Flesh and Buns is the latest Izakaya restaurant by the people from Bone Daddies, the successful ramen restaurant founded by chef Ross Shonhan who previously worked at Nobu and Zuma. The concept of Flesh and Buns centres around hirata buns, folded steamed buns commonly filled with pork. Here, you have a choice of different fillings, all of which are accompanied by salad, a sauce and pickles. You create your own buns here, filling them however you wish. And as a precursor to the buns, there are also a choice of raw dishes, snacks and small dishes.

Flesh and Buns has a common appeal. Not only is its concept of ‘flesh and buns’ original, the décor is funky and appealing with a buzzy vibe. The centrepiece of the restaurant is a long sharing table, and circling the table are cozy booth seats and round tables.

We kicked off with a tuna tataki with grapefruit, dry miso, coriander (£10) which was truly lovely. The tuna was fresh, the use of dry miso added depth, and the coriander provided a fresh fragrance to the dish. There were also little beads of dried rice which gave the dish a crunchy finish.

Tuna tataki

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One of the highlights of a holiday to Malta is the food. The island has been occupied by many cultures throughout its history and all have left their mark in the food, making it a vibrant and unusual cuisine. These occupiers included the Italians, the Spanish and the British; there is also a strong Arabic influence in Maltese dishes. Historically, the Knights of St John were based on Malta. These men came from across Europe and brought their native dishes with them, some of which were adopted and adapted by the Maltese. For example, the Maltese dish aljotta originates from the French fish soup, bouillabaisse.

Have you decided on Malta for your next trip abroad? Your last minute holidays to malta is something that you will cherish because of the country’s rich culinary tradition.

Cucina Povera

Much of Maltese cuisine is based on traditional food cooked by poor people. This is called ‘Cucina Povera’, which translates to ‘poor kitchen’. One common Cucina Povera dish is even called ‘Widow’s Soup’! As such, Cucina Povera recipes usually contain seasonal and fresh vegetables, cheaper cuts of meat and perhaps some local cheeses.

Italian-style Food

Due to the Italian history of the island and its geographical closeness to Italy, traditional Italian dishes such as pasta are very popular on Malta. Much of the Italian influence in Malta’s food comes from nearby Sicily.

Fish and Meat

As an island, seafood is a regular source of meat for the Maltese. A fish called Lampuki is served, sometimes grilled and sometimes in Lampuki Pie. A type of rabbit stew cooked with peas and wine, known as fenkata, is also commonly served. Bragioli is stuffed beef with a tomato and herb sauce.

Snacks and Appetisers

Try bigilla (broad beans with garlic) and hobz biz-zjet, which is bread with oil. In short, Maltese food is varied, exciting and one of the main reasons to look forward to your holiday to the island! Make sure you try plenty of different dishes to explore the range of Maltese cuisine.

Note: This is a guest sponsored blog post.

Marquess Tavern is a cozy local pub located on Canonbury Street in Islington. The main focal point of the pub is the central bar, and circling the bar are tables where customers can sit and enjoy a drink or have a bite to eat. Marquess Tavern won the Time Out Gastro Pub of the Year award in 2006, however the current layout of the pub (where there is no dedicated separate dining area) suggests that Marquess Tavern’s focus has shifted from gastropub to boozer.

We tried the quail wrapped in smoked bacon (£7.25) with beetroot and orange. It was a pleasant dish with the quail being tasty and moist. But there was no caramelisation on the quail and it needed more browning on the skin for greater flavour and a more superior finish.

Quail wrapped in bacon

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The Thomas Cubitt, named after London’s legendary master builder, is a gorgeous and inviting pub located in the heart of Belgravia. On the ground floor is the pub itself with the dining room located on the first floor. The Thomas Cubitt is owned by the same group who also own The Grazing Goat, and they do a fine job of providing rustic British gastropub food in an inviting setting.

In the upstairs dining room we sat down to a chicken liver and port parfait (£8.50) which was well made, flavoursome and wonderfully creamy. It was paired with a pumpkin, thyme and blood orange compote that was fruity and aromatic, and boasted a good amount of acidity to cut through the richness of the parfait.

