[Food] Restaurant thread 2021

[Bakero]

I thought Rustico was distinctly average when I got takeaway, but maybe we'd been spoilt by The Hearth which was absolutely brilliant while it existed. Best pizzas in Lewes are now the ones from the van under the arches at the staion.

I went to Rustico in the summer and thought it was excellent. If I remember correctly, I had the buffalo mozzarella margherita with n'duja. The base was thin but robust enough to support the toppings and the crust was perfect, well-risen with a nice bit of blistering. Good service too.

 

[keaton]

For Lewes I would strongly echo the Blacksmiths Arms. Erawan is excellent, as is Pestle and Mortar ( bit it's a cafe) and Pailin is good if a bit of fashioned, but the people are lovely.

I thought Fork was better than Chappers but as I live here I could be biased.
Real shame The Hearth closed

 

[Bakero]

Erawan is excellent, as is Pestle and Mortar ( bit it's a cafe) and Pailin is good if a bit of fashioned, but the people are lovely.

I totally agree with the first two but wouldn't recommend the Pailin. They used to get by being the only Thai place in Lewes but now they have two superior competitors within about 20 metres, they really need to up their game.

*disclaimer: I haven't eaten in the Pailin in years so they may in fact have already upped their game.

 

[keaton]

I totally agree with the first two but wouldn't recommend the Pailin. They used to get by being the only Thai place in Lewes but now they have two superior competitors within about 20 metres they really need to up their game.

*disclaimer: I haven't eaten in the Pailin in years so they in fact have already upped their game.

Oh no, I get that. I like the people and cosiness of the place, it's very dated and I would imagine they've not changed the menu for decades but I've never had a bad meal there

 

[Machiavelli]

My hunch is this might be right up the street of [MENTION=27447]Goldstone1976[/MENTION]
Looking forward to the review.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/oct/08/bibi-london-w1-restaurant-review-grace-dent

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

My hunch is this might be right up the street of [MENTION=144]goldstone[/MENTION] 1976
Looking forward to the review.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/oct/08/bibi-london-w1-restaurant-review-grace-dent

“I’d happily bathe in the peanut sauce, sploshing it about my armpits and behind my ears, before dressing without showering’”

I think I need to open the window…it’s warm in here.

 

[Nitram]

Went to the Witchez yesterday with a few friends who raved about it.
What an experience, quirky does not do it justice. Silent black and white film in background, small intimate dining area and the host explaining the meals in detail was both amazing and funny. Polish influences throughout. Excellent wine.
My friend is trying a different dish each times he books. I had the herring starter and beef stew as a main. Main courses are very large so go hungry or ask for a doggie bag.
We booked again before we left. Best restaurant I’ve been to in Brighton.
https://thewitchez.co.uk/menu/

 

[Simgull]

Tinto Taperia next to the Theatre Royal last night before going to the Dome theatre. Surprisingly good tapas, (although not sure morcilla needs to be battered), reasonably sized around £6 each. What really made the place though was the service. How nice to have waitresses who knew everything about the menu and drinks, made an effort to engage and smile and be considerate e.g. 'would you like us to bring the bill with dessert so you can pay and then finish your drinks at your leisure and just head off to the theatre when you need to without any pressure?' With so many places short of staff at the moment, they really made a positive difference to the experience.

 

[Goldstone1976]

My hunch is this might be right up the street of [MENTION=27447]Goldstone1976[/MENTION]
Looking forward to the review.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/oct/08/bibi-london-w1-restaurant-review-grace-dent

I was invited to a late pre-opening trial run. It was excellent, but they said they hoped it’d be better when they’d ironed out the wrinkles I didn’t notice. We’re hoping to go in November.

I ate at LPM last night. I’ll do a review

“I’d happily bathe in the peanut sauce, sploshing it about my armpits and behind my ears, before dressing without showering’”

I think I need to open the window…it’s warm in here.

You tart.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I went to the little dining room above The French House in Soho last week. It’s a small, straight forward but well executed menu. I started with oysters and a half bottle of champagne, moved onto salt cod beignets with aioli and then an 8oz rump steak with aligot. I’d swapped the frites for the aligot but both came. Finished with cheese. They have a fair number of wines by the glass which is good for me as I was a solo diner.

