Smoked by AI · London · people

Jake Missing

Critic · Journalist — London pubs and pub food above all, plus casual neighbourhood restaurants; the room and the crowd read alongside the plate.

Editorial Lead, London, at The Infatuation, which SOURCES.md approves and `validator.py` carries as an approved domain. He writes bylined, scored reviews (The Infatuation publishes a numeric rating with a published band definition, e.g. 8.0 = "Great... worth making an effort or crossing town for") and a dish-by-dish Food Rundown that states what was wrong as well as what was right. That combination, a byline, a number and a named fault, is what separates a review from a listing under the reporter-versus-reviewer rule.

Their own reviews and picks.

Their own judgment, in their own words, by the piece it appeared in.

• The Infatuation London, 9.0 ↗their review · 2026-03-19
  • KilnSoho

    “The recipe of a walk-in-only policy and an alway-evolving menu means that, on most weeknights, Kiln is a bunfight. Regulars smush beside tourists who politely shift for a friend of the chef who's grilling gai yang like his life depends on it.”

• The Infatuation ↗their review · 2026-02-27
  • TamilaKing's Cross

    “nothing here is watered down and the thick, tingling rub on the half tandoori chicken is a cut above the rest. As far as respites from St. Pancras go, this is up there.”

• The Infatuation, rated 7.9 ↗their review · 2025-12-29
  • Khao So-iFitzrovia

    “Those who sit around Khao-So-i's kitchen counter are treated to a constant flaming show as beef chuck is routinely torched and sunset orange bowls of broth are carefully ladled. The temperature of the curry can vary depending on the chaos of the restaurant and how long it takes to get to you, but the toppings, be it wobbling chicken thigh or flaky beef shank, are very good. There's a pleasing DIY element to the bowls too, and the coconut milk is made in-house every day. Even though the results can be inconsistent and the high-paced energy leans frantic, Khao-So-i is an easy suggestion for a Wednesday night that needs some excitement.”

• The Infatuation London, 'The Plimsoll', 8.5 ↗their review · 2025-03-31
  • The PlimsollFinsbury Park

    “The famous dexter cheeseburger continues to be an outstanding piece of beefy, buttery, craftsmanship. It's all meat, cheese, sauce, and gherkins; no lettuce.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2025-01-31
  • Beigel BakeBrick Lane

    “these golden-crusted, chewy bagels are immense. Most people come for the salt beef and mustard and, over the years, the portion has evened out and the English mustard has got less fiery. Still the meat pulls away in soft pink strands and a gherkin never goes amiss.”

• The Infatuation, 'Hackney butcher Hill & Szrok cooks imperious steaks by night' (8.5) ↗their review · 2025-01-06
  • Hill & SzrokHackney

    “Hill & Szrok is one of the few London restaurants doing steak justice.”

• The Infatuation, London ↗their review · 2024-10-26
  • Ye Olde Cheshire CheeseFleet Street

    “this sawdusty medieval bungalow along Fleet Street is as popular with tourists as it is with beardy CAMRA types and office workers sinking pints”

• The Infatuation, 'Yuki Bar' (7.9) ↗their review · 2024-10-01
  • Yuki BarLondon Fields

    “Pretensions aside, this is a gorgeous place to have a glass or four. The knee-high, wraparound bar gives the feel of a tight-knit izakaya”

• The Infatuation London, review of Tasty Jerk, 9.1 ↗their review · 2024-09-11
  • Tasty JerkSouth Norwood

    “Tasty Jerk is a smoking temple of jerk worship.”

• The Infatuation London, review of Zeret Kitchen, 9.1 ↗their review · 2024-09-11
  • Zeret KitchenCamberwell

    “London is blessed with a tonne of Ethiopian restaurants and Zeret Kitchen is arguably the best. The injera is baked thin and springy with just the right amount of tang, while the stews, vegan or otherwise, are superb.”

• The Infatuation London, review of Lao Dao, 8.2 ↗their review · 2024-06-12
  • Lao DaoWalworth

    “Lao Dao's grilled lamb is tender, caramelised, and something we'd happily get our hands dirty for every week.”

• The Infatuation ↗their review · 2024-06-10
  • LitaMarylebone

    “This kind of lavish decadence could seem vulgar if the extortionate food wasn't so delicious.”

