Food and Drink

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Within central London, there are very few retreats from the ides of modern day city life. Spaces that feel as though they’re not within zones one or two on the tube map, and places that aren’t inhumanely busy at even the most unsociable hours. However, one of those very few spaces is Shad Thames - an area of the Southbank between Tower Bridge and the Rotherhithe Tunnel that houses a number of old warehouse...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Strength: 5.8% Brewed: Finchampstead, Berkshire Set up in Berkshire in 2012, Siren is heavily inspired by Homer’s Odyssey, in so far as crafting beers named after various characters. Since initiating, however, the brewery has become widely renowned for a desire to strive and create the absolute best beers within the brew team’s capabilities – thus using the finest ingredients, putting hours into the brewing process and constantly tweaking the recipes for each batch of...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Originally opened as a pop-up in Chelsea, Kurobuta is the brainchild of Australian chef Scott Hallsworth, showcasing his obsession with Japanese food. And since the initial setup, the pop-up has become permanent and is joined by another restaurant near Marble Arch, followed by another which opened at the end of last year – joining the likes of Yo! Sushi, Burger & Lobster, and Polpo - taking over a sizeable portion of the fifth floor...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Forget cheap Easter eggs and overcooked lamb, here’s our roundup of the only things you need to be eating and drinking across the Bank Holiday weekend. Bar 8’s Easter Cocktail Ingredients For the glass Hay Easter egg Gold drinking straw For the Easter mix Dark chocolate (90%), 2kg Grand Marnier, 1 bottle Cointreau, 2 bottles Per cocktail Grand Marnier, 20ml Cointreau, 40ml Chocolate, 40ml Method Fill an Old Fashioned glass with hay. Place foil wrapped Easter...

Life-long vegetarian Jeremy Corbyn turned up to the fourth annual British Kebab Awards last night to present the award for Outstanding Contribution to the British kebab industry. Corby, who also doesn't drink, took to the podium to jokingly promote his takeaway of choice - "a good falafel". He said: “Vegetarian aficionado of kebab shops, I hope I’m still welcome. I’m always very pleased whenever I get to any kebab shop to enjoy a good falafel." Constituency with huge number of kebab...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Strength: 4.4% Brewed: Hackney, London Based in the heart of East London’s Hackney, Five Points Brewing Co. first started to become established in 2013, following the success of their brilliant pale ale. With five beers now making up their core range, it’s no surprise that Five Points have become one of London’s most popular independent breweries. Brewed using a blend of three different American hops – Citra, Centennial, and Amarillo, Five Points’ Pale is a particularly...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food In recent years, mostly thanks to a seemingly endless stream of single-menu restaurant openings – lobster has become extremely popular in London, and relatively accessible. Once reserved almost exclusively for flaunting wealth and ordering the most expensive single dish on a restaurant’s menu just in order to appear sophisticated and knowledgeable. Now it’s 2016 and there are countless establishments that offer whole, equitably sized lobsters for less than £20. The newfound availability is brilliant,...

A waffle recipe from chef Ollie Dabbous.

By James Walker I had a date – a rare occasion for a guy that looks like a bargain bucket Damian Lewis. How did I decide to impress her? By taking to her to a restaurant that happened to be renowned for its queues. I’m not opposed to queueing. I’ve queued for far less than the Taiwanese street food served at BAO: a Pizza Hut, train tickets and urinals. But I usually have the comfort of waiting indoors. We spent...