More Burgers... just mini

Another evening out and another burger joint.

To celebrate one of our team going off to get married we all decided burgers and drinks were the best way to do this. As there were thirteen of us we ideally wanted somewhere we could book, the thought of queuing for a table at Meat Liquor for hours on a work evening was not appealing... and we discovered that Lucky Chips latest venture was bookable.

Lucky Chip has one of the best burger reputations in London so they decided to take a residency at a cool cocktail bar in Soho called The Player (owned by the guy who set up Milk and Honey) and set up Slider Bar (for those who have never heard of a slider, they are perfectly created miniature burgers).

We had to pre-order as there were so many of us and I was worried there may not be enough food as we were sharing starters and the burger were to be miniatures but I needn't have worried as we all ended up stuffed. Everyone I dealt with on email, the phone and on the night were helpful and friendly and that makes a huge difference when there are many people to please and something to celebrate.

The Player is inconspicuous, hidden behind a dark doorway and down a basement in the middle of Soho. The decor is 1970's Americana with old TV's dotted about, exposed brick, leather booths, formica table tops and a giant moose head on the wall - cool in a retro way. It is pretty dark in there too so the pics are not the best.

So, on to the food...

The starters were amazing and delivered with a little pizazz, it was obvious everything was considered and thought through. There was pulled pork under a smoke filled glass jar, served with a pickled cabbage side that was to be layered up in soft steamed bun and drizzled in a sweet sauce.

The mac 'n' cheese looked bland and a little weird with the huge pieces of truffle on top but tasted amazing - creamy and indulgent and not claggy, which can often happen with this dish.

The stand out starter though was the mini bucket of chicken - crispy, boneless bite sized morsels of heaven, they came with creamed corn - something I have never had before but have since been dreaming of the sweet yellow mush, and homemade coleslaw, deep fried cheesy bites and a hot chicken gravy in a mini squirty sauce bottle.

Then the sliders - you had a choice of two, most of which include the aged beef pattie so I went for a classic double cheeseburger with american cheese, mustard, ketchup and pickles and the El Chappo - blue cheese, bacon, alioi and jalapenos. I took a bite of each to decide which one I should save to the end. The El Chappo had a good kick but the double cheese burger was delicious - it was small and perfectly formed. The only thing that let it down for me was the fries - I love salt but there was way to much on these for me and they were quite stubby and crispy, but they may have just been from the end of the batch as my friends were longer and you could taste the potato.

Everyone was really happy with their choice of burgers and there was barely a crumb left.

This just left the ice cream burger - this was what I was waiting for and my anticipation only grew as we were each presented with a tiny burger box. Inside was a perfect looking slider which as you bit into was cold and sweet - my brain did a little dance of confusion as it tried to work out whether this was good or not. The bun was sweet and had a cake texture, the pattie was ice cream and sprayed with chocolate, the ketchup was cherry jam and the cheese, a slice of apricot jelly. At first I thought it was like a choc ice but that was just the ice cream section and eventually decided it was similar to a Wagon Wheel as they ice cream had a marshmallow texture and taste. Half way through I decided I loved the concept more than the taste, so left the rest... but this dish divided the group, some devoured theirs within seconds and others felt the same as me. It was definitely a good fun dish that created quite a debate.

I really want to go back as it was such a great night - good food, good company and the staff were lovely. Plus the drinks were great too - I had a lovely gin cocktail, the London Buck Highball created with gin, lemon juice and ginger ale - yum.

Dirty Burger

After a day of drinking at Ginstock, Mat was craving a good burger. I was not overly hungry but knew I could still manage one even after the epic feast of mini curry, pigeon wrap, oysters and mussels which I had devoured in between seven gin cocktails.

We decided to head to Kentish Town and try Dirty Burger - a few friends had been and raved about it, so on their recommendation we knew it could offer just what we needed to soak up the alcohol of the day.

We found the new Pizza East and entrance to Chicken Shop (both of which, like Dirty Burger are owned by the Soho House group and I want to try soon) but no Dirty Burger - we asked inside Pizza East and was directed to the car park around the back.

As we turned the corner we found a rusty shack leaning up the side of the building and instead could see this is where the burger action was happening. You queue at the counter and choose the only burger on offer - the cheeseburger, pay (a bargain at £5.50 for the burger), take your number and take a seat until it is ready.

