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Mestizo

Mestizo
103 Hampstead Road
NW1 3EL London

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

The Victims: Gerry, Ben

The Damage: £40ish?

The Background: I went to Mestizo with Gerry and Ben back on May 2nd, but somehow never managed to write up a review. That might be because Gerry and Ben and I had already had our fair share of beverages that day. Mestizo was kinda muddled into this hazy memory of Shakespeare and Stratford-upon-Avon and flowers and trains and pubs and Marylebone Station.

Because, you see, we'd spent the afternoon visiting the birthplace of Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon. And after lunch and with not much else to do before our train, we went on our own little pub crawl. (No place really super memorable to report.)

The train back to London from Stratford-upon-Avon takes a little over two hours, which was just enough time to work up enough hunger that it made sense to talk about dinner plans. Mexican, it's unanimous.

We figured it out with Google Maps. The train gets into Marylebone. We can take a bus east from there to Euston, and then we can walk to Mestizo.

Even More Background: I've been wanting to go to Mestizo for ages because a year or two ago, I went to my friend Con Ann's holiday party and there were a few Mexicans at the party. I asked them what their favorite Mexican place in London was, and they said hands down, Mestizo. They felt it was the most authentic.

The Entrance: We get a table by the window and place our orders. The complimentary chips and salsa are nice, but it's a small portion for three people. Maybe we could have gotten free refills? Not sure. (In most Mexican restaurants in Chicago, the chips and salsa are free and keep coming, and you usually pay a small supplement for the guac.)



The Food: Then we start ordering margaritas (should have taken some photos) and it all gets even hazier after that. I order the Pabellon Criollo, which is described on their menu as, "shredded beef marinated with onion, red and black pepper sauce, fresh garlic and sweet chiles, served with rice and beans." The plantains that arrive with the dish are a nice surprise.

It's all okay, but I find the beans a bit watery and even the shredded beef is too watery. (But maybe that's what the rice is for.) And plus, it all seems a little bit cool. As in not hot. And I feel like, at £12.50, it's a high-margin dish. Maybe the cost is in the spices. I don't know.

Other Items of Note:

• Gerry gets very excited because Mestizo also sells a small variety of mexican products. (Gerry is Costa Rican.) She buys a bunch of stuff before we leave.
  
• We were slightly transfixed by the flat-screen TV which seemed to infinitely loop a program of Mexican dancers.

The Service: A bit surly at first, but she warmed up to us later.

The Verdict: I was disappointed, as you can probably tell from this review.

The Engineer

The Engineer
65 Gloucester Avenue
NW1 8JH
http://www.the-engineer.com

Date of Last Visit: Sunday, 16 November 2008

The Victims: Al, Rutton

The Damage: £45 each for Rutton and Me. £35 for Al.

The Background: First we were six, possibly eight. And then we were three. And one was on time. Two were late. Thank God for Time Out. And St. Peter's Organic. How restaurants put up with us, I don't know.

That being said, I am somewhat proud of Rutton in that he took THE BUS. I have never known him to take the bus. You know there must be a credit crunch going on when this former investment banker (still gainfully employed, but an investment banker no more) takes THE BUS. Hence his lateness. (That being said, he wasn't that late. Maybe 10 minutes?)

While we wait for Al, we enjoy our starters. Tortilla soup for me. Some sort of smoked salmon for him. My soup is very generous. A meal almost in itself. We also start in on our first bottle of Tempernillo.

Rutton likes his salmon so much that he debates ordering another plate, ostensibly to tell Al that we've ordered him a starter. Al arrives just in time to prevent this hoax and we move into mains.

Although I don't normally order chicken in restaurants--it's the one thing I can make for myself--today is just one of those days. It's cold out. And wet. And some roast chicken just seems like such the right thing. Mine (and Rutton's) is served with mash, spinach, and mushrooms. It's a generous portion, and it's pretty good. Is it very good pub food. I'm happy. Al is just as happy with his miso marinated pollock. Although where he puts it, I don't know.

