Lokanta Maya, Istanbul

Lokanta Maya was number one on our list of foodie destinations in Istanbul. We were seated early for dinner at a smart side table in the chic dining room, just in front of an intriguing wall of caged walnuts. Sipping a glass of Turkish Arcadia Sauvignon Blanc, we watched the room gradually fill up, couples out for special occasions surrounding us. There was an air of excitement in the restaurant – guests have the opportunity to dress up here; with very few fine eateries in the city, this is quite a rarity.

I felt particularly drawn to the restaurant when I discovered there is an impressive female at the helm. Owner and chef, Didem Senol launched the restaurant in 2009 in downtown Karakoy and it has been a firm favourite for local and visiting customers since. Combining seasonal ingredients and fresh seafood from the local markets, she creates stylish,clever dishes with a strong Turkish flavour.

The menu is split between a long list of tapas sized dishes, and a more limited selection of larger mains. I recommend choosing a range of the smaller plates, and dine as the Spaniards do with lots to share.

Ultra fresh and delicately battered calamari were crunchy and deliciously seasoned.Spicy shrimp was as delectable as it looked, marinated in a subtle sauce and served on a bed of green sautéed chard.

For vegetable fans there are plenty of great options. Zucchini fritters were my favourite, fried balls of soft creamy courgette with a coriander yoghurt sauce. Samphire with croutons was intriguing, the seaside vegetable dressed in lemon and almonds. For a very traditional dish, order the Kadayif bundles of shredded pastry stuffed with a comforting filling of feta cheese, honey and rosemary.

For dessert opt for something simple like the homemade ice-cream. We tried the unique chocolate and bergamot flavour which was rich and wonderfully smooth.

Lokanta Maya offers a perfectly judged menu which magically combines Mediterranean and Aegean cuisines. With friendly service and exquisite food, it is an innovator on the Istanbul restaurant scene, not to be missed.

More information here: www.lokantamaya.com

Hot on the Highstreet Week 216

I love cookbooks, even if they are most commonly used as eye candy on my coffee table. Here are a few of my current favourites, all available to buy on Amazon.

The Art of Eating Well is a revolutionary cookbook that will help anyone who wishes to feel better, lose weight or have more energy. London-based sisters Jasmine and Melissa Hemsley teach their principles of life-long healthy eating with exciting and inventive recipes that are so delicious you forget the purpose is good health and nourishment. Buy here.

Stevie Parle burst onto the London scene in 2009 with the launch of a new restaurant, Dock Kitchen, whose food AA Gill described as ‘faultless’, earning him the Observer Food Monthly Young Chef of the Year award 2010. The opposite of the usual ‘chefy’ restaurant fare, Stevie serves an eclectic mix of dishes that in their countries of origin would all be described as home cooking. Ranging from Mexico to Morocco, from Catalonia to Kerala, taking in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, here are simple, wholesome and perfectly balanced recipes for dishes that will warm the heart in winter and cool the palate in summer. Buy here.

‘Winner of two “Gourmand Cookbook Awards 2014: ” Best in the World, Historical Recipes and Best” “Local Cuisine, For Italy’Food and glass: a combination offering an authentically Venetian experience. Venetian cooking is fundamentally a simple cuisine because of the basic ingredients and methods of preparation and the time required for cooking is short, but it is also complex, giving rise to striking and unusual combinations. This gastronomic tradition is the product of a highly distinctive territory, one in which water and land closely exist. There are fish and shellfish from the lagoon and the nearby Adriatic, vegetables and fruit from the islands in the estuary, and meat and game from the mainland and spices from the distant Orient. Buy here.

The king of beautiful pub food has collected all of his best ideas into this proper cookbook, ready to warm the world on a grey day and restore the nation’s good mood. Tom Kerridge’s idea of food heaven isn’t fussy gastronomy; it’s proper ‘man food’ with Michelin star magic, including breakfasts that keep you smiling for the whole day, indulgent long lunches, teatime temptations, seasonal snacks and heart-warming suppers. In this cookbook Tom proves that everyone can make proper pub food, and the only place he wants to see a foam is on the head of a pint of beer! Over 100 recipes reveal his secrets for making real food truly amazing, including perfected dishes from his childhood and special treats he serves at his own one-of-a-kind pub. These recipes are simply the best version you’ll ever have of the dishes everyone loves the most. Buy here.

More than 100 recipes make up this stunning yet eminently approachable collection of suppers from Jason Atherton: perfect meals to share with friends and family. It is not only a showcase of Jason’s favourite things to cook, both savoury and sweet, but also a celebration of the flavours and techniques that have inspired him from all around the world. Every dish bears the hallmark of excellence on which he has built his reputation as one of the world’s truly great and most innovative chefs. Beautiful, inspiring photography by John Carey completes this collection of stunningly good suppers. Buy here.

Benares 10th Anniversary Meal

To celebrate the tenth anniversary of his restaurant, chef Atul Kochkar invited a group of London’s most ravenous foodie bloggers to taste his recent menu at Benares.

We met in the bar, exchanged business cards and slurped down a spicy passionfruit and chilli martini. Taking our seats at the prestigious chef’s table, we chatted about our recent culinary experiences whilst admiring the busy kitchen staff frying, tossing, plating and garnishing with great precision and speed.

A delightful personalised tasting menu awaited our palates, and while the food arrived a knowledgeable sommelier offered glasses of carefully paired wine.

To titillate initially a tiny chicken tikka cone… it was a little odd eating pureed chicken but no-one could deny the wonderfully aromatic taste. Fennel-infused lamb chop was rich and flavoursome, presented with a majestic mustard-marinated king prawn; pan-roasted wild sea bass with vermicelli, coconut and curry leaf sauce was a light and fragrant next course. Roasted rump of cornish lamb with shoulder samosa, potato and broad beans was a delicious mix of British ingredients, Indian spices and innovative Atul Kochkar creativity.

Wines were selected from all over the world to ensure the body and flavour perfectly suited the food.

Just before dessert we had a mouthful of lime sorbet, a moment to pause and reflect before the final sweet course. Rose and raspberry Bhapa Doi with pistachio Burfi was a creamy fruity pudding, a wonderful mix of ingredients which soothed my palate after all the rich spicy savoury food.

Atul never ceases to amaze me with his inspirational Indian cooking, and ten years after opening, Benares is better than ever. In a country where this exotic cuisine is so popular, Atul provides food of the very highest calibre.

More info here: www.benaresrestaurant.com

Read about my first trip to Benares here.

You can also read about my trip to Atul Kochkar’s other restaurant, Indian Essence.