There is one large wooden table in the middle which seats about 14 and there about 8 tall stools around the edge, there are newspapers and loads of fresh napkins in the middle which everyone helps themselves to. You can see into the tiny kitchen as they cook your burger to order and in no time it is ready.

Wrapped in traditional greaseproof paper with their branding emblazed across it feels suitable naughty but also quite considered. The burger itself was really good, the meat was juicy and cooked how I like it, the slightly sweet bun and goopey cheese melted on the bun as it cooked was amazing. I didn't realise it would come with the mustard - I don't usually like the stuff but it I have changed my mind when it is balanced with the burger and pickles. We also went for some onion rings and crinkle cut fries - again naughty but worth the calories.

They also serve Birra Moretti on tap, this beer is getting everywhere and is turning into one of my new favourite lagers - especially good with a burger.

We will definitely be going back, but I am not sure how snug it will be in the winter... who cares I will be munching one of the best (and most reasonably priced) burgers in London.

Ginstock & Fifteen Street

The sun was shining on Saturday which only increased my excitement for Ginstock - there would be eight bars each creating a different cocktail with a different gin. Organised by Tweat Up (who have run a Chilli Off and Ribstock previously, both I which I followed on Twitter and enviously eyed up the food on offer) and its founding member, Jonathan Downey - who owns lots of my favourite places to eat and drink in London.

A £25 ticket included entrance to Fifteen Street which is just outside Jamie Oliver's Fifteen restaurant and was jam packed with some of the best street food vendors the country has to offer (and lots of bunting), plus it included the eight cocktails and a cleansing Birra Moretti - for when we needed a break from the gin. You had to vote for your favourite too.

We headed straight for the Martin Miller bar, which had a rhubarb tonic cocktail perfectly mixed by the bartenders from Lost Diplomacy. Garnished with fresh rhubarb it instantly became my favourite (which after only sampling one is probably a little unfair) due to the delicious fruity taste and the fact you could still taste the gin, which is one of my favourites anyway. The miniature bottle of gin and rhubarb was a nice touch too.

Starving - we decided to grab a tasting plate of jungle curry from Hungry Gecko, a street van run by Masterchef runner up Jackie Kearney. It was delicious but we were glad we only had a taster as it was hot.

One gin cocktail down, only seven more to go...

Next up was a Beefeater Negroni created by Polpo. The cocktail was way too strong for me, it is pretty much straight alcohol but I enjoyed the free bowler hat and drank it anyway.

We were trying to work out which cocktail was the one with the custard cream on top, and as we queued up for Bombay Dry and the London Cocktail Club we realised this was the place - topped with elderflower powder and mixed with a sweet fruity juice, it was good. The custard cream balanced on top sealed the deal.

As we were approaching the half way mark of gin we decided to go for a cleansing beer whilst we queued for our pigeon and beetroot wrap from Wild Rover Food, it was cooked fresh so the queue moved slowly but all the customers and then the staff were lovely. We was going to only have a mini one each but were starving by the time we got the front so went for full size one - each mouthful was yummy. The gamey pigeon and the sweet beetroot were a match made in heaven.

This was followed by a gimlet with a twist by Sipsmith and The Zetter Townhouse, served in a tiny martini glass - it was perfect with homemade cassia and orange cordial. It became a contender for best cocktail of the day. The staff on the bar were lovely and knowledgable and tried to bribe us to vote for them with freebies, but the Rhubarb cocktail was still on my mind.

The guy from Worship Street Whistling Shop was serving up a cocktail with Williams Chase gin and was hysterical, he had a smoke machine which he placed in various botanicals and smoked the crowds with, may not sound amusing but we were on our fifth cocktail. This tasted like smoked apples and was really easy to drink.

We were on a roll so headed to the Nightjar bar, the queues were starting to build but the atmosphere was still good fun, the man in front of us (who was a bartender) was horrified when we said we didn't like the Negroni.  The cocktail here was made with Bombay Sapphire and I am not sure what, served with a monkey nut garnish and bits of cinnamon, it totally transformed a gin I do not really like in too something quite special. I thought Emily would like this due to the cinnamon and her love a Bathtub gin.

Another food stop was required - Mat was craving a burger so he want to find one as I queued up for some mussels from Mussel Men. The staff all dressed in stripy fisherman style top and one even with a fisherman style moustache really live their brand. As I was slightly intoxicated I thought I would go for some oysters too - Mat returned disappointed as lots of the food stalls had shut as they were cooking more food or had completely ran out, he was tempted when I offered him one of my oysters. I added a skirt of lemon and some tabasco and they disappeared really quick, they had been freshly shucked in front of me and the slippery little morsels of seaside freshness. This was followed by a good sized portion of mussels, juicy and quite big but still full of flavour I was happy.

