Time Out, 5 December
Guy Diamond at Fortnum & Mason
Afternoon tea is a wonderful anachronism from the days when British people still had free time for polite conversation in the middle of the day. It's for that very reason that foreign visitors treasure it - it is quintessentially British. London hotels have capitalised on the desire for this truly British phenomenon by creating overpriced fake experiences in lavish settings. Set teas typically cost from around £20 to £40, depending on where you have them.
Fortnum & Mason - read the full Time Out review here >>
Evening Standard, 5 December
Fay Maschler at Sake No Hana
The new Japanese restaurant Sake No Hana, which Yau operates and manages for a Russian owner, was supposed to open in February. Last Tuesday saw the first paying customers through the discreet curved-glass automatic doors. In historic St James's Street, home of gentlemen's clubs Boodles, Brooks's, The Carlton and White's, the three irregular concrete towers set around a plaza allow lustre to attach to the Modernist movement. The building now housing Sake No Hana - translating roughly as flower of sake - was originally a bank.
Sake No Hana - read the full This is London review here >>
Metro, 28 November
Marina O’Loughlin at Brickhouse
The grain mustard ice cream on my chunk of beef (it says pavé, but it's more like a tube) has melted into a tepid pool. The waitress clearly doesn't want to break the magic of Miss Vicky's act by anything as mundane as the delivery of our dinner – I'm only relieved we didn't decide to go for the six-course tasting menu. But we don't mind too much because it's fair to say we're having a marvellous time. What a curious joint this is. At first, it reminds me a bit of Bistrotheque: the pared-down warehouse building; the branché East End location; the artsiness of the whole operation.
Brickhouse - read the full Metro review here >>
Bloomberg, 30 November
Richard Vines finds the capital’s best spots for lunch
Le Gavroche is the daddy of them all. When it first opened its doors in April 1967, Le Gavroche set a uniquely high standard for French food in London, and it went on to be the city's first establishment to win one, two and three Michelin stars. For a more contemporary feel, try the Greenhouse. This smart restaurant on a quiet mews close to Berkeley Square boasts fine modern French cooking by Antonin Bonnet that is attracting so much attention, I might put money on it getting a second Michelin star.
Le Gavroche - read the full Bloomberg review here >>