GOOD KAI

The Shack68, Twickenham This is the second of three american styled (Chicago Rib Shack, Blues Smokehouse & The Shack68) barbecue restaurants that have graced Twickenham's shores in the last 6 months. Its hard to believe that only 18 months or so ago Twickenham didn't even have a sushi store and that it is only now we are seeing some movement in the way of new fresh restaurants and bars in Richmond and Twickenham. Buffalo Chicken Wings were quite small, The Shack68 I believe The Shack68 were originally a 'pop-up' that has now turned full restaurant in record time. It's astounding to me how they were able to fit out a brand new restaurant and SpeakEasy bar upstairs, in less than a year of trading as a pop-up. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of back story of the folk behind the restaurant either but after a little digging, it looks as though the team behind Twickenham's notorious Grand Union bar (Grand Union Group), are behind the new...

Maze Grill, Park Walk, London Gordon Ramsay returns to where it all began 21 years ago after securing the site where his very first restaurant, Aubergine, was founded. This time however, there shan't be any confusion over the name. Aubergine (which held two Michelin stars) was often confused by meat-averse hippie folk in London as a vegetarian joint. I can't imagine that went down well with with the fiery chef and after that fracas, there's been no restaurant name designation of a vegetable since.  Go figure, lol. Gordon Ramsay's Maze Grill - Steak & Sushi Maze Grill is said to be a Manhattan styled eatery that serves rare breed steaks along with sushi and sashimi. Today is their soft launch, the restaurant will be open for full service on the 22 April 2015. The location of Maze Grill is part-way down a quiet residential street in Fulham, just off the busy Fulham Road in London. There is a compression of good eating spots serving local folk and possibly...

La Nonna, Costa Adeje, Tenerife This is a lovely ocean side restaurant with a beautiful setting with equally lovely food. It is without a doubt one of the best restaurants in the area. There is a well presented, fairy-lit restaurant in front of La Nonna that wrangles all the unsuspecting tourists like a fly trap. We ate their our first night, but felt it was over priced, pretentious and didn't hold a candle to La Nonna. Lovely Spanish Red La Nonna does pasta but it also has tapas, and some pan asian influences. There is balcony seating that over-looks one of many plaza's with ocean views. We are staying in the Costa d'Adeje region where there are plenty of lovely bars with seating facing the ocean and settled on one for a pre dinner aperitif.  It is a lovely setting. Tea infused Salmon Carpaccio with Tofu and Yoghurt mayo   The 'La Nonna' Tapas - Andaluz Calamari, Greek Meatball, Iberian Ham, Salmon Tartar I can imagine it would be quite h...

Raymond Blanc's The Kings Head, Teddington *Feb 2016 This post has been updated - see bottom of page. The Kings Head is one of five pubs operated by the White Brasserie, a company owned by renowned chef Raymond Blanc. They pride themselves on having all the elements of a traditional pub, that also serves French brasserie food, all using the best possible ingredients. When we arrived, it was a busy Friday night, the venue itself was packed. When you first walk in, there is a cosy bar with the restaurant area to the back. The Kings Head, Teddington The decor consisted of mauve painted walls and ceilings with heavy wooden furniture resembling an old antique style, not my fav, I really like new and modern decor. It certainly looked as though it could do with having a refurbish but looking by the amount of people that were in, and being constrained to a two hour dining slot, something tells me that its not about the environment - these folk are coming for something el...

Mount Tiede, Tenerife, Canary Islands It's a short get away and great way to get some sunshine in the middle of winter with only a four and a half hour flight from London. It was fairly mild when we went late January - around 20-22 degrees celsius. We headed for the Costa Adeje on the south coast of Tenerife and pitched up at a lovely hotel - Gran Tacande close to the beach. Village at Masca, Tenerife We arranged a day tour of the island that took us around half of the isle. I was surprised at the geographical diversity, Tenerife is basically a volcanic island with quite a dramatic landscape and a micro climate - some parts of the island can be shrouded in mist while other areas like the South will be sunny and warm. Looking toward Los Cristianos, Tenerife At the centre of the island is Mt Tide and an absolute for folk to visit which is in the Tiede National Park, as is the Masca Gorge which has stunning vistas. It is a cliff-hanging ride through the valley to Mas...

Prawn Dogs with Pisco and Sriracha Mayo I was inspired recently after being told by a friend that they'd tried fresh prawn hot dogs on a recent trip to Iceland and seeing though we are nearing spring, I figured this would make an ideal sunny day eat. After not being able to find anything similar in this side of London I decided to create my own recipe, with a twist of pisco. I'm also going to have my seafood dog with something I think will go really well with the freshness of seafood and brioche bun - champagne (or bubbly), for a bit of summer fun. Now we have a complete meal. Grilled Brioche, Naked Dog for the purists I love bubbly, and think it is one of the best drinks you can have with food just like this, and I think Australia (yes I know I'm a kiwi but Aussie wine is good too) do some very good bubbly's. So with this dish I'm going to go with a Jacob's Creek bubbly, you can get it from most supermarket chains. If you wanted something a litt...