Friday 7 June 2013

Cities - more creative, more individual...

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However much I channel my inner redneck and love the wilds and the countryside, every now and then the city boy reaches out and slaps me in the face. And it's stuff like this that reminds me about the creativity, innovation and wonder of the big city:

Rochelle Canteen is a well-kept secret, unusual, perhaps, for its location. Situated inside a school down the backstreets of Shoreditch, it is converted from an old bike shed and manned by Melanie Arnold & Margot Henderson. I skipped towards my lunch date armed with detailed instructions, for it is not exactly straightforward to find. Tables were set out in the sunlight, overlooking a pretty grassy courtyard; sun hats hung on pegs inside. A simple menu keenly priced and devoid of any fussy adjectives made me want everything, while a blackboard of specials tempted further.
And they serve rabbit offal salad with snails!  I love the country pub, the wild mushroom, foraging and the idea of found food but...

...nowhere in the wilds will you get a kitchen in a school playground serving such weird - innovative, challenging, whatever, food!

Sometimes I miss London!

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