Mama Lan, Clapham

April 4, 2015March 22, 2015 / swishjunction / Leave a comment

Blink while walking along Clapham High Street and you may well miss Mama Lan, a discreet set-up on The Pavement (on the same side of the road as Little Waitrose, walking towards Old Town).

Mama Lan first set up home in Brixton Village but has expanded, with this cute abode as its second premises.

We went early-ish on a Saturday – about 12:45 – and easily got a seat, but predictably it filled up fast so like with most places where you can’t book ahead, it’s worth nabbing a seat early on, unless you don’t mind a short wait.

Who said you couldn’t have a garden in London?

The layout is simplistic but cosy; exposed brick walls, wooden flooring and tables, but with cute touches – note the plants above the main lighting platform at the front of the restaurant.

Mama Lan serves a pared down menu split into bigger meals with noodles and soup as the base, or smaller, dim sum style snacking (dangerous, if you’re comparing it to visiting somewhere like Ping Pong).

The Spicy Beef Noodle Soup

We ordered the Spicy Beef Noodle Soup and Spicy Chicken Ban Mein, along with Pork & Chinese Leaf dumplings. Their dumplings are cooked fresh on site so expect a short wait, but to be honest it’s hardly a bother when you’ve got the comfort of knowing they’re not just taken out of the freezer – oh and they taste amazing, too.

The Spicy Chicken Ban Mein

The mains certainly have a kick to them – we took advantage of the free water on offer – but as you’d expect from Chinese food, it was fresh and vibrant – think lemongrass, fresh chills, peanuts etc.

Pork and Chinese Leaf dumplings

In terms of atmosphere, Mama Lan has nailed a chilled ambience. The service is swift but not brisk – we ourselves were in a rush but we got the impression they’d happily let you stay there and munch on dumplings for hours (well, within their opening times, of course). We may just do that one day…

Mama Lan, 8 The Pavement, SW4 0HY and Unit 18, Brixton Village Market, Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8PR.

Le Tour de France, Streatham

April 1, 2015March 22, 2015 / swishjunction / Leave a comment

Excuse us for using a phrase that’s been done to death but this literally is a hidden gem, a couple of streets away from Leigham Court Road and Valley Road.

bread and pastries at Le Tour de France Streatham

Bread and pastries are baked on site

Supermarkets offering a wider selection of cuisine and the spike in internet food shops mean places like this are losing some relevance but we find delicatessens and local shops great to browse in. No shelf is the same and the individuality is what makes local towns so great.

Anyway, soapbox moment aside, Le Tour de France specialises in – you guessed it – French food and drink, with a nod to Belgian delicacies too; they stock Rochefort Belgian beer, little found in London town.

Trappistes rochforte stocked at le tour de france streatham

Find Belgian beer on the shelves in this French cafe

All their pastries are proved and baked on site every day, and they also stock a decent variety of meats, cheese and tarts on counter too. As a nod to changing dietary requirements you’ll find dairy-free and vegan cake options on offer.

Their shelves are a multicolour of tins, bottles and packets of classic French food.

The nicest touch for us was the artwork adorning the walls throughout the place – French, of course.

We stayed for breakfast but we’ll be back to stock up the essentials (cheese and wine, ahem).

Croissant, Cappucino, apple and cinnamon tea and a pain au raisin

Le Tour de France, 135 Sunnyhill Road, SW16 2UW.

Review: dinner at The Great North Wood

March 28, 2015March 15, 2015 / swishjunction / Leave a comment

The Great North Wood has marked a distinctive change in what pubs West Norwood has to offer. After a refurb under new management, it opened last May and late last year the Tulse Hill Hotel followed suit, and soon enough Knowles of Norwood should be opening its doors.

pulled pork burger at the great north wood west norwood

Their pulled pork burger and fries is one of the must-haves on the menu

So in a nutshell…

What’s good about it?

*The food: meat lovers, brace yourselves – there’s a lot of pig and cow to get involved with. Their menu ranges from street food style pulled pork burger and fries to more upscale dishes like their lamb, and beef casoulet (mind the terrible quality pics – flash fail in a dark pub).

Look away now if you’re veggie

pork crackling bar snack the great north wood west norwood

Yep, that’s pork crackling as a bar snack

The drink: sure, a pub that serves good food and drink should be par of the course but the thing that stuck out for us was the range of craft beers and booze from local breweries in stock, from Camden to Gypsy Hill. Last summer they also held the occasional mini ale and cider festival serving a wider range of ciders and ales.

