London - Flat Iron

Value for money: 10/10

Cleanliness: 9/10

Service: 8/10

Quality of food: 8/10

Overall: 9/10

Apologies, but there is no outside pic to accompany this post - It was lashing it down with rain throughout our short stay in London, so photo taking wasn't an option outside...

A steak restaurant chain in London, Flat Iron has quite a few branches. There isn't a reservation option, so I am afraid if there is a line, then just go ahead and join it.

Cool ice block!

Each table is given one of these. The popcorn is quite salty, but it is also pretty tasty, using beef fat to give it the flavour. 

I did quite want the burger, too, but figured a steak and a burger was overindulgence...

These aren't particularly useful to everyone who walks in and eats here, but I enjoyed looking at it. I have a bit of a background in cattle and sheep farming, so these things tend to (sadly) interest me.

Flat Iron steak 

£10

($390TWD)

with chips 

£3.50

($136TWD)

and creamed spinach 

£3

($117TWD)

Bearnaise sauce

Included

(and a beer, naturally, £2.25 per half - 87TWD).

Altogether: The spread below = 

£18.75 or $731TWD

Per Person.

The steak is already cut for you, but doesn't that mini clever look fun?

Let me tell you, it doesn't seem like the most prized cut from the animal, but this steak is pretty damn good. I always get my steak Medium Rare, and this was right on the money. Cooked the perfection, seasoned beautifully and presented nicely. You should've seen my face when it arrived.

The chips are deep fried in beef dripping so have a beefy flavour punch that is surprising. They are also pretty good - dip them in the dreamy bearnaise sauce and you're cooking on gas!

The spinach was good, but possibly too salty for my liking. However, it's nice to get some greens down you.

When you've paid be sure to stop by the ice cream on the way out (it is FREE, so why wouldn't you?!).

The chocolate ice cream (only one flavour) was deliciously rich, especially when dipped into this chocolate shavings.

It didn't last long, let me tell you that!

Opening times:

Monday - Saturday

12:00 - 00:00

Sunday

12:00 - 23:30

17 - 18 Henrietta Street, London, WC2E8QH

Happy Eating!

Taipei City - Nagi (仁愛店)

Value for money: 8/10

Cleanliness: 9/10

Service: 8/10

Quality of food: 8/10

Overall: 8/10

If you choose door number 1 (left) then you will head into Nagi. However, if you choose door number 2 (right) then you'll go straight into The Mighty Quinn's. Either way, it's a win win!

But, this time, we chose left.

Immediately you're hit with vibrant reds and pictures everywhere.

The seating is ample, with a bar area, too.

As we sat at the bar to the left, we could watch everything going on in the kitchen - I always enjoy watching kitchens...

Anyway, the menu:

But, I was here for one thing, and one thing only:

Recently, Nagi teamed up with their next-door neighbours to offer a limited time only 

Mighty Quinns X Nagi Ramen dish. Read more, below.

As they prepared our ramen, our accompaniment arrived:

Gyoza

$120

They looked great sizzling away on the plate with a huge dollop of radish.

However, they didn't live up to expectation.

They were mostly leek inside, which was fine, but they were just pretty plain. I won't be ordering them again.

Mighty Quinn's X Nagi Ramen

$290

This had a lot of work to do, especially after that obnoxious price tag.

Here you are going to find the beef from Mighty Quinn's, pickled cucumber and onion which can be regularly seen here, some delicious ramen by Nagi, soup broth also by Nagi and then finished off with a hefty chilli sauce on top and a generous glug or two of smokey oil from Mighty Quinn's.

Let me tell you, this delivered on all fronts, and had me grinning from ear to ear.

Let's start with the broth - deliciously clean and deep in flavour, but combined with both the chilli sauce and then the smokey oil, and you have a match made in heaven. It really is delicious.

Now the accompaniments - the pickled cucumber and pickled onion go down wonderfully in cutting through the fat of the oil, broth and meat, doing exactly what they should with a good amount of flavour and texture.

