little fika (Swedish for a “little break” for conversation, drink and food).
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Ti Punch @ Callooh Callay
Ti Punch (pronounced Tee Paunsssh) is a traditional French-Caribbean cocktail made of rum, cane sugar and lime. It is distinctive for having no ice in it whatsoever, which makes for a very strong concoction indeed. This is a drink to be sipped slowly; a lovely choice for a later summer evening.
Although perennially popular in the hipster bars of Paris I have never come across it until now - at the Alice in Wonderland-inspired Shoreditch cocktail bar Callooh Callay.
Make sure you pay a visit sooner rather than later however - before their supply of limited edition La Mauny 55 rum (from the AOC-regulated Martinique) runs out.
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The summer menu at Saf Restaurant - the raw/vegan food supremos with a taste for botanically inspired cocktails.
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Saf - Vegan/Raw food in the heart of Shoreditch
Saf restaurant is the perfect combo of super inventive/super healthy food and a fabulous cocktail and drinks menu (they infuse their bourbons and make their own bitters). In the absence of a personal chef (now where did she go?) I will give their new recipe box for the iPhone app a go - though with the amount of effort that goes into every dish produced in the restaurant, it may be a while before I abandon my restaurant visits.
Here are some dishes on the menu:
Some Asian starters: Vegetable maki (parsnip rice, ume plum pickle, avocado, peppers, radish, sunimono and orange ponzu soy), Mushroom gyoza (woodear mushroom, organic tofu, water chesnut and black vinaigrette).
Some Italian mains: Lasagne (raw bolognaise, sage pesto, olive relish, mushrooms, sundried tomatoes, macadamia ricotta), Fettucine Alfredo (salsify, daikon, oyster mushroom, truffle cream, black truffle, nut parmesan). The latter dish was absolutely stunning in look and taste - crisp and fresh, yet deep in flavour. I think my Italian friends would have a heart attack - (nut parmesan?! no turnip pasta?!).
Spicy sausage and sprouting broccoli pizza @ Pizza East, Shoreditch, London
The jury is still out amongst my Italian friends on the Pizza East pizzas. They all consider them to be amongst the best pizzas they’ve had in London but they are somewhat perplexed by the almost fried look and taste of the crust. Not quite Italian enough for them I guess. (and don’t get Jamie Oliver started on the subject of Italians and their conservatism around food! Read more about that debate here).
It’s a shame actually that Pizza East emphasises the pizzas so much, as their other offerings - especially their wood burning roasts such as roast chicken for two and braised beef cheeks are really very good indeed.
They also do a fab red and golden beet salad with red and white endives and pecorino cheese shavings. Now that’s a recipe I must try and recreate at home soon.
Albion Caff - Shoreditch, London
Brunch, coffee, lunch, late lunch, early dinner, etc. - there is always a time and a place (and something fab to order to match) at the Albion. I love to hate Terence Conran but he has a really annoyingly nice place in the ground floor space attached to the Boundary Hotel. Super British menu (cauliflower cheese, sausage and mash, fish and chips, rhubarb crumble). Fresh baked goods come out of the oven every hour (and no surcharge for a basket of bread for the table - a rare thing in London), the puffiest pies (chicken, savoury pumpkin), and ok - the best kedgeree I’ve ever had (and easily better than mine).
Oh, and the desserts are not bad at all either.
You can also sign up for a stangely useful twitter feed - let’s you know what has just come out of the oven. Particularly convenient if you live/work in the neighbourhood.
My order:
- Red and golden beet salad with goat’s cheese curd
- Kedgeree
- I couldn’t find room for our table’s shared plate of Sticky toffee pudding - but it looked divine
Dinner and Drinks in Shoreditch, London
Dinner at the always inspiring Saf Restaurant (a vegan restaurant where much of the menu is cooked under 48°C). Surprisingly for a vegan restaurant, the cocktails and wine menu are equally inspired. If I had a personal chef, I would eat Saf-style vegan food everyday and would be the happiest and healthiest person on the planet!
What we ate:
- Vegetable maki (made with parsnips)
- Beetroot ravioli (see photo above)
- Pad Thai
- Pumpkin risotto (one of a very few dishes cooked above 48°C)
What we drank:
- Black Forest Martini (cherry bark infused Woodford Reserve bourbon, framboise,
cointreau, cassis)
- Jasmine Pearl Martini (Jasmine green tea vodka, organic peche, lemon juice, raw
cane sugar syrup)
Then onto Callooh Callay Bar (remember Alice in Wonderland’s Jabberwocky poem?) where the cocktails are equally inventive and the staff super welcoming and friendly.
What we drank:
- Full Marks (Maker’s Mark, walnut liqueur, dark cacao liqueur, whiskey barrel bitters, port)
- Prosecco Cobbler (Prosecco, Triple Sec, Apricot brandy, Maraschino, lemon, orange, and pineapple)
- Rockin all Clover (Beefeater 24, raspberry and Earl Grey syrup, lemon, Maraschino, egg white)
Full Marks Cocktail
Full marks (pun intended) go to Andrea the bartender at Callooh Callay (a fab spot in Shoreditch, London), who came up with this award-winning cocktail. It is a concoction made up of Makers Mark Bourbon, Dark Cacao, walnut liqueur, whisky barrel bitters, and port and marasca cherries.
Here’s my attempt to recreate this at home. I managed to track down the walnut liqueur and the rare whiskey barrel bitters (!), but am still searching for the mascara cherries (had to make do with the somewhat nasty and artificial maraschino cherry).
Results? It more or less looks and tastes the part, but really, is not up to par with Andrea’s, which is much darker and complex in flavour. I may have to pay the bar a visit very soon.
Quick pit stop at Lounge Bohemia on Great Eastern St. on my way home. Word of advice - do not attempt to just “drop by” without reserving with Paul first! He treats his bar as his home (and so he should) and likes to plan the evening in advance. Still, since I have a decent track record reserving in the past and I apologised profusely, I’m hoping I may be allowed back again.
And yes, it is worth playing by the house rules - the cocktails and range of Bohemian beers and spirits are really fantastic.
Paid a visit to the Boundary Restaurant in Shoreditch. I’ve been to the Boundary many times before, but only to the fab Boundary Rooftop when summer occasionally makes an appearance in London (though they do cater to all weather with outdoor fireplace, Swedish style blankets, straw cowboy hats and even the optimistic sunscreen) and the ground floor Albion (a very British caff which serves really delicious and inexpensive grub such as Welsh rarebit, savoury pies, rhubarb crumble, etc.). Oh, and there is a 21 room hotel too!
On the menu for the night:
- 3 each of French and English Rock oysters (salty but nice)
- Steak tartare (pictured), served with a green salad and french fries
- Tarte Tatin (slightly disappointing as the apples should have been super-caramelised and sticky but the pastry was perfect).
Had some lovely company for dinner with a combo of Irish, Australian, and English - and for once the acoustics in this cavernous basement restaurant were decent (since my voice wasn’t hoarse but the end of the evening).
