Hon's BBQ, Texas barbecue, Hackney Wick review

One of my main concerns when visiting a low and slow barbecue restaurant is whether the meat has actually seen the inside of a smoker or not. 

After all, when it's done properly, barbecue is a notoriously labour-intensive cooking process, with restaurants having to start smoking their meat in the middle of the night so that it’s ready in time for lunchtime service.

There are no such worries about at any corners being cut at Hon’s BBQ in Hackney Wick because you walk right past their canal-side smoker to get into the restaurant. As you do so, there’s an alluring waft of smoke from the hulking cuts of paper-wrapped meat that sit finishing off their long cook.

Hon’s BBQ serves “Texas barbecue with an Asian twist”. Seeing as Texas BBQ and Chinese roast meats are two of my favourite things in the world, a restaurant serving a mash-up of the two was always going to be on my agenda. Hon’s is owned by Man Hon Luk, a former record shop owner who began hosting barbecue pop-ups in 2022 before opening his first permanent restaurant earlier this year in a minimalist high-ceiling space on the former site of Silo.

There's no doubting Hon’s meat focused credentials. Of the six main dishes available on their compact menu, five are for carnivores.

As we have a booze sesh planned later in the day, we stick to the alcohol-free drinks, a sparkling Yanwu cold tea (£5) and a bready Lucky Saint alcohol free lager (£6.50).

Dishes arrive as and when they're ready, which I’m never fully sold on as it can mean less than ideal meal sequencing. In our case, rice arrives halfway through the meal and vegetables at the end. Still, I appreciate that the various cuts of meat need to be brought out as and when they're pulled off the smoker for optimal freshness.

The first plate to arrive is Hon's take on duck pancakes (£16). Thin slices of blushing smoked duck have an excellent flavour and tenderness and are delicious served with their classic accompaniments - sweet hoisin, thin pancakes and finely sliced spring onion and cucumber. A minor quibble, but there's a lack of crispy skin, one of the features which usually makes this dish so compelling.

100g portions of smoked meat come thick and fast. Ox cheek (£15) is the star of the show with an excellent bark, smoke, beefiness and soft, gelatinous connective tissue. The pickled components, pink onions in this case, each play an important role in balancing the richness of each dish.

Lamb breast (£14) with a good thwack of pepper and cumin and an intense meatiness is very good too. It’s topped with a pile of crisp and cleansing cured cucumbers.

I'm least sold on the triple-cooked pork belly (£13) due to the excessive fat to meat ratio. But the flavour and tenderness of the meat is all there and a thick, sticky, sweet and savoury soy-based sauce and crunchy pickled daikon radishes are excellent.

Our final meat is a beauty of a smoky and tender short rib (£36) that's shushed up with a tingling hit of a Szechuan peppercorn, garlic and chill oil that isn't backward at coming forward. Arguably, however, the meat's fine flavour is slightly overshadowed by the potency of the oil. 

Sides are both very good. Beef dripping scallion oil rice (£4) is every bit as naughty it sounds. The glistening grains scented with a compelling hit of meat and allium.

Finally, grilled typhoon shelter green beans (£8) are one of the most memorable dishes of the meal. They’re so good that I'm filing them under “dishes that I’m going to badly attempt home.” A pile of charred beans is bathed in a sweet, savoury and sharp dressing and topped with the crunch of fried breadcrumbs.

The only dessert on offer seems like the kind of thing served out of obligation. It’s perfectly pleasant but not at the same level as the rest of the meal. A slightly over set creamy coconut panna cotta is topped with a sharp and fragrant mango gel and a dusting of desiccated coconut. It’s all a bit soft and lacking textural contrast.

We had a lovely lunch at Hon’s and it’s clear there’s a lot of passion which goes into their smoked meats. My only lingering doubt is about the success of the fusion of Texan and Asian flavours - the majority of dishes are greater than the sum of their inspirations but I can't say this about everything. 

The Details:

Address - Hon's BBQ, First floor, Unit 7, The White Building, Queen's Yard, Hackney Wick, London E9 5EN

Web - https://www.honsbbq.com/

Biedronka, County Durham, fine dining Polish restaurant review

I’m a big fan of Polish food but I usually think of it as rib-sticking, hearty fare that sustains you during the long and cold winter months rather than refined, precise cooking. 

So, when I heard that the former head chef of Hjem was opening Biedronka, a “fine dining Polish restaurant” near Beamish Museum in County Durham, you can consider my interest most definitely piqued.  

The person behind Biedronka is Marek Dziedzic, who originally hails from near Poznań in West Poland and was part of the opening team at Hjem in 2019. He was there when Hjem became the first restaurant in Northumberland to win a Michelin star in 2021 until they closed earlier this year.

