THE JOURNAL
Denmark's Dragsholm Slot offers the best of nature and a restaurant with its seasonally changing menu Henrik Saxgren and Jakob Thermansen. Courtesy Dragsholm Slot
Looking for the next Noma? Or the world’s best lamb brain taco? Come join us at these food-world favourites.
The coolest hang-outs are never the most obvious ones. While every self-respecting man of style should aim to keep tabs on the next big thing, sometimes it’s a little more original – and special – to go off-radar. It might be that tatty street-food kiosk where off-duty chefs congregate, or the haute cuisine restaurant so remote that only truly determined foodie pilgrims have the lowdown. But wherever it is, when you get there, you’re in the club.
Of course, in some locations, being an insider is something of an essential. In rural France, if you don’t consult someone in the know, you’re practically asking for a lacklustre lunch. And in a teeming metropolis such as Mexico City, the word-of-mouth local favourites are usually the best.
But even in well-trodden Britain, bursting-at-the-seams as it is with new eateries, there still exist essential addresses, known only to a select few, that heavily reward the effort it takes to seek them out. That’s why we’ve consulted globetrotting food writers and gastronomic adventurers to share a few of their secrets, from beach to ’burb, resulting in the following guide to the best dining dens. Just try to be a little discreet about it.
The exterior of the Marrickville Pork Roll shop Michael Shen imstillhungry.net
Marrickville Pork Roll, Sydney, Australia
Sydneysiders know their Asian street food, and positively obsess over the best of the bánh mì thit – those mouthwatering Vietnamese baguettes stuffed with BBQ pork, pâté and pickles. Marrickville Pork Roll is an unprepossessing hole-in-the-wall in a gentrified suburb, where a husband and wife originally from Vietnam have gained a reputation for devising the crunchiest, creamiest, spiciest, tastiest pork roll in Sydney, the perfect savoury mouthful for under $5. Ask a local where to feed a bánh mì addiction, any day of the week, and this is where they’ll send you.
Marrickville Pork Roll’s authentic bánh mì thit – BBQ pork served with pickled vegetables and pâté in a freshly baked baguette Michael Shen imstillhungry.net
What to order The classic BBQ pork roll. Or, if you’re intrigued, ask for half-half with pork skin.
Who goes Locals on their way home from work or the beach, street-food geeks, fine dining chefs.
How to get there On the 426 bus from the Central Business District. Look for a long queue, but don’t fret – it moves quickly.
236A Illawarra Road, Sydney NSW 2204
Le Bistro de la Place is located opposite the luxury hotel Le Vieux Logis, where exceptional regional fare is served up by head chef Mr Pierre-Jean Duribreux Courtesy Le Vieux Logis
Le Bistro de la Place, Dordogne, France
It’s a bit of a thing now among Francophiles to bemoan the demise of French regional cooking – well, here’s a small-town chef who has definitely still got it. Mr Pierre-Jean Duribreux, who honed his skills with legends including Messrs Gaston Boyer and Michel Roux, has been cooking at this annex to the small luxury hotel Le Vieux Logis for 15 years, preparing superb dishes from the Périgord area with classical flair. As recommended by The Guardian food writer and chef Ms Rosie Sykes, it’s good value, always busy and, wherever you are in the Dordogne, worth the drive for lunch.
What to order Duck foie gras, duck pot-au-feu, duck confit, duck-fat chips… And, for the utterly ducked-out, pumpkin Charlotte.
Who goes Savvy expats, hotel guests, devoted regulars.
How to get there Trémolat is an hour from Périgueux or 40 minutes from Bergerac by car.
Trémolat, Dordogne, France vieux-logis.com
The exterior of the 13th-century former chapel that houses Ms Julia Robson’s St John’s Place pop-up restaurant Robert Wyatt
St John’s Place, Powys, UK
Ms Julia Robson is one of the most exciting British chefs you’ve never heard of. Prior to opening St John’s Place, her three-night-a-week pop-up in this Welsh country town, she cooked at Mr Richard Booth’s Bookshop Café in Hay-on-Wye, Wales (Mr Booth, of course, is the Welsh patriot and bookseller who has dubbed himself the “King of Hay”). With a tiny staff serving fewer than 30 diners in a simple, pared-back room, St John’s Place is all about the food: innovative flavour matching based on top produce from carefully sourced local suppliers.
From left: the chapel door entrance to the restaurant; the unadorned interior of St John’s Place Robert Wyatt
What to order The menu changes weekly, but start with a negroni or seasonal Martini (perhaps rhubarb or blood orange) and expect to find dishes such as winter pickles with quail’s eggs, burrata with beetroot and oxtail crépinette with kale, swede and black garlic.
