MACELLAIO RC, SOUTH KENSINGTON

Last weekend I had a massage at home (from Urban Massage). It was my first one in a long time and it was utterly amazing. I love beauty treatments but I rarely have them anymore as my life has been overrun by a very demanding toddler. The same goes for eating out, my daughter Olympia is not keen on sitting in her push chair or a high chair, so that makes going to restaurants quite a tricky experience. I remembered from when my other daughter Arabella was young, that Italian restaurants are always great with kids, so a couple of weekends ago we tried out Macellaio RC on the Old Brompton Road.

Macellaio RC is basically a butchers with a restaurant - you can even choose which steak from the counter that you want to eat. Plus it is not just an ordinary steak - it comes from the Fassona breed in the "special mountain valleys"  north of Genoa. Every cut of meat is hung for the exact right amount of time and precise care is taken to ensure the meat tastes incredible.

We were short of time due to Olympia's attention span and so we quickly perused the menu. It is quite simple - there are a selection of small bites, starters, charcuterie and cheese, offal, mains and grill or pasta. 

We started with lardo bruschetta with honey and walnuts and stracciatella served with rocket.

Both were unbelievably mouthwatering and utterly delicious. The stracciatella was incredibly creamy and I think the best I have ever tasted. I adored the lardo but it was a little too much for me, however Pascal demolished the very generous portion.

For mains, I ordered the rump steak served with sweet gorgonzola and walnuts and I can honestly say I have never had a steak quite like this in London. I loved the way it was was sliced and cooked perfectly rare. Pascal ordered rump steak with Tuscan extra virgin olive oil and salt. His was cooked blue and was also faultless.

We had fries and spinach as sides which were great although the steaks were definitely the stars of the show.

Unfortunately there wasn't time for pudding, Olympia had half terrorised and half charmed the restaurant and it was time to go home after an incredible meal.

There are four Macellaio RC restaurants on London, this one in South Ken, another in Battersea, one in Clerkenwell and another in Bankside. The menus are very similar in all of them and each offer a butchery and bakery masterclass. 

I will definitely be adding this restaurant to my favourites list.....perfect for all carnivores.

Macellaio RC

84 Old Brompton Road,
London
SW7 3LQ
Tel: 020 7589 5834

AFTERNOON TEA AT THE PALM COURT AT THE LANGHAM, WEST END

It was my birthday last week and we wanted to celebrate as a family and go somewhere special - (I definitely wanted something a little more exciting than Pizza Express)! We decided to go to the Palm Court at the Langham, we had gone for afternoon tea there at Easter and I remembered there was a pianist playing which drowned out Olympia's moaning!! 

Pascal and I had the Wedgewood afternoon tea and my daughter Arabella had the children's afternoon tea with Hamley's which includes a cuddly teddy bear.

I love afternoon tea and what I love most about the Langham is the free flowing sandwiches - they are amazing and we definitely wanted more than one plate. The sandwiches were classic English cucumber, cream cheese and chives; Burford Brown egg, marinated artichoke on rosemary bread; beef pastrami, sauce "Albert", watercress on caramelised onion bread; Scottish smoked salmon, Sarawak pepper and preserved lemon cream; and finally classic "prawn cocktail", iceberg and tomato powder on a potato bun. 

I have to say they were all divine. The pastrami one was definitely my favourite although I was also obsessed by the egg and artichoke - what an original fantastic combination.

Arabella had the jigsaw sandwiches which were also delicious. They were more child friendly flavours - hummus and red pepper, cheese, jam and I can't remember the last one. She adored them and also our cucumber and cream cheese which she kept stealing. Thankfully there was no limit on the amount of sandwiches you can have so Pascal and I had two plates and Arabella a couple of extra. Even the baby Olympia tried some too!

Next up were the scones which are Pascal's favourite part of afternoon tea and these did not disappoint. They were freshly baked - some plain and others with sultanas and then served with clotted cream and strawberry jam. Not surprisingly we had two plates of these as well!

Arabella's cakes were adorable. They consisted of Pedro Pig, a strawberry ganache with vanilla sable. Billy Bee was a mango and passion fruit jelly with chocolate sable whereas Lily the Ladybird was a vanilla sponge with raspberry whipped ganache. Finally Cecil the Sheep, was a crunchy choux with Langham cremeux. 

Arabella isn't the biggest fan of cakes but she did enjoy the Pedro Pig and Billy Bee. She kindly gave me Cecil the sheep which was scrumptious and Olympia gobbled up Lily the Ladybird.

