Fishy feasts on the South Bank

This weekend is the Thames festival - a celebration of the end of summer and an opportunity for fun on and around the winner.

It's a well-established event, although this is the first year I have been along. Events are scattered all along the river, but we mostly explored around Southwark Bridge and Bankside. The bridge was closed to traffic and instead of cars there were stalls and a huge communal dining table. On the bridge there was a fishy theme, sustainable fish in particular. For £10 you could have dinner (if you bought a ticket early enough) made from discard fish and waste vegetables. Alternatively, for a small donation you could get a bowl of cooked red signal crayfish, an alien species which damage riverbanks and have driven out the native white-clawed crayfish. The crayfish were fiddly (you throw away a lot more than you eat), but sweet and juicy. And you get to feel virtuous about eating them.

I listened to a talk about sustainable fishing (the world of fishing turns out to have much to do with the world of banking, and as with many forms of food production in this country, the big outfits seem to have most of the power and money).

There was a giant fish-shaped cake with gingerbread biscuit scales individually decorated by children. There were even chips, also made from cake. Later on the cake was cut and everyone in the vicinity got a free generous slab of cake. The "chips" didn't have any icing on, but you got a squirt of jam so it looked like ketchup on a oversized chip.

There were gourmet food stalls at the south end of the bridge- everything from biodynamic burgers with Stichelton cheese to paella to mezze, plus cheeses from Neal's Yard Dairy. And fish and chips, of course (the fish all had to be sustainably sourced). Tnd there were even more food stalls along Bankside outside Tate Modern (home-made ice-cream, coffee, fajitas, cupcakes and more).

Festival events continue on Sunday - sadly I doubt there is any more free cake to be had.

An uninspiring end to a search for a bargain

Just in case you were thinking that I rave about every restaurant I go to, here is a place that was distinctly average.

It wasn't a bad meal (with the exception of one dish), but certainly uninspiring, and I left feeling a bit disappointed that I had not been to one of London's many more exciting dining options.

Massala Hut is one of many Indian restaurants on Drummond Street, not far from Euston. The street is pretty much your best bet in the Euston area for finding somewhere to eat that's not a chain restaurant or a characterless hotel bar. I admit my choice was partly guided by the fact that Massala Hut does a discount with Tastecard (that and the fact that I didn't want to go too far from the excellent Bree Louise where we had been having a drink). Nearby Zeen, which looks a bit better, claims to take Tastecard too - but not at the moment, they told us over the phone.

Starters were quite good - lentil soup, suitably spicy and with a wedge of lemon, and peppers stuffed with a spicy chilli and potato mixture. I hadn't had the latter before so can't say how authentic it is, but it was quite pleasant. The food took a while to arrive, but then we had turned down the offer of poppadoms and I have an only semi-serious theory of Indian restaurants that the punishment for refusing poppadoms is that your food takes longer to arrive!

For mains we tried two of the chef's specials - kareli ki nihari, a north Indian dish of slow-cooked lamb, and tandoor cooked paneer in chilli and onions. The lamb was a bit oily. It was fairly complex in flavour but could have been a bit more spiced. The paneer would have benefited from being in chunkier pieces, I thought.
We also had a Bengal aubergine side dish which I thought tasted overpoweringly of oil. I couldn't eat it but
the Real Ale Drinker did. We also had rice and chapatis which were on the small side but otherwise pleasant enough.

We drank mango lassi, which was not as sweet as some with a pronounced yoghurt taste. It was a fairly small glass for £3.30, I thought.

Decor is of the modern, shiny variety, with chairs that look like they are made from bits of industrial metal. A screen shows Bollywood music videos on silent. They kept seating people at the table right next to this screen, and invariably they would complain about the glare/flicker and ask to be moved.

To be fair, with the Tastecard the food was pretty cheap, with a bill just under £30 including one lassi each. (All diners have 12.5pc service added to the bill. The service was ok but no more). But I think we could have done better elsewhere on the street. Maybe that's what you get when you look too hard for a bargain!

Massala Hut
161-163 Drummond Street, Euston, London, NW1 2PB - Tel: 020 73876699
www.massalahut.co.uk 

Candy floss flavoured grapes?

