French restaurant Bellevue Rendez-vous 218 Trinity Road, Wandsworth Common SW17 7HP London
Reviewed on Tuesday 26 May 2009
French restaurant Bellevue Rendez-vous
We have been many times in this excellent French restaurant next to Wandsworth Common (click here for the previous review done 8 May 2009).
First courses: the scallops were excellent! They arrived piping hot, and were beautifully crispy on the outside, with perfectly cooked inner and nicely tender coral. The presentation was very pleasing, as the scallops came in their shells. I love scallops, and these were amongst the best I’ve had in a long time – so certainly memorable and excellent value. The parma ham and celeriac was also very good, and also with a pleasing presentation. The celeriac was very light and made a nice complement to the ham (possibly a touch of vinaigrette may have enhanced).
In main meals – both were excellent. The rabbit was perfectly cooked, sliding easily off the bone. The meat was wonderfully tender, whilst the outside was nicely browned and flavoursome. Rabbit is an excellent meat (which I’ve had several times in this resturant) that makes a wonderful meal when as well cooked as it was here. What is really nice about this restaurant is their flexibility and readiness to suggest dishes you may like. The salmon was not technically on the menu – but after some discussion with Pablo (chef and owner) about a pan-fried cod and other dishes, we accepted the suggestion of pan-fried salmon instead. It was a good choice! The salmon was cooked to perfection – with a fantastically crispy skin and moist tender inside. The sauce was wonderfully creamy with a hint of ratatouille sauce giving a nice touch. The 2006 Cahors wine was very pleasing.
Great olives
Nice Cahors wine
Scallops
Parma ham with celeriac
The two starters
Panfried salmon with asparagus
Rabbit with white asparagus
Fondant au chocolat
Gâteau de Pablo
The two desserts
Cost and conclusion: it was £71.50 for a 3 course meal for two, with a bottle of Cahor red wine (£17) and an espresso (£1.50). The service charge is not included into the total bill which is nice and should be followed by all restaurants. We think this place offers the best value for money in London and it is very reliable. It is about the 10th time we come here and the meals were always good.
Japanese restaurant Okawari 16 Lisle Street London WC2H 7BE
Japanese restaurant Okawari
Instead of going to our usual Akasiro we decided to try Okawari which is on the same street as Tokyo Diner and Akasiro. From outside (see photo above) it does not look great but inside it is a lot more spacious with a modern design, although a little bland. It is possible to eat on a tatami on the floor (see photo below). Despite the place having a Japanese name, the people who served us were not Japanese but Chinese.
Inside the Okawari at Leicester
We were quite hungry so we decided to take two starters plus two bento boxes. We ordered the Agedashi Tofu (5 pieces, deep fried brean curd with ginger and spring onion served in a sweet soy sauce – £3.80) and a Tuna Tataki (raw tuna lightly cooked on the outside served with ponzu sauce – £9.90). The tofu was very good, quite warm and even a little crispy on the outside. The tuna tataki was very good too, and nicely presented with the sauce stored in the red pepper in the centre of the plate with all the slices of tuna around it. See the photos below!
Agedashi Tofu
Tuna Tataki
The two Bento boxes we had were the Bento box B with pan fried fish, tempura, pickles, steamed rice and fried vegetables (£10.50) and the Bento box E with tonkatsu, tempura, pickles, steamed rice and salad (£10.50). We also had two Asahi beers (£5.60). I have to admit my choice with the Bento box B wasn’t the greatest as it had too many fried food. The grease got me quickly and I was not feeling very well. That said, my friend who took the Bento box B started with the tempura and the grease got her too and usually she can handle tempura quite well, so it was not just me. If you go there, take the Bento box A with deep fried chicken, sashimi (6 pieces), pickles, steamed rice and salad (£9.80) as it looks more balanced… The salad was full of mayonnaise, soaked in it in fact and it contributed to the grease factor. See photos below.
Bento box E
Bento box B
Detail of the way too greasy tempura
Fried fish
So few pickles and nasty salad overdone with mayonnaise
Bill and conclusion: the bill was a little over £44 including a service charge (not that visible since it was only written sc on the bill) but when I was handed the machine to pay with the credit card they dared to make it ask for a tip! I am already against the service charge automatically added to the bill but I never had a situation with a second service charge requested. Also, the waitress took my bill for putting the amount into the machine but did not give it back to me as I expected! When I asked, she just wrote the names of the dishes we ordered on a piece of paper. Another first time for us too!