Despite the fact I was already fit to burst, it was then time for my cakes. They were described as an exquisite selection and they really were. They included a Paris Brest (Crunchy Choux pastry, lightened Pecan, caramelised pecans), Babalicious (Blackcurrant and star anise soaked baba, Jivara whipped ganache, crunchy pearls), Decidedly Madeleine (Madeleine sponge, passion fruit jelly wrapped in a coat of dark chocolate), Spherically Challenged (Creamy coconut, liquid raspberry and Manjari mousse) and One in a Million (Caramelised Puff Pastry, vanilla infused mascarpone).

I am salivating as I write this....wow these cakes were outstanding. The Paris Brest was my favourite - I love these - I need to eat more of them!! Between you and me, I ate all my cakes and Pascal's, I couldn't stop.....but it was my birthday!!

Then the waitress surprised me with a birthday cake....

What a fantastic tea - amazing service, huge amounts of delicious food and beautiful piano music. Together it made a very special birthday and I would really recommend it.

The Palm Court at the Langham

1C Portland Place,
London
W1B 1JA
Tel: 020 7636 1000
Email: book@palm-court.co.uk

VALENTINA, PUTNEY

Last weekend we wanted to do a family activity, however it is quite hard to find something relatively inexpensive, local and suitable for a baby, a tween and two adults! After much deliberation, we settled on a trip to Battersea Park as there is mini golf and a great playground. We decided the winner of the golf, could choose the restaurant for lunch. I wanted to go to Tendido Cuatro but Bella was desperate for us to try Valentina which is her favourite restaurant near her father's house. In the end Pascal won and he went for Bella's choice.

Valentina started as a small family delicatessen in East Sheen in 1991 however it soon expanded into a restaurant as well and now there are 8 branches in London and Surrey.  

We went to the one in Putney and I was impressed as soon as I walked in as there were tasters of mortadella and mozzarella on ciabatta in the entrance...I love a bit of free food. The Valentina concept reminds me of Carluccio's with the blue and white colour scheme and the gorgeous appetising food on display. I wanted to pull up a chair there and then!

There was a fantastic musician playing to the diners and it was a pleasure to listen to him while we perused the menu. There was a lot to choose from - antipasti, salads, pizza and pasta. There is also a children's menu for £6.50. It was a spacious airy restaurant with an outside terrace that looked very inviting.

We decided to share the pizza fritta to start which is fried dough sprinkled with rock salt and rosemary and served with garlic aioli. This was really good - even the baby liked it although we had to wipe off the salt. We were fighting over the last bits. It made a great change from garlic bread.

For mains Arabella had her usual all time favourite, spaghetti carbonara served English style with cream. I have to say I had serious food envy. It was a huge portion with big chunks of bacon and a heavenly creamy, cheesy sauce.

Pascal had the veal Milanese with spaghetti in a tomato and basil sauce. Like Arabella, it is his all time favourite dish. However unfortunately he wasn't very impressed. The veal was greasy and there was too much sauce on his pasta.

I ordered the Cappella Romana which is al forno tagliatelle with Italian sausage meat, cherry tomato sauce, mozzarella, Parmesan and wrapped with smoked speck ham. I have mentioned in my blog before that I love Parmesan and I really hate it when you aren't allowed to keep the cheese at your table. The waiter very kindly covered my pasta with Parmesan but it still wasn't enough. My dish was lacking something - I am not sure what as to me it sounded like the ideal pasta recipe - sausage, cheese, ham and tomato but it wasn't as good as I was expecting. I think it needed more cheese! It wasn't bad but I just didn't love it and didn't finish my plate which is unheard of for me.

We had no room for pudding unfortunately, I had my eyes on the Italian pastries in the deli but decided to give it a miss and tuck into some ice cream at home. I was surprised when the bill came, it was nearly £70 for 3 of us which I thought was extremely steep considering we had only had one starter, no alcohol (just water and a Diet Coke) and no puddings. 
However the service was very friendly and efficient, the music was fantastic and we had really enjoyed half the meal. 

I wouldn't rush back but if a friend wanted to go, I wouldn't say no. Maybe I am just spoilt because there are so many good Italians around London. Having said that I am keen to try the deli......especially the pastries!

