Primeur, Stoke Newington, London restaurant review

I think it’s pretty telling that with all the restaurant options in London, our friends keep on going back to Primeur time and time again.

Sure, it’s in their neck of the woods in north London. But it’s more than the fact it’s just local.

I think it’s got something to do with its charming setting in an old garage where the concertina doors pull back to bring the outside in.

And I think has something to do with their daily changing blackboard menu of unfussy seasonal sharing plates which prioritise big flavours over prissy presentation.

It’s also probably got something to do with their interesting selection of wines by the glass. On our visit, we knocked back two types of fizz, Cremant D’Alsace and a Xarel Lo blend, before sinking some Austrian Riesling and a Valencian orange Macabeo.

It’s not just my mates who are fans either, it’s currently one of only 39 Michelin Bib Gourmands (which recognise good value and good quality cooking) in London. As I’ve grown increasingly weary of fine dining, it’s an accolade which I look for more closely than a Michelin star.

As a group of four we ordered a bunch of plates to share. Some were more successfully divisible than others…

Dark crusted sourdough was served with golden tangy butter.

Curried cauliflower (£10.50) was Coronation cauliflower operating under an alias. Nuggets of lightly pickled cauliflower were joined by a creamy yoghurt dressing, curry spices, crunchy almonds and sweet raisins. You can coronate almost anything as far as I'm concerned, and it’ll taste all the better for it.

A beautifully dressed salad (£10) of bitter leaves and tomatoes was zhuzhed up by the addition of anise twanged tarragon. Crunchy fried breadcrumbs meanwhile brought a bit of filth to proceedings.

Oily, tender and blistered skinned mackerel (£26.50) was a beautiful specimen. Served with salty sea vegetables, radishes and a creamy potato salad with plenty of dill, it was the standout dish of the night.

Warming spiced whopping lamb chops (£27.50) were accompanied by chickpeas, fresh mint and a smoke-licked aubergine puree. However, the excellent flavour combination was let down by the pieces of meat which were inconsistent in their tenderness.

Stock rich borlotti beans (£10.50), rainbow chard, a well-crusted cube of polenta and a flurry of salted ricotta was exactly my type of compelling vegetarian cooking.

The kitchen had run out of cherry clafoutis so they’d knocked up a chocolate torte (£9) instead. And what a torte it was; as dreamily light and indulgently rich as you could hope for.

A crisp and chewy meringue (£9.50) was accented with passionfruit, berry coulis and a good dollop of cream.

We had a delicious meal at Primeur and I can see why it’s a place which warrants repeat visits. I’d certainly be back if it was around the corner from my house.

However, if you’re looking for this style of unfussy and flavour-packed seasonal cooking in Cardiff then I’d say a trip to Vines by Alex Vines is essential.

The Details:

Address - Primeur, Barnes Motors, 116 Petherton Rd, London N5 2RT

Web - https://www.primeurn5.co.uk/

Telephone - 020 7226 5271

A few great places to eat in Alicante 2023

Nowadays, I seem to have a few simple criteria for deciding where to go abroad on summer holiday:

1. There needs to be regular flights from Bristol airport.

2. It needs to be in Spain.

3. And Owen from Bar 44 needs to have said there’s tasty scran to eat there.

These are the reasons why this year we found ourselves in Alicante on the Costa Blanca.

With its buzzing city centre beach, Playa del Postiguet, that’s overlooked by the imposing hilltop fortress of Castell de la Santa Barbara, and the wave-like mosaic of the Explanada de España seafront walkway, Alicante is a charming destination.

It also happens to bill itself as the City of Rice (Ciudad del Arroz), with rice dishes forming the basis of much of the city’s cuisine. It was great fun guzzling our way through a handful of the city’s over 300 different rice specialities, from arroz seco (dry rice) to arroz meloso (creamy rice) and the coveted crunch of the soccarat (a caramelised layer of rice at the bottom of the pan).

Here's a few of the places we enjoyed during our trip to Alicante. I’ve ordered them roughly according to how essential I think a visit should be.

Nou Manolin

Ferran Adria and Juan Mari Arzak are supposedly fans of Nou Manolin, so that’s good enough for me. We got the last seats at the counter at this superb tapas bar and there was a constant queue of people waiting for a spot.

Excellent "Swarowski" crystal breads were topped with ensalada and whopping anchovies; jamon with runny-yolked quail eggs; and cured salmon with spicy guacamole.

There was also battered bacalao with lime mayonnaise and the richest of cannelloni, one of their changing daily specials.

La Taverna del Racó del Pla

We struck gold with our first meal of the trip at La Taverna del Racó del Pla as we had excellent tapas and rice at this traditional wood-panelled tavern.

