Il Tocco d'Artista, Ballards Lane, North Finchley. Hit and miss local Italian

16th October 2014
Italian eateries abound, and are of variable quality, but usually are idiot-proof.
I was invited to share lunch with an old friend, who thought highly of the place. I have been there before for dinner, which was ok, and some friends went there for dinner and were mightily disappointed. The key attraction on this occasion was their bargain lunch at £6.95 for any pizza/pasta and a drink, which could be a glass of wine. For that sort of money it was almost risk free.

The place was busy for a Thursday lunchtime and although we had not booked, we arrived early enough for a table. I guess a casual caller coming later might have been disappointed. To keep things simple I ordered a pizza (which would have been priced nearer to £9 not at lunchtime, and a cup of coffee.

To be honest, as this was a chatting lunch, the speed of service was not an issue, and I don't remember how fast or slow it came. I cannot remember the exact name of this ham pepperoni and onion pizza, and there is no online presence to extract the information from. Suffice it to say, it was huge, hot (8.5) and tasty. A bargain lunch for £6.95. 

Whilst I might not go there again in the evening, you can do a lot worse for a cheap and tasty lunch. I will be lunching there again.

Soho House: Cutting edge urban pretention

30th September.
I have a colleague who has a life membership of Soho house. She used to be in the advertising business, and is now a marketing consultant, and uses her 'all houses' membership to gather meetings for her co-workers in central London. When I told my family where I was going, they were very impressed. I was too ashamed to admit I did not realise just how cool a venue this could be. For anyone who did not know, Soho House is a fairly exclusive private members club which specialises in media types. When I go there I am usually the oldest person there.
The building in Soho is a non-descript frontage, leading into a warren of stairs and off-shoot rooms with tables and seatees. There you will see the cool creatives of London being cool with each other. I have the same name as a lower echelon film director, and so may be the looks I get are from people trying to work out whether it is me or him. It is me.
Be careful where you put your hands: walls and doors have a slightly sticky feeling, and one cannot believe that it is because of lack of cleaning.
There is a limited selection of fashionable food available in Soho House. I ended up having lunch after a meeting, and ordered the cheeseburger, which was thought to be a good choice.

I wish I could use glamorous terms to describe it, but my memory is that whilst it tasted home made, it was ok at best and only a 7.6 on the CHOF. I guess the people who eat there are using the food as fuel only. I guess you do not join the club for its food. (that is if you can get in, which I understand is quite difficult, so I should regard myself as having been one of the select few).

Rossi's Cafe, Westcliff : a time honoured institution, but cannot make coffee.

27th September 2014
You don't go to Rossi's cafe on the Western Esplanade of Southend on Sea looking for gourmet food. This is a seaside cafe, and most visitors love it for being this. It has changed so little over the 35 years I have been visiting, and the prices are still unbelievably low. I have the same dish every time I go there, not because it is the only one I like, but it is because I cannot find steak and kidney pie like this anywhere else. There is no web site, and the TripAdvisor reports are mixed as people go there looking for different things. The bottom line is if you want a cheap and cheerful cheap lunch in Westcliffe (they do not open for food in the evenings) then this is a place to try. I have heard stories that the family are connected to Francis Rossi of Status Quo. Their ice cream is ubiquitous in the area and rightly so. We sat outside watching the frustrated traffic trying to find parking spaces on the seafront. It used to be until April 2013, there was a Saturday night cruise of modified cars up and down the seafront, but that has gone now. Not picturesque, but part of the show.
This is what you get when you order Rossi steak and kidney pie with chips.

The vegetables are not really up to much having come from a communal boiling pot presumably. The other thing that fascinates me, and I have no inside knowledge of this, is whether the pie top and the contents of the dish are only ever introduced to each other at the point of serving.

The pie is hot, very hot, usually scoring 9+ on the CHOF scale. There contents are definitely steak and kidney, and probably more kidney than most pies. Chips are seaside chips. This is a good meal at a very reasonable price, and hot with it. The one thing I have never had at Rossi's is a decent cup of coffee. What is available is a dash of strong coffee into milk, and then heated with steam. The locals love it, and I have known one local who when given a proper cup of coffee ask why it was not milky. It's a take it or leave it affair, so there is no point arguing.

