Kazan Cafe

Kazan Café
Wilton Road
£20
When this was Caramel it was the first brunch review we did. Now it is operating under the Kazan banner and what’s not to like? We went on a Sunday morning and it was busy but still had a nice relaxed atmosphere. Nobody was trying to rush us. I had an orange, carrot and ginger juice. You feel healthy just thinking about it and even MP admitted that the ginger gives a good kick. I was thrilled to see that BLT with fries was under the healthy eating section. Who are they kidding? Maybe it is all relative – anyway I had it! I’m getting a bit ciabatta’d out so I was pleased that it was just ordinary toast filled with BL and T. The mayo had a mustard taste and it was just what I wanted. Washed down with green tea and I’d like to think that we won’t need to eat again for days. But of course we will and now we know that Kazan café does a great brunch. HP

Gee, a brilliant clear day in London and we went out for breakfast. Kazan Café is situated on a corner and the light flooded in. I knew what I was going to have even before we arrived: pot of black tea and an omelet. Most omelets you get two filling and I was pleased to see that I could have three. I went for bacon, cheese and olives. I was a bit disappointed that I only got a mug of tea. The omelet when it did arrive looked good. The fries and the side salad were also tempting. I find that most restaurants when they cook with olives usually have black ones. My omelet had a mix so a bit of a plus. The bacon was also properly cooked and not at all limp. OK, the critique is that the omelet was slightly dry. The fries were crispy (good) and the side salad did have a slight Turkish hint which I think reflects well on the place and expected given the owners also run a Turkish restaurant.

Thai Cafe

Thai Café
22 Charlwood
£37

We have been meaning to try this place for ages. MP has been traveling so we were blown off course but here we are eating again! This place gets busy so we got here early. We both had the spicy mushroom soup we love – tom yum hed is just about the only dish we would both choose because we usually eat differently. It was a good soup. I liked the tomato in it. MP doesn’t always like that touch but I didn’t hear any complaints. I like noodles so I went for the dark version pad thiew rather than pad thai for a change. So egg fried noodles, veg and prawns – a great combination. I really enjoyed it but didn’t have room for any more since it was filling. Lots of fizzy water and we walked home feeling very happy. HP

I’ll say I have been traveling. And you are right, we have been meaning to try this place for some time. We went the week before but, surprise, the place was stuffed. Clearly a good sign and it made us more determined. This time we went early arriving at about 6pm. The tom yum hed was a quick choice by both of us and then our paths diverged. I was still itching for something spicy. I went for the chili squid salad. I asked the friendly staff about the salad and how hot it was and then encouraged them to make it just a bit hotter. I was not disappointed. I was however on fire. The ingredients were fresh and the squid well prepared. The chili was an exquisite for of hell for the tongue, so in an odd sense I was happy. MP

Sri Suwoon

Sri Suwoon
44 Hugh Street
$47

This used to be the Blue Jade but it has ceased to be, it is an ex-restaurant. They cleaned up the interior, painted and brought in new chairs. Enough of the décor, we are interested in food. I started with Tom Yum Hed. This was a well done soup – not a tomato in sight as some restaurants are want to add to the soup. Also, they were pretty adventurous with the mushrooms, using two types. For the main, I had one of my favorite Thai dishes, which was not on the Blue Jade’s menu, Sia Rong hi. I was disappointed. It was actually sweet instead of spicy, even when you added the sauce. The veg was fresh and well cooked though and I think there are plenty of things on the menu to go after aside from this dish. MP

I had already been once to this restaurant but when MP returned from Canada we decided to give it a whirl. We both had our favourite soup and I would put it down as one of the best recipes we’ve tried. MP’s tiger cry arrived with lovely presentation but I hardly paid any attention because I was face down in a prawn red curry, which was sweet and very delicious. Loads of prawns, aubergine, French beans and pineapple washed down with egg fried rice and I couldn’t eat another thing. I had lashings of fizzy water and MP hit the singha. I see they do take aways so it makes me think about working my way through the menu. I like a challenge! HP

Great Eastern Indian Dining

Great Eastern Indian Dining
Sussex St
£35

It was a Friday night and we’d both had a killer week. Only a curry would do. This was our first visit to the Indian restaurant which is closest to home (we never get there because we always end up in Contented Vine). I had been a bit put off by the fact that it was underground but the fact you couldn’t see it from the street shouldn’t be a deterrent. There were a few people in and it all smelt good. We had spicy papadams as well as the usual. Not spicy enough for Meaty but worth a try. Despite the lack of spice issue I noted that MP had dodged the worst excesses of vindaloo (or worse) so I am pleased to report there were no ‘repercussions’ to this meal. Meanwhile, I plumped for my favourite veggie biryani. All good. I liked the rice and the sauce was nice and full of a random selection of vegetables which kept me happy. We didn’t have room for yummy Indian ice cream which is a shame but the bill swept in with After Eight mints and I was very pleased we’d come. I think they do take-aways so it is a useful ‘local’.
HP


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I agree with HP that it’s a bit disconcerting that it is downstairs. In any event, when we went down there was cheerful noise and chatter. The waiter was exceptionally attentive and event put up with my silly questions. Is vindaloo hot? Do you have beer? Oh, on that front, I went for a chicken balti. Great choice on my part: flavour, heat, depth which were an excellent compliment to a beer. Highly recommended for those who like flavour and the ability to notice their tongue at the end of the meal. I know I will be back, evn if its just for a cheeky take-away on a rainy eve. MP