Mat was hungry and wanting a burger still but with two more gins to try we went and queued up for another cocktail. The queues were now huge and we waited a good half an hour for one from Danger Of Death, made with a gin I have never heard from before called Hvar (it came in a weird bottle covered in what looked like dripping green wax and I can not find it online) . It was lethal - pure gin I think, Mat couldn't finish his and didn't fancy another queue so we skipped the Gilpins Gin made by the Liberty Lounge and headed out to Hoxton to find a burger...

Classic Vanilla Cupcakes

Myself and Mat both managed to buy eggs for the weekend, meaning we had 14 (we had two left over from in the week) and as it was just over a bakers dozen I thought I better getting baking to make sure they were used up. I have not made any simple vanilla fairy cakes for ages, and I think the reason for this is the fail safe recipe I used as a kid just doesnt seem to work in my oven so I kind of just gave up on baking a good batch.

I turned to Dan Lepard's recipe book called Short and Sweet and decided to try the Vanilla Cupcake recipe from there. I usually use self raising but this recipe called for plain flour and baking powder and unusually suggested resting the mixture once it has been placed in the cases for 30 minutes before baking. The ingredients for the frosting were unusual too - double cream and condensed milk added to the usual suspects of butter and icing sugar.

The resting of the batter and the double sifting must have worked as they came out as perfectly domed beauties, making me glad I used some lovely foil patterned cases (they were from The Kitchen Shop in Lichfield).

The recipe makes too much icing even though I piled it as high as I could on the cakes. I choose to pipe it on for a more professional finish and decorate it with edible silver glitter and silver balls to highlight the cases. The icing is yummy, the condensed milk and cream add a richness and stops the texture being a little gritty as when you just do a classic butter cream.

Vanilla Cupcakes
Makes 8

Ingredients:


• 125g caster sugar 

• 125g unsalted butter, very soft
• 
2 eggs
• 
2 tsp vanilla essence

• 150g plain flour
• 
2 tsp baking powder

For the frosting
• 75g unsalted butter, very soft

• 250g icing sugar

• 75g sweetened condensed milk

• 75ml double cream

Method: 

• In the bowl of an upright electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla for three minutes on the highest speed until light and fluffy. Sift the flour and baking powder two or three times (this stops tunnels forming in the crumb), then add to the butter mix and beat for 30 seconds. Spoon into eight muffin cups placed in the pockets of a muffin tray, and set aside to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and firm. Leave to cool.

• For the frosting, get the butter as soft as possible without melting, then put in a bowl with the other ingredients. Whisk until smooth and fluffy, then top each cupcake with a thick swirl. The sugar in the frosting means it will keep at cool room temperature.

Packington Moor Farm Shop and Cafe

After my visit to the Lichfield Food Festival (where I couldn't get anywhere near the Packington Moor and had to do with peering over other peoples shoulders to spy on some fabulous looking sausage rolls and cakes) I decided that it was time to visit Packington Moor Farm Shop and Cafe.

It's one of those ridiculous instances where I've driven past a place on numerous occasions, but never ventured in. Me and my Mum decided to treat ourselves to a spot of lunch out and I suggested we drop in and give it a go. Since my visit I'm left with an annoying feeling inside, I've been missing out for yonks, should have gone earlier - all the food I could have eaten, all the tea I could have drank, all the lovely things I could have bought, what a crying shame. I did what I could to make up for lost time...

We picked our lunch for the light bites section of the menu, I went for the Pork and Chicken Terrine with apricots and homemade chutney. Served with a little salad that tasted like it had just been picked and wonderfully soft bread and REAL butter. It was an absolute delight.

My pork and chicken terrine

My Mum on the other-hand went for the 'Quiche of the Day', Smoked Cheese and Ham, and being a good Mum she let me try a bit - it was delicious!

Quiche of the Day - Smoked Cheese and Ham

After we polished off our lunch we each had a cone of Bennett's Farm ice cream - well the sun was shining. Mum went for Strawberry and I went for the Rum and Raisin ( It's a retro classic). The best thing is though that once you've eaten you are only a few steps away from the shop where you can buy everything you've just eaten and attempt to recreate your experience at home.