Tapas were all great, including filo pastry sacks filled with a rich ham flecked bechamel and drenched in a fruity oxtail sauce; dates wrapped in crisp bacon; and fried fresh cheese with salty anchovies.

Arroz a banda, one of the most famous rice dishes in the city, saw a thin layer of rice with a good bite cooked in a rich fish stock and topped with plump sweet prawns and tender squid.

Cesar Anca Restaurante

We had some of the most creative and delicious tapas of our trip at Cesar Anca, a modern tapas bar and restaurant which is situated just off the Explanada de España.

Uber decadent oxtail cannelloni, with a crispy jamon crumb, was right up my street; I'm glad we got one each.

A millefeuille of crisp caramelised apple, sour raw apple, foie gras, goats cheese, and smoke cod sounded like it could have been a bit much but it somehow balanced really well.

A sweet tomato stuffed with a smooth and rich tuna mousse was served with a vibrant gazpacho.

For dessert, an absolute corker of a millefeuille was filled with turron custard. It was majorly reminiscent of a Paris-Brest due to the nuttiness of the custard.

L'arruzz

Probably my favourite rice dish of the whole holiday was from L’arruzz, a restaurant which unsurprisingly specialises in arroz.

Made with salt cod, sweet spring onions, caramelised cauliflower and rice with a lovely fish stock intensity and texture, it was a killer flavour combination. A dollop of potent aioli and a squeeze of lemon completed the stonking dish.

To start, were two ice cream scoops of very good ensalada (hook that stuff up to my veins) and disappointingly greasy and leaden tortilla de camarones.

Restaurante Govana

This multi-award-winning family restaurant is a temple of rice. With its chintzy table-settings, dark wood furniture and marble floors, it’s got buckets of charm.

Leg of veal rice (arroz pata de ternera) was a seriously meaty affair with a golden caramelised top. Melted bits of morcilla and chorizo and chickpeas were all bang on, but I wasn't fully sold on the numerous wobbly bits of soft connective tissue (Mrs G was), which I guess must have been the leg of veal.

As well as the arroz, we had excellent wines by the glass, toast with aioli and tomato concasse, textbook jamon croquetas and tuna belly and tomato salad.

For dessert, there was crème caramel-esque tocino de cielo (heaven’s bacon). Even better was the super custardy and cinnamon spiced French toast, which was like a lux bread and butter pudding.

Livanti Gelato Di Sicilia

During the evening there’s whopping queues for this gelato parlour. But if you visit during the daytime then chances are you’ll get straight in.

Pistachio which tastes of pistachio, rich dark chocolate and rum and raisin-esque Malaga were all super smooth and creamy.

Pipirrana Vermut

If you’re looking for a good selection of vermouth by the glass then Pipirrana Vermut has good vibes and is good value.

But, the main reason we visited was to try their rather bonkers sounding inverted soccarat of oxtail rice. It was as fun as it looks with a lush bronzed crisp exterior filled with meaty rice flecked with yielding pieces of oxtail.

A slice of deep-fried pork belly with mega crisp crackling was also ideal booze snacking.

La Taberna del Gourmet

One of the more chi-chi destinations we visited, we only popped into La Taberna del Gourmet for a drink and a couple of snacks. However, there’s clearly a focus on first rate produce at this modern tapas bar.

A good riff on a gilda was made with a marinated artichoke alongside its usual components whilst an excellent ensalada with tuna, potatoes, egg, green beans and carrot was adorned with flaky biscuit sails.

Cerveceria El Canto

There was a bit of a queue to get into the old skool Cerveceria El Canto but when we finally sat down, we enjoyed some excellent value tapas.

A delicious plate of glistening jamon iberico was the only plate of the stuff we ate all holiday. I need to re-evaluate my life choices.

Griddled queso fresco with sweet tomato jam and a montadito filled with marinated pork loin and brie were the other highlights.

Bar Guillermo

A traditional tapas bar, which is located just north of the central market, Bar Guillermo was almost empty when we visited around 10pm. I’m not sure why as we enjoyed tasty plates of delicately battered calamari and salt cod loaded croquetas.

Cervecerías Sento

There are a few branches of Cervecerías Sento dotted around Alicante. We visited Sento Barrio and it had big dive bar energy with its compact and cheek by jowl bar area.

Over 30 different montaditos are on offer as well as their signature lollipops - rather filthy yet delicious whorls of pork, ham and bechamel, and tomato jam as well as slightly dry pork meatballs with a compelling satay-like almond butter.

Oh, and take note, it’s cash only. 

