| My Little Black Book |
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2 TINKERS tel: 01603 736 244 So these guys built my butcher’s block. And they delivered it. And they did a damn good job to boot. Next, I need them to make me a table. Based in Norfolk, they specialise in furniture and collectables. I love their kitchenalia, and I recommend them heartily.
ADSDEAN FARM SHOP Funtington, Chichester, West Sussex, PO18 9DN tel: 01243 575212 Brilliant South Downs farm and farm shop, run by the Hoare family. They're not organic - instead they take a "best practice" approach, and their standards of animal husbandry are first-rate, and their beef especially (Aberdeen Angus/Simmental cross) is delicious. Best of all, the produce in their farm shop is all local, local, local - when they haven't grown it, their neighbours have!
ALLEN'S BUTCHERS 17 Mount Street, London, W1K 3LA tel: 020 7499 5831 This is a fairytale shop for meat lovers - it just LOOKS like a butchers shop should! Furred and feathered beasties in the window, incredible beef, gull’s eggs… and a dreamy huge prepping island. Just amazing. They do a great one day butchery course for beginners too. Nearest tube: Bond Street
BALLARDS BREWERY, The Old Sawmill, Nyewood, Petersfield, Hampshire, GU31 5HA tel: 01730 821362 A fantastic Hampshire micro brewery with a good range of draft and bottle-conditioned beers, which you can buy through their website. Fred is in love. Need I say more?
THE BARNES FISH SHOP 18 Barnes High Street, London, SW13 9LW tel: 020 8876 1297 Aka C.Lofthouse. A terrific SW London fishmongers, with good quality produce and friendly service. Always ready with good cooking advice too. Nearest station: Barnes Bridge.
BETTY’S AND TAYLOR’S OF HARROGATE What better than a nice cup of tea and a slice of cake? Well, Betty’s and Taylor’s do both. Under the Taylor’s brand, they make the fantastic Yorkshire Tea, which you can now get just about anywhere (for those of you gasping for a proper cuppa in sunny LA, they stock this in BevMo!). Betty’s Tearooms have several outlets across North Yorkshire, my favorite being the one in York itself, where WW2 bomber pilots (including my good friend Calvin Brindley) used to sign their names on its mirrors with a diamond ring. And you can get their top quality cakes direct online! I have to say, the Bakewell slice I bought 'to go' on my last visit was about as good as I've ever tasted. BOCADDON FARM VEAL 1 Bocaddon Cottages, Lanreath, Looe, Cornwall, PL13 2PG tel: 01503 220991 Veal to die for, available by mail order, straight from the farm in Cornwall. The simply fact is that if you want to drink milk, eat ice cream etc. you have to get into veal too. You can’t have one without the other. These chaps produce beautiful, happy calves which, thanks to proper, ethical rearing, have a beautiful rose-pink flesh. Go on, treat yourself. Pull that Italian cookbook off the shelf, and go to town! Alternatively, a nice old-fashioned English veal roast with summer veg. Ooh, I’m getting hungry.
BOOKS FOR COOKS 4 Blenheim Crescent, London, W11 1NN tel: 020 7221 1992 THE place to hang out, have a coffee and some freshly baked cakes (literally straight out of the oven), a glass of wine and a snack, and to peruse a multitude of cookery books. Listen to lectures, see cookery demos, and meet fellow foodies. Bliss!
BOROUGH WINES Borough Market, 8 Southwark Street, London, SE1 1TL (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) Fantastic wine selection — including, at last, en vrac wine in London: a basic rosé, red and white that you can buy by the litre. Just take your bottles and fill 'em up for about £3 a litre. Muriel Chatel has great taste, and a great team working with her. And she always has some surprisingly reasonable high-end choices from small growers. Vive la France!
BUCKLEY'S BUTCHERS 88 Lower Richmond Road, London, SW15 1LL tel: 020 8788 6160 The new team at this friendly family butchers are great. Chris has great Cumberland sausages, dry aged beef, lovely fresh eggs and the jokes are free.