Who goes In-the-know festival-goers (Hay-on-Wye is the home of the annual Hay literary festival), cookery writers such as The Telegraph’s Ms Xanthe Clay.
How to get there Look for the 13th-century former chapel on Lion Street in the middle of Hay.
Lion Street, Hay-on-Wye, Powys, Wales stjohnsplacehay.tumblr.com
Named after a Czech nursery rhyme, Cukrkávalimonáda offers fresh cakes, pancakes and ciabattas in a wine bar atmosphere Courtesy Cukrkávalimonáda
Cukrkávalimonáda, Prague, Czech Republic
Miraculously untouristy, despite its location in the historic castle district, this little café bistro feels fresh. Apart from the pretty painted ceiling, the interior is minimal, with long wooden tables, folding chairs and daily displays of flowers, fruit (for juicing) and homemade cakes and pastries. The girls are friendly, the hot chocolate is proper, and the ham and cheese croissants are just the ticket for brunch en route to the Museum Kampa. Keep Cukrkávalimonáda up your sleeve when you tire of dumplings and Americana – it’s open until 7pm, every day.
From left: the refreshing and bright interior of Cukrkávalimonáda; hearty Czech fare in the form of shaved ham and eggs Courtesy Cukrkávalimonáda
What to order Homemade elderflower lemonade.
Who goes Lots of young French and Americans.
How to get there It’s easy to find on the Malá Strana side of Charles Bridge.
Lázeňská 7, Malá Strana, Prague, Czech Republic cukrkavalimonada.com
Chefs gathering outside El Borrego Viudo Eric Demay
El Borrego Viudo, Mexico City, Mexico
Before he opened Lyle’s in Shoreditch last Easter, Mr James Lowe travelled extensively in South America, where one of his favourite off-the-radar meals was at El Borrego Viudo, something of a trek from the city centre in Mexico City but, he says, so worth it for the tacos. It’s all about lamb here (the name translates as “the widowed sheep”), served in tacos so toothsome you’ll put away more than you ever thought possible. Wash down with spicy, sugary tepache, Mexico’s fermented pineapple skin brew. Open 24 hours, 365 days.
What to order Lamb brain and liver tacos.
Who goes Locals.
How to get there In a cab – don’t even think about walking here at 4am.
Calle Cerrada de Revolución, Tacubaya, Mexico City
Koks protrudes from the bleak landscape surrounding it Claes Bech Poulsen
Koks, Faroe Islands
Like Mr René Redzepi at Noma in Copenhagen, Mr Poul Andrias Ziska has a deep reverence for the specific seasons, agriculture and preserving the techniques of his native region. He became head chef at Koks in Tórshavn, the capital city of the splendidly craggy Faroe Islands, early last year. Since then, he has been deploying the archipelago’s unique raw materials (whopping lobster, plump mussels, peerlessly wholesome lamb) to create elegant tasting menus that compare with northern Europe’s finest. You are unlikely to ever be just passing Koks – it’s a destination in its own right.
From left: kitchen staff forage for native herbs and ingredients to make the restaurant's dishes; crab with lumpfish, roe and herbs Claes Bech Poulsen
What to order The eight-course tasting menu, featuring dishes such as Faroese lobster with seaweed salt, skate with wood sorrel and fermented plums, and local beer mash bread.
Who goes New Nordic completists, marine biologists, Norsemen.
How to get there Atlantic Airways is your best bet.
Oyggjarvegur 45, Tórshavn, Faroe Islands koks.fo
The grand exterior of Dragsholm Slot Henrik Saxgren and Jakob Thermansen. Courtesy Dragsholm Slot
Dragsholm Slot, West Zealand, Denmark
A bleakly beautiful 13th-century castle, with 34 guest rooms (some said to be haunted), and a gastronomic restaurant that’s easily worth a detour from Copenhagen, thanks to the ministrations of Mr Claus Henriksen, previously sous-chef at Noma. His menus are highly seasonal yet seriously luxurious, plus the wine cellar is a-clank with superb cuvées from Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Loire, so there might be Gevrey-Chambertin to go with your veal, or premier cru Chablis to accompany the turbot.
From left: Dragsholm Slot’s courtyard; strawberries from the small harbour village of Havnsø with beetroot Henrik Saxgren and Jakob Thermansen. Courtesy Dragsholm Slot
What to order The seven-course tasting menu, featuring exceptional Danish produce such as crayfish, snipe with elderberry, skyr served with candied herbs, and havgus cheese with crushed nettle.
Who goes Foodie pilgrims, romantics, ghost busters.
How to get there It’s only a one-and-a-half-hour drive from Copenhagen via Holbaek and Asnaes.
4534 Hørve, Denmark dragsholm-slot.dk