MY CHOCOLATE

London, UK

The Food Grid was invited to attended a chocolate-making event at MyChocolate off Leather Lane Market, hosted by 'MyChocolate', which cater events for team building, birthdays, hen nights etc. Upon arrival we were served a glass of Prosecco, and given seats along tables that were prepared with equipment and a selection of chocolates for tasting. The interior is simple, with white painted brick walls and colourful containers of various chocolates on shelves. They took us through the correct way of tasting a piece of chocolate such as allowing it to melt slightly before swallowing it, and taught us how to distinguish low quality chocolate without cocoa butter from proper chocolate. We were also told some interesting stories about the history of chocolate, for instance why Hershey’s tastes so artificial due to the poor vegetable oil substitute to premium cocoa butter. On this particular occasion our task was to make truffles. When it came to the actual making of the truffle, we were shown the techniques, which when demonstrated seemed very simple and easy to do . However once our cooking skills or rather our lack of cooking skills were put to the test, it didn’t turn out so well. It was clear that we were the only food bloggers in attendance who don’t actually cook, as our chocolates were misshapen to say the least. A fast-setting mixture of chocolate was used due to the short timeframe we had at the course, so I think it would taste better if we had more time. Our lack of skills at least contributed to creating a joyous and funny atmosphere, as there was nothing else to do but laugh. Another attendant kindly allowed us to photograph her chocolates for the blog, as ours were simply not presentable. After decorating the chocolate truffles with coconut, freeze dried raspberries and other delicious stuff, we got to wrap them in neat packages. This was a fun final touch, and we excelled at this compared to the actual culinary work. After another glass of Prosecco, we headed home after a really fun and different team-building event.  

 

www.mychocolate.co.uk

We were invited to review MyChocolate, and the opinions expressed are our own.

THE CHICKEN SHOP

London, UK

The Chicken Shop in Kentish Town serves only rotisserie chicken and sides to go with it. I heard about it because a friend of mine let me taste some of her left over apple pie from there, and even when it was a day old and not even kept in the fridge, it tasted amazing. So I decided the trip to North London must be worth it. It was difficult to find, as it is located downstairs with only a small paper bag on the doorknob as signage. While I was looking for it I came across Dirty Burger nearby, owned by the same people. I wish I’d tried it at the same time, as I’m not sure when I’ll bother making my way up to that area again. I went on a Saturday afternoon, and there were mostly families with young children there, which brought down the coolness factor slightly. I could still see its potential as a cool night-time spot to eat with a group of friends. I sat at the bar with a friend and watched the chefs chop up the chicken. To accompany the meat we ordered the avocado salad and chips. We had half a chicken, which was more than enough for two people. It was really juicy without showing any signs of being under-cooked, and the skin was amazingly crispy. I didn’t use any of the custom sauces provided, as the meat had enough flavour on its own. Both sides were simple and tasty. The all-Spanish staff (recession?) was friendly and attentive, although some struggled to understand English. Although I was very full, I had to have some of the apple pie that brought me there in the first place. The waiter brought out the whole American style pie pan and cut a piece in front of us. I thought this added a cute touch to the presentation and experience. Served with vanilla ice cream, it was as to be expected, even better than the day-old one, and a perfect conclusion to a filling meal.

www.chickenshop.com