Star at Night (London Gin Club), 9th November

I don’t know why I was so taken aback by the amount of gin the London GIN Club had but it was a little overwhelming – how was I to choose? So many gins. ALL the gins. To be mixed with Fever Tree tonic (natch) and interesting little garnishes – like plum, or tomato and coriander and served in those gorgeous copa glasses that are like fish bowls. They were all priced at £8.95 unless otherwise stated, and actually there were probably more that were ‘otherwise stated’ than weren’t, and they were generally all about £9.50. So I chose the way any sensible lush would – by ABV.

The first one I tried I thought had a bit of a peppery taste to it but what do I know, and my friend was directed to the sloe gins they had on offer when she said she liked it sweet and fruity. The Bathtub sloe was perfect for this – tasted like fruit punch when mixed with tonic.

For her next she had one from the Citrus section but this was too much serious gin for her – not fruity enough. You get a bottle of fever tree to split between you and before I knew it she had emptied pretty much the whole thing into her copa. As much as I could, I did not fancy drinking just straight gin so we asked for another and our request was graciously granted.

I have to say, I thought the service was lovely - not overly present but they kept an eye on you and menus were swiftly handed over when our first drink was finished. And they seemed more than happy to chat through the different types of gin they had on offer. Although one of the servers didn’t know that Martin Miller was a partly Icelandic gin – tsk tsk. (This I only knew from the Gin Off at Graphic – excellent!)

The Gin-Off, Graphic Bar, 18th July

If you want to get absolutely trollied on whimsical, inventive and tasty (for the most part) cocktails on a Monday then the Gin-Off is your man! Happening throughout the year, 16 gins compete against each other to make it into the Gin-off final by coming up with clever and creative ways to imbibe this particular liquor, and I was invited to the final heat. 

When I went, the gins being showcased were Boodles, Sipsmith (they get everywhere), Tarquins and Martin Millers. I really wanted to like Martin Millers, as it is a blend of England and Iceland, two countries dear to my heart, but unfortunately I have to say their concoction was the worst cocktail I have ever had. Actively unpleasant to drink, I was a brave soul and finished it nonetheless. Milk and gin do not make good bedfellows. It did, at least, come in cute packaging but I am not a fan of a paper straw – so soggy so quickly. 

Far and away the best cocktail of the evening came from Boodles who had somehow turned a cocktail into a quintessentially English curry, complete with political commentary on the recent Brexit result/fiasco. I didn’t expect to like it to be honest, but the savoury, fragrant spiciness was incredibly moreish. And extra bonus points for the properly spicy lime pickle! Unsurprisingly, this cocktail won hands down. Well deserved. 

The other two also rans were nice enough. Tarquins served up little ‘ice creams’ which were as fun to watch created as they were to drink. And Sipsmith went down the most traditional route, serving up test tubes of their concoctions.

As soon as the cocktails started being lined up, everyone went for it, meaning we drank four deceptively strong cocktails within an hour. Little wonder then, that at 9 pm when all the drinks were sampled, the party was going OFF. The music was turned up and people were dancing. It felt a little surreal to be honest but really good fun!

Keep an eye out for the next one, or if you can’t wait, they do a Gin Social every Monday where you can have a welcome G&T, a tasting of that months Gin and a Gin cocktail of their own creation for £5. 

Ginger Pig Cafe, 15th June

There are many places in East London to get a decent brunch these days but the Ginger Pig caught my eye with their menu a while ago and so me and my friend Alison went for a brunch date there the other day.

The Ginger Pig Café, is, oddly enough, not affiliated with the famed Ginger Pig butcheries. I do find it weird that they have chosen to name themselves so closely to something that already exists but the butchers don’t seem to mind.

Judging by their breakfasts though, The Ginger Pig are some serious meat lovers, and pig is indeed the flavor of the day.

We had been salivating over the menu online and were a little disappointed to see that it wasn’t the same as what was on offer on the day. My friend in particular had liked the look of the Mexican huevos rancheros, and I thought the grilled halloumi and poached egg sounded nice but neither of them were on the printed menu. Neither were the many varieties of eggs we thought would be on offer (benedict, royale, omelette). But in my heart I think I would have ordered what I got anyway as it has been so long since I’ve had pancakes and I love the sweet/savoury combination of pancakes, maple syrup, eggs and bacon.

So I ordered the lumberjack – two pancakes, two pork and leek sausages, three bacon rashers, two fried eggs, and some ham!

Alison at the very last minute decided to get the full monty – eggs how you like them, sausage, bacon, black pudding, beans and mushrooms. And toast.

I got a bloody mary, she got an aperol spritz and we waited. We actually waited quite a while but I didn’t mind, taking it as a sign it wasn’t all pre-cooked and just sitting there waiting to be ordered. We both savoured our cocktails. My bloody mary was a generous serve and lasted me the whole meal – at £4.50 you can’t afford not to have one!

When it arrived we were confused. Where were Alison’s mushrooms? Where were the beans? The waitress had said something as she set them down but we couldn’t make out what so we enquired. Turns out, these come separately because, rather than give you a handful of each, you get a full dish of both to go on the side! The portions were actually verging on ludicrous. Yet, as you’ll see, a valiant effort was made to eat it all.

