Knightsbridge, London UK

If you’re looking for a swanky Knightsbridge restaurant with limitless sushi and sparkling wine brunch, then I have the place for you.

Say hello to Geode’s Limitless Sushi and Sparkling Brunch! 

As soon as you step into Geode, you are transported into an impressionist version of a gem-filled cave. The cave features velvety tones, polished concrete floors, marble and brass bar seating in jewel-studded jewels, and moody lighting. 

The wall is adorned with authentic-looking geodes cut to perfection, adding an otherworldly touch to the ambience.   This could have been some horrible theme park feel, but this is so effortless and chic.

The walls in the main dining areas are exposed brick and decaying plaster, once again playing with that effortlessly chic vibe. The main dining area is called the conservatory and is  bathed in natural light, thanks to the conservatory glass ceiling.  There is a cooking station with a fire pit and a robata grill for a little dinner and a few drink reflected in ths. 

The drinks selection is a tribute to the excellence of English sparkling wine, particularly those from Hundred Hills, a premier producer in the UK. Hundred Hills set itself apart by meticulously selecting the finest grapes from its vineyards and maintaining strict quality control at every stage, from vine planting to cork popping.

The Hundred Hills 2018 Preamble Rosé, a testament to their unwavering standards, offers a vibrant blend of ripe summer strawberries and raspberries from the abundant 2018 vintage, making it an excellent choice to accompany sushi.

The food juxtaposes Japanese and Mediterranean cuisines. We came for their newly launched Limitless Sushi and Bubbles Lunch in partnership with Hundred Hills Rosé. 

For just £100 per person, guests can enjoy a starter each, limitless sushi, a sharing dish each, sides and a dessert – all perfectly paired with a classic English sparkling 2018 Hundred Hills Preamble Rosé. 

For starters, we began with the Sashimi 3-Way served with wasabi and gari. ~the fish was super fresh and expertly cut. 

Then on to the Sea Bass Yuzu and Truffle.  Thin slices of Sea bass are dressed in a soy-yuzu dressing
under a mound of freshly shaved black seasonal truffles.  This dish tasted like nouveaux riche, and I am here for it! 

Hamachi Carpaccio might have been my favourite.   Thinly sliced hamachi seasoned with jalapeño dressing and finished with slivers of jalapenos. The spice levels were perfect whilst letting the fattiness of the hamachi shine  

From the limitless sushi selection, we selected the Salmon avocado Maki & California Maki. Both were perfectly constructed and tasted excellent.

For the sharing mains, we selected the Asian Baby Chicken Yuzu-Kosho. It’s a spatchcock chicken marinated with yuzu zest and garlic that’s souvide before finishing over binchotan charcoal. It was tender and bursting with yuzu notes. 

I’m a sucker for sweetcorn, and this Grilled Sweet Corn with  Brown butter soy sauce and shichimi mayo delivered.   Kind of felt like a Japanese version of Elote. 

We also added the Jumbo Tiger Prawn (a £30 supplement), a gigantic charcoal-grilled jumbo prawn served with turmeric and lime salsa. 

My favourite sharing main was the Salmon Teriyaki.  Wood-fired salmon with an almost lacquer-like teriyaki glaze was a dream! The salmon was so moist, and the flesh caramelised with the sauce. 

To finish the meal, we had the Yuzu Japanese Cheesecake and the Dessert of the day, a Matcha Crepe Cake. 
The Yuzu cheesecake was so fluffy, not overly sweet and was zesty with yuzu.  Loved it! 

The Crepe Cake had layers of earthly matcha crepes filled with cream and strawberries.  Life and bright and sorta healthy as it was matcha, right? 

Both were the perfect end to the meal 

To help create a luxuriously vibrant atmosphere, guests will be treated to live entertainment each weekend, featuring a roster of DJs and live artists.  We had a DJ playing atmospheric house music that was just the level up uplifting and cool for brunch like this. 

