Best bites: Unagi at Angelina and pork dumplings at Awabi

The Prince Regent, London Shell Co

There’s a sense of childish excitement when dining on Shell and Co.’s barge, The Prince Regent. We set sail at seven o’clock, drifting smoothly through Little Venice, past Regent’s Park and the London Zoo up to Camden and then back for docking at 9:30pm. The experience isn’t about sailing alone; the food is excellent too: we had potato bread with anchovy and goat’s butter; stone bass tartare with pistachio and lemon; cuttlefish ragu; and hake with pig cheek. And a trout sausage roll, which confidently ranks as one of the best I’ve had, with crisp, buttery pastry and a savoury, meaty centre alongside a kick of mustard. I highly recommend the wine pairing too… just disembark with caution afterwards.
Molly Wade, Memberships manager
CODE was a guest of The Prince Regent, London Shell Co

Pantechnicon X Kyro Supper Club

On Monday evening I was transported to Scandanavia as the Kyro Distillery Company teamed up with Eldr at Pantechnicon. Canapes of smoked beef heart with pine mayonnaise were accompanied by a tuxedo cocktail – gin and vermouth paired with orange bitters, maraschino and absinthe – which I now prefer to a martini. Once seated, we were given scallops with rosehips, and then succulent deer alongside celeriac and a chocolate and rye crumb. After Kyro malt and wood smoke whiskies, one of which is now the front runner for my father’s Christmas present, we had a burnt butter waffle with cloud berries and a cream liqueur. I left with the smell of pine lingering in my nostrils, and my passion for all things Nordic enhanced.
George Gill, Operations coordinator
CODE was a guest of Pantechnicon X Kyro Supper Club
Sachi at Pantechnicon is available on the CODE app

Angelina

Growing up, my dad had two favourite dinner options: Italian when hungry; Japanese for fancier occasions. Well, I was feeling hungry, and fancy, and my dad was in town. So we went to Angelina. We were lucky enough to enjoy the ten-course kaiseki menu (£59pp), sitting up at the chef’s table. Beautiful small plates featured Italian breads with a Japanese twist, including focaccia, caponata and shiso and piadina, gorgonzola and unagi. Among several seasonal fish dishes, the scallops, kaki and pomegranate stuck out, but it was hard to beat the raviolo that followed, which was topped with chanterelles and smoked egg. Dbacha panna cotta, pear and an extra special Le Petit dessert wine was a perfect finish, although, being Scottish, the 12-year Yamazaki whisky wasn’t half bad either. Book in Monday-Thurs, 5-6pm for 30 per cent off with CODE!
Maitland Murray, Subscription sales
Angelina is available on the CODE app

Awabi

Fine dining has long reigned in Jersey, a popular spot for British holidaymakers and honeymooners before cheap flights took travellers further afield. But recently the island is building a more contemporary dining landscape, in no small part due to the young chefs and creatives moving back, and bringing a wealth of international experience with them. Awabi is a fine example of this changing of the guard. Run by brother and sister duo Hayley and Stephen Yu, it’s a compelling collaboration of her architect’s eye – think light wood and clean lines – and his skills in the kitchen, featuring some knock out dishes, from Hong Kong-style steamed Jersey scallops, to Korean rice cake skewers (tteok-kkochi), to a deep-fried sea bass to share. Their signature chicken wings, lip-tingling with fragrant Szechuanese pepper, are so well loved among chefs on the island that two are said to have got tattoos of the restaurant in exchange for a free lifetime supply.
Chloe Hamilton, content editor
CODE was a guest of Visit Jersey

Shoryu Ramen, Soho

In celebration of Shoryu’s tenth birthday, executive chef Kanji Furukawa has created a yuzu-inspired menu which is available throughout November. We had the yuzu tonkotsu, a twelve-hour brewed signature ramen topped with char siu, yuzu sauce, nitamago Burford brown egg, kikurage mushrooms, spring onion, nori seaweed and fresh yuzu zest. We also had the yuzu white natural, a twist on Shoryu’s vegan tonkotsu made with tonyu soy milk, atsuage tofu, kikurage mushrooms, menma bamboo shoots, tender broccoli, nori seaweed and fresh yuzu zest. It was my first vegan tonkotsu and I was surprised at how rich and creamy it was, even without all the usual pork fat. I’m a massive fan of yuzu so left very satisfied.
Alice Hale, production assistant
CODE was a guest of Shoryu Ramen
Shoryu Ramen is available on the CODE app

Read more reviews from the CODE team here