I ended up buying some of the quiche for dinner and my Mum bought some of the terrine, food swap! Everything is local, fresh, homemade and authentic, I LOVE this place. Plus, to make it even better the staff are lovely and the prices aren't stupid.

The selection on the butchery selection is impressive and I couldn't resist buying a big honk of this rib eye. It's pricey, but probably the best steak I've eaten, Sean did a good job of cooking it.

The biggest rib eye steak I've ever seen!

Smoked Cheese and Ham Quiche for dinner

I'm really impressed with this business, they have got it spot on and it makes me proud to be British and a Midlander. Seeing all this wonderful produce for sale and tasting some of the fantastic home cooking they have created means my return visit will be very soon!

And soon it was, only a few days later Me and my Sister went and I can happily report that the pots of tea are huge (always a sign of a good establishment in my book) and the Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella Quiche was yummy :-) 

Tarts for hearts

A (very brave) friend, Natalie is participating in The Great North Run. To raise funds for her chosen charity, The British Heart Foundation she decided to do a bake off style competition, named Tarts for Hearts and then get eager work colleagues to pay for the privilege of sampling the goods.

I didn't have much time so I made a (cheats) no bake chocolate tart. This really simple recipe uses a cheesecake style base which you press along the bottom and up the sides of the tin to create the base. The filling was delicious, very chocolatey and indulgent so you do not need a big slice. I used strawberries (instead of the recommended raspberries) to decorate and skipped the creme fraiche, neither of which took away from how tasty it was.

For the savoury one, I made a filo pastry tart (again short on time and couldn't be bothered to make pastry) filled with blue cheese, ham and pine nuts. This looked impressive due to the filo pastry being too high and opening out like flower petals, plus I love blue cheese and this had a great balance of flavours which didn't overpower the pine nuts and ham.

The other tarts I tried were amazing - Lisa's salmon heart shaped tart, Nat's classic quiche lorraine and Helen's individual caramelised onion tarts. Myself and Lisa won star bakers and shared out some Chanel goodies - fancy!

All the tarts went down really well and sold out within in 20 minutes which meant the slow pokes in the office missed out, Natalie raised an amazing £200. If you fancy sponsoring Nat - you can here.

Both the recipes are from the BBC Good Food Website.

No bake chocolate tart

Ingredients:

• 200g pack all-butter biscuits

• 100g butter

• 1 tbsp golden syrup or honey

• 100g bar dark chocolate

• 100g bar milk chocolate

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 tbsp icing sugar , plus extra for dusting

• 200ml whipping cream

• 3 tbsp crème fraîche, to decorate

• 200g raspberries , to serve

Method:

• Crush the biscuits by putting them in a large, strong, plastic food bag and bashing with a rolling pin. Melt the butter with the syrup or honey in the microwave, then stir in the biscuits. Press onto the base and up the sides of a 12 x 36cm rectangular tin (or 23-25cm round flan tin) and chill while you make the filling.

• Break up the two chocolate bars and put in a large bowl. Melt in the microwave for 2-3 mins on Medium, stirring halfway through. Stir in the vanilla extract, then sift in the icing sugar. Whip the cream until it just holds its shape, then fold into the melted chocolate. Pour into the prepared tin and smooth the top. Chill for at least 2 hrs or for up to 2 days.

• Just before serving, remove the tart from the tin and slide it onto a flat plate (loosen edges first with the tip of a small pointed knife). You will find it easier to remove the tart if you leave it at room temperature for 30 mins. Put a few tsps of crème fraîche along the centre of the tart (or around the edges if the tart is circular) and top each with a raspberry, then dust lightly with icing sugar. Cut into thin slices and serve with extra raspberries on the side.

Blue Cheese and Ham Tart

Ingredients:

• 6 large sheets filo pastry or 10 sheets if small

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 100g sliced ham , chopped

• 1 bunch spring onions , sliced

• 2 eggs , lightly beaten

• 300g tub soft cheese , room temperature

• 2 large handfuls rocket leaves

• 50g blue cheese , crumbled

• 2 tbsp pine nuts

Method:

• Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Brush each filo sheet with a little oil and layer into a 20cm springform or loose-bottomed tin, overlapping each sheet at a different angle.

• Mix together the ham, spring onions, eggs, soft cheese and rocket, then pour into the filo case. Sprinkle with blue cheese and pine nuts, then bake for 30 mins until just set. Cool slightly, slice and serve with a salad.

