Foodie Review: Mango Tree Thai, Belgravia

Foodie Review: Mango Tree Thai, Belgravia

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Last year I visited Mango Tree Harrods for the first time and to this day it remains one of my all time favourite London restaurants. And so, when I was invited to join Fran at the Belgravia Thai branch, I was more than excited to give it a go and try out a new menu. Here's a look at our evening...

Located just a short walk from London Victoria station, fellow blogger babe, Fran, and I popped along after work for an evening of fine dining with some serious spice. Much like its original restaurant back in Bangkok, Mango Tree Belgravia* offers an extensive range of Thai cuisine and sharing plates - all served within a relaxed, modern venue. Having taken our seats and had a good look at the menu, it was time to sample the delights.

One of the things I'd say is a must when visiting Mango Tree is the sharing or smaller plates. With so many amazing dishes, it's great to try little pieces of everything; which is why I loved the Harrods branch so much. To start, myself and Fran opted for the signature Mango Tree Sea Food Platter, £16.95pp - an assorted plate of seafood appetisers including fresh king prawns in tom yum sauce, grilled scallops in garlic butter sauce, soft-shell crab tempura and prawn satay (pictured above).

For me, this was the ultimate seafood dish although I felt like I could have eaten the entire thing on my own. The prawns were fantastically meaty and fresh whilst the crab was soft and malty. Combined with the sauces and seasonings, these were a 10/10. The satay sauce also contains a subtle Thai vinegar which really brings the armour and flavourings to life. My favourite of the platter, however, had to be the scallops which were incredible although in short supply at just one each. I would have loved to have had a little bit more between us but overall, a fab starter and easily a must-have when visiting the restaurant. It was time for the main event...

For mains, I opted for the Weeping Tiger Neur Wagyu, £49.99 - grilled marinated wagyu beef steak (cooked rare on my request) served with Mango Tree signature spicy, sour sauce and side salad. This was outstanding. Being waygu, the cut was brilliant and the plate featured a whole host of flavours. The spicy/sour sauce was really interesting and worked beautifully with the meat. A great tingle of the senses. I'm so glad I got to try this. Fran's dish was Talay Pad Cha, £19.95; spicy wok-fried mixed seafood selection of king prawns, scallops, mussels and squid with fresh chilli, garlic, thai herbs, peppercorns and kachai root. I sampled a few spoonfuls of this and, whilst it was crazy spicy, it was absolutely delicious and so fresh. I couldn't help, however, at get some food envy from the next table who had curries - I'd love to return to give one of those a go.

Despite having a starter and a main, we felt pleasantly full and it seemed only right to finish up our amazing meal with something sweet. Of course, it had to be their famous Chocolate Sphere with Salted Caramel, £8.95 (pictured above); a hollow chocolate sphere with vanilla-pandan ice cream core, melted with warm salted caramel sauce. I LOVED this. The combination of bitterness from the chocolate, sweetness of the pomegranate with the fresh vanilla-pandan makes for a real amuse bouche and a palate cleanser. Outstanding. Despite being rather full at this point, I forced myself to finish and savour every bite.

Naturally, being located in the more swanky end of town, Mango Tree is certainly not cheap but it is easily one of the best places to dine in London. Our bill would have come to £190 for starters, mains, dessert and drinks so whilst you may not pop in weekly for a casual bite to eat, it most definitely makes for an awesome location for a special occasion or special date night. If you think about it though, you get what you pay for. One more thing I will say is that, unlike the Harrods branch, it does make for a very relaxed environment despite being an upmarket restaurant. Personally, I think that the only way the Belgravia one could be made even better is if they start selling my favourite dish from the Harrods branch - the unforgettable Fried Lobster Popcorn. Best thing I've ever eaten.

Well, that's it for another foodie review. Huge thanks to Fran and Mango Tree for a lovely pre-birthday meal. But tell me, have you been to Mango Tree yet? What's your favourite Thai place to visit? As always, I love reading your comments so please do leave me lots of lovely ones below.

