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London Restaurants: Vinoteca. Add/Read Comments
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The meet-up had been a spur of the moment ‘I’m in town – you free? How about a drink at Vinoteca?’ type of affair. Jeanne’s enthusiastic text of ‘always wanted to go there’ indicated a good choice of venue. So well done there Andrew.
After dragging my calloused feet around London yesterday – lunch in Regents Park, a stroll up Primrose Hill in the drizzle and a lovely time selecting chorizo and Spanish cheeses at Brindisa in Exmouth Market, (staff there are friendlier than those at their Borough Market outlet), an afternoon drink in an empty Ludgate Hill Leon and tourist watching around St. Paul’s – popped into Vinoteca: Busy, buzzing, noisy.
The wine list is extensive, the food menu though just a single page but very enticing. On the reverse the ‘wines by the glass’ list and, with each menu item having a suggested wine, difficult to select just one. Jeanne is a fan of Vognier so a bottle of Argentinean was ordered – I forget the producer sadly – a Southern French Viognier was the recommended wine for Jeanne’s choice of food – a hefty slice of terrine.
The Indian relish lying alongside had a great flavour and picked out some great nuances in the wine too; so a hit there I feel.
The picture of my salad is a bit blurred (sorry about that) but again of a substantial size - Buffalo Mozzarella with figs, green beans and pine-nuts. The dressing might have been just a little too generously poured and maybe just a smidgen overly oily but in all just marvellous. Crunchy beans, perfectly ripe figs, flavour and texture contrasts of the pine-nuts and the smooth mozzarella working just perfectly.
Pudding – well we had to really. No pictures but a superb baked cheesecake for me with a passion fruit sauce and steamed ginger sponge with ice-cream and a toffee sauce for Jeanne. Great texture and flavours for mine, light and fluffy but substantial and boasting the perfect level of ginger flavour for Jeanne’s.
Cost? Two courses each plus a bottle of wine and water – just £21 a head.
After dragging my calloused feet around London yesterday – lunch in Regents Park, a stroll up Primrose Hill in the drizzle and a lovely time selecting chorizo and Spanish cheeses at Brindisa in Exmouth Market, (staff there are friendlier than those at their Borough Market outlet), an afternoon drink in an empty Ludgate Hill Leon and tourist watching around St. Paul’s – popped into Vinoteca: Busy, buzzing, noisy.
The wine list is extensive, the food menu though just a single page but very enticing. On the reverse the ‘wines by the glass’ list and, with each menu item having a suggested wine, difficult to select just one. Jeanne is a fan of Vognier so a bottle of Argentinean was ordered – I forget the producer sadly – a Southern French Viognier was the recommended wine for Jeanne’s choice of food – a hefty slice of terrine.
The Indian relish lying alongside had a great flavour and picked out some great nuances in the wine too; so a hit there I feel.
The picture of my salad is a bit blurred (sorry about that) but again of a substantial size - Buffalo Mozzarella with figs, green beans and pine-nuts. The dressing might have been just a little too generously poured and maybe just a smidgen overly oily but in all just marvellous. Crunchy beans, perfectly ripe figs, flavour and texture contrasts of the pine-nuts and the smooth mozzarella working just perfectly.
Pudding – well we had to really. No pictures but a superb baked cheesecake for me with a passion fruit sauce and steamed ginger sponge with ice-cream and a toffee sauce for Jeanne. Great texture and flavours for mine, light and fluffy but substantial and boasting the perfect level of ginger flavour for Jeanne’s.
Cost? Two courses each plus a bottle of wine and water – just £21 a head.
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Comments
oh... i should have gone! sadly i was tied up otherwise! next time, then.
Scribbled down by: johanna on September 15, 2006 1:51 PM
Oooh, my photo of the terrine came out quite well, then, considering I had no idea what I was doing with your camera! ;-)
Let me know when you make it into town again - we can try Pont de la Tour next time!
Scribbled down by: Jeanne on September 19, 2006 4:53 PM