Last month I was lucky enough to be invited to the press launch of Wahaca in Southampton. Sometimes I need to pinch myself – I really am so grateful to every restaurant kind enough to throw open their doors for me to share their delights with you all!
Last month I was invited to sample the Island Grill’s Valentine’s Day menu at the Lancaster London. As my husband was working, I took along my best friend Rachel. Since trying the nine dish extravaganza, we’ve fallen in love and have both run off together. That’s how good it was.
Street food is the new slow food, which was the new organic, which was the new nouveau cuisine. Or, to put it simply, street food is the new buzz word – and like the rest of the foodie fads, it’s utterly delicious and utterly everywhere.
Chiquito, the UK chain of Mexican restaurants that have been with us since 1989, has caught onto the fad, with delicious results. The Street Food menu has a choice of 16 different items, and is priced at 3 for £12.95 or 6 for £23.95. I was invited to review the range by Chiquitos, so I gathered up a posse and rode into town.
There’s no denying this is a beautiful spread – each dish is colourful, bright and fresh, just as you would expect from a Mexican street food range. Served in trios on wooden boards, each dish is presented on a colourful terracotta plate.
Before we tucked in, though, we enjoyed a couple of Woo Woos, and a plate of nachos – along with the complimentary spicy popcorn…
I really liked the fact that the Street Food range covered all the bases, from your basic, standard offerings like chicken and sweetcorn empanadas, tacos, mini burritos (which were all fairly tasty, but not mind blowing), through to more adventurous items like the fiesta salad, the fried halloumi and the whipped feta and honey dip. In fact, these items were by far and away our favourites, and come highly recommended!
This creamy dip was savoury and sweet at the same time, and combined the salty, creamy feta with a dash of honey and some mint, creating an irresitable combination – and it’s easy to share, too! (Although, ours was missing the pomegranate seeds…)
The fiesta salad was equally delicious – a combination of cucumber, chilli, beetroot, pineapple, pomegranate, coriander and orange, it was spicy and refreshing (and we’ve got plans to replicate this at home for BBQs!). It was a great counterpoint to the rich, oily, meaty panfried chorizo, which is a simple yet always welcome addition to the menu.
Another excellent dish was the fried halloumi, which came with a cranberry sauce on the top – spongy, squeaky, salty cheese, with a crispy, crunchy exterior, and that sweet-sour sauce… A winning combination!
One dish that everyone picked as their favourite was the meatballs – it seemed like a no-brainer choice, but I’ve been to many tapas places where the meatballs were the worst thing on the menu. Here, they’re not an afterthought, and the rich and juicy beef patties are perfectly complimented by the piquant chilli tomato dressing.
I also have to give a shoutout to the beef chilli tortilla stack, which was really good, and the Mexican frittata, which was very salty but still delicious.
I asked my group to recommend a trio of plates each. Omar recommended the meatballs, feta whip and fiesta salad. Rachel suggested the meatballs, halloumi and beef chilli stack, and Michael went for the meatballs, the chicken tacos, and the sweet chorizo croquettes. My choice would be the meatballs, fried chorizo and fiesta salad.
All in all, we all really enjoyed the menu – and because the portion sizes aren’t large, we had enough room for a dessert too! In fact, that would be my only criticism of the menu as a whole – we ordered 15 plates between us, which came to just over three plates each, but you’d probably need four or five plates to feel full. Six plates would definitely be a good meal, and you wouldn’t need to order a starter to go along with it, thanks to the great variety of dishes on offer!
Find your local Chiquito at chiquito.co.uk, and book or view the menu online!
Disclaimer: I was offered a £60 voucher to review the menu, and all my opinions are my own.
If you head to Charlotte Street in London on hotdog related business, you may find yourself plagued with a decision the likes of which you’ve never faced before. Because in Charlotte Street there is not one, but two great hotdog places, both very close to each other, both very trendy and Instagrammable, and both selling delicious food.
