Community sites are starting to realise the power of the iPhone, and to an extent the Google Android platform. Lately, I’ve been test driving three free apps which can help you find something to eat in the City and their usefulness when on the move, so this might be helpful if you’re an iFoodie too

So it’s six seven am on Monday. I’ve just opened my favourite excel spreadsheet and sipping down on the hard filter brew Vanessa makes for the bunch of us every morning. No it’s not. It’s Saturday afternoon as I write this. Well, it sort of came early a couple of weekends ago, the sun I mean, and I took every opportunity to exploit it before it gave way to the rain clouds again. It was still abit breezy, but was a nice little preview of picnic in the park. So it was me, grass, my 50mm and a little bit of wholefoods and now, you too

The word binge is so 2007. I’ve been off for two weeks and the sky is still falling down on London, seriously when is it all going to stop? Did anybody miss me while I was away? I did manage a couple of reviews on my break but my first London restaurant visits will have to wait till Friday. As I said yesterday, I bought a new camera and this will be it’s virgin usage for a very sinful post. This sushi train is located somewhere south of the South China Sea (I forget the name of the place) and the rate is 50 pence per plate. This isn’t really a review, but more like food glorification, though the technically accurate term is foodporno. If you’re anything like me, you’ll appreciate great sushi trains for peanuts – it’s just a shame we don’t have more of them in London ( Yo! is alright, but seriously overpriced). On this visit, the count is about 20 plates (my record is 37 in Sydney, I think) and that’s a grand total of £10. A tenner barely gets me like 2.5 plates at Yo! Yo. Cheap sushi bingeing – as far as I know – only exists in Asia; ok so welcome back to another edition of London eater, the name is Kang and I will be at your service for the rest of

I’ve always had this idea to use the tube map as an eating guide for anyone wanting to sample highlights of London via the underground – I just didnt really know how ( or more like when ) I could figure it onto this blog. When I was approached by Hillary who edits both Recipe4living and the chewonthatblog , she wanted a kind of snapshot of London and I thought wow – what a coincidence we’re on the same brainwave. So I mined the archives and put together an ‘underground eating list on the underground’. I included stuff such as Borough market and sampling some very British crabs on toast at 32 GQS. I also included a recommendation to my personal favourite: Cambio de Tercio. You can download and print this map if you want, just click on the image for a bigger version. Anyway, I thought it’d make for a great guest post and one that can be useful for anyone who’s about to visit London and are looking for a few places to munch up. As with my last few guest posts, I am giving away my best stuff and treating these guest posts as if they were to be published here on LE. To that end, I’m giving away the same quality of pictures too and I do try and make sure they are decent enough. Hope you guys find my stuff both

Are you feeling those butterflies in your tummy yet because V day is only two days away. If my initial valentine list didn’t help any romantic souls and you are still left scratching your head over what to do, then here are a few more suggestions which might help eek out the love … 1. Make a valentine proposal and win £1000 worth of wine  This one comes from a relatively new wine website and their video competition is pretty quirky. You can be all serious and propose to your honey, or you can be cheeky and propose anyway, and she might find it funny and fall madly in love with you? Check it out here. 2. Buy a limited edition bottle of wine from an artisan food seller If you’re going to give wine and chocolates, then do make sure it’s something special at least. Flavours of Spain are doing this box set which includes a bottle of Pedralonga Barrica – limited production of biodynamic white wine only 1800 bottled - accompanied by a gift box of two chocolates (Yuzu and Mascletà) created by Spain’s leading chocolatier Oriol Balaguer, former pastry chef of Michelin starred El Bulli, all presented in an elegant wooden case. Thirty quid from their website here, or perhaps it’s better to pay them a visit at their Borough Market stand

A dollop of off-the-curb eating quirk to brighten up those midweek blues every wednesday or thursdays or both It would be injustice if I – as a food blogger – apparently independent and a rebel against the establishment did not blog about these two food gems floating about the internet at the moment. Show your veggie love First up is that banned superbowl PETA advertising campaign which had super hot and healthy supermodels parading around and looking like they are having too much fun with vegetables. I think the idea is  copywriting genius and what better way to make vegetables sexy than to pair them up with sexy beings. I fully concur with Jay the gastronaut about the way US media is treating this:  Unhealthy fast food is okay, but vegetables aren’t? What a country! Not surprising, though, given the Janet Jackson fiasco five years ago, which made us the laughing-stock of the world for our Victorian attitudes related to sex. And vegetables, these days, in a way. Come on, show your veggie love – Now go see the video at the PETA website. The best complaint letter, ever. Mr Branson must have spat his tea all over his missus upon reading this complaint letter about the horrendous service aboard a Virgin Atlantic flight. He addresses the letter to Richard Branson and starts off by saying he loves virgin and then references the first picture with