There has been some discussion of the fact that Sainsbury's have started to sell so-called "candy floss flavoured grapes".

All of the coverage I have seen seems to have overlooked the fact that candy floss doesn't really taste of anything except sugar. Its ingredients are usually sugar and food colouring. Most of the distinctive quality of candyfloss comes from the texture - which I am pretty sure these lack. So why not call them sugar-flavoured grapes? Or very sweet grapes? They could have called them marshmallow-flavoured grapes and it would have been about as informative.

I haven't tried the grapes, but if they really do taste of nothing but sugar it doesn't sound very appealing. I enjoy grapes for their fragrance and fruit flavour, not sweetness alone. 

Picture by I like

The grapes were developed at International Fruit Genetics in California and grown by Grapery for Mack Grapes, whose parent company Mack Multiples imports them into the UK. The new variety is actually called Cotton Candy (American for candy floss). Fair enough, new plant varieties always need new names and just calling them "Sugar" might have been a bit less poetic. But I think Sainsbury's may be overdoing it a bit when their press release boats that the grapes have "a distinctive but extremely sweet flavour and surprising taste of candy floss." They are echoing Mack Multiples, whose commercial director describes the grapes' "distinctive candy floss flavour". A triumph of marketing over substance perhaps?

A bite to eat by the water

The last days of summer are ebbing away and September is nearly upon us. At about this point in the year I am suddenly reminded of all the ways in which I had planned to take advantage of the good weather, and have mostly not got around to.

So I hastened down to Brockwell Park Lido - but not for a swim. The evenings are not as light as they were, but if you get there in time I can think of few nicer things to do in London in the sunshine than have a drink and something to eat while watching the swimmers in the glinting turquoise waters. It may not be the Med but it feels somehow Continental.

The Lido Cafe has a good reputation for its food, which is mostly justified. We started with two types of fritters - pea & mint and aubergine feta, served with with sour cream (£4.50). The pea and mint ones were reminiscent of deep-fried mushy peas, but in a good way, and with a sweet green freshness of proper peas. I couldn't detect much aubergine flavour in the others. The Real Ale Drinker wanted the half pint of North Atlantic prawn, but was told it was the wrong time of year. He turned down the alternative of tiger prawns and instead chose a very tasty dish of chorizo, piquillo pepper and rocket on toast (£4.75). It was a sort of poshed-up bruschetta, served with some decent, apparently home-made but ultimately unnecessary aioli.

Sea bream fillet at the Lido Cafe

A sea bream fillet (£13.25) came perched on top of a bright green tangle of samphire, with a single large razor clam, small sauteed potatoes and a herby sauce.

Stuffed English courgettes (£11.50) were served with a creamy goats' cheese-filled piquillo pepper and romesco sauce - which is a Spanish sauce made from red peppers and almonds. It was elegant rather than hearty (by which I mean there was still a lot of white space on the plate). The stuffing of the courgettes could have done with more assertive flavours, but it was a summery, imaginative dish.

Stuffed courgettes

The last of the sunshine seduced us into trying the home-made ice-cream (£4.25). The white peach flavour was slightly too delicate, but the hazelnut was deliciously creamy and nutty, with a good scattering of nubbly bits to add crunch. A vanilla cheese-cake with blueberries (£4.50) was decent but not outstanding (I had hoped for a New York-style cheesecake, but this was a unbaked one).

It is one of those places where eavesdropping on the conversation at the next table can easily yield amusement. Our neighbours were discussing their forthcoming holiday to "a little fishing village north of Barcelona". One of them had a child called Otis and was earnestly discussing parenting styles.

Drinks include organic teas, freshly-made juices and smoothies (not in the evening, unfortunately), some thoughtfully chosen wines and even posh Cornish cider, made in a champagne style, for £20 a bottle.

The outside tables have the best pool view, though if your visit is in the evening you will want to take some extra layers. The summer won't last much longer, so don't wait too long before getting round to it.

