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The adventures of The Little Welsh eating her way around the culinary delights of The Big World. Check out my blog at The Little Welsh Eats The Big World
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Gregg Wallace, green-grocer and MasterChef presenter, has taken on his latest venture, Wallace & Co Cafe. It doesn't get tougher than this. On Thursday 14th January 2010, Gregg Wallace and Secrett's Direct graced us with Wallace & Co Cafe. Situated in the heart of Putney's chic high street, Wallace & Co is an inviting and bubbly cafe that really does draw you in from the pavement. Of course, being a regular at foodie exhibitions and a frequent twitterer, I'd heard about the rumours of such a project many months ago and was just waiting for the opening date to be announced! I begged the man to drive us down to the cafe that weekend so I could see what Wallace & Co had been working on.
Ideally located on Upper Richmond Road, Wallace & Co is easily reached by tube, bus rail and car - well done Gregg! First impressions from the outside were excellent. My decisions are always based on first impressions and if I don't like what I see within the first 3 minutes of being somewhere then the rest of the night is basically going to be hard work! However, I liked what I saw, a lot. The cafe is set back slightly from the pavement allowing it to have a lovely seating area which is going to be fantastic and lively in summer.
The warmth (both temperature and atmosphere) was the first thing I immediately liked. It was raining and cold outside and the comfy look about Wallace & Co was very warming. I smiled and was immediately greeted by another smile of a waitress who led us into the shop and allowed us to choose our own table - another brownie point, I like being able to choose where I want to sit, seating is EVERYTHING! So I chose a central table where I could get a good view of the rest of cafe and any possible Gregg-sightings (of course).
Wallace & Co is really the epitome of classic British comfort dining. A lot of thought has gone into putting this cafe together especially on the interior. I loved the casual pots of marmite, bottles of ketchup and vinegar neatly placed on the shelves. The quirky cast iron racks dotted around a giant wall clock were lovely and I especially liked the painted walled crockery. Everything had been carefully considered and it really shows. I really appreciate a place that has really been well planned - this is one of those places. Even the loos were a delight!
The cafe is split into three sections. The front section with the main entrance and a long fridge containing quiches, cakes, tarts and pies; the centre table of cookies, muffins, breads and croissants and the symbolic grocery display, a little reminder of what the man from masterchef does best. High tables and stools and curling-up sofas are dotted around this section and soft lighting makes it the perfect environment for relaxing.
The second section is the mid-section where the best views are to be had. From this central seating area you can watch the visitors come and go, the waiters and waitresses bustling about and of course the mouth-watering plates of food wafting passed. And finally the third section, a raised seating area with more tables and chairs. This area is fantastic for watching over the whole restaurant and nosing out of the windows of course!
Now down to the food!! We'd decided to arrive at afternoon tea time for some cake. The cake selection was small but perfectly formed! It's good not to have too much choice because you just get kafuffled but it's important that each available choice must be a good'un! From the fridge we had a choice of a fabulous looking carrot cake, a lemon drizzle cake, a scrumptious treacle tart and a rich chocolate tart. The man ordered treacle tart and I ordered a slice of lemon drizzle cake. While we waited a jug of water was brought to the table - I liked this, it's the little touches that really make a place and this was one of those touches. Its nice to have water while you're waiting. I love this especially when I'm out and wine is being ordered because usually by the time the drinks arrive I'm dying of thirst and just down the first glass of liquid I see - classy. Not to worry though, we were only ordering tea.
The tea arrived in nice clean mugs, again another little touch that I liked - no saucers. I really can't be bothered with saucers, it's just extra washing up and I never use them. I think it was just another little touch that really helps to sum up this comfy cafe, its unpretencious and cosy. Then the cake arrived. Very reasonable sized slices of cake, the man even got a dollop of clotted cream on his slice of treacle tart! I tucked into my generous slice of lemon drizzle cake....YUM! the buttery and moist sponge was zinging with lemony flavours and was delicious. The treacle tart was to die for, it was absolutely fantastic! Sweet creamy filling in a crunchy pastry case. What more would you expect from a man whose twitter name is puddingface!