During all this, we polish off another bottle of Tempernillo and start in on some muscat. To go along with our vanilla ice cream. And our bakewell tart.

I know I must have taken the tube home. And the bus. But I'm a little hazy on the details starting about mid-way through that 2nd bottle of Tempernillo.

The Loos: Could really use a good scrubbing.

The Verdict: I liked it here. It did the trick on a Sunday afternoon.

Szechuan: Snazz Sichuan

Snazz Sichuan
37 Chalton Street
NW1 1JD
Tel: 020 7388 0808

Date of Last Visit: Wednesday, April 23

The Victim: Ben

The Damage: £20 each

The Background: A long time ago, I was in either Virgin Music or HMV...one of the ones by Piccadilly. I picked up a random CD by a random band called Cut Copy. I vaguely rememnber that there was a note on the CD saying that some band I liked (whose name escapes me) liked Cut Copy. So I bought the CD. And I fell in love.

Apparently, all of Australia is in love with Cut Copy too because at the Scala on April 23rd, you couldn't swing a dead cat without hitting an Aussie. (Dead cat swinging? Where did this come from?) And the next day, my colleague Andrew--an Aussie living and working in Chicago--noticed my Cut Copy Twitter and commented on his excessive jealousy. Cut Copy rocked the house, and the Scala is a good place to see a show. (Loved the sound-proof bar overlooking the floor.)

Anyhow, before any house-rocking got started, Ben and I had dinner at London Szechuan/Sichuan Snazz. Now I should mention that Ben is married, and in a three day period, I had dinner alone with two married men. (My friend Jason was in town from Swaziland on Friday and we had some nasal-passage-clearing wasabi rolls and assorted sushi at Life on Old Street  on Friday night.) Man, I get around.

The Food: I like the food at Snazz. We had the ma po tofu, which was probably my favorite dish. And some green beans, which were nice and crispy with a little fire to them. And then some kung pao chicken, which was great as well. Very peanut-y, which I liked.

The Funny Bit: I ordered some tap water. Our server told me that she wasn't allowed to bring me tap water. I could only have bottled water. Now firstly, I think this is illegal. Secondly, she failed to realize that we were sitting right by the men's room, where there was lots and lots of tap water. Ben made about five trips to the men's room to fill up our beer glasses during the course of our meal. It was fantastically funny. To me, anyhow. Serves them right. Not allowed to serve tap water...give me a break!

Also, Snazz is up the road from a what might appear to be a tanning parlour. But it's so not a tanning parlour.

The Loos: Dirty, dirty, dirty.

The Verdict: I'll go back for the ma po tofu.

And don't forget to vote...

British: Market

Market
43 Parkway
NW1 7PN
Tel: 020 7267 9700

Date of Last Visit: A Saturday night recently.

Victims: Al & Louise

Damage: £35ish for starter, main, dessert and lots of tap water.

The Background: We have been planning for ages to have an international dinner club, where we go all over London in search of interesting ethnic restaurants. Unfortunately for us, just like the French server I mentioned the other day, we too seem to be suffering from a bit of ennui. Outside of one sparsely attended Ethiopian meal, we've yet to make this a regular occurance.

Our tentative plans to head to New Malden for Korean fall through. So I suggest Market in Camden, which Dos Hermanos liked.

I read online that there's a small step into the restaurant, and to watch out for it because a lot of people fall INTO the restaurant. "A lot of people" is right. As our meal progresses, I lose track of the number of people who fall into Market. Someone is going to hit their head soon--if they haven't already. These guys need a ramp. Or a sign. Or both. I see stiches in Market's future. Maybe even a law suit!

Starter: Goat cheese tart. Too gooey. I am jealous of Lou's pig's head terrine.

Main: Pork belly. Side of dull knife. Crispy crackling. This was a bit of a challenge until I procured a sharper implement.

Service: Forgot to tell us about the specials. Wouldn't let Louise order her steak well-done. (Never ask well-done of a French server.) Other server was much better.

