Bloomberg, 17 October
Richard Vines visits Arch One Bar & Grill, 1 Mepham Street, London SE1
Gemma Tuley, 25, is a young chef with the kind of resume most rivals never build up in a lifetime. After leaving school at the age of 16 and attending catering college, she worked at Mezzo -- then one of London's hottest restaurants -- before spending three years at Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's under Ramsay's lieutenant, Mark Sargeant. Ramsay identified her potential and packed her off to the three-star Guy Savoy in Paris, where she faced the twin hurdles of being the only woman and not speaking French. She says the sous- chef used to drag her around the kitchen by her ponytail. Tuley's response? She cut her hair and learned the language.
Arch One Bar & Grill - review in full >>
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Metro, 21 October
Marina O’Loughlin visits Manicomi, Gutter Lane, London EC2
It is, alas, impossible to write about any City restaurant without invoking the dread words 'credit crunch'. Other reviewers have reported scenes of suits weeping into their foie gras with the horror of it all, so we fully expect the glossy, brittle new branch of Chelsea success story Manicomio ('madhouse') to be as much fun as a visit to the morgue with Michael Winner. But what's this? All three storeys of this glittery, Norman Foster building are jumping with vino-swilling life. We're in the top floor Roundhouse – there's a cool, clattery café on the ground floor – and are the only women in the monochrome space (close inspection reveals another two but they're dressed like men so an easy mistake to make).
Manicomio - review in full >>
Evening Standard, 22 October
Fay Maschler visits Tsunami, 93 Charlotte Street, London W1
The front of the menu says: “Tsunami is about sharing and when you share you are giving.” Yadda yadda yadda. The mood at the moment is not about sharing. It is about getting your paws around what you can and hugging it closely to yourself. And in a Japanese restaurant there never seems to be that much of anything anyway. Furthermore, there is the resonance of this restaurant’s name. Monster waves smashing everything in their path seem not a precise evocation of generosity.
Tsunami - review in full >>
Time Out, 16 October
Charmaine Mok visits Tierra Brindisa, 46 Broadwick Street, London W1
There’s something a bit too civilised about this tapas restaurant. Instead of finding raucous, happy punters knocking back mouthfuls of sherry around an upturned barrel, you find muted – almost solemn – diners picking away at their jamón with dainty knives and forks, with thick linen napkins on their laps. For most Spaniards, the very idea of booking ahead for tapas seems absurd. Tapas bar-hopping in Spain is an opportunity to sample deep-fried gooey ortiguillas (sea anemones) in one joint, before moving on to another for its famed costillas (ribs), perhaps. But this is London, and diners do not flit from Barrafina to Dehesa, or Salt Yard to Tendido Cuatro – not least because you need to queue to get a seat at the first two, unless you’re dining at odd hours. What seems de rigueur in Spain doesn’t quite cut it here. The original Tapas Brindisa, at Borough Market, has a no-booking policy, but this new Soho sibling is far more formal and reservations are advisable.
Tierra Brindisa - review in full >>
By Janet Harmer
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