Chris Pople

8 by Andy Sheridan, Liverpool There are many things about 8 by Andy Sheridan that might rub you up the wrong way. The name, for a start - I've never really been behind th...

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One of the best meals I've ever had anywhere, at 8 by Andy Sheridan in Liverpool

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/08/8-by...

Capital Letter #12 In which we crown London's plonkiest wine list

What is the worst wine list in London? Who's serving the plonkiest selezione in town? We asked a host of food and beverage luminaries, and nearly all of them insisted on anonymity, except for two: @jayrayner1.bsky.social and Andy Hayler.

thefencecapitalletter.substack.com/p/capital-le...

Luna, Shad Thames This is not going to be a long post. Not because Luna - a cosy little new wine bar from the people behind Legara just over the road - isn't ...

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Luna is an extremely pleasant, unpretentious little place on the South Bank. cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/08/luna...

At least a wine list has prices! I resent being made to feel like you have to pretend to be infinitely wealthy when choosing champagne.

Yes! But that's more normal in Spain. Tap water isn't usually offered because it was traditionally not very good, but I'm actually sure it's fine these days.

The bread menu

Bo.Tic, Corçà You will probably be aware that Catalonia has well more than its fair share of influential restaurants, a tradition that runs from El Bulli ...

New post! Bo.Tic in Corçà.

Should a €300+pp tasting menu restaurant be charging extra for bread?

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/07/boti...

thanks to @luketurner.bsky.social for making me aware of Zedel removing the steak haché frites from its prix fixe menu, will be wearing a black armband for the rest of the month, maybe the quarter

A Quaker parrot who belongs to my colleague.

My colleague has a new parrot who will type us (nonsensical) messages on Slack if she leaves her desk unattended.

Meet Chickpea 🦜

El Molí de l’Escala, L'Escala I have eaten at El Moli a number of times over the 40 or so years I and my family have been visiting this part of the world. The first coupl...

New post! An excruciating moment with a Very Expensive Lobster, but a very good meal otherwise at El Moli.

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/07/el-m...

That’s very much the new normal.

Studio Gauthier, Fitzrovia Hard as it may be to believe from my supremely easy-going and liberal attitude these days (no laughing at the back), but there was a time wh...

New post! Vegan sushi at Studio Gauthier, and very good it is too.

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/06/stud...

Uncle Hon's BBQ, Hackney Wick After traipsing halfway across London, dodging travel works and closed Overground lines and carriages with malfunctioning air conditioning a...

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Disappointing Texas-Chinese fusion BBQ at Uncle Hon's, Hackney Wick.

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/06/uncl...

Please let this be true

I think that could have been that awful salad bar chain Chop'd. Have a feeling it was a cold chicken and sweet chilli sauce thing

Yes I’ve had a few comments to that effect. I think because it was also available by the glass it would have been easy enough to just not charge us for it and keep it in the fridge for someone else though.

Norbert's, East Dulwich They're like the buses, these rotisserie places. You wait years for a decent, affordable spit-roast chicken in the capital, and then two com...

New post - Norbert's in East Dulwich.

Nice chicken, not completely spoiled by a Wine Service Incident. Obviously I made a mistake and so did they, but what should have happened?
cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/06/norb...

Right it seems the most sensible thing to do is subscribe to my Substack at chrispople.substack.com where you can choose to receive full posts in the body of the email, for free.

Happy Bank Holiday everyone!

The Parakeet, Kentish Town I'm going to start this post about the Parakeet, with - unfortunately (for them, and possibly for you) - a bit of a rant. Why is it that no ...

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A mini rant about the terrible beer selection at some otherwise decent restaurants, and a review of the Parakeet, Kentish Town.

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/05/the-...

Automatic qualification for anywhere (in this case the Parakeet) doing sub-£30 bottles of wine. London thanks you. (And shame on anywhere starting at £55. You know who you are.)

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So my email subscriber service Follow.it has decided to start charging to send the contents of my blog in the emails themselves, as opposed to a link to their copy of my blog. Which is bollocks, obviously. Anyone know of any free email subscriber options I can switch to?

7 Floor Malaysia Tea Room, Holborn In a world of sprawling Mercado Metropolitans, Market Halls and Arcade Food Halls, the miniscule Holborn Food Hub is a reminder that food co...

New post! A trip to the bustling Holborn Food Hub and the lovely 7 Floor Malaysia Tea Room.

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/05/7-fl...

It was bloody brilliant

That’s me!

I just remembered Dave Gorman doing Googlewhack - a two word search query that only generates one result - but that’s not possible any more, because you just get pages of approximations, a glut of ads and an AI engine trying to come up with a plausible explanation of “Keynesian Gorilla” or whatever

I have a few hours in Paris next month, between 3pm when the Eurostar arrives and I’ve checked into my hotel near Gare de l’Est and dinner at 7. What would you do?

Ah that's the Friendly Tavern on University, which is slightly different. I got mine from 30th St.

Whole Beast, Blackhorse Road and The Friendly, San Diego Earlier this month I was lucky enough to eat probably the best burger I've ever had in my life. It was a smash burger, cooked quickly on a f...

New post! A comparison of smash burgers from The Friendly (San Diego) and Whole Beast (Walthamstow)

cheesenbiscuits.blogspot.com/2025/05/whol...

Hey everybody - go to Clitheroe!