Fentiman's Rose Lemonade | cheriecity.co.uk

Whyte & Brown brings a unique concept to central London, focusing only on free-range chicken and eggs (not even a sliver of red meat to be found). The two-floor restaurant is nestled in the increasingly food-orientated Kingly Court, just a few steps from Soho, Carnaby Street and Liberty.

It could easily be an overly twee concept, however Whyte and Brown keeps it grown up with slick design and an interesting menu of comfort dishes with a twist. In fact, with so many different ways of serving chicken and eggs, it doesn’t feel as though choice is limited.

When we arrived on an early Friday evening, the bar was already busy and we were seated in a cosy spot in the upstairs restaurant. The atmosphere is more lively than romantic and there were notably a few large groups, who were perhaps attracted because of the central location, informal vibe and menu of universal crowd-pleasers.

Our friendly waiter made some good recommendations and quickly brought us a Fentiman’s Rose Lemonade while we decided what to order.

We started with some delicious Polenta-crumb chicken strips (£5.25) to share. The long, succulent strips of high quality chicken breast were coated in a crunchy, subtly seasoned polenta-crumb, mixed with plenty of fresh rosemary. The garlic mayonnaise dip was smooth and potent, adding a punchy flavour to the chicken.

As the chicken starters were so tempting, we also tried the Half a dozen croquette balls (£5.45). The generous amount of golden, crispy balls were served piping hot and were filled with shredded chicken and pancetta, chives, lemon and gooey bechamel. The croquette balls were rich, flavoursome and satisfying, with a delicious smoky tomato sauce for dipping.

I couldn’t resist following with more chicken and ordered the Pulled chicken bap (£9.75). The tender, juicy pulled chicken was piled into a soft, fluffy, toasted bun with tossed confit white onions and served with a tasty Asian-style house slaw with a light sesame dressing (happily no mayonnaise).

The chicken itself was perfect, however the smoky barbecue sauce was a little sweet and overpowering – perhaps serving it on the side or using less sauce might be better.

Steven’s Brick chicken (£12.95) was the star dish and something we would go back again and again for. The half chicken was covered in W&B signature seasoning and steeped in fresh lemon, thyme, garlic and olive oil, then served three ways. The marinated breast was roast-grilled under a brick and accompanied by a 24-hour slow-cooked thigh confit and 12-hour slow-cooked wing.

The moist, juicy chicken had a delicious smoky and charred taste and the skin was perfectly crispy and moreish. It was served simply with a jug of natural home-made gravy, fresh thyme and half a lemon.

We accompanied our chicken dishes with a couple of sides. Rustic chips (£3.25) were twice-cooked, thin and crispy, if a little dry. Mini Mac Cheese (£3.95) was oven-baked and topped with crunchy breadcrumbs with plenty of cream but no distinguishable cheese flavour.

I accompanied my meal with a Peachelada (£6.95), which was refreshing but a little too malty and lacking in sweetness, while Steven’s Four Saints (£7.45) was strong and fragrant but very sour. Next time, I would go for one of the interesting craft beers, a Devon Red cider or an elderflower soda.

For dessert, I was drawn to the Proper ice cream with jug of chocolate sauce (£4.95 for 3 scoops). I was particularly excited by the chocolate orange flavour and also added a scoop of vanilla bean and my favourite flavour, hazelnut. The ice cream is pure perfection – creamy and smooth with natural, luxurious flavours.

The chocolate sauce resembles the high quality, bittersweet hot chocolate that you’d find in France rather than the thick, fudgy sauces that are usually served. Ice cream is rarely the highlight of a dessert menu, but Whyte & Brown’s ice cream is sophisticated and ever so decadent. I really think in the summer months they should park up a mini ice cream van by the outdoor seating – it would be a big hit.

Steven went for another dessert classic, Tipsy trifle (£5.75). Served in a glass pot, the scrumptious trifle was packed with layers of rich chocolate sponge and silky Catalan custard. It was given a zesty, juicy sweetness with orange served four ways: Cointreau, jelly, crispettes and fresh fruit.

Whyte & Brown is a great place to indulge in some delicious comfort food, particularly when you’re in the mood for some tasty chicken. I can’t help thinking Whyte & Brown would make a great high end chain of restaurants and wouldn’t be surprised if more London outlets open in the next few years. The spot on branding, quirky concept and excellent food all make for a very promising restaurant.

