From Lambeth to Lyme Regis, here are the best things the CODE team ate this week

Legare x The Garden Café 

If you’ve visited Legare in London Bridge, you probably already know that Jay Patel is a restaurateur of the best kind. So it was a pleasure to have him working the beautiful dining room of The Garden Café in Lambeth last Friday evening for a one-off collaboration dinner. His head chef Matt Beardmore was in tow cooking some very satisfying spaghetti alla chitarra (square cut on strings) in butter and bottarga, and an unimprovable porchetta with beans and salsa verde. With the glass doors open onto the calming leafy courtyard of the museum, l finished off my cannoli and wondered why I don’t visit more often.
Chloe Hamilton, content editor
CODE was a guest of The Garden Café

Another Hand, Manchester

Manchester’s food scene has a lot to offer. The city is comfortably sized: big enough to balance groups like Hawksmoor and Dishoom; village-like enough to properly nurture independents that specialise in natural wine and cloudy flatbreads. One of the latest to open is Another Hand in Deansgate. By night, a changing menu brings the natty wine food the city does so well: whipped cod’s roe might precede trout with radishes and burnt apple dashi, or ancient grains with preserved lemon. In the day, there are toasted sandwiches, which is when Tom, Harry (from the CODE Partners team) and I wandered in. We shared a selection of three. In one, cured ham and Garstang blue cheese were tempered by walnut and plum relish. In another, lamb merguez was matched with minted peas and zuni pickle – peas in a sandwich there, because why not. Mine, of smoked beef, fennel and celeriac, set me up for another day traipsing Manchester’s streets. I will return to the city soon to visit Flawd.
Josh Barrie, editor

Pride brunch at Goddard & Gibbs

Water. Paracetamol. Shower. It was the morning after London Pride, and Henry was feeling somewhat fragile. A walk to the tube station did me some good, the fresh air blowing off the cobwebs (and a few regretful choices) of the night before. Luckily, though, I was walking with intent: to a drag brunch, a wise decision. As soon as I arrived, the hospitality that ensued reassured me – the rest of the room were in the same boat. I think the moment I came back to consciousness was when a drag queen threw some crushed ice in my face while performing a rendition of the Titanic classic, ‘My Heart Will Go On.’ Aperol spritzes were ordered. I was back in the game. Where was I? Goddard & Gibbs in Shoreditch. We kicked things off with some Vietnamese oysters. Not from Vietnam, I might add, just dressed that way. They were huge, and the dressing added a fresh flavour that prepared our palates for the lobster roll and fries. Plates of steak and eggs were also shared, with perfectly runny yolks and crispy potato röstis. Goddard & Gibbs, thank you for nursing me, and convincing me I was fine when I wasn’t. You were like a fun friend.
Henry Southan, social media manager
Goddard and Gibbs is available on the CODE app

Boundary

My dream is to own a restaurant one day. A spot on Redchurch Street would be dreamy. Boundary Shoreditch has placed itself in this sweet spot, boasting neighbours such as Brat and Bao. A stretching bar is the star of the space, with comfortable lounging style tables, perfect for those lengthy lunches. Luckily it is far enough from the City not to attract the city boy type drowning his sorrows over a certain resignation. Perfect. The menu is ingredient-led, with a generous selection of small plates to indulge in over a fresh and creative cocktail list. Highlights included the beef tartare with the richest of yolks. Clarence Court would be proud. Then a creamy burrata with the best of British tomatoes. Juicy pork was next on the list, however next time I would devour the whole roasted Label Rouge chicken with garlic and herb butter, I think. It’s for two, but we shall see. London sometimes lacks in causal easy dining. This nails it.
Harry Cromack, account manager
CODE was a guest of Boundary

Swim, Lyme Regis

Down in Lyme Regis, a ten-minute drive from my mum’s house, is a café that looks like it should be terrible. This is because it is large and on the seafront, typically where tourists are happy to buy fish goujons for too much money. In this pocket of Dorset, there is good food to be found: Harriet Mansell’s restaurants Robin Wylde and Lilac are in town; Mark Hix has his oyster and fish house next to the miniature golf course, overlooking Lyme Bay; and Mitch Tonks has a branch of Rockfish a short drive along the coast. Michael Caines’ latest opening, Mickey’s, isn’t far away either, come to think of it. But this café on the waterfront, with a terrace just a seal flop from the beach, is good too, somehow. Lunch with my mum and two sisters brought a pair of excellent vegan bean burgers – not even a little bit dry – and a lively salad of shredded cabbage, fennel and parsley topped with a happy portion of local crab meat. The place is called Swim, and it is easy, decent-enough family food done well.
Josh Barrie, editor

The Dusty Knuckle

The breakfast sandwich has become something of a weekend staple for my flat mates and I. While we’ve now been on fair a few jaunts to discover new sandwiches, we always end up returning to The Dusty Knuckle for their egg chilli cheese sandwich. It cosists of a fried egg, cheddar cheese, jalapenos and coriander, and that’s all housed in focaccia, which is wonderfully fluffy. It’s a breakfast sandwich that knows what it’s about, and I like it a lot.
George Gill, operations coordinator