For the Fall Issue, we were lucky enough to spend some time in the UK countryside at Heckfield Place, a Georgian mansion with a really interesting food & beverage program, much of it pulled from Heckfield's onsite dairy and farms, and all of it overseen by one of our favorite chefs: Skye Gyngell.
After we hung out in London - a city we're loving more and more for its eating, its art-ing, its street energy, and leafy beauty.
Here are a few of our London faves:
STAY:
At Europe House, Maida Vale, the apartments are big, airy and decorated with vintage lighting and cushy sofas. London is great for bathrooms overall-all those chilly days-and Europa House is no exception. Shiny towel warmers. Piles of white towels. Deep tubs with waterfalls of hot water. It's fun to have your own sparkling white kitchen, especially as one of Yotam Ottolenghi's favorite delis, Panzer's Deli, is just ten minutes away (get the plum jam). As for the hood, Maida Vale is full of gorgeous walk-streets, bike-path-lined canals, Abbey Road ten minutes away, and Portobello Road nearby. Bonus points: a huge expansive garden accessed with your own personal key.
DO:
There's so much to see in London -- Saatchi Gallery for fantastic art, as well as The Serpentine in Kensington Gardens, Harrod's Food Court -- just because it's so over the top with its cases of smoked fish, caviar, the elaborate pastries, and the rows of Lamborghinis parked out front -- Notting Hill for the shopping (Westbourne Grove), Electric Cinema, and on and on. Also the search for that elusive thing: the perfect restaurant.
So 'perfect,' what does that mean? A billion versions of that but, for us, it's not fine dining, but more approachable, imaginative, risky, and every single bite lands. We also like to know where things come from, and the teams to be recognized. There's nothing we like more than the chef's counter seat.
EAT:
The Palomar was that perfect when we went earlier this year. After a show (Billy Crudup as Harry Clarke!), we wound our way through packed Soho streets to the restaurant's long narrow space and climbed on the bar stools.
First, the team, moving in perfect synchrony, obviously having fun, and eager to show off the food. We loved the Sour, with ABA pisco, Ojo de Dios mezcal and cranberry. A puff of bread called Baharat completely slayed us, especially with creamy labneh topped with roasted pistachios, and tirshi, a Tunisian pumpkin starter with tomato salsa and a spicy ghee called tarka oil. A feather-light hake with gremolata followed, with roasted carrots feta and dates.
This is Levantine food, inspired by the cuisine of Southern Spain, North Africa and the Levant. The restaurant was created famed Israeli chef and owner, Tomar Amedi, and most recently helmed by Dan Murray, a young chef from Edinburgh, who's also an Ottolenghi alum.
For dessert we had a flaky-sweet Baklava and Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwich and Amalfi Lemon and Elite Arak Sorbet, its whiff of licorice paired with Arak & Mint to send us home.
OTHER PLACES WE LOVE:
The Barbary, in Notting Hill, by the same restaurant group as Palomar
Hoppers, for Sri Lankan 'hoppers' or bowl-shaped rice flour pancakes filled with sambols, curry, dhal and coconut
Spring at Somerset House, for radiantly talented chef Skye Gyngell's bright, clean and gorgeously executed food
Gymkhana - an Indian food rite of passage
Amaya -- another beautiful Indian in fancy Belgravia
Moro -- Moorish food in Exmouth Market
Honey & Co - Ottolenghi alums, Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer, have four restaurant and deli locations - get the Feta and Honey deconstructed Cheesecake
Ottolenghi anything - especially love the one in Islington after a play at Almeida Theatre, and the standing-room-only one in Notting Hill
Daylesford Organic - for that LA/ Aussie/ London farm-to-table breakfast vibe
Borough Market - for the scene -- top notch food purveyors ringed by seriously good restaurants
Hampstead Market on a Saturday -- for the bustle, the crowds, the flowers and the outstanding pastries, best eaten by the side of the road.
