Food and Drink

With a strong focus on high-quality tequilas and mezcals, the El Bandito pop-up in Shoreditch follows the success of the permanent, highly-acclaimed Liverpool bar. Opened last month, the bar showcases a selection of approximately 50 tequilas and 25 mezcals, plus an extensive cocktail list. Designed by the team, which also includes recent Class nominated best newcomer Joe Wild, the drinks menu aims to educate drinkers about these often-misunderstood spirits, with the original opening amongst the first UK bars to be...

Lonely Planet has launched a guide to the World's best breweries on the back of the micro revolution that has gripped the industry. Researched and compiled by a network of beer-loving travel writers and journalists, the new guide will help thirsty travellers discover the world’s most authentic and delicious beverages - from classics that have been brewed for centuries, to exciting new concoctions and long forgotten regional specialities that have been recently discovered by the rest of the world. Organised by...

The Vegan Festival of Britain runs from 20 May –10 June The ambitious three-week Vegan Festival of Britain (VFOB) gets underway on Saturday 20 May, with events planned across the country from Aberdeen to Salisbury and Norwich to Truro. Billed as ‘the biggest vegan party in the world’, the animal-free extravaganza will be launched at VegfestUK Bristol (itself the biggest single vegan gathering in Europe) by Kerry McCarthy, the UK’s first vegan MP. A giant cake has been baked for the...

A fresh take on a classic style.

Pride is a double-edged sword. To be in the right, I’ll take the most extreme measures, yet there's something oddly rewarding about being proven wrong, on occasion, especially when done with such pizazz, such finesse. At the beginning of last year, I visited Monica Galetti's pop up at the top of 30 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin) for lunch. I'd never had the chance to visit Le Gavroche with Monica on board, but I'd heard great things, as well as...

Once a topic of controversy, even amongst the most carnivorous of us, veal (particularly Rose Veal) is becoming increasingly popular on the menus of high-end restaurants around London and the United Kingdom. A leading UK restaurant supplier, Lake District Farmers supply premium, breed-specific meats to fine dining establishments, providing customers with the full supply chain history. Working with a group of 50 Lake District-based farmers, the company renowned as “the hidden pearl of the Lake District” manages to produce some...

With a continuous rise in restaurants serving exciting meat-free food, heightened awareness of animal welfare and health-conscious dieting, it’s unsurprising that vegetarianism, veganism and flexitarianism (semi-vegetarian) are on the rise. In fact, since Linda McCartney introduced her range of vegetarian dishes over 25 years ago, the number of vegetarians in Britain has more than doubled – launched as an attempt to save vegetarians from a bleak future of eating unexciting food. Research in 2016 also showed that 12 per cent...

Just over a year ago, when Sartoria opened on the corner of Saville Row – like everybody else in London with a passion for food - I couldn’t wait to visit. Renowned as one of London’s finest Italian chefs (having previously worked at L’Anima), D&D London recruited Francesco Mazzei to run the kitchen of its swanky new venue. Bedecked with heavily starched linen and cutlery so heavily polished that neighbouring diners could be blinded with one misjudged mouthful – it...

Culminating with the release of a brand new free-standing steam oven, high-end home and kitchen appliance innovators Miele have teamed up with chefs Skye Gyngell and Marianne Lumb. Created using the new Miele steam oven, one of Australian chef Skye Gyngell’s recipes is for a sweet farro tart (farro is a composition of certain wheat grains, often eaten crispy), that’s relatively simple to recreate at home, best served with ripe strawberries and espresso caramel. “Created by Australian multi-award winning chef,...