A great online resource to find your best local farmers’ market (if you haven’t already done so), as complied by the National Farmers Retail and Markets Association. FARMA provides independent assessment and certification of farmers’ markets so that you can be sure of the best value and best practice – and that the food you’re buying is coming directly from the producer.
CHALMERS AND GRAY 67 Notting Hill Gate, Notting Hill, London, W11 3JS tel: 020 7221 6177 Tip-top, old-school fishmongers with a great big wet-slab in the middle of the shop. This is where I go for particular fishies, and we always, always have fish for dinner if one of us has been in this part of town. In fact, I once inadvertently took a sea bass from here to the cinema. We named it Saul; it much enjoyed the movie, and tasted terrific too. Nearest tube: Notting Hill Gate In the last fifty years, we have lost 90% of our English cherry orchards; we now import 95% of the cherries we eat. If we want to save the English cherry, we must act now. Which is where Cherry Aid comes in. This is a great campaign, as well as a brilliant way to source good, home-grown cherries. Cherry trees too, for all you gardeners. Come on, the rest of us, let’s adopt a tree now!
Online suppliers of all things Mexican. The place for dried chilies, powdered, chillies, herbs, spices, corn bits, chocolate, sauces, you name it. If you’re cooking Mexican, these are my go-to guys. Buy online, from their stall in Borough Market, or visit their restaurant Taqueria in Westborne Grove.
ELIZABETH KING 32-34 New King's Road, Fulham, London, SW6 4ST tel: 020 7736 2826 Butcher, deli, green grocer – is there anything they can’t do? I love this place. It’s on my bus route, and I am a confirmed fan. Nearest tube: Parson’s Green
FLETCHERS OF AUCHTERMUCHTY Reediehill Deer Farm, Auchtermuchty, Fife, Scotland KY14 7HS tel: 01337 828369 The first deer farm in Europe, started by one of the few vets to specialise in deer care, Fletchers raise simply the finest venison ever. I could go on (at length) about their fantastic animal husbandry, great farming practices, and so on, but let's cut to the chase: this is about the meat, and theirs is about as good as it gets. Very clear online ordering, efficient shipping and, if you're up that way, a great farm shop too!
FOXBURY FARM Burford Road, Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, OX18 3NX tel: Tel & Fax: 01993 867385 Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it A fantastic farm shop specialising in pork from their own Gloucester Old Spots. These guys make one of the best bangers I’ve ever eaten, and the pork is terrific. Not just about the pigs though: they sell lamb from their own flock, beef reared by their own suckler herd, plus farm-reared chicken and duck. They only deliver locally, so the rest of us just have to hop in the car. But it’s well worth a detour, and I’m sure the trip to sunny Oxfordshire will put some colour in our cheeks.
GABRIEL MACHIN 7 Market Place, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, RG9 2AA tel: 01491 574377 One of my favorite butchers in the country, and especially distinguished for having its own smokehouse. They smoke their own salmon (which used to be served on Concorde!) and their own bacon too. Ian, the owner, has gone to great lengths to find the very best South Oxfordshire suppliers for everything apart from his beef, which comes from the Scottish Highlands. The meat here is terrific. And, my, that bacon! Home-cured, like their hams, and just out of this world. It comes with rind intact, ready to go crispy and to be fought over at breakfast. Is any love greater than that of a man who’ll share his crispy rind with his wife? I always have some in my freezer for emergencies.
GASTRONOMIA ITALIA 8 Upper Tachbrook Street, Westminster, London, SW1V 1SN Lovely Italian deli, with great lunchtime pizza slices too. As a pizza addict, I should know! Great hams, cheese, dried goods and coffee. Nearest tube: Victoria
GERRY'S LIQUOR STORE 74 Old Compton Street, Soho, London, W1D 4UW tel: 020 7734 2053 A Soho institution and simply the best spirits supplier in London. In my experience, every off-licence in town has at some point sent customers to Gerry's to source that hard-to-find brand. Coupled with an Aladdin's Cave of liquor is their encyclopaedic knowledge. It used to be cash only; now they can organise nationwide delivery. Nearest tube: Picadilly
THE GINGER PIG Borough Market, 8 Southwark Street, London, SE1 1TL (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) With outlets in Marylebone, Hackney, Pickering, Thornton-le-Dale, and of course at the inestimable Borough Market, these guys just rock. Their meat comes from their two farms in Yorkshire. Grange Farm has been in the sheep business since Roman times (of which Freddie much approves), while Blansby Park Farm is a Duchy of Lancaster farm where they raise their pigs. Just perfect, perfect produce. And what I love is that you can specify exactly how long you want a piece of beef aged for! They also offer butchery courses at their Marylebone branch on Moxon Street.
