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The French Quarter

by Daniela Toporek
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Darlington, County Durham
Raby Hunt (Now Closed)

by J A Smith

A visit to Ilkley wouldn’t be complete without a

A visit to Ilkley wouldn’t be complete without a stop at The Box Tree - famous for being one of the first restaurants in the UK to be awarded two Michelin stars in 1977 (back when Tom Baker was Dr Who and Queen Elizabeth II had her silver jubilee). As is well-known, The Box Tree has had a bit of a chequered history with the tyre company, being stripped of stars, getting them back, losing them again and so on, but if this return visit was anything to go by, new(ish) head chef Brayden Davies (ex Raby Hunt amongst others) is doing an excellent job, under the restaurant’s new ownership and with a refurbished kitchen. The cuisine remains undoubtedly “classic” but Davies, while respecting the restaurant’s traditions (such as their soufflés), calls on his Australian roots with little touches like the barbecued damper bread, modernising things and broadening its horizons sensitively.

The beef with bordelaise sauce was astounding. Very good service too, from martinis in the bar to the petits fours.

Perhaps its Michelin fortunes will change for the better again soon but second-guessing them is often a pointless endeavour. This was a great meal.
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#theboxtree #ilkley #yorkshire #finedining #oldschoolrestaurants #britishfood #restaurantguide #foodlove #culinaryarts #wheretoeat #hospitality #northengland #exploreuk #travelgram #restaurantreview #foodheaven #oldschool #yorkshiredining #testoftime #roastbeef #soufflé #westyorkshire #gourmand #bonvivant #goodtimes #martini #bordelaise

A corner table at Betty’s in Ilkley after a brac

A corner table at Betty’s in Ilkley after a bracing walk on the moor. Lovely.
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#bettystearoom #café #cafélife #windowtable #cosycorner #interiordesign #ilkley #ilkleymoor #yorkshire #bradford #teashop #bettys #relaxation #travel #northengland #travelgram #exploreuk #yorkshirelife #humpday #foodie #foodwriter #wheretoeat #lovely #bonvivant #lifeintheslowlane #oldschool

Keeping with the theme of long-standing restaurant

Keeping with the theme of long-standing restaurants at Melton’s in York. Located just outside of the historic centre in a quiet neighbourhood, owners Lucy and Michael Hjort have been running Melton’s continuously since 1990 (back to the time of the poll tax riots, when Thatcher finally resigned as PM and Madonna’s Vogue was in the charts). While Michael spends more time at their ‘side project’ The Chopping Block and directs the York Food Festival, Lucy works front of house at Melton’s for every shift - this results in a similar owner presence to, say, Le Champignon Sauvage, Lorne or Otto’s in the sense that the proprietors are on site and really care about you having a good time. This was an absolutely lovely meal with the bonus of sitting near regulars who have been going since day one 35 years ago (and that 35-year customer loyalty tells you everything you need to know about this charming restaurant).

Pictured here from the à la carte menu on this visit: canapés; Wye Valley asparagus with vin jaune, alliums and cured egg yolk; salt aged pork (in different forms) with caramelised apple, wild garlic and soured cabbage; and a chocolate delice with burnt citrus, salted caramel and hogweed ice cream. And sampling some Yorkshire orange wine (by Solaris) was a first.

There are lots of exciting things happening in York (more on which in a future edition of the main magazine) but the older institutions are worth a visit too.
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#york #meltons #yorkrestaurants #yorkshire #moderncuisine #travelgram #foodwriter #palate #restaurantreview #travel #wheretoeat #yorkfoodguide #goodfood #travelguide #toprestaurants #foodie #foodstagram #delice #asparagus #artofplating #eat #instafood #vinjaune #hospitality #restaurantguide #independentbusiness #wheninyork #testoftime

Emergency steak at Saint Jacques + nightcap at Kwãnt
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#saintjacques #stjames #steakfrites #frites #mayfair #greenpark #kwant #frenchfood #comfortfood #delicious #nightcap #ramosginfizz #martinez #cocktails #imbibe #londonbylondoners #londonlife #bonvivant #gourmand #londres #nightowl #palate #foodstagram #hospitality #goodtimes

