Pastaiao and the new pasta craze

If you want to open a new restaurant serve pasta. That seems to be the formula for success these days.

It started with Padella in Borough market which, excellent though it is, still somewhat incomprehensibly attracts long queues of customers who brave wind and rain for a plate of cacio e pepe - the pasta du jour for the majority of the cool new pasta joints.

Other on-trend places are Padella's parent restaurant Trullo and the bar at Luca in St John Street where I had a spectacularly good pasta with pistachio pesto the other day.

In Bristol we have the much heralded Pasta Loco and Bombolini up the Gloucester Road which is the epitome of a warm, welcoming Italian family restaurant, albeit run by a Brit.

But why is pasta the focus all of a sudden? I mean we all cook pasta at home (though less than we used to apparently) Why do we want it when we go out?

Well, because we're being offered better pasta than we could possibly make ourselves for one thing: what one might almost call - and i’m sure someone will - gastro pasta. It feels more healthy than burgers (though may well not be depending on the sauce) and it makes for a cheaper - and more comforting - meal than the typical small plates experience.

From the restaurateur’s point of view it’s certainly a win. the ingredients are generally low cost, it doesn’t involve expensive kit like a pizza oven. and you can get customers in and out within the hour (which is maybe why starters and puds are often underwelming. They don’t want you to linger)

Anyway a friend and I gave one of London's latest, Stevie Parle's Pastaio a quick road test this week on its first full day’s opening and found the pasta all a hard core pasta fan could wish for. Cacio e Pepe, with fat bucatini was suitably peppery, a special of loosely folded agnolotti, stuffed with grouse and rabbit and bathed in a luxuriantly buttery sauce even better. Most of the pasta (though maybe not the bucatini?) is made on the spot

But - pace my theory above - the starters were nothing to write home about: an undercooked red pepper stuffed with a slightly watery tomato and an underpowered castelfranco (a kind of radicchio) pomegranate and pecorino salad were both disappointing as was a delicious-sounding cannoli with ricotta, orange, saffron and pistachio which failed to live up to its billing. You’d be better off, if you crave something sweet, with the refreshing clementine sorbet.

I’m sure those elements will improve - Parle is an experienced restaurateur and these are early days - but that said, pasta - and a good glass of wine - is what to go to a pasta restaurant for. Don't necessarily try and turn it into a three course meal.

Pastaio is in 19 Ganton Street, just off Carnaby Street.

Magpie: smart bar food for wine lovers

With dozens of restaurants opening every week in London what do you do to stand out from the crowd? The answer, it seems from James Ramsden and Sam Herlihy's recently opened Magpie in Heddon Street, is to pretend you’re a Chinese restaurant and wheel around the menu on a trolley.

It’s a logical extension of the small plates formula with the advantage that you can see what’s on offer. The downside (although obviously not a problem for them) being that you want to order everything.

The flurry of trays and trolleys combined with a natural British reluctance to say no to anything in case it might seem rude may well result in your having more plates than you can reasonably eat. I found I’d ordered £30 of food within half an hour then tried to slow the pace with the result that they stopped bringing me anything and I had to call over the waitress and order off the menu like you would anywhere else.

Still, all restaurants have teething problems with delivery, especially in an establishment this innovative. The food, however, is smart and clever - Magpie is from the same stable as the Michelin starred Pidgin in Hackney. I loved their take on a caesar salad (below) with Japanese style eel instead of anchovy, the crisp element of croutons replaced by nori fried in tempura. Trout with grapes and quinoa almost converted me to that over-hyped grain. Oysters were boldly partnered with chicharron (crispy pork skin) and apple, a combination so good you wonder why it hasn't been done more often.

There’s an occasional WTF? dish like the fried chicken ‘coq au vin’ and the strange electric blue curaçao granita topping an otherwise appealing Jamaican pepper polenta cake with raspberries and yoghurt which I see has now disappeared from the menu, but in general there are many more hits than misses. You might possibly want to order the steak tartare that other reviewers have been raving about, a bargain at £7.

Great value wines

The other strong suit is a short but extremely well curated and well priced wine list. The three wines I tried (OK drank) by the glass - a dry German riesling, a cinsault rosé and a refosco (light Italian red from Friuli) were all exemplary - the latter two at just £4.50 a glass. They appeared to have been thoughtfully chosen for the food rather than to pander to label spotters. The riesling - a Schloss Marienlay from Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt was an inspired choice for the oysters as I noted in my match of the week a fortnight ago.

Like most restaurants it pays to know how and when to use them. Given its location just off Regent Street Magpie would be a perfect place to go to after an early evening event in the West End when you don’t really want a full meal but fancy a couple of light dishes and a decent glass or two of wine. Or for a light lunch when you’ve got a 5 course dinner in the evening.

