Panino Giusto - Not just a sandwich

Panino Guisto @PaninoGiustoUK
1-3 Royal Exchange Buildings, EC3V 3LR

Enough of ubiquitous poor quality sandwich places, Panino Guisto (highly established in Milan) brings lunchtime Italy to the city. With individually sourced and imported ingredients such as fabulous 24 month aged Parma ham and Braesola from Valtellina, quality produce stands out from their usual fair. Something  as simple as this lives and dies on the quality produce especially in a such a food concious and critical city such as this. Obviously not everything can be imported, such as the bread, but they have gone to lengths to ensure authenticity by sourcing a local Italian baker who makes the panino bread bespoke fresh daily. They also have a carefully selected wine list, which the staff will recommend pairings with paninos. Great wine and ham beings back good memories of being out in Italy.

How Bazaar

Chor Bizarre

16 Albemarle Street, W1S 4HW

Stepping off the street in one of London's most extravagantly cosmopolitan areas, it's almost ironic that stepping into an Indian restaurant has an almost homely familiarity about it in this city. Despite Chinese food overtaking Indian as the nation's favourite takeaway, (I suspect the proliferation of late night/24 hour Chinese takeaways has something to do with this...Indian takeaways rarely open during the later hours), the South Asian cuisine remains a firm favourite amongst Londoners, with more modern interpretations such as Amaya, Dishoom and Masala Zone packing out with punters as much as the ''older'' favourites.

Social climbing up Pollen Street

Pollen Street Social @PollenStSocial
8 Pollen Street, W1S 1NQ

Given the responsibility of booking somewhere for my parent's birthday is always one riddled with high expectations, due to somehow having 'expertise' in the matter. My PhD funding doesn't exactly stretch a great deal, so needed to find a great value lunch deal that also had some edge of sophistication  After about 2 hours sifting through menus, reviews and locations, I finally came across Pollen Street Social with 3 courses for £29.50. Stands to reason then after all that time the Evening Standard published a great piece on set menus, not more than a few days after my tiresome search,  no PSS in it though. But after an ringing endorsement from Shahz  (worth 10 reviews!) I was pretty pleased to get a reservation for a Saturday lunch with a week to go!