Food and Drink

    The pub scene is thriving in London right now, but with such a proliferation of new craft bars, gastro ventures and costly refurbishments, how do you separate the wheat from the chaff? Well, we’ve compiled a list of the top ten real ale pubs in London to help you navigate the mire. To be clear, we're not talking about brewery-owned gems or the many bars masquerading as real ale pubs. We're talking about independent tap rooms with a no-frills...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Famous for its bustling restaurant and street food scene, Shoreditch has been sadly devoid of wholesome, reasonably priced Spanish food – until now. Having opened earlier this year, the Shoreditch branch of Tapas Revolution is the third from chef Omar Allibhoy, and the first stand-alone spot, with restaurants already open in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush and Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent. Striving to continue the mission of bringing his own interpretation of tapas bars to...

A tofu recipe for vegetarians and meat-eaters, alike.

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food If the opening of higher-end restaurants from city lunch break outlets such as Pret A Manger and PAUL, over the past year or so, are anything to go by, it looks as though this increasingly popular step will become a huge food trend for 2016. In which case, it’s probably just a matter of time before EAT, itsu and Wasabi begin to introduce an a la carte menu, waiting staff and a dinner service....

By Chris Hemmings, (@hemmch) Whilst Mexican may not be top of everybody’s list of ‘eat out’ spots, Barrio Central has revamped, and is making a strong case for you custom. With the re-opening they’ve really mixed things up with their broad new range of simple, tasty dishes, ideal as a preamble to a night on the town. It’s an intimate venue, particularly upstairs, and certainly not too fancy. The decor is loud and adventurous, but there’s a decent array of cocktails...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Set up as the brainchild of Oslo-based food lovers David Carter Shinn and Christian Isaksen, Neeach is the first social network built exclusively for food lovers, having officially launched last month. Jumping on board as part of a growing trend that focuses on online communities, Neeach is an open network for like-minded UK food lovers to connect and share trends, ideas and opinions all in one place. What’s more, adhering to the open nature...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food Brewed: San Francisco, California Strength: 6% ABV As was the case with last week’s pick, our beer of the week is, once again a seasonal beer from America. Brewed by Anchor Brewing Company – America’s first craft beer source, it’s unsurprising that the Californian brewery’s autumnal favourite is made using maple leaves, paying homage to the native Californian tree. Blending two caramel malts, pale malt and a hint of maple syrup, what’s most prominent...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food It comes as no surprise that five of the six new pubs included in Michelin’s Eating Out In Pubs Guide for 2016 are in West London. While most classic London pub ideals are based on those in the East end, but when it comes to great 21st century London pubs, plenty have been cropping up in the West over the past couple of years, and now there’s a brand new contendor to rival such...

By Jack Peat, Editor of The London Economic  Take Interstate 5 through Seattle and you will find yourself traversing one of the most iconic coffee trails in the World. Heading downtown you pass Elm and Slate Coffee Roasters on 2nd Av before hitting the behemoth Starbucks Reserve Roastery on Pike Street. You skirt Vitrola and Stumptown Roasters and the renowned Ugly Mug café heading north, accounting for a huge swathe of the coffee supply chain in America and world-wide. Seattle’s rise...