Jamie's Feta and Spinach Pie

Jamie Oliver's recipe books are some of my most trusted and when I fancied cooking something different at the weekend I went for something from his 30 minute meals. I did not choose this cookbook because I was expecting speed (everything I have tried from it has took at least an hour) but because it all looks so tasty.

I went for the Feta and Spinach Filo Pie with salads, I skipped the coated ice cream dessert as I was making Nigella's red velvet cupcakes. Once I figured out what I was doing with the filo pastry it was really simple and delicious, there was enough to feed six people so we had the rest the next day, and ate huge portions.

The stodginess of the cheesy, almost quiche-like pie was great with the flavours of the salad which were really clean and fresh. Mat is not a massive fan of cucumber and did not seem too enthused about the side salads but we were both pleasantly surprised, so much so I made another fresh batch the next day to go with the leftovers - the yellow tomatoes were amazing.

Feta and Spinach Filo Pie

Ingredients:

For the spinach and feta pie

• 100g pinenuts

• 5 eggs

• 300g feta cheese

• 50g cheddar cheese

• Dried oregano (I used some fresh from my herb garden)

• 1 lemon

• A knob of butter

• 400g prewashed baby spinach

• 1 x 270g pack of filo pastry

• Cayenne pepper

• 1 whole nutmeg, for grating

For the cucumber salad

• 1 cucumber

• 10 black olives

• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

• 3 spring onions

• 1/2 a lemon

• 1/2 a fresh red chilli

• 5 or 6 sprigs of fresh mint

For the tomato salad

• A small bunch of fresh basil

• 1 clove of garlic

• White wine vinegar

• 300g mixed cherry tomatoes

• A small bunch of fresh Greek basil (optional)

For the seasonings

• Olive oil

• Extra virgin olive oil

• Sea salt and black pepper

Method:

To start:

Get all your ingredients and equipment ready. Turn the oven on to 200°C/400°F/gas 6.Put a medium (approx. 26cm diameter) ovenproof frying pan on a medium heat.

Spinach and feta pie:

Put the pinenuts into the dry ovenproof frying pan to toast, tossing occasionally. Keep an eye on them. Crack 5 eggs into a mixing bowl and crumble in 300g of feta. Grate in 50g of Cheddar. Add a pinch of pepper, a couple of pinches of dried oregano, zest of 1 lemon and a lug of olive oil. Once the nuts are light golden, add them to the egg mixture and mix well.

Put the empty frying pan back on the heat, add a little olive oil and a knob of butter and pile in half of the spinach. Gently push and move it around and add more as it wilts down. Make sure it doesn't catch on the bottom and when there's room, start adding the rest, stirring frequently.

Meanwhile, take the pastry out of the fridge. Lay a large sheet of greaseproof paper, approximately 50cm long, on the worktop, rub a little olive oil all over it, then scrunch it up and lay it out flat again. Arrange 4 filo pastry sheets in a large rectangle, overlapping at the edges, so they almost cover the paper. Rub some olive oil over them. Sprinkle over a good pinch of salt & pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Repeat until you have 3 layers. Don't worry about any cracked bits. Remember to keep stirring the spinach.

Once the spinach is really nice and dense, take the pan off the heat. Add the wilted spinach to the egg mixture and grate in ½ a nutmeg. Mix well. Carefully move the greaseproof paper and filo into the empty frying pan so the edges spill over. Push it down into the sides of the pan, then pour in the egg mixture and spread it out. Fold the filo sheets over the top and let them fall where they will. Put the pan back on a medium heat for a couple of minutes to get the bottom cooking, then put the pan into the oven on the top shelf to cook for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp.

Cucumber salad: 

Run a fork down the length of the cucumber all around it, then halve and quarter it lengthways and cut the quarters across into 1cm chunks. Put them into a mixing bowl and set aside. Drain 10 black olives, squeeze out their stones, and tear them into another bowl. Pour over 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and push down on the olives so the vinegar starts pulling out their saltiness. Trim and finely slice the spring onions, then add to the olives.

Drizzle 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and the juice of ½ a lemon into the olive mixture and stir really well. Deseed and finely slice ½ a red chilli and add to the bowl of cucumber. Pick the leaves from the sprigs of mint, finely slice them and add to the cucumber. Pour over the dressing, toss quickly, drizzle over a little more extra virgin olive oil and take to the table.

Spinach and feta pie: Check on the pie and take out if done (I left ours in for a extra few minutes more than Jamie recommended.)