Their ale festival in July 2014

Comfort food on standby at the Great North Wood

What’s not so good about it?

The toilets: we’re not expecting them to be sparkling clean but fully functioning would be nice. There are only two women’s toilets and the layout is squashed – it’s easy to knock into the hand dryer and switch it on when you walk in. The locks are volatile and the flush is frequently broken, too.

The sport: the pub seems to be bit conflicted in terms of its identity. It proudly proclaims to show the sport but while it has two medium sized TVs fitted to walls at each end of the pub, the noise is either low or not on at all – presumably not to disturb their steady custom of restauranteurs but it lacks atmosphere nonetheless. It wouldn’t harm having the sound up on the left side of the pub, leaving the right side for those who want to eat with more peace.

All in all though it’s an encouraging addition to the area previously lacking in a decent night time drinking hole.

The Great North Wood, 3 Knight’s Hill, SE27 0HS

Reviewed: dinner at Lamberts, Balham

March 25, 2015March 22, 2015 / swishjunction / Leave a comment

It’s been a while since we last visited Lamberts and while they’ve made some tweaks here and there, the cosy but smart atmosphere remains.

The ingenious menu layout at Lamberts

So what’s new? Well their menu still changes on a monthly basis to reflect the food available each season (so by the time you read this it’ll probably have changed again), but the printed format has changed. Instead of your conventional ‘starters, mains, desserts’ layout, the sections are split into ‘Field’ for vegetarian dishes, ‘Sea’ for fish and ‘Farm’ for meat, with those under £10 being starters, and plates over £10 the mains.

Their delicious mackerel and pickled cucumber starter

Naturally we delved into the sea and farm sections, ordering mackerel, steak and beef cheeks (look past the squeamish “ugh! I’m eating a cow’s cheek!” factor and you’ll revel in the tender chunks of meat. A bit like pulled beef. In other words, PHWOAR).

Lamberts Balham seasonal menu, including steak, beef cheeks and greens

Vegetarians, look away now

A close up of the chargrilled rare breed beef

Beef cheek with January King (that’s the green stuff on the side)

Even some of the drinks get a seasonal nod. Our pre-dinner cocktail featured rhubarb and as you’d probably expect from a restaurant of this standard, food was matched or recommended with various wines on offer.

The ‘rhubarb collins’ cocktail

Custard tart, Lamberts style

You get all the smartness of a high-end restaurant at Lamberts but without the fine dining portion sizes (you know what we mean – baby sized meals served with a side of weird looking froth). Believe us, you won’t go hungry. We didn’t really need dessert, per se, but it would be rude not to indulge, and so we did – in their custard tart, a far cry from our school days, that’s for sure.

Lamberts, 2 Station Parade, Balham High Road, SW12 9AZ.

Review: Sunday lunch at Pedler, Peckham Rye

March 21, 2015March 8, 2015 / swishjunction / Leave a comment

Food for thought at Pedler, Peckham Rye

Down the road from the hustle and bustle of Peckham Rye’s high street lies Pedler, new to 2015 and a pretty addition to the area. Decor wise, think modern-meets-shabby chic: a turquoise wooden bar decked out with vintage crockery, exposed brick walls flanked with glass cabinets, and all the while music is pumping and the food and drinks are in full flow.

The bar at Pedler

We went for Sunday lunch. The menu is minimal and a little at odds with each other. The starters are quite fancy – think broccoli with a pomegranate yoghurt dressing, scallops etc – but the mains are pretty standard Sunday roast fare.

Broccoli with pomegranate yoghurt dressing

Scallops to start at Pedler

Alongside a couple of brunch offerings they had Dr Pepper glazed ham, beef with a sugar rub and an orange glazed chicken to share. However their menu is always changing so it’s worth keeping an eye on what they’ve got to offer each month.

Roast for two at Pedler

We opted for the beef and ham, and the meat was served in generous sharing bowls with roasties, veggies and enormous Yorkshire puds. Arguably more grub than you’d normally fit onto a typical plate serving. Impressive for our greedy appetites.

A close up of the generous cuts of meat

Their cocktail menu is their piece de resistance in terms of booze, with gin being their main spirit, but they have a good wine list for those otherwise inclined.

Fit to burst, we could only manage to share one dessert – the chocolate brownie sundae. We’ll let the picture do the talking for this one.

Chocolate brownie sundae. Nom.

Two starters, two mains, one dessert and three drinks came to £65 without service charge. It fixed our Sunday cravings, that’s for sure.

Pedler, 58 Peckham Rye, SE15 4JR

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