Wine List: VERY affordable.

The Verdict: Everyone seems to like this place. By everyone, I mean my boyfriend, famous London restaurant critic Giles Coren. I love Giles*. But I don't love Market.

*Giles isn't really my boyfriend. Except when I close my eyes.

Crepes: The Creperie

The Creperie
95 The Stables Market
Camden Market

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, December 29th

The Victim: Me

The Damage: £5 or thereabouts, with a Diet Coke

The Background: I am wandering around looking at Danish furniture again. Thank God I've completed the table and chairs purchase. Now it's time for a sideboard.

Instead, I buy an ice bucket. A teak ice bucket. For £34.

I'm crazy. But at least I took the tube and not a taxi there and back.

The Food: So me and my ice bucket saddle up to The Creperie for a late lunch. I really wanted an arepa, but the guys must have been away for the holidays. So crepe it was.

I went savo(u)ry. For the daily special. Ham and cheese and spinach.

The ham was cheap ham. The cheese was congealed. The spinach tasted like old, wet spinach.

I threw it away. And I took my ice bucket and skedaddled.

The Verdict: Uggh. Plus...they were selling mulled wine for £2 and hot apple cider for £1. But the sign for the apple cider was obscured, so a couple of people just figured the £2 was the price of the apple cider too. I would have thought the same. As I was waiting for my crepe, I listed to the dudes behind the counter talk about how funny it was, that everyone was paying £2 for the apple cider when it was only £1. So not only was my crepe pretty gross, but they're rip off artists too.

Catch-Up: This list is more for me than for you, but I've got a lot of catching up to do...St. John in Archway, Le Garrick off of Covent Garden, Big Red in Holloway, No. 5 off of Oxford Circus, Westbourne House in Westbourne Grove...

Arepas in Camden, Gilgamesh, and The Cuban

The Date: Sunday, July 8, 2007

The Victim: Stacey

The Damage: Well, it was probably something like £40, but I loaned Stace some money so she could buy some fab dresses and she insisted on paying for a lot more than she should have from there on out.

The Background: It's funny...I've just been on the phone to Rutton (it's 8 p.m. on a Sunday as a write this), and I told him about my day. And he said, "You're very good at planning your weekends."

And that gave me pause. Because although I'd so like that to be true, it's not. I'm a planner, for sure, but planners can't plan alone.

So yesterday, I was supposed to go over to Al & Louise's for a barbecue with baby Oscar. (Al & Louise have the distinction of being this American gal's "English friends.") At 8:30 a.m., I checked my phone and there was a message from Al that said something like...

"Stuck my head in a bucket of PIMS last night. I'm dying. Barbecue is off. Sorry."

So that left me wondering what to do next. (Cue Al Green, Tired of Being Alone.) Result? I read Vogue. I read Travel & Leisure. I update my blog. I start the dinner music mix for Matt & Feathers' wedding. I hang out on my patio. I rent a car in Mexico. I call my friend Brian who is somewhere in the Middle East. I pick things up, I put things down. In short, I do nothing until around 8:30 p.m. when I head over to Au Lac for dinner with Chris & Evelien.

Fast forward to Sunday morning. I have plans to have brunch with K&A. I get back from my run around 10:30 a.m. and there's a text from K...they're not feeling very brunchlike. How about dinner on Tuesday instead?

Sigh. Cue Al Green again. The best laid plans.

Enter Stacey and a "What are you doing?" text around 1 p.m. And a trip to Camden. And the most delicious lunch ever...arepas from Arepa & Co, live from Venezuela. An arepa is a cornmeal patty. I love cornmeal. I love grits, corn bread, corn muffins...and arepas. Ours were stuffed with beef, beans, and cheese. They were super-delicious. You should get one sometime. Get me one too while you're at it. Or e-mail me first and we'll go together.