Valentina Putney

75 Upper Richmond Road,
London
SW15 2SR
Tel: 020 8877 9906
Email: putney@valentinafinefoods.com

KID FRIENDLY RESTAURANTS - MUDDY STILETTOS

I recently worked with the lovely Joanna at Muddy Stilettos Wiltshire to create an article on the best kid friendly restaurants in London. It is not always easy eating out with kids, and if you are like me and want to branch out from the usual Pizza Express and Wagamamas, this should give you some inspiration.

In hindsight I should have posted this before half term but I have been away - my first sunny holiday with the baby. It wasn't as relaxing as previous holidays but it was lovely to have sunshine and family time and we discovered Olympia LOVES watermelon so expect some watermelon based recipes to come up!

https://wilts.muddystilettos.co.uk/health-fitness/food/perfect-eats-town-mudlets/

JOE ALLEN, COVENT GARDEN

Joe Allen opened 40 years ago following the success of its American sister restaurant and it has been a hit ever since. If you are going to the theatre, it has always been one of the places to dine. The venue is filled with theatre memorabilia (we loved ticking off all the shows we had seen on the back of the menu), the waiters are wannabe actors and the casts of the shows regularly frequent the restaurant. I loved that at 17.45 the restaurant was practically full to the brim and had a great buzzy atmosphere. 

We were immediately shown to our table and it bought back memories of my last trip to Joe Allen's over 20 years ago (eeek I am getting old)! I made my daughter Arabella order a Shirley Temple as that was my old favourite.

The menu is typically American - ribs, salads, chicken, steaks, eggs - a lot to choose from. We decided to start with crispy squid and tortilla chips with guacamole. 

The food came out very quickly. I was expecting more from the squid, it didn't taste particularly fresh and was quite chewy however we were all fighting over the tortilla chips and guacamole, it was delicious. Arabella licked the bowl clean!!

They had a great children's menu with all the usual suspects and it was no surprise to any of us that Arabella went for mac and cheese. The portion size was quite large for a kids' menu but we weren't complaining as it meant we could all tuck in and together we polished the creamy, cheesy dish off.

I completely forgot about the secret burgers that are off menu and so instead went for "Mac Ragu" which is a combination of beef and pork ragu with mac and cheese and my husband Pascal ordered crispy pork belly with spicy Boston beans.

We enjoyed the mac ragu but in our opinion it wasn't cheesy enough and was a little dry. Once we added a couple of spoonfuls of Arabella's mac and cheese, it was perfect. The crispy pork on the other hand was amazing, the pork was soft and succulent whilst crispy on the top and we loved the beans which I am happy to report weren't spicy at all. 

Despite being fit to burst, I still wanted a pudding so I encouraged Arabella to order the knickerbocker brownie from the children's menu. I was expecting something small but instead was presented with a huge sundae of ice cream, sorbet, chocolate, cream, brownie and caramel sauce - Heaven!!

I wonder how big the adult one is...I might have to research it one day, along with the secret burgers!!

Once I had scoffed the ice cream sundae, we ordered the bill and we were very pleasantly surprised at how reasonable the evening was - it made me like the restaurant even more. I was sad to leave as I loved listening to the pianist playing but it was time to hotfoot it to the theatre. 

If you are looking for a show, go and see School of Rock - it is AMAZING. The kids play all their own instruments and are outstanding - I am hoping it might encourage Arabella to practise her flute!!

Joe Allen

13 Exeter Street
London
WC2E 7DT
Tel: 020 7836 0651
Email: info@joeallen.co.uk

STICKY FINGERS, KENSINGTON

We have all become slightly obsessed with counting our steps in our household and so when we went for lunch a few weekends ago, we decided to combine it with a good walk. We decided to go to the restaurant Sticky Fingers in Kensington as the menu is both adult and kid friendly and I was particularly drawn to the pudding menu. Sticky Fingers is the brainchild of Bill Wyman, the ex bassist from the Rolling Stones and it named after their 9th British album (a good one actually - love Wild Horses)! The menu is your usual American fare - chicken wings, squid, burgers, steaks, hot dogs, fajitas....the choice is vast....8 different types of burgers....my type of place!

Unsurprisingly we were all starving so we ordered Nachos Fondita to start...unlike normal nachos these came with a slightly spicy cheese dip in the middle and we added some pulled pork.

These were delicious and a good hefty portion, we loved the addition of the pulled pork although the cheese dip had quite the kick to it. Anyway it certainly whet our appetites for the mains. Arabella ordered off the kids menu and not surprisingly chose mac and cheese with garlic bread.

