Greetings from Charlotte

We are now well into March which is lovely as that should mean spring is on its way. This coming Sunday it is Mother's day and in a few weeks time Easter will be upon us. For both occasions we will be offering the popular Scandinavian buffet. In February we had several private parties booked in the private dining room which was great to see. We can seat 10-12 people in the private dining room, and it means your group has more privacy for a celebration or meeting. Furthermore, we had the pleasure of hosting 40 students from Pepperdine university for a dinner where they experienced Scandinavian food. The students at Pepperdine are American so Scandinavian food is something quite different to them. February is also the month for Valentines and the yearly Pancake Day. Valentines this year turned into a weekend affair, as it was on a Sunday. For Pancake Day Rene, our head chef, had come up with 3 original pancakes that went down a storm.

On the catering side we had the pleasure to deliver a smushi and salad lunch to the nearby Art Fund. Our smushis were also very popular at a combined Danish/Swedish gathering in Holland Park early on in the month. Finally, February is also the month of wine tasting. Heidi and myself were busy at both Bibendum and Laytons' tastings in order to update our wine list. Later this month we should have the new list in place with some new entrants and in general a lot of updates! Next to working on the winelist we also managed to find a great juice supplier in Chegworth Valley juices - more about them below.

Have a great - and hopefully sunny - March,

Charlotte

Mother's Day Smörgåsbord

It is Mother's Day this coming Sunday - March 14. We will be serving a traditional Scandinavian buffet from noon to 3.30pm.

The buffet is served with freshly baked sourdough- and rye bread

Onion marinated herring with curry salad
Sweet cured herring in Madeira sauce
Tomato marinated herring served with hardboiled eggs
Mixed leaves with crayfish tails and lemon dressing
Tomato and Västerbotten cheese topped with parsley pesto
Lemon cured salmon with dill dressing
Cold roast beef with house pickled cucumber and chunky remoulade
Chicken and bacon salad with asparagus in a herb mayonnaise
Homemade warm liver pate with crispy bacon and mushrooms
"Frikadeller"/Danish meatballs with creamy potato salad
"Flæskesteg"/Roast pork belly with red cabbage
"Biff Lindström"/Swedish beef burger served with sauteed cabbage

A selection of cheeses with apricot compote
"Drømmekage" - Sponge cake with a coconut and caramel topping
Marinated fruits with vanilla cream

A vegetarian menu is available, if you let us know when pre-booking.

The buffet is £24.50 per person. Children under the age of 12 are half price.

If you would like to make a reservation please call 0207 225 2772 or email us at reservations@madsenrestaurant.com. We are looking forward to hearing from you.

London Restaurant Week 2010

We are proud to be participating in the London Restaurant Week with lots of other great restaurants. The festival, that runs all of March, is now in its fourth year and it has established itself as an affordable way for diners to try out new restaurants. The menus are all at a set price with a 2-course lunch at £15 and a 3-course dinner for £25. You need to book between now and March 14th to eat anytime during March.

On our special menus you will find herring, smoked salmon, pink roast beef with Nordic bearnaise sauce, plaice and of course "æblekage"/apple trifle. You can find our full menu here. To reserve a table please call us on 020 7225 2772 or send us an email on reservations@madsenrestaurant.com and let us know that you wish to book for the London Restaurant Week menu.

Chegworth Valley Apple and Pear juices

An apple a day keeps the doctor away - that's right, apples are good for you !

Apples and pears are traditional fruits in both England and Scandinavia. We therefore feel we should have a wider selection of these juices in the restaurant. Over the past few weeks we have been testing different options and we found the best juices with Chegworth Valley. It comes as no surprise that they have won several awards for their pure juices. Chegworth Valley juice come from a family owned business on Water Lane farm in the beautiful Kent countryside. Since starting up in 1983 Chegworth Valley has become known for their selection of freshly pressed English juices from fruit grown on the farm. The fruit is pressed in small batches and next to the 100% pure apple juice they also make a selection of aromatic blends using pears, raspberries, beetroot, blackcurrant, elderflower and other fresh fruits. The juices are full of natural goodness and containing no added sugars, sweeteners, concentrates, artificial colourings, flavourings, or preservatives.

We have added our four favourites to the juice menu: Cox and Bramley Apple / Apple and Elderflower / Apple and Beetroot juice / Pear juice

There are great amounts of vitamin C in both pears and apples. The apple and beetroot juice is our favourite - it has a light red colour and tastes sweet. Beetroot contains betaine which helps the body make carnitine - carnitine is a nutrient that helps the body turn fat into energy. The apple and elderflower juice is a little sweeter than the pure apple juice. On top of this elderflower is considered good for purifying the blood. There are many reasons to choose one of these delicious juices next time you come in for lunch or brunch.

Freshly squeezed orange juice - now that we are at it we can just as well reveal that we now offer fresh orange juice too. We have teamed up with our local Fruit and Vegetable store in South Kensington. They always use the season's best oranges and they have agreed to squeeze them for us. All in all, great to enjoy with our brunch that we serve every Saturday and Sunday from noon. Click here to see our brunch menu.

We hope that you will pop in soon to try our new and healthier juices.

Jarlsberg PR event at Madsen

On Tuesday February 23 we were hosting a PR lunch event for Jarlsberg cheese in the restaurant. Norseland, the company that imports Jarlsberg cheese to the UK, had rented the restaurant for a journalist cookery session. We helped them get in touch with Trina Hahnemann, author of The Nordic Diet, who came up with innovative recipes that involve Jarlsberg cheese. Jarlsberg is great for cooking as it has a low melting point. One of Trina's recipes on freshly baked Jarlsberg bread you can find below - great for eating with soup in this cold weather.

