Elliots - Borough Market



Scallop and Mary Pippers

After an afternoon visit to Borough Market, we had dinner at Elliot's.
Their menu varies depending on what is in season, and according to their website, all their ingredients are sourced from the market.

The restaurant itself is very welcoming, the sort of place where you are happy to linger for a bit, although the service was somewhat erratic, in particular regarding gluten safety.


The booking had been made mentioning we were all coeliacs, and we mentioned it again on arrival.
We were given the menu with the gluten containing dishes marked on it, but a couple were not correctly marked (thankfully "barley" was a clue), and a non gluten-free bread basket was brought to our table.


Pork

Once we were settled on what we could eat, there were lots of interesting dishes on the menu, and choosing was difficult.
We were told two to three dishes per person would be about right for dinner, and being in a shellfish mood I ordered scallops, mussels and some of their Mary Piper roasted potatoes.
There was only one scallop in my dish, but it was very fresh and delicious, and the same can be said for the large portion of mussels (sorry no pic). They were a good size and were served with bacon and a creamy sauce that was very enjoyable. I wouldn't mind having them everyday!

I had some of the chocolate ganache for pudding, which was also nice, but not as nice as the main meal.

Most of the dishes ordered by the group looked very appetizing, like the pork in the photo, and it seemed like everyone was happy overall.

I would be happy to recommend the food, it was lovely and fresh and the venue was very welcoming. Most of the dishes are naturally gluten-free, but make sure you double check about anything you are unsure of.

Elliots Cafe
http://www.elliotscafe.com/index.html
12 Stoney Street, Borough Market, SE1 9AD

Dim sum Naturally Chinese Surbiton - Gluten Free

After visiting Naturally Chinese recently, I wanted to go back to try their Dim Sum, which is available every day until 5pm at the restaurant.

Dim Sum was one of my favourite weekend lunches before I had to wave goodbye to gluten, so I was curious about how would their gluten free option compare to what I remember.

They have many gluten free choices clearly marked on their menu (available online).

I ordered:
Turnip cakes
Steamed vegetables in garlic
Prawn and chive dumplings
Spring rolls
Vegetable rolls




Unfortunately Char siu buns and glutinous rice were not available gluten-free, which I would have loved to have.

My two favourites were the prawn and chives dumplings and turnip cakes, both very tasty, while I have mixed feelings about the vegetable rolls and spring rolls. The fillings were very nice, but the roll itself could be a bit lighter.

Overall I would be happy to go back as the food was tasty and they seem to have a very good understanding of gluten and cross contamination.

Naturally Chinese
http://www.naturallychineserestaurant.co.uk/
59-63 Brighton Road, Surbiton, Surrey, KT6 5LR
Getting there: Trains from Waterloo take around 20 mins

Borough market

I went to Borough market at the weekend with the London Gluten free meetup group.

Freefrom Bakehouse

The market is great if you like your food, as there is probably not much you might fancy that you wont find there.

We were looking out for stalls that were gluten free, and we found plenty of them.

The Free From Bakehouse
This artisan bakery has won many Free From and Great Taste awards. All their cakes and treats are gluten and wheat free, with many also sugar free and egg free.
They are at Borough Market from Wednesday to Saturday, and I'd definitely recommend going early if you want to try some of their more popular products. I was looking forward to some jalapeno and sweetcorn muffins but they had run out by then, so I had to get one of their other yummy cakes!
Find out more on their website:
http://www.sugargrain.com/

Mini Magoo's

Mini Magoo's, many GF breakfast options

At this stall, just behind the Free From Bakehouse, there are many types of cereal, many of them gluten free, so if you are into granola, muesli, porridge and anything cerealy it is worth a visit.
Available in many places across London. Find out more on their website:
http://www.minimagoo.com/


Cannon & Cannon

Cannon & Cannon GF charcuterie

This is a charcuterie where every product is gluten free and dairy free, and they have a huge selection of different products. I bought a few to take home and they were quite nice, although I don't remember now the varieties I got so I cannot be more specific than that!
Find out more on their website.
http://cannonandcannon.com/

Rabot Estate 1745

This is a restaurant, cafe and shop that's all about chocolate, where you can find from cocoa beans to the very best of chocolate made with beans from around the world. I tried the cocoa beans when we were there, and what an unusual taste, starting close to a peanut in texture, but with that bitter chocolate taste at the end, lovely!

It was a fantastic culinary journey, we also found some gluten free sausages at Sillifield farm butchers, ostrich eggs and more fish and shelfish varieties that I've ever seen together.
Nothing better to finish the day than a great dinner at Elliot's also on the market, that I will review on a separate post.

Lu-Ma Wimbledon

I finally had a chance to visit Lu-Ma, a new cafe in Wimbledon, not far from the station (5/10 mins walk).
The cafe is on the side of the Justin James Hotel on Worple road. The cafe itself is a small venue, but it feels quite light and airy, with tables in and out and a Scandinavian feel to the decor.
We were there for an early dinner (note that they close at 6.30 pm if you plan to visit) although I'd say it's probably a venue to be enjoyed more for breakfast, lunch or afternoon tea.

The menu is available online, and you can see their gluten-free options (GF) and vegetarian options (VG).
I love the fantastic choice of drinks, lots of freshly made smoothies and juices, they all looked very appetising and full of vitamins.
Their focus is on healthy eating, so even the jacket potatoes are made with sweet potatoes, and if you read about their Vision on their website you can see that this ethos goes into all the food and drink they provide.