Now, I don’t know you, but I’m going to assume you’re similar to me, and only eat hotdogs once a day. So that means I’m going to have to help you decide which one to visit. Don’t worry, I’ve done my research.
Let’s start with Bubbledogs – arguably the trendiest of the two. You can’t book in advance but mysteriously when you go in, they’ll ask you if you have. I’m allergic to speaking on the phone, but if you are socially minded you might want to try ringing them to see if they’ll put you on the secret booking list.
Bubbledogs’ USP is the fact that they serve champagne with their hotdogs (which came first? The concept or the name? I like to think they just made up the name first and then decided the only possible way to go ahead with a business called Bubbledogs was with champers and sausages… But I digress…) Because of that, the room is dominated by the glorious bar, dotted with dimmed lighting, and the exposed brick walls are adorned with cute pics of pups in various poses. Seats are high stools with higher tables – a pet peeve of mine, as I like to lounge when I eat. I assume I’m related to some kind of high up Roman senator or something.
The drinks selection is by far the biggest part of the menu. The food almost seems like an afterthought – but don’t worry, because as much care is lavished on the hotdogs as it is on curating the wine list. I plumped for the rose and waited patiently for my food to arrive before I supped away.
Making a decision on the hotdogs was pretty difficult – before I arrived I’d fancied a Sloppy Joe – chilli, cheese and onions – but on the day I wanted something sour and strong, so I ordered a Reuben with sauerkraut, Russian dressing and melted Swiss cheese, along with a helping of sweet potato fries.
It was delicious, but I still yearn for that hit of chilli and wish I could go back for a second helping of a Sloppy Joe – there’s just something unbeatable about that combo! Props go to Bubbledogs for the super traditional squeaky dog, springy, smokey, and savoury, and the soft, sweet brioche roll, as well as the fries, which were so crisp I could have shattered them against the bar.
On now to Herman ze German, which actually has several restaurants in London, offering a decidedly more rustic take on the humble hotdog.
Cheap and cheerful is the name of the game here, and there’s also a lot more variety on the menu – you can order your hotdog without a bun, or even *gasp* skip the dog entirely and go for something completely different… as long as it’s German, of course…
You’re supposed to fill out your wipe clean menu with your choices in a marker pen, and take them up to the counter to have your order taken – in reality, it’s a bit fiddly and unnecessary, and because the drinks options aren’t properly listed, you’ll still have to order those verbally. I’d recently tried currywurst in Germany (a country I have now visited twice for a grand combined total of three hours – and no, it wasn’t a layover!), so I went for a bratwurst with crispy onions and fries. Again, if I could reorder, I would go for a bockwurst – the bratwurst lacked the smokey taste I feel is essential for a hotdog.
Interesting, the dogs are served on a French baguette style bun – I always prefer my dogs on a sweet, soft, bun, but the bread was perfectly baked, chewy and robust. The crispy onions are a great addition, and of course, just like at Bubbledogs, there’s mustard and ketchup available to add to your heart’s content – but Herman also offers mayo too, which is great if you’re pretending to be Belgian.
Finally, don’t forget I said you could order other items – it wouldn’t be a German restaurant without a schnitzel! Crispy and moist, this breaded chicken breast comes with a salad, so you can pretend you’re being healthy while you eat fried food.
On the Instagram level, I have to score Herman higher simply because there are two window seats which afford great daylight for those sneaky snaps, and the seating is a lot nicer too, although still has that cafeteria vibe thanks to the metal and wood furniture and the benches. Food-wise, I preferred Bubbledogs’ hotdog (but I still must try that bockwurst!) and bun, but Herman offers a more family friendly experience, is a little cheaper, and has a wider range of options.
My verdict? Go to Bubbledogs for style and substance, and go to Herman ze German for a heartily good nosh. And, try their melon and gin cocktail, it’s delicious!
