FIVE FRIDAY: London Music Venues

The Antlers at Hackney Empire

I'm in Wales at the moment, more specially seeing the Manic Street Preachers at Cardiff Castle with the lovely Gemma. Steve and I are driving back to London tomorrow as we're going to Field Day on Sunday to see Patti Smith, Ride and a few other awesome indie bands. It's been a super busy music week for us. We saw the wonderful London based pop duo Summer Camp on Monday and the gloriously folky Scottish Admiral Fallow on Wednesday. We were meant to see long term rockers The Replacements on Tuesday but ended up selling our tickets due to a manic week. On Tuesday we're going to see the Death Cab For Cutie for the first time ever which I'm very much looking forward to.

Steve and I go to a lot of gigs, a few each month but in the summer this seems to increase thanks to the festival season. We've got some exciting festivals planned over the next few months and Field Day is the official start to the season so I'm really getting into my summer fun mode. London has so many great venues and I've been meaning to write a post about my favourites for a while.

Haiku Salut lamp show at St. John on Bethnal Green

First things first, I hate large venues and try to avoid the likes of Brixton Academy, Ally Pally and the O2 at all costs. Even Shepherd's Bush Empire is a little large for my liking and I'm starting to feel the same about the Roundhouse, which is a shame because so many fantastic bands play there and it's a lovely space. Maybe it's because I'm a bit short and have terrible eye sight but I can never see very well in these big places. Fortunately a lot of the bands I like play in small spaces which are a. more intimate b. have better acoustics c. have fewer drunk idiots and d. sell cheaper tickets. Even though I'm not a fan of One Direction it makes me sad that when they play arenas they charge so much money for their tickets, even though the majority of their fans are teenagers. The nice thing about small gigs is that because they don't cost too much you can go to more. The Admiral Fallow gig on Wednesday cost £10 each and there are plenty of others gig that cost even less.

1. Islington Assembly Hall

Islington Assembly Hall has become a really popular gig venue in the last few years and it's Upper Street location in Islington makes it's pretty easy to reach. I do miss Steve living in the flats next door as it would take us approximately 11 seconds to get home, now it's a long tube journey down south. This is a mid sized venue with a standing capacity of 600 people and even when I've been to sold out gigs it's never felt rammed. The building itself is beautiful with a big stage and decorative interior. The floor isn't slopped but the stage is raised enough that you can see without too many issues. The sound quality is great with the music sounding loud and clear, the one time I sat upstairs I still felt I could hear just as well. The venue attracts indie-pop-folky type bands and due to this genre and the little 'cash only' bar the vibe has always felt friendly. This is definitely a nice venue for nice people.

2. Bush Hall

Bush Hall is a little like Islington Assembly Hall, just smaller (capacity 400) and grander. Again, when I've been to sold out shows it's never felt rammed and I've been able to squeeze to the front of the room pretty easily. This is a hidden gem, from the outside the venue looks like a gastro pub but once inside you'll be shocked by how beautiful the concert hall is. There's not as many gigs here compared to Islington Assembly Hall, perhaps because it's a little out of the way in Shepherd's Bush but when you do get the chance to visit make sure you do because it's a really special place.

3. Scala

The Scala is an old favourite on the London gig scene and I never think it's anything special until I actaully go there. What I really like about this place are all the little platforms scattered about the place, meaning you can get a really good view from most parts of the room. With a capacity of 1,145 it's the biggest venue on my list but because of the layout it doesn't actaully feel that massive. It's Kings Cross location means it's super easy to get to.

4. Oslo

I wanted to include a small 'pub' venue but there are so many decent ones to choose from it's hard to find a favourite. I love the Lexington, the Shacklewell Arms, the Sebright Arms, the Victoria, and Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen for their small, intimate shows but recently I've really loved Oslo in Hackney. A relative newcomer in terms of venues, Oslo has only been around for a year or so but the gigs I've seen here have always been remarkable. The sound system is impressive and because it's such a small space you feel really immersed when the lights getting going. It's situated in the old station house next to Hackney Central station and boasts a fantastic Scandinavian restaurant on the ground floor. The chicken wings are some of the best I've tried. Apparently the capacity is just under 400 but it's always felt like a lot less when I've been there.

5. Union Chapel

Union Chapel is probably my all time favourite venue in London (900 capacity). Situated in a beautiful church on Upper Street, Islington (do you sense a theme) the sound and interior of this place are stunning. You can find all sort of gigs here from comedy, film screenings and music. The seating is unreserved so it's good to get there early and bag yourself a decent spot, but in all honestly everywhere has a good view, even upstairs. Once of my favourite things to do is watch a band whilst sipping a cup of tea in the pews.

I've still not made it too Wilton's Music Hall so I'm looking out for a gig there as it's meant to be a really beautiful venue and shout out to Hackney Empire as well which is a really beautiful, old theatre. As you can see there are so many amazing venues in London to suit a whole variety of bands. I said earlier that I didn't love big venues but if you ever get a chance to see someone at the Barbican or the Royal Festival Hall, take it because these huge concert halls are on a whole other levels from your standard arenas.

Cosines at Shacklewell Arms

I might as well mention my least favourite venue in London and that is without a doubt the Forum in Kentish Town. The sound is truly horrendous and I will avoid seeing anyway here unless they are my very favourite band, and I doubt the National or Green Day will be playing any time soon.

I'd love to hear what your favourite venue is and what sort of bands you like to see.

