Resto 8 Brasserie Zédel, Piccadilly
After the seeing the excellent Spilliaerts exhibition at the RA I'd booked Zédel to see how one of the more up-market groups was handling the Covid thing. And eat some good grub too, natch.
Retro Resto #8 – Kalastajan Koju, Savonlinna
Flaming the salmon involved a geezer nailing a whole side of salmon to a plank before donning a fire-retardant suit and helmet and holding said plank to a charcoal-fed furnace.
Retro Resto #7 – Le Train Bleu, Paris
If you want to learn to eat classic French food in style there are few places better to start than Le Train Bleu.
Retro Restos
The Big C having (temporarily?) terminated restaurant going as a social activity I'll be lucky to get beyond number six this side of autumn. And unlikely to have the funds to dine out in style the other. So what is a restaurant reviewer to do?
Take a Proustian turn of course. The great man lay in his cork-lined room and let his mind do the travelling through time and space. And I intend to follow his lead. Though not in every detail you'll be glad to know, I have neither the skill nor the inclination to imitate Proust's description of the Duchesse de Guermantes' dinner over 150 pages.
Journey with me through restaurants remembered, people remembered, places remembered.
Restaurant 1 The Swan, Bankside
At Bankside for the Wanamaker production of Swive it was an improbable first time at the Swan for us for the first resto of 2020. We were nearly the first arrivals, save for a couple by the window. So it was a bit of a surprise to be seated at a table right next to…
Resto 43 The Greyhound Café, Fitzrovia
Good Thai street food with proper heat - recommended.
Resto 42 Hiba, Holborn
Sat in a booth and despite the noise we had a convivial chat in the company of a marvellous mixture of people. Recommended.
Resto 41 New China City, Amsterdam
We meet the best restaurant manager of the year. And watch a fire show.
Resto 39 Sama Sebo, Amsterdam
A show stopper of a dinner at Sama Sebo. Old school dining with gut busting portions. Highly recommended.
Resto 38 Rijksmuseum Café, Amsterdam
A 5am start in London meant that by the time I’d dumped my stuff at the hotel and got to the Rijksmuseum for lunch I was hungry and slightly ratty. Grub was needed before culture. A small wait for a table was natural enough and it’s a pleasant room to wait in the atrium of…
