Bubbleology - Bubble tea (Taiwanese drink)

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Café – Bubble Tea specialists
Price:	£3.45 regular bubble tea
Healthy:	Yes – I believe there are no added sugars (but please check with the staff.)
Tasty:	·         3/5 – Drink ·         3/5 – Service ·         3/5 – Comfort of dining in ·         3/5 – Overall rating
Occasion:	·         Meeting with friends. ·         Makes a change from Coffee bars.
Address:	49 Rupert Street, Soho, London, W1D 7PF
Opening times	Monday to Thursday – 11am-11pm Friday- 11am-11:30pm Saturday - 11:30am-11:30pm Sunday - 11:30am-11pm Tel: 0207 494 4231
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-away
Recommended dishes & drinks	Original bubble tea Rose milk bubble tea Strawberry bubble tea
Vegetarian dishes	No gelatine – suitable for vegetarians.
Loyalty card	No.
Website	http://www.bubbleology.co.uk/
Notes	A popular oriental drink from Taiwan with a clever marketing making you feel you are in a lab!

After 5 + City Pig’s analysis

Bubbleology is a specialist café bringing you bubble tea. Bubble tea originates from Taiwan and can be found across the Far East and many parts of US and Canada.

It is essentially tea mixed with tapioca pearls which brings the chewy texture whilst sipping the drink. The tapioca pearls is like giant jelly balls but is not made from jelly, so vegetarians can have it too.

The tea can be served hot or cold and in many flavours ranging from fruit flavoured to milk based teas. The original bubble tea is the Assam or Jasmine flavour (black teas). The milk tea may remind you of a milkshake but less rich and creamy.

This place is busy because the owners have made the shop looking like a lab where staff serves you in lab coats. It is very clever and really provides Bubbleology a unique position as the ultimate bubble tea masters. Although, it is small in the Soho branch, it is pleasant once you find a seat.

The regular size bubble tea is very generous and often felt I could not finish the drink as it is very filling. At £3.45 it is not super cheap but it is reasonable and comparable to some coffee shops.

It does make a refreshing change to the usual coffee shops and has a youthful feel bringing you back to school days. However, do not feel you cannot come here if you are not a student; there were plenty of other mature looking office types here as well as the more junior looking students.

It cannot compare to the authentic Taiwan bubble tea I have experienced but it sure makes a good stab bringing some uniqueness to the non-alcoholic drinks industry.

Peony Club - Chinese

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Chinese (dim sum available for lunch)
Price:	Average spend £12 (Based on just dim sum dishes and a drink). Average spend £20 (Based on dim sum dishes, main dishes from menu and a drink. Set lunches start at £18.50 per person
Healthy:	Health and diet conscious: Opt for steamed dishes and stir fry vegetables. Chinese food can be oily but Peony stir-fries and even duck dishes were not too greasy.
Tasty:	·         3.5/5 – Food ·         3.5/5 – Service ·         4/5 – Comfort of dining in ·         4/5 – Overall rating
Occasion:	·         Friday lunch time treat. ·         Dinner - clients/colleagues and friends catch up. ·         Private dining and lounge
Address:	46 Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7AY
Opening times	Monday to Friday –11am-3pm & 6pm-11pm. Saturday and Sunday – Closed. Tel: +44 (0) 020 7726 0308
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-aways
Recommended dishes & drinks	Dim sum: ·         Steamed prawn dumplings (Very large and generous prawn meat inside the dumpling). ·         Steamed prawn and scallop dumplings ·         Singapore fried vermicelli.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	Membership available for an annual fee.
Website	http://www.peonyclub.com/
Notes	A posher Chinese restaurant but without the pretentious atmosphere. Great Cantonese dishes that is rare to be found in the Square mile.

City Pig’s analysis

Peony is the newly refurbished Chinese restaurant on Gresham Street which was formerly known as Goldfish.

I had been to Goldfish and was not impressed by the Chinese food served there. I decided to give Peony a chance, as clearly it has undergone a vast image change.

It’s striking black and pink logo and dark interiors as you walk in breathes an air of elegance that never existed in Goldfish. I noticed there were books on the shelves which seemed odd but added to the stylish designs.

All staff was friendly enough to greet us and bring us to our tables. It felt luxurious but not in a pretentious manner and I can see this being a place to bring your clients or perhaps a nice treat with your colleagues.

The dim sum menu might seem limited to those who are regular dim sum eaters but the staple dim sum e.g. “Prawn dumplings” are there. Indeed, the prawn dumplings were superior as the name describes. They were by far the most generous with the prawn meat and it was encased with a thin see through rice flour shell. It was perfect.

Most of the steamed dumplings were very good. I was a little disappointed there wasn’t more choice on the dim sum. However, the Singapore noodles were cooked very well – not too spicy and a hint of curry powder mixed in. Some Chinese restaurants tend to cook very oily and greasy dishes but I was pleased peony did not follow.

