Nick Lander

United States

Contributing Writer at JancisRobinson.com

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Articles

Bowled over by Updown

1 week ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

A strong recommendation of a decidedly Italianate restaurant with rooms. These photographs taken in opposite directions could surely have been taken in Tuscany. The entrance to the restaurant under a pergola is bright and verdant, and the sunlight is pouring in; just to the left of the lower picture there is even a vine. In the other direction, way past the chef working away, there are the beginnings of a swimming pool. The short menu is also decidedly Italian.
Eating out in Maastricht

2 weeks ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

Netherlands Belgium food Nick kicks off his review of a couple of restaurants in a famously historic Dutch city with an ode to the rare dessert above. The sound of sabayon being made is unique: the clack of a whisk against metal as the eggs are beaten. But how many restaurant-goers have ever heard it? Not many, I would guess.
Ognisko of South Kensington

3 weeks ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

How Londoners can visit Poland without going to an airport. I initially requested a meeting with Jan Woroniecki to discuss his thoughtful wine pricing. The encounter turned into a two-hour lunch, with an excellent bottle of Mauro Veglio, Gattera 2017 Barolo (£98) and a discussion of the evolution of London restaurants over the past 40 years.
Don't Tell Dad in Queen's Park

1 month ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

A very new neighbourhood restaurant that's a bakery and coffee shop during the day, serving items such as the pain suisse with Lincolnshire Poacher cheese, artichoke and sage pictured here. Sunday, 23 March 2025 • 5 min read The last time I wrote about Daniel Land was in 2011. He, together with his then business partner, had opened the first of several branches of Coco di Mama (Mummy’s boy) which became successful selling pasta ‘to go’ as well as coffee.
A heroic duo in Maida Vale

1 month ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

Nick wishes he'd stayed in the pub downstairs. The Public House Group is aptly named. Founded by a trio of obviously talented men – Philip Winser, James Gummer and Olivier van Themsche – this is a company on a mission: to revitalise and to reopen the once-great British pubs that are today closing rapidly across the UK.
Greek Street - glorious reflections

1 month ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

Nick’s recent trip down memory lane in London’s Soho. As I took the photo below of the restaurant’s stylish business card lying somewhat forlornly on the restaurant floor, the waitress tapped me on my shoulder and said, ‘I can get you a clean one if you like’. I declined. The simplicity of this card captured my attention. 10 GS. Clever in two numbers and letters to encapsulate the restaurant’s full name of 10 Greek Street, with the rest of the information overleaf.
Manchester magic

1 month ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

The northern home of Manchester United and Manchester City is now a mecca for the hungry. Manchester has not always been as glamorous as this mural in the restaurant of the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel implies. Nor has its city centre been as replete with restaurants, wine bars, pubs and cafés as it is today.
Marrakech in winter

2 months ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

Oranges plucked from the tree, tajines, pigeon pastillas, donkeys and suede jackets made to measure for a song. What's not to like? There are many, varied reasons why so many people leave the cold north of the northern hemisphere for Marrakech in Morocco in the winter and spring.
Sune of Hackney

2 months ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

An East London restaurant with a strong wine bent and an unusual front-of-house partnership. Above, Charlie Sims and Honey Spencer of Sune. At seven o’clock on a Tuesday evening, Sune restaurant by the canal in nether Hackney, East London, was as busy as any good London restaurant. The place was crowded, almost full. The clientele were mostly young couples, one with a dog. They all seemed extremely happy and the noise level was rising quickly.
Caring about wine

2 months ago | jancisrobinson.com | Nick Lander

Nick interviews the man who buys wine for the 5,000 to 6,000 customers fed by Caprice Holdings every night. Above, the interior of Bacchanalia. Restaurant reviews rarely mention the drinks on offer. And yet they often make a more significant contribution than food to a restaurant’s bottom line. Restaurateurs who overlook the importance of their wine list, do so at their own peril.