The brunch was a top notch breakfast – pancakes were great and there was the right amount of maple syrup to last. For the money you pay I think you’ll be hard pressed to find a heartier meal anywhere. I almost finished it but left some of my ham (it’s not my favourite cut of pork and three kinds of pig on one place is more than enough!). If I had to gripe I would say just what I’ve said – maybe there isn’t a need for so much meat. A hash brown instead would be nice. And I prefer scrambled eggs and streaky bacon with my pancakes (I think it’s the more American way) but I enjoyed it thoroughly nonetheless. The sausages were fantastic – really full of flavor and I tried to make them last as long as I could.

I was stuffed by the end of it.

But not too full not to have a quick summery drink before heading out to conquer (yes, that’s right, no second place for me this time) A Door in a Wall.

We walked around the corner to Hoxton Square to the Fever Tree G & T pop-up and ordered a flight of four gins to share between us. This came with four varieties of fever tree tonic to go with them. I like gin (I like most alcohol) but have never really paid it much attention, I just drink what I’m given. It was great to explore the different flavours of gins and discover I actually had a preference. We also adored the Fever Tree tonics – elderflower was possibly just about my favourite but Mediterranean, bitter lemon and regular were all good. Sadly we were time pressed and couldn’t try any more but I would love to go back. You can sit outside if it’s sunny or enjoy the inside setting which is just as nice. And I love those big glasses!

Tanqueray Tones at The Lucky Pig, 5th June

Last week I had the pleasure of attending Tanqueray Tones, a night of gin, glamour and jazz at the Lucky Pig in Fitzrovia. As we entered this little, shabby-chic drinking den, we were warmly welcomed by ‘Earnest Anyway’ a dapper and excitable young gent from Victorian times who was soon joined by his lady friend Goldie, or Lulu depending on her mood, who was draped in 20s fashions and could be seen dancing the Charleston periodically through the night as she mingled with her guests.

On the right a temporary hair salon, barbers and shoe shine were set up to make sure all the guests looked as spiffing as possible, and on the left the band were ensconced, doing a couple of sets of ragtime and real 20s music, not modern stuff reinvented. And, for some unexplained reason, there was also a judge running around telling everyone what they were doing was illegal (gin was banned and that was never, actually, overturned) and photobombing people’s pictures.

Ah yes, the gin – for that is what we were there for. World Gin Day is the 14^th and this was a bit of a precursor to the event, and something to get us all to turn to Tanqueray for when the real celebrations start. We had four cocktails to choose from, plus a gin and tonic (served in the most amazingly huge glasses), each created by a top bartender. The only one I didn’t try was the Ishikari Fizz because it had jasmine tea in it and I don’t like tea, which is a shame because I do like the Worship Street Whistling Shop and that was their creation.

Humongous gin and tonics

So yes, we tried all of the cocktails at least (see below for details) once but kept coming back to the Bee’s Knees which was aptly named because it was far and away our favourite. The gin flavor was to the fore, but had just the right hint of sweetness and lavender that wasn’t overpowering.

The Bees' Knees

Bloomsbury Bronx and Flash of lightning

Canapes were handed out throughout the event, making sure we didn’t become too sizzled. My favourite was a breaded ham topped with mustard, although the whipped goats’ cheese tart was also very good. They all were, in fact and I appreciated that some thought had obviously been put into creating something a little more interesting than your usual finger food. Duck pate was topped with rhubarb and we had spoons of a gin-infused jelly topped with ham. And they did not skimp on the gin at all. Wow.

A light and creamy mini cheesecake and/or chocolate truffle lollipop served as dessert.

And then, later in the evening a cocktail of gin, martini and something else I’ve forgotten was passed around so that we could toast our hosts for the evening while the gentleman below gave thanks on our behalf to Tanqueray and reminded us of some of the reasons we were there.

It seemed to me everyone was having a whale of a time, myself included. One of the most enjoyable events I've been to. The characters were great, the cocktails and canapes were delicious, the setting was perfect and the vibes were fantastic. Thanks Tanqueray!

The cocktails

Ishikari Fizz – A Modern Molecular Mix

The Japanese river Ishikari's name means 'to go around itself' and has inspired the emulsification of this drink, which uses egg to hold all the components together. Formulated by award-winning mixologist Tristan Stephenson who is leading the drinks scene with his unique lab-based creations, this cocktail represents a modern cocktail concoction and features oriental ingredients such as yuzu juice and hints of jasmine. 

For this truly complex and intricate cocktail serve visit The Worship Street Whistling Shop.

Bloomsbury Bronx – Reminiscent of Lavish 1930s Cocktail Parties

Devised by Tanqueray GB Ambassador Tim Homewood this cocktail signifies the new era of citrus-based cocktails that rapidly took over the drinks scene in the 1930s. The poignant flavours of the Bloomsbury Bronx match the spirit of the post-prohibition years and the ever-growing passion for gin. 

