dines twice at Hutong, at The Shard

Plumptious kung pao prawns

I love Northern Chinese cuisine, so have wanted to go to Hutong for some time now. Having finally managed to obtain a table last week, I've been twice in a week.  Why?  Well - on the first occasion we were so impressed by the plumptious kung pao prawns that I just had to have some more!

dines at Sant Pau, Sant Pol del Mar

Sant Pau, the flagship of Carme Ruscalleda, is based in the small town of Sant Pol de Mar, just north of Barcelona. Right on the sea, the restaurant's raison d'être is seasonality and local produce, though often cooked in unexpected ways.  Carme also runs a restaurant in Tokyo, and her strong Japanese influences are palpable.  When we visited, the restaurant was celebrating the 9th anniversary of the Toyko opening, and a number of dishes originated at the Tokyo San Pau.

dines at Lasarte, Barcelona

Lasarte is the Barcelona outpost of the Basque chef Martín Berasategui, and the kitchen is run by Paolo Casagrande.  The restaurant is spaciously laid out, and the tiles on the walls replicate the Gaudi tiles on the Paseo de Gracia - a nice touch.

We were impressed by the ingenuity of the menu, and for the most part dishes were very well judged and delivered, both in terms of presentation, quality of ingredients and presentation.

dines at Moments, Barcelona

Moments, at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, is the Barcelona outpost of Carme Ruscalleda's Sant Pau restaurant at Sant Pol del Mar.  The kitchen is run by Carme's son, Raül Balam, and serves Catlan food in a modern style.

dines at Enoteca, Barcelona

I'm in Barcelona, it's 20ºC on the terrace, and Femme D'Argent is blasting on my headphones - what's not to love?

Add to that an agenda that includes three 2* Michelin restaurants, and one 3*, and you know my mood is going to be relaxed, expansive, and happy...

lunches at Blanc Brasserie, Barcelona

The Blanc Brasserie is the main restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental in Barcelona, though they also have the Michelin starred Moments.

Food is well executed, and the kitchen turn out a wide variety of Catalan, Spanish and Oriental dishes.  We particularly enjoyed the miso octopus, which was succulent and tender, and I loved the inclusion of pink peppercorns in the yakitori which gave it a piquancy not usually found.

lunches at Holder and Hartnett, at Lime Wood...

When I mention that I spend half my time in the New Forest, people push me for hotel and restaurant recommendations... And the problem with the Forest is that it is a destination - over ten million people pour into it to it every year to camp, trek, and cycle through the woods, and sail out of the beautiful harbours - consequently, a great proportion of the restaurants in the area cater for the tourist market.

lunches at Galvin at Windows...

Galvin at Windows, my favourite restaurant with a view... Perched high above London on top of the Hilton, it's has enviable vistas from every window. The greatest joy is that no matter how many times you've been, you notice something new...

I was meeting up with my darling Valerie and the effervescent Sarah (she of the excellent Brock Hall Farm goat's cheese).  Galvin was unanimously chosen as our venue - indeed Valerie and I became friends because of Galvin - we're both utterly addicted to André Garrett's foie gras, duck pastilla and date consommé - it's one of our favourite dishes anywhere.

dines at Sumosan...

Mayfair's Sumosan is one of three restaurants worldwide run by the Wolkow family.  It's one of the trendier Japanese restaurants, with groovy music, dimmed lighting and excellent cocktails.

lunches at le Champignon Sauvage...

We visited Cheltenham during a blizzard in January, and though our shooting ended up being cancelled, we were very happy to have the opportunity to visit le Champignon Sauvage.

David and Helen Everitt-Matthias first opened lCS in 1987, and have held two Michelin stars for thirteen years.  David has also won the National Chef of the Year competition, and has three excellent cookbooks to his name, all of which I adore, and which I dragged along to be signed by David.

lunches at The Jetty

It may be a grey, wintry day, but there is nothing to cheer the soul like a sea view, with scudding clouds, and wading birds floating above a reflective sea...  Even better then, if you can take-in that view from within a warm, bright and glass wrapped haven.

The Jetty appears to float above Christchurch Harbour - all weathered wood, sparkling glass and steel - it's perched like a launching boat, next to the grey waters.   It is run by by Alex Aitken, who has cooked in the New Forest for over twenty-five years.  At le Poussin he held a Michelin star, and he moved to The Jetty in 2010.

lunches at Plateau...

