Newsletter - 22nd May 2025

From this week we are taking a new approach to our weekly newsletter. We want to focus on the latest food news - whether that's restaurant openings, farming news, food trends or regional highlights. We want to keep this varied so please do let us know if there is something you'd like to draw our attention to!

Belly

Joining the vibrant Kentish Town food scene is Belly, a bistro centred around wood-fired cooking. The brainchild of Omar Shah, who co-founded hotspots like Ramo Ramen in Soho, the new opening blends modern Filipino and European flavours..

Where: 157 Kentish Town Road NW1 8PD

Book: bellylondon.com

The 35-seat bistro presents a menu that reimagines traditional dishes with inventive twists. Starters include Wagyu steak tartare with nori crisps and coriander aioli and smoked trout Kinilaw with coconut milk, lime and coriander. Mains include Oak smoked adobo lamb ribs with tamarind, dark soy and garlic and a dish of miso roasted cod caldereta with brown. Butter, roasted tomato, red pepper and green olive. And for dessert there is Buko crumble pie with coconut cream.

While formal reviews are still forthcoming, early mentions highlight Belly Bistro's inventive approach to Filipino cuisine and its potential as a noteworthy dining destination in North London.

The UK and EU have agreed to a comprehensive post-Brexit trade reset that includes a veterinary agreement easing checks on agricultural exports. This alignment with EU food safety standards is expected to reduce food prices and boost the UK economy by £9 billion. The deal also reopens EU markets to British shellfish and other products. However, it grants EU fishing fleets access to UK waters for 12 years, a point of contention among UK fishers.