Refueling with Tradition... Some Thoughts on Dining in London Part 4

This is the final post in the four part series on Dining in London

My final full day in London was spent popping into some very unique venues. I began with a quick stop at the Jamaica Wine House, locally known as "the Jampot." 

Located on the site of London's first coffee house, the sign of the Pasqua Rosee's Head in 1652, the current building was built in the 19th century. 

It features a lovely wood paneled bar divided into three sections on the ground floor, and an elegant restaurant, Todd's Wine Bar, downstairs.

I slipped in for a quick pint in my quest to try a variety of real ales, this time trying Spitfire. A lovely little place tucked away in the City of London. Not an easy find, but well worth it for a pint and a rest from a busy day. For more information, visit their website at http://www.jamaicawinehouse.co.uk/

My next stop was Simpson's Tavern. Not to be confused with Simpson's in the Strand, Simpson's Tavern was established in 1757 and lays claim as the oldest chophouse in London. 

For those fans of the Harry Potter series of novels, you can's help but see the inspiration J.K. Rowling must have gotten from alleys like the one in which Simpson's is located, for Diagon Alley.

While waiting for my friend, I popped into the bar and enjoyed a pint of real ale, this time from Bass, which is not that common of a find in London these days.

Once my friend arrived, we headed upstairs to the restaurant which is arranged in stalls, the layout remaining traditional to the 19th century. The dining arrangements are communal, so if your party does not fully occupy a stall, be prepared to have others seated with you at some point during your meal.

I started my lunch off with Simpson's mysterious Famous Stewed Cheese. Recommended as a starter or a savory desert, this was tasty and the perfect way to warm up on a chilly day. It's not listed on the menu, though I did find it on the online menu, and it's quite tasty. Think welsh rarebit.

I then moved on to their cottage pie, a shepherd's pie made with minced beef rather than minced lamb or mutton. This London institution featured tradition London food in a traditional London chophouse. Exclusively a dining establishment for men, until 1916 when women were admitted, this is one place I shall keep in mind for the future and perhaps pop in for a chance to try their full English breakfast. For more information visit their website at http://www.simpsonstavern.co.uk/

About mid-afternoon, I was in need of a break so I made my way to Gordon's Wine Bar, which was established in 1890 and is believed to be the oldest wine bar in London. Located in Kipling House, named for Rudyard Kipling who lived in the building as a tenant in the 1890s and where, in the room overhead he wrote"The Light That Failed" and both he and G.K. Chesterton wrote some of their works in the little parlour of the Wine Bar.

With indoor seating in the old cellars once used to store wine, or outdoors in Watergate Walk if the weather permits, you are sure to find a unique place to enjoy a glass of wine. They have a varied wine list full of interesting wines as well as sherries and ports which are served from the barrel. They also have food available, but I did not avail myself of their varied choices from pies to cheeses. 

I decided to enjoy a glass of port, quite reasonably priced, in Watergate Walk. It was a lovely March afternoon and I only wish I had more time in London to enjoy such a lovely little wine bar. Highly recommended for those looking for a unique bit of London history and some well priced food and wine. For more information visit their website at https://gordonswinebar.com/

As the day began to come to an end, I made one last stop at the Admiral Codrington. not too far from my hotel, this was my chance to enjoy one last pint before I readied myself for dinner with family.

I settled in with my pint inside the pub and for it very pleasant. I do wish I had time to enjoy some of their bar snacks, but as I was in a hurry, I had but time for one pint and I was off.

As I'd been doing for my entire visit, I decided to try something unique, in this case The Admiral's Cask real ale, made by Marston's Brewery.  But I'd definitely pop by for a pint if I was in the area again. For more information visit their website at http://www.theadmiralcodrington.co.uk/

I hope you've enjoyed this brief look and some unique and traditional places to grab a bite to eat or a drink while in London.

Refueling with Tradition... Some Thoughts on Dining in London Part 3

This post is a continuation of part one of this series on dining in London.

On Saturday evening I joined friends of mine at Simpson's in the Strand. Established in 1828, it gained fame around 1850, firstly for its traditional English menu, particularly roast meats, and secondly as the most important chess venue in Britain. As my grandmother dined here in the 1920s and I'd dined here with family myself, this restaurant holds special meaning to me.

