BELGO, HOLBORN

Currently with five restaurants scattered across London, this was surprisingly my first time visiting Belgo, which specializes in Belgian food and beer. The Holborn branch has recently re-opened its doors after a refurbishment, and although I am not aware of how it looked before, it certainly looks pretty impressive inside -  the interior is rather spacious, with an industrial style decor of exposed brick walls and metal fittings.

Previously a former Lloyds Bank building, it still echoes some of the banks facilities, with the basement safe now the Belgo beer cellar. The new layout has maintained the Belgo signature open plan kitchen, rotisserie chicken displays and the iconic 'Delirium - Pink Elephant' beer tap. Belgo's concept has focused on keeping things simple with their mix of their famous moules, frites and bieres - Belgo Holborn is the first branch to feature the new logo, which has been updated to give equal billing to the range of succulent rotisserie chicken, grills and tempting cocktails, which I'm sure is positively great news for all!

Upon arrival, I was greeted with a sweet and refreshing Fruli Mojito  before being whisked over to my table where more beer awaited me (!)
Belgo is well-known for serving 52 handpicked, craft, bottled beers - many are exclusive in the UK to Belgo and are shipped directly from Belgian monasteries where the beer is produced using traditional methods dating back thousands of years.
 I don't often drink beer, but I did taste the Mongozo Gluten-free Buckwheat made using orange peels and coriander, Delirium Tremens, a strong golden Belgian ale, and Fruli, made from pure strawberry juice and Belgian white beer, which was sweet, fruity and my favourite amongst them - clearly because I have a sweet-tooth.
I also surprisingly did enjoy the Brugse Zot, otherwise known as 'Bruges Fool', a golden beer brewed in the historical town center of Bruges.

Now on to the food where we were served some sharing/taster dishes from their menu. We began with some starters: Cheesy Croquettes, King Prawns in Garlic Butter, and Belgo Smooth Brussels Pate finished with Delirium Jelly.

From the mains, we had a taste of their famous moules served two different ways (Traditionelle and Marinière), double cooked frites, and their take on surf 'n turf with asparagus.

And just in case we were still thirsty, there was plenty more beer and shots to go around...

We finished off with some waffles with dark chocolate and white chocolate sauce, and a cherry coulis.

It was overall a nice taster of what Belgo has on offer, and I would be interested to visit again for a full dining experience, and more of those moules.
Thank you Belgo for a fun evening, and I look forward to returning soon.

The Cheekster, signing out x

PIQUET, LONDON

It has been half a year since I last had dinner at Allan Pickett at The Sanderson Hotel, the summer residency prior to the opening of Piquet, a new independent restaurant in the heart of London's Fitzrovia.
The menu is described as a contemporary mix of cultures of England and France, and although the restaurant doesn't look very distinctive or busy from the outside, the dining room downstairs is contrastingly rather warm and charming.
We were served some breadsticks with anchovy mousse to start with whilst we perused the menu. 

I ordered the crab raviolo with samphire and shellfish dressing which was beautifully made, I wished that I could have had a larger portion of it. I had a small mouthful of Viv's Goosnargh duck consomme which was light and flavourful.

And after hearing all about it on social media, we ordered an extra starter to share amongst the three of us, which was the pithivier of Littlebourne snails with Madeira jus - delicious golden and flaky pastry which cut through to reveal the warm and luscious filling within.

Crab raviolo, samphire, shellfish dressing

Goodnargh duck consomme, root vegetables, confit leg

Smoked salmon, buckwheat blini, herbed creme fraiche

Pithivier of Littlebourne snails, Madeira jus

For my main, I ordered the pot roast seabass with sauté of baby gem, yeasted cauliflower purée, and persillade of pieds de mouton which I enjoyed very much. The loin of venison and grilled ribeye that Viv and Ross ordered also appeared to taste satisfyingly good.

Pot roast seabass, saute of baby gem, yeasted cauliflower puree, persillade of pieds de mouton

Loin of venison pressed potatoes, Jeruselam artichoke puree

Grilled rib eye of Dedham vale beef, fries, watercress, peppercorn sauce

I do love a good and indulgent dessert platter, so we ordered the Assiette Gourmande to share. There were some nice flavours going on, but nothing really that quite stood out for me, and not quite as impressive as other dessert platters that I have had elsewhere.
The dark chocolate marquise individually on its own however was pretty rich and tasty.

