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My favourite London hot cross buns in 2025

2 weeks ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

The UK has two seasonal pastries that really matter: the mince pie and the hot cross bun. I’ve already ranked my favourite mince pies in the capital, so now it’s time for the Easter bun. They have a bit in common. The association with a Christian holiday, for one, but also the core flavour: dried fruit and spices. Frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised if an efficient baker could make half-decent hot cross buns using leftover Christmas mincemeat. Braise is a reader-supported publication.
Quality Wines, EC1

2 weeks ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

Is there a more ‘London’ restaurant than Quality Wines? Think about it: small plates for sharing, a nonspecifically Mediterranean menu (written on a blackboard, of course), natural wine by the glass, focaccia and olives to start, and always at least one dish on the menu that comes with aioli. I mean none of this as criticism, to be clear.
Recipe: Sourdough soda bread

3 weeks ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

Remember when I said I was going to start baking the same thing for one month at a time this year, and maybe get some recipes out of it? Well, that turned out half right. I started baking soda bread at the beginning of February, but ~life~ got a little in the way of baking every week, so it got two months in the spotlight rather than one.
It's Bagels!, W1

3 weeks ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

I would never claim to go into any review free of bias — the fantasy of critical objectivity is just that, I’m afraid — but I’ll admit to particularly strong feelings ahead of trying It’s Bagels! I was, to be blunt, a sceptic. It’s Bagels! first brought its New York-inflected bagels to Primrose Hill in 2023 to much fanfare, enough that it was able to open new branches in Notting Hill and Soho last year. All of this rubbed me the wrong way. Primrose Hill? Rapid expansion?
Kapusta, by Alissa Timoshkina

4 weeks ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

‘Kapusta’ means cabbage in a few of the Eastern European languages, which makes it a fitting title for this cookbook: one that takes in recipes from nine countries over the region, prioritising those that put vegetables front and centre. Braise is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Solis, SW11

1 month ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

Normally I’d feel a little bad writing up a restaurant when I’d only tried one of its mains. Luckily, at Solis that isn’t so bad — it means I’ve already tried half the menu. Positioned in the renovated Battersea Power Station on the fringes of its Arcade food hall — Solis has its own site, but is also found on the menu at both Arcade locations — this is a restaurant with a simple premise: chicken or steak.
Half measures

1 month ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

I’ve eaten alone a lot over the years, so it’s rare for the experience to surprise me. At Barcelona’s Gresca, it did: they offered to give me half portions of almost anything on the menu. Braise is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. I didn’t ask for special treatment, nor did the menu mention it was an option.
Gringa All Day, Barcelona

1 month ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

Gringa All Day probably isn’t the first restaurant to come to mind when you think of Barcelona. It doesn’t serve tapas, for one. There’s no seafood either. In fact, the food isn’t even Spanish: this is an all-American diner, sat in the heart of Catalonia. By all rights, it should be terrible, let alone a place worth detouring too on holiday. And yet.
Where to eat and drink in Barcelona in 2025

1 month ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

Welcome to Braise’s first issue of ‘annually optimised content’ — a.k.a. a shameless re-hash of a post I wrote last year, albeit updated substantially. I paid my annual pilgrimage to Barcelona last week, and when I didn’t spend my time looking at an awful lot of phones I did my best to eat and drink my way round the city too, all in the name of an improved and updated guide for you lot. My relationship with Barcelona is a slightly odd one. I’ve never lived there, though I know people who have.
Lluritu, Barcelona

1 month ago | braise.substack.com | Dominic Preston

Lluritu is an ultra-simple, minimalist to the extreme restaurant that recognises that there’s little you can add to seafood that will make it taste better than itself. Few dishes on its succinct menu are served with any flourish beyond a lick of oil and a sprinkle of salt, utmost confidence instead entrusted to the ingredients and the grill.