The curly pasta is served with a 4 cheese sauce and a biscuit crust. Arabella enjoyed the pasta but she wasn't keen on the crust which worked well for Pascal and I because we loved the cheesy topping.

Pascal went for a New Yorker style burger which was served with bacon, cheese, lettuce, red onion and gherkin. Pascal being typically French, likes his meat blue but they cooked it more medium/medium rare. He wasn't complaining though as the burger was really tasty. 

I was so torn over what to order - I wanted it all basically - a pulled pork hot dog, a blue cheese burger and the fajitas - but then I went for the buffalo 'n bird - a chicken burger with hot buffalo sauce, chopped lettuce, blue cheese sauce and chicken wings.

I love buffalo sauce and wish more restaurants in London served it like they do in America. This was really good although pretty spicy so I added some extra blue cheese sauce and it tasted like a dream. I am not normally a huge chip fan but these were the most amazing fries I have ever tasted.

By this point in the meal I was already stuffed but I couldn't resist a pudding. As part of the kid's menu, Arabella had a pudding included so we ordered her the fruit kebab which actually baby Olympia had. Arabella and I had bigger ideas....a freakshake....a salted caramel donut one to be precise!

The freak shake consisted of a salted caramel thick shake topped with whipped cream, salted caramel sauce, a homemade salted caramel donut and marshmallows. It was Heaven!! Arabella and I were fighting over every mouthful - if I am going to be critical the donut wasn't a patch on Krispy Kremes but it was still delicious and I loved the whole salted caramel combination. I think we would need to walk to Antartica to burn off the calories!!

A great lunch - service was so friendly and attentive and we all felt very satisfied. Sticky Fingers has been around for nearly 30 years, the decor is slightly tired, it isn't cheap but it was worth it. Bill Wyman originally opened the restaurant because he wanted somewhere to go just as he liked it - friendly and welcoming with excellent food and service - and 28 years on it does just that. 

Sticky Fingers

1A Phillimore Gardens,
London
W8 7QG
Tel: 020 7937 8690

PELLICANO, CHELSEA

After our disappointing supper at Smith and Wollensky, we decided to go out for lunch the following Sunday to make up for it. We rarely go to Italian restaurants other than our favourite local Gola, but we needed to buy some baby clothes at Peter Jones so we decided to try out the nearby Pellicano. 

Pellicano is a family run Italian restaurant with a Sardinian twist that has been open for 17 years. The restaurant's aim is to serve freshly made, wholesome food in a warm friendly environment and it certainly did that.

I am still a little apprehensive about going to restaurants with my baby - she is 7 months - but we were immediately made to feel welcome. We checked out the menu whilst tucking into delicious freshly cooked bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Olympia liked the bread too!

The menu is pretty varied - starting with antipasti such as calamari with chilli, garlic, cannellini beans and Sardinian sausages or grilled goat's cheese with baby spinach and beetroot carpaccio. However we decided to share a pizza as they did my favourite type - a margarita with Gorgonzola and speck.

The pizza was fantastic - cheesy but not overpowering with a crispy base and plenty of speck - we loved it and were fighting over the last piece. I was regretting not having a whole one for myself!

For mains you could choose between pizza, pasta (you could have this as a starter as well), fish or meat. I was torn between the ossobucco with risotto Milanese or homemade tortellini pasta filled with seasoned meat served with ham and mascarpone sauce. Whereas Pascal couldn't decide between the homemade tagliatelle sautéed with Sardinian sausage or veal Milanese with rocket, Parmesan and tomatoes. In the end I went for the pasta and he had the veal and neither of us were disappointed.

The pasta was out of this world - I was worried I wouldn't have enough Parmesan as the waiter served it to you rather than leaving it on the table (I think I have a cheese addiction), but actually I didn't need too much as the pasta was so tasty and flavoursome. 

Veal Milanese is one of Pascal's favourites and he really enjoyed his too - the meat was really tender with a crispy coating and the rocket and Parmesan salad complimented it perfectly.

We didn't have room for pudding and by now we were on borrowed time with Olympia so we paid the bill and wondered home feeling very satisfied after a wonderful lunch. I already can't wait to go back and me being a creature of habit would have the exact same meal again! I can see why Pellicano remains so popular after so many years.

Pellicano

19-21 Elystan Street,
London
SW3 3NT
Tel: 020 7584 1789