Fish and Chip Shop, Islington

I can never think of anywhere to eat in the Islington area. When asked, my mind draws a complete blank. But in fact, there are (probably) hundreds of places with great food to sink your teeth into, and on Tuesday night for a quick bite before a gig, I found myself in The Fish & Chip Shop.

Located on the buzzing Upper Street, Fish and Chip Shop is the debut restaurant for a team run by owner Des McDonald, formerly of The Ivy. Only one guess as to what it serves, but this is in no way a rough and ready pit-stop like you might expect; it's a sophisticated-looking place with an impressive menu to match. 

Walking in you feel like you've stepped into some kind of time warp. The decor is part warehouse, part Victorian servants quarters, with chipping paint and aged photographs of fisherman pasted onto the walls. Even the stairs up to the (wait for it) Gills and Buoys toilets are stylishly battered and creaky. Inside the restaurant, there are more contemporary hints, with paintings of Bowie, Dylan, and even a portrait of all the 27 Club members. 

I love going to places when there's food on the menu I've never heard of, and this is why for starters, I convinced my boyfriend to share a plate of "London Particular Fritters" with me. As the waiter explained, these are a mix of ham hock and mushy peas, deep fried in breadcrumbs. "They're amazing", he said, but I didn't need convincing - he had me at "ham". You can have a plate of either 3 or 5, but as we were also having a half pint of prawns (I always have to when they're on the menu), the smaller plate was more than enough. Everything was light, fresh, and delicious. I also got to sneak a whitebait or two from my fellow diners, which were also extremely tasty.

Of course you can have you can have your bog standard fish and chips to follow, like the other three at my table had (when the haddock came it was hanging over the sides of the plate, and the bit of cod that I tried was lovely and meaty) but for me, it's the curious looking dishes that always draw my eye. I went for the shrimp burger, served with a spicy tartare and a brioche bun. I slightly feared the shrimp would be minced, but no - whole prawns had been compacted together into a patty, then breaded and fried. It was like eating a massive scampi! Again you could taste the freshness in every bite, and the marrowfat mushy peas were the best I've tasted.

You know a restaurant's really good when you can't wait to go back, and I already know what I'm eating ("soft shell crab butty"? Surely that HAS to be tried!). A hidden gem, though I'm sure not secret for long.

The World's End and The Wolverine

Having not been to the cinema for what seems like ages, Friday night called for something a little bit special; we sat down with the movie times and planned our double bill! First up was the much anticipated, last in the Pegg/Frost trilogy, The World’s End, which delivered everything that’s promised by the comedy duo.

Having lost contact with a group of friends from school, Gary King (Pegg) organises a reunion to complete their hometown’s infamous pub-crawl, The Golden Mile. However, plans start to fall apart when, after a brawl in the gent’s toilets, the five men realise that the town has been taken over by another kind…

Some might describe these movies as spoofs, but I like to think of them more as real-life fiction; what would be likely to happen if you and your mates found yourselves battling zombies, killers and robots. Of course Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are the stars, but the movies wouldn’t be the same without the all star supporting cast. You’ll see some regular faces pop up in The World’s End (Martin Freeman, David Bradley, Bill Nighy), but there are also excellent performances from some unlikely A-listers, Rosamund Pike and Pierce Brosnan. Of course this movie is primarily a comedy, but I have to say I thought the action scenes could easily compare to any big Hollywood blockbusters I’ve seen (a bit like the one I’m about to review!).

There’s lots of explosions, lots of laughs and lots of fence jumping. Finally! A movie trilogy that doesn’t have a rubbish one ;)

He’s back! But I have to admit, when I first saw the ad for the next Wolverine movie, I did think to myself… Really? Do we need another one? Still, I had The Wolverine on my to-watch list, as I’ve loved all the others, and was sure I would love this one too.

Logan (Hugh Jackman) is living alone in the mountains, still trying to come to terms with his own strength after killing his one true love, Jean. He is approached one day by Yukio, a young Japanese girl who tells him of a dying friend in Japan who wants to say his last goodbyes. Logan travels with Yukio, but all is not as it seems as Master Yashida has a proposition for him. Soon Wolverine is back to his old ways, protecting the old man’s heiress granddaughter, and accepting who he really is, claws and all.

Now, I’ve seen that a lot of reviews have given this movie only 2 stars, and I have to say, I just don’t know why. We’re talking about mutants here, people! Have some fun! Based on the special effects alone it should have had more stars than that. What’s more, like most X-Men movies, and unlike a lot of other sci-fi series, this had a storyline that held together and was interesting (despite getting a little crazy and laughable towards the end). I think what also sets the Wolverine movies apart from others is the acting. You can’t fault Hugh Jackman’s talent (with or without his shirt on!) and of course there are big handfuls of cheesy lines but, when Wolverine is telling a floppy-haired ninja to “Go f*uck yourself, pretty boy”, you can’t help but enjoy it.

With all that said, I’d rate The Wolverine four stars, and so would the two boys I went to see it with, so director James Mangold must be doing something right. One tip though, Marvel often have a cliff-hanger clip at the end of their films, so make sure you stay in your seats for a little while after the credits start rolling.

Let me know what you thought of either of these films, I’d be interested to hear!