The Cookbook Cafe - Unlimited Champagne!

What do you do when a friend gets engaged? Crack open the champagne. What's the best way in which to do that? When the champagne is unlimited.

I kid you not. I was hunting around for a decent venue to celebrate my friends recent engagement and I came across an absolute corker on TimeOut. The Cookbook Cafe, which is part of the Intercontinental on Park Lane, were doing an offer of £44 per person for a 3-course meal and unlimited champagne. UNLIMITED. As most people probably would, I thought this was way too good to be true so I rang ahead before paying online... no issues from what I could tell apart from you had to be willing to have your table for a maximum of two hours, which was fine. I can drink a lot of champagne in two hours. 

We had a relatively early booking so that we could go on somewhere else once our two hours were up. Off we trotted to Park Lane with visions of Lambrini being secretly dispensed into champagne bottles. Nope! It was all genuine Mercier Champagne, kept on ice, in an endless supply. Once being seated in the pretty much empty restaurant (it was only 6.45pm) we chinked our first glass to celebrate the engagement and the fact I'd just been asked to be Maid of Honour (didn't even have to get her drunk! Bex, you are so going to regret this... I have strippers on speed dial already). Once I'd recovered from being blinded by the stupidly nice ring on her finger, we decided to browse the menu. Normally with set menus, I feel as if nothing is what I would choose to eat. However, this menu was different. They hadn't put the "cheap" options on the menu and the choices for each course all looked genuinely lovely. Obviously, I imagine this menu changes quite regularly but if this one is anything to go by, then I'd definitely be keen to see what else they have on offer.

Both of us went for the starter of the lobster croquettes with roasted pepper aioli. I'm not going to lie, I can't honestly remember eating these as we were so busy talking wedding stuff, but I do remember thinking they were nice! Completely useless information for you all there...

There was only one winner of main courses in my opinion. Roasted sea bass on fried Jerusalem artichokes and crab. I'm going to put it out there... this is possibly one of the best main courses I've had when eating out. It was SO GOOD. The sea bass was cooked perfectly with really tender meat but a crispy skin. The crab was quite subtle but gave the dish an extra element of flavour as well as a really nice level of saltiness. And it looked pretty on the plate (which is obviously the most important thing).

The other main of choice was the slow braised Blade steak with a Merlot jus. It came with a side dish of winter vegetables and roast potatoes which, to be honest, was a bit of a carb overload considering there was already mashed potato on the plate. The meat itself was incredibly tender due to the method of cooking so there were no complaints overall.

We decided to go for both a sweet and savoury dessert. First up, was this flourless chocolate cake with jaffa cake ice cream and a white chocolate cream. This isn't something I'd normally go for as I'm not a huge chocolate fan but it was so light and not ridiculously sickly like I was expecting it to be. The fact it's gluten-free is an added bonus for those with gluten allergies.

Finally, we opted for the traditional British cheese board which came with a chutney and an absolute mountain of crackers. We barely made a dent in them. A cheese board is a cheese board... not too much to say about this but it rounded off the meal nicely!

Overall, I would say our entire evening at The Cookbook Cafe was better than we could've hoped for. The service was incredible, the food was lovely and the staff were there topping up your champagne glass as soon as it was getting low. It really was a bottomless glass. To make things even better, we weren't asked to leave after 2 hours. We spent so long nattering and quaffing champagne (as you do) that we didn't end up leaving until 11.30pm. 

I would strongly recommend checking regularly for this offer, as it is a common feature for the venue. Everyone, including myself, thought we had missed the small print somewhere but it really is a great deal. I will certainly be going back.

Nic

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Burger & Lobster

Due to today’s general lifestyle, it’s fair to say that the majority of us are all “GO GO GO!”, rarely stopping to take a breather. So when it is time to sit back and relax, the location is paramount.  I can’t think of a better place to catch up with good friends than Burger & Lobster…so that’s exactly what I did!

The concept is pretty simple. They serve burgers and lobster (surprise surprise!) all for the bargain price of £20. The burgers can only be described as MASSIVE whilst the lobster option can be either in the form of a 2lb grilled/steamed lobster in the shell or, for those of you who don’t want to get your fingers messy (although in my opinion, that’s part of the fun) they serve a lobster roll. All topped off with a decent side salad, fries and the most amazing lemon and garlic/plain butter dipping sauce. What’s not to love?!

Simple, yet effective! 

The tricky part is actually getting in. Reservations are available for up to 8 people, although this is limited to a certain number of bookings per day. Basically, the majority of people end up turning up at the door with their fingers crossed. It’s not all bad though…. The restaurant bar has enough options to keep you entertained for a while and, as long as you’re willing to wait, you will certainly get a table.

The branch we dined at was the City location on Bread Street. I’ve tended to go here more because it’s convenient from work but I’d also worry that the wait time at some of the other locations, such as Soho, would be ridiculous. When I want lobster, I want it now! The interior is designed to give you the feel of being inside an old ship, with dark wood panelling, exposed cables, and old lobster traps hanging from the ceiling. In my opinion it’s a perfect date location. It’s fun, atmospheric, relaxed, but also a little bit special. I admit, I went there on girl-date and, as beautiful as she is, I wasn’t exactly looking at it from an intimate perspective but, ya know, the premise is there.

Now, here’s the best bit. THE FOOD! The offer of having the menu explained to you is there but, for me, it’s a quick “2lb grilled lobster with loads of garlic butter please”….no questions asked, thank you very much. Don’t get me wrong, the burger looks good too but let’s be honest, you can get a good burger anywhere. Accompanied by a glass of wine or a mojito, the lobster wins for me hands down. You even get to fashion a very attractive bib…who would say no to that?!

If you have a larger appetite, you'll need to dig deeper into your pockets

For me, the meal is perfect but if I had to be super critical, I would say it is not the most ideal option if a) you’re ridiculously hungry and want to eat quickly and b) you have a large appetite. The lobster is pretty fiddly. You get all the tools you need but it is time-consuming to say the least. The fries are a necessity as well as, personally, the standard size lobster and salad isn’t the most filling meal. If you’ve got eyes bigger than your stomach (like me), you can browse the chalk board for the daily catch of different sizes and prices. However, as much as I love lobster, I am not willing to pay £162 for it!

For the first time, we ordered a dessert. I’m not usually a dessert person but was intrigued to see what they had to offer. Turns out - not much. The choice was either an Eton mess or a salted caramel cheesecake, both served lovingly in a cardboard cup and a teaspoon. Tasty, yes, but not something I’d feel the need to have again. Having said this, Burger & Lobster doesn’t try to pride themselves on their desserts. For anyone going there specifically for the dessert then, it’s safe to say, the concept has been lost on you!

Sickly sweet

Overall, my love affair with Burger & Lobster continues to grow. It’s quirky, a bit different, inexpensive and, most importantly, DELICIOUS! It’s a thumbs up from me.

Nic
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