La Parisienne, London

La Parisienne
84 Bishop's Bridge Road
Bayswater
London W2 6BB


I've never tried this place before, Inspite of the enticing aromas coming from it each time I pass by (at least once a week) But today the pull of a hot gooey chocolate crepe on a chilly evening overrode all sensible, healthy and logical thoughts and I walked right in.

Everything in the counters looks sweet and sticky and the advertised crepes are again all sweet, but I asked the guy managing the whole patisserie on his own if he had any savoury options and he rattled off a few savoury crepe combinations.

I chose the old favourite ham & cheese for my savoury option and a plain Nutella crepe for a sweet finish. All accompanied with a cafe latte to wash it down.

It wasn't the best crepes I've had, but they were good and the whole experience was enhanced by the wonderful friendly service.

The coffee came accompanied with a piece of baklava which was a welcome change. One of my pet peeves at coffee shops is that complimentary cookies or biscuits only come with cappuccinos and not lattes.

Will I go back? For the coffee and to bring a smile on to my face on a cold evening, Yes!

Rating : 4 / 5

Lahore Grill, London

Lahore Grill
330 Edgware Road
Lisson Grove
London W2 1EA

020 72248530

Lahore Grill Menu

Another Home Delivery Order.

Excellent lamb samosas (2.80 for 2 pieces). Crispy, right size and the filling was perfectly spiced.

The chicken chapli kebab (3.25 for 2 pieces) was a good innovation. Its normally made from mutton or beef and those tend to get a little chewy because of the cooking process and quality of meat used. The chicken was much less chewy, but a little low on spice for us.

The lamb haleem (8.95) was one of the better ones that I have eaten in London (the only one better than Lahore Grill's that I have tried so far is Dishoom in Covent Garden)

The nihari (8.95 - a large mutton shank with a marrow bone that is stewed overnight) was delightful. Not too glutinuous, but just right. Again a beautiful balance of spices.

The chicken biryani (8.45) was good, but personally I wouldn't put it in the "order again" category.

The grilled baby chicken with spicy sauce (6.75) was the only disappointment. There was hardly any spicing and it came with bits of coal char on it, which always ruins the food experience for me.

Some of the items are really good, while others are middling. It will be a bit of a trial & error process to find what works best for you.

Rating : 3.5 / 5

May's Chinese Cuisine, London

May's Chinese Cuisine
39 Willesden Lane
Kilburn
London NW6 7RF

020 7625 3388

Ordered home delivery from here today (2Pounds charge) and husband says this is the best Chinese he has had in London. I guess this is because its the closest to the Indian-Chinese food that he grew up with.

I ordered via Hungry House which had an offer of free prawn crackers for bills above 15, but if you call them directly, they offer free dishes on each bill threshold.

The food arrived quite quickly and was piping hot. The crackers were packed separately, so they hadn't crumbled. Quantities are large & prices are low, yet it is high on taste and quality. A perfect combination for takeaways & home delivery.

May's offers a range of Chinese, Malaysian & Thai Food. They are really excellent about catering to allergies. With my shrimp/prawn allergy, I'm quite hesitant to order any seafood in a Chinese restaurant, because I never know if shrimp or shrimp heads have been added to the stock or to thicken a sauce. But these guys can tell you immediately about every ingredient in the dishes on their menu.

The only 2 dishes that fell in the middling range were the pork dumplings (5.40) because their wrapping was on the thicker side and the Thai red curry (5.60), that was more of a side dish than a curry. They tasted good, but did not meet my expectations, especially compared to the rest of the food.

The roast pork fried rice (5.20) and the chicken chowmein (5.40) were very good, with lots of flavour and tender meat. Not too oily (the bane of many takeaway chowmeins) The sweet & sour chicken Hong Kong style (5.60) was yummy and the first time that I was able to eat pineapple added in sweet and sour dishes because it wasn't too sweet or sour or squishy. The kung po pork with chilli (5.90) was the standout dish of the day. Just the right amount of chilli without going over the top.

They have some special set meals like :
Sweet & Sour Chicken + Spring Rolls + Egg Fried Rice for 1 person for 9.90.
A Meal for 2 with a quarter crispy Aromatic Duck + 6 pancakes + 2 Spring Rolls + Chicken in Black Bean Sauce + Sweet & Sour Pork + Egg Fried Rice + Prawn Crackers for 23.90
A Meal for 3 with quarter crispy Aromatic Duck + 6 pancakes + 3 Chicken & Mushroom Soup + Sweet & Sour Chicken + Beef with Green Pepper in Black Bean Sauce + King Prawns with Mixed Vegetables + Egg Fried Rice + Prawn Crackers for 36.90

Really loved the food from May's & I'm guessing that we will be ordering in from here whenever someone is in the mood for Chinese :)

Take a Look at their Menu

Rating : 4/5

Yelp Gets Handsy With The Guac - Chipotle, London

Chipotle
101-103 Baker Street
Marylebone
London W1U 6HQ
020 7935 9881

I'd seen the ads for chipotle in plenty of tube stations & I love chipotle peppers, but in my mind I thought of them as just another fast food chain until Yelp organised an event here and I was stripped thoroughly of my misconceptions!

What an amazing evening with Everton, Mith, Aita and the rest of their team.

Freshly made Margaritas greeted us as soon as we walked in. And the evening got progressively better from there.

All the meat is sourced from free range farms, every item on the menu is prepared fresh on location. No central kitchen, pre packaged, frozen stuff here.

Everton gave us a quick glimpse into the philosophy behind Chipotle before showing us a short video by Steve Ells the founder.

We were plied with nachos and dips through the entire presentation.

We then got a quick glimpse into their refrigerator and the kitchen, before we got a chance to choose our own burrito/dish/salad.

I've never eaten at chipotle before and their focus on freshness is amazing. I had dismissed them initially as just another fast food Tex-Mex place, but this evening was an eye opener.

I had a bowl with the carnitas, brown rice, pinto beans, veggies, guacamole, sour cream and topped with cheese. I also supplemented this with the fine sauces from Tabasco - chipotle & green pepper.

It was so yummy and felt extremely healthy too (not counting the cheese) The meat was soft & tender, vegetables were freshly cut, not wilted. Guacamole was all fresh.

So yeah, if there's a chipotle in the vicinity, I'd definitely consider them for a quick lunch and if it's an early dinner it can even be paired with Mexican beer & maybe a margarita!

Loving this series of master classes via #Yelptoberfeast and hope to enjoy more of them

I forgot to mention that we had the whole basement area to ourselves for the event and there were enough lulls between the presentations and demonstrations for us to have a good chat. I think this was the first Yelp event where I was able to have a conversation with almost everyone who attended.

Rating : 4 /5