We had some juices to start us on the healthy road and they were just fantastic, definitely recommended.

It was difficult to choose our main course as there were several things I wanted to try, but in the end I went for Buckwheat noodles with chicken and my companion had one of their Super Salads with salmon.

I was trying to check the ingredients on their website as I write but this dish doesn't seem to appear, so I'll just say the sauce in the noodles was very nice and I enjoyed it very much. Noodles can be ordered on their own, or with a protein topping (chicken, salmon, tofu) and I ordered some chicken. Although the flavour was good, the chicken was served cold on top of the hot noodles, which didn't quite work for me.
A suggestion would be to heat the chicken slightly before serving so that it's all warm or to mix it with the noodles so that it's all enjoyed at the same temperature.

The salad looked very impressive indeed and I could see my companion feeling overly healthy eating it, not just your five a day, probably you get the weekly recommended amount of vegetables with such a nice salad.

There were lots of interesting ingredients in it and I was feeling slightly jealous looking at it, good thing that my noodles were fab.

My friend really enjoyed it, although felt that the dressing was not enough for such a large salad.

Overall we both enjoyed our meals and would be happy to visit again.

Lu-Ma cafe
http://lu-ma.co.uk/
Justin James Hotel,43 Worple Road, Wimbledon, SW19 4JZ
Opening times: Monday to Friday 9.30am – 6.30pm, Saturday & Sunday 10.30am – 6.30pm

Leon new Gluten-Free Chicken - Oh dear!



Gluten Free Chicken

I was invited to try the new Gluten Free Chicken at Leon that is trialling for a week at their Spitafields branch.
The Spitafields branch is well located inside the market, so it's fun to see the hussle and bustle from the windows.

My invitation included the new chicken dish plus side, cake and drink which was very generous of Leon.

Every item I ordered was labelled gluten-free on the menu, however I started feeling unwell a bit later, and I believe there was some cross-contamination in the food I had.

After mentioning it on twitter I got a call from their Head of Food who went through all the processes they have in place and I have to say, it is surprising if they do all that that I got ill there, but unfortunately my gut doesn't understand of processes, only of gluten.

They seemed to take it seriously and someone was dispatched to the restaurant to investigate. It might just be a problem with training.



Pecan Pie

Although I am unlikely to go back due to food safety, I did like the chicken, the flavour was very nice and the coating quite crunchy and full of flavour. The pecan pie was lovely too, with lots of nuts.

I would like to know if anybody else has had a similar experience or a positive one eating gluten-free at Leon, please leave a comment, I'd love to read it.

Leon Restaurants
http://leonrestaurants.co.uk/

The Truscott Arms - Very Gluten-Free Friendly

I went to the Truscott Arms at the weekend with the Gluten Free Meetup group.

I had already heard lots of good things about it and I'd been looking on their website at their food and drink options for us GF eaters.


Fish & Chips

The pub is quite spacious and welcoming and we had excellent service from the staff, no question was one too many and all our doubts were put to rest with a smile. A 10 for service!

We had our dinner at the bar (there is also a restaurant upstairs), and it was great to see that most of the menu is gluten-free or there is a gluten-free option.
As an example, of the eight mains on the bar menu, four are gluten-free and two have a gluten-free option. Brilliant!

Most of us went for fish and chips, and it felt like such a treat.
I could write a whole post about the delicious chunky chips, worth the trip just for them, and the fish was quite good too.
I generally like my batter a bit lighter (like the one we had at Maddys recently), but I guess this is just a personal preference.

On the drink front, there is the normal pub choice plus five different gluten-free beers!!!
It was brilliant, and I finally tried Daas Blonde, which I loved and now shares with Greens the top spot of my favourite gluten-free beers.
All the puddings except one are GF too, what is not to love?

Overall, I felt the staff knew how to handle gluten-free, and were happy to answer any questions. There was a good selection of GF food on offer and I loved what I had.
Recommended!

The Truscott Arms
http://www.thetruscottarms.com/
Tube: Warwick Avenue
Address: 55 Shirland Road, Maida Vale, W9 2JD

Naturally Chinese - Gluten Free in Surbiton

 

Soft Shell crab

I went to Naturally Chinese in Surbiton at the weekend.
I first heard about it from the Gluten Free London meetup group, and although I couldn't go on that occasion, I've been wanting to go for a while.
This is a Chinese restaurant with lots of gluten-free options and all of them very tasty.
The restaurant itself is spacious and light and as we went for an early dinner it wasn't too busy.
The service was very attentive and I even got my own Tamari sauce to use at will!

So, what did we eat?

Steamed dim sum

Soft-shell crab, steamed dim sum platter, chilli squid, vermicelli noodles Singapore style and, as I couldn't have the crispy duck pancakes, I ordered crispy lamb, which is served with lettuce instead of pancakes and plum sauce instead of hoisin to make it gluten-free.
It is very easy to see the gluten-free options on the menu, as they are marked with a red G, and it's also easy to spot the vegetarian options marked with a green V.

Squid

It was really nice food, and I was happy that they knew how to keep gluten-free food, gluten-free. I didn't feel unwell at all after visiting, which was fantastic!

I'd love to go back for dim sum as this is something I really miss from my gluten eating days.

They told me they will be launching a dedicated gluten-free menu towards the end of the month (Sept 2014) with even more choices.

Naturally Chinese
http://www.naturallychineserestaurant.co.uk/
59-63 Brighton Road, Surbiton, Surrey, KT6 5LR
Getting there: Trains from Waterloo take around 20 mins