Tomato salad: 

Quickly rinse out the liquidizer. Rip the top off the bunch of basil, reserving a few of the smaller leaves, and put into the liquidizer with a pinch of salt & pepper, a peeled clove of garlic, a couple of good lugs of extra virgin olive oil and a splash of white wine vinegar. Whiz until you have a dark green oil. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Halve or quarter the tomatoes. Pour this dressing over a platter and sit the tomatoes on top. Scatter over some Greek basil leaves or smaller basil leaves and a pinch or two of salt, then take to the table and toss right before serving.

To serve: 

Take the pie to the table with your beautiful salads and divide up between your guests.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

I have been a massive fan of Heston Blumenthal since he burst onto the cooking scene years ago with  his magical food wizardry and weird concoctions and have been totally captivated by his love of theatre and nostalgia often seen in his TV programmes.

You can therefore imagine how excited I was to go to his first London based restaurant as a treat with Mat (in honour of how hard he had been working) - Dinner.

We began our evening in The Library bar in the Lanesborough Hotel with some yummy gin based cocktails, and even though they were the most expensive cocktails Mat has ever drank (£15 each, which I explained is typical of fancy London hotel bars) he seemed to like the three tier tray of posh nibbles that accompined them. We were trying not to eat too many as we were saving ourselves for dinner but the olives, nuts and posh twiglets were too moorish to resist. We sipped our cocktails whist sitting in an opulent fake library in high backed chairs surrounded with chesterfield sofas, wood panelling and faux walls of books whist a a baby piano was being played next to us. It should have felt stuffy but the staff were lovely and the atmosphere light and friendly.

We then took a stroll along Knightsbridge high street and looked at Harrods all lit up at night before heading in for a late sitting in The Mandarin Oriental, our table wasn't quite ready so we sat at the bar and Mat had the most expensive beer he has ever had and I went for a hugely expensive Hendricks and tonic, which thankfully came with a slice of cucumber. The bar would have been quite nice but as it was 9.30 on a Saturday night was full of quite loud, obnoxious drunks, which did ruin the atmosphere slightly but as we were shown through to the restaurant, the drunks disappeared and we amongst the bustling atmosphere of Heston's Dinner - ice creams were being created at tables so the fog of liquid nitrogen rolled across the floor and the kitchen was incased in floor to ceiling windows so you could see all the action and the pineapples (for the Tipsy pudding) roasting on spits.

The menu is inspired by long lost recipes and each dish is accompanied by the year it is from, but they obviously all have a Heston twist. We argued over who was going to have the most famous dish - the meat fruit, Mat won as it was his treat (and I was promised a large bite). The perfect looking satsuma (or mandarin as it was called on the menu) was delivered on a rustic wooden board with some grilled bread - it looked so much like the juicy fruit and it was odd to cut into it and reveal the smoothest chicken liver parfait. You could also eat the rind which spread easily like a fatty orange-d flavoured jam with the parfait - it was gorgeous and do rich I had too have two large bites to help Mat along. In stark contrast I went for a light and fresh starter of scallops and cucumber, the cucumber came in so many different ways - pickled, foamy and pureed. Perfect with the delicate flavour of the scallops.

Mat thad the powdered duck with fennel and umbles (which I think are offal of some sort). Again really delicious but so rich I think Mat was going to struggle to have a dessert. I went for the Spiced Pigeon and Ale, slightly pink in the middle and melted in the mouth as easily as the creamy mashed potato we shared as a side. Best mash ever.

We just had to have pudding and even though I really wanted the ice cream which is prepared at the table with liquid nitrogen, it takes two and Mat wanted chocolate. He again managed to pick the richest thing on the pudding menu - the chocolate bar with gold leaf was a dense bar of dark chocolate with a passion fruit jam and ginger ice cream - it beat him though and he could not finish the whole thing. I demolished my brown bread ice cream with salted butter caramel, pear and malted yeast syrup - it reminded me of peanut butter so I loved it.

After all that I still managed to find space for the little shot glass of a smooth chocolate ganache served with a shortbread studded with fennel seeds, reminded me of a posh Choc Dip.

The meal went the same way as the drinks and became our most pricey meal out ever, but I think it was worth it as a treat. The food was great and so different to anything I have eaten in a long time - the staff were fine (nothing to complain about or shout about either), the setting was the same, I like seeing the kitchen and the vintage jelly mould lamp shades were a nice touch but quite bland other than that. Here it is all about the grub, and it lived up to the hype. Maybe, The Fat Duck next....