For more information and booking, visit: ww.whyteandbrown.com

Chérie City was a guest of Whyte & Brown

Photos by Chérie City and Whyte & Brown

Ozone Coffee Roasters is an exciting new addition to the London Antipodean coffee scene. Ozone has been roasting coffee in New Zealand since 1998 and now brings its years of expertise to east London. The expansive two-floor dining room and cafe with in-house roastery opened in March this year in a converted industrial building, tucked away on Shoreditch’s Leonard Street.

There are plenty of petite artisan coffee joints in East London, but Ozone is a much slicker affair, with an open kitchen serving proper restaurant dishes, intimate leather booths and table service.

The front of Ozone is a casual sit-in cafe with a take-away counter and boutique selling Ozone coffee, gourmet hot chocolate mixes and coffee brewing homeware.

We visited for lunch and had a booth to ourselves where we could peer across to the kitchen and watch our food being prepared. There is a good selection of wines and beers available, but the soft drinks are just as interesting with Chegworth juices and Fentiman’s Rose Lemonade.

Ozone serves eggs throughout the day, so I was tempted by the Benedict-style poached eggs with bubble and squeak cakes with bearnaise and bacon (also available with smoked ham, cured salmon or portobello mushroom and spinach).

They were quite possibly the best Eggs Benedict I’ve ever had! The eggs were perfectly poached and cloud-like and smothered in a buttery bearnaise. The smoked bacon was thick-cut and full of flavour, but best of all were the chunky bubble and squeak cakes. They were coated in crispy, fine breadcrumbs and were filled with a mix of mashed potato, swede, carrot and peas. The bubble and squeak cakes were an interesting change from English muffins made the dish even more satisfying for lunchtime.

Steven ordered the Beef steak sandwich with beetroot, aged Cheddar, rocket and aioli served with hand cut chips. The medium-well done steak was thin and tender and was packed between two slices of sourdough. The skin-on chips were thick and crispy and served in their own terracotta pot with a delicious aioli dipping sauce.

The desserts at Ozone are out of this world – certainly a cut above the usual offering of muffins and pastries. I tried the most heavenly Lemon Curd Slice, served with vanilla cream. The sticky cake was infused with a kind of dense lemon curd custard and set on a shortbread biscuit base. It was incredibly decadent, rich and sweet – quite unlike any cake I’ve tasted.

Steven’s New York Cheesecake was fresh, cool, creamy, thick and also super sweet. The desserts at Ozone are ideal for those with a sweet tooth, however, for something lighter, try some gelato, granita or a gelato milkshake by Soho’s Gelupo. In return, Ozone coffee is used at Gelupo and Bocca di Lupo – a perfect foodie marriage!

Of course, tasting the in-house roasted coffee was a must, so Steven tried a Cappuccino and I was interested to see how good their Chai Latte was. The cappuccino was creamy, rich roasted and potent but without any bitterness. Chai Lattes can be hit or miss in London, either being too sweet or just bland. However, Ozone’s Chai Latte was creamy, with a hint of white chocolate, just sweet enough and packed with punchy spices. Ozone blend their own Chai Latte powder mix using fresh spices, which can also be bought at the store.

We wanted to see the mechanics behind the exceptionally good coffee, so one of the baristas took us downstairs for a tour of the coffee roaster. Ozone roasts raw coffee beans 2-3 times per day on a classic 1975 PROBAT roaster, using beans from all over the world – notably Brazil and Costa Rica. The beans darken and expand in size and the unwanted bean debris is separated, leaving just the finest coffee ready for grinding.

The beans are then bagged up in air-tight pouches and sent off to cafe and restaurant stockists across the country.

To get the best coffee, the roasting time is tested and fine tuned by changing the pressure in the roaster. The quality of the coffee is tested by ‘cupping’ and the whole team at Ozone are involved in this process to make sure they are always serving the very best.

Ozone Coffee Roasters is a great find in London, with exceptional food and coffee in a cool, unpretentious place. Sometimes indie coffee shops can be claustrophobic with snail-paced service and an aloof attitude. Ozone, however, ticks like clockwork and is run by a team who are passionate about what they do, but still have time for a chat – it doesn’t get much better than that!

All photos by Chérie City

Chérie City was a guest of Ozone Coffee Roasters

Fentiman’s Rose Lemonade

Dinner at Whyte & Brown, London

Ozone Coffee Roasters, Shoreditch