Reading Roars!

A reader has written to me about a new eatery in Reading: Chicago Roasthouse (73-75 Whitley St., close to the town centre). As the name suggests, Chicago Roasthouse offer an American-style steak and roast menu: beef joint, BBQ spare ribs, turkey roast and more. The restaurant provides takeaway and delivery services (a “steak out”, if you prefer :)), buffets for parties and, of course, Sunday roasts! Students get special rates.

I can feel my stomach juices gurgling as I examine the reader’s email:

The menu includes a selection of roasts prepared in a variety of ways. Banish any thought that these could be of the overcooked and dry variety - these dishes are glorious, simply bursting with distinctive fresh tastes.

I like to think I have impeccable table manners but these had to set aside to give due “finger licking” justice to the majestic rack of sticky barbeque pork ribs with “healthy” baked potato and creamy coleslaw. Damp cloths were provided to help restore a little dignity. I followed the ribs with a small tower of sinfully divine homemade chocolate brownie like cakes, perfectly complimented with a heavy handed dollop of fromage fraise.

My companion enthused over her vegetarian nut bake and the freshly prepared apple with toffee crunch dessert should qualify as a recipe for success all on its own - hard not to over indulge with such delectable offerings.

My next post about this place will include a photo of my dinner plate!

Further to my recent post about Reading’s new sushi bar, complete with conveyor belt, I now know its name: one o eight.

The photo seen here was sent to me by Reading 107 FM’s Joff Hopkins, who observes:

They’ve missed a trick with the name… thinking of the possibilities of teaming up with the local radio station!

Thanks Joff! I can see it now: “Top tunas to get you through your lunch hour”. Or “That was ‘Kiss Them for Me’, by Sushi and the Banshees”.

I remember saying a while back that was Reading really needed was a conveyor belt sushi restaurant (because they’re fun and London has had them since 1994).  Well, we’re finally getting one, and it’s taking shape in Queen Victoria St. (Reading Station would also be a great location for one, like Paddington).

I can’t wait for it (I’ve forgotten its name, but it isn’t YO! Sushi) to open.  I’m also very much looking forward to a Reading Borders store, Foyles, Madison’s Coffee…

I’ve been busy lately. That and my irritating cold has made blogging harder than usual in recent days. No matter. Last night I was at The Blagrave Arms where, after several flutes at the Grand Opening (I will explain), I suddenly began to feel a bit better.

The Blagrave Arms was bought recently by my friend Naz and his partner Anna Korsgrove. His announcement that he was buying a pub surprised me, to say the least. He had a successful IT career, flying regularly to Scandinavia, so this seemed a considerably radical move to me. Last night, in his speech, he said how he and his partner had always wanted to do this. It was a shared dream. Now they are fulfilling their dream - how many people can say that?

Naz and Anna had a plan to transform the pub into a wine bar, giving it a lighter look (whitening the walls and darkening the floor) but retaining the Victorian bits. The result was seen publicly last night at the new-look bar’s Grand Opening. I thought Naz and Anna (formerly an auditor), both newcomers to the hospitality sector, had achieved something special. The wine list looks good (though I’m not an expert) and Naz even designed a new logo. Pop in and take a look!

I stopped at Reading’s Picnic for another coffee this morning. I sat outdoors in the sun with a Cafe au Lait, croissant and Travel section of The Guardian, and felt momentarily happy.

Directly opposite was another cafe, adjacent to Costa Coffee. Opposite Costa Coffee were two more chains, Coffee Republic and Pret a Manger (with Giardino’s upstairs). Behind Coffee Republic was another Costa, inside Waterstone’s, and opposite Costa was the Japanese restaurant Wa, also serving coffee.

Have we all gone coffee mad? Do we need another coffee outlet? What makes Picnic so different? The answer to that last question is quite a lot. In a nutshell, or coffee bean if you prefer, Picnic is a cafe with a conscience. Here are my 4 reasons why Picnic is unique:

• Excellent, ethical coffee. The Picnic people don’t do novelty coffees. You won’t find a blended mango minty choccy bambinoccino with hazelnut syrup and crushed ice there. The Picnic people instead offer normal coffee - cafe au lait, cappuccino, americano, espresso etc. - done very well. Plus, and this is a very big plus, their coffee is ethical. Picnic customers seem to like it a lot as they are marking a blackboard inside the cafe with votes in favour.

• Service with a smile. Staff are friendly and attentive - and they bring coffee to your table. Furthermore, they look happy and relaxed. Contrastedly, there is one restaurant chain in particular, whose coffee is also excellent, with terrible customer service (indeed, I walked out recently as no one came to my table). Customer service is supremely important, in my opinion, and the Picnic people are great at it.

• Relevant, reading material. Ok, the number of newspaper titles provided for customers to read is somewhat limited (one). However, that one paper is The Guardian, and that goes very well with their ethical coffee.

• Fresh, homemade food. Picnic’s style is somewhat rustic and familiar. Their food includes cake, croissants and baps. They also do salads, unlike the bigger coffee chains, so another tick in the social responsibility box.

I was back at Zero Degrees last night, a bar rapidly becoming my favourite in Reading.

My partner was peckish, so we headed to the restaurant section. We opted to have two appetisers only: bruschetta (£3.75) and garlic bread with shallots.  They were very good!  Plus, I was drinking Pale Ale, so even better.

My partner is a bit of a bruschetta fan and she said that the dish, and in particular the basil and green pesto dressing, was excellent.  She also praised the presentation.  I personally loved the cherry tomatoes.  I’m now feeling inspired to produce something similar in my kitchen.

The garlic bread was fantastic with the shallots, which added an element of sweetness.

We will return another time for something a little more substantial.  I hear the pizzas, baked in a traditional wood-burning oven, are very good (the Mango Tandoori Chicken pizza looks interesting).

Doing anything this evening?  How about a bit of African adventure?  A cultural adventure, that is.  A quick reminder that tonight is Ethiopian night at Global Cafe. 

To whet your appetite, here are 5 quick facts about Ethiopia (source: Wikipedia).  The country is:

• the second most populous nation in Africa
• the second-oldest officially Christian nation
• roughly the size of Bolivia
• the spiritual homeland of the Rastafari movement
• currently hosting the HQ of the African Union

Maybe I’ll see you there?