Perusing the menu while sipping on my brew, the cafe offers a wide variety of meal choices from breakfast right through to dinner. The breakfasts look particularly appetising and included choices like a Full English (£7.50), Kippers with toast (£5.50)and choices such as fruit, granola and yogurt (£3.50) for the little ones. Lunches varied from salads of Potato salad with capers and red onions (£4.00), Chicory, pear and blue cheese (£4.50) to name a few. The selection of pies looked perfect for a winter treat and included a Leek and cauliflower bake (£7.00) and a Lancashire hot pot (£9.50). The puddings from what I've already mentioned were fantastic and were priced at around £3-5.00 for generous and scrumptious portions. The Dinner choices are good, hearty meals including Rib-eye steak and chips (£15.00) and Monkfish skewers with a salsa verde and salad potatoes (£14.00).
Gregg and his team also put on a traditional Sunday roast of chicken, pork belly or beef. The menu, like the cafe, is incredibly kid-friendly and offers healthy options and portions are readily available at very reasonable prices. And to put your mind even more at ease, head chef is none other than Tim Payne of three michelin-starred La Tante Claire (Pierre Koffman) and Paradise By Way of Kensal Green. As you'd expect from a man such as Gregg, his food is the best seasonal produce available through Secrett's Direct of Surrey. The variety of food is perfectly complimented by the large list of wines, apperitifs and soft drinks on offer which again, at reasonable prices, won't bump up your overall food bill.
I really enjoyed my visit to Wallace & Co and I would love to go back for a proper meal and hopefully catch the good man himself! This cafe is definately a refreshing new break from all the carbon copycats of Costanerobucks that are dominating London's high streets at the moment. It's worth a visit, or two, or three and I can guarantee I'll be going back.
So at the moment I'm just in a daze over the fact that I'm actually here and I might see Michel but I'm also blown away by the service. Basically the service is extraordinary. The waiters and waitresses are very welcoming, approachable and will do whatever they can to make their guests happy. Everything on the menu was explained to us in great detail and I was even given the joy of approving the wine! Their services also include an escort to the loo! Don't get me started on the loos! They're immaculately clean and include the deliciously scented molton brown soaps and even flannels with the Gav's signature - which I may or may not have stuffed into my bag...(Mum - before you say anything, you know you would have done the same!)
So as I'm not a millionaire we opted for the "Business Lunch Menu" which is 48 pounds per head and includes a 3 course meal, half a bottle of wine per person, bottled water, bread and petits-fours (the imbetweeny bits). This, I thought, was a steal! Eating at a world-renowned 2 michelin star restaurant, with the possibility of seeing the god of cookery himself - bargain!
Before making our choices from the menu the first of the petits-fours arrived, 4 little savoury pastries. 2 were filled with a heavenly rich goats cheese and 2 had some sort of bitter sweet shreadded cabbage which I can only compare to a sauer krout flavour. Our chosen red wine arrived and the whole thing went down a treat as we placed our orders. While waiting for our starters, the second deliciously miniature petit-fours arrived. A small square of grilled eel carefully positioned on top of a sweet tomato salsa, garnished with watercress and a strange but moorish criss-crossed crisp! It was so yummy that I instantly wanted more!
From the menu we both chose the starter of langoustine broth, which came in a bowl slightly larger than that of a cappuccino cup and was a shade of off-white. Chunks of succulent lobster and silky sweet scallops bobbed in the milky broth which was delicious but rich and filling. My company found the texture to be too milky, however the scallops were divinely sweet. This was accompanied by freshly baked bread from a basket carried around by one of the waiters who visited our table several times, each time I had to resist the urge to fill up on the doughy goodness. (Having made that mistake in Helen Darroze's restaurant, I had learned my bread lesson!)
For the main course I had chosen roast guinea fowl with a jus. I had never tried guinea fowl but had heard people say "it tastes like chicken" so I decided to put that to the test. It does indeed share similar qualities with chicken, however the meat was white and succulently tender and covered in a golden crisp skin. The flavour of the meat is more earthy and smokey than it's plain chickeny cousin. Definately not like any chicken I'd ever eaten. The joints were positioned on a neat bed of creamy mashed potato with purple sprouting broccoli and an intensely meaty jus drizzled around the plate. Fantastic. I gobbled it all up and had to stop when I realised I had started lifting the plate up to my mouth to be licked clean. Classy. My company had chosen braised beef cheek which was so perfectly cooked it melted in the mouth. This was finished with another scoop of creamy smooth mash, shallots and carrots all soaking up the flavours of a beefy jus.