Biedronka, which means ladybird in Polish, is located at the back of South Causey Inn’s sprawling 100-acre site, which combines a 60-room hotel, wedding venue and pub. Walk past the pod dining rooms (I thought they were just a pandemic thing) and the colourful chirping budgie display, and you’ll find an imposing stone farmhouse that’s home to Biedronka. 

Whilst the signless building doesn’t exactly draw you in, it’s the complete opposite when you get inside. The large table at the heart of Biedronka’s dining room makes it feel like being welcomed into Marek’s farmhouse kitchen. This produce-laden table isn’t just for show, it’s where Marek and his team plate-up many of the dishes. 

With both chefs and the front of house team bringing courses to our table throughout the night, you get to engage with most of Biedronka’s team. They’re all consummate professionals, striking the right balance between being warm and friendly and slick and knowledgeable. 

Biedronka’s menu reads exceptionally well but it also has the potential to confuse. It’s split into snacks, starters, dumplings, meat, fish and dessert and there are four (£65), five (£75) and six (£85) course options on offer that allow you to add on extra dishes as you see fit. Whilst the easy option would be to opt for the seven-course chef’s tasting menu (£95) where everything is chosen for you, I reckon there's value to be found in the shorter menus. We plump for the five-course option with both meat and fish courses. 

With Polish, Georgian and Slovenian winemakers dotted throughout Biedronka’s wine list, it’s a welcome change from the obvious. Mrs G starts with an excellent traditional method Winnica Turnau Classique sparkling wine (£13) from Poland - extra interest comes from a dosage of ice wine. I kick off with a bready half of Pilsner Urquell (£4). We follow it up with Slovenian whites - a super interesting and herbal Burja Zelen (£17) and a more run of the mill yet very drinkable Quercus Pinot Blanc (£9). Polish Adoria Pinot Noir (£16) and Georgian Pheasant’s Tears Poliphonia (£17) are both superb – complex and full of red fruits.

But most importantly, the food.

Marek welcomes us into the restaurant with the traditional Polish offering of bread and salt. First class shatteringly crisp sourdough is served with thick golden butter and a bowl of sea salt to scatter over it.

My snack, which is based on a Polish canned fish spread called paprykarz, is a lot more decadent than its inspiration sounds.  A slab of meaty smoked eel is barbecued in front of us and topped with a thick sweet pepper and almond dressing that's reminiscent of romesco and scattered with puffs of crunchy wild rice.

Mrs G keeps it lighter with a plate of perky pickles - an artfully presented mix of gherkins, chanterelles, squash, red peppers and padrons. 

It would be rude to go to a Polish restaurant and not order the pierogi, especially when they're as good as the ones served at Biedronka. Crisp-edged, thin-skinned dumplings are filled with soft mash and mild cheese. They’re topped with golden breadcrumbs and sat in a silky brown butter sauce with caramelised notes that add an almost dessert like decadence.

Any salad with black pudding at its core is likely to be my kind of salad. Here, loose textured and grain-flecked Polish black pudding is coated in a crisp crumb and accompanied by fresh leaves, sweet pickled pear pieces, funky gorgonzola, charred Brussels sprout leaves and the crunch of walnut. 

A whole lemon sole to share is the highlight of the meal. It gets the ceremony it deserves as it’s presented to us in its pan before being taken away for filleting. 

Sweet and tender of flesh, it's adorned by a bobby dazzler of a brown butter sauce that's flecked with savoury potted shrimp, zingy capers and crushed hazelnuts and accompanied by strands of soft sweet leeks. 

The meat courses are both belters too.

A slab of blushing pink duck breast is served with meaty cabbage that's been cooked in duck fat, a glossy duck sauce, sweet roast beetroot and a richness balancing grated beetroot condiment that adds freshness and acidity to the plate.

Gorgeously cooked slices of flavour-packed onglet steak are sat on a bed of ludicrously buttery mash and joined by the sweetness of silver skin onions and wild funk of chanterelles. A first-class glossy oxtail sauce brings the whole dish together.  

When I see a souffle, there's no need to look further on a dessert menu. Biedronka’s dark chocolate souffle is intense, not too sweet and has a lovely bitterness. Crisp on the top with a loose almost chocolate fondant-esque interior, it's accompanied by sour cream ice cream that brings a lightening tanginess. 

Rhubarb trifle is lovely but less memorable. There’s a scoop of thick and fragrant rhubarb sorbet, lighter rhubarb jelly pieces, crunchy biscuit and thick vanilla scented custard.