GIULIANO'S ITALIAN DELI AND CAFE 1a Lacy Road, Putney, London SW15 1NH tel: 020 8785 1741 Pepe has the most wonderful prosciuto on the bone — I won’t buy mine anywhere else. Also, great pastas to take out or have in. I highly recommend the saffron hued linguine with spring vegetables.
THE HAM AND CHEESE CO. Brinksway Lodge, Haslemere GU27 3PR tel: 01428 645 958 Borough Market, 8 Southwark Street, London, SE1 1TL (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) The provenance of all these products is impeccable. And this product is my particular favourite: a subtle, tasty saucisse seche made from the Cochon Basque pig, a breed whose numbers fell to just 20 in 198, when a group of Basque farmers led by Pierre Oteiza re-introduced them to the Adudes Valley. There are now over 8000 of them and they are the process of gaining AOC status. Pierre has been awarded a legion D'Honneur! We salute you.
IL MASCALZONE 41 Putney High Street, London, SW15 1SP tel: 020 8785 4793 / 120 Station Road, Edgeware, London HA8 7AA tel: 020 8951 5533 What can I say? Simply the best take-out pizzas around. Gerrardo and his apprentice, little brother Marco have the gift - yes, the gift - of making the thinnest, crispiest crust with a lush tomato sauce specked with herbs and garlic and just the right amount of topping. Their secret is their fresh dough, hand-made daily, a thing of delicious, yeasty beauty. Bellissima! PS the eat-in pastas and grills are fab too, and the staff terrific! ISOLA DEL SOLE 16 Lacy Road, Putney, London, SW15 1NL tel: 020 8785 9962 Massimo and Susanna Usai have a cosy corner of Putney that is forever Sardinia. There’s great food to eat in, but the secret is Susanna’s homemade pasta! Give her a few days’ notice and she’ll whip you up a batch of raviolis as soft as angel’s pillows for you to take home, cook and pass off as your own! Oh, and she also makes the best macaroons ever!
J SEALS 7 Barnes High Street, Barnes, London, SW13 9LW tel: 020 8876 5118 Really good independent butcher in SW London. Consistently great produce, and will always find what you want if they don't have it in (i.e. sweetbreads, tongue, a turkey out of season). They're always jolly to boot, so it's a pleasure to visit. Nearest Station, Barnes Bridge.
Based in Alvestone, just north of Bristol, Jekka’s supply organic culinary and medicinal herbs, both as seeds and plants. So for the gardeners amongst you, this is the place for all your herby needs, from angelica to viola. I get a number of herb and salad plants from them, which I plant out on my roof terrace. Treat of the summer for me, purslane, sweet and juicy salad leaf with more omega 3 in it than a plump salmon!
LEA AND SANDEMAN 170 Fulham Road, London, SW10 9PR tel: 020 7244 0522 Boutique London vintners with an excellent wine list. They have shops in Chelsea, Kensington and Barnes, offer free London delivery on all orders over a case (12 bottles), and free nationwide delivery on orders over £250. There is an old world emphasis - Charles Lea is one of the acknowledged experts on Burgundy - but their list is diverse and exciting, and represents excellent value for quality. Good en primeur deals too; their in house champagne, Benedick, is delicious and terrific value for money; and their annual February sale is a great place to pick up wine bargains.