• The Infatuation ↗their review · 2024-05-07
  • Sushi ShowIslington

    “A piece of fatty tuna nigiri isn't going to set you back like a Mayfair restaurant and it tastes just as good. Scallop is similarly melt-in-your-mouth and look out for the natto hosomaki too.”

• The Infatuation ↗their review · 2024-04-22
  • SaborMayfair

    “Sabor feels most worthwhile thanks to that pig”

• The Infatuation, 'Noodle & Beer' (8.2, Spitalfields) ↗their review · 2024-01-12
  • Noodle & BeerSpitalfields

    “know the menu at Noodle & Beer is an annoying one. In that you'll want to order and eat almost everything off of it, and yet you only have one measly stomach to try and fit it all into.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2023-09-29
  • Xi'an ImpressionHighbury

    “Football fan or not, this little Chinese restaurant is one of the most compelling things around Highbury and Holloway. It's a white-walled, 12-or-so table affair. It doesn't take bookings, doesn't pretend to care how your day was, and has the thing that matters most: conversation-cancelling food.”

• The Infatuation, on the English Breakfast Udon ↗their review · 2023-09-22
  • Koya SohoSoho

    “truly one of the great modern London dishes”

• The Infatuation London, review of M.Manze, 7.0 ↗their review · 2023-08-30
  • M. Manze (Tower Bridge)Bermondsey

    “But it's the original on Tower Bridge Road we find ourselves most drawn to.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2023-08-22
  • Brat x Climpson's ArchLondon Fields

    “Part greenhouse, part deluxe BBQ, and part future dry-cleaning bill, there's a relaxed attitude to this space that suits bigger groups and louder voices.”

• The Infatuation London (scored 7.7) ↗their review · 2023-03-24
  • EscocesaStoke Newington

    “Escocesa is a neighbourhood tapas spot in Stoke Newington, where all the seafood is sourced from Scotland. This means juicy Orkney scallops, octopus with white bean purée and capers, and grilled Shetland mussels.”

• The Infatuation ↗their review · 2023-03-15
  • EtlesWalthamstow

    “It's sloppy and spicy, generous and moreish. A dish that's made for everyone and, like Etles as a whole, has home in mind.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2023-01-31
  • Straker'sNotting Hill

    “Straker's flatbreads are easily better than any other small plates flatbread in London.”

• The Infatuation London, 'The Tamil Prince', 8.4 ↗their review · 2022-09-16
  • The Tamil PrinceBarnsbury

    “Head chef Prince Durairaj was in the kitchen at Roti King before this and the bread here is just as flaky and irresistible.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2022-09-13
  • Umut 2000 HarringayHarringay

    “At the Harringay location of Umut 2000, you should be doing exactly what you do in their Dalston home, and that's ordering an ginormous platter of lamb ribs. Fresh from the ocakbasi, fat sizzling and meat perfectly pink and tender, these ribs are one of London's great go-tos.”

• The Infatuation, 'Manteca Shoreditch' (8.4) ↗their review · 2022-09-05
  • MantecaShoreditch

    “There's a stylishness in its quiet straightforwardness and, whether you've got four legs or two legs, that's the sign of a very good restaurant.”

• The Infatuation London, 8.3 ↗their review · 2022-08-26
  • CadetNewington Green

    “The most significant mould being broken is the one for their impeccable pate en croute - an artful slice of chicken, pork belly, ham hock, booze, and herbs. Reinvention may well be the mother of necessity, but Cadet is a reminder that all you ever need is charming hosting and a quickly poured glass of something crisp and fizzy.”

• The Infatuation, Lucky & Joy review, scored 8.3 ↗their review · 2022-08-22
  • Lucky & JoyClapton

    “Fun restaurants are hard to come by, but fun restaurants with good food are even more elusive. It's an oh-so-rare combination that too often weighs more heavily on one side than the other. At Lucky & Joy it feels perfectly even.”

• The Infatuation London, rated 8.2 ↗their review · 2022-08-22
  • Max's Sandwich ShopStroud Green

    “The best way to describe Max's sandwiches is to say that they are main courses between bread.”

• The Infatuation, 'Canton Arms' (8.0) ↗their review · 2022-08-21
  • Canton ArmsStockwell

    “The menu is a touch European and a touch British, and the food is neither brilliant nor bad, but perfect for the space. Homely portions of Montbéliard sausage and beans, a fish whose final splash is in a pool of butter, a plate of ripe peaches and stracciatella. It's satisfying stuff that has some faults.”

