Whether he’s spreading the jolly spirit of Hendrick’s Gin, or popping in to say “salut” at the ECC bars in Paris and London, Xavier Padovani is always on. And now he’s on in New York, opening the new ECC on Lower East Side.
“Marc Demarquette has been the recipient of so many accolades it’s beginning to frustrate the competition.” Larry meets the renowned chocolatier; plus a tantalising reader offer is enclosed…
“I find myself in Bloomsbury’s premier residential street heading towards a restored Victorian pub. I expect to find it full of Dickensian characters, errant domestic servants, chimney sweeps and miscreants.”
“He’s standing at the ham, slicing and sweating and we’re standing at the bar, waiting and salivating – there’s only a thin line between us…my god, I am desperate for that ham.”
“I’m standing in a snaking queue populated by gazelle-like glamazons in six-inch Louboutins and slinky Issa dresses. Peering behind me, I spot former England football coach Sven-Göran Eriksson in a charcoal grey suit.”
“I arrive in the centre of Oxford a little early. I am really rather excited at the prospect of spending a whole afternoon drinking, I mean, learning about wine, even though I have a slight hangover.”
“London is buzzing with 1920s themed events; a bloody good excuse to reach for the liquor and tassels! I could hardly contain my excitement when I heard about the Speakeasy nights at the elegant J. Sheekey Oyster Bar.”
One cannot fault Charlie McVeigh’s attitude towards beer, and the places that sell the fine hop-laden stuff. After associating himself with countless high-end venues, most notably Rowley Leigh’s Le Cafe Anglais, he has opened a trio of establishments in southwest London that aim to provide interesting and reasonably priced food with a staggeringly ambitious range of beers.
“We all know the attraction of ‘sourcing’ at Borough Market. Somehow in your basket, along with the cheeses, spices, ham, and jam, and other culinary nick-nacks, you are buying credibility, an authenticity that Ocado can’t deliver.”
Gabrielle skips over to Victoria to feast on deep-fried ice cream, among other delicious treats, at Grand Imperial London; the first UK restaurant from celebrated Hong Kong chef Rand Cheung.
“The Cumbraes were delectable, tantamount to standing on a seaside peer and having the refreshing surf sprayed into one’s face by a young scoundrel with a water-pistol.” Jonesy dines at Wright Brothers…
I’m not interested in the best restaurant on a budget or the world’s coolest or most democratic. I’m looking at the idea of the ‘best’, something that pulls at the heart strings, shocks, delights and nurtures in equal measure.