The event was a lot of fun with 10 food journalists in our rather small, warm kitchen where they got a lesson as to how to make bread, salads and even a healthy pizza using potatoes and Jarlsberg cheese. After the cooking Trina and the group gathered in the restaurant for a long meal enjoying our Ærø beer (India Pale Ale, Walnut and Dark Ale) with the meal.

We were so inspired by the event, that we will be introducing a Jarlsberg cheese smushi on our new menu that starts on March 16.

Jarlsberg cheese - the story behind

In 1830, the Swiss came to Norway's Jarlsberg and Laurvig county to teach the Norwegians to make cheese. The Swiss are experienced cheese makers that are famous for making cheese with holes (think Emmentaler). The production in Norway was then very active for two years when the cheese seemed to disappear. However, the tale of this special cheese's delicious taste was still in memory. In 1956 this resulted in The Agricultural University of Norway's decision to revive the famous cheese recipe from 1830. Professor Ole Martin Ystgaard and his team then developed a semi-hard, medium-fat cheese with holes, successfully combining the cheese-making traditions with modern technologies. They named the cheese Jarlsberg after the county where the earlier version had been made at the beginning of the 19th century. Finally, a new cheese category was established.

At the heart of Jarlsberg are two simple natural ingredients - the best quality milk and a secret culture only known to a chosen few. The special recipe that gives Jarlsberg the wide-eyed holes and sweet flavouring is to this day a well-kept Norwegian secret. It is a semi-hard, medium-fat cheese with a full-bodied taste. In the UK market it has been developed to be sold in a range of varieties; wedged for the cheeseboard, in slices for the sandwich and only recently has the Jarlsberg minis been launched that are perfect for treats and kid's lunchboxes.

Recipe of the month

Jarlsberg bread

This recipe is from the Jarlsberg cheese PR day. It is a nice brioche-like Nordic bread that can be served with salad or soup. Serves 6 or 8.

25g fresh yeast, 4tbsp lukewarm water, 4 tbsp lukewarm whole milk, 3 eggs, 175g shredded Jarlsberg cheese, 175g melted butter, 1 tsp freshly ground pepper, 1tsp sea salt, 1tbsp fine chopped fresh thyme, 450g plain flour, 1tbsp olive oil, 1 egg beaten together

In a bowl stir together the yeast with the water and milk - let it rest for 10 minutes. Then add the eggs and the melted butter and stir again. Now add the rest of the ingredients and mix the dough very well. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead well for 5 minutes. If you use a machine let it run for 5 minutes as well.

Now place the dough in a bowl and cover it with a tea towel - let it rise for one and a half hour. Afther the dough has risen, form a long sausage-like bread, bend it so it becomes round, and place it on a piece of baking paper on a baking tray. Let it rise again for 30 minutes and then brush it with the beaten egg.

Bake in pre-heated oven at 200 degrees and for 30 minutes, place on a wire rack to cool down before serving. Serve warm.

The modern Danish warehouse

The Modern Danish warehouse is a pop-up shop in Knightsbridge where a carefully edited selection of vintage pieces are up for grabs from March 6 - 27, 2010.

The Art Deco garage will house up to 120 vintage chairs, tables, sideboards and sofas. Prices will be competitive, ranging from £100 to £1500 and all purchases can be taken home immediately.
"The Garage" is located at 2 North Terrace, SW3 2AB. It is approximately 15 minutes walk from Madsen Restaurant.

What's on in the area

Natural History Museum

Natural Diversity Season of Nature Live talks (until April 1 on Tuesday and Thursdays at 14.30): Uncover the planet's natural diversity through the museum scientists' work and the spectacular specimen collections. You can participate in discussions about why thousands of minerals, millions of mammals and billions of insects matter. Witness amazing specimens, some rarely shown to the public. And find out how your actions can help shape the world around you.

V & A Museum

The Half by Simon Annand (until April 11): This display showcases the work of Simon Annand, photographer of leading actors in the West End for the last 20 years. It provides a rare glimpse into the dressing rooms of actors in the precious, private few moments before the show: The Half. This half an hour before curtain goes up is used for focus and concentration and is strictly private. These photographs pay tribute to the dedication of stage actors and reveal not only technical skills but also aspects of a very personal nightly ritual. Admission is free.

Royal Albert Hall

The Cranberries (March 31 - 19.30) Irish rock band, The Cranberries, rose to international fame in the 1990s with their debut album, Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?, that sold over five million copies in the United States. The group was one of the most successful rock acts of the '90s and this reunion tour will be the first time they perform together in nearly 7 years.

Serpentine Gallery

Richard Hamilton (until April 25). The Serpentine Gallery presents a solo exhibition by one of the world’s most respected living artists, Richard Hamilton. Richard Hamilton has embraced many different media since the 1950s, including painting, printmaking, installation, typography and industrial design. This major exhibition will reassess the nature of the British artist’s pioneering contribution, focusing on Hamilton’s political works.

OPENING HOURS

Monday Midday - 10.30pm
Tuesday - Thursday Midday - 11pm
Friday & Saturday Midday - 11.45pm

Sunday Midday - 5pm
kitchen closes an hour prior to closing time

020 7225 2772
reservations@madsenrestaurant.com