Cocktail #10. Whiskey Sour
Source: Difford’s Guide to Cocktails

Recipe:
2 shots Bourbon whiskey
1 shot Freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 shot Sugar syrup
3 dash Angostura Aromatic Bitters
1/2 fresh Egg white

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into ice-filled glass. Garnish with lemon slice and cherry on stick (sail).

Cocktail #12. Sidecar
Source: The Savoy Cocktail Book

Recipe:
2 shots Brandy
1 shot Lemon Juice
1  shot Cointreau

Shake well and strain into cocktail class.

Cocktail #19. White Lady
Source: The Mixellany Guide to Gin

Recipe:
2 shots gin
3/4 shot Cointreau
3/4  shot freshly-squeezed lemon juice
1/4 shot sugar syrup
1/2 egg white

Shake with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

Restaurant: Kanada-Ya, St Giles High St
Time: Wednesday lunchtime
With: –
Stand-out dish: Aburi Chashu
Very small and jam packed. The doors are locked, and they turn you away if they’re full. Clever use of space – there are mirrors on ceiling to make it feel bigger, and a semi-circular window that connects kitchen with dining. The ramen was some of the best I’ve had this year. I ordered the Tonkotsu X. But it was the seared pork belly that stole the show – it had a deep charr flavour that may well be my favourite dish of the challenge thus far.

Cocktail #11. Singapore Sling
Source: Raffles Hotel

Recipe:
1 1⁄2 ounces Gin
1⁄2 ounce Cherry Heering
1⁄4 ounce Cointreau liqueur
1⁄4 ounce Benedictine
4 ounces Pineapple juice
1⁄2 ounce Lime juice
1⁄3 ounce Grenadine
1 dash Bitters

Shake with ice. Strain into an ice filled collins glass. Garnish with cherry and slice of pineapple.

Nairn’s London #26
The Hoop and Grapes, Aldgate

THEN: One of the most dramatic contrasts in London. Just when the City seems to be getting to its most crowded and correct, along Fenchurch Street and Leadenhall Street, the whole thing falls away. In a few yards the bowler hats have gone, the buildings – shoddy but very expressive – house second-hand goods and small-scale tailors. The streets have stalls like Tubby Isaac’s in Goulston Street, selling eels, inscribed: ‘We lead, others follow’. This is the East End with a bang, and just around the corner are some of the roughest streets in Stepney. At the other end of Aldgate East is another moving change: the split of Commercial and Whitechapel Roads – one going to the docks and the estuary, the other pointed straight at the heart of East Anglia, those long miles beyond Newmarket. It is only a traffic block now, but it could be marvellous, given town artists and not just town planners. Half way along on the south side is the Hoop and Grapes, a lovable survival of the years just after the Fire. The inside, long, low and dark, is in the old style too.

NOW: Nairn discusses Aldgate in general, but as he finished with the pub, I’ll start with it. The Hoop and Grapes is now part of the Nicholson’s chain, and bears all of the commoditised hallmarks that you’d expect – cheap pub grub and an uninspiring beer selection. But its shape still remains – with low slung ceilings and foreboding dark wood interiors. Heading outside, the dramatic contrast between city and shanty still exists. In fact, with the addition of Vinoly’s Walkie Talkie building, the effect has only been exaggerated. Stepney is now one of the more multicultural areas in East London – you’ll struggle to buy eels these days – but the market stalls remain nonetheless. And with my recent move from Old Street to Whitechapel, its an area I’m going to get to know rather well.

Cocktail #13. Algonquin
Source: Imbibe Magazine

Recipe:
60ml Rye Whisky
30ml Dry Vermouth
30ml Pineapple Juice

Combine all ingredients, shake with ice and strain into a chilled glass.

Restaurant: Shoryu, Denman St
Time: Wednesday lunchtime
With: James F
Stand-out dish: Kotteri Hakata Tonkotsu
Fairly unassuming from the outside. There are benches outside, so people can queue up to get a table. No need for us to sit on them however, as we were immediately sat in an entirely empty (second) room. As you’re shown to your seat, a gong is hit by a waiter. I’m not too sure what the significance is, but it certainly felt like the session had begun. The restaurant is a mixture of woods and black vinyl. Its got a whiff of business about it, rather than pleasure. Perhaps that’s why we both opted for green tea (mine cold, his hot) – despite it being the first of Feb, with a complete Dry January behind us. No matter, the focus here was the food. The pork belly shoryu buns were delicious, but a little over-mayo’d. And the tonkotsu was fabulous – tasty and filling. The pork was succulent and fatty, exactly what I was craving. And we were in and out in an efficient hour. Nice.

#13. The Geffrye Museum
An oasis hidden in plain sight, amongst all the vietnamese restaurants and art shops of the Kingsland Road. For two centuries, these 18th century almshouses provided homes for poor Ironmonger Co pensioners. But since 1914 its been the home of a museum. The Geffrye Museum explores the development of the home from the 1600s to present day. Its white windows and green ivy cut nicely against the dark brick facade, and the terraced U-shape it forms provides a leafy courtyard to laze about in. But if you’re at all green fingered, forget the front courtyard, its the gardens at the back that you should gravitate to – period gardens from the 17th century on, and a traditional english herb garden full of medicinal and culinary plants. The buildings are all grade-I listed, but the museum is fundraising for a £15m extension that will see it open up and grow its exhibition spaces.

Restaurant: Uchi, Clarence Road
Time: Saturday evening
With: Wist
Stand-out dish: Soft shell crab sushi
Uchi is a small, minimalist restaurant in lower Clapton. It is one of the most beautifully designed restaurants I’ve been in. There are gorgeous gold countertops adorned with royal blue china. Plants hang from the ceiling in spherical pots. The pink and grey menus are a masterclass in design simplicity. And everyone sits on three legged wooden stools, on exposed floorboards. The food was equally good. Its a sparse menu, delivered to a high standard. The soft shell crab sushi was a high point. But its hard to choose a favourite, as there wasn’t really a dud among them. The less said about the service the better – it was slow, plates weren’t cleared away, water didn’t come, and the bill took forever. I practically had to plead with them to take my card. Nonetheless, it was great value, and the food is worth coming back for. Next time I might get takeaway.