Simpson's dinner specialty is their aged Scottish beef on the bone, traditionally carved at guests' tables from antique silver-domed trolleys for over 150 years. Other signature dishes include potted shrimps, roast saddle of lamb (which is not listed on the current bill of fare) and steak and kidney pudding. Having been remodeled in 2017, it appears the menu remains mostly the same with a wonderful assortment of traditional English deserts once again appearing on the bill of fare, but all slightly updated to modern tastes.

Featured by name in "The Guns of Navarone", "Howard's End", Sherlock Holmes stories such as "The Illustrious Client", stories by P.G. Wodehouse, and in film in Alfred Hitchcock's 1936 film Sabotage, it is without a doubt one of London's most famous restaurants.

I began my meal with one of their specialties, Potted shrimps with Warm toast. Not something you see in America, and that is quite a shame. Delicious and I'd order them again without hesitation. 

 For my main, I decided upon another of their specialties, the roast saddle of Lamb with homemade redcurrant jelly & gravy, and for sides had the roast potatoes and Savoy cabbage. The lamb is carved at the table from one of their traditional trolleys. 

Americans don't eat an much lamb as the British. I'm not sure why, but if you are in the UK, try it, it is delicious. And don't worry about the mint sauce, go with the redcurrant jelly and gravy, it was delicious.

I will say I was disappointed that there was no traditional British desert on the menu, so I reluctantly tried the Simpson’s Quidditch, a chocolate concoction of the chef's design. It was tasty, but not very British. the current desert offerings since the remodel now consist of English summer berry pudding, Simpson's trifle, Scorched egg custard tart, Fresh goats curd with chilled poached apricots, Eton tidy mess, Ridgeview sparking wine consomme, coffee-chocolate knickerbocker glory, Simpson's cheese selection and a selection of ice creams and sorbets, which all make me want to return to try them and appreciate their return to traditional English deserts.

For more information on Simpson's in the Strand, please visit their website at https://www.simpsonsinthestrand.co.uk/

After dinner we took a short walk to Rules for after dinner drinks and conversation in their cocktail bar where I enjoyed a classic cocktail, the French 75.

More to come in the next installment of this post...

Refueling with Tradition... Some Thoughts on Dining in London Part 2

This post is a continuation of part one of this series on dining in London.

I spent most of my next day visiting with family and returned to my hotel late in the afternoon. I think we were all a bit knackered so the choice for dinner that night was the conveniently located Ebury Restaurant & Wine Bar at 139 Ebury Street. 

Located very near to my hotel, it was so convenient that it could not be ignored. But convenience is not the only reason to try this restaurant. Their food is delicious and this is very credibly rumored to be the location of Prince William of Wales bachelor dinner.

I decided to try their 3 course prix fix menu and started with the Smoked haddock gratin, leek and cheddar. 

For my main I tried their Pan roast sea bass fillet, pistachio risotto, courgette purée. 

And I finished things up with their Chocolate truffle torte, crème fraîche, filo crisp. This restaurant might be a bit out of the way for some, but it was incredibly convenient to my hotel and I would definitely make this a serious contender even if it was not so convenient.

For more information check out their website at http://eburyrestaurant.co.uk/

The next day, on recommendation of an American friend, I made a point to visit Rules at lunch time.

Rules was recommended to me by one of my American friends so I had a chance to do a little research on the restaurant prior to my arrival in London. It is located at 35 Maiden Lane in Covent Garden.  

Established in 1798, it holds claim to the oldest restaurant in London. This was also the location of private dinners in which Prince Albert entertained Lillie Langtree, as well as a site in the recent James Bond film, Spectre. These are just a tiny few of the historical facts about this special place in London.

I decided to have a light lunch in the cocktail bar and began by ordering a pint of Fuller's London Pride, served in a silver tankard, and a selection of Morcambe Bay Rock Oysters, Fines de Claires Oysters, and Native Oysters. 

Their service is with the top half of the shell still on the oysters and served with finely chopped shallots in red wine vinegar, as well as lemon. These are top notch oysters and this is from the perspective of someone who has grown up with Chesapeake Bay oysters.

Afterwards I decided to linger and ordered The Rules, a champagne cocktail made with Tanqueray, Dubonnet, and Vintage Crémant. This was not to be my only visit to Rules this day as I returned with friends for drinks in the cocktail bar after our dinner elsewhere. With the fireplace, it was the perfect place to enjoy a drink with friends. I shall definitely be returning to Rules on all of my future trips to London. For more information please see their website at http://rules.co.uk/

More to come in the next installment of this post...

