Sea Bass Ceviche
Koji

Koji

58 New King's Rd, Fulham SW6 4LS, London, United Kingdom

Fish • Sushi • Asian • Japanese


"Booked Koji for a date night, same day 30/08/23 but when I arrived the restaurant was closed, no notice online at all said it was closed even Google said it was open usual hours somehow it was actually booked for 06/09/23 which I don’t understand how but ok I’ll take partial blame for that, so we unfortunately had to go to eat somewhere else which was fine but I had tried to call the restaurant to cancel my reservation on multiple days didn’t get no answer so I thought nothing of it (you can book online but can’t cancel online even by text they tell you that) so I was then charged £70 on 10/09/23 for I guess missing my booking? Which also online it says nothing about charges for missing reservations. I find this extremely distasteful considering I had tried multiple times to cancel my reservation, was told online that the restaurant was open when it clearly wasn’t was somehow forced to book a date I definitely didn’t wish to attend (I still don’t see how as the dates are completely different and would be easily noticeable whilst booking that it was the wrong date) extremely poor online booking service considering and I’d say £70 is a lot just for a reservation (which I had tried to cancel with no success) complete money grab, I’ll take slight blame for booking the wrong date but definitely a terrible service as they gave me no chance to cancel mislead me saying the restaurant was open on a day it wasn’t which was a waste of time and money as we had come from Streatham just to try Koji"

Koji

Koji

58 New Kings Road London, SW6 4LS, United Kingdom

Sushi • Asian • Japanese • Vegetarian


"It's no secret that I love Japanese food. And even less of a secret is my fondness for a good cocktail. So put the two together and I'm a very happy girl. Koji which ticks both these boxes in Parsons Green, seems to be a bit of a secret.... I'd never heard of it until researching sake cocktails for a piece I wrote for Time Out, but when they read my piece they invited me down to sample the cocktails and food in person. I went along with Lucy the night before heading to Tresco to do a weekend of pop ups, and we had the most delicious feast of delicate yet punchy Japanese food with punchy yet delicate cocktails!Koji have an ex Nobu chef in their kitchen and you can really tell there's someone who knows what they're doing there. Every dish was exquisite, and the whole experience heightened by being in such a gorgeous setting if you want to impress a date then head straight to Koji. We started with cocktails in the elegant bar area, which is lit by huge feather covered lights. When you go to Koji (which you really should if you're anything like me about good cocktails and Japanese food) order the lemongrass and chilli martini. The perfect balance of zesty and spicy it left our lips tingling in all the right ways. We didn't get round to trying it but the watermelon martini also sounds divine.The food at Koji is Japanese,with a modern twist. The menu's divided into snacks, hot and cold tapas, robata grill and various forms of sushi and sashimi. Being the good (greedy) reviewers that we are, we tried to sample something from each section. Starting with the most wonderful soft shell crab and asparagus summer roll. Light, fresh and expertly rolled it was a great start to what turned out to be a top notch meal."

The Refuge By Volta

The Refuge By Volta

Oxford Road, Manchester I-M60 7HA, United Kingdom

British • European • Vegetarian • Contemporary


"Excellent! We spent around four hours here on a Tuesday afternoon sampling their food, savouring their coffee and scabbing their free wifi! I 'll start with the basics. The Refuge is conveniently located on Oxford Street just a two minute walk from the train station. The casual seating area is huge with plenty of places for different sized groups to sit, there 's even an Apprentice Style boardroom table. The vibe is very relaxed but when I entered I noticed a lot of business people (or people clearly working). The decor is fantastic, as mentioned its a huge open space but the dark wooden finish makes it feel close and comfortable. The lunch menu isn 't huge but they clearly want to keep things simple and do them right. I had the beef burger accompanied by skinny fries and it was delicious. Just the right consistency so you could pick it up without it falling apart. It was generously topped with salad and the 'posh big mac ' sauce finished it off nicely. If you want to eat you 'll have to head through to the dining area as they don 't serve food in the lounge beware this was very busy, even on a Tuesday, so you may need to book in advance. After lunch we headed back to the lounge area and had a coffees while we chatted. The coffee was great, I had a flat white which was just off on the good side of bitter. We also ordered snacks later in the day the Almonds cooked in bacon fat are a must try that might sound gross to some people but just wait until the bacon flavour hits your taste buds! To access the free wifi you 'll need to sign up wth your email address but then it 's all yours. I haven 't even received a spammy email a week later. It 's really hard to fault The Refuge the staff were attentive without being too in your face, which I suppose is important when people are using their premises for business meets! All in all a really great experience and a lovely place to spend the afternoon working."

