Tag Archives: Little Venice

Buonasera, Londinium

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Travel anywhere in the world, and two of the most likely visions you’ll encounter will be an Irish pub and an Italian restaurant.

I originally developed my taste for Guinness in London back in the 1980’s, mainly because the locals preferred their beer flat and uninspiring. As with excellent coffee, so it is with good beer, it’s all in the quality of the foam/head!

As 2025 has necessitated my regular return to London, I’ve had an unexpected opportunity to experience a little of what Italy has bequeathed to the old city.

First impressions may seem a little comical. Spend a few minutes in Little Venice. But please don’t think of it as an introduction to the real thing… if you’re dreaming of a mini version of Venetian wonder, this is decaf in its most underwhelming form. Romance has definitely left the building in this strictly gondola-free zone.

However, you don’t need to stray far in any area of the city to find authentic Italian influences.

If you happen to be out far west in Uxbridge, you’ve probably taken a wrong turn out of Heathrow! But never fear, Nonna Rosa will provide good sustenance while you recalibrate your bearings.

Finding yourself in the City of London, why not call in on Eataly at Liverpool Street Station for a choice of Italian restaurants and a high-class Italian deli all under one roof. A quatro stagione with a rich glass of Valpolicella should be an ideal interruption to your travels.

But to top it all, I couldn’t resist a trip down memory lane… or strada dei ricordi for my Roman conquerors. It’s the east end of London, it’s Wapping, and it’s my first return to Il Bordello in 20 years. A truly perfect way of repurposing an old Thamesside bonded warehouse. This was a favourite Italian restaurant of mine at the time, and I can even report that a few of the same waiters in burgundy waistcoats are still there!

Until we speak again, if you find yourself in Londinium, it’s not too difficult to experience authentic buon appetito. Just be prepared to give those chains a miss and instead search out and support the independents.

Hooves and Trotters

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[Some of the following images have been copied from ‘images of…’ on the internet, and are included with thanks to those who originally placed them].

To all my vegetarian eaters I say “get a proper diet, leave the poor weak vegetarians alone, other than giving others a fright with their pale and drawn complexions they didn’t do anything to you.” Personally, I and my species just don’t get it; I wasn’t born with these teeth just to go bringing down broccoli or cornering cabbages for the kill.

When I am contemplating what I fancy eating there is nothing I like more than to see the menu written all over my prey. What better way is there of supporting the great 21st century ethos of consumer choice and providing information through clear product labelling!

But I was even more delighted to see that my culinary psychopathic teachings were put into action just the other day, when my resident ‘flesh chomper‘ was joined by an ‘ex-pat carnivore‘ from the Philippines, as they scoured the local prairies for something to fill the time and space between beers. I strongly advised them to only eat things that recently carried a name… like Gertrude and Daisy, or Pinky and Perky. After all, you don’t know what kind of situation you’ve landed yourself in if the host is talking about ‘Florence the fennel’ or ‘Angelica the artichoke’.

First stop was The Wharf, where Cardiff’s version of Little Venice meets the toxic algae of the Bute East Dock:

Swans at lunch

Lily pads

 

 

 

 

 

A fine pint of the Brains SA was accompanied by freshly served portions of pig… succulent pork chops or the delicate arrangement of bangers and mash with onion gravy.

The Wharf

A pint in the City ArmsFurther pints of Brains SA and Oakham Citra in the City Arms made for a pleasurable interruption to the eating:

It seems that whenever these characters get together the film Groundhog Day gets a re-enactment… just as day follows night, so beer and eating follow, well, beer and eating! It’s another day, but enough of the samples from the sty, it was time for a few hooves to make the ultimate sacrifice; and where better for a beer interruption than a place called The Grazing Shed, where a multi-storey car park meets a multi-storey building site:

The Grazing Shed [5]

 

Cardiff’s tribute to a US classic meets locally sourced ingredients to produce Super Tidy Burgers. This is the part of Cardiff where John Wayne meets Spicy Pedro…

 

The Grazing Shed [4]

Grazing Shed [1]

A great new idea in fast food arrives in Cardiff. This is no ordinary run-of-the-mill burger, these are the Ronseal of the burger world… ‘super tidy burgers‘ that do what they say on the cows backside. Even veggie varieties are available for those with enough energy to walk from the car (though you might want to ask the nice staff if they do a roadside delivery to conserve the stress on vital organs).

Grazing Shed [2]

 

This place is building its reputation on an all ingredients are locally sourced theme. One claim is that butchers supply their meat from Carmarthen… it certainly tasted fresh, and though we weren’t left spitting out hooves, you do get the impression that Daisy might just be out back succumbing to a vigorous crash diet!

So, for all of you poorer gastronomes, and those of you needing a respite between fillet steaks, I will continue to tutor my ‘resident food taster‘ in the delights of a varied budget. Until we eat again I intend to be Juno.