Jun Tanaka's The Ninth

It is no secret that Jun Tanaka is my favourite chef, so when I heard that he was opening his very own restaurant it was a no brainer booking a table.

 

Jun's background is pretty impressive working at some of the very best restaurants around such as Le Gavaroche, Chez Nico and The Square until landing himself an executive role at Pearl.

 

The Ninth (located on Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia)  showcases what Jun is all about. Putting his experiences and his training over the years and translating it into mouth watering and out of this world food.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ninth is a classy joint and not over the top. It's laid back, casual décor is perfect for all you FoodPunkers wanting to enjoy some of the best dishes that Jun is serving at this moment in time.

As for the food, I could go on all day and night about it. It was probably the best I've had in a while. I was really impressed by the menu.  The choices that were there made it tough for me but luckily I was in a small group which meant that a number of dishes could be picked for us to share.

I think you'll agree that by looking at the menu it's hard to decide what to have. It's a well thought out menu and the flavour combinations are very impressive. There is no doubt that you will end up going back again, but hey that's not a bad thing obviously.


If you have a big appetite, then my advice is to order a little bit of everything from the top to the bottom of the list, picking a few from each section. Whatever you pick, I'm sure you will get excellent plates of food.

As for the food I hear you say? Well FoodPunkers, this is what I had! Take a deep breath and feast your eyes on these banging dishes.

Oxtail Croquettes

Pitta, Oregano and Sea Salt

King Prawn Macaroni, Chives and Ginger




Duck Scotch Egg





Ossobuco Tortellini and Bone Marrow



Razor Clam Cerviche



Sea Bass Carpaccio, Salsa Verde and Pickled Kohlrabi

Salted Beef Cheeks, Oxtail Consommé, and Charred Cabbage

Pan Fried Gnocchi, Ceps and Shallots

Lamb En Croute, Jerusalem Puree



 

Pommes Cocotte, Rosemary and Confit Garlic

Honey Roast Vegetables, Bleu D'Auvergne

Whole Roast Quail, Smoked Bacon, Foie Gras, Lardo and Grape

Beetroot Tarte Tartin

Toasted Fregola, Pecorino and Butternut Squash Risotto

Cheese Plate



 

Pain Perdu, Honeycomb and Vanilla Ice-Cream

Apple Tarte Tartin

Rosemary Ice-Cream

Superlatives are useless right now because everything was spot on. Every single dish was a winner in my eyes.
A special mention has to go to the sea bass carpaccio and lamb en croute. They were to die for. What was great about the dishes was that it had the perfect balance, whether you fancy something light or something a little more hearty. Whatever you pick, I'm sure its going to be pretty special.

Meeting Jun capped off what was for me a cracking evening. I must stress that everyone needs to visit The Ninth because believe me this restaurant is going places and will only get bigger and better. 2016 will surely be Jun's year.

All Bao Down

Over the last couple of months people have been telling me to visit and check out Bao. Not only that I've read many positive reviews about the place via Facebook and various magazines/websites. Therefore I got off my arse and decided to give Bao a FoodPunk visit.

 

Located at the end of Lexington Street in Soho, the restaurant is very difficult to miss. Why?. Because from 12-3 or 5:30-10:00 you'll notice a swarm of people queueing up opposite, eager to get a piece of the action.

Admittedly I tried a few weeks ago to get in but with the weather being crappy I wasn't in the mood to wait.

This time around however I was going to make it my mission to eat there regardless. I was planning to go there for lunch and as I said earlier they open from 12-3. But because of my laid back approach I didn't get to the restaurant until 2 and with only an hour left I decided to have a few pints at the pub and had a cheeky tapas lunch at Brindisas waiting for Bao to open again at 5:30.

Luckily Brindisas is only twenty seconds away from Bao but by 4:30 there were already hungry punters loitering outside the restaurant. By five o clock a queue was already starting to form, so I quickly ran across the street so that I wasn't right at the back of the line. I was ready to get inside this much hyped place. 

