Archive for the ‘London’ Category

David Langlands’ Christmas - London

Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008

Above: Hambleton Hall, Oakham, Leicestershire

I thought it only fitting, as this is the first Christmas for this weblog, to post this article by the late David Langlands, a good friend and brilliant writer. It originally appeared in the December issue of our publication, “The Good Life” a Dining & Travel Newsletter in 1981. It has been left intact, wherever possible, and only amended and edited to bring it up-to-date and enhanced with a few photos:

At Christmas play and make good cheer
For Christmas comes but once a year.

So run the 16th century lines, and nowadays one can feel only profound relief that this should be so, such is the squalid commercialism that has overtaken the traditional festival. The images one cherishes of the old-fashioned Christmas tend to be illusory: only seldom does it snow, a fat goose is hard to find, even the carol singers rattle collecting tins. But there are compensations.
Perhaps on Christmas Eve a dinner of celebration in the handsome Dorchester Grill, where the best of British cooking was originally resurrected under the guiding hand and spectacular talents of Anton Mosimann and revitalized with style by Udo Schlentrich, formerly of the Regency on Park Avenue is now provided by 34 year old Head Chef Aiden Byrne, that have previously won him Michelin stars, followed by the midnight service at St. Margaret’s Westminster. An evening of sensual and spiritual delight. Indeed, the Dorchester with the opening of Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester is once again one of the best addresses in London due to the Grill and is further displayed in the lavishly decorated, Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, which opened last year and where the menu suprises are justly famous.

An alternative could be an expedition to the country, in itself a pleasure despite the probability of foul weather; for in Lord Tweedsmuir’s words, “It is the English winter that intoxicates more even than the English May, for the noble bones of the land are bare, and you get the essential savour of earth and wood and water.” We are richly blessed with country hotels of charm and quality.
Of them all none is dearer to my heart than Gidleigh Park, set on the edge of Dartmoor above the infant Teign. Paul and Kay Henderson’s Edwardian house allies immense comfort, cuisine of rare finesse, a very remarkable cellar with certainly the strongest California list in England, to a happy atmosphere of genuine kindliness. One feels a great sense of peace and well-being here. Native British hoteliers might ponder the fact that this retreat is the achievement of Americans with no formal training in the field.
Editors Note: The property has been sold to the new proprietors: Andrew and Christina Brownsword, and ably guided by General Manager: Sue Williams and Executive Chef: Michael Caines MBE. It will be operated, as in the past, adhering to the highest standards.

Similar in style is Hambleton Hall, on the edge of Rudland Water, some 100 miles north of London. This is the recent and personal creation of Tim and Stefa Hart, enlightened amateurs also, and their Victorian house provides the solid comfort of the period. In the kitchen, Michelin star Chef, Aaron Patterson whose experience, shows a youthful virtuosity. A link to the dinner menu follows:
http://www.hambletonhall.com/?dining/a-la-carte

Nearer to London, only 30 miles south but hard to discover, is Gravetye Manor. Peter Herbert’s splendid Elizabethan house stands in a veritable and historic garden. The walk down to the lake, or rather the stiff climb back from it, is calculated to repair any excesses prompted by subtle skills in the kitchen. The public rooms are infinitely relaxing with their paneling and paintings, fine furniture and great log fires. Bedrooms, ancient and modern alike, are comfortable—the former are more fun and reinforce the sense of pleasurable escapism.
Editors Note: Peter Herbert arrived at Gravetye in 1958 and captivated by this property and its setting, he had the revolutionary idea of injecting his own exceptional hotel keeping and restaurant standards into this rural spot. Over 40 years on, Gravetye has lost none of its edge. It has a timeless quality - not trendy, and yet not aged and stuffy. Although only 30 miles from Hyde Park Corner the thousand acre forest in which it is set has resisted development.
In April 2004, General Manager, Andrew Russell and Chef de Cuisine, Mark Raffan, both of whom had worked for the Herbert Family for over seventeen years, purchased the hotel. They both have a great affection and affiliation with this historic house and garden. They are both delighted to be able to continue the philosophy of great country house hospitality and also to maintaining and nurturing this historically important garden.

