Prawn Skewer
The Crown And Shuttle

The Crown And Shuttle

226 Shoreditch High Street, London I-E1 6JN, United Kingdom, E1 6PJ

Pub • British • Burgers • Vegetarian


"I have actually now been to the Crown and Shuttle twice in recent weeks both times as precursors to the 'main event ' elsewhere. Obviously, as I 've been twice I liked it enough to go back. This pub sort of sprung up out of nowhere. I 've walked along that stretch of road and not noticed a publike venue or even anyone working on renovating a building and then one day there was a fully formed, nice looking pub sitting between the kinda sketchy Light Bar and Drunken Monkey. It stood out like a breath of air does in the winter. I must have gone past it when it was only just opened as it took me quite a while to discover its origins on the Net. Finally I found out that it had been refurbed from the remnants of a pub (which was possibly a strip club at one point), taken over by the people who own the Water Poet. They seem to have a penchant for beer gardens the one at the Water Poet is sprawling and they have done the same here. There are basically three sections to the pub the first third is what must have been the original pub building, then they have built on to this an extension making the outside wall of the old pub a feature wall within the new pub, and then the massive beer garden so big it holds a street van with pizza oven within it. The first time I went was on a Saturday (before Electro Swing) and had no idea it was so vast so it was a rather lovely surprise, especially as there were so many of us. The weather was too chilly to enjoy the garden but we did appreciate the faux woodstove that was in the corner near our group. I instantly liked the place. It felt both spacious yet cosy. It 's decor is woody but a light sort of pine wood, not heavy and dense. Everyone who came along said how much they liked the place and it was barely busy there weren 't really any seats that could accommodate my large group but there was plenty of space at the second bar to congregate around. My last visit was on a Friday and markedly different. It was heaving. Yet somehow me and my friend still managed to get a seat on a comfy love seat. Getting to the bar was a chore and a half clearly all the local workers in the area had caught wind of the place and were all there, ordering pints to take outside. Fair dos to the bar staff they were in no way slacking, but it still meant for a slow wait due to the volume of people crowding the bar. Intentions to have one medium glass of wine for each of us soon went by the wayside and I opted for a bottle in order to avoid having to pay another visit to the bar. I 've never before been so conscious of how long it takes to pour pints compared to serving my favourite tipple wine. Anyway, maybe not one for a Friday night if all you want is a quick drink but definitely a welcome addition to the area. I look forward to going back on a sunny day to enjoy the garden and maybe a pizza from their outside oven."

Gidi Grill

Gidi Grill

Camperdown Street, Dundee I-DD1 3JA, United Kingdom

Mexican • African • Barbecue • Jamaican


"We booked a table at Gidi Grill recently and had a generally lovely experience. My wife ordered the prawn starter and the sirloin steak with burger sauce, whereas I opted for the lamb starter, and a rump steak, with jerk sauce and my 3yr old son had fish goujons with french fries. I was undecided between their green chilli sauce and their jerk sauce, so when I asked for a small taster, they happily obliged in order to help me decide. The starters were absolutely impeccable... and they were presented well on their respective plates. The prawns were just right not overcooked and 'rubbery ' and the lamb starter was flawless. They arrived in a timely manner within 10 15 minutes, and were devoured so quickly that I didnt have a chance to take a photograph of them. My son loved his fish goujons and fries too, which were conveniently served alongside our starters. My wife 's steak arrived as requested well done and although I requested mine to be medium, it was more of a medium rare. I raised this politely with the waiting staff, and they were happy to oblige, returning my now medium steak to me within a few minutes. An overall very fine dining experience was had by all, albeit with a few minor niggles. When we arrived, i felt we could have been seated, a tad sooner as I did see 2 3 staff lingering around the front seemingly unoccupied. And, although we had finished our starters before the main course was ready, it was served before the plates and cutlery from the starters were removed, causing alot of congestion on the table. Usually the mains are served once the table has been completely cleared of the previous course. And finally when we requested another drink (a coke) our waiter went to order it and seemed to start doing other things (clearing tables etc). After 5 minutes (which felt like 15 because i was really thirsty and had already finished my first drink) i asked him again, only to be told it was on it 's way, after which it did arrive after a couple of minutes. But as I said earlier, these issues were minor, and if they were not a part of my experience, Gidi Grill would recieve 5/5 starts from me, however I feel that, although 4 stars give an accurate reflection of my experience, I would have given 4.5/5 if that were possible. All in all, our food was absolutely delicious! If i could give it a standing ovation, I would. It was worth every penny, and we 'd highly recommend their steaks as well as their prawn and lamb starters. We 'll definitely be back to check out the rest of their menu."

Courthouse Shoreditch

Courthouse Shoreditch

335-337 Old Street, London, United Kingdom

Pizza • Vegan • British • Italian


"I have wanted to go to Homeslice for some time now, after seeing the size of huge slices from fellow bloggers on Instagram. This week, a last minute impromptu dinner date landed me here and I honestly cannot believe I haven’t been before. Stepping inside you’re greeted by a burning furnace of fire, their massive wood-fired oven. Stupidly, we decided to sit at the bar right in front of this beast. Two cold pints of beer were ordered to try and stop my face from reflecting a pizza slice and melting on the bar. The menu offers a range of different pizza toppings, and you can order three of the pizzas by slice for £4. A whole pizza will set you back £20, but trust me when you see the size of these bad boys you’ll realise the price is reasonable. A whole pizza is big enough to share between two people and you can choose two toppings and do half and half. Normally I’m a big peperoni fan, they do have a salami option and it did look pretty tasty. However, I was feeling daring, so opted for something a little different. We went for half and half and had the aubergine, cauliflower cheese, spinach and harissa and oxtail, watercress, horseradish and sorrel cream toppings. Aubergine and cauliflower cheese had a delicious sauce, cheesy and creamy. If you like a good savoury mouthful this is the one for you. The aubergine gave an added texture with the harissa giving a smoky, yet subtle kick. The oxtail had a lovely tomato base and the meat itself gave a nice depth of flavour to each bite. I’m not a fan of horseradish, so wasn’t sure what it would taste like with sorrel as a cream. It was extremely good and not overpowering and cleansing to the palate. The pizza here is colossal! Each slice was bigger than my head, the dough was salty, but in a really good way, not too much. The fact that they sell by the slice is a great idea. If I was drunk and fortunate enough to stumble across Homeslice, I’d be a very happy drunk person. I think this is possibly the best pizza in London. Anyone in disagreement, please feel free to contact me. Homeslice has a buzzy and good vibe about the place, but very chilled and relaxed. It is a great place to hang out with friends, sup some beer and demolish pizza. The waiting team were all extremely friendly and it’s cool to be able to watch your pizza get made right in front of you. If you like pizza, lots of pizza, then you need to get your teenage mutant turtle bums down here!"