Now before I go on about the restaurant and the food itself, let me stress that so far what you have read is no exaggeration. You really do need to give yourself plenty of time to avoid disappointment.

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Bao has an incredible atmosphere due to the fact that there's not much room to manoeuvre. Its tight space and polished wooden interior really gives it a supper club type feel. The staff are an excellent bunch and really do make you feel at home in their tiny abode.

I sat by the kitchen and the amount of dishes flying out was astonishing and it was only ten minutes into service by that point.

The menu is short, concise and very easy to read. The prices for each dish are more than affordable and definitely worth spending the money. If it's your first time going to Bao, fear not, the staff are on hand to tell you how many dishes they recommend you get.

If I wasn't being my greedy self and avoided eating so much at Brindisas, I would have ordered a few more dishes. I still mixed it up a bit and in my opinion ordered cracking food.

Within minutes of ordering, food started to arrive on my table. I highly recommend the guinea fowl rice. Thin tender slices of meat, a runny egg yolk, crispy shallots and fragrant rice, whats not to love? And like I was advised, mix that egg yolk everywhere. Its a real treat.

 

For something so simple, the beef soup with braised daikon is bloody delicious. It's rich, meaty stock packs so much flavour and the daikon bathing inside just soaks it all up. After one sip I just wanted more and more and before I knew it, there was an empty bowl. Next time I'm gonna order two!

If you want something less heavy to start off with, then the aubergine with the wonton crisp is the perfect alternative. Its light and the aubergine is smoked bang on point allowing the subtle Asian flavours to come through. Oh and if you like a little kick then this dish is for you.

Now for the main event. The Bao's on offer make it difficult to decide which one to pick. Heck you probably could order all of them due to the size of them.

If you're like me and you love fried chicken, Bao's is to die for with a crispy bit of tender chicken lightly coated in hot sauce and sandwiched in between a soft fluffy bun.

I absolutely loved the daikon bao. It was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and it carried a lot of vibrant flavours.

If you still got room for sides, go for the sweet potato chips. We've all had a soggy sweet potato chip but at Bao's, they're super crispy and the sweet plum ketchup drizzled on top makes it a winner.

 

Bao is ultimately a cool, funky joint to go to. The menu is short and simple but it delivers in tremendous style. I honestly can't wait to go back there again and hopefully next time try all the different Bao's. Queuing up for half an hour was worth it and I encourage everyone to check it out for themselves.

A Little Piece Of Levant Heaven

Edgware Road is one of the many parts of the City that is rich in ethnic culture. The area is particularly distinctive for it diverse communities from across the Middle East and Africa. Naturally because it is so rich in that culture, the area contains many shawarma and kebab type restaurants. There are so many of them ranging from big establishment to small cafes, all giving Londoners a taste of what the Middle East is all about. But because there are so many, it is hard to know which is worth spending your money on and which is not.

However if you're crying out for a place that will serve up great, traditional Middle Eastern food and at the same time want to avoid the hustle and bustle and non stop traffic of Edgware Road, then look no further as I have one restaurant in particular that will definitely suit your needs.


The other week I checked out this really stylish  restaurant right in the heart of Borough Market.
Arabica, a place that is heavily influenced from the Turkish and Levante area produces fantastic dishes inspired from that region.

Now when it comes to food from that part of the world I think of light, fresh flavours and combinations and Arabica delivers just that.
With its low lighting, relaxed mood, you can be sure to kick back and relax and enjoy the many plates of food on offer.

At such affordable prices, the restaurant creates a whole range of tasty looking dishes from a variety of different cooking methods such as using a clay oven and grilling. The great thing about Arabica is that they have an open kitchen where the chefs cook fresh fish and quality meats.

Just like going to any tapas restaurant, you can pick as many dishes as you like and with so many to choose from it can be tricky (in a good way of course) as practically all of them sound bloody tasty. If you were to go as a large party the choices would probably be so much easier.

