Bruce Palling
As seen in:
MSN India,
MSN Ireland,
MSN Singapore,
Daily Mail,
Financial Times,
The Guardian,
The Telegraph,
1843,
Newsweek,
The Wall Street Journal
and
Covers:
Food, wine, Travel
Doesn't Cover:
Brexit, Frank Sinatra, Supernatural Wine, Bedints, Bogans...
The pursuit of food, wine, arts, travel, literature and music in civilised company … especially in Italy, India, England and France
Articles by Bruce Palling
Hyderabad curries favour: No one knows the origin of biryani
Please enable JavaScript if it is disabled in your browser.
Hyderabad curries favour: No one knows the origin of biryani
These cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.
Hyderabad curries favour: No one knows the origin of biryani - but this region in India is said to serve the best (and some plates of the dish cost just 50p) - bbdiversinfo
When we ordered a mutton biryani at the Shadab restaurant – ‘delight in every bite!’ – in Hyderabad, all I could see was a piebald pyramid of rice heading our way on a silver platter. But, then, the ingredients became visible: lushly perfumed chunks of mutton, with a kaleidoscopic range of flavours – roasted onions, ginger, garlic, cinnamon and cumin seeds among them – served with a side dish called mirchi ka salan, a chilli and peanut curry mix.
The masterchefs of London
MUMBAI: For the past decade, craft mentor Satish Reddy has been convincing artisans to become artisans again. In 2012, he was working with Khamir, a craft revival organisation in Kachchh, when they asked him to write a white paper on kala cotton. “Kala cotton is quite well-known today. But at the time, due to mill cotton, the value chain had broken down. Weavers were leaving the craft and taking up jobs in ATMs or factories.
Is Korea's Hanwoo Beef the new Wagyu? By Bruce Palling
On a recent visit to Seoul, I was intrigued to discover that South Korea is renowned for the high quality of its beef, which is relatively u...
Is Hanwoo the next Wagyu steak?
Beef is a serious business in South Korea: local butchers typically identify 120 different cuts (as opposed to the western 20 or 30) that...
The Grill at The Dorchester: “The most beautiful beef tartare I have ever eaten” | Restaurant review
The Grill at The Dorchester: “The most beautiful beef tartare I have ever eaten” | Restaurant review 9 September 2021 Grill rooms have been around in London for a century, first in department stores and then in luxury hotels. These days their functions have been overtaken by stand-alone steak houses, although the Savoy and Dorchester still possess them, but with quite different characteristics.
A life-enhancing meal: Ángel León and Mauro Colagreco deliver a remarkable culinary rally at Aponiente
A life-enhancing meal: Ángel León and Mauro Colagreco deliver a remarkable culinary rally at Aponiente 22 July 2021 How often have you eaten something that changes your way of thinking about taste? When it comes to such eureka moments, I can recall plenty of them – such as my first black olive as a teenager in Australia, the contradictory flavours of a ripe durian fruit in Bangkok, or the perfect balance between a vintage Burgundy and a Dutch calf’s liver in a Parisian restaurant.
A Wong in Victoria: Arguably the finest dim sum in London | Restaurant review
A Wong in Victoria: Arguably the finest dim sum in London | Restaurant review 15 June 2021 One man’s trash is another man’s treasure: dim sim vs dim sum. Dim sim – a greasy rectangle of deep-fried minced meat and shredded cabbage – was one of Australia’s staple foods at football matches and consumed by millions. This and the slightly larger and even more artery-threatening Chiko roll, had an extremely tenuous relationship to Chinese cuisine.
Kol review - the new Mexican in need of a little extra spice
After first being announced two years ago, Kol finally opened its doors in October at a spacious site, directly opposite Giorgio Locatelli in Marylebone. The theme is Modernist Mexican, which makes its name a bit of a puzzle. Kol apparently means cabbage in Judeo-Spanish (and Malay) which is odd, given that there was no sign of this humble vegetable anywhere on the menu.Lockdown or not, it has been full since the day it opened and has no dinner tables for two until 2021.
Noble Rot Soho review - a new venue for wine lovers in London
Noble Rot Soho review – a new venue for wine lovers in London
When in Rome… - Reaction
The disastrous stealth federalisation of the EU
Closure of the Ledbury is a culinary catastrophe
Just when the fine dining fraternity thought after months of gloom, there were some glimmers of hope for the future, there was a shock announcement. While many London restaurants were talking of tentative re-openings in the Summer or outdoor dining, the Ledbury chose this moment to lay off its staff and go into, if not actual closure, indefinite hibernation. I have trouble actually taking this in.
