Harden’s (slightly delayed) weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending and avoiding, for the week ending 10 November 2019. Norma, London W1 Jay Rayner for The Observer called Norma “a place of joy”. Well, actually, he didn’t, but thanks to some lazy sub-editing, that’s what the headline says; Jay was actually referring to […]

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Harden’s weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending and avoiding, for the week ending 3 November 2019. The Jackalope, London W1 and The Red Lion, Kent Marina O’Loughlin for The Sunday Times encountered two “beauties” while researching for an article on the demise of the Great British Pub. With “boozers closing at the […]

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Harden’s weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending and avoiding, for the week ending 27 October 2019. Marmo, Bristol Jay Rayner for The Observer was in the South West this week, in one of the “small, perfectly formed” restaurants that Bristol seems to specialise in. They are in no way “Identikit”, but share […]

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Harden’s regular round-up of the restaurant critics’ musings, from the week ending 20 October 2019. Pilgrim, Liverpool For Grace Dent of The Guardian, “2019 has been a year of loitering confusedly in food halls, gob ajar, trying to decipher where one eats, sits, orders and pays”. Her latest (but less confused) visit was to Duke […]

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Harden’s weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending and avoiding, for the week ending 13 October 2019. Sons + Daughters, London N1 “Sometimes, a truly great, home-made sandwich can be quite a profound thing.” Jimi Famurewa for The Evening Standard isn’t always most thrilled by the “enlivening excursions to hypey food courts, dazzling […]

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Harden’s weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending and avoiding, for the week ending 6 October 2019. Mao Chow, London E8 Jimi Famurewa from The Evening Standard sometimes feel like “a well-meaning wrecking ball” (“the walking scourge of overrun kitchens and treasured local secrets”) when he reviews small restaurants. “Can that already-mobbed neighbourhood […]

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Harden’s regular round-up of the restaurant critics’ meals, from the week ending 29 September 2019. Forza Wine, London SE15 Jimi Famurewa for The Evening Standard encourages readers to ignore any “sniffiness” they might feel about Forza Wine, on the fifth floor of “a shiny new multi-level co-working complex that looms above Rye Lane”; yes, it […]

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Harden’s (slightly delayed) weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending and avoiding, for the week ending 22 September 2019. Lagom at Hackney Church Brew Co, London E8 Searching for “good food, fairly priced” instead of the “false promise” of restaurants where the main courses start at £25, Jay Rayner for The Observer headed […]

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Harden’s weekly update of where the critics are eating, recommending or avoiding, for the week ending 15 September 2019. It’s slightly shorter than usual this week – we’re busy finalising Harden’s London Restaurants 2020 and sending it off to the printer; available soon in all good bookshops! OKN1, London N1 40 Hoxton Street might not […]

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Harden’s regular round-up of the restaurant critics’ meals, from the week ending 8 September 2019. Wun’s, London W1 For this week’s review, Jay Rayner for The Observer was tempted “to shove just five words at you and leave it at that: sugar skin Iberico char siu”. “The expansion of the Chinese food experience in the […]

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