You just need to overcome your British reserve and steel yourself say no to the persuasive pushers of those trollies. Well, you would in a Chinese, wouldn’t you?

Magpie is at 10 Heddon Street, London W1B 4BX. Tel 020 3903 9096. They are apparently now open for breakfast too.

I should perhaps reveal that I know James well but I didn’t call him first and paid my own way. (£69.75 for 5 dishes and 3 glasses which was probably a little indulgent for one!)

Root, Wapping Wharf, Bristol

Veg is the new chicken - or so it seems from the overnight reincarnation of Bristol chef Josh Eggleton’s fried chicken shack Chicken Shed into a largely vegetarian restaurant called Root.

Yesterday when I heard the news and called to book the phone was answered Chicken Shed. By the time I arrived that evening the restaurant had been totally rebranded.

Never a slouch at picking up on trends Eggleton already owns three other restaurants in Bristol - Yurt Bistro which has a menu based on offal and other ingredients that might otherwise be discarded in the average kitchen, Salt & Malt a fish and chip shop which uses a gluten-free batter and the Kensington Arms gastropub as well as the Michelin-starred Pony & Trap in Chew Magna. He says he abandoned Chicken Shed because he wanted to based it on ethically reared birds which ironically are ill-suited to deep-frying (something to note if fried chicken is your thing). It’s probably hard to make the requisite margin on a chicken shack too.

Although he’s behind the stove himself this week the kitchen is and will be in the capable hands of his former head chef at the Pony & Trap Rob Howell.

So what’s it like? Well judging by day 1 it’s certainly hit the ground running. Cheap and really good. There’s a short(ish) menu of vegetarian dishes that will regularly change according to Howell with - clever idea - sides of meat rather than more veg. We were actually so excited by the veggie options that we forgot to order one but could have had lamb belly or barbecued ox heart if we'd felt meat-deprived.

Stars of the show were a deliciously charred cauliflower steak with shavings of crunchy raw cauliflower and a cashew dressing and some lovely light gnocchi with parmesan and emerald green courgettes

Putting beetroot and blackberries together is a stroke of genius - better still with roasted hazelnuts. Molten gruyere cheese and onion croquettes and crisp, flaky flatbread are insidiously moreish. The food is super pretty but not pretentious and with most courses around £5-6 incredibly well priced. There’s a decent wine list all available by the glass - organic and biodynamic options are apparently to follow - and a nice short selection of vermouths (‘course there is).

If they can keep up the standard and the prices it will be fierce competition for the other restaurants on Wapping Wharf especially Box E (did they have to set up something so similar *right* next door?) and Tare but that’s the way Bristol rolls right now.

Hopefully Bristolians won’t lose their appetite for eating out but with food this good why bother to cook?

Root is on the first floor of Cargo by the Gaol Ferry Steps BS1 6WP Tel 0117 930 0260. Open Wednesday-Saturday lunch and dinner and Sunday lunch.

10 of the best Bristol restaurants

The last time I did a round up of the best places to eat in Bristol was back in 2014. Since then the food scene has exploded to such an extent that I hardly recognise my original list.

It’s no longer possible to cram everything into one post so these are simply the places where I tend to eat most and which I feel represent a particularly Bristol vibe. (Yes, there are notable omissions but this is a personal take!)

In alphabetical order with the neighbourhood they're based in in brackets

Bar Buvette (city centre)

If you’re familiar with the natural wine bars of Paris and London you’ll feel totally at home at Bar Buvette which is owned by former River Station chef Peter Taylor and his partner Max Ososki. It serves the simple kind of French bistro food that’s hard to find these days (think duck confit and lentils) plus a great selection of charcuterie and Auvergne cheeses (Peter also presides over the fabulous Auberge de Chassignolles up in the hills from Brioude during the summer). Great natural wine obvs which rocks my boat but is not all scary!

Open evenings Tues-Sat, lunch Thurs-Sat. No reservations

Bell’s Diner and/or Bellita (Montpelier and Cotham)

I’m slightly hesitant about including Bell’s as the brilliant Sam Sohn-Rethel has just left but I’ve a great attachment to it and it’s such a Bristol institution it would be impossible to leave it out. The menu is based on fashionable Moorish (and more-ish) small plates and a great short, largely organic and biodynamic wine-list. I always find it hugely difficult to make up my mind what to order but it usually includes the salt cod fritters and the charcoal-grilled chicken oyster pinchos with chipotle and harissa yoghurt. Book in the atmospheric front dining room if you can.