Until next time fellow foodies,

*Disclaimer - This meal was provided to us free of charge in exchange for a review. As always, all opinions are my own and do not reflect those of the brand. 

Foodie Review: Giraffe World Kitchen, London Victoria

Foodie Review: Giraffe World Kitchen, London Victoria

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To celebrate the refurbishment of their branch in London Victoria, Giraffe World Kitchen very kindly invited me along to sample some of their delights and new menu. Here's a look at my latest foodie review...

Regular readers may remember that I first visited Giraffe World Kitchen* back in July of last year. Having had such a good experience at their Southbank branch, I was very much looking forward to trying out a new menu and a brand new location - just a stones throw from London Victoria Train Station. As per their usual restaurants, Giraffe offers a wide selection of dishes from around the globe; incorporating a blend of fresh hearty, comfort food within a vibrant and relaxed setting. With my good friend and blogger babe, Fran, at my side, we headed over to try out some of their exciting new plates and offer our honest review...

Myself and Fran have started a bit of a tradition lately in that, wherever we go out to eat, we always seem to order a plate of nachos to share. And that's exactly what we did. To start, we shared their famous Nachos Sharer Plate with Chorizo - created with black bean chilli, Monterey Jack cheese, guacamole, sour cream, jalapenos and chipotle. They also offer a selection of added extras such as chicken and chorizo which I'd strongly recommend. We also ordered the absolutely delicious Halloumi Skewers - served with brown rice and quinoa tabbouleh. I found that these were perfectly cooked - grilled slightly to give it a subtle chargrilled taste but not overdone to keep them soft and flavourful and not rubbery - because there's nothing worse then rubbery halloumi.

For our mains, Fran opted for her usual fish dish with Blackened Salmon - Salmon fillet marinated in world spices, served on a bed of brown rice and kidney beans with corn on the cob and a mango salad. I thought this was beautifully presented and was certainly the most colourful dish compared to my biege plate. Unlike Fran who is far more adventurous than I, I chose the Grilled Sirloin Steak - an 8oz Irish-reared beef steak, served to my choice (rare, obviously) with skin-on-fries and a dressed green leaf salad. You can also add bourbon peppercorn sauce for an added £1.50 (as pictured above). 

The steak itself was pretty much nearly perfect. Beautifully seasoned and cooked very well to my liking although it did have quite a large chunk of fat. I do think, however, that this was much nicer than the first steak I tried at their South Bank branch and, combined with the bourbon sauce, made for a wonderful choice of main. The chips were enjoyable although quite bland in taste and so these did require a lot of salt and vinegar; although I loved dipping them in the bourbon sauce. Definitely order a sauce with your steak.

Finally, it was time for dessert. As you can imagine, I was already pretty stuffed from this mountain of food but it seemed only polite to try out their new dessert menu, right? It was fantastic. For dessert, I selected the Banana Waffle Split (pictured above) - warm cinnamon banana served on a waffle with vanilla ice cream and a lot of chocolate toffee sauce. It was amazing! Unfortunately I couldn't finish it after such a gut bash but it was well worth the giant food baby. The ice cream melted in to what was a banana fritter and combined with the waffle also it made for a beautiful all-carb treat.

Overall, I think that my second visit to Giraffe was even more successful than the first. Unlike the Southbank branch which is slightly more family focused, I personally felt that the Victoria one seems to be more ideal for a evening out with the girls or a date night. It has the perfect balance of vibrancy whilst also having a relaxing atmosphere. I really liked the Moroccan and sixties style of decor and, although it is still suitable for families, the overall feel of the place made for a far better venue to grab some tapas and a cocktail. 

As usual, the service was prompt and super friendly. I could not fault any of the team who were not only fantastic with us, but seemed to be just as brilliant with the other tables too. A huge thanks to Giraffe for allowing us to try out the newly decorated Victoria branch and their menu, we had an excellent evening and I'm sure we'll be heading back soon - if only for that dessert. You can check out more information about the London Victoria branch and their full menu here.  