Rick’s Café 122 Mitcham Road, Tooting London SW17 9NH
Reviewed on Sunday 17 May 2009 lunch time
Rick's Café
Rick’s Café is located close to Tooting Broadway tube station, between Pizza Domino and a shoe repairs store. The first feeling is not that great but when you get inside, things are different. It has a kind of nice rustic feeling (see the big table on the photo below) but with some unfortunate mistakes like our small two people table that looks like it came from Ikea and our knives were from Ikea. The restaurant is not big, maybe around 25 seats maximum. On the Sunday lunch menu, the wines of the week were two French wine (Château Haut du Puy Medoc 2000 – £22.50 and Henry Marionette Touraine Gamay 2007 – £18.95) and one Argentinian wine Alfredo Roca Pinot noir. We wanted the Medoc but it was out of stock so we chose the Gamay upon suggestion. The choice for the first course is fairly large, with interesting meals like steamed razor clams in garlic and white wine (£6.50), chicken liver parfait with gherkins, onion marmalade and toast (£6.50), roasted artichoke with red pesto (£5.50) or English asparagus, fried egg and parmesan (£6). We ordered the clams and the chicken liver. As main course the choice is pretty interesting too, beside the traditional roast beef for Sunday lunch (including a glass of wine – £10), there are cornish crab, jersey royal potatoes and aioli (£12.50), seared squid, grilled polenta, wild rocket and red chilli (£10.75), pan fried lemon sole, green beans and red wine dressing (£13.75), sauté veal kidneys, gratin dauphinois and grain mustard sauce (£9) per example. We decided on the lemon sole and the cornish crab. For dessert we had a passion fruit jelly, berries and ice cream (£5.25) and a pot-au-chocolate with biscotti (£6.50).
The chicken liver parfait was good, not as good as Chez Linday in Richmond (where the toast was excellent) but as good as the County Arms in Wandsworth Common or the Tide End Cottage in Teddington and both places had good chicken liver parfait. The steamed razor clams were good (but unfortunately some sand in one of them ruined an otherwise good experience).
The crab was decent but I needed to fight with my fork and knife to get the flesh out and they did not provide the tool for crushing the shell of the crab legs. It was only after a while that I got a bowl of water with lemon so I could rinse my fingers. I have to say the service, whilst friendly, was not really attentive. The aioli was fine and the jersey royal potaoes excellent, warm and perfectly cooked. The pan fried lemon sole with the red wine dressing was beautifully cooked, and very nicely presented too. The flesh was firm and tender, whilst remaining very moist and with a very nice flavour. I would certainly take that again. The accompanying green beans were nicely cooked – again firm, well flavoured, and not over-seasoned. The dish as a whole could perhaps have benefited from an additional side, such as dauphinois potato, but overall was very good.
The passion fruit jelly was really good, not over sweet at all, and the berries with the vanilla ice cream were a good mix. The pot au chocolat was nicely rich without being over sweet, and had a nice firm texture. Its accompanying biscotti was excellent.
Inside Rick's Café
Easy to drink Henry Marionette Touraine Gamay 2007
Steamed razor clams in garlic and white wine
Chicken liver parfait, gherkins, onion marmalade and toast
Pan fried lemon sole, green beans and red wine dressing
Cornish crab, jersey royal potatoes and aioli
Front view of the crab
Pot-au-chocolat with biscotti
Passion fruit jelly, berries and ice cream
Cost and conclusion: it was £78.69 including the “optional” 12.5% service charge added automatically to the bill. The 3 course lunch was good, same for the wine but we feel the total cost is overpriced, especially if you consider the surrounding. For the same amount, you can eat very well at the French restaurant Bellevue Rendez-vous (was Mini Mundus) next to Wandsworth Common or at Chez Lindsay in Richmond. In the same area you have Limoncello if you are into Italian food. Now, if you stick just to the Sunday’s roast beef, served with yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, root vegetables, spring green and a glass of wine it only costs £10, which is an excellent value for money.
Pizzeria Franco Manca 4, Market Row, Electric Lane, Brixton London SW9 8LD
Reviewed on Saturday 16 May 2009 lunch time
Pizzeria Franco Manca
This was the third attempt to get a lunch at Franco Manca and we were finally successful! The first time we tried to go there was on a Sunday and this place is closed on Sunday because it is within Brixton Market (closed on Sunday). We managed to eat at the Ship Tavern then. The second time we went on a Saturday for 12:30 pm and the queue was so long that we did not have the patience to wait and instead discovered a new Japanese restaurant called Ukai Sushi which was good. This time we decided to camp there Friday night go there early on Saturday to be sure to avoid the queue so we managed to get there for 11:20 am. The pizzeria was already open and doing preparation, but not yet ready to accept clients. They told us to come at 12 when they formally open. We walked around the market area (watch your wallet…) and came back to the restaurant at 11:40 where we saw people seated! We jumped quickly on the few available seats to be certain to get one. We had to wait until 12 when they formally took everyone’s order. If you wish to avoid the queue, come early too because at 12 there was already a queue. When we left at 1, the queue was long enough to go to the street (see photos below).