Open Mon-Sat dinner, Fri-Sun lunch

Bellita is its more casual offshoot - more of a wine bar with (very nice) food. Smart, little drinks list - all wines from women winemakers. Lunchtime deal of 3 small plates for £10 is an incredible bargain. Can be (understandably) noisy but a great place to hang out with friends.

Open Mon-Sat evenings, all day Thurs-Sat

Birch (Southville)

If you forced me to choose just one restaurant that represented the soul of Bristol it would be this unpretentious small restaurant in Southville. It's run by Sam Leach and Becky Massey who used to work at St John’s and the Quality Chop House respectively. Sam cooks a short, veg-centric menu which changes from week to week depending on what their allotment produces. Eating produce this fresh is a revelation. A typical summer dish would be tiny sweet raw peas with fresh mint and a cloud of shaved Pennard Vale cheese. Desserts and home-baked sourdough bread are blissful.

Open: Wed-Sat evenings so be sure to book (Closed the first 3 weeks of August 2017)

Box E (Wapping Wharf - city centre)

Only in Bristol could you have Michelin standard food in a 14 seater container*, part of the booming Wapping Wharf development. It’s run by Elliott Lidstone (ex The Empress at Hackney) and his wife Tess and offers, clever, imaginative, contemporary food from the one man kitchen. Fish and veg are a particularly strong suit. I had some marvellous red mullet there recently together with this stylish little snack of spiced whitebait. Recently voted no 85 in the National Restaurant Awards top 100
* of which 4 are 'kitchen table' counter seats where you can take the chef's 7 course menu (£45)

Open Dinner Tues-Sat, lunch Wednesday-Saturday. Outside terrace during the summer.

Bulrush (Cotham)

Another rising star of the Bristol firmament Bulrush has just been placed at no 27 in the National Restaurant Awards top 100. It was good when it opened but has really shifted up a gear in the last year. Clever, slightly Scandified food (chef George Livesey is a fan of Faviken) in a modest Cotham neighbourhood restaurant. For £48 the tasting menu (also available for vegetarians) is ridiculously good value - they also do a £18 set course lunch on Thursdays and Fridays.

Open Tues-Sat eve, Thurs-Sat lunch. Closed from August 13th-September 7th 2017 for summer holidays

Hart’s Bakery (Temple Meads)

My regular pitstop en route to London Hart’s Bakery is conveniently situated just under the arches at Temple Meads. Great croissants, cakes and fatally irresistible sausage rolls (try the mushroom and barley one - the best veggie sausage roll I've ever tasted). You can also eat in which qualifies it for inclusion in this list.

Closed Sundays and Mondays, Open 7-3pm the rest of the week

Lido (Clifton)

With its amazing setting overlooking an outdoor swimming pool Lido’s the perfect place for a summer meal (or for undoing all the good you’ve done in the pool and the spa) There are two sections, an upstairs restaurant where you get a bird’s eye view of the swimmers ploughing up and down and a poolside cafe and bar which has a tapas-style menu. Chef Freddy Bird has done time at Moro an influence reflected in the number of dishes that are cooked in their wood-fired oven. There’s a fixed price lunch and early evening menu at £16 for 2 courses or £20 for 3. Oh, and their ice-creams are heavenly.

Open all week.

Pasta Loco (Cotham)

If you get the urge for a pasta fix head for Pasta Loco on Cotham Hill (which is also home to Bellita and the very congenial Bravas tapas bar) They do a great set lunch for just £12.50. Exceptionally warm friendly service. I use it for lunch *meetings* - at least that's my excuse. The creamy sauces, whatever they currently are, are especially good. Booking essential in the evening.

Open: Mon-Sat evening, Tue-Sat lunch

Wallfish (Clifton)

5 minutes walk from my flat, Wallfish is basically my local. Chef Seldon Curry used to cook with Mark Hix in Dorset and that coastal influence still marks the menu. Order the mussels, if they’re on, and a whole plaice or sole with brown shrimps. BYO on Wednesday evenings. £12.50 lunch or early supper from Wednesday to Friday. Great weekend brunch and open Sunday nights which is a boon. Oh, and try and get a table upstairs (or rather don’t because then I might not get mine)

Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Wilson’s (Redland)

I’ve only been to Wilson’s once which should really disqualify it from being on this list but I've been gagging to go again and everyone I know who lives closer to it than I do (and both Jay Rayner and Tom Parker Bowles FWIW) continually raves about it. Jan Ostle who worked at Clove Club in London cooks a short, simple menu - I have abiding memories of a stellar roast chicken. Booked to go next month (July 2017) so will update.

Closed: Sunday, Monday and Tuesday lunch. (If you can’t get in try No Man’s Grace next door which is also excellent)

Here’s the original 2014 list which I’ve updated with closures but by and large it's woefully out of date.