Meat Liquor

I have been to Meat Liquor twice now and have really enjoyed it both times! If you’re looking for a funky cool place to enjoy a big, fat burger and a fun cocktail, this is definitely the place! I’m not a massive meat eater but whenever I eat out I like to indulge. I came here with my friend from uni, on a busy Thursday night after work – a great way to end the day. 

Meat Liquor was completely overflowing with people - and it was like this the last time I came -mostly with people in their 20s and 30s looking for a hip place to hang out after work. We queued for 45 minutes outside in the freezing cold, but it was definitely worth it. Everyone in the queue was told about the wait and still stuck it out so it’s clearly a popular and well-liked place! 

The restaurant is dark and atmospheric with shadowy lighting of red and yellow! It was very busy and noisy – almost like a club. The music was pretty loud and everyone was talking amongst themselves very loudly. I wouldn’t recommend going here on a first date as you wouldn’t get to know each other very well – but it’s a fun place to hang out with friends. The waiters and waitresses were very friendly but also very busy, but I liked this – it added to the atmosphere!

After waiting outside for a while we were definitely ready for a drink. We stood at the busy bar, which again made it feel like I was on a ¨night out¨as opposed to just being out for dinner. We spoilt ourselves and ordered a big portion of the best onion rings I have ever had. They were huge and there was a lot more batter than onions (probably why it was so good?). My friend had a chicken burger and said it was great. I had a green chilli burger which was delicious– it didn’t hold together though and was very messy. As you can see by the number of paper towels my friend and I got through… it was not eaten in the most elegant of ways (again, don’t come here on a first date– embarrassing…)

 

One burger was definitely enough for us – and a shared portion of onion rings as they were so big – I felt like I was in America with extra big portions.. or at least for us. My friend´s burger was as big as her head!

So much fun… cool atmosphere, great company and delicious food - nom nom nom!

Pasca x 

Koba

Although this is another Korean restaurant and I have already written about one, this one is definitely worth mentioning and it was a whole different experience. I came here with my boyfriend because I wanted him to try Korean BBQ which I used to always have when I was younger. Tucked away down Rathbone Street, you can access this restaurant easily from Goodge Street or Tottenham Court Road station. We came here on a Friday night. 

Koba on a Friday night is full of business men and their colleagues, and most of them seem to be Korean - which can´t be a bad sign! The crowd were all very dressed up and with everyone appearing to be very sophisticated they seemed to fit well into the stylish and minimalistic surroundings. The dining area has a sleek décor with industrial looking light fixtures - these hang down from pipes which we later realized acted as chimneys for the BBQ smoke to be ventilated through. It was quite a fun structure and a good idea! The restaurant is quiet and chic with modern lounge music playing in the background.

As is usual with many Asian cuisines, we shared our dishes. I think we got rather a lot – maybe a bit too much for me as after the first two starters I was full and the BBQ hadn’t even started! We paid £33 each so it was a pricey meal but it is a very nice restaurant with great service and amazing food.

This was a good, fun and hygienic way to start our meal! We were brought little hand towels that came in a dish which was then filled with boiling hot water that was absorbed by the towels. 

1. The first starter we had was kimchee –a must have whenever you go for Korean food. Actually, on a normal everyday basis I would be happy with just kimchee and rice :) - simple and delicious. 

2. The second starter we had was Pajeon which is spring onion pancake with seafood. This was really tasty and I hadn’t had it before but it is a very traditional dish in Korea.

3. The third starter we had was Yook Hwei, which I had had before but couldn’t remember and I had read in lots of reviews that people raved about this dish. It is raw beef, sliced pear and egg yolk. It is an odd combination and I was definitely up for trying it again, but I wasn’t that pleased by it. The beef was semi-frozen before it was served so it was very cold and crunchy and tasted very sweet. I was happy to try it but I don’t think I will order it again. 

4. We then began our BBQ which is what we had planned to go for! We had bulgogi which is marinated beef – it’s my favourite. They cook it in front of you on your own personalized BBQ. With the bulgogi you are meant to wrap a lettuce leaf around it with a dollop of chili sauce and little green veggies. You eat it like a wrap – I love it!

5. We also had Zzukumi Gooi which was baby squid cooked on the BBQ as well. This was really delicious with rice. 

6. We had a selection of ice cream for pudding; green tea and black sesame seed ice cream. The perfect way to end the meal! 

Pasca x 

Locale

 I came to this restaurant with my friend from university, Little Soph. We live very close to each other and I suppose you could say this was our ‘Local’. It is an Italian restaurant in Fulham - I have been here before and always have a lovely meal. Italian is one of my favourite cuisines because I love a big bowl of pasta, especially in the middle of cold winter after a long day!
 

This cosy, little Italian seems to attract a variety of guests from families to couples to friends. It has quite a sophisticated and sexy cocktail bar and romantic lighting, but it is still family-friendly. I have been to this restaurant in the Summer as well and it´s great as it has an outside terrace with pretty flowers and, as it is tucked away down a neighbourhood road, it is quiet and peaceful. The staff are always really friendly and attentive.

The brick wall and the candles make for a very intimate atmosphere. Although it is cosy and intimate the décor is also very classy and chic with dark wood tables, mahogany coloured chairs and stylish chandeliers!

It was a lovely evening, filled with pasta, pudding and a bottle of wine. We paid £32 each so it was quite pricy but it’s a charming restaurant in a nice area of west London so I wasn’t surprised. We were quite lucky, however, as the couple next to us had a spare ‘£10 off’ voucher which they kindly gave to us.