The noodles - Nagi always delivers consistently awesome noodles in their dishes. You can have that cooked how you liked, and they are perfect every time. I like mine with a slight 'bite' in the middle.

Finally, that meat - beautiful, fatty, rich, strong, plentiful, thick. Yeh, all of those, and more - a triumph.

However, I have to be the bearer of bad news - the dish is no longer served at Nagi. I believe it was a one-off thing with neighbours to see if they could make it work. The dish works beyond belief, so I hope they will be bringing it back to Nagi - as I would go and eat it again, and recommend you to go, too.

Black King

$230

With a much more sensible price tag, comes this disgustingly coloured bowl of black sludge. As unappealing as it seems, if you get past the fact that it is jet black then you can actually find a great bowl of ramen lurking inside. The sauce is made a little bit thicker with the addition of sesame, and has a great nutty aroma to it. 

The pork inside is cut a lot thinner than the beef is, but that is fine - it is still great.

The crunchy "nagi spices" on top add a nice texture but become a little soggy when mixed in with the sesame and the minced pork.

The cabbage and the bamboo add a nice crunch that the dish needs, too. It's a good choice, but it doesn't come close to the aforementioned 'Mighty Quinn's meets Nagi Ramen and they have a beautiful baby' bowl.

Opening Times:

Sunday - Thursday
11:30 - 21:30
Friday and Saturday
11:30 - 23:00

Tel:
02 2775 4688

台北市大安區仁愛路4段109號1樓

1st Floor, 109 RenAi Road, Section 4, DaAn District, Taipei City

Happy Eating!

Taipei City - 吉峰 香菇魯肉飯 - JiFeng mushroom and pork

Value for money: 7/10

Cleanliness: 6/10

Service: 7/10

Quality of food: 6/10

Overall: 6/10

I'm a sucker for this stuff, I think in my past life I was Taiwanese...

An unassuming place.

I enjoy watching them plate it up as the gravy drips down the side of the bowl and onto the rice. It just looks gluttonous, don't you think?

It could do with a make-over, but I guess it does the job.

The menu, and what we ordered:

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Mushroom and pork gravy over rice

香菇魯肉飯 (小)

xiāng gū lǔ ròu fàn 

$30

A solid start. When it arrived, you could smell the gravy and the mushrooms. It's clearly been cooked for a long time, and for a small bowl, this one was packed full of both rice and gravy. I was quite happy, indeed. As for the flavour: it wasn't overly salty, but it still had plenty of flavour coming through from the pork and mushrooms. Expect to chow down on silky smooth fat - yum!

Oily Tofu

油豆腐

yóu dòu fǔ 

$15

A poor translation, but nonetheless, not a bad dish. I probably wouldn't order it again, as I have had better elsewhere. But, it's still alright. There was too much sauce for my liking, but when you've let the salty sauce drain off, the flavour from the tofu is just fine.


Bamboo shoots

筍絲

sǔn sī 

$25

Again, it isn't going to set the world alight with news of incredible bamboo, but it's a tasty way to get your veggies in for the day.


Squid
魷魚焿
yóu yú gēng 
$50

I do enjoy squid, this one was very distinctly average, though. My recommendation: don't bother. Check out RaoHe nightmarket's squid stall, instead.

Pork belly soup

豬肚湯

zhū dǔ tāng 

$50

It's tough to decide whether this or the mushroom and pork gravy over rice are the best dishes, so why not just have both? It's no secret that I love me some pork belly (I even cooked it for Christmas day!), and done this way in individual soup pots really intensifies the broth flavour and forces the meat to become effortlessly delicate. The flavour is good, the texture is good and the soup is clean and lovely - top marks.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My final thought
If you're in the area, then drop by. If you live far away, then there are possibly better alternatives if your craving is for the pork gravy over rice, such as: JinFeng in GuTing or ChangJi pig blood soup near YuanShan. 


Tel:
02 2579 5606

台北市松山區八德路3段144號

No. 144, BaDe Road, Section 3, SongShan District, Taipei City

Happy Eating!