#FtLionAwards 2019 – Best Newcomer of the Year?

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You know DUSK in Essex means business by hiring the skills of 2 AA Rosette Executive Head Chef, Stephen Gomes, to head its kitchen, as well as the Michelin-experience of Sous Chef, David Dosoo, who’s worked under none other than Gordan Ramsey. Located in the open countryside of Brentwood’s Bentley Golf Club carpark, DUSK offers a 100% non-alcoholic drinks menu and a fully Halal food menu.

One thing that really impressed us, apart from how wonderfully designed this place is, was their desserts, so much so in fact that three have been nominated for an award. One thing to bear in mind is that we visited during their soft opening week. As such, we rated them 3.5/5. But you guys have obviously been since because you’ve rated them far higher with a whopping 4.6/5!

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Shortlisted for two beverages, two veggies, and a seafood dish, Fatt Pundit in London’s Soho consistently wowed us with virtually no weak dish to speak of.

Their take on Indo Chinese cuisine is truly innovative, with emphasis on relatively small plates that are done innovatively. These guys exhibited such gastronomic ingenuity that they truly opened our eyes to the potential of Indo Chinese food. We have no qualms in admitting that, up till now, we’ve considered this style of cooking less seriously than others. No longer! Fatt Pundit has broadened our horizons and opened us up to the true potential of that part of India, viz Tangra. These guys are serious contenders for bringing something to the table that makes them stand out from the crowded UK Indian cuisine scene. As such, we rated them an easy 4.5/5, with you lot even more impressed marking them 4.8/5.

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There’s a reason why The Mantl in Knightsbridge has a starter, main, seafood, dessert and kebab in the running for an award. The talented brothers Mazlum and Serdar Demir behind this newly launched Turkish eatery, are the same folks behind the award-winning Turkish establishment, Skewd Kitchen, we reviewed a few years back in Cockfosters. And when you have Mazlum recognised for his culinary prowess, having been voted ‘Best Young Chef’ in 2015 and ‘Chef of the Year’ in both 2017 and 2018, you’re going to be served some serious food.

While we were expecting refined cuisine, but with all the hallmarks of freshness and quality that underpin Turkish food, what we got exceeded our expectations! The Mantl is a place whose menu is bursting with colours and flavours, and which offers dishes that you will struggle to find elsewhere; and so we both agree in our rated them 4.5/5.

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With 2-Michelin chef Atul Kochhar at the helm of Kanishka in Mayfair London, what else would you expect from a man with decades worth of experience but a starter, seafood and kebab dishes up for an award.

Kanishka is Atul’s comeback as one of the UK’s leading Indian chefs following that unfortunate moment last year when he was embroiled in a Twitter controversy. What makes this latest venture different is that this is the first time he’s sought inspiration for recipes from the north eastern region of India popularly known as the Seven Sisters – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. And Atul has put together a fairly well rounded menu for a largely unexplored cuisine making Kanishka where innovation and surprises abound. We were so impressed that we awarded this place 4.5/5, though you guys have declared it 4/5.

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What an impressive establishment Ribeye Steakhouse in Manchester is! The most impressive thing is the effort to which co-owning siblings Sohail and Waquas Kaushal have gone to to ensure this steakhouse’s fully Halal status, with Manchester’s first dry bar, that’s designed to complement “the best meats” sourced both locally and internationally. The focal point of the entire restaurant is the open kitchen and its theatrical grill, which, in full view of customers, is essentially the heart of Ribeye’s atmospheric hustle and bustle. As such, they have not one, but two steaks in contention for our steak award which included a 300-400 days corn fed, minimum grade-5, and “fully traceable from farm to fork” Ribeye (9oz) Wagyu.

Now, last year, it was another fully Halal establishment, namely Elvet Steakhouse in London, which just missed out on the Best Restaurant award. Who’s to say that Ribeye Steakhouse might not go one better, particularly after we rated them 4.5/5, with you guys rating them 4.2/5.