BURGER REVIEW: Bread Meats Bread, Glasgow

No trip to a new city would be complete without me tracking down a burger, or two. There were two places I'd heard about in Glasgow, Bread Meats Bread and Burger Meats Bun. Opinion on twitter was split between the two and I had every intention of visiting both but due to time and many other delicious food options I only made it to Bread Meats Bread.

We popped in mid afternoon to share a burger as we weren't overly hunger. Being a fan of the simpler things in life we opted for a cheese burger, my reasoning being that if you can't get a cheese burger right then there's no hope for anything else. As we waited for our burger to arrive we purveyed the rest of the stripped back, casual burger bar. It was heaving. In my eye line I clocked a GBK and 5 Guys on the same road so it was nice to see a local joint getting recognition. The burger sure did smell good and the staff were very friendly. I drank an Irn Bru, obviously.

The burger was nice, not the best I've had by any stretch of the imagination but I try to approach these things without my London bias. The meat was well seasoned, the sauce was tasty and the bun was slightly toasted and held everything together well. However there was a critical things that ruined this for me. Upon ordering I asked for my burger medium-rare (standard for me) and was told that due to 'health and safety' the burger had to be cooked through i.e. not pink. The waitress told me she'd ask the chef to cook it as pink as possible but when it arrived the meat was far from pink. In all honesty this is a deal breaker for me, if a burger bar of all places isn't going to cook your burger the way you want it then why even bother in the first place. The funny thing is, this happens time and time again. I recall ordering the beef burger in Bread Street Kitchen many years ago and being told they would not cook it medium-rare. This was a Gordon Ramsey restaurant of all places and the burger was not cheap! What I gather from my knowledge of the food world and correct me if I'm wrong but if the meat is bought in pre-minced you shouldn't be leaving it pink in the middle because bacteria can be present (the heat from cooking the meat through kills it). If the meat is minced in the restaurant and cooked straight away there will be less bacteria present thus allowing for a pink burger. Which is why I'm confused because the menu states the beef is chopped daily in-house...

Anyway, despite the over cooking the burger wasn't bad and I'm sure it still beats GBK and 5 Guys down the road, especially from a price point. If you're ever in Glasgow and you like your burgers over cooked then I definitely suggest stopping by. Next time I'm going to check out Burger Meats Bun but I'm pretty confident it'll be more of the same.

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RESTAURANT REVIEW: Jose Pizarro

It's been ages since I visited Jose Pizarro during the 50% off soft launch but as is life I was too busy to write about it until now. First came the tapas bar Jose (which I've already raved about), then came the more formal restaurant Pizarro (which I'm yet to visit) and now the third instalment seems to be a combination of both. 

Situated next to Liverpool Street Station this Spanish restaurant is definitely pulling in the city crowd. The atmosphere is smart and there's several pricey dishes on the menu that will be sure to make an appearance on many an expensed receipt. That being said the restaurant still oozes with charm akin to the tapas bar, just on a (much) bigger scale. The waiters recognised us from out last visit to Jose's and we had a nice natter about the new restaurant and even got to meet Jose himself which was lovely. He's sweet, charming and incredibly friendly which has only made me love his food even more.

The menu is split into lots of different sections and you're advised to choose a few plates from each. As with tapas you really ought to share everything and with a menu this exciting the more food you order, the better.

As with Jose, the magnificent croquettes change daily. On our visit they were cheese and leek with a soft melt-in-the-mouth centre and a perfectly crispy exterior. I could have eaten so many of these perfect little balls.

Half way through out meal the lights were dimmed which suddenly made my photography a lot more difficult, but I persevered. The prawn fritters were juicy, not too spicy and very meaty. The saffron aioli was a nice, subtle accompaniment, if garlic has been used the flavour from the prawns would have been lost.

£25 for a plate of jamon iberico sounds expensive but trust me when I say this is some of the best cured ham you will ever try. The meat literally melts in your mouth and the intense flavour lingers making this incredibly moorish.

The grilled octopus was wonderful, cooked in paprika this was a sweet, spicy and slippery dish. Combined with the little side dish of baby boiled potatoes the texture from the firm spuds and soft octopus was a nice touch. I've had this in a few other tapas joints and JP has put them all to shame.

The cured cod was my least favourite plate of the evening thanks to the overwhelming taste of olives. I hate olives so I couldn't get my head around this salty dish unfortunately.

Asparagus, ducks egg and tomato sauce - the perfect combination. The waitress told us to mix everything together, we obliged. It looked a mess but tasted amazing.

The iberico meatballs were rich, meaty and completely divine. Quite possibly my favourite dish of the evening, you could not fault this.

We didn't really need to order these as the octopus dish came with boiled potatoes and to be honest they weren't a patch on Jose's patatas bravas.

I was surprised by the size of the lamb cutlets, I wasn't expecting so many but this is not a complaint as the meat was heavenly. Crispy from the charred edges and buttery soft thanks to the fat, these were tender with the meat falling away from the bone and absolutely delicious.

 I really wanted to try the chocolate on toast but they'd run out and none of the other deserts appealed to me so they gave us a chocolate brownie from Bread Ahead. Even though this is an off menu option it's worth saying this was one of the best brownies I've ever had.

I really enjoyed our meal at JP but Jose's will still remain my favourite of the trilogy. It was great to see some exciting new dishes but I'm glad there's still a place for the firm favourites. The quality has undoubtedly transferred from south of the river to the city I think the restaurant will do wonderfully amongst the hustle and bustle of Broadgate Circus but it's this reason I would prefer to be tucked away down the quiet Bermondsey Street.

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