Islington

• Humble Grape Islington will be a wine shop and bar on Theberton Street

  N1 gets a new wine shop and wine bar

• Test Driving Radici - Francesco Mazzei comes to Islington

  Francesco Mazzei's Sartoria in Mayfair is one of our favourite restaurants. We take a look at his next, Radici, a neighbourhood Italian restaurant in Islington.

• Prawn on the Lawn gets a lot bigger at its new Islington location

  

  A Hot Dinners exclusive

  Big news for lovers of Islington's Prawn on the Lawn, they're about to move into a much bigger spot - and it's just a short hop away from the original, taking over the spot where LeCoq used to be. 

  If you're not familiar with Prawn on the Lawn, it's half fishmongers and half wine bar serving up cold bar seafood dishes. So, up until now. that means plenty of prawns,

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• #Rawmen is Adam’s Rawson’s new ramen project in Islington

  Dine on 18-hour pork broth ramen, chicken karaage and milk cheesecake with sansho pepper in an Islington nano-brewery, thanks to Adam Rawson’s #Rawmen pop-up, this time running for just two weeks.

• Bistro Mirey pops up in Islington’s The Charles Lamb with roasts and French cuisine

  

  Yet more pop ups are coming to Islington; this time it’s Sunday roasts and French bistro fare, which will be landing in The Charles Lamb courtesy of Mirey’s.

  The pop up, which previously ran for two months in Caledonian Road’s The Cuckoo N1, will be offering a tidy French-inspired menu to diners around Angel, with starters priced at around £6-9 and mains for £13-15. The menu is set to change

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• Trawler Trash comes to Islington - sustainable seafood on Upper Street

  

  A Hot Dinners exclusive

  What: Trawler Trash

  In a nutshell: A new fish restaurant for Islington

  Summing it all up: Expect a sustainable, weekly changing seafood menu. And there's a cocktail bar at the back too. 

• Dandy Cafe heads to Newington Green, ditching its shipping container

  

  A Hot Dinners Exclusive

  What: Dandy 

  In a nutshell: Modern cooking from two Aussies in Newington Green

  Summing it all up: Dan Wilson and Andrew Leitch are making the leap from a shipping container in London Fields to a new spot in Newington Green, taking with them their much-praised food, natural wine and of course, loads of speciality coffee.

• Mercer & Co comes to Chapel Market, bringing salt beef and cocktails galore

  

  What: Mercer & Co

  In a nutshell: Salt beef bagels, oreo cheesecake and five cocktails in Islington

  Summing it all up: Chapel Market, just around the corner from Angel Tube, has a new salt beef and cocktail bar. They'll be serving bagels, mac & cheese, and milkshakes for those indulging, and quinoa bowls, vegan salads and smoothies

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• Adam Rawson pops up with Sakura in Islington's Borough Wines & Beers

  

  Fresh from his travels in Japan, YBF Chef of the Year Adam Rawson is now bringing a taste of East Asia to Essex Road.

  He’ll be using his recently acquired knowledge to transform the snazzy glass-fronted Borough Wines & Beers into a pop up izakaya - a sort of informal Japanese gastropub. Inside, Rawson will be dishing up a 12 course menu of highly typical Japanese dishes, served up in floral-laden

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• Boustead & Bidois pops-up in Islington from an Opera Tavern and Ten Bells chef

  

  What: Boustead & Bidois

  In a nutshell: Chris Boustead teams up with Tim Bidois to bring classic British fare to Highbury Corner.

  Summing it all up: Former Opera Tavern chef will bring his considerable experience to a new collaboration with Tim Bidois, a chef from New Zealand. The pop-up will see dishes like potted rabbit and pig, or rolled spring lamb appearing in Islington’s Nanna's.

• The Draper's Arms wins the 2017 Scotch Egg Challenge

  

  Last night, the competition to REALLY test the judges taking part was unleashed as Scotch Egg Challenge 2017 took place. Those judging had to wade through 15 different scotch eggs in order to crown this year's winner - with beef, prawn, veggie, haggis and more scotch eggs being thrown into the mix.

  But of the 15 - only three went away with prizes and those were....

  • 1st place - The Drapers
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• Francesco Mazzei to open Radici trattoria in Islington

  

  A Hot Dinners Exclusive - updated 22/3/17 with booking details

  What: Radici

  In a nutshell: Southern Italian cooking in Islington

  Summing it all up: A new Italian trattoria with a terrace and wine room is arriving on Almedia Street, bringing with it lots of traditional south Italian dishes, as well as more laid back meals like pizzas, charcuterie and cheeses.

• Westerns Laundry comes to Highbury from Primeur

  

  What: Westerns Laundry

  In a nutshell: Seafood and more comes to Highbury from team behind Primeur

  Summing it all up: The people behind the very successful Primeur are opening a second restaurant. British flavours and Devonshire seafood will be at the heart of this retreat just around the corner from Holloway Road.

• Chefs and judges announced for the 2017 Scotch Egg Challenge

  

  Updated 19/1/17 with shortlist

  After six years, the Scotch Egg Challenge is now one of the key dates in the London food calendar. This year's event will take place at The Canonbury in Islington on 8 February.

  Confirmed judges for the event itself include Fay Maschler from the Evening Standard, Ben Chapman of Smoking Goat and Kiln and Bob Granleese of the Guardian, while the evening will be compered by Joe

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• The General Store is coming to The Garage in Islington

  

  Big changes are afoot in the Garage in Islington. It was recently bought, along with the Borderline, by DHP Family. A big refurb is planned to the venue in general, including a new sound system and more. 

  But it's the addition of the General Store all-day bar that has us interested. As passers-by will know, you can't actually see into The Garage from the outside, but that's going to change. You'll now be able to see into

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