Breakfast Wednesdays

Late breakfasts are in danger of becoming a habit, as work has reared its ugly head and devoured November breakfast entirely.  But, better late than never, December Breakfast will take place.  And casting aside better judgement, we were unable to resist the festive breakfast offer from All Bar One - see you there, 8am as usual!

Breakfasting venue: All Bar One, Cannon Street

Date of breakfasting: 19 December 2012

Nearest Tube is: Cannon Street

Location: 103 Cannon Street, London, EC4N 5AD

A last-minute succession of sorry excuses sees the Brekmeister dining alone this month – however, as the saying goes, whosoever gains the whole world, but gives up their breakfast, might as well have stayed in bed.  Or something like that. But to the nub of the matter – is the offering at the Anthologist worthy of compilation into into the annals of great breakfasts?

After detailed inspection of the menu, I decided that a “Californian Kickstarter” was the only possible option to begin the day.  That would be poached eggs on a toasted English muffin topped with hummus, guacamole, flat mushroom, grilled plum tomato and sweet chilli sauce.

So then … the good or the bad? The good is that the kickstarter is absolutely delicious.  The bad is that they appear to have forgotten to transfer it from a kitchen chopping block to an actual plate.  Now I’m sure that it’s very trendy, minimalist and pseudo-naturalistic to present a breakfast on a bare hunk of wood.  But there are actually some fairly good reasons that the progress of society brought with it the advent of dishes with upturned rims.  Namely, that it prevents your egg from running straight into your lap when you pierce the yolk.  Perhaps somewhere, there are an avant-garde few in the City who will boldly and gladly sacrifice the sanctity of their trousers at 8am in return for the daringly modern experience of eating from a plank.  But I wouldn’t bet on it.

This choice example of obsessive adherence to style over sense aside, the actual breakfast was a genuine pleasure.  The poached eggs were done to perfection, disgorging their yolky essence readily.  Of course, I am never going to criticise a mushroom unless it is a true abomination – and this was far from that, as you can see.  I wasn’t sure how the hummus, guacamole and sweet chilli would work in the context of eight o’clock in the morning – but the answer is that, here at least, they work remarkably well.  I can imagine in the wrong quantities they could make this dish quite unappealing, but Anthologist get it just right in this respect.  The hummus and guacamole work together to give a distinctive flavour and feel but, crucially, without overwhelming the subtler taste of the egg. Likewise, the incorporation of the sweet chilli sauce must require an infinitesimal precision to deliver that fantastic tang at the end of the mouthful, but again without smothering any of the other tastes.

It all comes dished up in a muffin – and a muffin is a muffin really, this one no exception.  Nothing about it stands out – but that job is adequately done by the contents, and I should say that it is the right proportion to give the whole meal its substance without, as some places do, leaving you feeling like you’ve ingested a bowling-ball of dough.

It does take a while to get a bill to appear, and then to get someone interested in receiving a payment to appear – but I confess that I am potentially swayed more than is necessary in favour of the place by the fact that my tab comes enclosed in a copy of the Boswell’s Life of Johnson.  Neat touch.  And this time the style points can be awarded with out downgrade on the practicality front.   Good work!

As such it seems appropriate to sign off with a few words of wisdom from the venerable Dr. Johnson himself, on the topic of breakfast – of course:

“If an epicure could remove by a wish, wherever he had supped he would breakfast in Scotland”   –  Samuel Johnson, Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland.

And with that, Brekmeister himself is off to sup at Scottish breakfast tables for a week, but promises not to let himself be so ensnared by the delights of Scottish breakfast fare as to not return for November’s breakfast … see you then!

Follow @BrekWeds

So, one year ago we raved about our amazing breakfast at the (then)  new Hawksmoor Guildhall.  It was so good in fact, that we decided on an anniversary visit.  Could it live up to our expectations once again?  More to the point, could the Brekmeister step up to the challenge of another Full Hawksmoor breakfast for two?   The answer, my compatriots, is a resounding affirmative.

