the modern pantry

seared saddle of venison with a polpettino, pandan, coco beans, beetroot and red wine sauce a top london chef working with one of the uk's best out of towners, serving sunday lunch right here on my doorstep? don't mind if i do... as part of london restaur

bread is made from scratch on the premises, and i enjoyed a soda bread that was not too heavy, a pleasant chilli and fennel bread that had very subdued taste of either but nice texture and, best of all, a nigella seed (black cumin) foccaia which had a rea

the modern pantry, located at st. john’s square – a short walk to farringdon train station, is doing just this balancing act. the fact that it’s doing a takeaway is prominently advertised on a panel placed up front as well as on its menu. i would think th

o and i celebrated our first year together over the fusion flavours of anna hansen's cuisine at the modern pantry . the food here can be steep on the pocket but luckily we had the london restaurant festival in our favour - two courses and a glass of bubbl

as many people are probably still dealing with the hangovers and consequences of new year's eve i thought the sensible thing to do would be to post a review of a brunch recovery place. for me, there has been one standout venue for brunch over the past yea

so. y'all know that i don't often post very negative reviews on my blog, oh except for the profoundly bad service here , but hey, they've closed down anyway so ahem, karma . it's not that i'm not being objective, i just normally don't post negative things

the modern pantry is set in a elegant townhouse on st john’s square in clerkenwell. it’s kiwi chef “anna hansen” has been revered for bringing “east meets west fusion” to another level. downstairs is the airy cafe which has a stylish urban feel. exposed b

i remember the opening of the modern pantry more for its timing than anything else, for it coincided with the announcement that lehman brothers had gone into bankruptcy. the popular press swooped on this fact, with most calling the opening ill-timed. a ye

dining options include grabbing a quick bite from the delicatessen area or having a proper meal in the café or upstairs dining room. they also have an al fresco option during the summer months.

unusual & interesting. the modern pantry is an interesting place. the food is internationally influenced where you'll find items like sashimi, mozzarella, sambal, chicken liver pate & poached rhubarb all on one menu, just to name a few. on the ground floor is a well turned out café - relaxed & comfortable, light & airy. upstairs is a dining room with a restaurant menu. the modern pantry is bestowed a bib gourmand by michelin 2009, which means you can eat a good 3-course meal with a glass of wine for £28 and under.

we had brunch at the ground floor café on a saturday. glad we made a booking as it was quite busy and obviously popular. tables are available outside on a warm, sunny day, as shown in the photos. the brunch menu is on a page of a4 and along side breakfast favourites like croissants, eggs, toast & porridge are more interesting flavours like the sugar cured prawn omelette with smoked chilli sambal - a fairly sized, well cooked runny omelette filled with plump, sweet prawns enforced by a mellow sambal that added depth to the whole dish. this was very enjoyable and we appreciated the thought & execution in combining the sweet prawns with the tamarind hinted sambal relish.

a salad of grilled (ala plancha) squid, carrot & endive also went down very well - the squid well seasoned and finely cooked, not at all rubbery. the highlight was the wonderfully balanced dressing with basil, mint & sweet chilli. some frosted peanuts provided additional texture. less successful was the rhubarb, banana, kiwi, mango, pineapple and grapefruit salad, lemon verbena syrup - seasonal rhubarb sat on top of some dice fruits was surprisingly uninspiring considering the early dishes. we felt this was a sad attempt at a fruit salad. perhaps a cream or yogurt element would have made it less boring.

toast was thinly sliced and crispy; we couldn't get enough of the brown variety, which had some nigella seeds, i believe, in them. orange juice was freshly squeezed on-site, grapefruit juice was squeezed off-site, coffee was ok. service was pleasant & efficient. i'll be back for more of this unusual & interesting food. it's neither cheap nor over-priced but i do feel that what you pay for is good quality ingredients, carefully cooked by a skillful kitchen.

great for a good weeknight dinner. great little spot, with nice decor and tasty food. the "fusionness" of the food is sometimes a little off (mint in a seaweed salad was just not working) but sometimes spot on (star anise in a carrot soup...mmmm....)

overall a really pleasant place with enough friendly hipster waiters to make a brooklynite feel at home. bill for two with a glass of wine each came to £70.

brian and i were planning a leisurely lunch for about 10 people. well, in fairness, his was the idea, mine was the execution. somewhere within all of this, i took to my deathbed with fever, while brian invited some other friends to join our lunch. he left

last week, a friend sent me this evening standard review about the modern pantry , which just opened in clerkenwell. i liked the review's invocation of fergus henderson (if you're a fan of pig, you know what i'm talk

what's in store:. i must say i am not out for dinner as much as in the old days. and, i do like the times out to be good - a s a result.

modern pantry certainly delivers. up in sheng's manor, this is a very good looking venue - upstairs in a very chic dining room aswell.
the carte is also worth congratulating. we had dinner for 4 and were late, of course. no problem (it was tuesday!) excellent, innovative but still solid menu. i had an excellent rabbit chili and all the other plates were on the mark. staff were put up with out hot air also (we do not get out so much).

go there!