Find Bubbledogs here at www.bubbledogs.co.uk, and Herman ze German here at www.hermanzegerman.com. Both are located on Charlotte Street in London, but Herman ze German has outlets in Soho and Charing Cross too…
When my friend told me a new French cafe had opened in town, I had to rush down there as soon as possible to test it out! Boulangerie Victor Hugo (or BVH, if you’re going to be cool about it) is located down town, past the Bargate and just past Zen and La Lupa.
This week I took a trip up to Manchester to visit the Corrie set, and soak in the Corrie-related sights of the city. No Corrie-fan’s visit to Manchester would be complete without a stop at Annie’s, the restaurant owned by Jennie McAlpine, who plays Fiz in the show.
Annie’s is located in the centre of the city, within walking distance of all of Manchester’s great shopping areas, and it’s also a great place to go for a pre-theatre meal.
We popped in on a Monday evening – it was really quiet but apparently we just missed the pre-theatre rush.
I ordered a glass of Annie’s Fizz, which is Prosecco and cherry brandy, with a cherry at the bottom. It was so good I had another one!
Anyway, onto the proper menu! Annie’s serves a simple selection of good, Northern fare, all presented with modern flair to give it a bit of restaurant pizazz.
I ordered the Lancashire rarebit which came with a delicious chutney and was served on whole meal bread. A great start to the meal, and the chutney was the perfect balance to the heavy, rich cheese.
Meanwhile, my husband had the corned beef hash cake, topped with a perfectly cooked poached egg and accompanied with another relish. Again, a great balance of flavours.
For my main course, how could I have chosen anything other than a hotpot? Famous across the country, the Lancashire hotpot is a lamb stew topped with sliced potatoes. It’s also famous in Coronation Street thanks to Betty, a sadly departed character whose legendary hotpots are still served in the Rovers today. You can’t visit Lancashire without eating a hotpot.
Served with a gorgeous side dish of red cabbage, the hotpot was a decent size and chock full of lamb. My only nitpick was that it was a little dry – I like mine swimming in sauce, but this had just enough to keep everything moist.
My husband had the cottage pie – which he thoroughly enjoyed, along with the carrots which came on the side.
We also had chips because we were on holiday. So it was basically a legal requirement. These were crispy, thick and delicious. Definitely try these if you get the chance!
Halfway through our meal, we were greeted by the lovely and (literally) fragrant Ms. McAlpine herself, who pops in from time to time to greet guests and see how everything is going.
It was a lovely surprise as she plays one of my favourite characters! And she and her father Tom were both incredibly friendly and chatty.
Onto the pudding – this was another no brainier. It had to be the Fizz Bomb! (This is the nickname given to Jennie’s character on the show!)
We shared this between us as by this point we were both really full. It was very tasty indeed – chocolate ice cream coated with a shell of milk chocolate, drizzled with sauce and studded with popping candy.
All in all, it was an enjoyable meal, great service and a lovely evening! The staff were great and the food was tasty and traditional.
You can find Annie’s online at anniesmanchester.co.uk. The restaurant is located at 5 Old Bank Street, Mancheter, M2 7PE, and you can call them on 0161 839 4423 or book via email at bookings@anniesmanchester.co.uk.
Like my posts? Find me on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Polyvore for even more content!
For my husband’s birthday, we went to Chez Lindsay in Richmond for some delicious crepes at the weekend! Unfortunately, we were running very late because of motorway traffic, so by the time we arrived I was feeling pretty tense – as you can see from my strained expression!
I was wearing my Cezanne Paintbox pleated dress in Destiny from Great Plains – I bagged it in the sale for £15, so I was pretty pleased with the purchase! We didn’t really take any better photos of this outfit, but I did pose with a dragonfly I rescued from a Starbucks!
When we got to Chez Lindsay, we realised my great plan of finding a car park, which was ‘I saw a big car park on the map nearby, it’s fine’ was actually very flawed in reality. What we did instead of finding one, was drive around Richmond in a circular fashion until we hated each other and wanted to murder everyone. Eventually we rang the restaurant and found the car park they advised (thank you, helpful restaurant folk!), which could only be reached by driving in more circles down very unpromising residential roads. So, by the time we arrived we had driven for around two and a half hours to get there, and were on the verge of minor nervous breakdowns.
