Restaurants
W1F 7PP
London
26 Foubert’s Place
First things first: how the hell do you pronounce the name of this place? Kua ‘Aina should escape from your mouth sounding something like ‘Koo-a eye-na’. If that’s not helping you, it also rhymes with a lady part. (And that’s as much as we’re giving you).
When you walk into this Hawaiian burger place, just off Carnaby Street, there is a serving of Hawaiian relaxation going on.
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SW10 0JL
London
Chelsea
1a Langton Street,
We were sitting at a table at L’art du Fromage, purely because my friend and dining partner Lara could be best described as a cheese freak. She had been told about the restaurant by her brother’s girlfriend (another cheese freak), and had emphatically stated that we should reviews it. Blue cheeses are a favourite with her, which is interesting as she’s allergic to penicillin.
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There is a definite Narnia effect when you step inside this restaurant. From the street, La Porte des Indes looks as unassuming as the rest of the street, and you expect to walk into a typical Indian eatery of average size. Average it isn’t. As we follow the waiter along polished wooden floors to the restaurant itself, we’re greeted by a huge expanse of space, that transports you back to the tastes of colonial India.
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Langtry’s with its Knightsbridge location is a luxurious place to dine and an intimate one, with around twelve tables filling up the sumptuous dining room. A fireplace steals the focal point of the room, (laden with Christmas trimmings on our visit), whilst the rest of the room impresses sheer elegance upon its diners.
Deciding what to eat at Langtry’s is a convoluted affair as there are four or five menus to choose from.
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This long-standing restaurant has been the subject of sleek renovation during spring 2008 and now boasts dark, muted walls, crisp white table linen and head chef Tristan Welch (previously of Petrus) cooking up a sumptuous storm in the kitchen. It is positively tucked away at the end of a residential Kensington street, but is worth seeking out. When we eventually figured out how to get in (three doors, only one that opens) we took up the waitress’s suggestion of a drink at the bar and shook ourselves out of our coats.
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SW3 1NG
London
Knightsbridge
2 - 3 Beauchamp Place,
Laya’Lina deserves better than the three tables of diners it has on the cold but festive Tuesday in December when I visited. The restaurant is shiny and new, with its fabulous lighting reflecting beautifully on the slick tableware. Hidden away from the main drag that is Cromwell Road, on the prestigious Beachamp Place in Knightsbridge, it fits in brilliantly with its neighbours.
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E1 6EW
London
Old Spitalfields Market
8 Horner Square,
Even the weather joined in the fun as we made our way to try out 'La Fete Alpine' menu at Le Bouchon Breton. Obligingly freezing with sleet in the air, it ensured we were in just the right frame of mind for bubbling pots of cheese and mountain wine.
Le Bouchon Breton is very French, as you might expect. It falls just the right side of Cafe Rouge décor, complete with charming waiters, most especially Jean-Claude the Restaurant Manager, who even admitted popping back to France to keep his accent topped up.
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SW3 6LB
London
Chelsea Square
145 Dovehouse Street
Hidden behind the red brick and Ancaster stone of the Royal Brompton Hospital, deep in heartland Chelsea sits Le Colombier. A bustling bistro that offered us a warm welcome on a cold and blustery November night. We were grateful to be led straight to a cosy banquette with the best view.
I can only describe the clientele at Le Colombier on that Tuesday, as the full cast from the 1980’s BBC satire ‘Yes, Minister.
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It would be wrong to judge the ambiance of a restaurant on a Monday night, in a time when our wallets are becoming emptier and, as a result of this, the restaurants are too. However, even considering this, entering Lena’s from the cold, dark streets of East London was a light and warming experience. Though I was the first to arrive at 7.30pm, more customers arrived later on and gave a warm buzz to the room.
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