LEFTOVERS: M. Manze Pie & Mash House, 105 High Street, Peckham SE15 5RS

Me and my equally brown skinned Cypriot friend known as 'The Moufflon" walked into this place to be greeted by stares, we definitely felt far away from home. They must've laughed at us, two novelty foreignors coming in for some British blue collar gastro tourism.

There's not many of these old fashioned Eel & Pie joints left in London, there's a few east, a few west and some down this way. Surprisingly Manze owns three locations. I've been dieing to try this stuff for ages, and when finally served up this opportunity I found it to be bland, very bland.

The pie pastry was nice enough but the whole plate needed a heavy lashing of salt and vinegar to get some sort of flavour out of it. The filling itslelf was minimal on meat volume. The liquor was flavourless and weak, I'd like to say it was 'subtle', but it was just weak.

I'd still give it another go though, because it's simplicity was kind of comforting.

Yours in Fatness

Rajesh
xx

Rajesh in Dubai: For the Love of Buttermilk.

Man, this brings me back to my childhood.  

Laban-Up is a Middle East favourite.  A sour buttermilk drink that's so refreshing when served chilled on a sweltering hot day.  It has a very distinct and comforting flavour and a cute old fashioned carton that I miss seeing.

Costs roughly 10 pence, found in all good (and bad) grocery stores and supermarkets around here.

x

Rajesh

PS: For those who have tried 'salty' Indian Lassi, it's similar to that.

Quick & Easy Recipe: Arabic Snacks

I've mentioned before that I still long for those Middle Eastern flavours while stranded here on Her Majesty's Rainy Shores. The ones below are extremely simple and tasty, either as a light snack on a Sunday, or to serve to guests before a meal. Serve these with real arabic bread, the big flat variety which you can find in most good Arabic/Ethnic Supermarkets, the 'pita' you get in chain supermarkets is rubbish compared to it.

Tahini Dip

• 1/2 Cup Tahini (Arabic Sesame Paste, available in Arabic Supermarkets)
• 4 Heaped Tablespoons of Greek Yoghurt
• 1 Garlic Clove
• Juice of one Whole Lemon
• Optional Fresh Parsley to Garnish
• Sea Salt to Taste
  

Chop Garlic Finely. Add to the Tahini. Plop in the Yoghurt, mix till combined, watch as it thickens up into a nice paste. Incorporate the lemon, (add more depending on your your palette), season with the salt. If the dip is too thick for your tastes, thin it down with a little water till it reaches your desired consistency. This dip also goes well with fish!

Arnabeet Meklah (Fried Cauliflower)

• One Head of Cauliflower
• Sea Salt
• Oil for Frying
• Optional Fresh Lemon Juice

You won't believe how special this is until you try it, and it's so darn simple. The frying unlocks the beautiful flavours in the cauliflower that usually languish in boiling water and dodgy cheese sauces. This nice rustic treat is really addictive.

Slice up the cauliflower into florets. Shallow fry in hot oil, cook till nicely browned and a little crispy in places. Pat down and dry off oil. Sprinkle with Sea Salt (and optional lemon). Serve with Tahini Dip and warmed Arabic Bread. It's cheap too!

Enjoy!
xx

-R

Tip for the Lazy: Most UK Chain Supermarkets sell a Tahini brand called 'Cypressa' if you can't make it to an Arabic shop.

Quick & Easy Recipe: Home Made Pesto.

Pesto is so damn simple and gratifying.  Follow the easy recipe below.

Homemade Pesto in a Pestle & Mortar

• Half a Clove of Garlic
  
• Handful of Pine Nuts
  
• Handful of Parmesan, finely grated.
  
• Big bunch of Basil, 400g should do
  
• Salt & Pepper
  
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  
• Lemon Juice (optional)
  

(Invest in a good Pestle & Mortar, one made of stone or even those fancy ones made of hardened lava, I bought a cheap wood one that has a smell of its own and likes to sprinkle splinters around, it's horrible.)

Lightly toast the pinenuts, but don't brown them or the flavour will overpower, this way you get a slight nutty sweetness out of them.