LINA STORES 18 Brewer Street, Soho, London W1F 0SH Tel: 020 7437 6482 Classic, old-school Italian deli in the heart of Soho. One of London’s original great Italian secrets and not to be missed under any circumstances. Nearest tube: Piccadilly
Fantastic online Mexican grocer — does exactly what it says on the tin! You can get every kind of dried chilli, mole pastes, masa harina for tortillas. You can even get candies and drinks and cook books. They are one of my absolute online favourites: quick, convenient, what more do you want. Viva Mexico! Now with four London outlets (at Putney Exchange, 71 Duke of York’s Square, St Pancras Station and Harrods), Neuhaus makes and sells, for my money, the best Belgian chocolates you can find in London. I’m going to make a confession here: I could quite happily live in a world without chocolate, unlike a lot of my chums. But I can eat these by the box!. They’re rich and delicious, and well worth going out of your way to find. I’m not kidding. I used to go to Brussels especially.
NUT CASE 352 Uxbridge Road, London W12 7LL tel: 020 8743 0336 An Aladdin's cave of nuts, a great selection of freshly roasted and ground-in-front-of-you coffees, nuts, sweets and more nuts!! Love the wee squirrel on the logo too. Heaven on the Uxbridge road! Nearest tube: Hammersmith Market
J & M PARSONS (BUTCHERS), 39 Cheap Street, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3PU tel: 01935 812 071 A wonderful, old-fashioned butcher serving locally sourced Dorset meat and game, home cured bacon and home made sausages which (particularly The Sherborne) give Mighty Machin's a run for their money... Heartily recommended.
Very handy grocers with branches in Sloane Square and on the Gloucester Road. And you can order online. Very handy, I find, for those American products I got used to when I lived in the States, and find impossible to find anywhere else in England. Nearest tubes: Sloane Square and Gloucester Road
REZA PATISSERIES 345 Kensington High Street, London W8 6NW tel: 020 7603 0924 A gem of a store on the Kensington-Olympia border. They bake all the baklavas here on site, and are just about the best at them in town. They’re also a green grocer, and supply good quality Middle Eastern and Persian ingredients and yummies. Great caviar, too! Nearest tube: Olympia.
RICHARD HAWARD OYSTERS 129 Coast Road, West Mersea, Colchester, Essex, CO5 8PA tel: +44 1206 383284 The Haward family have been growing oysters since 1792, and produce pretty much the finest Colchester natives you will ever eat. I first tasted them at the Pimlico Road farmers’ market about seven years ago, and Richard’s oysters are still the best. His prices include delivery. You will not be disappointed. So, if you haven’t got one already, get yourself a decent oyster knife, some lemons and Tabasco, a nice, crisp white wine, and (between September and April) get dialling! They also have a restaurant on site called the Company Shed. They don’t take bookings, so get there early to avoid disappointment.
RIPPON CHEESE STORES 26 Upper Tachbrook Street, London, SW1V 1SW Tel: 020 7931 0628/0668 Ah! That wonderful milky, cheesey aroma as you walk through the door. Simply the best cheese shop in London. ‘Nuff said. Nearest tube: Victoria
SECRETT’S Hurst Farm, Chapel Lane, Milford, Godalming, Surrey, GU8 5HU tel: 01483 520500 Farm, farm shop, garden centre, pick-your-own. Great quality veg. They now supply a vegetable box scheme, too, fronted by Greg Wallace off Masterchef. I prefer to go direct for the pick-your-own bit. They also host events through the summer, including the bi-annual Amazing Thailand festival, in aid of the Mudita Trust.
Chinatown branch: 18-20 Lisle Street, London, WC2H 7BE tel: 0207 439 8325 Greenwich branch: Furlong House, Horn Lane, Greenwich, London, SE10 0RT tel: 0208 293 9393 Glasgow branch: The Point, 29 Saracen Street, Hamilton Hill, Glasgow G22 5HT tel: 0845 078 8818 Big, Pan-Asian superstores. I tend to use the Greenwich cash and carry when I’m buying in bulk for big jobs. Very good quality vegetables and very good fish, which you know will be fresh because you pretty much get to pick it out of the tank. The Glasgow branch is apparently the largest superstore in Scotland. So there. Nearest tube: for Chinatown, Leicester Square; for Greenwich, Woolwich Arsenal mainline station
SHELL SEEKERS Borough Market, 8 Southwark Street, London, SE1 1TL (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) Apart from their outstanding diver-caught scallops (pretty much the best around), Darren and his team sell a fantstic array of fresh seafood and have lots of tips on what to do with it. Cracking.