And then...we went to Gilgamesh...
Camden Stables Market
Chalk Farm Rd
NW1 8AH
Tel: 020 7482 5757

Have you read about Gilgamesh? Well, it's huge. And you take an escalator to get there. And there's a lot of carved wood. It reminds me of a hotel in a small city in China. It's trying really hard from a decor standpoint. But at 3 p.m. on a Sunday afternoon when the market is packed, Gilgamesh is empty.

We are shown to the bar area and we wait forever for someone to take our order. We just get drinks. Fruity cocktails. They are actually quite pleasing, but they're pricey. £9.50 maybe? Eventually, our server drops off some complimentary prawn crackers. And an hour or so later when she gives us our bill, it's £5.23. :) I was so very tempted. But the Catholic guilt kicks in.

I go to the ladies and I am again reminded of being in a hotel in small city in China. There is a mop bucket and some mops in the stairwell, as well as some red velvet ropes. Dude, that stuff should be in a closet. And in the ladies', there are orange traffic cones. Because apparently, they're about to start some roadwork. How random.

We tried to eat, but they wouldn't let us, despite having a bar menu. Apparently, they don't serve any food between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. Not even food from steam baskets. (You know, because that's hard.) Bummer. But we can have some more prawn crackers.

Stacey and I decide that we would maybe come back to hang out at Gilgamesh. It's in a good location, and the decor is sorta cool. And it's so weirdly bizarre. Although I do pray for the rainforests. 

So...in our search for sustenance, we decide on a CHANGE of VENUE!

The Cuban
The Long Stables
Chalk Farm Road
NW1 8AH
Tel: 02074240692

Well, we like The Cuban immediately because there is live music. And the band rocks. And every so often, a few people get up to dance. It's fun.

We get some mojitos, and we get some food. It's bar food...quesadillas (with goat cheese?), croquettas, and something The Cuban calls Nachos, but I call "the bottom of the tortilla chip bag, with some sour cream spread on top." Yikes. Nachos are the easiest thing to get right...why do so many (non-American, non-Mexican) people screw them up?

But then I got thinking--what if they got the Arepas guys to come in and make Arepas? (I've had arepas in Puerto Rico, so I am guessing that Cubans do arepas too?) That would be a sure hit.

The Verdict: Love Arepa & Co. Intrigued by Gilgamesh, but frightened as well. Had fun at The Cuban, but wouldn't eat there and would only go back if I knew that there were many mojitos were in my future.

Cool Italian: Sardo Canale

42 Gloucester Avenue
NW1 8JD
Tel: 020 7722 2800

Date of Last Visit: Tuesday, August 15, 2006

The Victims: Me, myself and I

The Damage: 22 quid

The Background: I took a couple of days off work to catch up on life. I forgot how time-consuming and EXPENSIVE life in London can be, particularly when one has a couple of errands to run, and credit card fraud is a serious problem. Here's my day yesterday:

8:30 a.m.: Wake up. Make coffee. Milk has gone bad b/c UK milk isn't as highly pasturized as US milk so milk only lasts 6 -8 days. Uggh.
8:50 a.m.; Stand in line at post office to mail 1 letter to the US and 2 locals. Cost: 1.52p.
9 a.m. Drop off wash. (I let the drycleaner do my sheets and towels for 5 gbp a load.) Cost: 10 gbp.
9:30 a.m. Back at drycleaner with real drycleaning. Cost: 35 gbp.
10 a.m.: Call Credit Card Company #1 because they've locked me out of my card because I tried to buy a laptop on Saturday. They were just being safe.
10:10 a.m.: Call Bank because I tried to buy furniture last week and my card was rejected.
10:15 a.m. Call Credit Card Company #2 because when #1 failed, I used #2--my US back-up card--and they called my Mom on Saturday in the US to confirm purchase. Post-purchase.
10:30 a.m.: Board bus for John Lewis. Cost: 1.50
10:50 a.m. Drop off pictures at John Lewis for framing. Cost: 110 gbp.
11:15 a.m: Get eyebrows threaded at Selfridges. 15 gbp + 1.50 tip.
11:45 a.m: Buy new underwear at M&S. It was time. Cost: 110 gbp.
12:30 p.m.: Stock up on essentials at Boots. 20 gbp.
1:00 p.m.: Drop off shoes to be reheeled. Only in London, folks. They can't be fixed by tomorrow, so hold one pair for neighborhood guy that I should have gone to in first place. 7 gbp.
1:30 p.m.: Give neighborhood guy my pair of shoes that MUST be fixed by tomorrow. 10.50 gbp.
2:00  p.m.: Ponder printers at PC World. Almost spend 200 gbp. Wisely put it all back.
2:30 p.m. Home.
Total Damage: 322.02 gbp. And I didn't even EAT!