Flying Pigs in Hong Kong

Flying Pigs
Hong Kong

We haven’t reviewed a Pimlico eatery for a couple of weeks because we have been avoiding the worst of the British Winter with an escape to Honkers. Needless to say that we were in hog heaven as far as foodie opportunities were concerned. The time passed too fast to get nostalgic for the tastes of home but if we ever did there is always Stanley where you can find good chips and a lovely cake shop called Saffron. We were staying in Kowloon which is virtually a food mall for fantastic Asian food. We pigged out at noodle bars, Vietnamese, Thai and Indonesian. There were many and varied foodie adventures eg Meaty eating vegetarian (and enjoying it) at a Buddhist monastery. We also had some seriously memorable meals – the cruise and dine at the Peninsular is on until March 2011 so we were pleased to get our snouts in that particular trough and highly recommend it. But my piece of piggy heaven was when we went to a wonderful dim sum restaurant on Observatory Road – it makes me realise what a pale imitation everything we’ve tried here has been. Yummy! We owe that lovely treat to our erstwhile Pimlico neighbour who we hope to welcome back to SW1 for a bit of guest reviewing before too long. HP.

Indeed there was food for all and at exceptionally reasonable prices. The noodle bar on Granville Road was such a success we went back twice. You can order your type of noodle, what veg you want in it, how sour and how spicy. I went for very medium spicy which is a nice way of saying 7/10 on their scale. If I went hotter I would have lost colour vision. The dim sum was divine. So many excellent examples of tasty parcels I would go back in a heart beat. Now, to get to the food mall as HP puts it on Hau Fook Road we went through a little alley way that served up frozen yogurt with ‘house crumbs’ as a toping. I will post a picture. The Peninsula was a stunning evening of a harbour cruise and a three course meal that was just lovely. What HP did not say was that we went down to a hotel bar for some drinks. In a mad decision I choose a ginger gimlet. HP had a strawberry on the rim of her cocktail glass and I had some exotic fruit. I chomped on the fruit in only to discover that it was no fruit but a peeled slice of raw ginger. I am certain my liver, or kidney or some other essential organ will benefit…my tongue sure suffered. MP

The Marquis

The Marquis
£27
Everytime we go past this pub we have an argument about how to say the name. It is one of those tomato tomayto things where one of us says it like a member of the British aristocracy and the other says it like a big tent used for weddings and circuses. Anyway we had to put this squabble behind us and sailed in for an early Saturday evening pub dinner. MP was not optimistic and the menu isn’t particularly long but I saw lots of things I fancied. I went for the (large) veggie platter. It was one of those things where it might have said ‘serves 4’ but fortunately didn’t so I had a guilt free treat. Just lots of yummy things – humus, chips, veggie pancakes, onion bhajis, artichoke, grilled halloumi and (toasted) pitta. Really pleased about the toasted pitta because it tastes so much better warm and garlicky. MP did frequent raids on the chips and cheese and is definitely up for a meaty platter next time. The pub was busy so we were lucky to get a table (a few yapping sloanies next to us but everyone was very friendly and the service was good). MP ordered the wrong beer and had platter-envy but we both had a nice time. HP


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So we went off the Marquis (pronounced Mar-kee) despite what HP says. It was rather cold and threatening rain so relatively happy that it was close by. (is anything not close by in Pimlico?) We went in and got the last table. The place was heaving and had a really fun atmosphere. They have some pretty funky wall paper on two of the walls. OK, on to food and drink. I ordered 1664. Acceptable beer but I find it a bit too hoppy and sweet. Only after I ordered and it arrived that I learned they had Staropramen which is a much fuller, richer beer befitting a cold evening. I ordered a plate of chilli con carne and rice. I saw the platters, but went chilli instead. It was served up quick, hot and tasty. The chilli tasted like it was made on the site as opposed to a canned product. You can tell by the kidney beans. They are firm and not all mushy and watery. In fact it did not take me too long to get through it all and then move on to HP’s platter. Frequently we (read MP) get competitive when ordering. I will say something like “I won” after we have ordered as I subjectively compare what we have ordered. In this case I lost. The platter was really good. I liked the thin and crispy fries and the grilled halloumi was a treat. I am going back and this time I am ordering a platter. Then HP and MP will be 1-1 in the competitive ordering stakes at the Mar-kee. MP

Kym's

It has taken MP quite a long time to recover from the Trip of 100 Chinese Banquets but now that the recovery is complete we were able to head to this Chinese restaurant that we hadn’t visited before. And very nice it was too. On this occasion we really lived up to our Piggy name because we started with 2 starters each. MP was adventurous as ever with jelly fish and scallops whereas I was very boring with prawn sesame toast and veggie pancakes. I love the toast because it takes me back to my childhood before we knew what cholesterol was and regularly had fried bread with a full English breakfast. The toast helping was generous and better still it hadn’t gone all dried up like it can if the restaurant isn’t on form. The pancakes were probably too big even for this little piggy so MP had to help me out and pronounced it a non greasy example of the art. So thumbs up for the starters. I wanted a main I hadn’t had before so I had scampi Peking style. I love scampi and the Peking bit was a clear sauce with ginger and garlic so I was very happy with my choice. It is a big menu so something for everyone in nice surroundings with the offer of health giving teas to follow. Will definitely come back. HP


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I think we were the first guests that evening. The staff were very attentive, soft spoken and very pleasant. Having had jellyfish in a recent trip to China, I though I would see how they do it in England. Excellent. Crunchy (now what you would expect with a name like jellyfish) and a wonderful ginger flavour. The scallops were also very good. In fact I should have had more. They were perfectly cooked, tender in the centre and with soya and green onions adding a bit of zip.
For the main I ordered beef with black bean sauce. I would have liked a bit more spice to the dish. That was probably my mistake in ordering because there was a lot to choose from and I chose something I didn’t really fancy. Having said that, it was still good. Now, the unfortunate part is the fortune cookie. I read it, but having forgot its contents I cannot tell if it came true or not. I guess we will just have to go back. MP