Category Archives: Drink

Jerusalem City Break: Eat, Drink and Be Merry

A man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry (Ecclesiastes 8:15). So said Solomon – one of Jerusalem’s more notable personalities from the past two millennia – and so was the case during my visit to his hometown a couple of weeks back. I believe I only began to scratch the surface of the good food scene in this ancient city. Whatever the case, here’s the scoop on some of the yummier findings from my time in Jerusalem. Continue reading

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Jack Daniel’s Christmas

Are you starting any new traditions this festive season or looking forward to adhering to some well-established favourites? However you plan to enjoy the wind down to the New Year, be sure to celebrate joyfully and drink responsibly. Merry Christmas. Continue reading

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The Langham Afternoon Tea with Wedgwood

The Langham Afternoon Tea with Wedgwood historic home of the afternoon tea – and one of the most stylish venues I’ve yet to encounter in this town – The Langham London has collaborated with leading luxury brand Wedgwood to launch a new afternoon tea featuring a special menu of delectably dainty creations by Executive Pastry Chef Cherish Finden (one of my London foodie heroes!) inspired by and to be served alongside Wedgwood specialty teas in bespoke “Langham Rose” Wedgwood teaware. Launching across all The Langham and Langham Place hotels and ahead of The Langham London’s 150th anniversary in 2015, new tea offering is available now. Continue reading

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Sunday Brunch at The Jones Family Project, Shoreditch

The Jones Family Project is an “ever-evolving restaurant, bar and social space in the heart of Shoreditch.” Keen to keep up with all the Joneses and their foodie doings (there’s actually no one behind this venue named Jones funnily enough), I dropped by this past weekend for a taste of the restaurant’s recently added Sunday roast menu and left satisfied and hoping the Sunday offering is one new evolution that will last. Continue reading

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Elegant Japanese Dining at Kouzu, Belgravia

Japanese fine dining restaurant, Kouzu, opened with a hush of a soft launch (although apparently the Prince of Monaco had already caught wind and paid a visit) last week. Via an invitation extended by the restaurant, Kemey and I dropped by Saturday for what turned out to be a most elegant meal. Continue reading

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A Night Out at The Hippodrome

I’ve walked by The Hippodrome Casino at Leicester Square a zillion times. Not a gambling man, I never thought there was much inside the large scale and lavish venue for me. However, taking up an invitation to give Hippodrome’s food, booze and entertainment a try, I discovered there’s more to this Central London landmark than gambling. Continue reading

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The Hunt London Features Some of My Favourite Independent Businesses in London

The HUNT Guides are city guidebooks highlighting “authentic eating, shopping and lifestyle experiences” in a range of popular destinations with listings that are all independently owned. I contributed to The Hunt London, Third Edition which came out earlier this year. It was a delight to write about some of my favourite indie enterprises in London. Continue reading

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Bite Me Pizza, Westbourne Grove

An invitation to try out a new Notting Hill pizzeria proved a more than satisfying reason for me to mosey more westerly than usual for one of my all time favourite foods – pizza! Bite Me? With pleasure Continue reading

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Ethos Meat-Free Restaurant, Eastcastle Street

Looking for healthy and tasty meat-free food in an attractive setting? Next time you’re passing through Oxford Circus and hankering something good to eat, keep newly opened restaurant, Ethos, in mind. Continue reading

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Copas Turkeys and the Art of Christmas

I’ve been a fan of Copas Turkeys for a few years. So when an invitation from the family run farm landed in my inbox to attend “The Art of Christmas” masterclass on preparing and presenting their delicious free range, plucked by hand and game hung turkeys, I RSVPed ASAP. Continue reading

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Commune at Goodhood: Open-Faced Situationist Sandwiches?