Chicken liver parfait

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Bill’s Produce Store & Café is probably known for its good quality seasonal dishes. The food is tasty and really reasonably priced, and it’s hard to fault the super cozy setting that serves all the restaurants within the Bill’s chain. But Bill’s is more than just about serving hot food. They also offer a range of Bill’s own label products that are available for purchase throughout their restaurants.

With this, Bill’s has launched a range of hampers to celebrate the holiday season. So if you’re looking for some gift ideas to help spread the festive cheer then it might be worth taking a peak at Bill’s range of gift hampers.

The hampers start in price from £55.95 (the classic hamper) and include a variety of Bill’s spreads, sweets, baked goods and a bottle of wine. The top priced giant hamper is £110 and includes similar items to the classic hamper. But not only that, it features Bill’s own beer and a bottle of Jean Pernet Champagne as well. For something smaller, Bill’s also have a range of gift boxes.

Bill’s Giant Hamper

I adored the Bill’s lemon curd in the giant hamper as it was deliciously zingy. The oatie biscuits were crunchy and super yummy as well. A big thank you to Bill’s for playing Santa and sending me a hamper as a Christmas surprise.

Website: http://bills-website.co.uk/

Quisine by Guy Savoy Doha is the first restaurant in the Middle East by the famous three Michelin starred French chef, Guy Savoy. Quisine embraces the same philosophy of Restaurant Guy Savoy in Paris and therefore bears many striking similarities including a menu that adopts many of the dishes available in Paris, albeit with some local twists thrown in.

Chef Guy Savoy believes that the environment in which you eat in is as important as the food itself, and accordingly the interior of Quisine also embraces Guy Savoy’s deep passion for style and beauty. Jean-Michel Wilmotte, the Interior Designer responsible for many of Guy Savoy’s other restaurants, also took charge of designing the Doha outlet. With Quisine by Guy Savoy he has created a spectacular space with a monochromatic colour scheme that creates both a sense of harmony and indelible comfort. A mesmerising wall of flickering flames also greets diners as they enter the restaurant.

Quisine by Guy Savoy

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After my last visit to the St Regis Doha, the nice folk at the hotel kindly invited me back to try out one of private cabanas at St Regis Doha should I ever come through Doha again. I had a magical stay at The St Regis Doha when I was last in Doha earlier this year. The hotel’s sumptuous décor and fantastic service made for an incredible experience, not to mention our wonderful Friday brunch at the restaurant, Opal by Gordon Ramsay.

Well the opportunity for me to try the private cabana presented itself a few weeks ago when I popped through Doha again. There are ten cabanas at the hotel, each of which cater up to eight guests and are available for daily hire.

We were placed in cabana No.7 which has pride of place right on the beachfront. Note that not all the cabanas have beach views so be sure to ask for one if booking. The views from cabana No.7 were glorious. What a great spot for a bit of sunbaking!

Views of the beach from cabana 7

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Spice Market by Jean-Georges is one of two restaurants at the W Hotel Doha by celebrity Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten (the other is Market by Jean-Georges). Best known for his three-Michelin starred flagship restaurant Jean-Georges in New York, his global restaurant empire spans across several continents and includes more than 30 restaurants. From his initial roots where he trained under Chef Paul Haeberlin at Auberge de l’Ill and Paul Bocuse, Jean-Georges went on to travel and work extensively in Asia. These experiences have provided the Asian influences that permeate much of his food and inspiration for Spice Market Doha.

The décor at Spice Market Doha is gorgeous and fuses South East Asian exoticism with European elegance to create an atmosphere that is casual, warm and sexy. This is a place where the beautiful people go and was heavy with an expatriate crowd on the Thursday night (start of the weekend in Qatar) of our visit.

We kicked off with some lentil poppadoms with a chilli tomato salsa which came out in place of bread. These were fabulous with the poppadoms being thin, crispy and nicely seasoned. The salsa was also wonderfully tasty with the right amount of kick.

Lentil poppadoms

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