Plateau in Canary Wharf has always been a bit of a stalwart in the Wharf's firmament, though arriving somewhat later than many of the restaurants.  It boasts good views over the Wharf, a bar, grill, restaurant, and a glass encased kitchen which acts as a room divider.  I'd eaten endlessly in Plateau when I lived in the Wharf, but hadn't been back for some time - certainly not in the time of Allan Pickett, the current Head Chef.  OboTheClown (sic), Valerie and I were looking for somewhere to meet up, and the one thing we all know the Wharf has is parking, very good transport links, and lots of eateries.  It seemed like a good opportunity to revisit Plateau.

lunches on the Game Menu at Tom Kitchin...

Crudites, with a  blue cheese dip

We met Tom Kitchin at the Cube pop-up earlier in the year, and were seriously impressed by both the simplicity of his dishes, and the complexity of his flavours.  Tom has years of classical training, and brings those skills to bear on the excellent seasonal produce close to his restaurant in Leith.  Indeed such is the pride in the provenance of produce that diners are presented with a little map of Scotland detailing exactly where ingredients have been sourced...

feasts on Truffles at Alyn Williams...

Forget Keat's 'time of mellow fruitfulness', I want his 'season of mists'.  For me it signifies a time of abundant fungi, and particularly truffles. I look forward to fresh alba truffles from Piedmont, and black truffles from Périgord...  I've been using summer truffles for months, and can't wait for some of their more heavily scented cousins to arrive... Until the supply kicks-in in earnest, Hubby and I have been seeking out the first of the new season offerings on Alyn Williams' truffle tasting menu.

dines at Angler, at South Place Hotel

At last the talented Tony Fleming has launched Angler, at the newly opened South Place Hotel.  As Executive Chef Tony is responsible for several spaces in the hotel, including three bars, all the private dining, and two restaurants.  Angler sits upstairs and has it's own outside terrace - so you'll know where to find me next summer...  It even has a summer kitchen, so that some foods can be prepared outside.  We sat towards the back of the restaurant, where one of the tables overlooks the kitchen. From there you can see all of the action, and the precision with which they plate at the pass.

dines at l'Arpège in Paris...

l‘Arpège is the tiny Lalique-panneled restaurant owned by the legendary Alain Passard.  In 2001 Monsieur Passard declared that he would be be focussing on a more vegetable driven menu, but more importantly a seasonal, home-grown menu.

This statement seems to have lost something in translation, because in 2012 it seems perfectly reasonable, indeed appropriate.  But in Paris a decade ago, turning your back on a very protein-heavy menu, seems to have caused considerable ripples.  Alain had held three Michelin stars since 1996, but maintained those stars after swapping over to his new style - clearly the inspectors felt that the standards were maintained.

dines on the Land and Sea menu by Tom Kitchin...

Perched high above the South Bank, The Cube pop-up was sponsored by Electrolux.  Many of our favourite chefs, including Daniel Clifford, Simon Rogan and the very lovely Tom Kitchin held weekly court at The Cube for several months in 2012, providing a snapshot of their usual menu.

lunches at The Royal Oak in Paley Street...

The Royal Oak is a quaint Michelin starred pub out in Paley Street, close to Ascot, Marlow and Bray.  The chef, Dominic Chapman comes to the Oak via the Hinds Head at Bray, and the manager, Mo Gherras is ex Petrus.

Lots of my chums had been to the Royal Oak at Paley Street, and I was very happy when Steve Whitelock suggested we meet there.

Ascot 2012 in the Parade Ring Restaurant

Dining at racecourses can be a bit of a hit and miss affair, and is a very difficult thing to get right. Over the years I've eaten in many different courses, and at many different levels - from the sandwich stalls to lobster, and everything in between.  For the last couple of years we've used the Parade Ring restaurant at Ascot, and I continue to be impressed by their commitment to innovate, titivate, and more importantly facilitate dining between races.  This is much harder than it sounds, and the task falls to the in-house management team and to Sodexo, who are the main caterer at Ascot.

Manhattan's Union Square Greenmarket

In one of Manhattan’s few green and open spaces lies the world-famous Union Square Market. Established 36 years ago, the farmer’s market runs four times a week and is a must for local shoppers and foodies. Open on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, there’s ample time for a visit in even the briefest of schedules. It’s also open all day, but jet-lagged Europeans can head there early to see the stallholders setting up - it’s the perfect way to start your day. It’s also just one of dozens of markets run in the city by the non-profit New York Greenmarket initiative.