FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
SOHO GOES AQUA
Here’s ambition. Having opened a slew of stylish, modern restaurants in Hong Kong – including one that garnered a Michelin star – former Credit Suisse laywer-turned-restaurateur David Yeo has set his sites on conquering London, and he’s taking a three-in-one approach. Aqua London, his new venue on the fifth floor of the former Dickens & Jones department store overlooking Soho, includes a bar, Aqua Spirit, and two restaurants – Aqua Nueva serving Spanish tapas, and Aqua Kyoto offering cutting edge sushi and sashimi. Expect design and food to be slick, chic and with a bit of a twist – for example, sushi topped with foie gras, grean tea tiramisu. Aqua London, 5th Floor, 240 Regent Street, W1B 3BR. www.aqua-london.com
CHOCOLATE TASTING
It’s Chocolate Week, apparently (for those who need extra convincing to indulge their chocolate cravings). Accordingly, Artisan du Chocolat – purveyor of tip top choccies – is holding some rather tasty events. There will be free, tutored tastings of its signature products, sessions in which you can book a personal shopper to guide you round the plethora of chocolate creations, chocolate cocktails such as the cocoa pulp bellini and the cupuacu margarita , and factory tours on Saturday round the Artisan atelier at Long Barrow in Kent. The tastings take place at Artisan du Chocolat’s stores in Selfridges and Westbourne Grove. For more information visit www.artisanduchocolat.com or email [email protected]
MODERN MOROCCO COMES TO SW18
High quality Moroccan food has come to leafy southwest London. Doukan, newly opened in Wandsworth, is the brainchild of Moroccan chef-proprietor Khalil Abdesslem, the man behind the Nomades range of Moroccan sauces and condiments. There’s a fine deli counter, and the contemporary-designed restaurant offers everything from breakfast and weekend brunches to express lunch or a hearty dinner. The menu is imaginative and mouth-watering. Dishes include autumn scallop salad, in which scallops come on a bed of lentils, tomatoes, celery and mixed leaves with lime and coriander, and rognon grille, involving char grilled marinated lamb’s kidneys served on spicy lentils. 350 Old York Road, Wandsworth, SW18 1SW. www.doukan.co.uk