The portion sizes could be bigger, to reflect the prices but this is where up-market Chinese restaurants seem to all have smaller portions.

It is not an everyday lunch option but a Friday lunch time treat or a place to meet friends or colleagues for dinner in the Square mile. I will have to try the dinner menu next time and see how this compares.

I have always wanted there to be more good Chinese food in the City of London and I can count Peony as being one of them.

Lantana - cafe

After 5 + City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Café - European
Price:	Average spend £14 per person (Main meal and drink)
Healthy:	Relatively healthy in comparison to the traditional fry ups.
Tasty:	4/5 – Food 3/5 – Service 2.5/5 – Comfort of dining in 4/5 – Overall rating
Address:	13 Charlotte Place Fitzrovia W1T1SN
Opening times	Monday to Friday – 8am to 6pm Saturday and Sunday – 9am to 5pm
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-aways.
Recommended dishes & drinks	French toast and latte.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	No
Website	http://www.lantanacafe.co.uk/
Notes	A chilled out place to catch some brunch. No bookings though.

After 5 + City Pig’s analysis

Lantana located near Goodge Street is a café that brings an interesting brunch menu.

It is a small café, neatly tucked into Charlotte place.

The brunch menu offers a mix of sweet and savoury dishes. The classic dishes such as sausage and beans have an added twist with other ingredients that changes the traditional dishes to something unique.

I opted for the French toast with berries, honey ricotta and toasted almonds. I initially fancied the “Maple French toast with crisp bacon, grilled bananas and candied pecans” which I found on the internet. However, I was informed this was the old menu that had not been updated.

When the French toast arrived, I was not disappointed that this new combination also worked well.

The French toast was cooked to perfection. The berries gave it an extra acidic bite and the ricotta helped bind it together like cream. After a while, it can be a bit dry which is where the maple syrup would have helped. Nonetheless, I was very satisfied and was it quite filling.

City Pig’s pal opted for the savoury dish of ham hock and beans. This was a very hearty and comfort dish. The beans were soft and covered with a tomato spice, and with two poached eggs and toast.

I personally preferred the French toast, as the flavours were definitely very moreish.

The latte I ordered, was just beautiful with the flower pattern on top. The taste was rich and very beany as I would expect from the Australian style coffee.

I came here at the weekend and it was already busy at 1pm. It was interesting to see a range of people in here from young families to twenty to thirty year olds catching up with friends in here.

There are some newspapers and magazines free to read if one is here alone. Lantana is quite small though and not the most comfortable place as seats is quite hard. For larger groups it may be more comfortable at Salvation Jane.

The sister newly opened restaurant in Old Street (Salvation Jane) is much bigger and comfortable. (Salvation Jane review will feature soon by City Pig.)

A café that brings new twists to traditional brunch menus.

Summary of Citypig’s meal with pal:

o   Sanpelle  Can                    £1.70

o   Latte                                   £2.50

o   French Toast                     £9.00

o   Ham hock and beans       £10.50

12.5% S.C                             £2.96

Total                                       £26.66

Pizza East

After 5 + City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Pizzeria - Italian
Price:	Average spend £18 per person (Pizza and a drink)
Healthy:	Rustic pizzas – freshly baked. Pizzas are made up of dough so very high in carbs for those cautious of their weight.
Tasty:	4/5 – Pizzas and desserts. 3/5 – Service. 4/5 – Overall rating.
Address:	56 Shoreditch High Street London E1 6JJ ; T: 020 7729 1888
Opening times	Monday to Wed: 12pm - 12am (Kitchen open until 11pm) Thursday: 12pm - 1am (Kitchen open until 12am) Friday: 12pm - 2am (Kitchen open until 1am) Saturday: 10am - 2am (Kitchen open until 1am) Sunday: 10am - 12am (Kitchen open until 11pm)
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-away
Recommended dishes & drinks	All pizzas and desserts are a must.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	No
Website	http://www.pizzaeast.com/
Notes	Rustic style pizzas and a great place to catch up with friends.

After 5 + City Pig’s analysis

Pizza East sets itself to be different from other pizza chains as it focuses on making rustic style pizzas. The ingredients are very Italian focused and therefore, you may need the help of the waiter to understand the toppings.

Pizza East, has an edge of coolness as you walk in, you are greeted by the receptionists with their iMacs. It gets very busy here and so I would recommend booking a table.

I tried two pizzas, the spicy sausage and the pancetta pizza. Both were crispy and the dough light in perfection. The flavours were impressive and tasted very fresh.

The drinks menu is interesting in that it has a wide selection of cocktails. I opted for the Elderflower, cucumber soda which was very refreshing in taste.

The salted chocolate caramel tart was the most heavenly dessert I tasted. It really tastes amazing and is not too sweet or too salty. The combination is perfect and is clearly very memorable in my mind.

It is a place to go if you want a casual dinner and a few drinks. It has a great lively buzzing atmosphere and it is one of the cool kids from the East.