Originally a small indie label fashion and lifestyle boutique on Coronet Street just off Hoxton Square, Goodhood recently crossed Old Street to reopen in a considerable bigger retail space on Curtain Road. Downstairs at Goodhood and just a few weeks old is Commune, a partnership between Chef Brett Redman (Elliot’s Café Borough Market) and Goodhood co-founders Jo Sindle and Kyle Stewart with an aim to serve “clean, healthy and really tasty food, juice and coffee with a focus on good quality and good value.” Continue reading

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Far Rockaway Bar and Restaurant in Shoreditch

A couple of weeks back, a buddy and I hit Curtain Street’s Far Rockaway for a gab session over couple of beers and a pizza. The Shoreditch venue offers broad appeal if in a rather ‘dude-ly’ fashion. Continue reading

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Recipe: Duck Mai Tai (Gressingham)

Here’s a recipe incorporating the elements of one of my favourite cocktails – the Mai Tai – and what’s fast becoming my favourite meat to cook with – duck! This ‘ducktail’ recipe calls for rum, but the alcohol cooks off leaving just its robust and sweet tropical flavour to meddle with the fruit juices and roasted almond yumminess. Continue reading

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Follow Scotland’s Historic Malt Whisky Trail (OneTravel)

The world famous and one of a kind Malt Whisky Trail in Scotland passes through seven Speyside working distilleries, as well as a historic distillery and Britain’s only cooperage. Continue reading

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Hotel Cafe Royal and Valrhona Team Up for Exclusive Profile 66 Chocolate

French chocolatier Valrhona has co-branded with London’s Hotle Cafe Royal to develop an exclusive new chocolate: Profile 66. Only available at the hotel, Profile 66 is the creation of Andrew Blas and a team of Valrhona tasters. Continue reading

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New Restaurant Review: United Ramen, Upper Street

Ramen, ramen, ramen, ramen! Talk about a soup du jour! Londoners are slurping up this Japanese dish at a decidedly trendy rate. Newest noodles on the scene are those on offer at United Ramen, where I had a right tasty meal last week. Continue reading

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5 Scan-tastic Reasons to Visit Sweden’s Koster Islands (OneTravel)

About a month back I had the pleasure of visiting the Koster Islands, Sweden’s most westerly populated (if only sparsely) islands. Just south of the Norwegian coast, it’s a rugged and beautiful part of the world and a great place … Continue reading

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Win a Pair of Tickets to the bettane+desseauve Wine Experience London

The third edition of the bettane+desseauve Wine Experience London will take place 24 and 25 October at Saatchi Gallery where guests will have the chance to sample more than 400 of the best European wines on the market today. Tickets for the tasting run 30 quid a pop. But check it out! I’ve got ten pairs of tickets to share with you lucky readers. Continue reading

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DC Dining? It’s a Capital Idea!

A commission for City AM had me visiting Washington DC and rural Virginia at the end of September to write a piece about the exquisite Hay-Adams hotel and its relationship with regional food and drink suppliers. I’ll be sure to do a heads up post here on the blog when that article is published, but in the meanwhile I thought I’d share some of the best bits of my trip in a quickie roundup. Continue reading

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Jack Daniel’s Master Distiller Jeff Arnett at The Macbeth in London #spiritofjack

A few weeks back I had the esteemed pleasure of sitting in on a tasting with Jack Daniel’s Master Distiller Jeff Arnett. It’s funny to think that I grew up only a couple of hours’ drive from where Jeff does his magic but wound up meeting him on the other side of the Atlantic in an East London pub. Of course, as the ‘nose’ behind one of the world’s most famous brands (and what I reckon is Tennessee’s biggest export), I suppose it’s not all that surprising that the chance to shake hands and sip whiskey with Jeff might take place anywhere across the globe. Continue reading

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Win Dinner for Two at Pont Street Restaurant – Courtesy of Zomato

So, a couple of weeks back I had a very agreeable Friday night dinner for two at Belgraves hotel’s Pont Street restaurant. And now – thanks to a team up with online restaurant discovery guide, Zomato – I’m offering the chance to enjoy the same delicious experience to one lucky reader. Check it out! Continue reading

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Lobster Safari in the Koster Islands, West Sweden

The Koster Islands are situated off Sweden’s western mainland just south of Norway. It’s a beautiful part of the world – a rugged and ‘out there’ archipelago where wilderness and cultivation blend in such a way as to suggest that humans and nature actually can get along. Summer’s the main time folks visit this tranquil area, but I was there at the onset of autumn for the start of the lobster season. Lured by the prospect of catching (and eating!) the regionally renowned “black gold of the sea” lobsters for myself from one of the cleanest of nutritionally rich fjords in Scandinavia, I tagged along on a Lobster Safari “activity and dining experience” offered by the lovely little Hotel Koster on the island of Sydkoster. Continue reading

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Review: Pont Street Restaurant at Belgraves Hotel

Before making my rez for Friday night din-din at the Belgraves hotel’s Pont Street restaurant, I skimmed the web for a few reviews. Ouch! I’m not sure whether what I read was egregiously unfair or if Pont St subsequently got its act together, but my experience was way better than those perused online. Continue reading

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Good Stuff

Good Stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Continue reading

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The Victoria, Mile End: Everything under (and on) One Roof!

