Food and Drink

Our Lifestyle Expert reviews The Laundrys Brunch Menu

I am horrible at directions. I think about this every time my eyes are glued to my phone as I follow the route CityMapper has planned for me, despite the fact that I might be going somewhere I’ve been a million times before. Because of this, I don’t even notice important buildings or familiar signs that may make my next journey easier—but restaurants, now those are my landmarks. My husband always says I navigate London through food—if you ask me how to get somewhere, my directions will sound a little something like this: “Turn onto Great Eastern Street and keep Shoryu on your left-hand side, walk towards Pachamama East and right before you get there, you’ll want to cross the road to get to Gloria which will be on the corner on your right.” Thank you, come again.

Featuring Your Guide to Luxury Christmas Hampers

Review of Our Lifestyle Expert reviews Oklava's evening set menu

I remember a time when restaurants were finally allowed to reopen after the pandemic, and everyone I knew was scrambling to get a reservation at their favourite place. Then came the post-pandemic peak in dining out, with groups wanting to catch up with each other after months in isolation, resulting in having to book weeks or months in advance for the city’s top spots. And now we’re seeing another shift in dining habits — the cost of living crisis coupled by the huge struggles restaurateurs face in hiring talent has given birth to the newest trend we’re seeing across the capital: set menus. This autumn, I visited Oklava, the Turkish-Cypriot corner restaurant in Shoreditch that I have dined in many a time. Chef Selin Kiazim and co-owner Laura Christie are no strangers to making changes when the going gets tough; they started trialling a set menu for their diners as early as last year in addition to scrapping the controversial service charge that gets added to guests’ bills. For my visit, I was excited to try Oklava’s new evening set menu, which Kiazim created to highlight seasonal ingredients as well as her famous flame-led cooking techniques, whilst ensuring guests leave with an experience that they’ll want to return to time and again.

Sustainable Cocktails at The Churchill

In a recent interview, we had the pleasure of speaking with Gaston Fusco, the fresh face at the helm of The Churchill's bar management. Alongside his dedicated team, they have produced an innovative and conscious cocktail menu designed to shed light on pressing environmental issues. Each cocktail within this thoughtfully curated collection serves as a source of inspiration and education. With twelve unique concoctions at its core, the menu revolves around ten distinct themes of environmental significance. This endeavor delves deep into the ways the bar industry can embrace eco-friendliness. Not only are the cocktails themselves a testament to sustainability, but also the vessels, garnishes, and the choice of partnering organizations that align with pertinent causes.

Women Who Launch - Mignon Francois, The Cupcake Collection

“I always thought I was going to be a surgeon. I even went to Xavier University of New Orleans to become a doctor but I just couldn’t apply the science to the human body. 17 years later, it ended up serving me in the kitchen when I started to learn how to bake and create recipes for The Cupcake Collection.” says Mignon Francois, the founder and CEO of The Cupcake Collection (TCC), an award-winning multi-million-dollar business and one of the top bakeries in the United States. Though Francois first turned to baking at a time when she was struggling financially, the entrepreneur has definitely turned things around. Aside from having queues at the door upon launching a new signature flavour, The Cupcake Collection has evolved into a real destination bakery with fans travelling from across the country to their locations in Nashville and New Orleans, to get a taste of what Francois and her team are cooking up next. For those who are unable to make the trek to their two locations, TCC delivers nationwide in the States as well. Menu items are split into cupcakes, cakes, and even pupcakes for pooches with a sweet tooth. Whilst it’s her sweet potato cupcakes that have been the talk of the town, other yummy delights include the sweet lemonade cupcake, the sprinkle surprise birthday cake, and the toddler favourite, the smash cake.

Featuring The Best Luxury Alcohol Christmas Gift Guide

Enjoying the festivities with family and friends is always made more comforting with a glass of fizz! A bottle of booze makes the perfect Christmas gift if you're struggling on what to get for who. So, skip the cheap stuff and follow this guide as we provide a list of the best spirits and sparkling wines to gift to the ones you love this year.

The Sybarite St Maur, an Exclusive Cocktail Recipe

Here, you'll find the recipes for "The Sybarite St Maur", and some perfect autumnal drinks to treat yourself ahead of Halloween, including "The Vampire Cocktail" and "Daylight Martini."

Your A-Z Guide of Britains Finest Chocolates for National...

The Swiss and Belgians aren’t the only ones making luxury hand-made chocolate! Britain now boasts some of the world’s best chocolatiers. Well-known and should be better known, I'm sharing my guide of the UK's best, high-quality confectionary in celebration of National Chocolate Week! Running from 17th - 21st October, Chocolate Week aims to promote fine flavour chocolate, the independent artisan chocolatiers and the chocolate companies who work in direct partnership with cocoa farmers, encouraging consumers to pay a fairer price for their chocolate.

Celebrating UK Coffee Week: The Coffee Politik

Since the 17th century, coffeehouses have been central to British cafe culture, depositing political importance due to their popularity as places of debate. Known as "penny universities", the crowds that they attracted were synonymous of scholars and students alike, and anyone with a penny could enter and sit in on a lecture or have access to books or print news. Coffeehouses boosted the popularity of print news culture and helped the growth of various financial markets including insurance, stocks, and auctions, as they became arenas for culture and politics.

Celebrating the World’s 50 Best Bars 2022

Each year, The World’s 50 Best Bars awards send waves through the drinks industry as it unveils its lineup of unmissable venues who’ve gone above and beyond in the world of hospitality. With the 2022 list now revealed, The Sybarite pays homage to the Top 5 within the Top 50 following an in-person ceremony held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, which was live streamed globally. 2022 marks the first year the Number 1 spot was awarded to a bar outside of London or New York, and 14 new entries from Europe, the Arabian Gulf, Asia, and the U.S.

Bloody Good Cocktails for the Wicked: A Halloween...

We've compiled a list of the 10 best halloween-themed cocktails using only the finest spirits for the drink connoisseurs amongst our readers. Sit back, relax, and learn how to make some bloody good cocktails for the upcoming spooky season. Legend has it that if you say bloody mary 3 times, you won't remember the evening of debauchery you will participate in this halloween... although that could be attributed to the copious amounts of vodka you will likely consume. Either way, here's The Sybarite's guide to the best halloween cocktail recipes you can recreate this October!

Featuring International Scottish Gin Day

The owners of mainland UK’s most northerly mainland distillery will be welcoming gin tourists on Scotland’s first nationwide chauffeured gin-immersive tour.  Luxury Scotland represents twenty-six luxurious and exclusive Scottish properties including the country’s floating hotel, Fingal, next to the Royal Yacht Britannia. In celebration of International Scottish Gin Day, they are offering a seven-day motorized gin crawl, starting and ending in Edinburgh.