I’m a hopeless romantic. I’d like to think that London has an atmosphere for love, lots of intimate hidden away places where two people can duck away from the loud lights of the urban jungle and gaze into each other’s starry eyes until the candles wither away. It’s little over three weeks to V and I’ve compiled a short list of a few valentine restaurant / going out ideas if you are still scratching your heads. 1. Dine at home While Gordon Ramsay and Michelin are indulgent names, I think it’s abit Bruce Wayne and boring to just go out to a busy fine dining restaurant for V, why not surprise your better half with a dinner at home? I’m sure everybody loves surprises and you could easily turn your boudoir into a lovenest with a few simple ideas. Pick up these items for mood: a. Tea candles (for swaying moody lights) b. Rose petals (for dramatic effect on the bed) c. Adorn the walls with red linen, satin or silk. d. Get a good Jazz CD , I’d go with Ella Fitzgerald. e. Lots of flowers. Make sure you pick up good cutlery/china ( now would be a good time to use the stuff in the wardrobes) and lay out your usual dinner table with a perfectly white table cloth and stick a rose and a fat candle in

*Post Update 23/01/2009* I should have mentioned Lantana’s Scrambling Eggs blog.  You’ve just had the meal of your life at Cambio de Tercio, it’s a fine Spanish restaurant. On their business card, they leave you a link to read the Cambio Blog. Upon opening firefox, you see that the blog is written by a number of staff, each of them giving a certain perspective from within the food industry. The younger chefs could have just returned from a gastro trip to Italy and learnt fresh new recipes to which he has published them on the blog. Another series of posts could be the chef’s ’open diary’ which allows you to follow the train of thought of how a dish was created. There could even be ‘biased’ guest posts from diners and plenty of shots of the food, ingredients. Better yet, a dedicated ‘fan blogger’ reporting about the restaurant from behind the stove. Would you read that

A dollop of off-the-curb eating quirk to brighten up those midweek blues every wednesday or thursdays or both  In London, it’s no real secret that restaurants go for the jugular when it comes to liquid offerings. As if the food is not expensive enough, ( the typical 3 course meal in London was the most expensive in the world 2 years ago ) it would appear that restaurants are always hunting for ways to rack up your bill (plus, plus) . I haven’t got any restaurant bills on hand, but I have definitely been forking out between £3.50 and £5.00 for a bottle. Let’s just do a quick crunch, I’ve reviewed 31 places so far, let’s say I paid £3.50 per visit per bottle (which I have) , that’s equal to £108.50 … or roughly two and a half dinners. Ouch. Uttering the words ‘tap’ is near blasphemy in some establishments and one cannot help but feel bullied into making a choice

Thank you to the 46 foodies who have voted in the favourite cuisine poll so far. If you haven’t voted yet, you can join in the fun here or if you scroll down, you’ll see it on the right hand side bar. I’m keeping the poll open indefinitely for the time being. So far, the favourite cuisine (s) are tied with Italian and Japanese both with 8 votes each. The next favourites are Spanish, Chinese, Indian & mediterranean each with 4 votes. French & Brit (Yeah!) food get 3 votes , Thai with 2 and German, Korean & Vietnamese all with 1 vote. 3 of you said ‘none’ and I suspect it has alot to do with the ommission of Mexican from the list ………. ………so that’s why I’ve decided to add Mexican to the polls! It is very refreshing to see that no one chose fast food as their favourite, the allegations of a modern society in love with nasty foods – according to my completely unofficial poll- is so far unfounded. As I’ve said, I’m keeping the polls open indefinitely ( so please vote ! ) and it’ll be interesting to see if a new favourite cuisine emerges. For now , there is a 34% chance that you are craving either Italian or Japanese food. Did you enjoy reading this post? Why not subscribe to my feed updates for free. Alternatively,  You can subscribe via

I’m heavily promoting my ‘write for me and win £50′ competition, everybody can enter, please do tell all your friends about it, all you need to do is write a food review (minimum 250 words only!) and include at least one picture and email it to me. The best 20 will be published here on LE and put to a vote – the best one wins £50!  It’s really that simple, deadline for last submissions is 14th Feb 09. More details here.   As a primer for the big votes, I’m running my first polls here on London Eater, asking you the question – What is your favourite type of cuisine? Mine is Spanish,  tell me foodies, what is your favourite cuisine? Come on it’s fun,vote now Did you enjoy reading this post? Why not subscribe to my feed updates for free. Alternatively,  You can subscribe via email

A dollop of off-the-curb eating quirk to brighten up those midweek blues every wednesday or thursdays or both Photo by The Dana Files The Michelin guide is quite possibly the most prestigious restaurant rating system in the world. Gaining one of these bad boys is like giving a restaurant a license to charge ridiculous amounts of money and be able to create gimmick heavy food while almost guaranteeing rock-star celebrity status within the community. The rating system is fairly straightforward in that it only gives them away to a fairly small group of establishments (and their mates) which are deemed worthy. There are only three categories: One Star given for a very good restaurant in its category Two Stars given for excellent cooking, worth a detour Three Stars for exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey Over the decades, the Red Guide has had its fair share of critics, citing that because it’s a French publication – it’s ratings tend to be skewed toward French restaurants with an emphasis on stuffy over complicated formality and way too much attention to presentation rather than just straight forward great food. 

 A dollop of off-the-curb eating quirk to brighten up those midweek blues every wednesday or thursdays or both Depending on which part of the far east you travel to, the Durian is actually considered the king of fruit. This is a tropical fruit, so you won’t see it growing in someone’s back garden in Croydon, but in places like Thailand – where the famous ‘Monthong’ breed is planted – the durian is abit like a national treasure. The thick outer shell is usually oval shaped, green and spiky. The flesh is usually cream in colour (sometimes yellowish or reddish too) and it tastes rather like natural egg custard or a crème brulee . Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of the Durian is it’s smell. Now, this is one of those polarising foods of the world, you either love it or hate it. That smell is unique and rather strong. I can’t quite describe it except to say it’s the smell of a durian. It is also uniquely because of the smell that people get put off by it. The best analogy I can give is that of a great French soft cheese, like a good unpasteurised Brie, for example. Some say it’s super pungent, but to me it’s like a golden tingling sensation. The runny creamy texture and the sharp hit is like music to my tastebuds, or it could be like eating

a dollop of off-the-curb eating quirk to brighten up those midweek blues every wednesday or thursdays or both. (warning: this post is NC-17) This is one of the most hilarious marketing campaigns I’ve ever come across. cnn.com ran a video about FLAME today. ‘What’s FLAME ?’ you might ask; Well it is only the latest body spray of seduction.. with a hint of char-broiled meat. Cue sexy porno music in background with 80′s style saxaphone. And then a deep baritone voice comes on and says…. ‘FLAME’. Come on baby, give it a spray&#

You have a strange food fancy don’t you? Let’s face it , weird combinations can and often will turn out better than one might expect. How else could you explain michelin star chefs turning bread into jelly, or working bacon into an ice cream ? Ok, i’m going to out myself here and declare my weirdest food combo: Laksa and a cheese toastie. Laksa is a sort of curry noodle soup and a cheese toastie is well, a cheese toastie. It might sound weird, but damn does it taste good! I thoroughly recommend you get a bowl at your nearest thai takeaway and dunk that toastie into the luscious soup ( you just have to take my word for it ) . The other time I had curry and cheese was a baked curry lasagne. Very good too. Anyway, if you think i’m weird, here’s more weirdness around the web

Some of you might have noticed that I missed last sunday’s edition of eating&reading. Thanks to a combination of work related issues, a notorious double charging ticketing machine at the local cinema and other non-mentionables, I was kept completely offline for the entire weekend. I’m still feeling the ripples of withdrawal. To make up for the lack of weekend quirkiness I’m introducing the midweek eating quirker! Reporting the very latest in the world of eating quirkiness to help break up those mid week blues. Yes, these will be an ongoing series of super short posts ( I’ll limit to 250 words if possible ) to report on some of the more unique things I’ve read so far , in my role as resident london eater. Okies, so hang tight friends, I’m prepping the brussels sprouts ice cream to go out in a couple of hours as we speak