Lavish cocktail parties were all the rage at the time so why not enjoy this cocktail in the comfort of your own home by following this simple recipe, below.

50ml Tanqueray London Dry Gin

10ml Maraschino

15ml Antica Formula

25ml Orange Juice

2 dash Peychaud’s Bitters

Method:

Add all ingredients to a shaker with cubed ice, shake and double strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry on a cocktail stick.

Units: 2.2

Bee’s Knees – Inspired by the Roaring 1920s

Created by Head Bartender at The Lucky Pig, Dren Lala, the Bee’s Knees matches the flavours enjoyed in the speakeasies of the time. Make your taste buds tingle with an infusion of Tanqueray London Dry Gin accompanied by lemon, honey and a lavender at decadent drinking den, The Lucky Pig.

Flash of Lightening – Inspired by the Birth of 1800s Gin Palaces

Tanqueray Global Ambassador Barrie Wilson has devised a bespoke apricot, mint and lemon cocktail for World Gin Day inspired by the emergence of Gin Palaces in the early 1800s. These alluring drinking dens offered ground-breaking serves, such as gin infused with peppermint or sugary cordials.During the reign of Gin Palaces, the slang term ‘lightning’ described a ‘dram’ of gin. 
Try this modern take on a 'flash of lightning' at the Gin Monkey World Gin Day Jazz Party.

Feast, 4th August

I was so determined to go to Feast that I bought two sets of tickets – one for Saturday and one for Sunday, in case I was too hungover to make it down there on Saturday.

Happily, after an extended slumber, I felt fairly normal, and couldn’t think of a better way to cope with hangover munchies than heading down to a festival of food. Feast was an event coordinated by the same people behind the Long Table in Dalston last year, which I didn’t get to. This time they were bringing together 30 purveyors of food and drink – both street food, and established restaurants, selling their wares. It was a bit like Taste London but with a DJ, more of a festival feel, and less expensive: entry was a mere £6 in advance.

We got there at about 7:30 and spent a good two hours there, browsing the stalls and sharing a few dishes between us, grabbing a drink every now and then to let ourselves digest and make room for more! The weather was luckily very balmy (it was an outdoor event in Guy’s Quadrangle) and the DJ was pretty good – he seemed to be playing all the songs I have on my Spotify playlists.

And so, to the food. Apologies for the lack of photos. I once again forgot at first, and then by the time I remembered it was too dark for my crappy phone.

I straight away went for a dish of spiced lamb, hoummus and chilli butter from Morito. I haven’t yet eaten at Morito, though my boyfriend has several times, so I was pleased to be able to sample their food. This was really good, though perhaps a tad oily, and they let you have as much bread with it as you wanted. For £2.50! I was really impressed with the pricing of all the dishes. The only thing that we thought was maybe a little too expensive were the burgers. The Hawksmoor burgers were going for £9.00, which is probably good value for anything from Hawksmoor, but was the most expensive dish there. The Patty and Bun cheeseburgers with bacon were £7.00 which seemed just that pound too costly. Everything else was around a fiver, or £2.50-£3.00 for smaller dishes. Even the cocktails were £5.00 – very conducive to trying lots of different things.

So, we shared a Patty and Bun burger, which made the cost more bearable. I am not a fan of burgers in general and even though this one didn’t quite convince me, it seemed good as far as burgers go! It had pickled onions, and some ‘P & B’ smoky mayo and I thought those flavour combinations were very good. Stephen’s verdict was that it was nice but the meat wasn’t as steaky as some other burgers he’s had.

I had had a craving for a Yum Bun the day before but they weren’t at Eat Street, so I took advantage of their presence here to have one and to introduce Stephen to them. Mine was as good as I remembered, and Stephen thought the Yum Bun was the best dish of the day. Our next favourite were the tacos from L.A. Sueno, a street food vendor I hadn’t tried before. We had two beef tacos and one pork. I thought the tortilla tacos were good – had a nice flavour to them and not too dry and the beef was delicious. However, the fuego salsa could have done with a bit more ‘fuego’. Didn't even make my nose run!

The only bum note of the day was our last dish, which was ceviche from The Last Days of Pisco. We both thought the leche de tigre that they marinate the fish in was overpoweringly limey. I got one faint taste of fish in my first bite and the rest was lime, lime and more lime. I actually really like lime, but I also like the other things that were supposed to be in the dish so it was a shame not to be able to taste them. Also, there was so much lime that it felt like I had acid burn in my mouth. Not pleasant.

With a couple of pleasing drinks – a spiced cider from the main bar, and then a very impressive rose and raspberry cocktail from the Hendrick’s bar (which mostly tasted of lychee but which I liked all the better for it) we had, I would say, a very impressive roster of consumption. I didn’t feel I could fit any more in, which was a shame as I had my eye on the Bread Street Kitchen chicken wings, and Platform’s pigs’ cheeks with chorizo also sounded very tempting. We mooted the idea of going back the next day, but the weather and feelings of guilt at over indulgence the previous two days prevented us.

Feast is over for now, but if they do something else, I’ll make sure to try it.