Refueling with Tradition... Some Thoughts on Dining in London Part 1

This past March, I made a rather quickly planned trip to London. I probably could have done more to plan for the trip, but I didn't make my bookings until about two weeks before my flight. So with only one week before my departure for the UK, I started drafting plans for my free time.

As with any travel, dining is an important part of our planning process. We can make eat the same thing every day, or we can make an adventure of our dining experiences. I chose the later, attempting to embrace the London experience in a rather traditional manner. Yes I could look for the newest and hottest, but for me, it was a look to the past and those traditional places which still exist throughout London.

While I don't plan to cover each of the places I stopped for a drink or a bite to eat individually, I will mention them all here with some more detailed accounts to come in later posts.

Once on the ground in London, I had a rather tight schedule to keep if I had any hope of visiting each of the many varied locations I wished to see, as well as spending time with family.

I would be in London for four full days, so even jet lagged, I had to keep moving. One of my friends in London recommended my first dining venue, the Cittie of Yorke, located at 22 High Holborn.

This pub is owned and operated by Samuel Smith's Old Brewery, and while this current structure is a 1920's rebuilding of earlier structures, pubs have been on this site since 1430, and the current building features the Henekey's long bar located in the grand hall like back room, a late Georgian or Regency era triangular metal stove, and Victorian style cubicles.

I popped in just as they were opening for lunch which made service fast and easy, as it was not very crowded at that hour.

One of the biggest reasons for my visit was to sample their Old Brewery Bitter which is served from oak casks, the only real ale in London served this way.

And the food was delicious. I tried a pork sandwich, and were I a regular in London, this pub would be a regular destination for me. As it was I had many other places to try, but fond memories of that sandwich and ale remain with me to this day.

Before I returned to my hotel, I popped by a rather hidden gem, The Grenadier located at 18 Wilton Row, .

Originally built in 1720 as the Officers Mess for the First Royal Regiment of Foot Guards, the pub opened in 1818 as The Guardsman Public House. 

Rumored to be one of the most haunted pubs in England, past visitors have attempted to pay off the debt of the ghost of a savagely beaten young Grenadier, who was caught cheating at cards, by attaching money to the ceiling, which after over half a century, has been totally covered by "transatlantic money."

The pub has a wonderful selection of hand pumped ales including Courage Best, Morland Old Speckled Hen and Marston's Pedigree. On the search for some esoteric British real ales, I sat down with a pint of Sharp's Brewery Doom Bar from Cornwall.

You won't find The Grenadier without a map and a mission as it is tucked down a small lane near Belgrave Square. But that makes finding this little treasure all the more worth while. For more information check out their website at https://www.greeneking-pubs.co.uk/pub/grenadier-belgrave-square/c0800/

Finally after a busy day, and quite jet lagged, I decided to visit Trader Vic's that night for a light dinner and a few drinks to help me get some sleep that night, so off to the London Hilton on Park Lane I went. Why a tiki bar in London? 

The original Trader Vic's opened in 1934 in Oakland and franchise locations were opened beginning with Seattle in 1940. The London location opened in 1963 and is today the oldest Trader Vic's location in the world.

In full tiki style, this bar/restaurant hit all the points I needed for a traditional watering hole, even if some might consider this a bit unconventional for my London trip.

From the time I entered the door the barman and manager made me feel very welcome and I stayed there a bit longer than I intended for all the good reasons, because I enjoyed it and I wanted to stay.

I started out my "tour of the islands" with the Menehune Juice. It would not have seems right if I'd made this visit and had not a chance to see the fabled Menehune.

Their menu is full of all the tiki classics, which I do hope see a resurgence somewhere this side of the Atlantic.

I ordered the BBQ spare ribs from their 1972 recipe and they smelled so good I finished the first rib before I remembered to take a photo. My mouth waters just thinking about these as I type this post.

Next up was the Original Mai Tai, based on the 1944 version of this drink. They offer another version, but why anyone would attempt to improve on this classic I have no honest answer. Perfection!

When the London location opened, they crafted a special drink for the occasion, a London Sour, made with Scotch Whisky rather than traditional American or Canadian whiskies. The result was a sublimely smoky finish on this tradition sour.

In each case these drinks were well made. The staff was friendly and have great passion for their drink making. I highly recommend this destination if you are looking for a different traditional London location. For more information check them out here http://tradervics.com/locations/london/

More to come in the next installment of this post...