The £100pp (or £70pp without drinks).  There was a supplemental charge of £20 for the baby chicken and £30 for the prawn. Both were worth it!  

Would I come back? Much like its name, Geode is a real hidden gem for this Brunch. 

The food was delicious and excellent value for quality and quantity. It would have been even better value if we were a larger party, and you could take advantage of the limitless Sushi. 

Reservations 

51.49816022451114,-0.16464945397143468

Geode

Chelesa, London UK

Say Hola to Ixchel, one of (if not THEE) the prettiest Mexican Restaurants in London. Months before Ixchel opened, I was seduced by its rather clever and swoon-worthy digital marketing campaign. 

Named after the Mayan Goddess of the moon, Ixchel is a 170-cover modern Mexican restaurant and tequila bar on the fabulously fashionable Kings Road in Chelsea.  I had planned to come soon after it opened, but I resisted because I like to think that a restaurant needs time to find its feet.  Plus, I’m too low-effort to be the first through the door. 

So, almost six months after opening,  I will finally find out if one of the prettiest Mexican restaurants in London has food that’s just as swoon-worthy as the decor. 

This is one stunning Mexican Restaurant in London.  The magnificent mural by Mexican artist Rafael Uriegas is the first thing that captivates your attention when you enter Ixhel. His bold graphic style blends ancient mythology with contemporary Mexican art.  This place is pure escapism from the dreary British weather, with its luscious foliage and succulents in glazed platers—terracotta and stone tables with pale wood chairs upholstered in creamy tones and natural materials. The space is bright and light, with floor-to-ceiling windows and skylights.  

At the back of the ground floor dining room is the Moon Bar, with the moon’s phases glowing delicately over it.  I loved the chunky sculptural bar stools and the snake motif that winds itself around the bar’s base.   Everywhere I turned, there was a little ‘aha’ moment seeing hand-woven artworks, contemporary sculpture and lighting fixtures that have been made by Mexican artists and artisans.

You descend into a totally different vibe when you venture down the beautifully tiled stairs. We’re talking darker, broodier, and totally sexy. There is a space that can be converted to a private dining room and loads of little nooks to get lost in while sipping a margarita or two with friends. 

The venue was designed by the talented team at Behind the Door Designs (who are behind the iconic designs of the award-winning Little Door Bars) 

The menu was created by Mexican-born Head Chef Ximena Gayosso Gonzalez. Ximena comes to Ixchel from Madera at Treehouse London, Brat in Shoreditch & Ella Canta in Mayfair.  It’s a really impressive CV. 

The lunch menu is short and sweet, which I like. It consists of para pics (small plates), Del Comal (Tacos and Quesadillas), a few salads for the healthy folk, and a few sides to round out your meal. 

I started the meal the way any Mexican meal should start: with guacamole and totopos. It was beautifully presented and well-seasoned, and I loved the texture. The totopos were aesthetically stacked, alternating between yellow corn tortillas and blue masa tortillas.  

The crab tostadas made me gasp with joy when they came to the table.   The crips tortillas were covered edge to edge in crab meat that was dressed in macha sauce. It was so flavourful, without being so spicy to overpower the sweet crab. 

I’m a sucker for any crudo on the menu, so ordering the Yellowfin tuna was a bit of a no-brainer.  The toreada sauce had an excellent level of heat that was tempered with the thin slivers of granny smith apple and avocado.  I thought it was a very generous portion for £12. 

Then, on to the tacos. All can be on corn tortillas, flour tortillas, or lettuce cups (not today, Satan). All come in pairs, except for the fish tacos that fly solo. 

I loved the fish taco: a little nugget of fish in a crispy batter with a zingy pickled carrot on a bed of scotch bonnet crema. I was expecting more heat but was relieved it did not meet that expectation. It was generously sized for a taco; was it £9 sized? Probably not, but I loved it nonetheless. 

