And So...
There are a few more (read "a lot of") catch up posts still to come for 2011 but one is slightly more pressing than the others: a very enjoyable lunch at So.
In this line of work - or "work" if you prefer / are one of my friends who ALWAYS does the air quotation mark thing when discussing my "job" (they do it on that too) - there are a few questions you ALWAYS get asked. One is 'how do I get your "job" you jammy bastard?'. The other is 'where should I take my husband / wife / boyfriend / girlfriend / colleague / mother / etc.?'
The problem with the second question is I can never remember anywhere when put on the spot. I'm not one of these people who rushes off to every new opening (dear god, can you imagine my size if I did?), nor do I do a lot of repeat visits (unless we're talking lunch time sandwich and change from a tenner). In addition, work often dictates where I'm eating. If that sounds like a complaint, it's not meant to: rarely have the words "jammy" and "bastard" been so accurately applied.
Being of sieve-like brain, I've put together a short mental list of those stalwart places you know you can confidently recommend to anyone. It's a mix of the expected and the local, the conventional and the eclectic, the expensive and the pocket-friendly and all points inbetween. So sits very neatly on that list and, remarkably for a sushi place, it also sits closer to the pocket-friendly side of the list.
The smoked duck is a generous portion of delicious tenderness for a fiver. The same applies to the wings (same price) and the scallop and daikon salad (a quid more). You can eat very well for sensible figures here. You can also push the proverbial out for black cod in miso (a dish that's available in many places but not always to this standard) and 15 pieces of sashimi. They're £20 and £25 respectively: not cheap then, but not excessive either.Regardless, £30 a head will send you back onto the Soho streets feeling well-fed, refreshed and enjoying a bit of a protein rush.
So why the pressing need to talk about So now? Because tomorrow - and you haters of smugness (you know who you are and hey, so do I) may need to look away now - I'm off to Tokyo with the owner, Tetsuro Hama, and his chef, Kaoru Yamamoto. Yeah. I know. Jammy bastard. On the assumption Tokyo has a bit of wifi (yeah, it does seem like a pretty safe assumption, doesn't it?), stand by for some serious Tweeted food porn and, hopefully, a bit of live(ish) blogging...
In this line of work - or "work" if you prefer / are one of my friends who ALWAYS does the air quotation mark thing when discussing my "job" (they do it on that too) - there are a few questions you ALWAYS get asked. One is 'how do I get your "job" you jammy bastard?'. The other is 'where should I take my husband / wife / boyfriend / girlfriend / colleague / mother / etc.?'
The problem with the second question is I can never remember anywhere when put on the spot. I'm not one of these people who rushes off to every new opening (dear god, can you imagine my size if I did?), nor do I do a lot of repeat visits (unless we're talking lunch time sandwich and change from a tenner). In addition, work often dictates where I'm eating. If that sounds like a complaint, it's not meant to: rarely have the words "jammy" and "bastard" been so accurately applied.
Being of sieve-like brain, I've put together a short mental list of those stalwart places you know you can confidently recommend to anyone. It's a mix of the expected and the local, the conventional and the eclectic, the expensive and the pocket-friendly and all points inbetween. So sits very neatly on that list and, remarkably for a sushi place, it also sits closer to the pocket-friendly side of the list.
The smoked duck is a generous portion of delicious tenderness for a fiver. The same applies to the wings (same price) and the scallop and daikon salad (a quid more). You can eat very well for sensible figures here. You can also push the proverbial out for black cod in miso (a dish that's available in many places but not always to this standard) and 15 pieces of sashimi. They're £20 and £25 respectively: not cheap then, but not excessive either.Regardless, £30 a head will send you back onto the Soho streets feeling well-fed, refreshed and enjoying a bit of a protein rush.
So why the pressing need to talk about So now? Because tomorrow - and you haters of smugness (you know who you are and hey, so do I) may need to look away now - I'm off to Tokyo with the owner, Tetsuro Hama, and his chef, Kaoru Yamamoto. Yeah. I know. Jammy bastard. On the assumption Tokyo has a bit of wifi (yeah, it does seem like a pretty safe assumption, doesn't it?), stand by for some serious Tweeted food porn and, hopefully, a bit of live(ish) blogging...
Comments
Enjoy the trip, looking forward to the tweets :)
Please note down lots of Tokyo tips as I'm planning my October visit now.
On a bit of a budget. Budget not being a word that works so well in Tokyo, as I'm rapidly learning, now I've got the flights booked and confirmed!