So I digress, as always. My point it, I was just very tired an in need of a good meal. And I really wanted to go to Camden. So this morning, Tuesday, I woke up bright and early and set off for the market, figuring I'd work up a hunger. I did a little research before heading over and had narrowed my choices to Gilgamesh (it had an escalator--frightening--and it looked empty), Le Petite Train (a long walk, only to discover they were closed), and the Camden Brasserie (looked good--I just wanted to check out my other ptions).

When I discovered Le Petite Train to be closed, I made my way back to Camden, hoping to pick up the trail along the canal. As I was heading down the steps to the canal debating my next meal (at this juncture, the Mexican stand in Camden Market was an option), I spied a cute little restaurant--Sardo Canale--tucked alongside the canal and the overpass. I stopped in.

I was quickly shown a table and then left alone with no menu, but with some delicious little olives and carrots. The people next to me were loud talkers and there was no one else around, so I was annoyed. But I had TimeOut to keep me busy. Bummer part being that there's no view of the canal in Sardo Canale.
Eventually, they brought me the menu and I opted for the set menu--prociutto to start, and veal and potatoes for my main.

The Starters: The bread basket was HUGE. I wondered if a table for 5 would get the same size bread basket I did. They must have realized I was very very hungry. They provided me with some very delicious olive oil. I quickly gobbled two slices of bread, Atkins be damned. And then my ham arrived and I was disappointed. It looked like supermarket ham. It was on a bed of rocket, with a little oil sprinkled on it, and some cheese-substance. Hmmm. How not-so-exciting looking.
Never, my friends, judge a book by its cover. Your mother was RIGHT. I ate it, and it was good. Very very good. The cheese--they should have given me more of that cheese!!! What is this delicious substance? Bring me more!

The Main: I like veal. And I like potatoes. But my mother always provided a vegetable at mealtimes, so I was perturbed. I needed just a little something else. The veal was good. The potatoes were good. But they needed a little something to tie them together. More cheese perhaps?

The Toilets: Very clean. Well kept. Good job.

The Verdict: I'd go here for a business lunch. It's a little too formal for me. The food was good. I think if I went back, I wouldn't order the lunch/dinner special--I'd go more a la carte. But give me some cheese and I'll order anything you want me to.

Gastropub: Queen's Head and Artichoke

30-32 Albany Street
NW1 4EA
Tel: 020 7916 6206
Date of Last Visit: Early October

The Victim: Bevin

So occassionally, my American boss comes into town and takes me out to dinner and I get to pick. I like gastropubs, so I chose one but then Bevin was running late so I had to choose something else and I like Artichokes so I chose this place. Yes, purely because of the name.

They have a nice tapas theme which is fun so we got a bunch of those. I was a bit disappointed in the calamari though because it was VERY fried. And that's no fun. We got some olives and they were delicious. And some artichokes and they were delicious too. I got the lamb and mine was very dry. I remember chewing and chewing and chewing on one particular chunk--too much.

Bevin got the pork I think and she liked hers, but not as much as she liked the food at The House, which she won't stop talking about, and well, neither will I. (I love The House!) Service was good, but annoying in that they kept interrupting us and then eventually kicked us out which was no fun. This 11 pm thing! Goodness.

The Verdict: I probably wouldn't go back. It was good, and if it were my local, I'd probably be fine. But it's not my local, so I won't go back.