The same warm hospitality that started the meal is present at the end as the bill is accompanied by dinky glasses of ice-cold elderberry vodka. It’s so packed with fruit that its 36% ABV is barely noticeable. Marek leaves the bottle at the table and tops up my glass. He advises me that a second glass is necessary to ensure that I can walk straight.

We had a superb meal at Biedronka and there’s no doubt it’s one of my favourites of 2026. This is Polish cooking with heart and personality that’s been elevated in a way I’ve never experienced before. 

The Details:

Address - Restaurant Biedronka, Farmhouse, South Causey Inn, Beamish Burn Road, Kip Hill, Stanley, County Durham DH9 0LS

Web - https://www.restaurantbiedronka.com/

Telephone - 07710176229

Rochelle Canteen, Shoreditch, London restaurant review

There are a few iconic, longstanding London restaurants that have been on my hit list for a very long time.

However, as they've all been there for decades or even centuries, it never feels like I'm in any kind of great rush to pay them a visit.

Over the years, I've ticked off Rules, St John, the Quality Chop House, Quo Vadis and the French House. But places like Simpsons, Sweetings, the Ritz and Scott’s all remain firmly on my agenda.

So, when a friend who we were meeting for Sunday lunch mentioned that he was going to be at a flower market in Shoreditch's Arnold Circus, Rochelle Canteen was the first and only destination that sprang to mind.

Whilst Margot Henderson's shrine to seasonal cooking has been open since 2004, we've only ever visited its short-lived outpost at the ICA and her Three Horseshoes Pub in Somerset. Both were excellent.

The OG Rochelle Canteen is hidden on the edge of a picturesque square in the heart of busy Shoreditch. Press the buzzer and a Secret Garden-esque door opens to reveal green courtyard, behind which sits Rochelle Canteen’s vine draped dining room. It's an oasis within an oasis that's a dreamy spot for a sunny Autumnal lunch.

The menu reads like any of the Henderson stable with a focus on unembellished seasonal produce, classic flavour combinations and a smattering of offal.

Whilst we wait for our starters to be prepped, a plate of intensely cheesy and short parmesan biscuits (£5) and a bottle of St John Cremant (£50) keep the wolf from the door.

To start, I order one of Rochelle Canteen's signature dishes. A good dollop of light and creamy smoked cod's roe (£10) is paired with peppery radishes and charred sourdough that's ideal for dipping and dredging.

Silky smooth, booze-twanged chicken and rabbit liver parfait (£14) is served by the slab. It's a delight paired with fruity crab apple jelly and more of that lovely sourdough.

Onto mains, and Mrs G keeps it Autumnal with a hearty bowlful of sweet delica squash pieces (£19) that are sat in a bowl of plump brothy chickpeas, robust kale and creamy goats curd.

I've had partridge a few times before and have often found it a little dense and dry. Rochelle Canteen's version (£28) is the best I've eaten - plump, juicy and highly seasoned with a lick of char on its skin. It's served alongside intense roasting juices and bittersweet roast tardivo, a vegetable that I'd like to encounter a lot more often.

Thick and creamy mace spiced bread sauce is giving major dessert vibes. Especially so because it's served in a large bowl and I inevitably start spooning it straight into my gob.

Mrs G always leans towards cheese rather than dessert and on this occasion, a couple of slabs of Westcombe cheddar (£9.50) turn her eye. Earthy and umami, it's delicious paired with homemade oatcakes and a sweet and sour fruit and vegetable chutney.

My slice of tart (£11) has a crisp base and so everything is right with the world. It's filled with nutty frangipane and fragrant plums and served with a good dollop of clotted cream.

It's taken me far too long but I'm very glad to have finally visited Rochelle Canteen. With its technically precise yet hearty cooking served in lush green surrounds, it's a very civilised place to spend a Sunday afternoon.

The Details: 

Address - Rochelle Canteen, 16 Playground Gardens, London E2 7FA

Web - https://rochellecanteen.com/

Telephone - 020 7729 5667

Sonder, Pontcanna, Cardiff Sunday roast review

One hospitality trend that I’m most definitely on board with is it becoming less formal.

In the early noughties, I remember donning my black trousers, loafers and Firetrap shirt for a big night out at Baja Beach Club on Newcastle’s Quayside. I looked and felt like an absolute plonker. But they were the rules if you wanted to go anywhere nice for the evening.

Twenty years on and dressing up like you’re going for a job interview is no longer a necessity in most places if you're going out for the night.

That includes high-end restaurants too, where the rise of the "luxury bistro" has seen starched white tablecloths, rigid dress codes, dainty portions and formal service ditched in favour of accessible yet technically accomplished cooking that's served in bustling settings where you can feel just at home in jeans and a t-shirt as a jacket and shirt.

