Wallace Collection restaurant

12th August
After a break of a couple of years, it was time to visit the Wallace Collection in Manchester Square. This was the last day of the Olympics and a hot Sunday, so the center of  London was hot, muggy and crowded.Good exhibition on the history of the sword and fencing.
At the back of the Wallace Collection is the Wallace restaurant, run by Peyton and Byrne. They seem to have the franchise is a few museums, and I think I recollect them at the Wellcome Collection. http://www.peytonandbyrne.co.uk/the-wallace-restaurant/index.html

If you visit the restaurant or even the web site, the one thing that grabs you is the ambiance. and it is worth going to for that. It is in a sort of conservatory with cushioned wrought iron chairs and planters, described on the web site as being al fresco. It is a pleasure to sit down in and they offer dinner on Friday and Saturday nights, but I guess they don't get much passing trade.
The object of my visit was a simple mid afternoon refreshment - tea and cake. Well, you could have gone all the way with a full English tea, but we stuck to leaf tea in pots and cake.

Just to show that I really exist. Ruth had a flavoured tea with Orange, which was more successful than my Darjeeling. It was real leaf tea in an individual pot, and there was not really a good way of getting it any stronger. They make better tea at the Tate. At the end of the day, the cake was a little on the dry side, but one can forgive a lot for the ambiance. Quite expensive: two teas and two slices of cake came to £14. I don't complain all the time, but I am fairly quick to find fault with caterers. Should probably have specified that I wanted strong tea. I'm sure it would not have been a problem. Very smart. Recommended.

Lavash

11th August
Lavash, as you probably don't know is the name of the flatbread that is served at Persian Restaurant, and so we are reporting on a visit to this contemporary Persian Restaurant, visited on a Saturday night in August.
They describe themselves as being in Finchley, but I would think the locals would judge it as being in Temple Fortune, as it is south of the Naked Lady and the North Circular.http://www.lavash.co.uk/lavash-persian-restaurant-london.asp?textpage=home
It is true that it is contemporary, with the current fashion for hard surfaces with all the noise that they bring. The atmosphere is good, and the lights are turned down low. However they were bright enough to suggest that this is not the place that the ex pats come. They are a bit north of her, and in Finchley proper there are some real Persian restaurants which make it clear that they function for their own kind, and locals are merely tolerated. For some reason there is a streak of ex pat Iranians between Finchley and Barnet with the restaurants and shops to prove it.
The menu is fairly short with a mixture of local starters and mains, the mains being split between grills and stew dishes. There is a limited wine list, and we had an unlikely bottle of Montepulcianoo D'Abruzzo at £13.95 which was nicely served. They know who their customers are.

I had mirza to start: a puree of Grilled Aubergine, Garlic and Tomato, Served with Freshly Baked Bread There was flatbread already on the table, and a yoghourty dip (good). I was surprised when this turned out to a hot starter.Very tasty. I know I should not be suspicious, but not being a great lover of meat and fruit combinations, I went for a Soultani as my main which was one skewer of Lamb FilletMedallion and one skewer of Minced Lamb, Served with Rice. Actually the menu said I could have it with rice and salad or chips. I opted for the chips, and they brought me rice and salad, and when this mistake was pointed out, a bowl of somewhat refried chips was immediately offered.

I have had similar dishes in other middle eastern and Turkish restaurants, and whilst ok, I thought this was a little sanitized for the local tastes, but there were chilli and other sauces on the table. Scored a 7.5 on the CHOF scale. I could not find anything wrong with this but it was less exciting than I was suspecting, and Ruth's Albaloo Polo (Chicken, Cherries, Pistachio and Almond mixed with Rice) seemed a better bet (no picture).

Desert was definitely a little different, and the mixed bastani (traditional ice creams) served with noodles and rosewater is not on the Internet menu

We all thought that the noodles did nothing for an otherwise excellent dessert.
Overall, the service was informal but helpful and the waitress seemed surprised to receive a tip. The cost for four (one bottle of wine) excluding service was £92.10 . There was no cover charge, and they made no fuss about bringing tap water to the table. Would probably try something a bit more adventurous if I went back there again.

Gelupo - it's all been said before

In West End to collect a lost umbrella from Royal Academy. Had read review of Gelupo on Internet yesterday, so decided to try.http://www.gelupo.com/. I went to the Archer Street shop, where you can buy ice cream to eat on the hoof or in their small coffee shop. A two scoop tube cost £3. The funny symbol if you had not worked it out is a wolf and an alp I think.

I have to agree that it is probably one of the best Ice Creams I have ever eaten in this country, and probably also outranks many of the ones you can buy in Italy. There is a limited choice of usual and unusual flavours, which are under-represented on the web site. You probably cannot read the list on the wall behind. The portion was more than adequate, and because of the richness, I would say that a one person serving is probably exactly that. You really would not want to eat any more. I had bitter chocolate and hazelnut which went together well. The hazelnut had a subtle smooth flavour and the chocolate tasted of chocolate. On a Saturday afternoon, the shop was busy which was good for a back street off peak time. From their opening hours, I suspect they do a lot of their trade from the SoHo night life.The staff were helpful and did not stint on portion size.This is not cheap ice cream but compares well with prices I have paid for similar quality ice cream in Italy (usually about the 5 Euro mark).

I will definitely be going back there again. As expected they scored 0 on the CHOF scale, which was just as well.