Yet more bread was brought around and I was quite proud of myself for resisting the temptations - I knew I would suffer and I was determined to eat every single morsel of food that I was paying for! I was quite enjoying myself, my wine and water glasses were refilled without me even noticing (dangerous!), the food was incredible, the loos were great, everything was going swimmingly and I was feeling quite calm. Then it happened. The thing that I had hoped would happen happened. Michel Roux Jr whizzed across the restaurant floor in his starched white chef's top. That was it - I went to pieces. "There he is, oh my god, there he is". This happened several more times and with each whiz through to the kitchen I realised my heart was beating faster. I began to point, open mouthed, eyes now transfixed on the kitchen entrances that he was whizzing between.
The dessert menu was brought and we perused. I had seen the humungous cheese table wheeled in for a couple sitting a few tables down. Despite my on-going steamy love affair with cheese (ooh the picos blue wrapped in vine leaves from spain!) I just could not possibly stomach the salty fromage goodness from the array available. I'm absolutely kicking myself now because I saw some fabulous and stinky vintage blues that I would have loved to have tasted but remembering how full I'd become by that point I deemed the comsumption of the heavy, fatty, thick, unforgettable, dreamy cheese unwise. I chose a prune souffle instead. I have also never had souffle - savoury nor sweet. This was the biggest dessert I have ever seen (not including the Missippi Mud Pie, enough for a family of 40, that my parents and I "devoured" in Florida's Jungle Jim's). It was like a miniture cloud resting on my plate garnished with soft sweet prunes and a glorious creme anglaise. Every mouthful felt like I was nibbling on a cloudy sky, the souffle was light, airy, sweet and fluffy and was perfectly accompanied by the fruit. My company had chosen a selection of sorbets - a wise choice perhaps considering we still had a final petits-fours to go! Alas I simply couldn't finish my souffle! I left about 4 large mouthfuls (out of the 100 it took to coming close to finishing it - it was HUGE!). I did however manage to lap up all of the creme anglaise and most of the prunes. Done. So I thought.
The final petit-fours arrived, a slim glass plate with nutty nibbles neatly arranged along it. Curled sesame crisps, small glazed fruits and little puffs of nougat completed the meal. I have to admit if I'd have eaten any more I would have exploded and poor Michel would have had to clean it all up. Not cool.
Now that the food bit is done I have to tell you about the piece-de-resistance of the meal! Just before our desserts were served Michel Roux Jr began doing his infamous rounds of the dinners - I had read about these but hadn't got my hopes up just in case they were just an urban myth. They weren't. I couldn't breathe, my heart was racing, he was getting closer and closer to our table, what would I say? Should I courtesy? Would I throw up from fear/excitement/over-eating? ... He arrived at our table. Oh emmmmm geeeeeee! "Hello, how was your meal this afternoon?". I managed to stutter my name and stuck my hand out for a handshake. Ha! The blondes on the table next to us, who had been equally as excited as me at the prospect of seeing Michel, hadn't thought of offering a handshake! Ha! Now I had touched the hand of a kitchen god. One - I was never going to wash that hand. Two - I could die happy. After my constant wine refills I was feeling quite confident so I bravely asked for a photo - Ha! The blondes didn't think of that either! HA!!! Michel was more than happy to oblige and immediately sat next to me and put his arm around me for a photo - OH EMMM GEEEE! I had started a trend - the blondes then demanded a photo and so did the previous table, Michel even shouted back down to our table with a cheeky grin "Look what you've started!" Ahhh I'll always be the girl who started the annoying photo trend. And then in an instant he was gone, darting around the other tables before disappearing behind the screens. I asked for a signed copy of Michel's 'A Life in the Kitchens: Recipes and Reminiscences from a Master Chef'. The words inscribed were "Happy Kitchens, Michel Roux Jr". *happy sigh*
As I mentioned before, I'd had several "chance" meetings with the lovely Monica and she had said to me that I could see the kitchens if I mentioned her name - and yes I'm not above name dropping. So once the bill was settled I asked the head waiter if we could possibly see where the magic happened. The waiter was very happy to lead us behind the screens and through the sliding doors into the steamy bustling kitchen. Michel had left by this point (damit!) nevertheless we were given a 20 minute tour of the kitchen with descriptions and details of each area. We were also informed that Roux opens up his kitchen to the public during weekday prep for observation free of charge - we were even told to bring a notepad and pen for note taking if we decided to go! Due to the curious stares coming from Roux's chefs we sensed they weren't used to "observers" but they were smiley and waved.