Let’s start with the mighty platter itself – pork, beef and mutton and sausages, egg, tomato, smoked bacon chop, black pudding, bubble and squeak, pigs’ trotter baked beans, grilled mushrooms, bone marrow plus unlimited toast.  Oh yeah.  Was it as good as we remembered?  Absolutely!  Well, I have to grant that I’m taking it as given for the toast – I didn’t manage to get to that, on account of ensuring that I did justice to the rest of the platter.  However, rest assured that this breakfast remains the most comprehensively recession, belt and tastebud-busting experience out there.  Suffice it to say, even if you think you don’t like bubble and squeak, you owe it to yourself to try the Hawksmoor variation on the theme – it’s exquisite.  And nothing like the tastless, mush-mass that you may have experienced before.

But this time it wasn’t all about the big breakfast.  There was also the smoked salmon, poached eggs and potato farl.  Every bit as good as it sounds.  And looks.

Then, of course, there’s the Sausage and Egg Hk Muffin.  I challenge you to imagine the best breakfast muffin that you can think of.  Now tell me, does it look as good as this?

Uh huh.  Didn’t think so.  Well, to round off the morning, there’s always the tried and trusted Eggs Benedict.  Well, you can certainly rely on the Hawksmoor to do a dish justice.  This one is no exception.  Top notch!

Of course, we still haven’t worked our way through the whole menu yet, so it looks like we’re due for a second anniversary visit.  Such a pity.

After the raging success of our last visit, it seemed appropriate to pay an anniversary visit to the provider of one of the best breakfasts we’ve had in London so far … Hawksmoor Guildhall.

Breakfasting venue:  Hawksmoor Guildhall

Date of Breakfasting: Wednesday 14th September

Time: 8:00am – 8:45am

Nearest tube is:  Moorgate / St.Paul’s / Bank

Location: 10 Basinghall Street, London, EC2V 5BQ

If you need breakfast, if you want high class, and if you can find it, then maybe you too can eat at Caravan King’s Cross.  The finding it is a bit of hit or miss affair at the moment; of the three of us who made it, there was one hit and two misses – although we all did eventually locate it.  Presumably it will be easier once the Granary Square development is finished – and maybe once there’s more than a sandwich board outside to let you know it’s there.

But roughly speaking, you wander up the new road that leads away up behind and between King’s Cross and St. Pancras stations, and cross over to the big plaza at the end.  Then you wander up and down the frontage of the big converted warehouse (well, granary I guess) until you find the one with the welcome aroma of coffee and delicious food.

Walking in you know immediately what kind of place you’re in.  With the exposed air con piping, the hip laid-back music drifting softly across the floor, the low slung tables and chairs vaguely reminiscent of your sixth form common room yet somehow at the same time sleek and modern … this place is TRENDY.   Yep, in capital letters.

The coffee.  That is definitely the first thing that I should mention.   Caravan King’s X hosts its own roastery within the premises, as you can tell as soon as you pass the threshold.  Wonderful scents tease your nostrils, and a chalkboard announces a variety of alluring bespoke blends to choose from.  A waitress is promptly at our table to take our drink order, and a cup of glorious pitch blackness arrives in what seems like moments, complete with mini milk bottle.  Did I mention that it is TRENDY here?  Mind you, I couldn’t care less if it were the headquarters of the Saddo Club as long as I can get coffee like this.  And peppermint tea, made up with fresh peppermint leaves.  Oh yes.

You want to know about the food though: that’s fair enough.   Between us we cover our bases on the menu.  One corn and morcilla fritters with avocado and paprika crème fraiche, and side of Satsouki sausage.   One Jalapeno cornbread with fried egg, black beans and tomatillo.  And (but of course!) one Full English breakfast.

In a word: sumptuous.  The fritters are marvellously spongy, and the paprika crème fraiche complements the avocado so well you wonder why it doesn’t grow on the trees like that – and the Satsouki sausage oozes deliciously onto the palate.  The Jalapeno cornbread has the perfect level of “pick-me-up” tang to it, without being overbearing, and the black beans are cooked just so.  And the tomatillo … admit it – you thought this was some poncy name for tomato sauce, didn’t you?  Well, it sort of is (in that the tomatillo plant is a relation to the tomato plant) – but mostly isn’t (in that they taste quite different, adding a tasty tone of citrus to the dish.

