The House of Ho, Soho

Is it just me, or does anyone else, no matter how long they’ve spent living in the city, find the streets of Soho quite mind-boggling? I try and try but still, Dean Street, Greek Street, Frith Street, I can’t help but get lost. Anyway, around the corner from all three is a little Vietnamese treasure which from now on, will certainly make the decision of where to eat a whole lot easier. The House of Ho may have a rather unfortunate name (we saw many an amused tourists posing with the sign outside), but its menu was too tempting to turn away from. And no wonder; the restaurant is run by superstar chef Bobby Chinn.

The House of Ho’s menu is broken down into parts and is filled with intriguing sounding ingredients. The idea is that you pick 4-5 dishes for two people, from the range of sections, so we went for:

• Rolls: Confit of Duck with Perilla Leaves and sliced grapes
• Raw & Salads: Seafood Ceviche, Mangosteen Coconut Jus with White Truffle Oil
• Grilled: Smokey Chili Glazed Chicken Wings
• Braised: Vegetable Curry Cellophane Noodles, Paddy Herbs & Chopped Peanuts

Not to brag, but our selection was bloody fantastic. The stand out by far had to be the ceviche; not everyone’s cup of tea, I know, but it was deliciously fresh and gorgeously presented in a coconut shell. Everything on our table was a winner. The only issue came when deciding who got the last duck roll (I had to trade for a chicken wing, but it was worth it).

That was it. We were full. There was no way, no how that we could… And then they asked if we wanted a pudding. Despite the great range, the waiter chose for us: “You’re having the Marou chocolate cake. Trust me, it’s the best.” Marou is a type of chocolate from Vietnam which made the molten-middle cake super rich. As the menu said, this was the perfect “Happy Ending”.

So definitely get yourself down to House of Ho and take your mates; a larger table means a larger selection of tasty treats. Booking is also available.

Five Guys, Covent Garden

The meal I had at Five Guys last week had certainly been a long time coming. You can't know Soho without having seen or heard of this famous American burger place, apparently named Obama's favourite. However, trying to be good with what I eat mixed with the fact that, whenever I've passed, there have been queues literally around the block, it's never been quite the right time. But last Friday, something rather peculiar came over me when, at about 11pm, I walked down Long Acre to find no queue, and only a matter of minutes between me and one of the best tasting burgers around. It had to be done.

The two boys I was with, despite their surprise at my sudden outburst, didn't take much convincing to go in. We'd all just had dinner, but somehow a gap magically formed in our stomachs. Five Guys has absolutely the look and feel of a proper American joint. Red and white tiles, big posters with quotes and rave reviews, and employees everywhere with big smiles on their faces, ready and waiting to please your tastebuds. Overexcited, I asked the lady on the door for her recommendation. She ummed and erred, but confessed that, although I couldn't really go wrong, I should probably go for the bacon cheeseburger. 

But you don't just stop there. At Five Guys, you can have little burgers or regular burgers that come plain, with bacon, with cheese or with both. Once that decision's been made comes the toppings menu, all of which, unbelievably for a burger restaurant, are free (as are the monkey nuts, which you can help yourself to whilst you wait). Lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, onions, grilled onions, pickles, jalapeños, mushrooms, relish, ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce, mayo, relish, HP sauce and hot sauce, and you only need to limit yourself by what you can hold between your hands (without losing your dignity completely...). Waiting at the bar with our order tickets, we watched the line of around 40 burgers laid out, all with different combinations. For me, lettuce and grilled onions were enough to top my BCB. Everything was just perfect - especially the bacon which was crisp and smokey. If burgers aren't your thing (pfft), you could go for a hot dog or sandwich, and there are veggie options too, but whatever you order, you'll have to have fries. They're unbelievably delicious. I couldn't put my finger on it at first, but then I saw on the menu that they are, brace yourself, cooked in peanut oil. That wasn't the only exceptional thing about the fries; there was also a sign up in the restaurant that says where the potatoes had been sourced that day (ours that night were from Holland). To wash it all down, Five Guys has one of those Coca-Cola freestyle machines, with over 100 unlimited sodas.

The atmosphere in Five Guys was just so happy, to go with the happy tummies being filled in the every booth table. Families, couples, groups of friends on their way to or from a night out - people of all ages were laughing and having a good time, staff included. That truly is the sign of somewhere special. Get yourselves down there, if you haven't been already, and be prepared for a finger lickin' good time.