All in all it was quite a day. The food, the service and the experience were beyond all expectations and I simply can't wait to go back to sample next season's business lunch menu!
A business lunch at Michel Roux Jr's 'Le Gavroche' will set you back £48 per person which includes a 3 course meal, 1/2 bottle of wine and water each, petit fours and bread. I managed to glance at the regular menu and saw starters ranging between £20-60 and mains starting at £30. To make your reservations, aim for a minimum of 2-3 weeks notice. Signed copies of Michel's 'A Life in the Kitchens: Recipes and Reminiscences from a Master Chef' are availablem for £25 from Le Gavroche (ISBN 978-0-297-84482-2).
Happy Kitchens!
I was fortunate enough to be taken to Gaucho for a surprise pre-Christmas treat by the man. I'd heard about Gaucho and I knew it was a Argentinian steakhouse but I didn't know it was an amazing steakhouse. This place is a gold mine of culinary desire! I love everything about it - the food, the service, the decor, the atmosphere! I could not find fault - not one little bit!
Argentinians have us Brits and other members of the EU to thank for their world renowned beef as afterall it was us who took the cattle to the country in the first place. Little did European explorers know that when they turned their noses up at the humble Argentinian cuisine of potatoes and llama meat and decided to import their own cows, chicken and veggies that they in fact would be building a legacy for Argentina. The Argentinians took that cattle and they ran with it, not in a literal sense, in the sense that they made it into what it is today, some of the finest quality meat ever to be tasted on the planet. The country is a prime spot for producing the quality meat especially considering the fertile plains of the pampas and the subtropical climate across the country.
I've had good argentinian steak at Buen Ayre but I just knew this was going to be really good at Gaucho. Gaucho, by the way, was the name given to the criollo cowboys of Argentina but today it refers to the residents of certain regions of Argentina, Uruguay, Southern Chile and Brazil. Anyhoo, we rocked up to Gaucho and entered a very funky dimly lit bar. We were lead through the bar and down the stairs to the restaurant. Our coats were checked and we taken to our table by a very important looking man dressed all in black pressing one finger to his ear-piece...it may sound pretentious of Gaucho but I love that sort of stuff! Also, as I was to witness, the finger pressing to the ear-piece would be very necessary as the restaurant definately gets very busy and with the sort of clientele that frequent it there needs to be strict military order, of which can only be achieved with finger pressing to an ear-piece!
Now about the restaurant. I could see a long and fiery grill at the back of the restaurant with several chefs bustling around it, this would be for the asado. The decor continued with the funky theme from the bar, the music was modern and hispanic, the chairs were covered with cowhide, the chandeliers were glistening. I liked it.
Time for some wine. Did you know that Argentina is the fifth largest producer of wine yet only exports some 25% of its output? We ordered a nice bottle of Malbec from the extensive list and perused the modern and interestingly folding menu. An interesting and complimentary nibble basket arrived complete with sliced bread and cheesey bread puffs (which were DEE-lish!) and a rather moorish chilli oil for dipping!
While choosing our starters and mains (don't fret, I would not be leaving without dessert but that was to be ordered later!) our very friendly and sweet waitress, Monika, brought us a platter to explain the various cuts of meat. She knew what she was talking about and explained where each piece of meat came from and easily responded to my probing foodie questions - which were really a ploy to see if she was just reading from a script, which she wasn't. I love it when the people who work at the restaurant are passionate about the food served, Monika had passion, I liked Monika.
For starters the man ordered from the Ceviche menu, Ecuadorian tiger prawns in a roasted tomato and lime sauce. Ceviche is fresh, as in raw, seafood cured with citrus juices. This dish is typical of Peruvian cuisine but has been adopted by many other Latin American countries. The citric acids from the fruits causes the proteins in the seafood to become "denatured" which basically pickles or "cooks" the fish without any heat. I was so intrigued by this dish as I'd never had ceviche before, I couldn't wait for it to arrive! It arrived and as we always do, we shared :) The ceviche was divine! Its such a clever cooking process that allows you to really taste the seafood and I loved being able to feel all the textures of the tiger prawns too. Delicious!