A return to Bellamy’s, a lovely restaurant which

A return to Bellamy’s, a lovely restaurant which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. There are quite a few significant restaurant milestones at the moment (Pritchard + Ure is 10, The Hand and Flowers also turned 20, Chez Bruce 30, Clarke’s in Kensington 40 and Rick Stein’s Seafood Restaurant in Padstow an amazing 50 years!). All the more impressive when hospitality faces one existential threat after another (the next deeply worrying one coming on 6 April when National Insurance Contributions go up and the earning threshold goes down). But back to Bellamy’s and why such places are so important: it’s not just the classic Franco-Belgian cuisine (which was notably even better this time with beautiful frites), but the welcoming service. And in the bar they still serve one of the best martinis in London - gin of choice from the freezer poured into a glass also from the freezer, just subtly introduced to some vermouth but not forced to make friends with it. The bar here is a destination in itself. Long may it continue.
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#bellamys #mayfair #hospitality #anniversary #belgian #martini #directmartini #steakfrites #entrecote #steak #brutonplace #bistro #toplondonrestaurants #diningout #foodwriter #wheretoeat #londonfood #londondining #foodielondon #foodgram #restaurantguide #londonfoodspots #humpday #londonlife #restaurantreviewer #bonvivant #brasserie #thetestoftime #oldschool

A post-show dinner at the “Slow Horses” Italia

A post-show dinner at the “Slow Horses” Italian, Vecchio Parioli in Barbican. Walked past here so many times and only realised recently it actually features in said TV show. No bilious or flatulent Jackson in sight (or in smelling range) on this visit, nor any spies in purgatory, but lamb of a different kind: cutlets cooked simply in Monty Withnail’s basic combination of garlic, rosemary and salt. Also veal with mushrooms and a generous serving of sides.

Negronis seemed suspiciously devoid of vermouth (prefer Brutto’s if brutally honest) and the lighting could be toned down, but for a late dinner after a concert it’s satisfying and joyously old school (ah, handwritten bills).

And yes, finally caught up with Slow Horses. It’s ruddy brilliant.
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#sloughhouse #barbican #vecchioparioli #oldschool #slowhorses #lambcutlets #lamb #negroni #olives #trattoria #italian #italianrestaurant #squaremile #londra #cityoflondon #italianfood #londonrestaurants #hospitality #traditionalrestaurant #farringdon #smithfield #londonfoodspots #londondining #comfortfood #casualdining #buonappetito #garlicrosemaryandsalt #posttheatre #filminglocation

A brief flirtation with spring: the first al fresc

A brief flirtation with spring: the first al fresco martini of the year at St John Marylebone. It will be freezing again next week (the weather that is; the martini is already ice-cold, as it should be). Enjoy it whilst it lasts
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#alfresco #marylebone #cocktailhour #stjohn #stjohnmarylebone #martini #ginmartini #gin #tanqueray #withatwist #stayclassy #weekend #cincin #cocktail #bar #vermouth #european #londongram #londonevenings #aperitif #aperitivo #streetlife #glassware #imbibe

Cocktails upstairs at Wildflowers: one of the many

Cocktails upstairs at Wildflowers: one of the many great things about this restaurant is its on-site wine and cocktail bar, which is perfectly situated for pre- and post-meal drinks, but also a destination in its own right. They have some lovely house drinks but the sign of a great bar is being able to do the classics too: in no particular order here, a Martinez, Paper Plane and Martini all made perfectly to order (the latter with Plymouth gin and Sacred dry vermouth). Certainly plan to return! 🍸 Link in bio for the full review.

Cin cin and have a lovely weekend!
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#wildflowers #belgravia #pimlico #cocktails #cocktailbar #classiccocktail #cincin #weekend #bartender #mixology #martini #martinez #paperplane #gin #ginstagram #instadrink #friyay #toplondonbars #bar #aperitif #cocktailhour #newsonsyard #hospitality #londonbylondoners #londongram #wheretodrink #londonguide #goodtimes

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