Moments for me!

I love those London moments when the unexpected little things make u smile! After a lovely day on the Heath with L&M I picked up copy of a book by my favourite author from oxfam in Kentish town. I decided to stop in the sun on the regents canal on my way home to read the 1st chapter before the sun sets to discover my book is signed by the author!
Happy Sunny Days! xx

Lucky Lady

So few people are lucky enough to be able to walk to work in this city! My walk is idyllic to say the least in this lovely spring weather... It would be rude not to share!

Summer is on its way!

When I was in Glasgow I was always so envious of the summer in London!
I had planned to move here before the end of last summer and it didn't really work out so I've been excited by the prospect of summer pretty much since arriving!

London you haven't let me down- it's only March the sun is shining, I can sit outside in my sunglasses n without a jacket ..... Keep up the good work!

Foodie Fortnight

I must confess ... I love food!! Cooking and Eating .... either! I enjoy tasting new things and old favorites, trying new recipes and perfecting old ones. I even fancy myself as a bit of a baker and successfully made a few pretty and yummy wedding cakes for friends last summer. When I moved to London the only books I packed were my Architecture books and my Recipe Books ... I might have thrown a few travel ones in for good measure but that is kind of irrelevant!

The last few weeks I have been in my element! I know when I moved to London that there would be so many places to go for amazing food and to try new things. I haven't been disappointed and I know I haven't even begun to scratch the surface. 

London is Foodie Heaven!!

You don't even need to go more than a few paces from home and you can find excellent food all around you. This food fest all started a couple of weeks ago when my friend was coming over for dinner. Normally I relish the though of cooking for my friends but I'd been held up at work and knew the contents of my fridge were bleak to say the least. I was also feeling a little blue anyway as the friend I was meeting that evening was emigrating to Australia and this was the last time I would see her in London for a very long time .... I just didn't feel like cooking. A new Bar had just opened at the end of the street and I'd watched as it was slowly renovated from a grotty dive to a rather cosy looking speakeasy style pub, plus I'd read a few great reviews! http://www.viewlondon.co.uk/pubsandbars/the-hunter-s-review-275645.html I suggested we go there. I had high hopes, and from the moment I stepped through the door I knew this place was worth more than one visit. From the 20's jazz playing, the well stocked gantry, to the mix of comfy lounge chairs/ sofa's and dining tables this place has lots going for it. I was already imagining myself popping in for a cosy glass of wine on a weeknight or spending a lazy Sunday with the papers and a roast dinner! The fact it is so close to home is just an added bonus.

The menu has a nice range on offer, but isn't overloaded with choices. We both wanted a light dinner and the waitress suggested we try the special, which was a Thai Beef Salad. The beef was cooked to perfection, and spice blend delicious. Our plates weren't over loaded and the vegetables were still crispy, but covered in just enough sauce to ensure the entire salad was mouthful after mouthful of Thai tastiness. All that and a glass of wine for just over a tenner!! I knew I'd be back.

My week continued on this tantalizing thread when a friend R visited that weekend. I know London is famous for its markets and wasn't surprised when a friend told me there was a great food market 10 mins walk form my house. I guessed it would be the usual, fruit and veg, some spice sellers, maybe a butcher and a fishmonger and perhaps one or two more unusual stalls. How wrong I was!!

Broadway Market http://www.broadwaymarket.co.uk/ Is a one stop shop of everything I love about food!! I'm not sure where to start .... everyone should experience this market. My only advice is to go hungry, as you'll literally want to eat your way from one end of the street to the other! My highlights; Chucked Oysters with chilli and ginger that we had for brunch, the hand made chunky pesto and smoked cheddar I took home, the Scallop, Chorizo, Mackerel Mayo and salad sandwich I had for lunch, and the miniature toffee fudge cake I had for afters!! I was just sad my friends dragged me off elsewhere, as I surely would have stayed for dinner too!! The only downside to this market is that I might not discover any more of London as I'll be here every Saturday!!

Disappointed my friends dragged me away from my food mecca, they placated my by telling me they’d take me for Steak et Frites for dinner. Ah, well Broadway was forgotten and saved for another weekend. I’m soooo fickle but I do love a good steak so they new that would cheer me up, hook, line and sinker! I clearly am a simple being! We went to Relais De Venise http://www.relaisdevenise.com/. Situated in Marylebone, the menu at this place consists of Rare, Medium or Well Done – so if your not a steak fan steer clear. They don’t take bookings which is a bit of a pain but the queuing its self is very reminiscent of some of the best restaurants I’ve been to in Paris and luckily there’s always someone in my crowd who understands that “I’m just popping to the bar across the road to use the loo” actually means “I’m going for a sneaky glass of fizz while you numpties stand in the queue!” – the last person to cotton on always tends to be a bit cold and grumpy during dinner but, hey, C’est La Vie someone has to queue!! Our Dinner was worth the wait, walnut salad to start and steak cooked to your liking, with proper French fries and a secret sauce (I picket up tarragon, Dijon mustard and crème friache!) They even came round with seconds – yum! Well recommended for steak lovers!

With R down for the weekend it was inevitable we would partake in a few alcoholic beverages during dinner and after dinner on the Saturday evening, and due to the queuing situation we’d also had a few glasses of fizzy pop before dinner too.! Feeling a little under the weather on Sunday we met friends for a rainy, windy walk on Hampstead Heath to blow away the Cobwebs. Feeling more refreshed we headed to The Bull and Last. http://www.thebullandlast.co.uk/ I had it on good authority that they served the best Scotch Eggs in London. They do! The sausage rolls rock too!

Perfect cure for the after effects of a good fun Saturday night all washed down with a Bloody Mary. We were ready to take on the world again! 

