Evening Standard, 25 May
Fay Maschler at The Rosendale

Australian Mark van der Goot is a man with a passion for wine. Having worked as a sommelier at fine dining restaurants in Sydney and at The Greenhouse in Mayfair (when it was owned by David Levin), he put his own money and some of his own carefully assembled cellar into a gastropub in Battersea called The Greyhound.

Van der Goot's second venture is a high, wide and handsome pub, a former coach house, in West Dulwich where some locals will mourn the passing of a wood-fired pizza oven, pool table and big screen for sporting events, but others will welcome restrained surroundings, dishes such as dukka-spiced Kezie Farm ostrich fillet with beef bobotie and sweet potato purée and a wine list the length of a novella in which more than 500 producers are represented.

Metro, 25 May
Marina O’Loughlin at Clos Maggiore

With its air of luxury, dark wood panelling and formally dressed staff, Clos Maggiore looks like it's been there for ever, not just since 2001. Recently, it has had a re-think, adding the 'Clos' to reflect its shift of emphasis to a very now, southern French/Mediterranean menu.

Head chef Marcellin Marc's menu is bursting with sun-soaked flavours: the regularly changing carte might feature caponatas, pissaladières, etuvées and ratatouilles, alongside ambitious, multiingredient dishes that hint at the kitchen's ambitions. And there's a deadly serious, award-winning wine list.
Clos Maggiore - Metro review in full >>

Bloomberg, 25 July
Richard Vines on tour at Barcelona’s Inopia Classic Bar

Stroll through Barcelona's Sant Antoni neighbourhood and you may spot a crowded tapas bar with an open front. The smokers are out on the street, while inside the crush is such that customers jostle to find a surface on which to eat.

Inopia Classic Bar looks unassuming. The floor is yellow vinyl and the walls are tiled. Blackboards tell of the specials and there's Moritz beer on tap. So far, so typically Spanish. It's then you start noticing details that suggest this is special.
Inopia Classic Bar - Bloomberg review in full >>