Braise
@braise.substack.com
Braise is a London-based food newsletter covering restaurants, cookbooks, recipes and more from @dompreston.com
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Braise
@braise.substack.com
· Nov 16
Made a Starter Pack of the best UK food accounts on here so far - chefs, writers, and more. Let me know who I'm missing!
go.bsky.app/UBFLFGV
go.bsky.app/UBFLFGV
A good reminder that AI recipes still suck, and perhaps always will — combining elements of multiple recipes into one is a skill, and a language model that's never cooked a thing won't have it
AI Slop Recipes Are Taking Over the Internet — And Thanksgiving Dinner
Food bloggers see traffic dip as home cooks turn to AI, inspired by impossible pictures
www.bloomberg.com
November 27, 2025 at 11:20 AM
A good reminder that AI recipes still suck, and perhaps always will — combining elements of multiple recipes into one is a skill, and a language model that's never cooked a thing won't have it
This isn't a review of Dove, because I didn't eat at Dove the restaurant, I ate at Dove the 10-per-service burger bar
The burger at Dove, W11
A burger bigger than the restaurant it's in
braise.substack.com
November 26, 2025 at 6:06 PM
This isn't a review of Dove, because I didn't eat at Dove the restaurant, I ate at Dove the 10-per-service burger bar
I’ve updated the list of my favourite burgers in London after testing new arrivals like Dumbo, Dove, Chuck’s, and more. Paid subs can find out what made the cut.
My favourite London burgers in 2025
The pick of the patties
braise.substack.com
November 23, 2025 at 10:12 PM
I’ve updated the list of my favourite burgers in London after testing new arrivals like Dumbo, Dove, Chuck’s, and more. Paid subs can find out what made the cut.
FYI, Billingsgate Market gets a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo in Bugonia, which made this week's post perfect timing braise.substack.com/p/billingsga...
Billingsgate Cafe, E14
Strong tea and buttery butties
braise.substack.com
November 21, 2025 at 9:43 AM
FYI, Billingsgate Market gets a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo in Bugonia, which made this week's post perfect timing braise.substack.com/p/billingsga...
No trip to Billingsgate Market is complete without a visit to the cafe, and no trip to the cafe is complete without a bacon and scallop sandwich.
Billingsgate Cafe, E14
Strong tea and buttery butties
braise.substack.com
November 19, 2025 at 8:29 PM
No trip to Billingsgate Market is complete without a visit to the cafe, and no trip to the cafe is complete without a bacon and scallop sandwich.
I don't often get to write about food for the day job, but this week I dove deep into what OpenTable does with all its data on your dining habits
It turns out OpenTable knows a lot more than where you eat — it's tracking what you order, how much you spend, and how long you linger at the table. Then it goes and tell restaurants before you arrive.
Your online reservations are telling restaurants all about you
But here’s how to opt out.
www.theverge.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:05 PM
I don't often get to write about food for the day job, but this week I dove deep into what OpenTable does with all its data on your dining habits
Budgie Montoya’s Alpas is the best pop-up/residency I’ve been to in some time, and there are still a few tables left — definitely go along if you can
Alpas at Albers, N1
Flavours of the Filipino diasopora
braise.substack.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Budgie Montoya’s Alpas is the best pop-up/residency I’ve been to in some time, and there are still a few tables left — definitely go along if you can
A book like The Snack Hacker could so easily have been a lazy list of artless fakeaways, but is so much more creative than that, remixing everything from Egg McMuffins to supermarket naans, often in utterly unexpected ways. It’s the most fun cookbook I’ve owned in forever.
The Snack Hacker, by George Egg
Snack attack
braise.substack.com
November 9, 2025 at 1:43 PM
A book like The Snack Hacker could so easily have been a lazy list of artless fakeaways, but is so much more creative than that, remixing everything from Egg McMuffins to supermarket naans, often in utterly unexpected ways. It’s the most fun cookbook I’ve owned in forever.
Lupa was London’s darling right up until it wasn’t. But after the ups and downs of the hype cycle, it’s a much better restaurant than you might have heard.
Lupa, N5
Hungry like the wolf
braise.substack.com
November 6, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Lupa was London’s darling right up until it wasn’t. But after the ups and downs of the hype cycle, it’s a much better restaurant than you might have heard.
London does a weirdly good line in Georgian restaurants, but even so I think new-ish opening Saperavi Social is one of the better ones, and not just for its heaving, soupy khinkali
Saperavi Social, N1
My new khink
braise.substack.com
October 29, 2025 at 5:08 PM
London does a weirdly good line in Georgian restaurants, but even so I think new-ish opening Saperavi Social is one of the better ones, and not just for its heaving, soupy khinkali
This week’s recipe for paid subscribers is a belter: it comes from my friend Tiernan, who pairs savoury and sweet in this sourdough featuring kalamata olives and caramelised roasted grapes. Best eaten smeared thick with goat’s cheese.
braise.substack.com/p/tiernans-r...
braise.substack.com/p/tiernans-r...
Tiernan's roasted grape and Kalamata olive sourdough
Award-winning*
braise.substack.com
October 26, 2025 at 11:36 AM
This week’s recipe for paid subscribers is a belter: it comes from my friend Tiernan, who pairs savoury and sweet in this sourdough featuring kalamata olives and caramelised roasted grapes. Best eaten smeared thick with goat’s cheese.
braise.substack.com/p/tiernans-r...
braise.substack.com/p/tiernans-r...