My foodie fortnight continued the following week, as one of my girlie mates L and I had signed up for a Sushi making course at Suzu. http://www.suzuonline.co.uk/ There is such an art to making sushi and we had fun – mostly making a mess but the class informative and its always a bonus when you have something yummy to eat at the end. We learned how to make Nigri and Maki and inside out Maki. Our instructor even told us how to make sushi rice properly and where the best places in London to buy Sushi fish are. 40% of the cost of the class also goes to charity, and you can have a beer or glass of wine while you learn, I’d definitely recommend this as an alternative night out for foodie friends. You even get to keep your rolling mat, so now armed with my mat and some basic knowledge you’ll find me at home making Sushi – who’s coming round for dinner?

To round off my foodie fortnight I headed back to The Hunter S for a Sunday Roast – well I did say I’d be back!! The roast beef was Delicious, and even when the waitress knocked my class of Rioja all over my white top my spirits were not dampened. 

Life is good up on my culinary cloud!  

Brixton Acadamy, Camden Barfly and Cuba Libres!!

As a self confessed lover of gigs and live music, one of the things I've been most looking forward to in London is exploring some of the iconic venues the city has to offer. This weekend didn't disappoint!

I've been to 100's of gigs - too many to count and across a range of music genres and I always love to go to venues I've never been to - particularly if they are renowned and revered for the bands that have played there and the amazing atmosphere that they seem to go hand in hand with.

On Friday night I got my first chance to experience Brixton Academy - what a venue!! With friends from out of town visiting to go to the Rodrigo Y Gabriela gig I took the opportunity to tag along. I have seen RodGab before, and they are amazing but I'll be honest and say that, actually, I was more excited at the prospect of going to Brixton Academy than I was at actually seeing the Mexican musical duo. I managed to blag a ticket at the tube station - I'm not a fan of buying tickets from touts and was all geared up to use my best Scottish banter to get a good price! I needn't have given it much thought - not sure the touts down here have much business acumen, the guy only charged me £1 over the ticket and booking fee cost! Great - I had a ticket and hadn't been ripped off - I already knew it was going to be a good night!
On entering the academy I was struck by how similar the entrance hall feels to the Barrowlands in Glasgow, one of the greatest places to see live bands. Not sure if it was the style of the staircase with its art deco balustrades that had me reminiscing about my favourite Glasgow venue, the stale smell of beer and dust or the buzz and electricity in the air that you don't always get at other venues. The main hall is bigger than I had imagined and is actually quite imposing with its decorative alcoves and pilasters - and the stage is big too and the floor raked so you always get a good view. It was packed and we couldn't get as near the front as I would have liked but that was partly our own fault for being slightly late. The gig was great and there was a carnival atmosphere, in part due to the Cuban band that accompanied RodGab on the stage. Its the kind of music you can't help moving along to and the things that pair can do with guitars is just outstanding! But I can't help wishing I'd gone to see something a bit more Rock n Roll for my first trip to Brixton, however I'm looking forward to many more trips to Brixton Acadamy and hopefully next time to see something more rock, with dirty guitar riffs and lots of noise - its the type of place that I can imagine would be at its best then.

The rest of the weekend continued on this theme and I met friends in Camden on Saturday afternoon, where we unintentionally continued the South American theme having a few Cocktails in Made In Brazil on Inverness Street. http://www.made-in-brasil.co.uk/ Its a great little bar and the barman really knew his stuff, they do traditional cocktails with a real twist. The holiday feel was helped along by the fact it was a gloriously sunny and warm day for February. No gloves or scarves required and sunglasses a must and we spent a good deal of time laughing about the fact we'd gotten a rickshaw home the previous night!!

Although my friend Big N probably spoiled the experience for himself by eating the 2 whole chillies that were meant as garnish in his drink. While he sucked on ice cubes C and I had a good laugh at his expense!!

After leaving Made In Brazil we had a wander round Stables market, where we then ended up in the The Cuban!! http://www.thecuban.co.uk/ See the theme emerging! Had a few Cuba Libres and some great tapas. The Cuban is a great place to meet in the market - although I think I might get lost trying to find it again! Not sure if I should contribute that to the fact the market is like a maze or the copious amounts of Rum that had by now been consumed! From here we headed up Chalk Farm Road to The Barfly - famed for its live music and synonymous with launching the careers of the likes of Coldplay and The Strokes. Its smaller and more intimate than I thought and I was rather surprised by the lack of Rock music that was being played in favour of pop tunes - I would never have believed it if someone told my I'd hear Aqua's Barbie Girl in The Barfly Camden!! We did however have fun dancing to cheesy tunes and the Barfly didn't disappoint in its delivery of some yummy looking rock types! One particularly lovely leather jacket clad Italian caught my eye - shame I didn't have the guts to ask for his number!
As I said I was slightly surprised at the lack of Rock music being played and tweeted about it this morning - only to have Camden Barfly tweet me back to say they were playing rock music upstairs all night! Upstairs?? Oh maybe the place isn't as small and intimate as I thought - Ooops!! Well at least I have an excuse to go back and check it out and who knows maybe the Yummy Italian will be there too! I'll get his number this time!!

Getting Started

Wow - I cant believe I've started a blog. I hope I can make it interesting, but even if no one is interested in reading I guess at least it will be a record of the things I've seen, experienced, observed, loved, loathed and lived.
So ... I just moved to london. Well actually I moved a few months ago but its taken me till now to realise that it might be good to share a bit with others about my experiences here. This city has so much to offer in terms of culture and things to do and I'll share my experiences of that as and when I discover new places. However London also give you the chance to meet and observe people from all corners of the globe and all walks of life, so don't be surprised if the odd anecdote or story crops up about people I've met.
So here goes ...