Rabot 1745

Rabot 1745

2-4 Bedale Street Borough Market London, SE1 9AL, United Kingdom

Global • Coffee • American • International


"You all know Hotel Chocolat, right? Those little stores, stocked floor to ceiling with chocolatey treats that seem to catch your nose and draw you in like a pig to a truffle*. But did any of you actually notice when the shop opened? Or when you first went to a Hotel Chocolat? No, me either. They all just seem to have been there for, well, a while part of our retail landscape. Like the well trained journalist that I am, I headed straight to Wiki to find out more. Turns out Hotel Chocolat began life in 1988 although it was another 15 years before they got to their current name. And, since 2006 they’ve even owned their own cocoa plantation, the Rabot Estate in St Lucia, making them the only chocolatier in the UK to do so. They even opened a hotel and restaurant there well, you would, wouldn’t you. The Rabot name is what I’m interested in right now as the penny has only recently dropped that Borough Market’s Rabot 1745, from where I’ve enjoyed many takeaway coffees, is actually Hotel Chocolat’s first and only London eatery. And while the chocolate frames everything they do, there is certainly more to this place than the humble cacao bean. Arriving an hour early and excessively overdressed on a drizzly Saturday morning, we were shown to our first floor table, overlooking Bedale Street and the famous old Globe tavern (that you may recognise as the pub above which Bridget Jones lives . Waiting in a shallow bowl were cacao beans, roasted on site and ready to be husked and eaten as a very appropriate amuse bouche. Think all of the chocolate taste but with none of the sweetness or smoothness. These bitter and granular bullets are certainly not to everyone’s taste (shown clearly by the fact I ate 2 ¾ of the three beans on the table . But a crisp, dry, nose fizzing Prosecco was on hand to wash that intense bitterness away so all was well! And then came the Plantation Brunch menu. The temptation was to ask for one of everything, but true British reserve had us focusing on just one dish each. Owing to too much drink and Disney on Ice the evening before, full breakfasts were quickly ordered, one meaty and one vegetarian, as well as a starter of the most deliciously plump, juicy and ripe fruit I can remember seeing. The Full Plantation Breakfast was the more traditional of the two plates, with bacon, sausage, egg, mushroom and tomatoes all present. The Plantation Garden Breakfast was a little bit more racy, with avocado, eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and fragrantly spices lentils all making the team sheet. Both breakfasts came with sourdough toast (doesn’t sourdough just make the most epically wonderful toast?? and butter spiked with cocoa nibs...well, it wouldn’t be right without a bit of chocolate! What we had here were great ingredients, simply prepared and presented why does that seem such a rarity these days? I have to admit perhaps feeling a little regretful at not being a bit more bullish at brunch and going for something more adventurous like the nib roast pork belly, shredded ham and cacao bubble and squeak, crispy bacon and creole chutney; or the smoked haddock nib cake, cacao gin cured salmon, poached egg, white chocolate and horseradish cream. Sounds good right?! Just as we were feeling pretty stuffed, we were persuaded (pretty easily to finish with something sweet perhaps a brownie or some banana bread...we ended up with both oops! Both were dense and delicious and they defeated us. The food definitely won! For tea, we were similarly reserved although in my defence I never drink any tea other than good old builders. But if you do like your tea fancy, why not go the cocoa shell infusion or the peppermint and cocoa shell. I’m not going to beat around the bush or potter around the plantation here, I really, properly enjoyed brunch here. Everything felt, and tasted, just right. Through its Rabot 1745 restaurant, Hotel Chocolat is channelling its effortless cool in a way few chain shops or restaurants can achieve. I loved being the guest of Hotel Chocolat for brunch it’s always a joy to be treated but right now I will hand on heart promise I will go back to spend my own hard earned cash on this little gem. That’s easily the most ringing endorsement I can give... *I’m not saying any of you are like pigs"