In London, the Michelin-starred Dorian, which serves blackened-crusted sharing steaks, loaded tostadas and caviar topped rostis, is the poster-child for the movement. So much so, that it was named "the most influential restaurant in the UK of the last decade" in a recent column in Vittles magazine. 

In Cardiff, Sonder, is arguably the closest thing we have to the archetype. Since opening in April 2025, Jake Lewis’s luxury bistro has become Cardiff’s hottest ticket… and like Dorian he also sometimes serves sharing steaks, tostadas and topped rostis.

On the Sunday lunchtime that we visited at the start of October 2026 there wasn’t a spare seat to be found, with the place packed out with couples, families, and large group celebrations.

Normally, Sundays are more manageable for restaurant kitchens due to a reduced menu of roast dinners made with common components across all dishes. It’s certainly not the case at Sonder where they’ve taken the logistical challenge up a notch by serving both their hefty a la carte menu as well as roast dinners. That is once they’ve finished brunch service.

We kick off our meal with cocktails. A humorously named Pontcante (£12) is a ferociously spicy and zingy mix of guindilla tequila, agave and lime. It’s too much kick for Mrs G but I’m very glad to take it off her hands. A much lighter and subtler El Ritmo (£13) marries ginger infused rum with a fragrant gunpowder tea syrup. We move on to glasses of Ruinart champagne (£14.50) and spice twanged Marques de Caceres Excellens Rioja (£10.50).

From the bamboozling array of 14 snacks and starters, I struggle to choose. We settle on tuna tacos (£9), an appropriately Munchkin-sized snack before a plateful of meat. Three dainty crisp taco shells are loaded with freshly dressed meaty tuna tartare topped with a sliver of green chilli heat.

I’m all in favour of seeing burgers served as a starter. In fact, I’m all in favour of seeing them served as dessert too. Mini beef sliders (£9) combine pairs of pink and juicy, well-crusted patties squished between light toast alongside an ooze of American cheese and the freshness of green herb. They’re lovely little mouthfuls.

But my favourite of the trio is a mix of funky wild mushrooms (£11) bathed in a creamy, earthy and umami-packed chestnut and mushroom velouté. Salty cured egg yolk, iron rich spinach and the crunch of focaccia croutes provide plenty of contrast.

We all order Sunday roasts. Partially because I’m in the mood for a roast dinner and partly because it makes choosing from the stacked menu of 23 main courses less daunting.

Mrs G goes for the 40-day dry aged roast beef (£31). A quartet of dark crusted, gorgeously pink, beautifully tender and well-flavoured slices of meat are joined by sweet roast carrots, perky peas and greens, a light and soft Yorkshire pudding, silky celeriac puree and a fudgy boulder of roast beetroot.

I opt for the enjoyably named “trifecta” (£33), which combines a pair of those excellent beef slices with commendably juicy pork loin and shreds of intensely flavoured lamb shoulder. They’re all excellent but the beef is the star of the show – its cap of fat so tender that I don’t let it go to waste.

Roast potatoes are the standout of the included sides. Shatteringly crisp and fluffy centred, they’ve got a ridiculous beefiness from being cooked in dripping.

Celeriac and cauliflower cheese is excellent too. The soft and charred edged brassica and root vegetable with a bit more bite are coated in a thick cheese sauce that doesn’t hold back in its pokiness. However, the portion is a bit on the meagre side for a group of four and they kindly bring us a top up when we ask for more.

Gravy is a little underpowered and a touch thin, but we don’t go short as there’s an extra jug for the table.

Our meal continues on an upward trajectory all the way to dessert.

A plate of profiteroles (£10) is one of the best versions of one of my favourite desserts that I’ve ever eaten. Everything is on point from the light and crisp edged choux buns to their stuffing of silky smooth and soft textured milk ice cream. But what brings it altogether is a jug of hot dark chocolate sauce with a lovely bitterness and twang of salted caramel. The balance of textures and temperatures is off the charts.

In fact, it’s so good that a friend who wasn’t planning on eating dessert, immediately orders a portion for himself after tasting a spoonful mine.

Burnt basque cheesecake (£8.50) – with its requisite dark crust and silky smooth and tangy centre – sat in a pool of light Pedro Ximenez sauce is excellent too.

As if I hadn’t already indulged enough with dessert, a chocolate orange espresso martini (£12) delivers the right balance of roasty coffee, sweet chocolate and fragrant citrus.

We had a cracker of a Sunday lunch at Sonder and I can see why it’s so popular. Aspirational yet accessible with warm and friendly front of house, they serve the kind of cooking which rewards multiple visits.

The Details:

Address - Sonder, 72 Llandaff Road, Pontcanna, Cardiff
Web - https://sonder.restaurant/