The Lido Cafe
Dulwich Road
Brockwell Lido
London
SE24 0PA

020 7737 8183
www.thelidocafe.co.uk
info@thelidocafe.co.uk

Open 9am-6pm Sunday to Tuesday, 9am to 11pm Wednesday to Saturday

A gastropub that's the real deal

The word gastropub has become much-abused, but in its correct useage should be somewhere you can go for just a decent pint or for a restaurant-quality meal. Trouble is, it's difficult to aim equally at both. Most pubs know where their main custom comes from and aim at it accordingly. I can think of plenty of Norfolk pubs that have been gastro-fied and drinkers are now merely tolerated - grudgingly if at all at peak food times.

The Manor Arms in Streatham is one of the unicorn-rare breed that manages to please both camps. There is a big pewter bar with pumps dispensing Wandle ale from up the road alongside beers from Purity and Adnams breweries, or maybe a Doom Bar from Cornwall. There are cocktails, an impressive selection of whiskies, and a decent wine list.

There are even interesting bar snacks (whitebait, chicken rillettes or home-made pork scratchings, for example) if you just want a nibble to help the drinks go down.

We popped in for a drink on our first visit and were sufficiently encouraged to return for a proper feast. It was a Saturday night and the place was by no means full, although it is a pretty big place. No tablecloths here, but it has had a lick of paint and a sympathetic restoration of original features.

I started with roasted garlic and goats' curd with olive tapenade. It's a combination I've had before but it works very well - the whole bulb of garlic becomes gentle and sweet with slow cooking, and is set off perfectly by the creamy goats' curd. In this case it would have been improved if the garlic had been warm rather than fridge-cold.

The Real Ale Drinker had salted pork cheeks with girolle mushrooms, broad beans and cress. The meat was not overly salty, but had a tender, flaking texture and rich savoury flavour.

This was followed by macaroni cheese - the menu boasted it was made with Mrs Kirkham's Lancashire, which for those of you not au fait with Lancashire, is definitely one of the best. It certainly had a good cheesy flavour, though by the time the cheese had been cooked in a sauce and mixed with pasta I couldn't identify it as being any particular variety. It came with a green salad that was noticeably above average - baby herb leaves, interesting tomatoes in different sizes and colours.

The Real Ale Drinker had a good, meaty Barnsley chop that again ran the risk of being outshone by its accompaniment. It was described as a salad but was at least halfway to a stew of butter beans, tomato and lambs' lettuce, flavoured with paprika and chilli, with bags of flavour - I couldn't stop nicking forkfuls of it.

We rounded things off with a dense, rich chocolate and almond cake served with English cherries, and a selection of decent English cheeses including a creamy Wigmore. They were served with oat cakes, which to my mind are better than crackers or water biscuits any day.

With a couple of pints each it come to about £65 (plus 10pc service which is added to the bill) - not bargain basement stuff but worth it for accomplished cooking with the odd flash of imagination.

If you are counting the pennies there is a two courses for £10 deal Mondays to Thursdays, with a slightly simpler menu.

I doubt the Manor Arms is much known outside Streatham, but it is worth a journey.

13 Mitcham Lane, SW16 6LQ13 Mitcham Lane, SW16 6LQ
www.themanorarms.com
020 3195 6888

Bonnington cafe

I definitely felt like some kind of cliche when I turned up at this vegetarian co-operative cafe on my bike. The only thing missing was a copy of the Guardian under my arm.

I was actually slightly sceptical about how good the food would be. Either way, it is difficult to draw too many conclusions from one visit because there is a different cook every night (he or she chooses the menu, does the shopping and takes the bookings) . The rota is published online so if you do have the best meal of your life, you can always try to return next time the same person is cooking.

The decor is simple, lit by flickering candlelight in the evenings. With the restaurant fast filling up there was a laid-back buzz about the place.

Picture by Annie Mole

On our visit there was one starter (butternut squash soup) and two choices for mains and desserts. Main courses are £7, starters and puddings are £3.

The soup was quite pleasant, the flavour of the squash ringing true, though a bit of spice would have helped to add depth. The main area for improvement was the slice of factory-style sliced bread, whereas a good quality roll would have transformed the dish. Then again, for £3 you can't complain too much.