On the whole, we had a pleasant meal and experience at Piquet, and I would recommend a visit if you have a love for French cuisine.
And if you do, don't forget to order the snail pithivier, for obvious reasons.

The Cheekster, signing out x

JANUARY MONTHLY ROUND-UP

So I do realize that I am slightly behind on the monthly round-up of my January posts, highlights, and things that I have been up to at the start of 2016. EXCITING times...well, sort of.

So without further delay, let's get started, as I sit comfortably on my yoga mat (mainly used for sitting on whilst painting) with Legally Blonde playing on TV in the background - the perfect way to wind down on a rainy Sunday evening.

Shuang Shuang - Hotpot In Motion

 Hot pot, or for those of you who hail from Malaysia/South East Asia like myself, who better know it as 'steamboat', refers to a simmering metal pot of soup/stock, into which ingredients are then cooked in it at the table. Those of you who have grown up enjoying this during family gatherings will understand the simply pleasures of this concept of sharing food from the same communal pot... [click here to continue]

Saturday Brunch at Jackson & Rye

Weekends are made for relaxation and doing things that I love in life, and what better way to spend it than enjoying brunch with family. It sure has been a while since my last visit to Jackson and Rye, and I remember my first visit with Wilkes when they first opened where we were both rather fascinated with the slab bacon...[click here to continue]

Barrafina Drury Lane

If you're looking for a quick and satisfying dinner, then Barrafina would be a good call. All three branches are usually packed during peak hours, so the best time to turn up would be just before 6pm if you want to avoid the long queues. The food is delicious and service is quick and efficient - one of my favourites and top recommendations if you're looking for some good Spanish tapas.

Cabana Brasilian Barbecue, Brixton

I do love a visit down to Brixton every now and again, especially on the weekend when there's a lively and buzzy vibe. This was my first visit to Cabana - they have a few branches scattered across London and the Brixton branch opened just a few months ago. The interior is bright and colourful, which suits the vibe and feel of the area, with rustic wooden floors and furniture...[click here to continue]

Sambal Shiok Takeover at SIN

 

After a tantalizing preview just before New Years, I managed to make another visit on the last day of Sambal Shiok's two week residency at Salvation in Noodles in Finsbury Park. The menu featured her aromatic bowls of Kari Laksa, fragrant Nasi Lemak and some sides such as those moreish Hainanese Dumplings. This was the second pop-up after a sell-out event at Newman Arms last year - she is currently in the search of a new pop-up venue, so watch this space.

Afternoon Tea at Park Chinois

 

 Park Chinois has been on my list for a while, but I never realized that they did afternoon tea until a friend of mine suggested it. Walking through the heavy red velvet curtains, we are greeted at the front reception desk before being led through another set of doors, above it hung a notice with the words 'On Air'...[click here to continue]

Dry January at Strada More London

For the month of January, Strada teamed up as the official food partner for Alcohol Concern’s Dry January. We had the opportunity to sample their range of de-alcoholised beers and wines, as well as their new winter food menu. 

Dinner at Piquet by Allan Pickett

It has been about half a year since I last visited Allan Pickett's summer residency at The Sanderson Hotel, prior to the opening of Piquet in Fitzrovia. Food aficionados will already be familiar with the pithivier of Littlebourne snails as pictured above, which tasted just as good as it looks.

A blog post will be published soon... 

Family Visits...

 Vivienne and Ross popped down from Edinburgh to visit for the weekend, so as honorary Londoner/tourist guide, I brought them round to some of my favourite spots, which included Smoking Goat, Artesian Bar at The Langham Hotel, and some coffee spots...

 

 And last but not least, as part of my New Year's resolution to myself, I wanted to spend more time doing what I love, which included finger-painting. These are the pieces that I have completed in January where you can read the full descriptions on my art Instagram page @dancexart_cheekster

  

I will be posting new paintings regularly, and also be accepting requests/orders via email (feliciatys@yahoo.co.uk), so do feel free to follow my journey on Instagram.

Well, it looks like it has been a pretty eventful month, doing all the things that I love in life - a great start to 2016 so far. 

There will definitely be plenty more exciting things to come in the coming months, and more paint-stained fingers - just the way I like it.  

The Cheekster, signing out x