With its delightful 1876 décor of wood, brass and tulip lamps, this independently owned, very friendly institution feels like a museum of what a true Paris brasserie should be. What’s more, details such as the good wine list – the Guigal Côte Rôtie at 297F – and tasty rye bread served with the oysters show a proud desire to please. Try the ‘oeufs dur à la mayonnaise’ with a ‘macédoine’, the nicely prepared pig’s foot served with decent béarnaise sauce and chunky frites, or the steak served with pepper sauce. Finish with chocolate tart and a huge slice of meringue.
Monthly Archives: November 2009
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
The swing thing was oversubscribed and the cocktail nation diluted like American beer, but for the purists the lindy hopping never stops. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, an originator of the LA swing scene, formed in 1992 and quickly became SoCal favourites. BBVD is pure 1940s fun, with a reinterpreted big band sound and a double-shot of Rat Pack attitude and humour tossed in for stage presence. There’s no understanding why a natty dance band would play a sand-filled beach as it cuts down on the dancing but see them anyway.
Progression
Australian-born Renaissance regular Anthony Pappa moved to Britain in 1985 because he was ‘bored with playing to 8,000 people per week’ in his home city of Melbourne. Hopefully the considerably smaller but thankfully less Australian crowd here will be more to his liking.