Recently renovated and reopened under new ownership, The Victoria brings a taste of farm-to-table dining and hopeful community spirit to Mile End. I had lunch here about a week and a half ago and really enjoyed it. Here’s quick look at a few of this pub’s many highlights. Continue reading

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Did Madrid: Más Favor!

A mid August weekend in Madrid did Kemey and I both a world of good and turned out to be a fantastic way to celebrate her birthday in style. Being there for the Fiestas de la Paloma ensured the city was just that much turned on and revved up for fun. But I reckon anytime of year is an excellent time to explore this spirited Spanish city. Continue reading

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Did Madrid: Lunch at Botin, the Oldest Restaurant in the World

Restaurante Botin was founded in 1725, which according to the Guinness Book of Records makes it the oldest restaurant in the world. Such a claim to fame ensures a steady flow of customers coming in and out its rustic wooden doors – the vast majority of whom are holidaymakers from abroad. As is the case, the Gonzalez family who keep this culinary marvel in operation could probably rest on their laurels, serve some schlocky semblance of traditional Spanish food, and still have vacationers queued up to pay just to say they’d been there. Nonetheless, the family reckons the restaurant is not just some monument to how things once were but a vital benchmark of Madrileño cuisine. Specialities include suckling pig and Castillian lamb – both roasted in the restaurant’s original wood fired oven. Continue reading

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Did Madrid: Flamenco Soul

Our visit to Madrid was for sure a foodie escapade. But there’s much more to Madrid than tapas bars (and that’s a lot for a gourmand like me to get my head around). Without doubt the most memorable experience Kemey and I shared during our weekend away was our own private flamenco lesson. Olé? Oh yeah! Continue reading

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7 Sensational Wine Bars in London (OneTravel)

7 Sensational Wine Bars in London Continue reading

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Did Madrid: Top Tapas Tour

Hitting the ground eating, the first ‘big thing’ Kemey and I did during our Madrileño weekend was join up with Madrid Food Tour’s Tapas, Taverns, and History Evening Walking and Tapas Tour. Quite a mouthful? Indeed! But not just in name given all the excellent food and drink we had during this evening saunter through the foodie heart of Madrid. Continue reading

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Did Madrid

Kemey and I are both enthusiastic fans of Spain. It’s very much one of our preferred destinations for holidays and city breaks and is a country we both know fairly well. However, Kemey had never been to (but always very much had wanted to visit) its dynamic and dignified capital. So back last month, to celebrate her birthday, we headed to Madrid for a long weekend of food, fun and flamenco. Like me, after my initiation to the charms of this magic place some years ago, Kemey was wowed. To be sure, our magnificently Madrileño weekend won’t be our last! Continue reading

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Good Stuff

Good Stuff and lots of it! Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip or savour – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Continue reading

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Toro Gordo: Stylish Tapas for Hammersmith

Spanish bar and restaurant Toro Gordo brings piquant panache to West London. I had a fantastic time tasting my way through its menu of contemporary and stylishly presented tapas and reckon if you’re in the area you could do a lot worse. Indeed, for drinky drinks and scrumptious nibbles with a convivial vibe that’s just a short stroll away from Hammersmith Tube (not to mention Ravenscourt Park) you’d be hard pressed to find a better venue. No bull! Continue reading

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Win a Month’s Worth of Vouchers from Innocent Drinks

Yep, you read the title right. I’ve teamed up with everybody’s favourite juice and smoothie maker to offer one lucky reader a chance to enjoy a month’s worth of vouchers redeemable for Innocent Drink products – smoothies, juices, fruit tubes, veg pots and the newly launched noodle pots. Continue reading

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The Bonneville: Fantastic French Dining in Clapton, E5

So nice I’m going twice! A recent visit to Clapton’s newly opened French eatery, The Bonneville, resulted in such a lovely experience for Kemey and me that we’re heading back ASAP for a repeat – this time with another couple in tow to whom we’ve raved about the place. Continue reading

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