The Red Fort

The Red Fort

77 Dean Street Soho London, W1D 3SH, United Kingdom

Beer • Wine • Indian • Delivery Services


"As good as it gets.. Unlike many other Indian restaurant on almost all major streets in London, I was highly recommended this place by my friends. We had been there on a busy Friday evening and was quiet happy to get reservation at peak hours. Being Indian, I always had been fussy about quality of Indian food being served in eateries, but I couldn't find a better quality and taste we had at Red Fort. The starters were amazing!! We ordered Hara Kebab, Soft Shell Crab, Hariyali Jhinga (prawns) and Lentil dumplings. All were very different in taste, presentation and style of cooking. Menu is well designed with a high quality selection of vegetables, meats, game and seafood. Starters priced between £6 – £12 is fair considering the portion size. Our mains included in-house speciality Dumpukht Biryani (lamb) cooked in authentic Hyderabadi style, Lucknowi Murgh (spicy chicken curry), Awadhi Hiran (venison) are to find on menu in Indian restaurant, Saunfian Paneer Tikka (cottage cheese) and Subz Kofta (mix veg dumplings). All were very tasty, esp the biryani which was a total treat in a steaming pot. Manager was very kind to allow us to take a copy of the menu signed by their head chef Azadur Rahman. it was our anniversary so thanks for the relic we received. Desserts were a good selection of few hot and cold delicacies like Gulab Jamun, Mango Kulfi and Funky Pie. Service was flawless and unobtrusive with adequate help coming in recommending dishes for an unforgettable evening. Well worth asking their opinion. Wine list was very extensive covering almost all major wine producing countries. I was almost lost in such big selection and asked wine sommelier to help us out once again. Well, who could have chosen a white wine from Turkey, so perfect to start with and a red wine Marichal Reserve Tannat from Uruguay. Thank you so much for this wonderful experience. Hope to dine there soon."

Darcie May Green

Darcie May Green

Sheldon Square, London I-W2 6DS, United Kingdom

Vegan • Desserts • Australian • Vegetarian


"My boyfriend and I had an absolutely brilliant evening here for our anniversary last week (mid October). The staff were so friendly and welcoming, and the ambience was just delightful. We arrived an hour earlier than our booking and enjoy some drinks on the roof of the boat. As it wasn't busy, we were able to be seated 15 minutes earlier than our booking which made the night go more smoothly. The food was served quicker than expected (about 15 mins if that), and was all presented very nicely. We ordered several small plates to share. Everything was divine! I would just like to point out for other guests, in case they skim over the menu as we did; the sweet potato chips are HUGE. You only get about 4 or 5 and it looks like the entire sweet potato has been slices long ways with the skin. Yummy but we didn't even eat half so I wouldn't order if you're not absolutely starving. ALSO: the regular chips are cooked in duck fat. As a vegetarian I didn't order this, but I did pinch some of my boyfriend's chips, as every girlfriend does, only to realise a few moments later what I had consumed... again still yummy, but I wish I had known beforehand. Could not boast enough about how amazing all the food was!! The cocktails were delicious. I enjoyed a french martini and a rosemary rush, the latter had a particular kick I'm still mouth watering over even a few days later!! The dessert was impeccable. We got the chocolate ball as did everyone in the restaurant, and it did not disappoint! That was plenty between two people. It's also quite romantic to share too. But being us, we also ordered the yogurt meringue delicious!! As we had such a great conversation with the manager and mentioned it was our anniversary, he didn't charge for our desserts! We were so touched, we are hoping to take some friends back with us soon. Would definitely 1000% recommend this fun little find. Also it is only maybe 10 footsteps from Paddington Station! Definitely a date night to remember."