Imli Street, Wardour Street

After a long day dodging drizzle (hasn’t the weather suddenly changed?) a good old comforting curry was just what I needed. I met a friend at Soho’s Imli Street, Indian street food specialists, and boy, were we hungry.

Imli Street is all about selection. With a huge range of drinks as well as food, the menu has something for everyone, whether you’re a meat eater, a veggie, a cocktail lover, a non-drinker, or simply just trying to be good with what you eat (… or not!)

But with variety comes indecision, and I took forever to make up my mind! I turned to the waiter for help, but as he didn’t seem to be able to pronounce the names or recognise the dishes, I was in it alone. He did advise, however, that we choose two dishes, a side and a bread each. Between the two of us, we ordered the Boti (lamb) Kebabs, Paneer Tikka, Railyway Lamb (an Anglo-Indian lamb curry), Junglee Salad (chicken tikka, pear, baby spinach and walnut with ‘burrani’ dressing), Bagare Baingan (baby aubergines in a cashew sauce), Onion Bhajis and Naan Bread, which all came with a portion of rice and yellow lentils on the house.

Everything was delicious; tasty and tender, without being greasy like your average Indian take-away. I particularly liked the Junglee Salad, which was a new dish to me. It’s nice to order a salad that has interesting ingredients, so you don’t have to put up with soggy leaves to feel you’re being healthy. There were so many good looking dishes on our table in the window that passers-by actually started to stop and backtrack to get a good look. Some even came straight in to get a table (you can thank us later, Imli Street).

The pudding list was too intriguing to resist. After trying to decipher the options, without much luck, my friend took the bold move of suggesting that we went for the most peculiar things on the menu. She ordered Gulab Jamun, warm milk dumplings with pistachio and cardamom syrup, which I remembered trying when I was in India. I went for the Haji Ali Falooda, which confused me completely by arriving in a glass with a straw. Inside the glass was a mixture of malai kulfi (a kind of clotted cream), vermicelli (no, the straw didn’t help much with these), basil seeds and rose syrup. I got to the end, but still can’t quite tell you whether I enjoyed it or not…

Although this is the only branch, the restaurant group also includes Tamarind of Mayfair and Zaika of Kensington. If I still haven’t convinced you that you should try Imli Street, have a look at the gallery on their website – your lips will be smacking in no time.

Flat Iron, Beak Street

On discovering a new website called The Nudge, my London restaurant to-try list has doubled! This is where I first heard of Chop Shop and where I found last night’s dinner venue, Flat Iron.

In need of a quick bite before the theatre (more on that later…), we ventured to Beak Street in Soho to try the restaurant that specializes in just one thing – you’ve guessed it – flat iron steak. For you steak connoisseurs, flat iron, or butler’s as we call it in the UK, is from the shoulder, cut against the grain which means it’s tougher, but tastes good.

There are no menus at Flat Iron, just a big sign on the wall, which has the steak (served with salad), and a choice of sides and sauces. The steak was, I thought, reasonable at £10, but as you’d expect, the extras were, well, extra.

Usually this is all they have on the menu, but last night we were also offered their special Flat Iron burger. Why special? Not only because it isn’t a regular option, but because it is first fried and then grilled to make it super juicy. I kept my fingers in my ears for that one, but a young man at the table had his lips smacking and his mind made up.

In a rush, as ever, we were pleased when our food came about five minutes after ordering. Forks and knives ready (I say knives, but actually you are given a small cleaver to eat your meal with!), we were all set to tuck in. I’ve had bigger and more tender steaks before, but I’d say that this flat iron was certainly up there in terms of flavour. You have the option of your steak being medium-rare or well-done, but in my opinion, if you pick the latter, you should really just be thrown out. The meat was beautifully pink, rich in taste, and laced with just the right amount of garlic and salt. I accompanied mine with a good helping of mustards and ‘Fred’s sauce’, a lovely spicy tomato concoction (“a bit like a Bloody Mary’ the waitress had said).

I had to try a bit of the burger, which really was delicious, served with shallots and béarnaise sauce, and the sides of salad and green beans were scrummy, as was that one chip that just happened to fall in my mouth…

On the walk to the theatre we must have said “hmm, that really was good” about eight times. I have to point out that I think we were lucky with our timing because, like most places in Soho, they don't take bookings and queues do start to form outside at peak times. Also take notice, you won’t be seated until all of your party is there. Don’t let that put you off trying though; Flat Iron is certainly one for the steak lover, just make sure to get there early.