I was early, it wasn’t busy, and I spent a bit of time chatting to the waitress/front-of-house about Soho in the mid 90s as I worked nearby. A very delightful evening.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

On the subject of aligot….that’s a dish I’d totally forgotten about. The French really do wonderful things with spuds.

 

[thedonkeycentrehalf]

What really made the place though was the service. How nice to have waitresses who knew everything about the menu and drinks, made an effort to engage and smile and be considerate e.g. 'would you like us to bring the bill with dessert so you can pay and then finish your drinks at your leisure and just head off to the theatre when you need to without any pressure?' With so many places short of staff at the moment, they really made a positive difference to the experience.

That's good to hear as I have eaten out twice in the last couple of days and the service has been poor. Yesterday met a former colleague for lunch at Swallows Return. We only had hot sandwiches but our food took an eternity to come out. I'm sure the forgot as it didn't arrive until well after everyone else who ordered after us had got their food. Likewise a second round of drinks took so long to arrive we were ready for the bill. It wasn't particularly busy and no apology at any time for the slow service.

This evening we went to MacMillans in Worthing with friends for an early dinner. Again, the food was fine but service very slow (nearly two hours to serve two courses), no mention of delays, got one order wrong which had to be sent back. Then a server dropped loads of glasses which smashed all around us but nobody checked if we were okay or apologised. When we left, we had to point our that there was still broken glass around our chairs and even then,not a word of apology or check we were okay. I'm sure most of the staff were there on a previous visit so can't put it down to new staff.

Maybe we've just been unlucky but with so many vacancies, service quality does seem to have dropped recently.

 

[Machiavelli]

I was invited to a late pre-opening trial run. It was excellent, but they said they hoped it’d be better when they’d ironed out the wrinkles I didn’t notice. We’re hoping to go in November.

I ate at LPM last night. I’ll do a review



You tart.

I wasn't invited to the trial. Will have to learn charm. LPM looks interesting. Like HT's style and ordering too.

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

You tart.

A sticky peanut tart.

 

[Rugrat]

I'm a bit out of my depth here and definately not even an amateur food critic but we went to Rathfinny vinyard between Alfriston and Seaford for our anniversary lunch. It was a truly delightful experience in every respect, high quality throughout.. Plus the vineyard itself really is quite spectaular. Bookings are 2/3 months ahead which I guess is a fair indication of what others think

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

On the subject of aligot….that’s a dish I’d totally forgotten about. The French really do wonderful things with spuds.

Including dauphinoise, my fave potato dish of them all. I could quite happily eat that without any accompaniment at all.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Including dauphinoise, my fave potato dish of them all. I could quite happily eat that without any accompaniment at all.

Oooh yes.

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

That's good to hear as I have eaten out twice in the last couple of days and the service has been poor. Yesterday met a former colleague for lunch at Swallows Return. We only had hot sandwiches but our food took an eternity to come out. I'm sure the forgot as it didn't arrive until well after everyone else who ordered after us had got their food. Likewise a second round of drinks took so long to arrive we were ready for the bill. It wasn't particularly busy and no apology at any time for the slow service.

This evening we went to MacMillans in Worthing with friends for an early dinner. Again, the food was fine but service very slow (nearly two hours to serve two courses), no mention of delays, got one order wrong which had to be sent back. Then a server dropped loads of glasses which smashed all around us but nobody checked if we were okay or apologised. When we left, we had to point our that there was still broken glass around our chairs and even then,not a word of apology or check we were okay. I'm sure most of the staff were there on a previous visit so can't put it down to new staff.

Maybe we've just been unlucky but with so many vacancies, service quality does seem to have dropped recently.

Poor? I would say the service at MacMillans was borderline disgraceful, especially concerning the issue with smashed glass failing to be removed around your table. We all make mistakes, but then not clearing up the debris could have proved dangerous in the extreme.

 

[rudolf hucker]

Been a few times for their steaks, which were good but apparently https://www.baqueano.co.uk/ Is supposed to be even better.

Been to Baqueano a few times now, excellent stakes and the staff / owners know what they are doing. Definitely worth a try but makes sure you book a table as usually quite full

 

[WATFORD zero]

Including dauphinoise, my fave potato dish of them all. I could quite happily eat that without any accompaniment at all.

Tartiflette