WOTVM's food adventures in London - Part 3

This is the final, and briefest, instalment of our food adventures in London.  Normal service will be resumed soon with some reviews of the finest Norwich has to offer plus some tasty recipes, our bathroom should be in place by the end of the week and we're hoping to be able to then get back to blogging more regularly.

So, day three in London began a little later; as our train was due to leave at 4.30pm we decided on an eating strategy of a hearty brunch followed by an early afternoon snack to tide us over until we got back to the fine city.  When we stay in London, we often stay in Angel as there are loads of excellent food and drink places nearby, one of which is the Islington branch of The Breakfast Club.  However, every time we've stayed our efforts to eat at The Breakfast Club have been thwarted by it being absolutely rammed, with queues out the door and round the corner.  Thankfully, there are several branches across London (plus one in Brighton) and one of them just happened to be a stone's throw from our hotel.

The Spitalfields branch is larger than the more bijou Angel café and this meant that we were able to get a table straight away.  It was busy, but arriving at around 11.30 - after the main breakfast crowd but before lunch has got going - meant that we wouldn't have to wait for our food.  The menu is a combination of traditional British and American/Mexican inspired dishes.  Think anything from a full English to pancake stacks to breakfast burritos and much more in between.  There's a good mix of original dishes and old favourites, something to please everyone.

On the day we visited the hotplate had broken and so the menu choices were more limited, however that wasn't a problem for us as the dishes that took our fancy were still available anyway.  WOTVM went for the breakfast burrito - loaded with chorizo, scrambled egg, peppers and cheese with guacamole, sour cream and salsa on the side - whilst Mr Vegan Man opted for avocado and poached egg on toast, with the added zip of lemon juice, chillies, basil and some crunchy pumpkin seeds to boot.  To drink we ordered a freshly squeezed orange juice and a Slow Boy, which was a concoction of orange, carrot, apple and ginger.

The drinks arrived quickly and were followed shortly afterwards by the food, which looked great.  WOTVM's burrito was really good; the scrambled eggs were light and fluffy, the chorizo was punchy with flavour but not overpowering, the guacamole and salsa went really well too.  Mr Vegan Man does make the best breakfast burrito in the world so The Breakfast Club had stiff competition, but this came pretty close in terms of flavour. Her only criticism was that there was a bit too much sour cream, a touch less and it would have been spot on.

Mr Vegan Man's avocado and poached egg on toast was top notch.  The toast was good and crunchy, the poached egg had a lovely runny yolk, the avocado was creamy and complimented perfectly by a bit of chilli kick and the fresh pop of lemon and basil.  The seeds added some nice texture too.  All in all a very good brunch and at prices that are reasonable too.  Service was friendly and we'd definitely come back again.

With a few hours to kill we decided to go for a stroll along the South Bank, starting off at London Bridge.  We walked up to the Tate Modern to see if there was anything we fancied seeing but after a quick browse around the free galleries the only thing we were interested in - an exhibition by Georgia O'Keefe - was prohibitively expensive, so we instead decided to head back along the river to Borough Market.

We love Borough Market, it has such a great variety of food stalls, with most of the world represented somewhere or other.  We've had great street food from there previously, including take away flutes of prosecco and pink fizz, but on this early afternoon we had a hankering for some gelato and so we ended up in Gelateria 3Bis.  The place looked authentic, with the gelato kept covered (we learnt in Italy that all authentic gelaterias keep the gelato covered, the more 'touristy' places pile it high and make it look flashy) and with a small but interesting selection of flavours.  Mr Vegan Man went for dark chocolate and coconut - going for the effect of a Bounty - whilst WOTVM chose peanut and banana flavours.  Unbeknownst to WOTVM, the banana variety was actually a sorbet rather than a gelato, however the banana flavour was really strong.  WOTVM was a little disappointed as she loves gelato and isn't a huge sorbet fan but she could appreciate the quality and ate it all.

The peanut flavour was excellent, really good nutty flavour and a nice smooth gelato.  Mr Vegan Man's gelato was similarly really well made, beautifully creamy and with a good, rich flavour.  We both plumped for the free chocolate sauce in the bottom of our cups, which is a really nice touch and something that we also experienced in a gelateria we visited in Rome.  The sauce tastes like melted Nutella, which really can't be a bad thing.  We'd happily visit again, but WOTVM would make sure she ordered two scoops of gelato next time.

On our way back to the bus stop, we decided to stop for a quick drink at the Wheatsheaf right by the market.  It was a cracking little pub, with a brilliant outdoor area where we sat and enjoyed a pint.  Prices were a bit steep, but it is right by the market and it does serve really good local craft beer.

We made our way back to the hotel to collect our bags - via a quick vintage dress purchase on the corner of Brick Lane - and then we were on our way back to Norwich.  We had a great stay and ate lots of tasty food and we'll be looking forward to our next trip to the capital.

The Belgian Monk

Our choice for a meal out this week was the Belgian Monk on Pottergate.  The Belgian Monk is something of a Norwich institution; it has been in the city centre for many years now and has a genuinely dazzling array of Belgian beers on sale, many of which come with their own custom glass (check out the Kwak glass if you've never seen it, it's worth ordering a bottle of it for the vessel alone).  In recent years, the Belgian Monk has also garnered a reputation for producing good quality food which combines traditional and hearty pub fare with a distinctly Flemish twist.  What's more, the food menu is almost as vast as the beer menu and includes, unusually but most agreeably, an extensive vegan menu in addition to a number of excellent vegetarian options.

