What the critics say: Vanilla Black, Koffmann's…

9th August 2010, 11:37am

A round-up of the latest reviews

Amico Bio, London
Zoe Williams, The Telegraph, 9 August

"Amico Bio is a charming idea, in a charming building, in a charming, higgledy-piggledy Smithfield street, and the service is lovely, and the atmosphere is sweet and the food is just awful. It's enough to give vegetarianism a bad name, but anything's enough for that. This is enough to put you off all vegetables. When, after seven different dishes, the best thing I'd tasted was some tofu and cucumber, I was ready to give up and move on to space food. Use those valuable dining-hours for social good. Do some kind of voluntary work."

"I was still hungry by dessert, and so ordered, egregiously, the cheese (£6) which boasted ('boasted') vegetarian rennet. Some nobbles of pecorino were so dry it felt as if they were leaching the saliva out of my mouth. It was a bit like being tear-gassed. B's rum baba (£5) was high with rum but boring otherwise. A couple of cherries nesting on some set custard weren't awful. The cake itself could have been anything – it could have been a burger bap from McDonald's. It couldn't stand up to the boozy sogginess."

Red'N'Hot, Euston
Matthew Norman, The Telegraph, 9 August

"The only let-down about our lunch at a branch of an accurately named and growing chain was the absence of Mrs Spotty's Bean Curd, the only dish I've yet come across named after a leprous chef."

"Hot and sour soup was lively without being blistering, though by then the numbness may have spread from lips to taste buds, while crescent-shaped pork dumplings drizzled with yet more chilli oil were gratifyingly plump and juicy little darlings."

Koffmann's, London
Lisa Markwell, The Independent, 8 August

"Koffmann's food – particularly from the three-course set menu; a steal at £22.50 – doesn't disappoint. My tuna carpaccio with celeriac remoulade is dazzling – translucent discs of very, very fresh fish with deftly judged seasoning and a punchy, creamy spoonful of root vegetable at the centre. I'm in love. Mr Higgins, on loan for the occasion and something of a southern French food specialist (well, he spent a year nesting near Perpignan), gets all misty-eyed over cassolette d'escargots et girolles (£12): a dear little pot filled with bright green, garlicky foam and buttery mash, with a generous helping of snails and mushrooms – interchangeable in shape and size but delivering different taste bombs. 

"My confit duck is a sticky treat, but on a warm summer's day, perhaps not the best choice; in fact, most of the dishes are the kind of hearty French fare that lends itself best to chilly evenings. Higgins looks askance at his thick tranche of calves' liver Lyonnaise (£22) but, I notice, polishes it all off, declaring it more tender and light than it looks (yeah, but I bet he breakfasted on foie gras in France). He has mash with his liver, I have roast new potatoes with my duck – so far, so standard. But our side dishes include a curl of newspaper (that day's Le Monde, ooh la la!) holding superbly crunchy chips, and lots of them. Chef wants to showcase his partner's produce, it seems, and who am I to complain? I love my carbs."

Sushi of Shiori, London
Jay Rayner, The Observer, 8 August

"There was another bowl of cool dashi broth with, lying at the bottom, thin, slippery soba noodles. Most impressive of all was the sashimi, arranged with exquisite attention to detail: on one side, a hollowed-out lemon, its cut edge serrated, the peel bowl filled with chopped mackerel and tuna. On the other side, slices of sweet scallop brushed with a slick of something that lifted the flavour without declaring itself. We failed to identify it and had to ask: it was truffle oil. Too often merely tiresome, here, used with a light hand, it was perfect. In between there were slices of the best raw fish, deftly sliced.

"And then the disappointment of the sushi. It looked beautiful and the fish itself really was marvellous. The attention to detail – the way slices of spring onion were balanced here, or shining balls of bright-orange salmon roe were clustered there – beggared belief. The eel was especially good. But the rice both here, and on a subsequent course of sliced wagyu beef, seared and presented nigiri style, made us mourn self-consciously. There were compensations: a superb black sesame ice cream, the slate-grey shade of an expensive kitchen floor, and an equally pleasing plum wine sorbet."

Vanilla Black, London
Simon Hattenstone, The Guardian, 7 August

"Vanilla Black is the perfect name for the place – mellow, muted, sophisticated. The restaurant started in York and moved to east London a couple of years ago. It is in Tooks Court, where the legal eagles hang out, a short walk from the Royal Courts of Justice. The walls are white and grey, the waiters and menus dressed in black, the lights dimmed. Staff are informative and attentive, and know just when to hang back. Vanilla Black is not likely to become your local; it's an upmarket treat."

"For main course, I order that poached duck egg, etc. Whereas so much veggie food slops everything into a stew and hopes for the best, here each item is splendidly isolated – so you could have the egg, cheesy pudding and hickory-smoked potato croquette one after the other. But as a whole it tastes even better. What's more, it's just like gammon, egg and chips. Heston Blumenthal, eat your fleshy heart out. Talking of which, if you've a dodgy ticker or cholesterol issues, this is not the place for you: two courses in, I feel as if I'm being creamed to death. (Not the worst way to go.) Diane goes for a plainer tomato dish." 

Click here to submit a comment!

Have your say!

To comment on this article, simply enter your name and email and send us your views. Please note that your comment will appear publicly below this article once it has been processed. For enquiries please email info@eatoutmagazine.co.uk.