 Little Soph and I thought we should get different meals to make things more interesting but neither of us could resist the seafood linguini – two of my favourite things: pasta and seafood. It was just delightful and included clams, mussels, calamari, octopus and grilled prawns with a chilli and garlic tomato white wine sauce. The only thing we both thought was a bit of a down factor was the portion sizes. We were both still hungry!

So…pudding was a must-have.

I had this scrumptious warm, chocolate fondant. I always feel that I have to have chocolate when I have pudding. I don’t know why. This fondant was particularly good, and when I ordered it the waitress nodded her head, enthusiastically approving of my choice! It was filled with crushed hazelnuts and warm chocolate sauce and went perfectly with the mascarpone cream. Mouth-watering! Little Soph had Torta di Mele which was an apple tart tartin served with cinnamon ice cream. If chocolate fondant wasn’t on the menu I would have gone for this one.
 

I will definitely be going here again because, although it´s a little pricey, it is inviting and convenient!

Pasca x 

Mien Tay

Yes, ANOTHER Asian restaurant but London is just full of really great Asian food. I came to Mien Tay for Sunday lunch with some school friends. It is a little Vietnamese restaurant in Battersea. The closest station is Clapham Junction so it was a bit of a mission getting here by public transport from Barons Court, but it was well worth it. The food on the menu consists of mainly traditional dishes from the area of Mien Tay. Actually, despite having been to Vietnam, I don’t know much about the food and never thought I was that keen on it. However, my visit to Mien Tay has changed that!

The restaurant was very busy, I arrived earlier than my friends and the staff were all very nice and welcoming and made me feel comfortable! As I was there alone, I heard a few of the other customers talking about their food, and within five minutes I heard two sets of people say how good their meals were and that they wanted to send their compliments to the chef. The restaurant was small and well lit. We sat in the upstairs bit. The tables were very close together but it didn’t matter - it just added to the general atmosphere and felt more authentic as it was like sitting in some sort of hawker centre.

The tables all had large holes in them with little models of Vietnamese villages made out of sticks of wood. Glass covered the tops of the holes so we were able to eat whilst admiring the little models. It made a fun addition to the restaurant.

We began the meal by sharing a couple of starters. We had pawn crackers and fried tofu which were delicious.

As I wasn’t sure what to have for my main meal, I took my friend’s recommendation and had Pho. It was a soup-based bowl of noodles. My Pho had sliced beef in it with bean sprouts, chilies and green veggies. The dish was only £5.50! The prices were extremely reasonable and I’m glad I took his recommendation, as it was very tasty. 

I haven’t had much Vietnamese food in London but I would definitely say this was the best place so far and it has great reviews so I’m not the only one who thinks so. I will go back again.

Pasca x 

Malaysian Melati

I love Malaysian food, I think it’s something like a cross between Chinese and Indian cuisine. It´s all warm and spicy - just delicious! Melati is in Soho, central London,down Great Windmill Street. I like going here because it is on the Piccadilly line which is easy to access from my house :). I went to Melati´s with my two brothers on a Saturday night and it was like a slice of our childhood. 

It was completely packed on the Saturday–full of a huge variety of people but mainly an older crowd dressed up very casually. The restaurant is close by to bars, pubs and nightclubs so conveniently placed for after-dinner drinks. The restaurant is very small, and all the tables are quite closely packed together so makes for an intimate experience. It has simple décor with modest furniture and painted walls but the mood lighting makes it atmospheric. You don’t come here for the venue though – it is all about the amazing food. 

The service is also incredible here. The head waitress is sweet and friendly and is always up for having a conversation with you. She is Malaysian Singaporean and her accent makes me feel so at home with memories of Singapore, where I grew up. We always share dishes at this restaurant, usually getting a meat, a vegetable and a seafood dish to eat with rice. 

About the dishes we decided to indulge in… my photos don’t really do the dishes justice– I was so excited about eating that I forgot to take photos! Through out the meal we all enjoyed a nice cold Tiger beer, which is Singapore’s national beer and probably the only beer I ever really drink and actually like – its easy to drink and very refreshing.

1. To begin with, we had satay and roti prata. The satay dish comes on sticks and we had two chicken, two lamb and two beef. I am generally less interested in chicken but the other two were amazing. We had it with the all-famous satay peanut sauce which I love so much, I kept it to eat with my rice later on in the meal. The roti prata was as tasty as usual. This is one of the best dishes ever. It is a fried flour-based pancake cooked on a flat grill – very simple.It´s served with a curry sauce. Roti Prata can also be cooked with onions and cheese and other ingredients but it is so good as it is that I personally wouldn’t ever add anything!

2. We then had a further three dishes to share. The first one was our chosen vegetable dish - ¨kangkong¨ - and it is first rate. It is water spinach, also known as Morning Glory! It is cooked with olive oil and chili sambol and topped off with little fried anchovies. It´s very spicy and great just with rice.

3. Our second chosen dish was beef rending, which is a spicy caramelized beef curry. If there was one curry I had to eat for the rest of my life, I would choose this one. It is pretty hot, though, – or maybe I’m not used to eating such spicy food anymore!

4. Our third dish was a bit of a disappointment. We usually go for seafood and we decided on prawns,but we wanted to try something different. We chose the ‘Garlic Prawns’. They sounded really nice but then when they came we realized they were deep fried prawns with no sauce. They were still nice but not what we were expecting or hoping for. 

5. Finally, with all of these delicious dishes, I had coconut rice. My brothers had steamed rice but I like coconut rice because it’s a bit richer and creamier– I was being indulgent! 

Pasca x