On this particular occasion I ordered a mixture of dips, fried, charcoal, clay oven and veg type dishes.

To start with I had a lovely smooth, light homous with a healthy amount of olive oil in the centre. As well as the homous, I also had Moutabel which is basically Babaganoush. Warm homemade flatbread was also accompanied with the dips to help mop up every last bit of them.

I love my fried food ( lets face it who doesn't)  and I'm as sucker for onion rings in particular. These onion rings were gigantic and they were coated in a crispy light batter, finished off with spicy chilli and lemon zest.
As well as the onion rings I had falafels which are perhaps the most recognisable and popular vegetarian food from the Middle East and Arabica make in my opinion the best falafels. They're crispy on the outside and soft and moist on the inside.

The Cheese & Za'atar Man'ousheh was definitely a firm favourite of mine. It had salty halloumi cheese, subtle sesame flavour and fragrant thyme combined with the sharpness from the sumac. Not one of those components overpowered the other. The balance was spot on.

The meat and fish are an incredible part of what Arabica is all about. The lamb meshwi in particular is a must have with its tender pieces of lamb marinated with mild flavours and spices and with the coarse walnut harissa paste it gives the meat another dimension. As all of you know by now, I'm a big a hater of nuts but the walnut harissa was the perfect partner for the lamb.
As for the mackerel plate, Arabica do it plain and simple. House smoked and finished on the grill with a healthy dollop of homemade saffron mayonnaise. What more do you need?
















I had a really enjoyable evening at Arabica. With the food they create and the prices they're at, you're really onto a winner and not only that, the staff are incredibly friendly and cater for your every need. So if you're in the Borough area and more importantly want to discover the lands of the Levant have to offer then this place is definitely worth a visit.

Holy BBQ

Straight after the Festival of Heat and sampling some tasty hot sauces, I stumbled across Reds True BBQ restaurant, another of Shoreditch' little gems. Its a huge restaurant, along Great Eastern Street so there is no way you can miss it.

As soon as you walk in, there's a ginormous massive smoker beside the open kitchen and the Smokey BBQ smell  hits you right in the face and instantly gets your appetite going. I wish I took a picture of it.
The staff are all really cool, welcoming and helpful catering for any requests you may have. Not only that, they do a damn good job at explaining the menu and convincing you that you're making the right choices.

The menu itself is a little daunting but when it comes to BBQ's, it's what separates the men from the boys and there was little chance of me ordering small. But as you guys know by now, my eyes are always bigger than my belly.

There is so much food to choose from and the pictures above isn't even half of it. Apart from the burgers and little plates, you can also choose from (take a deep breath)  ribs, steaks, sandwiches, custom meat combos, BBQ plates, sides and desserts. (and breathe out).

I hadn't had a proper meal all day so naturally I was going go all out on the menu and obviously I couldn't do it all by myself so therefore help was needed, so who better to chow down all this food with me than to have the man himself Alex Reid.

Because I had a pretty big drinking session the night before and it was a Sunday I wanted to take things a little easy so I ordered one of these bad boy marshmallow and strawberry milkshakes. Take a look at this!!.

When it came down to the food there was no holding back. From the small plates, the both of us ordered a few rounds of mac n' cheese balls, some burnt ends and the Ox cheek bone luge.

The Mac N Cheese balls are covered in a nacho crumb and inside these golden nuggets the cheese is gooey and coats the tiny macaroni.
The burnt ends are a treat. The meat is tender, smoked to perfection and the slaw on the side is fresh and crunchy.
The Ox cheek bone marrow is to die for. Fatty, flavoursome and its definitely not for the peeps watching their cholesterol levels. Calories go straight out of the window on this one. And yes that is a shot of bourbon with it and there's a reason for it. Once the bone marrow has all gone you're meant to pour the drink down the luge and into your mouth. I gave it a go and failed. Half of it went down my arm, so in the end I just knocked it back. Bloody hell, It was strong.