We tried both of the main courses - stuffed Portobello mushroom with roasted vegetables, and Turkish chick pea curry with rice. Both came with a pair of salads, one with shredded cabbage and apple, and the other tomato-based. The stuffed mushroom had the edge in my opinion - it seemed less overtly worthy, thanks in part to the use of dairy produce (melting cheese in the mushroom stuffing), while the roast veg, which included potato and sweet potato wedges, would have converted even a vegetable-hater. To be fair, the mildly spiced curry wasn't too "whole-foody" either - it seemed like a dish that naturally leant on pulses rather than having them thrust into it.

We finished off with a chocolate and hazelnut tart. It was quite a small slice, but so rich in flavour that I decided this was forgiveable. The filling was slightly soft, with pieces of hazelnut to give a texture contrast. For £3 it was excellent.

Picture by Vincent Pollard

The cafe is unlicensed - jugs of tap water are brought, and you can buy hot drinks, but apart from that it's a case of bring what you want to drink, whether this is apple juice, beer or wine (there is no corkage charge).
Not counting the cost of wine we had brought (should you forget, the nearest convenience store is a few minutes' walk away on the main road, though there is an Italian deli nearer if you are visiting in the daytime) the bill came to £13 a head for three courses. Now you can't say fairer than that.

It was not the most accomplished meal of my life, but it was a pretty good one - and it felt like enthusiasm and love had helped to season it.

Bonnington Cafe, 1 Vauxhall Grove, Vauxhall, SW8 1TD
www.bonningtoncafe.co.uk
Open 12-2pm and 6.30-10.30pm, 7 days a week.

Brixton farmers’ market

The farmers’ market odyssey continued with Brixton.

Some of the stalls were very reasonable, others less so. Bargains included the off-cuts of extra mature cheddar from one of the cheese stalls – funny shapes, but £10 per kg rather than £17.50. The Cheddar is very good, with a real deep and rounded flavour. The same stall, from the Gould family at Batch Farm in Somerset, also does flavoured cheddars. (I tried the mild Cheddar with apricot and I thought it a bit pointless – the flavour of apricot does not go as well with Cheddar as it does with, say, Wensleydale, and I would rather eat a stronger cheese or just have fruit on the side.)

This was only my second visit to a London farmers’ market, in recent times anyway, and as at Alexandra Palace I was struck by the fact that a number of the stallholders had travelled quite a long way – the two cheese producers from Somerset in particular. I thought the point of a farmers’ market was to have local producers – which I recognise is difficult in London, but there must be more Home Counties farmers that could have been represented?

Picture by Steve Wilde

I also bought free range eggs - there were several stalls selling these, from £1.60 for six upwards, and duck and goose eggs too. And I treated myself to a couple of savoury tarts from Klaus Kuhnke of Artisan Foods – an unusual broccoli, walnut and stilton, and a spinach and goats’ cheese. They are £2.50 each, or 2 for £4.50 or 3 for £6. We bought his spelt bread too, which was tasty although I slightly wished I had bought one of the more exciting loaves on offer.

On the vegetable front there were a couple of stalls, one organic with an enticing array of salad leaves and fancy tomatoes (at a price) and the larger Manor Farm vegetable stall, which had some unusual vegetables as well as some reasonably priced staples such as broccoli and cabbage. The purple cauliflowers looked tempting, but in the end I bought some cherry tomatoes and an unusual vegetable described as “fizz”. This is a variety of kale with pretty, frilly leaves. The bases of the stalks were quite chunky, so I cut those out and used the leaves in a stir-fry with other vegetables, but I think you could use it as a substitute for cabbage or kale in any dish. Apparently you can eat the young leaves raw in salads too, but these specimens had probably passed that point.

There was luscious-looking soft fruit too from a different stall, but I had already spent far too much money by this point!

Vital stats:

When: Sundays, 10am-2pm, Station Road, Brixton, London SW9 8PA
Website www.lfm.org.uk/markets/brixton/
Number of stalls: 12 (on my visit)
Range of produce: Good
Value for money: 7
Marks out of 10: 7