El Llagosti

With a name like El Llagosti it makes sense that everyone visits this tapas bar to try their king prawns. The generous plate of sweet and tender baked prawns was nicely seasoned with a little bit of peppery spice. But it did put me off a little to see that the digestive tracts weren't removed.

In fact, I think I preferred their excellent thick slices of smoked salmon dressed with sweet and spicy Alicante pesto.

Poca, Canton, Cardiff restaurant review

I think I’ve finally cracked the code to enjoying small plates restaurants.

The secret? Don’t under any circumstances share a small plate with more than one other person. And make sure there aren't any fuzzy boundaries of social etiquette between you and the person you share with. 

If not, a meal quickly becomes a frustrating exercise in dissection (can I really slice a langoustine into five pieces?), genuflection (of course, it would be my pleasure if you have the last eighth of the lamb chop), and introspection (I’m sure Jim had a bigger bit of the mackerel than I did).

It’s fortunate I’d worked out this winning formula before a visit to Cardiff’s newly opened Poca as a group of five. Mrs G and I successfully shared six small plates with minimal fuss whilst our trio of friends were busy dividing a piece of toast into thirds.

Poca, which is located on the former site of La Cuina in Canton, is the newly opened restaurant from chef Antonio Simeone, who built his name at Dinas Powys’ Humble Onion by creating comforting plates of food using less glamorous cuts of meat. His second restaurant, the excellent Alium in Barry, has sadly recently shut its doors, demonstrating the current precariousness of hospitality.

It’s probably fair to say that the intimate setting of Poca, which means little in Italian, is a far more appropriate setting for Antonio’s cooking than the gargantuan Pumphouse in Barry. In Canton he’s got an all-star team which includes Lali Suto, formerly of Nook, heading up the kitchen and Ollie Banks, a familiar face from Ollie’s and Arbennig, in front of house.

Limoncello spritzes (£8.50), ice cold and packed full of fragrant and tart citrus, were bob on for a warm summer’s eve. We followed them up with excellent bottles of creamy Crémant de Bourgogne (£38) and bright and zippy vinho verde (£30) with a delicate fizz.

An individual focaccia (£5) wasn’t the softest crumbed example I’ve eaten. However, the clincher was that it was served hot and was absolutely delicious dredged through a bowl of sticky sweet balsamic reduction and grassy olive oil.

A whopping trio of sweet king prawns (£12) were de-shelled at their waists for easy access but with their heads left on for maximum juice suckage. Sat in a creamy shellfish bisque with a lovely intensity, we had to request a spoon so I could guzzle every drop.

The oozy decadence of an excellent Welsh rarebit (£9.50) was topped with sweet white crab meat and salty samphire. 

A brick of beef shin fritter (£9) was the only dish of the night which underwhelmed. Whilst the crumb was beautifully crisp and an earthy mushroom ketchup and zingy pink pickled onions were tasty garnishes, the long-cooked shin was a little bit dry. I think it probably would have benefited from being bound together with a sauce for added flavour and unctuousness. Also, I'm not really sure what purpose pea shoots ever serve other than to add a tangle of bland greenery to a dish. 

There was no such moisture issues with a stupidly tender piece of rolled lamb breast (£11) that was bathing in a bowl of glossy sauce dotted with sweet peas and soft courgettes. A well-judged seasoning of vibrant mint and a salad of raw courgette added much needed brightness to the plate.

The first of two stars of the meal were a pair of top-drawer teriyaki chicken thighs that were gorgeously savoury, crisp of skin and juicy of flesh. They were great by themselves, but a potent kohlrabi kimchi was an excellent condiment to balance the meat’s richness.

Secondly, cauliflower cheese croquettes (£7.50) are such a good idea that I’m surprised I’ve never seen them before. Filled with a thick, rich and cheesy cauliflower puree and blobbed with mustard, they were my favourite Sunday roast side dish in a handheld format.

Desserts were pretty things but no less flavour-packed than the small plates.

A perfectly wobbly panna cotta (£9) had the lactic tang of yoghurt to cleverly temper its richness whilst a fragrant forest fruit compote and the crunch of ginger biscuit were lovely pairings.

A silky-smooth quenelle of chocolate ganache (£8.50), with a good level of bitterness and sweetness, was served with the classic flavour pairings of crushed pistachios and tart raspberries. A rectangle of pastry served as a handy shovel.

We had stonker of a meal at Poca. With its comforting, big-flavoured cooking, intimate setting and first-rate front of house, it’s another feather in the cap of west Cardiff’s enviable restaurant scene.

The Details:

Address - Poca, 11 Kings Rd, Pontcanna, Cardiff CF11 9BZ

Web - https://pocarestaurant.co.uk/