The Dorchester Park Lane
London W1K 1QA
England
Tel: +44 20 7629 8888
Fax: +44 20 7629 8080
E-mail: info@thedorchester.com
E-mail: reservations@thedorchester.com
($$$)
Gidleigh Park Hotel, Chatford, Devon. Tel: 01647 432367, Email: gidleighpark@gidleigh.co.uk
($$$)
Hambleton Hall, Oakham, Leicestershire. Tel: 0572 56991
Tel: +44 (0) 1572 756 991
Fax: +44 (0) 1572 724 721
Email: info@hambletonhall.com
($$)
Gravetye Manor, West Hoathly, West Sussex. Tel: 0342 810567
telephone: +44 1342 810567
facsimile: +44 1342 810080
email: info@gravetyemanor.co.uk
($$$)

Langan’s Brasserie - London

Friday, November 28th, 2008

Above: a rare copy of the menu heading for Langan’s Brasserie in Century City, Los Angeles

Peter Langan was on the loose in Los Angeles when I was introduced to him, partly because his partners chef, Richard Sheperd and actor, Michael Caine found it more convenient to have Peter absent from London’s Langan’s Brasserie rather than under a table biting Princess Margaret’s leg and causing other disruptions. He was about to sign a really unfavorable lease agreement with the Beverly Center for the corner of the ground floor on LaCienega and Beverly Boulevards, which I managed to persuade him to abandon.

The caricature of Peter Langan on the menu of Langan’s Brasserie in Century City followed the style of the Langan’s London menu however, the operation in Los Angeles unfortunately for everyone, fell under the control of a partner and former New York garment district trader who knew absolutely nothing about running a restaurant and Peter was banned from entering the restaurant from the day of its opening. It was doomed to failure; as it was run in the style of a boutique restaurant rather than the inexpensive 600 seat brasserie that Peter had envisioned, where taxi drivers and film biz people would dine together, albeit in different sections the demarcations unknown to the general public.

I dined with friends a few times at Langan’s Brasserie on Stratton Street just off Piccadilly previous to meeting Peter in Los Angeles. When invited there on Peter’s request after we met, I moved from one table to the next where he continued to open bottle after bottle of Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle, nursing a glass for awhile while chatting, and then moving on to another table where finally he had a tally of almost as many bottles open as there were tables in the section near the bar. The walls, filled with works by David Hockney, whom Peter referred to, in the most sincere way being good friends, as “the house painter”. Patrick Procktor, another artist who was a close friend, painted a mural of Venice on the walls of the first floor Venetian Room. At Odins, another restaurant in the Langan’s stable, and as Peter often told me, “the restaurant with the best food” was filled with art that Peter had bartered, canvases in exchange for food and drink over the years.

There are so many stories to tell working with this eccentric character and certainly way too many for this post. I will be writing about some of the most amusing, although they were not considered as such at the time, in the future in these pages.

Below: the main dining room downstairs at Langan’s Brasserie on Stratton Street, London

Nobu Matsuhisa - Global Sushi Expansion

Sunday, November 9th, 2008

Nobu Matsuhisa has built an empire of Japanese restaurants beginning in the United States and branching out over three continents along with his current partners Robert De Niro, Meir Teper and Richard Notar.
His training included working at a well-known sushi bar in Tokyo before traveling to Peru where he opened a sushi bar and found that his classic training in sushi was put to the test by his discovery of entirely new ingredients, and he responded with originating some very innovative new styles of serving raw fish. He opened his first sushi restaurant in the United States in Beverly Hills in 1987 and in 1994 opened Nobu in New York City with actor Robert De Niro and restaurateur Drew Nieporent. Presently, he is expanding his global-network of Japanese sushi restaurants internationally with his current partners.

I dined many times at his first restaurant in Beverly Hills on La Cienega Boulevard and quite often when it first opened, as I was living in the area. When I moved to the West Side of Los Angeles I did not go as frequently, although I recall the time that we brought a Japanese monk to dine there with a couple of Japanese friends, he was dressed in a pure silk robe the size of a horse-blanket and he weighed almost 400 lbs., we sat at the sushi bar and as the meal drew to a close the monk told the sushi man, “make four tuna hand rolls”. The sushi man politely asked, “who are these for sir”? “For me”, he said firmly. The sushi man watched in amazement as the monk ate the large cone shaped hand-rolls one by one, and this, after consuming a great quantity of food just previously. Although, he was a huge man after all!

