Fish and chips to London is like Hainanese chicken rice to Singapore. The  sinful deep fried stuff originated from England and was a staple in the olden days. Like how tourists google for the most delicious chicken rice in Singapore, we purposely researched on where was the best fish and chips in London. Which brought us to Baileys, the best fish & chips in London per Tripadvisor.

When we opened the door, we were greeted by a claustrophobic corridor of bar seats. Not really something we liked but never mind it's still more comfortable than taking the MRT train during rush hour. The greasy smell from frying the fish occupied every corner of the room and by the time we finished eating, we smelled like cod fish.

There was a lunch time special at £5.25. They called it Cod and Chips. Unlike Singapore where we used dory fish, the Londoners use cod fish. I made the unwise decision of ordering 2 sets of the same thing because 1 set is really sufficient for 2 people. Haiz when can I ever master sound judgment?

I loved how crispy the skin was, and how moist and flaky the flesh was. It simply disintegrated when my fork cut through. Loved the tar tar sauce provided. The chips were made from real potato and were crispy. Although it was very tasty, the serving was too big. By the time I was halfway, I already wanted to surrender. Nevertheless, it's still one of the best fish and chips I've ever had!

Address:

115 Dawes Rd

London

SW6 7DU

It's an irony that I managed to get my foot in the London version first instead of Singapore's. The last time I tried, I was told the earliest reservation I could make at the Singapore outlet was end Jan.

But seriously if just based on the London (Covent Garden outlet to be precise) version, I could understand what the fuss was about. It is, in my humble opinion, hearty food that tastes like home, and doesn't break the bank. 

Take for example the Prawn Linguine (£7.25 or approx S$14.50). Fried garlicky prawns, shaved fennel, tomatoes, chilli & rocket. The light tomato sauce with linguine that is more fat than flat, coupled with the fresh prawns, was a dish of savory and sweet. The tomato base was different from the normal thick version that I was used to. Jamie's was simple, non-gooey, yet savory enough and satisfying. Tastes like home-cooked food. I could eat this everyday. 4.5/5

It was a different experience with the Wild mushroom & smoked mozzarella risotto (£6.95 or approx S$14). Made of Acquerello rice with fresh & dried wild mushrooms, oozy smoked mozzarella & ricotta. We found it too salty. Wondered if the chef accidentally knocked a bottle of salt in. 3/5

The Epic Brownie (£4.95 of approx S$10) was as epic as it sounds. Wondrously dense chocolate fudge topped by alcoholic amaretto ice cream and caramelised amaretti popcorn, with warm chocolate sauce. The bitterness of the strong alcohol in the ice-cream and popcorn nicely balanced the sweet and diabeties-inducing chocolate. 4/5

Verdict: Except for the mushroom risotto, I am pleased that the food did not disappoint. Service was excellent and my waitress was attentive to re-fill my water and also checking on whether I have any complains/compliments. Nice cosy ambience too. Add in the value-for-money factor, it is a formula that worked. I think I understand why the craze now.

Address: Covent Garden
11 Upper St Martin's Lane
London
WC2H 9FB

First impression - This place reminded me of Overeasy a lot. It's kind of dim. There's a bar. Groovy pop was played. We were denied entry at 10 plus because there was a 1.5hr waiting list. Who eats lobster at such an hour? Nevertheless we devised a strategy and returned next day at 3pm. And we still needed to wait for 1 hr.. But this time my strategy was to shop around while waiting (the place was near Oxford Street. Oxford street to London is like Orchard to Singapore). And by the time we got back to Burger & Lobster, with shopping loots, the waitress whisked immediately to our table. Mission accomplished ;)

The regulars would know that there are only three items on the menu: Lobster, Burger, lobster roll. Each cost £20. Very cut-to-the-chase menu, I like. However I made the unwise decision to order 2 lobster dishes instead of a lobster and a burger. So it was kind of lobster overdose.

Lobster - either grill it or steam it. I chose the unhealthy tastier option of grilling it. I think my picture doesn't do justice on how humongous this was. The waitress must have smirked when she saw my jaws dropped after this "how-am-I-supposed-to-finish-this" lobster was served. Basically it occupied half the table. Anyway, taste-wise, this was godly and justified the long wait. Finally I get to eat you lobster. I forgot to take a photo of the butter lemon garlic sauce - the secret sauce. Dab the juicy tender lobster meat in the sauce, as much as you can. The partially charred meat was fresh and easy to extract from the shells.

Although the lobster roll seemed to be much smaller than the lobster, this was also made to impress. The cold lobster salad coupled with the crispy fragrant buttery toasted bread was a combination that had me sold. I like the dressing and the garnishes such as tomatoes used.

Totally worth making the trip to B&L twice!

Address: 36 Dean St, London

December 2013 was probably the craziest month in 2013, having to adjust from one time zone to another, and battling jet lags. I packed my bags and went on a huge trip back to back - London/New York. So I had to adjust from SG time zone by 8 hours to London and then 5 hours to New York, and then back again, until my brain was confused which time zone was in. But it was also one of the most memorable experiences - purely relaxing and of course indulging in food that is worthy of my tummy.

I am a trusting person and hence I had pretty much free-ride trusted my food itinerary to people who have been there done that. My friend who lived in London has claimed Koya had the best udon in town. Now this friend has the pickiest taste buds and probably also the meanest critic. Hence if Koya got our king's stamp of approval, we peasants should be on the safe side.

Ok actually we were supposed to go to Lobster & Burger nearby that day, also recommended by the same friend. Alas the waitress was not willing to let us peasants in before letting us wait for one and half hours. We had to abandon our wait which was getting unbearable in the "5 Celsius degrees but felt like 0 degree" environment. Thank god Koya bar was in the same Soho neighborhood, just a few streets away. (And luckily I still got to try Lobster & Burger on the following day). Soho to London is like Boat Quay to Singapore. Littered with pubs, there were also the Japanese shops that offer something different.

The bar was full at 10 plus. A cute young lady server who looked like a mix of Japanese-Caucasian greeted us and informed that the wait is about 20 min. It must been the most unbearable wait because 1) it was 10 plus 2) Seeing the rest of customers slurping their udon .. Hot and soupy udon - the only thing we needed in the cold winter. Still, we were quite happy that we were given permission to thaw ourselves in the noodle shop.

When we got our seats, we just went straight and ordered the Tempura Udon. Still, we have to wait for like 15 minutes before a bowl of hot-piping noodles would appear, like an oasis would. If patience is a virtue, then battling a World War II in the stomach on a cold winter is an honor that deserves a badge.

Finally, the chef has decided not to continue torturing us and gave us our hot broth with slurping udon, and crispy tempura (£11.60).



The udon noodles were al dente, firm and slippery, escaping the grasp of the chopsticks. This is evidential of the fact that the noodles were made in the traditional manner. Traditional udon is made by kneading the dough by foot because the udon dough is too hard to knead with hands. Kneading with hand might result in inconsistent texture. And the scalding-hot soup broth was umami-rich, a very important element for a satisfying udon. The tempura was crispy and fresh. But we had to eat our tempura quickly before it gets disintegrated in our soup. The whole combination of the udon, soup and tempura was clean cut, simple but satisfying. Just how a bowl of udon should be.

Overall, a very memorable udon. I was trying hard to find a flaw for this one. But I couldn't.

We lingered a while to immerse ourselves in the simple ulitarian yet down-to-earth bar with a taste of Japanese. I wished we could stay longer to try their other dishes but they were closing for the day. I walked out as one of the last customers. A happy customer I was. On the train ride back, I couldn't stop thinking when I will get to go back to Koya.





Address: 50 Frith Street, W1, London, UK