We had called the Belgian Monk, somewhat optimistically, on the Friday hoping to get a table for Saturday night.  They were predictably fully booked up, however we were helpfully told that the tables downstairs (the restaurant part of the pub is primarily upstairs) aren't bookable and so if we were to come in on the night we may be able to get a table.  Chancing our luck, we decided to head out for an early-ish dinner, arriving at the Belgian Monk at just after 6.30pm.  The tables were all full and the bar was heaving so initially our hopes looked faint, however as we ordered a glass of Kriek and a Petrus Blond, we asked at the bar what the odds were of getting a table for food and were informed that one should be available in under 10 minutes.  Hurrah!  In the end we waited less than 5 minute before being shown to our table, which was nice and cosy next to the fireplace.

As a vegetarian, often scanning a menu is a relatively swift process.  You glance over and look for the two or three dishes with a 'V' or a picture of a leaf next to them and then decide which of the limited options you like the look of.  Not so here.  There are in excess of ten options for both starter and main course for non-meat-eaters and a good proportion of these are vegan.

We have previously spoken about Mr Vegan Man's dislike of cheese.  Oddly enough, the aversion to cheese is limited to melted cheese only, so he can enjoy a nice bit of Cheddar or Red Leicester on a cracker, but put it on toast and place it under the grill and his stomach starts to turn.  Halloumi, then, is something of a godsend because it can be cooked without melting and is a good option as a big lump of protein.  With this in mind and feeling peckish having not eaten since breakfast, Mr Vegan Man plumped for the halloumi burger.  Wife of the Vegan Man loves seafood and one of the specialities of the Belgian Monk is mussels, served with - there's a recurring theme here - a huge selection of sauces.  WVM plumped for the classic moules marinière - the heady combination of cream, garlic, white whine and shallots being too much for her to resist.  Starters were skipped due to prior knowledge of the portion sizes on offer at the Belgian Monk, and we held out hope of saving room for dessert. 

The food arrived quickly, no more than 10 minutes wait, and was a veritable feast.  The pot of moules was enormous and came with a similarly generous horn of frites as well as a quaintly wrapped rye bread roll.  The halloumi burger was equally impressive in stature - a huge piece of crispy cheese with an impressive quantity of avocado to boot, all inside a crunchy and light ciabatta roll.  The burger came with a basket of frites (sweet potato fries come as standard but Mr Vegan Man fancied regular chips) and a nicely dressed salad garnish.  The sharp sweetness of the vinaigrette dressing was an unexpected surprise and helped to cut through the richness of the large hunk of rich halloumi.  We ordered another Kriek and Petrus Blond to go with our dinner and the drinks arrived promptly as we were preparing our respective strategies for tackling the food mountain in front of us.

Whilst the quantities of food on offer at the Belgian Monk are fantastic, it does not come at the expense of quality.  WVM quickly made a big dent in her pot of moules and the number of empty shells began to rapidly approach the number of mussels still to be eaten.  WVM was motivated by her desire to get to the broth at the bottom of the pan, which she described as 'the best bit'.  WVM looked incredibly happy when she had reached the point where she could easily reach the cooking liquor with her spoon.  She was so taken by the creamy, rich sauce that she insistently offered her spoon to Mr Vegan Man, imploring him to try it.  Mr Vegan Man was unrelenting, but noted the seriousness of the offer from WVM and that this must have meant she REALLY liked that sauce.

 

The frites were crisp on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside - just what you would hope for -  and as is the tradition in Belgium they were served with mayonnaise which was the perfect accompaniment.  WVM was, by this point, running out of room and decided to save the rye bread for another day, stashing it in her handbag.  Meanwhile, Mr Vegan Man had deconstructed his burger and made two more manageable bruschetta topped with halloumi, avocado, beef tomato, tomato salsa and pea shoots.  The combination was very tasty, the balance of flavours just right, and he managed to clear his plate.

There was a slight pang of sorrow as we both realised, without either of us saying as much, that we had lost our battle to save room for pudding.  This was a real shame as we have managed dessert at the Belgian Monk before and their waffles, with rich Belgian chocolate sauce and smooth vanilla ice cream, are a real treat.  On this occasion, though, there was simply no room for more food.

The bill arrived and was a pleasantly surprising £36.  Although we only had the one course and a drink each, this still felt like great value as we were stuffed full and feeling happy, the Belgian beer flowing through our veins no doubt helping our mood.  A quick nod to the service, which was both speedy and friendly.  We didn't have to wait long for the bill when we asked for it but we didn't feel like they were rushing to get us out of the door either, despite being busy.

 

The Belgian Monk is a really lovely place to visit.  It has a cute little courtyard style garden that backs on to one of the oldest churches in Norwich and the pub itself is a delightful old building.  The décor is traditional and tasteful with lots of dark wood.  Getting a table for a drink inside is the only downside as it is almost always very busy and there are only a few indoor tables just for drinks.  If you do get a table, though, you really are spoilt for choice with the beers on offer.  And if you really, really want a table, you could go for some food.  On weekdays the Belgian Monk offers a lunchtime and early evening 'Dubbel Deal' where select dishes from the menu are available for £6 each or two main courses for £11.90.  That is staggeringly good value in anyone's book and having had the deal previously, they don't cut back on the portions.

We greatly enjoyed our rather impromptu night at the Belgian Monk and we will most certainly return soon.  If you live in Norwich and you've never been then you really ought to go, if you have been before, then go again.

Any questions or comments please just drop us an email or leave a comment.  For bookings and information you can find the Belgian Monk's website here.