After polishing up the small plates, the main event was upon us and this was a massive challenge and it was to no surprise that I couldn't finish it. I mean after all I did have a thick shake to go with all that rich tasty food before hand.

This is what came out of the kitchen......

Yep, that is no illusion, what you're seeing there is proper meat on trays. At the top is a half rack of Memphis - Dry St Louis. Basically tender ribs that fall off the bone coated in a sweet and salty rub and alongside are fries and smooth mash topped with white gravy.

Below that ladies and gentlemen is no ordinary burger, oh no. That is a donut burger! Packed between those sweet glazed donuts is two succulent mouth watering burger patties, melted cheese, smoked peppered bacon, crispy onions and smothered in some dirty sauce. (that's what is called, I'm not saying the sauce was horrible). And if that wasn't enough I got a huge onion ring, fries and bacon wrapped jalapeno. BOOM! Incredible stuff.

This restaurant is great for large parties and this is why.. take a look at this beast.

I bloody loved it. Served on a dustbin lid, that is what you call a meat feast. What you get is the following:-

• BBQ chicken
• Cheese and jalapeno sausage
• Pulled pork
• Beef brisket
• Cornbread
• Slaw
• Fries

Along with all that meat, depending on the number in your party, you each get a shot of that strong bourbon or Iced Tea. If you're brave the bourbon would be a wild choice. However the iced tea is lovely and refreshing.

Oh and one last thing the food isn't complete without the help of these sauces.

For all of you FoodPunks out there if you fancy a bit of BBQ heaven and want to have a great time then look no further than Reds True Barbeque. Its a great hangout. From the staff to the food and drink, I had a great time. I may have failed first time round at not being able to eat all of my burger, but I certainly made up for it by having a good go on that sharing platter.

Feeling Hot Hot Hot

Sup FoodPunks, just a short one today. If you love your chillies, spice and all things nice then the Festival of Heat in Shoreditch would have been right up your street. Fear not though, if you did miss out then there's always next year. Anyways we all know the year flies by, so before you know it, the next one will come around again.

On this particular occasion I was meant to do my latest FoodPunk video but unfortunately the venue was a tad too crowded and small for me to do any of it, so ultimately I've decided to write about it.

I've always had a soft spot for East London especially the Shoreditch/Hoxton area. The vibe and the atmosphere is always fantastic and with the weather being surprisingly on top form it made this festival even better for the people attending.

Inside the venue, you had small local businesses advertising and selling their fiery delights whether it was their own sauces or creating some mouth watering looking food with the humble chilli being the main event.

Crowds of people swarmed the area to get their chilli fix and it was difficult to get a look in but the food on offer looked fantastic and the aroma conjured up from dishes from all over the world was inviting. Unfortunately I didn't manage to try any of it as the queues were massive. Even the bar area was over run with people downing their pints enjoying the live music. It was great to see everyone having a brilliant time, relaxing and soaking up the atmosphere.

However all was not lost on my account as I happened to have stumbled across an awesome chilli sauce company called Sidekick.

For three bottles it only cost me a tenner which in all honesty is a bargain!!. They're a great accompaniment to anything that you love. they have bags of flavour and if you really do like that burning sensation, then the screaming pepper is ideal for you.
But obviously if you can't take that much heat, Sidekick do offer the more mellow variety such as mellow pepper. As you can see from my picture below, I go for more than the soft option.  It's addictive stuff and I have it with almost everything especially with Chinese food. Once those bottles have run out, I will definitely be ordering more.

It was a shame I couldn't get more from the event itself and would have loved to have done some filming but I suppose there's always next year.
Events like this showcasing ingredients like chillies is a fantastic way of expanding peoples minds and getting them to be more adventurous. It's not all about the heat or the burning sensation, there's a whole lot more to do with chillies. There is a ton of varieties out there with loads of different flavours waiting to be tried. I hope next year I can be more involved and hopefully more people will be spicing up their lives.