Of course, being THAT kind of place, Caravan do their own take on the Full English.  It’s called “Caravan Fry”, and you have to order the sausage separately to make it up into the real deal.  But since they have a delectable array of sausages to choose from, including boar, the aforementioned satsouki, or chorizo, you can almost count it as a plus.  Though I have to wonder whether the omission of the sausage from the base line-up is in order to keep all the individual menu items under the ten pound mark.

But back to the food – the boar sausage is an excellent addition to the Caravan Fry, which is itself is a beauty to behold.  No stinting on the mushroom, which is definitely a big plus in my book.  Providing the obligatory tomato as a compote is a unique approach, but it does seem to work here.  Liberally adorned with bacon.  The one thing I would say is that, pitched at the same price as a slew of other exciting and inventive dishes, this offering would definitely seem a little wan in comparison if you ordered it alone (without the sausage) and had to sit through breakfast watching your accomplice(s) explore the rest of the menu.  But it is but a small gripe really.

I’m coming back, first opportunity, to try out the Parmesan grits, boar sausage and girolles.  Overall verdict – if you’re allergic to the achingly hip, or if you are a Full English fundamentalist, this might not quite be your thing.  But to everyone else – or if you just want to expand your boundaries: get here now, for a breakfast like no other.

Still living down our disappointment at not having been invited to Heston Blumenthal’s humongous fry-up at Birmingham Moor Street last Wednesday, we have been unable to recover in time for an outing on the second Wednesday of the month.   Nothing at all to do with the  Brekmeister’s acquisition of tickets to the Olympic Canoe Sprint finals at Eton Dorney, of course.

In short, we’re doing August breakfast a week late.   Coincidentally, this lands us just after the opening of the new branch of Caravan in King’s Cross  … which doesn’t really leave any serious decision to be made about the venue.  See you there!

Breakfasting venue:  Caravan King’s Cross

Date of Breakfasting: Wednesday 15th August

Time: 8:00am – 8:45am

Nearest tube is:  King’s Cross

Location:   1 Granary Square, London NC1 4AA (Map)

A select group of BWers assembled to assess the experience of a breakfast at the highly regarded Manicomio restaurant on Gutter Lane.  All of us having sampled lunchtime fare there in various guises (either in the restaurant itself or from the takeaway salad bar), expectations were comfortably high.  Duly ordered were one “Full Italian” breakfast, one grilled bacon and tomato sandwich, and one pancakes with bacon and mascarpone.  Having been initially intrigued by the promise of “Italian” scrambled eggs, the first disappointment was that only distinguishing characteristic appeared to be that they were a bit more yellow than English scrambled eggs.

Although moderately anti-climactic, there was actually no reason to dislike the scramble itself which was tasty and fresh -  but was unfortunately let down by its having been placed atop the other “Italian” element, which was the bruschetta that was playing substitute for either toast or fried bread.  Now, in my opinion, there’s nothing like a good bit of bruschetta.  Sadly though, this was nothing like a good bit of bruschetta – managing simultaneously to be so leathery as to be almost impossible to defeat with knife or with tooth, yet at the same time achieving a slightly soggy texture from the crowning mound of egg.  Despite its impenetrable nature, it provided no satisfying crunch to accompany the soft yield of the egg.

Apart from this mishap, the offering fell firmly into the “good but not great” category – streaky bacon done fine, a juicy mushroom, an unremarkable sausage and a black pudding that was neither memorably good nor bad.   Certainly the best bit was the perfectly grilled tomatoes with their ripe flavour accented with just the right level of charring.

The bacon sarnie was demolished by its purchaser with such vigour that I was unable to capture its glory for posterity.  Nevertheless, it was pronounced to be good.