THE SOMERSET DISTILLERY Pass Vale Farm, Burrow Hill, Kingsbury, Somerset TA12 6BU tel: 01460 240782 Stunning cider brandies made by Julian Temperley, which knock spots off much of the French competition. Smooth, mellow apple-y nirvana!
THE SPICE SHOP 1 Blenheim Crescent, London, W11 2EE tel: 020 7221 4448 email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it You've got to love this institution on Blenheim Crescent. Every herb and spice you could want, and more to boot. It's a real hit to the senses when you walk in. There is a question mark hanging over its future, as the exorbitant rents in London continue to sky rocket, so we must act now! This place is too special to disappear.
SUROOR MARKET 101-113 Robin Hood Way, Kingston Vale, London SW15 3QE tel: 020 8974 6088 / 020 8974 5955 Just round the block from the A3 Robin Hood Roundabout, this is a hidden gem. Terrific Halal meat, Middle Eastern vegetables, sweets, coffees, an extensive collection of Eastern Mediterranean olive oils, loose fresh feta, olives, pickles, nuts of every kind and homemade falafel. Super friendly service, and well worth a visit.
TALAD THAI 320 Upper Richmond Road, London, SW15 6TL tel: 020 8789 8084 The joke is that this supermarket is the real reason I moved to Putney. Fresh Asian vegetables arrive by air every Wednesday, providing great seasonal Asian produce. Plus pretty much everything you require to cook Thai food, together with some Japanese, Indian and Chinese ingredients. They also have a terrific restaurant too – all that shopping can make you very hungry! Nearest tube: East Putney.
THE THOROUGHLY WILD MEAT COMPANY tel: 01963 824788 or 07770 392041 email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Dexter beef, salt-marsh lamb, proper mutton, roe deer venison – this is the good stuff. If you live in London, you might be put off ordering their half-a-lamb box, if only because of a lack of freezer space. But if you get together with some greedy friends, you’ll find this practical, economical and as delicious as all get out. If you can’t find someone else to order with, I’ll come in with you!
VINTAGE CELLARS 33 Churton Street, London, SW1V 2LT tel: 020 7630 6254 Fantastic independent wine shop in the heart of Pimlico. They did the wine for my wedding! John, the owner, is staggeringly knowledgeable and always manages to make time to talk wine. Great list with very interesting wines from all over the world. Their website has online sales, and they offer nationwide delivery.
A fantastic West London store (with 3 branches in Chiswick, Putney and Ealing) that has a plethora of yummy goodies for anyone who cooks- or eats! Great, knowledgeable staff too– long may they grow and prosper. (Oh, and they have a knife sharpening service, too!) It’s about time London/ UK had stores like this! They sell online too…
WILSON’S BUTCHERS 38 Austhorpe Road, Crossgates, Leeds, LS15 8DX tel : 0113 2645448 Gold medal winning pork pies from England’s Best Butcher 2006. Brilliant butchery all round, by the way, but it’s the pies you’ll keep coming back to. Available by mail order and online. And they’ll even do you a pork pie wedding cake, if you’re so inclined!
ZEIT AND ZAATAR– 354 Uxbridge Road, London W12 7LL tel: 020 8746 9009 The smell of freshly baking Lebanese bread drew me in here, nose twitching, and I wasn’t disappointed! Huge selection of toppings including, of course, zaatar, labneh, halloumi, mozzarella, vegetables and lamb. Great mini breads for cocktail parties, and delicious fatayer (wee spinach pies) and cheese sambousik (cheese and onion pies). Ktir tayyib!! Nearest tube: Hammersmith Market
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