• The Infatuation London, review of Oren, 8.5 ↗their review · 2022-05-31
  • OrenDalston

    “Arayes, a pitta stuffed with hake before being grilled in lamb fat, is one of the best things you can eat in London.”

• The Infatuation London, 8.6 ↗their review · 2022-03-21
  • Noble Rot SohoSoho

    “There's also some honouring of the Gay Hussar's Hungarian heritage going on. A goulash or a lovely little choux bun filled with duck liver pate, plus a new classic via the Jura: roast chicken with morels and vin jaune. Without doubt the essential order.”

• The Infatuation, Soho review, rated in the 7 band ↗their review · 2022-01-21
  • Banh Mi Keu SohoSoho

    “The Soho outpost of this casual Vietnamese cafe is just as reliable as its Shoreditch sibling. Their banh mi's are always tasty - the classic, roast pork or roast duck are our go-tos - but, the meat and rice dishes here are similarly good. It's a meal that suits quick lunches as well as prolonged ones, solo ones or social ones.”

• The Infatuation, rated in their 7 band ↗their review · 2022-01-21
  • Lahore Kebab HouseWhitechapel

    “This big Pakistani grill serves up kebabs and curries in a straightforward, no frills, canteen-like setting. It's an institution for excellent value group meals, but that isn't to say you can't enjoy their onion bhajis and a portion of softly spiced chicken karahi alone.”

• The Infatuation, rated in the 8 band ↗their review · 2022-01-21
  • Yeni Umut 2000 DalstonDalston

    “There's something of a perma argument over what is the ocakbasi to eat in in Dalston. One person's Mangal, is another person's Cirrik, which is another person's Umut. We often opt for the latter... Umut 2000 is a no-nonsense ocakbasi restaurant. The smells coming off the grill consistently make our stomach do somersaults and the lamb ribs are Dalston's finest. Eat in or takeaway, you'll never be anything less than delighted.”

• The Infatuation ↗their review · 2022-01-14
  • SMOKESTAKShoreditch

    “Their brisket bun...is almost definitely still the best meat between bread you can get in London.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2022-01-14
  • Smoking Goat ShoreditchShoreditch

    “Both the drunken noodles and massaman curry, for example, are indistinct in flavour and spice, such that you'll probably wonder what region of Greater London they're from rather than Thailand.”

• The Infatuation London (scored 7.4), review of the Dalston branch ↗their review · 2022-01-14
  • Voodoo Ray'sDalston

    “Slices are £4 a go for the most part and it's a very satisfying large snack or small dinner if you need something quick.”

• The Infatuation London, second page for the same address ↗their review · 2021-04-20
  • Diyarbakir KitchenHarringay

    “Amongst the smouldering competition of Green Lanes' ocakbasi grills, its Diyarbakir that might just edge the top spot. The dough is charred and blistered, thin and cracker-like at the edges, and carries an oozing smoky mince mixture in the middle. Unlike many lahmacuns, Diyarbakir's lahmacun actually tastes of lamb - especially when eaten straight, without salads or sauces - and is generous with its topping.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2021-04-13
  • Diyarbakir KitchenHarringay

    “Among the smouldering competition of Green Lanes' ocakbasi grills, Diyarbakir is another reliable all-round choice. Lamb ribs and carefully spiced adana kofte are excellent while their lahmacuns, charred and blistered on the outside with an oozing smoky mince mixture in the middle, are brilliant handheld delicacies.”

• The Infatuation, 'Pockets' (9.3), of the Netil Market stall ↗their review · 2021-04-08
  • PocketsLondon Fields

    “They get that a pitta needs to be metronomically layered in the most mesmerising fashion. And they get that one item, done perfectly, is all you need in this brilliant genre of eating.”

• The Infatuation London, 'Endo at the Rotunda', 9.3 ↗their review · 2019-12-23
  • Endo at the RotundaWhite City

    “The head chef and headliner wields his sushi knife like a Fender and shreds tuna after tuna into the finest solo pieces of nigiri, before he, or a member of his backing band, places each individual banger from their hand into the palm of yours.”

• The Infatuation London ↗their review · 2018-06-14
  • Efes Restaurant (Whitechapel)Whitechapel

    “seriously good meats and salads”