Sweetcorn, feta and green chilli waffles and pink grapefruit juice

Soft drinks don’t often feature in my weekly pairings but this combination of an inventive savoury breakfast waffle and some lovely fresh pink grapefruit juice at The Modern Pantry last week was spot on.

The waffle, which contained sweetcorn, feta, green chilli and curry leaf and was topped with crisp maple-cured (I think) bacon had that sweet/sour/spicy character that features in so many of chef Anna Hansen’s dishes and the pink grapefruit juice with its own sweet/sharp notes was the ideal match.

I think pink grapefruit juice is perhaps the easiest citrus to pair without the tartness of lemon and lime which frequently needs a correcting dose of sugar but fresher and less filling than orange juice. (Incidentally it was interesting that they’d filtered out the ‘bits’ or shreds of fruit pulp that so many people dislike)

It was also great with the sugar prawn omelette that my breakfast companion Signe Johansen ordered, one of the signature dishes at the restaurant.

Bacon, egg and claret

You might think the idea of eating bacon and egg with good claret is sacrilege but bear with me.

When you've got a great bottle of Bordeaux you don't necessarily want anything too fancy to drink with it. I was put onto this combination by a friend who once worked for a tycoon who used to regularly crack open a bottle of Lafite or Latour for breakfast.

Now I'm sure the health police will ge me for saying this but it's a great combination. Maybe not before 11am but as a late breakfast or brunch. Rather less grand than the rib of beef with truffle jus you will find suggested on the Lafite website, but considerably more congenial, if I may say so, than the 'soft centred' chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream also recommended on the site.

You want a wine in which Cabernet makes up at least half of the blend, I suggest - not too young but not too venerable either.

Maybe a 'lunchtime claret' if funds won't stretch to first growths . . .

Go on, give it a try!