Following are locations and information on branches as of 2008:

USA

Beverly Hills
129 N. La Cienega Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Tel: 310-659-9639
Fax: 310-659-0492
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 11:45 – 2:15
Monday – Sunday (Dinner) 5:45 – 10:15

Los Angeles
903 North La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90069
Tel. 310-657-5711
Fax. 310-657-4299
Hours:
Dinner: Monday-Thursday 6 - 11:15
Friday - Saturday 6 - Midnight
Bar: Monday - Thursday 5:30 - 11:15
Bar: Friday - Saturday 5:30 - Midnight
Bar: Sunday 5:30 - 10:15

Malibu
3835 Cross Creek Road #18A
Malibu, CA 90265
Tel: 310-317-9140
Fax: 310-317-9136
Hours:
Sunday – Thursday 5:45 – 10:00
Friday – Saturday 5:45 – 11:00

Aspen
303 East Main St.
Aspen, CO 81611
Tel: 970-544-6628
Fax: 970-544-6630
Opening hours changes seasonally

Las Vegas
Hard Rock Hotel
4455 Paradise Rd.
Las Vegas, NV 89109
Tel : 702-693-5090
Fax: 702-693-5091
Hours: Daily 6 - 11:15

Miami Beach
Shore Club
1901 Collins Ave.
Miami Beach, FL 33139
Tel : 305-695-3232
Fax: 305-695-3246
Hours:
Monday – Thursday 7:00 – 12:00am
Friday & Saturday 7:00 – 1:00am
Sunday 7:00 – 11:00

New York City

Nobu New York City
105 Hudson
New York, NY 10013
Tel : 212-219-0500
Fax: 212-219-1441
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 11:45 – 2:15
Monday – Sunday (Dinner) 5:45 – 10:15

Nobu Next Door
105 Hudson
New York, NY 10013
Tel : 212-334-4445
Fax: 212-334-0044
Hours:
Monday – Thursday (Dinner) 5:45 – 12:00am
Friday & Saturday (Dinner) 5:45 – 1:00am
Sunday (Dinner) 5:45 – 11:00

Nobu Fifty Seven
40 West 57th Street
New York, NY 10019
Tel : 212-757-3000
Fax: 212-757-6330
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 11:45 – 2:15
Monday – Sunday (Dinner) 5:45 – 11:15

HAWAII

Nobu Waikiki
Waikiki Parc Hotel
2233 Helumoa Road
Honolulu, HI 96815
Tel : 808-237-6999
Fax : 808-237-6990
Hours:
Daily 5:30 – 11:00

DALLAS
Hotel Crescent Court
400 Crescent Court
Dallas, TX 75201
Tel : 214-252-7000
Fax: 214-252-7001
Hours:
Sunday 6:00 – 10:00
Monday Friday 6:00 – 11:00
Saturday 5:30 – 11:00

INTERNATIONAL

NOBU LONDON
The Metropolitan Hotel
19 Old Park Lane
London, W1Y 4LB, U.K.
Tel : +44-20-7447-4747
Fax: +44-20-7447-4749
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 12:00 2:15
Saturday – Sunday (Lunch) 12:30 – 2:30
Monday – Friday (Dinner) 6:00 – 10:15
Saturday (Dinner) 6:00 – 11:15
Sunday (Dinner) 6:00 – 9:45

NOBU BERKELEY ST.
15 Berkeley St.
London, W1J 8DY, U.K.
Tel : 011-44-20-7290-9222
Fax: 011-44-20-7290-9223
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 12:00 – 2:15
Monday – Wednesday (Dinner) 6:00 – 11:00
Thursday – Saturday (Dinner) 6:00 – 12:00
Sunday (Dinner) 6:00 – 9:15

UBON by NOBU (CLOSED)
34 Westferry Circus
Canary Wharf
London, E14 8RR, U.K.
Tel : 011-44-20-7719-7800
Fax: 011-44-20-7719-7801
TBA

