location: 5 raphael street, knightsbridge

ate: tasting menu for 1 = £95. I had been warned about the size of the tasting menu but nevertheless had to have it! black cod, kobe beef, sashimi, tuna tartare… all the must haves. indeed it was too much! although all the dishes were prepared to perfection, by the time we reached the kobe i was having trouble breathing, let alone try to swallow a whole steak! i would recommend that you order 1 tasting menu to share (although do not say this to the staff as they refused me) and then a main if there are two of you

drank: rippon pinot – very nice indeed

rating: i would definately return to Zuma; the decor, the food, the cocktails, the lucious chocolate fondant… simply amazing food. one of the more expensive meals but most certainly worth a taster

ingredients: sliced onion, calamar rings, star anis, chopped tomatoes, turmeric, olive oil, fresh & ground coriander, chopped chilli, lemon

how: for tender calamar, leave to soak in milk for an hour. drain calamar. heat oil in pan and place onions on slow heat until cooked. add calamar and simmer until no water left in pan. add chopped tomatoes, chilli, star anis, turmeric, salt, pepper and ground coriander. leave to simmer. for extra flavour add small amount of port. before serving add fresh coriander and a hint of lemon.

hint: best served on basmati rice

ingredients: cooked and peeled prawns, red cabbage, onion, garlic, fresh ginger, soya sauce, fish sauce, coriander, chilli

how: heat some oil in a pan. add roughly sliced onion, chopped chilli, crushed garlic and crushed ginger. leave on medium heat until onion softens. add the cabbage and raise the heat. leave for a short while until the cabbage starts to soften. then add the prawns and stir fry with soy sauce. remove from heat and add some roughly chopped coriander.

hint: if its too spicy a little lemon will give this dish a nice twist.

ingredients: diced lamb, finely chopped onion, some sliced onion, peas, fresh coriander roughly chopped, crushed garlic, ground cumin, ginger, turmeric (only a small amount), garam masala, hot chilli, coriander, one or two finely chopped green chillis, cardamons seeds and a can of chopped tomatoes.

how: heat the garlic and chopped onions in oil. when soft add all herbs and spices except for frsh coriander and chilli. mix on low heat for a while. turn the heat up and add the diced lamb until brown. reduce heat and add tomatoes. bring to boil and leave to simmer for around an hour stirring occasionally. bring to boil again and add peas, cardamons and fresh chilli. reduce heat and leave to simmer as long as you like. the longer the tastier!

tip: it may taste wrong at first but, trust me the longer you leave the more the flavours change – dont be shy with spices

this isn’t the best picture honest!

ingredients: peeled cleaned and cooked prawns (just to make things easier), fresh coriander, chilli (red or green), garlic salt and pepper, and a little bit of olive oil.

how: crush the garlic in a pan of warm oil. heat for a few minutes to flavour the oil. add prawns, chopped chilli, salt, pepper. turn the heat up for just a few seconds stirring briskly. add the roughly chopped coriander and remove from heat. eat.

hint: this dish can be made in so many ways. i like to add parsley, ginger, cumin, you name it! it’s so simple and tasty. its especially good cooked on a bbq wok when the bbq is still nice and hot. but remember to shake the prawns in the wok so they don’t stick!

location: 45 london wall

ate: so much food. lets start with the starters. we had a lovely mixture of tandoori grill, bahjis, kebab… all the all time favourites – very tasty! and some spicy whitebait (interesting but not really worth it). they have some very interesting specialities as mains including gardommony duck (a must try), and squab (that is pigeon basically but just not picked up from the street) amongst many others. the dishes are not ponced up they are just simply original and tasty. there are also all the classic curry dishes and these are lovely. the madras was smooth and every flavour detectable. the jalfrezi was dissapointing not because of its sauce, that was succulent, but because of the cut. I am a fan of the shredding overcooked lamb texture. instead we were offered what looked like slices off the kebab maker… had they run out of lamb perhaps???? but all in all, this was a delicious meal.

drank: cobra of course

rating: this is good food at a very reasonable price (£30ish per person with all that food, beer and even a selection of digestifs on the house). the venue is nice but the lighting looks like they might have something to hide, a shame as they do not. and the service, albeit with a few minor delays and an appreance of dopiness, was on the whole very good!

i highly recommend going to mehek. if you do go as a big group though – it is a big restaurant and easily feels deserted! plus there is also the bonus of getting to try more dishes

dish: spicy chicken & lettuce roll

ingredients: chicken super finely sliced, fresh salad leaves, thin glass noodles, coriander, mint, lemon, chilli, fish sauce, soy sauce all wrapped in a rice paper roll

how: heat the chicken on a pan with some herbs, fish sauce and chilli untill cooked. take a rice paper roll, place in hot water to soften, dry with a kitchen cloth and fill with a salad leaf, some noodles, chicken, chopped coriander, mint and soy sauce. roll and eat immediately.

hint: tastes even nicer when dipped in a sauce of lemon, chilli, soy sauce and fish sauce all combined

drank: £17.50 red wine (can’t remeber the name) and it was just not nice at all.

rating: the platter was good but it doesn’t really take a chef to order good charcuterie, slice it and present it on a plate. I could go on and rant about the description of the meats… come on at least give us the region the type of cut etc if you are going to charge £20 for a plate of serrano! the asparagus was quite tasty but this is not tapas this is a dish (as are most of the so called tapas on the menu). as to the prawns you could taste the burnt oil and burnt garlic and again, its not particulary hard to make good gambas- olive oil, garlic, chilli a little salt and heat the crap out of it!

overall i’d rate this restaurant as an overly expensive fake spanish with the ability to pick out what they have been told are good cured meats and attempt to overuse a brand in their favour.

drank: cheapest bottle of red @ £16… not bad at all

rating: I would definately go back

directions: montpelier vale in Blackheath, se3

recommend: everything! this place is very tasty. my favourite is karahi lamb. the prawn piri is always good as a starter. don’t bother with samosas they tend to be a little too greasy.