Beyond reproach, however, were the pancakes – which arrived to envious sideways glances from the recipients of Full Italian and Bacon Sarnie.   Two perfectly formed hot spongy suns staring from the plate, with bacon comets streaking across the surface – a glinting shimmer of maple syrup in one side-dish, and a dainty dab of mascarpone in another providing the perfect complement, but not in such quantity as to overwhelm the main show.  Declared to be delicious by its devourer, this dish was worth the visit.  But, clocking in at near £20 with two coffees, the austerity-busting “Full Italian” certainly left a gastronomic deficit.

Our next breakfast, esteemed eaters of London, will be at the redoubtable “Manicomio” on Gutter Lane.  Having lunched there, I can assure you that you that the cuisine belies the location.  Hope to see you there, for the “Full Italian”.  Ciao!

Breakfasting venue: Manicomio

Date of Breakfasting: Wednesday 11th July

Time: 8:00am – 8:45am

Nearest tube is:  St. Paul’s

Location:   Gutter Lane, London, EC2V 8AS

Oh yes – and one other thing … we now have our very own Twitter.  Check in with @BrekWeds for our updates, and any other random breakfast related stuff we feel like posting.

Before I commence with suitably fulsome praise of one of the best breakfasts London has to offer, I’m afraid one modest gripe has to be aired.

The Bleeding Heart tavern trades heavily on its insalubrious past – from the animated account of the origin of its name on the website, to the prominent display inside of its 18^th Century motto (“drunk for a penny, and dead drunk for two-pence”), and the wall-space devoted to explaining the purpose of its original ‘hay room’ (where paralytic punters were laid out on the aforementioned dried grasses, to recommence their carousing when they awoke).

What a shame then, despite the proud assertion on the website that they are licensed from 7am “can have a glass of Champagne with your Scrambled Eggs and Smoked Salmon”, that when we ventured to  procure ourselves a beer to go with our breakfast, we were rebuffed with the excuse that they are only licensed from 11am.   Now, there’s nothing wrong with not dishing up drinks before the sun is happily glinting off the Shard – an entirely normal and understandable policy.  But if you’re going to trade on the boast that a boozy breakfast is available, well then it really ought to be available.

Now, with that off my chest – the breakfast.  What a delight!!  After briefly toying with the possibility of alternatives, the Full English proved to be irresistible to all but one of the Breakfasters.  Teas and coffees deposited themselves in front of us almost before we’d realised the waitress had finished taking our orders – which was quite welcome, as the wait for the food was a touch on the long side.  But your patience is well and truly rewarded here, because when the vittles do arrive they are a sight to make the heart soar.  Two succulent rashers of sizzling bacon, two gleaming eggs, a rotund sausage, a slither of juicy mushrooms, a gloriously moist slab of ‘gold label’ black pudding and a blob of beans to round off the plate.  Accompanying the platters comes a board loaded with our various toast, white, brown or granary according to preference.

But the true test of the breakfast is not in the seeing.  Fortunately, this breakfast more than passes muster in the taste test too.  If I say that the sausage is the least impressive part, that is by no means to say that it is any way unpleasant – rather that it is merely an above average piece of pig, and thus falls a little short of the overall theme of excellence that characterises this offering in general.  Certainly I would challenge you to find better breakfast bacon than explosion of tastiness you’ll get here – and the mushrooms are simply outstanding, bursting with juicy flavours and perfectly complimenting the more straightforward address to the palate presented by the fresh crunchy toast and two egg (one of which, if I am to be pedantic, is a shade overdone and lacks the requisite runniness of yolk that would provide complete satisfaction).  The tomato, hot from the grill, is of comparably commendable calibre.  With an admirable attention to detail, the butter pats come in little hearts - each ready, like the titular Lady Elizabeth Hatton, to receive their own knife …

I would be remiss if I were not to mention the marvellous selection of preserves that accompany the toast offering, which were approvingly sampled by all present.  But to round off the whole experience as a resounding success, the bill for each breakfast comes to a mere £7.95 – all inclusive.  None of this “coffee is extra” nonsense that you get some places.  Service is also included.  As value for money goes, you won’t get much better than here – top quality, very reasonable price.