Restaurant Review: Sophie's Steakhouse

So my parents were over visiting my sister and I this weekend and being a family of foodies, this meant a lot of delicious food in some really nice restaurants.

They arrived on Thursday evening, and we went to Sophie's Steakhouse in Chelsea (there is also one in Covent Garden). As the name suggests, it's a steakhouse, with a no reservations policy and a casual atmosphere. The decor is simple but with a nice, relaxed ambiance. We arrived at 7.30pm and got a table immediately, but by 8.00pm the place was jammed. My sister is a regular here, and has regularly been left waiting up to a couple of hours so it's worth heading early, or going on a weeknight to avoid queues.

Restaurant Review: da Polpo

I had planned to go out for dinner with some friends on Friday but being the disorganised sort that we are, hadn't made any firm plans or reservations as of Friday afternoon. While there are no end of good restaurants in London, its not the easiest feat to get a 7.30pm reservation for dinner at 4pm on a Friday night! With this in mind, we headed over to Covent Garden, where there are a few great 'walk-in only' restaurants lurking around.

We ended up dining at da Polpo, one of the trio of the 'Polpo' family, five similar but uniquely themed restaurants all created in a casual, rustic dining style, for example, da Polpo in the style of a Venetian wine bar. The others being Polpo, Polpetto and Spuntino in Soho and Mishkin's, also in Covent Garden.

The restaurant itself is really beautiful, old school, Italian themed with mismatched but strategically selected furniture and dim lighting, it has a very romantic atmosphere but the crowded layout and constant stream of patrons gives it an energetic buzz. It's clear that a lot of effort has gone into creating this atmosphere of casual nonchalance, from the waiters' laid back attire to the thick glass tumblers used as wine glasses, the intended ambiance is obvious. That's no insult as the intention is very much successful, and the atmosphere really is great and contributes to the entire dining experience, but I do find something wryly humorous to it all- sort of like a teenage girl spending three hours perfecting her "just rolled out of bed" hair.

Sunday Roast

One of my friends has been quite persistent of late in inquiring as to when I would be preparing her a Sunday Roast, after a few recent roast chickens proved popular. Roast dinners are such a home comfort and people tend to avoid making them as they're considered quite troublesome but its such a nice feeling to gather around a big roast together, and creates quite a sense of occasion!

We had planned to do Roast Beef with all the trimmings but fate conspired against us! After spending the afternoon in Hyde Park, we realised the supermarkets had closed (why do they do this in the UK?!) and were thus tasked with doing our shopping in a Sainsbury's Local. Topside of beef is not exactly de rigeur in such establishments so we settled for roast chicken, once again!

Restaurant Review: Electric Brasserie

I had planned to meet up with my sister this Saturday and we ended up going to Electric Brasserie in Portobello for Brunch with some friends of hers from home.

After ploughing through the crowds of tourists moseying around Notting Hill and Portobello market at snail's pace I finally managed to get there (just about) on time! The restaurant itself was just as busy, thankfully we had reserved a table. The first thing I'll say is the atmosphere is great, really vibrant and buzzing. The decor is great too, very classic and elegant, a theme that permeates the entire establishment- from the classic french bistro style menus to the impeccably dressed wait staff. While it didn't quite have that Parisian feel to it, I think they really nailed the brasserie concept- elegant, sophisticated and professional.

Restaurant Review: Ikeda

A couple of weeks ago I was taken out to a Japanese restaurant in Mayfair called Ikeda. I absolutely love Japanese food and this place came highly recommended so I was pretty excited.

The place itself is pretty cool, very old school with pink wallpaper and simple decor, it sort of feels like you're in someone's house. The waitresses are all kitted out in traditional kimonos which was really a pretty great touch. It's a pretty small, cosy place (I would suggest making a reservation) and all the staff are really friendly. The first thing I noticed when we walked in was that there was a lot of Japanese people eating there, definitely a good sign in my book!

Restaurant Review: Mien Tay

So, randomly ended up heading out for Vietnamese food again last night! No objections here, I'm definitely a fan! This time myself and two friends went to Mien Tay restaurant on Kingsland Road in Shoreditch, which I had heard was a winner.

The first thing I'll say is that both the atmosphere and the service was miles ahead of last week's outing to Song Que. Specifically, the service was spot on- our waiter was so attentive the whole time. At one stage, when my rice was about 90 seconds late he rushed over to apologise profusely, and he always served with a smile. (Incidentally, we were all a little on the late side arriving and there was no obnoxious stares from the staff this time!)

Restaurant Review: Song Que

Last week I had my first foray into Vietnamese food! My lack of familiarity with Vietnamese cuisine was a pretty glaring omission considering my love of all things Asian food related, not to mention my Aussie mates recoiling in horror recently when I asked "What's Pho?" (It's delicious is what it is).

So needless to say, I ventured to the famous Kingsland road for my culinary adventure, the go-to London hot spot for quality Vietnamese. I did a little bit of research and settled on Song Que as the restaurant of choice.