That's it for another foodie review. Have you been to Giraffe yet? What are some of your favourite world food restaurants? As always, I love reading your comments so please do leave me lots of lovely ones down below. 

Until next time fellow foodies, 

*Disclaimer - All food featured in this post was complimentary and provided courtesy of Giraffe World Kitchen. As usual, all opinions are my own and do not reflect that of the brand. 

Foodie Review: Bukowski Charcoal Grill, Soho

Foodie Review: Bukowski Charcoal Grill, Soho

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Earlier this month, my best friends came to London to visit myself and Jack for the weekend. Wanting to try somewhere new and that would satisfy all pallets, the five of us headed over to Bukowski Charcoal Grill in Soho to give it a go. Here's my review...

Having made a reservation at an interactive Japanese restaurant nearby which turned out to be a major let down - we wandered the surrounding area and purely by chance stumbled across Bukowski. Having had a quick glance at the menu from the street, we were surprised by the value and variety and thought we'd give it a go. 

Created by chef and designer Robin Freeman, Bukowski has recently opened four branches and is a modern American inspired bar and grill. Offering a selection burgers, ribs, wings and steaks, they offer a variety of hearty dishes; as well a selection of cocktails, spirits and Craft beers. Having sat down in our booth, we jumped right in...

Since I was eating with some serious foodies, starters seemed only fitting to get the most out of the menu. Ash kickstarted his meal with some XXX Hot XXX Chicken Wings (pictured above) - smoked chicken wings in barn burner sauce. Luckily for Ash, there were the hottest wings on the menu which means they were a no-go for me because they looked good enough to steal. According to Ash, however, these are amazing and made for the perfect starter before tucking in to yet more meat. Also for starters were the Tasso Pig Cheek with Pickled Peach Relish. This may not have sounded the most appetising but this was surprisingly light and full of flavour. 

For mains, Jack opted for the Full Rack of Baby Back Ribs served with spicy reds onions, pickles and an added side order of (not so) skinny fries. Again, I was really impressed with the value on this dish - and we thought the starter version looked big until this arrived. The ribs, besides being huge, were bursting of flavour and had the perfect blend of sweetness, combined with a deep smokey taste. The sauce itself was delicious and so I would most definitely recommend this as their signature dish.

Finally, I went for The Flat Iron Steak (cooked medium rare - but more on the rare side) served with tarragon and garlic butter. As a side, I chose the Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes which I'd say are the best roast potatoes I've had a restaurant. Fluffy on the inside and the perfect consistency of crunch on the outside. As well as this, the steak was fantastic - the cut was delicious, with no fat and cooked perfectly. I'd say that it was cooked fantastically although perhaps there could with some very slight extra seasoning. All in all, I'd give this steak a good 4 out of 5.

For all you veggies out there, you may struggle to find a selection at Bukowski's but there are dishes available - particularly with side dishes such as beans and the selection of toppings with fries and potatoes. The Mac 'n' Cheese dish is absolutely amazing whilst The Vegetarian burger offers a hearty main; made from kidney beans, roasted butternut squash, fresh herbs and spices served with tomato, lettuce, red onion chutney and mayo in a toasted bun.

I'll be honest - we loved this restaurant so much that we went back the following weekend with another, bigger group of friends. I'm still really impressed with the value of the food being that for less than £16, you can get yourself a fantastic steak, served with delicious potatoes and a drink. Something I thought was close to impossible in Soho. and despite our second visit being super busy, they were still very good with the service and a very friendly and efficient team.

If you'd like to visit Bukowski's, the cost of a starter, main, side and a couple of drinks are likely to cost you around £25 a head and you will not be disappointed. Each plate is very generous and absolutely delicious. I'd love to try some of the other branches but the Soho one gets a thumbs up from me. If you're looking for a fun place for date night or a relaxed place to take your friends, this could be a great shout. Wonderful atmosphere, great menu and excellent value - what more could you want?

So that's it for another foodie review - have you been to Bukowski's yet? Where your favourite value places in London? As always, I love reading your comments so please do leave me lots of lovely ones down below.

Until next time fellow foodies,