Eat Like Ushi

I'm not sure how long this place has occupied this space in Shoreditch. Online suggests 2015. I was used to it housing the branch of Yalla Yalla that I enjoyed during its short inception in 2013 (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/yalla-yalla-london-02-2013-03-2013-05-2013-10-2013). However now this little haven has a foosball table, actual seating tables rather than the short stools of old, and the food has been replaced by a pizza place, a mexican place and a relatively quiet burger stand. I suppose the good news is that where the portaloo with alcohol handrub used to be is now an outdoor seating area to accommodate the smokers.

I actually wanted Dishoom but a 45min wait just for 1 seat wasn't going to cut it. I planned to look at the food vans I've seen in the petrol station looking lot down the road but they were closed on Sunday. So I ended up here, finally trapped by the idea of 60 second sourdough pizza.

Franco Manca still remains one of my favourite pizza places of all time, all over the world. His cookbook taught me how to make pizza at home. How would this place compare?

I enjoy anchovies immensely but the dude recommended the mushroom pizza as being good. So be it. There's a very nice chewy fluffed base with reasonable seasoning to it. And the taste of the sauce and ingredients is good too. What I didn't like was how the outer half of the pizza (so more than half in area terms) had no toppings. And when you pick up a slice, the centre caves and all the ingredients slide off. It may be more fun to eat like that picking up ingredients with your fingers but it isn't better. I suppose I wouldn't mind so much so I didn't have to move ingredients toward the pizza crust to spare it out more.

I'd still be willing to go try the anchovy one and the Mexican stand there, but it's not an essential eat. I'd prefer finding Franco again.

Hailing from Melbourne, cafe culture is something I am used to. Particularly at a certain standard that nowhere else has been able yet to compete (Canberra was extraordinarily close thanks to Local Press and Cupping Room though). Even though London is trying to be more Melbourne-esque in terms of coffee and cafes, there's still a way to go.

I ventured over to the expensive heart of the west in Notting Hill for a Sunday brunch. Pomona's is actually delightfully decorated and very colourful internally. There's a small outdoor area which at 1030am was lucky to be shaded from the rare sun.

The juices weren't the most exciting on the list and the Chia Fix (chia seeds, coconut yoghurt, fresh pineapple) £6 was essentially all pineapple flavour with a little thickness from yoghurt and bits of seed texture. It didn't have the luscious gelatin ball feel I was expecting from some plump chia. For the price too it was quite disappointing.

I initially wanted the Buttermilk Chicken & Waffle (with Duck & Waffle coming to mind) but they were sold out. The other breakfast items didn't really sound all too interesting to me. Luckily the specials menu was pointed out and I ended up with an excellent plate of delicious crisp chilaquites rojos, soft decadent pulled pork, a runny fried egg and salsa verde £15. I also liked the sound of the jalapeño hash brown from another special and managed to score that as a side for £4, but it wasn't very exciting and didn't have enough seasoning.

It was an expensive brunch at £25 although I would have been just as happy with the chilaquites alone. Maybe the Express Kale smoothie next time if I really feel inclined.

London reached 25C. That's incredibly hot and on a Sunday the swarms of people made it feel even hotter. The only solution was to get out of Oxford Circus and naturally find something refreshing enroute.

I found this place from a Google Maps search. It feels like a rockstar juice place with the loud music and the cool kids sitting around sipping their drinks. I learnt long ago that juice needs to be pretty exceptional to excite me (usually requiring some form of gin or tequila) however I am partial to a good smoothie.

A particularly nice and unhealthy sounding one was the Avo Shake (avocado, banana and vanilla milk - unsure what actual milk base they use for this). It isn't cheap at £5.25 for a large but it is cheaper than some of the others. At least it was good and satisfying with the fat content providing a partial meal. The pale green had mild forms of all the elements including the occasional chunk of avocado, banana or ice. I would prefer a stronger avocado taste or the added extra of pistachio or another nut but that's because I'm particular and have dreams others don't.

It's a price for a special occasion and as European summer approaches, I can afford a few of those. The very similar Re-Build or the Breakfast Club are more expensive options for next time.

Even though my WSM 22.5" is still waiting to be used after 4 years, I am lucky enough to still have the opportunity to indulge in smoked delights. Last year it was Meatmaiden and now I have the full London arsenal at my disposal. With the recent sad demise in my opinion of Pitt Cue Co, I've been looking elsewhere.

Smokestak is a very industrial corner with mood lighting inside or views of the Shoreditch Street outside. Since I was alone, I was treated to the best seat in the house - sitting at the corner of the bar right next to the service counter watching the man himself and his minions continuously cutting, grilling and plating up dish after dish. These people really do work hard.

Smoke £8.5 cocktail had a strong discernible tequila, a touch of smoke, a burnt slice of lime and very weak ginger (more like unfizzy lemonade). I was a good drink and something I needed after the day of work.

- Crispy ox cheek £4.5 - excellent fried croquettes filled with soft, shredded cheek and served with a (?aubergine) sauce. Delicious;
- Pigtails £4.5 - a collection shiny fried pieces of crispy skin, fat and a little meat around a centred bone served with an Asian soy-sugar inspired sauce (reminiscent of the pig bones at Bone Daddies);
- Brisket bun, pickled red chilli £5.0 for small - this place was reputed for brisket and I thought having a bit of carbohydrate wasn't a bad idea. Short slices and little pieces of tender brisket were drizzled with vinegar and chilli (with non-existent heat). The brisket itself was very minimally seasoned, with just a mild flavour of beef and the soft meat texture being noticeable. It was a nice showcase for the brisket;
- Charred greens, tahini, pomegranate £4.5 - greens served with tahini (couldn't really tell much sesame) and black sauce (oyster sauce I think) with some pomegranate and a huge amount of peanuts.