Luckily, the food was amazing, and a real trip down memory lane for both of us! My husband lived in Cherbourg for nine months at university, so I visited him often and we had a favourite creperie we went to all the time. These crepes were not only delicious, but a real blast from the past and very comforting to boot.
First of all, though, check out this awesome butter knife:
I ordered the super complete, which is a buckwheat pancake (or, galette) with egg, cheese, ham, onions, tomatoes and mushrooms. If you’ve never had a buckwheat pancake before, you really should try them – you can get buckwheat flour from lots of supermarkets these days, and the texture and nutty taste is so much better than plain flour pancakes – and makes a great match for savoury flavours. These galettes are very traditional in Normandy and Brittany and you can find creperies all over the place in these regions selling these delicious dishes.
The galettes are always served like this, with the corners turned up, containing all the delicious toppings underneath.
My husband had the same as me, except no mushrooms, because he has a challenging palette (ha – he drives me nuts!). Would you like to know how it was?
Superb, of course! The restaurant was very pretty too – light and airy with a great atmosphere, even though it was fairly quiet when we went in.
And the waitress and hostess (who I presume was the owner, possibly Lindsay herself!) were charming and helpful, despite our probably incredibly frazzled expressions!
If you love Bretonne cuisine and buckwheat style pancakes or French food in general, I’d definitely recommend a trip there – and visit Richmond and Kew Gardens whilst you’re there, too! On a sunny day I can’t think of many things more pleasant.
The website with menus can be found here. The restaurant is located on 11 Hill Rise, Richmond upon Thames.
I love me a fancy restaurant, and the last time I visited Brighton (way back in April), I decided to book a table at Graze, a place I’d heard some pretty good things about! Their lunch time tasting menu is actually really reasonable for a restaurant of their quality, so I was really excited to visit – and I wasn’t disappointed at all!
Before we even began on our starters, we were brought some delicious soup shots, and some bread with different kinds of butter (you guys know how much I love bread and butter!). This was a really nice touch, because the different flavoured butters really added a different dimension to this restaurant table staple. My favourite was the one flavoured with a hint of lemon.
Now, the menu above isn’t actually the one we picked from, as they had changed the starters and puddings and forgotten to swap the new menu in (we were the first customers of the day!). So, for my starter, I had pigeon salad, which was very nice indeed.
The salad and the peas were delicious, and the meat was smoky and gamey without being overpowering – and cooked to perfection!
The Mr. had a gorgeous wild garlic risotto, and loved every scrap of it – it was really tasty, and inspired me to try a similar dish when I got some wild garlic in my Riverford veg box (although it didn’t come out as bright green as this did!).
My main was the gorgeous braised pork belly, and it was velvety and delicious on its bed of celariac puree – I never thought of preparing celariac like this, but it was so smooth and creamy I might have to give it a try!
Totally unexpectedly, before our pudding we were treated to a palette cleanser!
For pudding, I had a really light and refreshing pineapple dish with Malibu ice-cream – the pineapple was cut so finely that it actually gave it a really interesting texture, much different to the usual chunky cut pineapple I usually eat.
The Mr. had a selection of ice creams and sorbets, which were all delicious, especially the ice cream – which I suspect was cardamom, but we never actually found out…
I was really surprised to be offered so many tasty and thoughtful extras with such a reasonably priced set menu, and I wasn’t disappointed by a single course. I came away feeling satisfied, but not full, and as though I had had a really excellent meal – sadly, not something you can say after every restaurant visit, especially not at this price…
Graze is currently taking bookings for their Christmas parties, and it looks as though the cheaper lunch tasting menu has been replaced with a more expensive dinner tasting menu, but you can also try their new British menu, or pop in for a Sunday roast!
Food, Fashion and Fitness 