The menu is quite simple: you have the choice between 6 pizzas and there is also a pizza of the day. We asked for the pizza of the day and a calzone. As drink we had the beer (Hepworth organic 330ml – £1.90) and a glass of red wine (Organic Dolcetto – £1.40 for 125ml but I think it was more 250ml than 125ml!). Franco Manca is known for their sourdough pizza base: “The pizza is made from slow-rising sourdough (minimum 20 hours) and is baked in a wood burning ‘Tufac’ brick oven made in Naples by a specialist artisan. This oven produces a heat of about 500 degrees c (930 degrees f). The slow levitation and blast-cooking process lock in the flours natural aroma and moisture giving it a soft and easily digestible crust. As a result, the edge (cornicione) is excellent and shouldn’t be discarded” as they explain on their menu.
Franco Manca is not your typical restaurant: in fact, it is more canteen than restaurant. Think paper serviettes, long tables, seating according to how many will fit (and you might have to get up partway to let someone in or out), and choose-your-own cuttlery from a tin in the centre of the table. One glass tumbler per person, to hold whichever drink you choose. So its as basic as you can get. Then there is the setting to consider – France Manca is inside Brixton market. In fact, it occupies small sites on both sides of the main alley, so there is a constant stream of people passing through. 2 metres away is a fishmarket – and yes, you do smell it. Sitting in the aisle of a market, you’re open to all the sights, smells and temperatures (no heating here). So is it worth coming? Read on and decide for yourself.
The pizzas were excellent! I really like when the base is crispy on the outside and slightly burnt while being still soft inside. For the Calzone the sour taste was a little strong but with the pizza of the day it was fine. We were not too keen on the drink. The beer was ok, but it could have been cooler. On the bottle they say to serve it at 5° and I believe it was warmer than that. As for the glass of wine, it tasted a little like cheese at the beginning and then it was ok (and there is no such thing as a wine glass here). It would be nicer to have more choice even if it would be more expensive. After the pizzas we got two espressos (£1 each). They were really tiny but excellent. One downside is the proximity of a fishmonger next door and we could smell fish from time to time depending on the direction of the wind. Since the restaurant is on both sides of the main alley in the covered part of Brixton market, it might be better to choose the side opposite the fish store – if you can.
Pizza of the day
Wood burning 'Tufac' brick oven
Glass of wine and organic beer from Hepworth & Co
Pizza Calzone
The two pizzas, and you can see the chilli oil
Getting busy...
The queue going to the street at 1 pm!
Cost and conclusion: for £16 (service charge not included automatically to the bill – we like that) the lunch was excellent. It is not just good value for money but it is also good in absolute. Until now our best pizzeria was the Rustica in Richmond (especially their Buffalo pizza) but Franco Manca is challenging it well. The two are pretty different by their surrounding (Rustica is in Richmond, Franco Manca is in Brixton market…) and setting which is reflected by the bill (almost half price here) but they share one thing in common: quality pizzas! The service was friendly and efficient. We will be back of course.
Hazuki Japanese restaurant 43, Chandos Place London, WC2N 4HS 020 7240 2530
Reviewed on Friday 15 May 2009
Hazuki Japanese restaurant
We have been to Hazuki many times. We ordered, as usual unfortunately since there are so many other choices, the Menu A (£16) and the Menu B (£16). Both include rice and miso soup, the appetizer of the day and an assorted tempura. It is just for the last course (pork ginger, tonkatsu, chicken teriyaki, salmon teriyaki etc) that there is a difference between the two menus. We chose the chicken teriyaki and the salmon teriyaki, and two Asahi beers (£6.60).
The miso soup was good, better than at Toku, and similar to the one at Akasiro. The appetizer of the day was tuna and it was quite good. The assorted tempura had just one shrimp and the rest were vegetables. It was a little small but I think it is better that way since tempura can get you with all the fried stuff. Plus this was just the third starter after all. The salmon teriyaki was very good and surprisingly big too. Maybe it needed to be slightly more cooked to have the skin crispier but it was quite good the way it was. The chicken teriyaki came with pan fried soja. It was a little bland, and would have benefited from a more flavoursome teriyaki sauce (or just more of it).
Interior of the Hazuki on the first floor
Miso soup
Appetizer of the Day (tuna)
Details of the tuna. I already ate one bit before taking the photo...
Tempura
Chicken teriyaki
Salmon teriyaki
Overview of the two meals
Cost and conclusion: it was £42.50 including the “optional gratuity @10%” as written on the bill. I wish restaurants in London would stop pre-empting the customer with the “optional gratuity” in the total bill. It should be up to the clients to decide if the service was worth the gratuity or not, and how much too. By the way, the service was efficient here so I would have chosen to tip (I just hate being coerced).