The other big deal with Rossi's is the ice-cream. On a warm day, which this was, there is a long queue for take away ice cream. Legendary in the area. You must try Rossi Ice Cream. Not like the upmarket Gelupo or similar, but better than average honest sea side ice cream

The Labworth, Canvey Island: at least there is one good reason to go there

25th September 2014
I have looked at maps of Essex for year, and when you are in Westcliff (often) or Southend-on-Sea (also often), it makes you wonder what goes on in Canvey Island. There is a petrol industry presence, and you can learn all you need to know about Canvey at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canvey_Island . There is a famous Dutch house there, but despite several attempts, we could not locate it. Nevertheless, it is worth a visit, jut to go to the Labworth, the number 1 restaurant in Canvey. The restaurant is housed in a renovated grade II listed building, which I believe is based on the appearance of the bridge of the Queen Mary.

A comprehensive web site is on http://www.thelabworth.com/home/4576695922 and I would recommend looking at the video to appreciate the location. We went there for Lunch, but it is also open for dinner. It is a strange site to behold, and  Midweek, at the end of September, we found the place pretty packed, and presumed that there had to be a good reason for this.
For a little more than pub prices, you get good food. This is my steak and ale pie (after my trip to Iceland, I cannot stop calling this dish steak and whale pie).

It ticked all the boxes, being hot (8.9 on CHOF scale) , good quality and sufficient quantity. This is a good place, and the locals know about it.

There are good views of the Thames estuary, more atmospheric than breathtaking and afterwards it is only a short walk from the Canvey mural depicting the floods.

So, I would recommend this place without hesitation. A jewel in the somewhat tarnished crown of Canvey Island.

Indian Rasoi, East Finchley : not your average Indian Food

7th September 2014
Another somewhat late piece, and if you look at TripAdvisor, you might think that something has happened since our visit, but this relates to our visit.
We went for Sunday lunch, and knowing that the place could get very busy in the evening needing a very early booking strategy, I booked this about a month in advance. In the event, and with several changes of numbers, I need not have worried, as the place was very quiet on Sunday lunch: this was unexpected, but may be because it is quite pricey, and does not have the bargain Sunday Buffet.
Indian Rasoi has been a bit of an institution in East Finchley for several years, and when I have been there in the past, it needed booking way in advance. The place specialises in South Indian cuisine, and contains many unfamiliar dishes and tastes. It is not your average Indian. It looks somewhat upmarket and the staff are quite smart. We had no problem with the staff, but there are comments on TripAdvisor about a variety of problems, which we did not encounter.
There is a somewhat self-indulgent web site on http://www.indian-rasoi.co.uk/menus.html which also has a menu. They also do a takeaway business, but this is above average prices. One of the big catches is that there is no alcohol (at the time or writing and on the date of the visit). According to TripAdvisor they have 'lost' their license, but for the life of me I cannot remember whether it was there before. There is no facility apparent for your own alcohol. This might be a bit of a negative for some people, but at least it keeps the bill down.
For starter I  had Kakori Kebab (menu says A delicacy from Mogul kitchen, minced lamb marinated with cardamom (sic), mace, cashew nuts paste, raw papaya & rose petals and grilled on live charcoal. This is a bit like Sheek Kebab.

This was hot (scoring an 8.4 on the CHOF scale) and a big portion. As you can see it is attractively presented, and accompanied by a spicy sauce.

For main course I had Murgh Makhani which the menu says is all time favourite tandoori roasted chicken tikka cooked in kasoori methi flavoured, tomato gravy

with oodles of butter and cream.

There was also a side order of aubergine

These were very rich, tasty and significant helpings. We did not need any more food. Again a CHOF of 8.4

My considered opinion was that this was something better than the ordinary Indian Restaurant, as dishes are unusual and tasty. Unlike other reviewers who have said the food tastes all the same, this was not my experience. I would definitely go there again. The final bill is a bit above Indian average, but because of the lack of alcohol, can be a pleasant surprise.

It has to be said that the restaurant is small, therefore it is best to book. The parking is not easy but we found places in the back streets.