Azou

Azou – with its Bedouin-style decor – is a cosy, little restaurant on King Street, Hammersmith, serving fabulous North African food. W6 residents were probably trying to keep this little piece of perfection to themselves. However, it’s particularly popular since Gordon Ramsay’s Best Restaurants TV series when it topped the ‘best North African restaurant’ category in 2010. It’s also won a shed-load of other awards – with good reason – and you do need to book in advance.

Mekan meze – Catford

Mekan, a fairly new Turkish restaurant in Catford, is minimalist with a factory-style brick-wall interior and a neatly designed menu. While everything looks nice, it is – acoustically – a bit of a nightmare as the bare walls and lack of furnishings absorb no sound. With only a half full restaurant it can be difficult [...]

Darbucka and ‘Planet Egypt’ night

I had a really entertaining night last at Darbucka, Farringdon. It was the monthly Planet Egypt event in the basement with food, drink and belly dancing. There’s a £10 entrance fee on the door and a simple but very good menu of middle-eastern food. A vegetarian mezze for one is £12 and includes stuffed vine leaves, humous, pitta, tabboule, potatoes, a sesame dip and falafel (perfectly cooked – crispy but not heavy on the outside and light in the middle) and there’s a good selection of wines starting from £16.00 a bottle.

Fakhreldine

In a prestigious location on Piccadilly in Mayfair, Fakhreldine serves top-end Lebanese cuisine. The first floor restaurant has great views over Green Park, comfy cushioned seating and a large central bar area. Between two of us, we shared a starter of calamari mekli @ £7.85 (huge portion of deep fried squid – the most tender [...]

Maroush – Sidi Maarouf

I was heading over to London’s Marble Arch area (west Oxford Street) to meet a friend the other evening and trying to eliminate some of the endless dining opportunities available to us, as I walked. There’s so many great restaurants in W1 it had the potential of being a long drawn-out decision. Luckily, I found I had a craving for spicy turkish sausages and grilled halloumi cheese, and I was walking in the direction of Edgware Road (Lebanese Central) after all…

Yalla Yalla – Beirut street food

Lardbutty restaurant: Yalla Yalla – Beirut street food A tiny restaurant packed with style and intrigue, Yalla Yalla serves excellent middle eastern food and drinks. There was a laid-back, café atmosphere on my visit this lunch time; with old photos of Beirut on the walls and other Lebanese memorabilia giving it a homely feel. Arriving [...]

So Sarastro – a theatrical dining experience

Theatre-themed restaurant, Sarastro, in the heart of London’s Theatreland…