Dinner en Homage: Paul Weller

Cafe Drake's "homage dinner" series remains a perennial favorite with visitors to the site, and many thanks to all those kind strangers who write with appreciation (despite our very very personal tastes which sometimes gravitate towards the mildly obscure end of fame). No minor star this month however as we salute the brains and voice behind The Jam and The Style Council and a widely acknowledged fashion icon par excellence - Mr. Paul Weller. It can be effectively argued that besides penning generation-defining classic tunes like A Town Called Malice and The Bitterest Pill (among a dozen or more), Weller single-handed introduced the larger world outside modish Brit football fans to Fred Perry shirts and black trenchcoats and ushered in the "slim fit" 20 years before Thom Browne or Hedi Slimane entered fashion school.

We didn't want to construct yet another English Isles-themed menu here based solely on a star's nationality, so in a cheeky little move we've devised a dinner drawing from England's culinary history but best suited to the lad-ish aura Weller so elegantly conveyed (and still does though naturally he's quite the old geezer now; Time stops only for Those it has delivered fully to Boredom). The food below is fun and unpretentious and should be consumed in a similar vein. For the main course of fish and fries we suggest covering the table in black-and-white newspapers: be ambitious and go to your local good kiosk for a Brit daily to lend an authentic air. No wine tonight, mates, as the beverage of choice here is lager and stout and plenty of it.

Toasted Cheese Sandwiches with Sweet Pickles

A pub and schoolchild favorite of the parsimonious Brits for decades, this simple construction rates high on flavor and possible addiction tendency.

Remove the crust from several slices of good quality wholegrain sliced bread. Toast very lightly and keep oven hot. Place several thin slices of sharp cheddar on slices of bread followed by slices of sweet pickles (bread and butter etc). Top with another slice of bread, press hard with your hand to flatten and return to hot oven until cheese is melted. Slice into strips and serve with a small green salad if you must.

Beer Battered Fish and Chips

Below are Cafe Drake's infallible recipes for fried fish and french fries. We have never once had a disappointment following these instructions but do be careful not to overcrowd the pan while deep-frying lest the oil temperature should drop radically ensuring soggy greasy bar fare of the worst sort.

1 1/2 pounds of Cod Fillets / 6 large red/new Potatoes, peeled and cut into matchsticks / 2 medium Eggs, beaten / 1 cup All-purpose Flour /1/4 cup Beer /1/4 cup Milk /1/4 cup White wine /Vegetable Oil for deep-frying /1/2 teaspoon Cream of Tartar /1/2 teaspoon Baking powder /Salt, kosher is REALLY best here

1. Combine flour, eggs, beer, milk, wine, cream of tartar, salt, and pepper and mix well to make batter; cover and chill about 1 hour.


2. Heat 2-3" oil in a large pot to 350-375 F and add potatoes; if you don't have a thermometer test by dropping a piece of potato into oil and making certain it sizzles furiously.


3. Cook until just lightly browned, then drain well on paper toweling and keep warm.


4. Cut Cod Fillets into 3-4" pieces; stir batter to re-mix and dip fish pieces into batter, allowing excess to drip off.
   
5. Place into hot oil and fry until golden and just beginning to puff; drain well on paper towels; season fish and chips with salt and pepper to taste.
   
6. Serve hot in the traditional English way with malt vinegar.

Dessert: More Lager or Scotch served on 1 ice cube in highball glass. Repeat until everyone begins to sing Here We Go in unison and Arsenal or Manchester United shirts are revealed.