Ceviche
For my starters I ordered 6 fresh rock oysters which came with a shallot and red wine vinegar and a wedge of lemon. I've only recently developed a taste for oysters and I still couldn't tell you if two different types tasted differently but I'm working on it!
Oysters...drool...
Once finished the dishes were cleared away. I don't think my mouth has watered this much in anticipation EVER! I was literally sitting on the edge of my cowhide seat in excitement of the arrival of my slab of beef. We'd both ordered 225g fillet steaks, or 'Bife de Lomo'. I'd ordered rare, as always, the man ordered a more civilised medium-rare. What can I say, I'm a nethanderal at heart. Then the mains arrived. Oh Em Gee. The meat was perfectly cooked. I was speechless. The meat really did melt in my mouth life butter. The fillet is the most tender cut of beef and is the most expensive, its from a part of the cow that receives very little exercise hence uber-tenderness. The form of cooking used in Gaucho was an asado, a technique for cooking cuts of meat on a big old barbeque, originating in Argentina and Uruguay. The meat for an asado is not marinated, the only preparation being the application of salt before and/or during the cooking period. Just the way I like it. I never have sauces with meat as, as I've definately mentioned before, I love being able to actually taste the meat itself. The steak was beautiful. I remember looking over at the man in disbelief at the party in my mouth. 225g was definately enough although if heaven was made out of that steak there's no doubt I'd gobble up the lot...
*DROOL*
If fillet doesn't take your fancy then there's the obvious other options of rump, sirloin and ribeye. You can even get a Gaucho Sampler with all four cuts of prime Argentine beef amounting to a whopping 1200g of meat! That's nearly one sixth of the average beef consumption per year per capita in Argentina! Gaucho also do lamb chops and an award winning burger and if you're really feeling difficult you can try their stewed seabass, spatchcocked chicken or even a risotto! If however, like a sane person would, you choose to stick with steak (since you're in a steakhouse!!) you can also choose from 4 sauces to accompany your beef. These include the classic bernaise, peppercorn, mustard or mushroom. Mine as mentioned was without sauce but the man ordered peppercorn and proceeded to pour it all over his steak. There's also a selection of sides to choose from, although I would have been perfectly content with just the beef, seriously. These include chorizo potato cakes, spinach, grilled portobello mushrooms and asparagus. We ordered fries and a strange pea and bacon concoction which oddly enough worked...
You'd think now I would be full, especially after having a three course lunch earlier on in the day with my work but oh no, no sir-ee, not this Little Welsh. This Little Welsh likes the eat and can pack it in. That I did. 'Can I see the dessert menu please?' Monika returned with the dessert menus, equally as funky and modern as the mains menu, and also a cheese platter. She sweetly said 'I thought you'd like to take a photo of this too'. Bless. She carefully explained each slab of well-sourced cheese before allowing us to mull over the choices on the menus. The aroma from the cheese was heavenly but was I wrong in thinking that I'd heard Monika mention something about a chocolate cake earlier? On the dessert menu there's everything you could possible imagine to satisfy that nagging old sweet tooth from pancakes with icecream to vanilla flan, from cheesecake to coconut panacotta. Naturally I chose the chocolate cake with orange, cadamon and coffee sauce. Now being in a steakhouse you don't really expect too much from the desserts however I was pleasantly surprised! The chocolate cake was firstly a good size and secondly it consisted of very complimentary flavours. The rich and gooey chocolate slab was lightly spiced with cardamon and the coffee cream sauce and fresh orange segments gave it a wonderfully light and fresh lift. The man chose a trio of Argentine ice creams including a bitter chocolate, a very natural tasting vanilla and a deliciously sweet dulce de leche. drool.
Cheese board
Chocolate cake with orange, cardamom and coffee sauce
Trio of icecream!
Good god was I full. I had actually consumed a hellova lot of food that day. I was so full but equally so happy. I don't think I stopped smiling during the entire evening - which is quite hard when your slurping oysters! What a night! We paid and made our exit. I noticed a rather swish looking lift by the cloak room desk and asked if we could take the lift instead of the stairs, I know it's only a lift but it really was a nice way to end the evening. The glass cylinder rose slowly into the sparkly bar above and we were greeted and lead to the doors which were opened in perfect synchronisation. The whole evening was perfect. The service was flawless, the food was divine, my belly was huge.
Get yourself down to Gaucho, there are 13 branches including one at the 02. You've not had steak til you've had Gaucho's.