Dirt review - Bill Buford's journeys in French cuisine - Reaction
There is a fascination with what makes a restaurant tick. It is probably prompted by the surfeit of TV cookery programmes and the contrived frenzy of getting perfectly formed dishes finished with seconds to spare. They appeal to all ages and classes – one friend of mine at a Buckingham Palace lunch was told by the Queen that when Prince Philip had any spare time, what he really liked doing all afternoon was watching cookery programmes.
Lost Classic - Alexander Kinglake's Eothen - Reaction
Alexander Kinglake warns the reader in the preface to Eothen (1844), his travel classic, that it is quite superficial in its character and thoroughly free of geographical discovery, antiquarian research, politics or historical and scientific illustrations. Instead, Kinglake explains to his unnamed friend, that he is attempting in his “scrawl” to write about the sentimental truth of his journey rather than a quotidian catalogue of his travels.
Making a mark - Alain Ducasse and Romain Meder at the Plaza-Athénée
A generation ago, there were no three-star Michelin restaurants located in hotels. No one ever explained why not – it just seemed to be an unwritten rule. That changed after Alain Ducasse took control of the kitchens at the Louis Quinze in Monaco in the early Nineties and now there must be something like 20 or so around the globe.
Merlin Labron-Johnson's Osip - taking world-class cooking beyond the M25 - Reaction
We can all agree that London has an unrivalled array of cuisines from every corner of the globe with numerous examples of truly exceptional restaurants. Of course, you can find better Italian, French, Spanish and Scandinavian places in their countries of origin, but nowhere else has the diversity or range of what is on offer in London. It is when you venture beyond the M25 that the situation changes for the worse, save for perhaps a couple of dozen establishments throughout the kingdom.
An American diner in Paris
Nearly a century and a half ago, Walter Scott, a hawker in Providence, Rhode Island, converted a horse-drawn freight wagon into a self-contained mobile restaurant, which served pies, sandwiches and hot coffee. This inauspicious event was the birth of the diner, which by the turn of the century had become elaborate wagons in fixed locations throughout North Eastern USA. They were the first fast food places until they were eclipsed in the 1950s by burger joints.
Daniel Humm's Davies and Brook
In 2014, Claridge’s spent considerable time and money before selecting Simon Rogan to open Fera as their flagship restaurant. A special committee was formed, including outside specialists, which spent six months coming up with various options around the globe, before settling on Simon. He was replacing another signature chef, Gordon Ramsay. It didn’t work.
Why modernist cuisine will be off the menu in 2020
While travelling in the Himalayas, I reluctantly allowed a persistent fortune teller to make his pronouncements. After cursorily inspecting my palm as I sat cross-legged in his gaudy tent, he uttered the following profundity: “Sahib, in the future, you will travel to many countries in faraway lands.” Well, yes and no. It was only when I attempted to check out of my hotel, that I realised his soothsaying words coincided with him stealing my passport.
Food: The world is Daniel Calvert's oyster
What makes a meal memorable? There are so many factors – the location, the company around the table, the wines drunk and of course, the skill of the chef. I still recall the revelation I had 30 years ago after my first meal at Harveys, where Marco-Pierre White was first in charge of his own kitchen. It was perhaps more pronounced, as I had returned that day from Paris, where I had eaten at several two star Michelin restaurants.
Down by the Riverside
A little more than 30 years ago, a simple canteen opened in Hammersmith providing Italian-inspired lunches for an architectural practice in an old converted warehouse on the banks of the Thames. Within a few years, the canteen expanded and it is now arguably London’s most successful and durable restaurant – the River Café. It has stuck to its Mediterranean origins and still serves some of the finest Italian cuisine north of the Alps.
Vercelli – the rice capital of Europe - Reaction
Piedmont’s fame in the culinary world is effortlessly established by its white truffles from Alba and red wines of Barolo and Barbaresco. What tends to be overlooked though, is that it is also home to the finest rice in all of Europe. Over half of all rice produced in Europe originates in Piedmont and it comes almost entirely from the monotonously flat fields surrounding Vercelli, just an hour northeast of Turin.
Norbert Niederkofler - the Mountain Chef who made an art out of thinking differently
Around the turn of the Century, Alain Passard of L’Arpège, had a major change of heart about what he liked to cook – he decided to remove all red meat from his menu. The catalyst was the spread of Mad Cow Disease in Britain plus a general uneasiness about celebrating portions of dead animals on his plates.