I can't say it was my favourite smokehouse meal of all time, but I did enjoy the ox cheek, the taste of the pigtails and the brisket bun. Next time I'd be more keen to have the incredible looking thick slices of pork rib. The wild mushroom with beef dripping toast also looked good, although I suppose you don't need to go to a smokehouse for that.

The main guy at the pass was pleasant and must have taken pity in my being the only solo diner there by saying hi at the end of the meal. What a nice dude. I'll be back.

Four course menu £95 + £10 for fillet of beef

Chicken tikka £2.80
Lamb chops £5.50
Paneer tikka £2.8
Sheekh kebab £2.70
Karahi gosht £6
Chicken biryani £6
Garlic nan £2
Tandoori paratha £2

Spanish hams £8.75
Sourdough £2.5
Sea trout £6.25
Squid £5.25
Prawns £6.75
Pork Belly £6.25
Duck £7
Lamb gigot £6.75
Panna cotta £5.25
Grilled figs £5.25
Apple frittelli £5.25

One of the most exciting food items on the Salamanca radar is hornazo. It is advertised in the shop windows of many places including bakeries, cake stores and jamonerias.

I was lucky enough to sample a few different places during my two weeks. It is a pastry crust filled with pork loin (lomo), chorizo and jamon. Apparently some also have hard boiled eggs, but none that I saw. One other thing that is quite quaint to me is that these are eaten cold. They will heat these up upon request, but they told me that isn't standard.

Santa Lucia
These were the first I tried from Plaza Mayor. I decided to get a whole single one rather than a piece of the big shared version. Whether it was because of that or just the way they make it there, it was filled with very little meat and lots of pastry. I had it mildly warmed and although ok, wasn't that exciting. It was also a little more expensive at €3.7.

Viandes de Salamanca
This was the only one I tried from a specialty jamon store. It was the most expensive at €4 or €4.5. You can see the meat busting out of this one. I ordered it takeaway and heated it up myself in the microwave at home. It was nicer with a thick slice of lomo and salami. Not bad at all.

La Tahona de la Abuela
When researching online, Abuela's hornazo was the one that I had listed. And even though they are a bakery, cakeshop and heladeria, hornazo was the only item I had written to try. I'm not sure what stopped me from getting it before the other two, but for some reason I didn't. Maybe it was the helado brightness and a not very overwhelming multicereal bread roll I got from them. Eventually I got hornazo from the Rua Mayor location (not the ones in or just east of Plaza Mayor) and so thankful I did. The lady offered to heat it up so I expect she knows foreigners prefer it this way. The pastry was soft and a little crumbly, albeit not the same a good pie pastry. But the filling was an equal fill of lomo, salchichon (I think it was this, not chorizo) and a bit of jamon. It was the best of the lot and I had it twice from there. It was also the cheapest at €3.5.

La Tahona de la Abuela's hornazo from Rua Mayor was the best of the lot I tried. Look for the cut slices from the full one so at least you can see what the filling proportions are like. And I definitely prefer it warm, which means many jamon places wouldn't be able to do it.

After staying in Salamanca for 2 weeks, I had the opportunity to try many of the gelato places. Essentially each day where the sun warmed up the afternoon in Plaza Mayor, I would enjoy my helado as the sun started to set around 6pm.

Umami
I came across this on my first afternoon in delightful sunshine along the busy Rua Mayor. It turned out to be the best of the lot, with its Italian artesenal heritage and authentic steel tins keeping the goods safe. The pistachio was strong and not overly sweet, the coconut was a bit too mild, and the unpictured avellano had a potent beautiful hazelnut flavour.

Valencia
That first day I saw people queuing at Valencia around the corner from Umami. It looked like a fairy place for children. I tried their chocolate which was a little darker than standard (which I definitely prefer) but the pistachio wasn't as good even though it had little nut bits which I do like generally.

Santa Lucia
I saw the helado here but didn't end up having it. I got a hornazo that day instead. A friend tried the kitkat flavour on a later day and thought it tasted like standard chocolate.

Novelty
I was recommended this place by the profesora at my escuela as her favourite. I must say the huge mounds visible from Plaza Mayor definitely mean it would not have been my choice if it wasn't for her recommendation. I must say it wasn't bad at all, with the chocolate not too sweet and the avellano quite strong. I did get a small rather than medium for the other places, but the serving size was significantly smaller.

Overall Umami was my favourite. I'd be happy to go back for the pistachio and avellano/hazelnut. I'd have to remind myself to get a small though as I struggle to finish medium by myself.

Some students took me to a pizza place in Plaza Mayor. Usually eating in a plaza would be a bad idea given that's how tourist traps work. However at least this place was a mixture of enticing and some imaginative interior design. It's a pizzeria and a cerveceria meaning night may be even more atmospheric.

Pizzas are shown in the window but different ones are available inside. They are about 22-27€/kg which works out to be about 3-4€ for a 140gram slice that they approximate, which makes 10€ per lunch or so. Of course you can ask for mas o menos or try more range.

The best part is that before serving, they put it in an oven/grill which crispens the oily base and also melts and chars the toppings, particularly the cheese. It's an excellent method and one I will now adopt to home cooking.

I tried 6 types of pizza in 2 sittings and all were good. My favourite would have to be one with zucchini and provolone with anchovy running through it - excellent flavour. Others include in that same photo pumpkin/panceta and cherry tomato/basil, and in the second photo mushoom/pesto/tomato, 4 cheese and anchovies/mozzarella/red peppers.

Of the pizzas I've sampled from Australia, London, Italy, NYC and Argentina, I'd probably say it resembles deepdish NYC or Argentina the closest. Very impressed.