Mince the Garlic with a little salt and the basil in a pestle and mortar, add olive oil as an when you need it for texture.  Add the nuts and keep working it, add the parmesan and oil.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

Spoon into freshly made spaghetti.  Enjoy.

TIP: To make your meal a little more lush, crumble some ricotta on top of the pesto-incorporated spaghetti before serving.  You'll thank me later.

YOSHINO 59 SHAFTESBURY AVENUE LONDON W1D 6LF

Oh my god its like a sweet shop for sushi freaks and its well cheap. Yoshino is a take away sushi joint and its the cheapest we ever came across. Heres a list of what we had.

4 VEGETABLE TEMPRA ROLL - £1.00

4 ROCK PRAWN CALIFORNIA ROLL - £1.50

4 CHICKEN KATSU ROLL - £1.30

6 TUNA SMALL ROLL - £1.80

8 ORGANIC SALMON CALIFORNIA MAKI - £3.50

8 TUNA MAYO ROLL - £1.80

8 SQUID TERIYAKI ROLL £2.20

And it's great quality    

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Papa DelS 347 Archway Rd London N6 5AA

Papa Dels has been around for about 10 years and with just two big old lord of the rings type tables to dine at its quite a nice setting to munch pizza in. From 9pm-11pm its only £3 for any pizza with 2 toppings. They also make their own cookies which is great if you want to get a bit fatter I have and I feel fantastic for it. So if your in the N6 area give it a munch.     

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Olley's Fish Experience, 65 - 69 Norwood Road, Herne Hill, SE24 9AA

Considering England is the "Home of Fish & Chips" I have had some of the worst mutations of this dish here on Her Majesty's very own shores.

Having read great reviews of Olley's I decided to check it out.  It's located near Brockwell park, which serves as a great spot to eat your battered sea creature and chips on a nice day.

They do a lunch deal from 1PM to 3PM, £6.50 for Fish of your choice, chips and mushy peas.  I ordered the Haddock.  The Haddock was great, covered in a very nice batter that wasn't feral or out of control with oil and other anomalies.  Tasty chips to accompany.  I'm generally not a fan of mushy peas, but these had a very gentle home-made taste to them, if a bit bland.  A splash of vinegar spruced them up.  They are ultimately better than the offensive processed varieties.

Olley's do their fish grilled too if you're not into batter, however why is it that you can't find any breaded fish in most Fish & Chip joints in this country?

A good cheap eat at £6.50.  

Olley's Website

Quick & Easy Recipe: Muttabal aka Baba Ganoush

Having spent a large part of my life in the Middle East I occasionally  get flashes of flavours that I can't shake off, one of these being Muttabal which is a smoked aubergine dip.  It's really simple to make, cheap and tasty!  It's one of those simple dishes that always surprises you and your guests with it's distinct bold flavour.

Muttabal

Ingredients:

• 3 Cloves of Garlic
• 1/2 Cup of Tahina (A sesame paste available in all Arabic Supermarkets)
• 1 T/S Salt
• 1 Large Aubergine
• Lemon 
• Parsely to Garnish
• Paprika powder to Garnish

Directions:

The best way to smoke the Aubergine is to literally roast it on the hob, this sounds dangerous but works great.  Turn the flame up up high, slap the Aubergine down onto it and roast, turning occasionally till you can feel it has softened inside and the skin is burnt.

Put aubergine aside to cool, and peel off and discard skin.  At this point, chop it up into four or five pieces and put into a large mixing bowl.

Chop garlic cloves till fine and throw them onto the aubergine.  Add the teaspoon of salt, lemon juice and 1/2 cup of the tahina.  Mix thoroughly and set aside to cool.

Spread the Muttabal on a plate and garnish with small sprinklings of Paprika Powder, a bit of Parsley and Olive oil if you like. 

Serve with warm Pitta bread and enjoy the garlicky smokey goodness!

Wong Kei 41-43 Wardour Street, London, W1D 6PY

 
On a cold day in the west end when you're on your own and looking for a quick and cheep eat,  the Wong Kei is the place to go.
 
Won Ton noodle Soup takes about 5 mins to arrive with 5 or 6 nicely cooked won tons, a good basic stock, noodles, chinese greens and a free pot of jasmine tea all for £2.80 you can't go wrong.