Michelin UK – in danger of losing its influence? - Reaction
How relevant is the Michelin Guide’s assessment of the British food scene? Now in its fifth decade, its annual publication in early October evokes shrieks of delight amongst the newcomers while veterans shake their heads in dismay at its parsimonious awards at the coveted three star level. It is not just the measly number held by Britain (five, compared with double that in Spain, Italy and Germany, while France has 27) but the actual choices that raises eyebrows and tempers.
Waiter, where is my food (or wine)?
It was the smell that the table noticed first, which was reminiscent of a burnt rubber tyre. This would be exciting enough in the pit lane of the Goodwood Revival, but not what you expect in a fashionable Mayfair restaurant. My wife was hosting the departure of a much-loved member of her magazine. It started on a high with old stories being told and personalities dissected with the assistance of some excellent cocktails. In fact, all went swimmingly until the food turned up.
Eating in the neighbourhood
We should all have a favourite neighbourhood restaurant, no matter what our locality. These are usually places you treat more like a pub than restaurant, with a crowd of regulars that are greeted or avoided in equal numbers. For years, mine was 192, a tiny two floor wine bar restaurant in Notting Hill, opened in the early Eighties by Alastair Little.
Nudging on perfection - simple meals in France
Having reached his fortieth birthday, Cyril Connolly reminisced in war torn London about his earlier adventures in France: “Peeling off the kilometres to the tune of ‘Blue Skies,’ sizzling down the long black liquid reaches of the Nationale Sept, the plane trees going sha-sha-sha through the open window, the windscreen yellowing with crushed midges, she with the Michelin beside me, a handkerchief binding her hair . .
What is it with German cuisine?
What motivates people to visit another country? Perhaps it is a museum, mountain, ruin or garden. Or it could be the people or nightlife that makes it irresistible. When it comes to Germany, many of these factors come into play, but one thing I have never heard anyone say is that they are going for the food. Come to think of it, how many of us even own a single volume devoted to German cuisine? Perhaps I am being prejudiced, but for me, typical German fare is stodgy and unimaginative.
Michelen starred spin-off restaurants are as good as the original
Getting to the top of the culinary tree can take chefs years if not decades of gruelling effort for what is a very exclusive club… after all, there are only 100 or so three star Michelin restaurants and the World’s 50 Best restaurants, amounts to, well, 50 restaurants… and nearly half of those are also on Michelin’s list. So after winning ultimate accolades and the admiration of your peers, what happens next?
Thai Food Remixed
At Le Du, a tiny, under-the-radar Bangkok restaurant with a 30-year-old chef-owner, traditional Thai recipes are reinvented and elevated for the modern diner. One of the lesser-known consequences of the Vietnam War was the kick start it gave to Thai restaurants around the globe. All those millions of GIs on R & R in Bangkok became culinary ambassadors to the rest of the world before masses of tourists replaced them.
Where's the Love? Chefs Dread the V Word
Hearts may quicken in anticipation of Valentine's Day but many restaurateurs and chefs aren't feeling the love. "Valentine's Day is the most boring day of the year for a chef," says Michel Roux Sr., founder of the three-Michelin-star Waterside Inn, among Britain's most romantic settings, in the village of Bray. "You have all...
Bringing a Buon Appetito to Rome
Ever since my first visit to Rome more than 35 years ago, I have had a curious love-hate relationship with the cuisine. It is hard to equal the sensation of eating simple, classic dishes of pasta and roast meats or offal under a canvas awning in a heart-stoppingly beautiful piazza. The problem begins after you go to a handful of such places and realize that the food is virtually identical and only the venue has changed.
Top 10 Young Chefs in Europe
This 28-year-old Sicilian-born chef opened his first restaurant, Relæ, in August after working at El Bulli for the 2006 season and then as sous-chef at Copenhagen's Noma. Although some of his creations are hit or miss, there is a raw talent here that can only improve; one of his signature dishes (and my favorite) is brined and pickled mackerel, with cauliflower on a lemon-peel puree.
Have Food Blogs Come of Age?
What do a Lithuanian model in Paris, a British dot-com consultant and an undergraduate Luxembourgian in London all have in common? They all write successful food blogs in their spare time. Ironically, their knowledge of haute cuisine is arguably greater than that of many newspaper restaurant reviewers in the U.K., where the writing often seems to be seen more as a place for humor rather than about the food itself.
Chefs Return to Nature
COPENHAGEN HAS EMERGED as the new foodie Mecca since Rene Redzepi's Noma was awarded the accolade as the "Best restaurant in the World" in spring. It has also prompted food writers to speak of the end of the "Molecular Gastronomy" monopoly of Spain's El Bulli and Britain's Fat Duck, which have dominated the top two places since these awards began in 2002.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Bruce
Contact Bruce, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack