I forgot to share this week’s review! An unexpectedly lengthy lunch at the lovely Franceschetta 58 in Modena, a little offshoot of one of the world’s most acclaimed restaurants

Finally made it to Cafe Deco, and what a beautiful restaurant it is. British in all the right ways, unafraid not to be when needed, with some wonderfully sparse, simple cooking

These aren’t exactly my favourite restaurants, bars, and cafes in London, but they are the ones I think tourists should make a beeline for

A big, lovely, healing sandwich from Mortadella Lab in Bologna. Mortadella, squacquerone, and pistachios - simple and perfect.

Tofu Vegan isn’t new, and it might not be all that exciting any more, but it is, frankly, excellent — just don’t skip the silken tofu in savoury sauce

Italian shops and markets remain undefeated

Went to see how they make the big cheese. Smelly, but the best things in life do tend to be.

This has long been a staple recipe in this house, and inspired my own Nigel Slater-infused twist on it

Jago Rackham’s new guide to hosting is part cookbook, part instructional guide, part memoir, throughout which Rackham’s forceful personality and specific taste shine through

London doesn’t have a whole lot of Salvadoran food; luckily for me, DC does

A good weekend of eating in Pembrokeshire

After the weekend’s review of The Racine Effect, I knew I had to turn to the restaurant that inspired it

Had a tremendous time cooking from The Racine Effect, with its heady, hearty Lyonnaise recipes, but bear in mind that this is, in part, a book for the sort of person willing to track down game birds and confit their own canard

Loved Bandini's, a natural wine bar in Barcelona with a tremendous kitchen that nods to the local staples, but never feels beholden to them

I won't be making an updated hot cross bun list this year, so instead I'm making last year's list free to read until Easter, so have at it

Ultramarinos Marín was one of the finest meals I’ve ever eaten in Spain — so why don’t its Google Maps reviews agree?

I was back in Barcelona the other week, giving me the excuse to update my list of my favourite bars, cafes, and restaurants in the city, with three new entries from my latest trip

One more review from Copenhagen: Silberbauers Bistro, a wonderful French spot that served some pretty spectacular sweetbreads

These are just some good mushrooms I saw once. I think they're neat!

I have been unspeakably busy for the past couple of weeks, and so my partner Vivian kindly stepped in with a guest post on a subject very close to her heart: the Yukon Gold potato

Trying something a little new for me - a list that’s openly uninformed. Here are a few places I really liked in Copenhagen, a city I’ve spent a grand total of five days in. I won’t claim to be an expert, but since I liked them, maybe you will too.

My first review from Copenhagen is of not-Noma, the acclaimed fine dining spot’s more approachable sister restaurant Barr. I strongly suspect it’s much more my thing than Noma ever could be.

I've always had mixed feelings about Noma - the prices, the labour practices, tbh the whole fine dining vibe - but it was fun to wander around their little shop in Copenhagen

No paid post today — I'm afraid travel and sickness have knocked me off schedule. Usual service will resume next Sunday!

Sticky toffee pizza obviously shouldn't work, but relieved to say it really does, at least at Circus. It passes the 'cold out of the fridge the next morning' test, though it's definitely better on a reheat

Doppio Zero might not look like much from the outside, and it doesn’t pop up on many pizza rankings or best-of lists — but it really, really should

A strong recommendation from my sister led me to Proto Bakery in St. Albans, and I'm glad it did. A lovely bready cardamom and orange bun, an impressively layered pain au chocolat, and an almost comically tall slab of olive-studded focaccia, as soft as anything

I don’t truly eat seasonally half as often as I’d like to, or feel I should. But every once in a while I manage it, this time spurred by a pink pop of forced rhubarb in a Yorkshire market

I broke out of London a couple weeks back for a weekend in York, and am very glad I found the time for dinner at Los Moros, a north African restaurant that feels charmingly casual - though the food is anything but

The Center for a Livable Future at Johns Hopkins has opened applications for its food systems journalism fellowship this year. I'm part of the current crop, and can definitely recommend it if you're an early career food writer, or looking to add it to your repertoire like I was

Paid a first visit to Tommy's Sandwiches near King's Cross the other week. Not London's best sub spot, but a solid start considering it's only just opened. I'll be back when the promised addition of a meatball sub hits the menu.

I'm afraid Loaf wasn't entirely sold on the rhubartini, though I thought it came out rather well: equal parts vodka and rhubarb syrup, shaken over ice

Snuck a little more food writing into the day job, this time on Beyond Meat's pivot to protein drinks

A closer look at one of my favourite bánh mì in London, Hackney’s own Bánh Mì Hội-An

After eating as many as them as I could over the past few weeks, I can confirm that London has an awful lot of bang average bánh mì. But a handful of spots are a cut above the rest, whether it’s thanks to baking their own bread or getting their pickles on point. These are the ones not to miss.

Bangers only at Tofu Vegan (but the silken tofu remains the biggest banger of them all)

A bit of a love letter to the diner, and more specifically Lou’s

Couldn't go to the North without eating a pork pie. In fact, turns out I couldn't go without eating two, but that's between me and God

Poon’s is exceedingly pretty, and the food is almost good enough to match — almost

I was travelling last week, so forgot to share my review of the excellent new opening Tempo - so good that in fact I’m already going back there for dinner tomorrow

My first recipe for the new year is not exactly health food: bubbly focaccia, slick with red chilli oil, and studded with briny capers. Worth relaxing the diet for though.

My first visit to a Vegas buffet, including comically large slabs of prime rib (big rare beef, obviously delicious) and a mysterious black lemon gouda (looked and felt like rubber)

Christmas Eve is usually a lasagne in this house, but last night brought a hard pivot to Chinese food, with pork and prawn dumplings, steamed fish, and stir-fried rice cakes. Plus, um, tarte tatin — a little less on theme, but still great.

Best present yet this year: my little logo brought to life

Made the trek to Toad in Peckham last week for mince pies, but couldn't resist a little more. The soy sauce and sesame cookie was exquisite.

Eating the elusive Good London Taco

With the mince pie monster out the door, I’m taking a little break for Christmas - Braise will be back in January with a review of Eric Wan’s excellent new opening Tempo

You’re running out of time to eat them, but here’s my exhaustively updated guide to London’s best mince pies, including some old favourites and some new stars

A single dish specialist has to really nail that one dish — sadly Khao So-i’s modernised take on the Thai noodle soup doesn't pull off that trick

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