Off work this week, so I made the world's largest apple pie
October 24, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Off work this week, so I made the world's largest apple pie
Akka Falafel — which has been known as Just Falafels for as long as I’ve known it, seemingly until pretty recently — has been my go-to falafel wrap for the best part of a decade, but I suppose I’ll (reluctantly) share it with you all too
Akka Falafel, NW1
Just falafels
braise.substack.com
October 22, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Akka Falafel — which has been known as Just Falafels for as long as I’ve known it, seemingly until pretty recently — has been my go-to falafel wrap for the best part of a decade, but I suppose I’ll (reluctantly) share it with you all too
Final bake for this weekend's recipe post. You might want to subscribe for this one 👀
October 20, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Final bake for this weekend's recipe post. You might want to subscribe for this one 👀
I entered Camille in a slightly foul mood, and left elated. Any meal that can do that is guaranteed to be something special indeed.
Camille, SE1
Mood-altering cooking
braise.substack.com
October 15, 2025 at 5:44 PM
I entered Camille in a slightly foul mood, and left elated. Any meal that can do that is guaranteed to be something special indeed.
I wouldn't presume to declare what's best in New York, so I'll settle for listing a few of my favourites
My favourite places to eat and drink in New York in 2025
The Big Apple of my eye
braise.substack.com
October 12, 2025 at 3:49 PM
I wouldn't presume to declare what's best in New York, so I'll settle for listing a few of my favourites
Reposted by Braise
Lots of talk about veggie burgers this week, but I think a lot of people missed that lab-grown meat would be hit by the same EU restrictions. Bad news for a pretty fragile sector.
Lab-grown meat does not a burger make, EU lawmakers insist
A burger by any other name.
www.theverge.com
October 10, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Lots of talk about veggie burgers this week, but I think a lot of people missed that lab-grown meat would be hit by the same EU restrictions. Bad news for a pretty fragile sector.
Lucali is, without a doubt, one of the most acclaimed pizza places in New York City. It’s also pretty average.
Lucali, New York
Don't heed the hype
braise.substack.com
October 8, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Lucali is, without a doubt, one of the most acclaimed pizza places in New York City. It’s also pretty average.
Finally made it to Crisp, London's hype-est of pizzerias, and I regret to inform you that it really is just about that good
October 6, 2025 at 5:35 PM
Finally made it to Crisp, London's hype-est of pizzerias, and I regret to inform you that it really is just about that good
Adoh! is a mixed bag, but if you go in looking for cheap cocktails and fried snacks, I think you'll have a pretty good time
Adoh!, WC2
Kolamba, but make it casual
braise.substack.com
October 1, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Adoh! is a mixed bag, but if you go in looking for cheap cocktails and fried snacks, I think you'll have a pretty good time
Can hugely recommend Ruby Tandoh’s All Consuming, a look at the origins of modern food culture that’s as funny and readable as it is meticulously researched. A total page-turner.
All Consuming, by Ruby Tandoh
A potted history of TikTok, bubble tea, and Sunday supplements
braise.substack.com
September 28, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Can hugely recommend Ruby Tandoh’s All Consuming, a look at the origins of modern food culture that’s as funny and readable as it is meticulously researched. A total page-turner.
I know, I know, Superiority Burger is a bit of an obvious spot to celebrate in New York — I’m hardly the first. But it really does live up to the hype, so long as you don’t bother with the actual burger.
Superiority Burger, New York
A superior restaurant with an inferior burger
braise.substack.com
September 24, 2025 at 8:11 PM
I know, I know, Superiority Burger is a bit of an obvious spot to celebrate in New York — I’m hardly the first. But it really does live up to the hype, so long as you don’t bother with the actual burger.
I'm on holiday so I've been a little lax on self-promotion, but a few weeks ago I broke out of London for a long walk and a pub dinner. Here's what I thought of it.
The Bull, Charlbury
A gastropub that earns the name.
braise.substack.com
September 20, 2025 at 5:23 PM
I'm on holiday so I've been a little lax on self-promotion, but a few weeks ago I broke out of London for a long walk and a pub dinner. Here's what I thought of it.
Surprise, surprise: the new cookbook by Ixta Belfrage is excellent. I’ve loved cooking its punchy, colourful Brazilian-inspired recipes, from lime-soaked okra skewers to coconut curry roast chicken, and it has me sorely tempted to go pick up her last book too.
Fusão, by Ixta Belfrage
Brazilian-ish
braise.substack.com
September 14, 2025 at 9:06 PM
Surprise, surprise: the new cookbook by Ixta Belfrage is excellent. I’ve loved cooking its punchy, colourful Brazilian-inspired recipes, from lime-soaked okra skewers to coconut curry roast chicken, and it has me sorely tempted to go pick up her last book too.
Charcoal Champ is a north London north Chinese hotspot, where you should order a great many grilled skewers and wash them down with a cold Tsingtao, as you idly wonder why British BBQ culture can’t be a little more like this
Charcoal Champ, N1
North London's north Chinese BBQ
braise.substack.com
September 10, 2025 at 6:50 PM
Charcoal Champ is a north London north Chinese hotspot, where you should order a great many grilled skewers and wash them down with a cold Tsingtao, as you idly wonder why British BBQ culture can’t be a little more like this