NOBU TOKYO
4-1-28 Toranomon, Minato-ku,
Toranomon Towers 1st  Fl.
Tokyo, 105-0001 Japan
Tel : +81-(0)3-5733-0070
Fax: +81-(0)3-5733-0065
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 11:30 – 3:00
Monday – Saturday (Dinner) 6:00 – 11:30
Sunday & Holiday (Dinner) 6:00 – 11:00
Hours:
Monday – Friday (Lunch) 12:00 2:15
Saturday – Sunday (Lunch) 12:30 – 2:30
Monday – Friday (Dinner) 6:00 – 10:15
Saturday (Dinner) 6:00 – 11:15
Sunday (Dinner) 6:00 – 9:45

NOBU MILANO
20121 Milano, ITALY
Tel : 011-44-20-7719-7800
Fax: 011-44-20-7719-7801
Hours:
Monday – Saturday (Lunch) 12:00 – 2:30
Monday – Sunday (Dinner) 7:00 – 11:30

MATSUHISA MYKONOS
Belvederc Hotel
School of Fine Arts District,
84600 Mykonos, GREECE
Tel : +30-22890-27362
Fax: +30-22890-25126
Hours:
Daily 8:00pm – 1:30am
Open Seasonally

NOBU INTERCONTINENTAL
NOBU HONG KONG
18 Salisbury Road.
Kowloon Hong Kong
Tel : 011-44-20-7719-7800
Fax: 011-44-20-7719-7801
Hours:
Daily (Lunch) 12:00 – 2:30
Daily (Dinner) 6:00 – 11:00

NOBU MELBOURNE
Crown Melbourne Australia
8 Whiteman Street
Southbank Vic 3006
Australia

Trailer Happiness Bar - London

Tuesday, August 19th, 2008

177 Portobello Road
London, W11 2DY
Tel.+44 (0)207 727 2700
Opening Hours: Tues-Fri: 5pm-1am; Sat:7pm-1am; Sun: 6pm-10.30pm

Think Tiki drinks and you immediately imagine the South Pacific and Trader Vic’s, and when prepared properly, there is nothing more thirst-quenching than a tropical cocktail and Tiki mixologist, Dale DeGroff can mix a mean drink including the dangerous, incendiary kind. Set in trendy Notting Hill on the boho-chic Portobello, the décor is coconut retro kitsch, with dark walls and the odd Tretchikoff on the wall, South Africa’s master of the kitsch genre.
The crowd is typical Notting Hill cool, which includes celebrities, media tarts and fashionistas.

Nibbles: Uncle Leroy’s Lamb & Lemon Racks, Alabama Black Snake Sesame Shrimp, Dr. Jay’s Green Chilli Fireballs, Trailer Happiness Smokin’ Sausage Salsa and Where You Been All My Life? Crispy Roast Duck.

A garlanded plastic hula-girl stands at the top of the stairway that leads down to this basement bar, which is more tacky and heavy on kitsch than you could shake a plastic palm tree at, and fortunately for you, the climb downhill is to enter and not upon leaving!

Global or Bust - British Restaurant Expansion

Monday, March 31st, 2008

The other day an English friend of mine mentioned that he read an article outlining plans of certain high-profile British chefs to expand their operations overseas, and I had to grin, as this is definitely a big switch. It will be interesting to see what the French think about it.

Gordon Ramsay, the three-star Michelin chef is one of the most prominent of those who have already opened ventures overseas, and is now in the process of opening another series of restaurants destined for foreign capitals. In his case, the Los Angeles restaurant is under construction and poised to open March 2008 in the London Hotel called, not surprisingly, Gordon Ramsay.

It was not hard to understand that most of these new ventures are targeting the Middle East in cities such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates; as there are a plethora of investors ready to take the plunge and even more well-heeled customers anxious to make a booking.

Expanding globally is not without its risks, as it is difficult enough to open another branch across the city, not to mention halfway around the globe.

Mr. Ramsay will have his work cut out for him to convince the French that a Brit can succeed in Michelin-starred turf when he opens this spring in Versailles, a short distance from Paris, at the Trianon Palace.