The grilled taco was stuffed with chunks of well-seasoned steak under a dollop of smooth avocado cream. A squeeze of lime brought it to life. I would have loved it more if I had a little salsa to dribble on. If I’m eating more than one taco, the ability to change it up with a drop or two of salsa is crucial for me. I only realised when I was finished with the meal, that you can order salsas on the side. 

The short rib taco was mounded high with ultra-tender short rib doused in a smoky adobo and topped with a bright pineapple salsa. This was easily my favourite taco and worth the £7 (£14 for two).

The charred chicken thigh taco was probably the low point of the tacos; It was nice but not on the level with the other tacos . It tasted like an unloved chicken fajita from my childhood; it was unstimulating in texture and just there in my mouth—nothing zingy from the pickled onions. 

I was not a fan of the Rajas con crema, mainly because I (stupidly) assumed it would be more like Elote. It was well seasoned, and had I not thought I was getting an elite-style corn, I would have probably loved it. My dining companion finished every last spoonful, so it was my failure than the dish itself. 

The one dish that I knew I would order before setting foot in Ixchel was the Bunelo with roasted corn ice cream. Sadly, they had run out of service. So I finished the meal with Ixchel’s signature Tres Leche cake topped with fresh strawberry compote, cinnamon custard creme, and a shard of meringue that made it look like Godzilla.  

I liked it, but my dining companion’s Mango creme brulee with mango salsa and sorbet stole the show.  It was one joyous bite of exploding mango flavour after another

Lunch for two (with one non-alcoholic drink each) was about £170.  As I mentioned before, I thought the tacos were generous for the price, and we overordered. As much as we loved the desserts, it was a chore to finish them.  A more moderate budget of £100 would get you a feast. I think this is on par with the rest of higher end Mexican Restaurants in London,

Would I come back? Definitely, if I was in the area and fancied a vibrant lunch and to try THAT Buñuelo coated in spiced sugar and served with roasted corn ice cream.  

Ixchel London

33H King’s Rd,
London SW3 4LX

Reservations 
Instagram 

51.49045213297905,-0.16178113162742858

Ixchel

Shoreditch, London, UK

Say goodbye to your basic breakfast baps and English McMuffins (sorry, Ronald) and say hello to your new favourite breakfast spot, Bangers London Breakfast Restaurant, which is upping the breakfast game in London.

Bangers is the home of smashed sausage®, they are serving up some Bangers classics and some new additions they’ve been working tirelessly on. All are made with the absolute best produce.

The show’s stars are their breakfast sandwiches served in a brioche bun or English muffin. 

I started with The Big Smoke, made with signature free-range pork smashed sausage, fried Clarence Court egg, smoked cheddar, pickled chillies, and smoked chilli jam. I had it in a buttery brioche bun made by Spence Bakery 🥵

I also had their homage to the NYC B.E.C. (Bacon, Egg, and cheese), with free-range maple bacon, Clarence Court egg, cheese, and a choice of house-made sauce (I picked the apple ketchup) nestled in a toasted Spence English Muffin.

Moreover, all of their sauces are homemade in small batches from scratch. Think fresh ketchups, house brown sauce and chilli jams.

But Bangers isn’t just about sandwiches. The sides are next level. Think crispy hash browns with homemade sausages, homemade baked beans, and speciality pots like Banger & Beans or buttery scrambled Egg Pots. New additions include ultimate breakfast smoothies, seasonal yoghurt pots, and vegan-friendly overnight oats.

Committed to sustainability, Bangers works closely with select suppliers to ensure their supply chain’s highest quality produce and full traceability. Partnering with London’s leading free-range & organic butchers, Lidgates, using freshly baked bread from Spence Bakery and sourcing fresh eggs from Clarence Court, Bangers guarantees breakfast heaven in every bite.

Bangers store will also be a breakfast deli, offering homemade products and essentials to take home and enjoy, from the infamous Bangers beans to homemade sauces and award-winning free-range maple bacon. 

Bangers London
Address
5 Leonard Circus, EC2A 4DQ
Opening Times:\
Mon – Sun: 7:30am – 2:30pm

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