savory-bites » Covent Garden

Ben’s Cookies

Jessie — Wed, 21 May 2008 04:46:37 +0000

Whoever Ben is, he must be rich and fat because that’s what his cookies are like. Priced around 1.20 pounds per cookie, they’re extremely dense but well worth the price. I mean, obviously it wouldn’t be a great idea to get one everyday, but it’s a definite must if you go to London.

The nearest Ben’s Cookies for me was in Covent Garden. There’s one at South Kensington Station and more elsewhere. Supposedly, the dough is pre-made only 2 days or so in advance, and their cookies are freshly baked each day. They have this small oven that just cranks out the cookies. That would explain the wonderful waft that you get whenever you pass by the stand.

Their cookies look small. They probably measure 2.5 inches, but they’re extremely deceptive because they rise about an inch up. So when you’re chewing, you’re thinking to yourself, “man, how am I still eating this thing?!”

I got the orange chocolate chip- wonderful essences of orange infused with the chocolate. What a great combination. I ALSO got the ice cream which was awesome because they give you a cheaper deal (3.60 pounds I think?) If you get their ice cream, you should get their cookies and cream because they have their own cookies in them! Ben’s offers special packages, so the more you buy, the more you save. They are significantly better than Millie’s Cookies too!

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Clos Maggiore

Jessie — Fri, 09 May 2008 17:13:38 +0000

Ahh, Clos Maggiore, the one fine dining restaurant my wallet was able to temper while I stayed in London. It really wasn’t too expensive, especially if you compare it to New York City’s Restaurant Week. In New York, I’ll generally have to fork over $55 for a 3 course (usually mediocre) Restaurant Week meal. I believe I paid 23 pounds, which comes out cheaper.

It was such a spectacular dining experience. One of the websites I definitely suggest checking out is Toptable.com. They give you many, many deals for dining out as well as theatre tickets. I found a 3 course dinner at Clos Maggiore or around 20 pounds, and it was on a Sunday night! It was in a prime location, Covent Garden, so really, we got tons out of it.

Each day their menu changes, and as this is a long overdue blog, I can’t remember the exact names of the dishes we ordered, not that I knew half the stuff on the menu. Another suggestion for many of the fine dining restaurants in Europe is to look up their menu online ahead of time if possible. Even if their menu is liable to change, you’ll get a good sense of what they are serving and you can look up unfamiliar terms.

For the appetizer, I ordered the Ballotine of Smoked Salmon & Artichoke Butter. The salmon was extremely fresh, but the one complaint I had was the small piece of toast that they gave us. It was literally 3in by 3in while the ballotine (protein wrapped so it looks like a swirl) was 3 inches in diameter at half a inch thick, with cream in between the layers. That’s pretty dense for me, so I would have liked more bread to balance it out. Speaking of bread, I forgot to mention that they serve this wonder Focaccia. The only thing is you have to ask for more bread because they individually serve it.

For the entree, I ordered the Bellini with Paris Mushrooms. I’ll admit that the presentation wasn’t the best. I mean, it didn’t look appetizing at all. I never had a blini and didn’t know what it was until Top Chef, but this was delicious! (A blini is basically a Russian pancake). But my favorite part of the dish was the mushrooms. They were delicately savory.

Dessert was hands down, the most unique chocolate cake I’ve ever had. The bottom had a crunchy chocolate crust, the cake was dense yet moist, and near the top there was a little ganache filling. On the surface, they drizzled a buttons of dark chocolate and served it with a scoop of mocha ice cream. Heavenly!

To top that off, they served us a platter of complimentary petit desserts- eclairs, cakes, and chocolate truffles for us all!

The prefix is 19.50 and with tips it came out to around 23 pounds. Here’s their menu if you’re interested.

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Apostrophe

Jessie — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:10:05 +0000

“Apostrophe fuses authentic boulangerie-patisserie food with a strong café culture and a modern, cosmopolitan environment,” or so their website says. Another chain across London, one of my friends called it an upscale Pret. But really, it’s in another league from Pret. It’s more hip, chic, and young.

All of their sandwiches are freshly made each morning. They have a great selection of unique combinations that you probably won’t be able to find elsewhere. It’s a bit pricey for an American student, with the cheaper sandwiches being just under 3 pounds. However, the freshness and taste is worth the money.

I went to the one in Russell Square, a 5 minute walk from campus. To save some money, order it for take-away and take advantage of the benches and fountains in Brunswick Centre. It’s beautiful on a sunny day. I ordered a Normandy, which was a simple sandwich of pear, brie, and watercress leaves sandwiched between two slices of walnut bread. The sweetness of the pear is delicately balanced by the nuetral and somewhat salty taste of the brie. In all, it’s a winning combination, and I’d give it a 9 out of 10.

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Porter’s English Restaurant

Jessie — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 23:58:38 +0000

On Toptable.com, there’s a theatre and dinner package. When Amy and co. came, I decided get the package for the occasion. For only 20 pounds per person, you get a ticket to Blood Brothers (which was bloody good!) and a 2 course pre-fixed dinner at Porter’s English Restaurant. It was an awesome deal.

The food, however, was mediocre. Because it was a pre-fix, it was pretty limited. I of course, chose to opt out of appetizer and get dessert, especially since 2 out of the 3 choices for the appetizers were soup dishes *yuch!* Amy and her mother both ordered soup. Amy ordered the spicy pumpkin, chili, and coconut soup. She said it was alright.

Amy and Glen had a ball with the entrees. Amy chose faggots (some sort of beef?) and I chose the bangers and mash (sausage and mash). The sausages were extremely fatty and wouldn’t have been downable had it not been for the mash. They had a bland flavor and I felt I was chewing forever. It was a below average dish. I think I could have made it better. Glen had the fried crab-cakes. I’m assuming it was average too.

The dessert was better. I had this raspberry cake with whipped cream. It was extremely tart, but I guess better too tart-y than too sweet. Glen chose the steamed sponge syrup which we all agreed was the best dish of the night.

It was a good deal for the price paid, but it wasn’t exactly a great meal, at least in my opinion.

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