Sushi in Ukai

If you want sushi you want Ukai. It's delicious, it's fast, it's stylish. We have been to the Poland Street branch for several times and loved the place. Upstairs lounge is great if you are looking for a place to hang out before/after dinner. You can also eat upstairs on a long wooden dining table which can seat up to 8 people comfortably.

Downstairs offers more seating since it's the restaurant floor with a bar with shelves full of sake bottles - appetizing! Black walls, black tables and dim lights give you the feeling of dining at a night club rather than a Japanese restaurant, which is a nice break from typical dining experience.

We have experimented quite a wide range of sushi selections and my favourite was the tempura sushi. Most sushi platters consist of five pieces and they are reasonably priced. (Ranging between £2.50 and £5.00). My recommendations are the Spicy Salmon Hosomaki, Salmon Avacado Uramaki and being a cream cheese lover I also recommend the Ukai California. If you still can't decide just get the mixed platters! As for the mains, Salmon Teriyaki and Chicken Teriyaki are amazing but I'm warning you; make sure you feed yourself up with some sushi first since the portions are typical Japanese style, small and elegant - if you know what I mean.

The warm sake is great value f0r £5.00 for a 180ml bottle. I loved the whole tableware but those miniature sake cups were the best. According to their website the tableware along with some other stuff like Japanese tea and incense can now be purchased. See it for yourself: http://www.ukai.co.uk/

Braches:

58 Poland Street, London

223 Portobello Road, London

39 Lavender Hill, London

There is more to Sweden than its meatballs

Fika - Swedish for coffee break - is "a way of being" as they define themselves. Thanks to its wooden decor it resembles a spa more than a bar/restaurant/cafe. The soft lights and the friendly atmosphere inside makes this place so cozy that you may feel like you're sitting in your own living room only with kind people serving you food and drinks. The kangaroo, sipping tea on the wall, looks like it's ready to keep you company in case you want to take a break from your book.

Once you're inside you feel like you have taken shelter in a hut after a long walk in the wilds of Sweden. You can warm yourself with a selection of schnapps from Sweden or choose from the wine list, which offers a good variety without confusing you with French château names. I recommend the Beef Plankstek (£14.90), which is served on a wooden board nicely decorated with mashed potatoes. For a more traditional choice you might go for the meatballs; they live up to their name!

Make sure you have space for the dessert because Kladdkaka deluxe (£3.90) is heavenly. I couldn't dare to try the waffle stack after dinner but next time I'm going there just for this killer dessert and will report back.

This Brick Lane restaurant is great for romantic meals with candle light, spending a lazy Sunday afternoon reading or small size parties.

For everything else check this out: http://www.fikalondon.com/

A Taste of Thai in London-Soho - Busaba eathai

Grey sky, pouring rain, damn dampness and chilly mornings. No wonder that's faaaaar from being everybody's fantasy. And on top of all this if you can hear the bells ringing from your belly louder than the traffic noise outside, don't wait any longer and rush yourself to the nearest Busaba eathai restaurant, heaven of wonderful Thai food and exotic ambiance that convinces you that you are on vacation in a deserted island and not on a lunch break in central London!

There are three Busaba eathai restaurants in London one being on Wardour Street W1F OTR (beware of the long queues outside of this one), the other one on Store Street WC1E 7DF and the other being on Bird Street W1U 1BU. The good news is that there are two more on the way opening on Old Street and Panton Street soon!

So what is there to eat? Well, plenty, if you like spicy and exotic food. It's Thai after all... We went for the good old Pad Thai and a bit spicy Sen Chan Pad Thai noodles as for the main dish. Pad Thai was superb with its meaty prawns and just the right amount of peanut crumbles. Sen Chan Pad Thai would be the right choice for those who enjoy a fishy taste with their noodle - I blame the oyster sauce - but still it wasn't bad at all.

I suggest the Chicken Satay for starters, for the peanut sauce if for nothing else. We have also tried the vegetable spring rolls aka Por-pia jay. 6 mini spring rolls, crisp and peppery, all in all delicious.

On the money side Busaba eathai is one of those restaurants which I would label as "great value for money". The food is delicious, service is super fast and ambiance is wonderful if you don't mind a little pushing from behind since it's packed most of the time and the seating rows are quite close to one another in order to serve as many Thai food lovers as possible.

So you no longer have to worry about that vacation you've been planning on to Phuket as long as you can book a table at Busaba eathai. Well, you may at least cheat your stomach if you can't cheat your mind.

Cafe Rouge in St. Pauls

On a crisp Sunday morning I loaned for a "crispy mister" or as the French call him Croque Monsieur. But I was too lazy (and too hungry) to cook it for breakfast so we ran to the corner restaurant Cafe Rouge to find someone to cook it for us. Although it was only(!) 12:30 they had stopped serving breakfast but we were lucky enough to find the croque monsieur in their lunch menu for a couple of more pounds (7.75) and with a side of chips. It was okay but a little bit dry since the bread wasn't fried in butter but I took my doze of fat from the French fries anyway. We also tried the Baguette Rouge (Rib-eye Steak Sandwich) for 9.50 and it was delicious.

If you'd like to go for lunch/dinner or just for drinks, they have a rich bar with a rich selection of hard liquors and wines. If you fancy an apéritif you can go for Kir Royal for 4.25 but we weren't French enough to try it with our breakfast.

I am definitely going back there and this time I am not leaving before I try their Crème brûlée.

There are 28 Cafe Rouge restaurants in London but I insist you visit the one just across St. Pauls Cathedral for a magnificent view.

Address:5 Condor House, St Pauls Churchyard, London Greater London, EC4M 8AY

T: 02074 897812

Tube: St. Pauls (Central Line)

Opening hours

Mon to Fri: 9.00am to 11.00pm
Sat: 9.00am to 11.00pm

Sun: 9.00am to 10.30pm