Through A Question of Colour, curator William E. Ewing explores this 20th century French photographer’s attitude toward colour photography and suggests a more nuanced take than has generally been assumed. Ewing’s curation presents a show illustrating how photographers working in Europe and North America have adopted and adapted to Cartier-Bresson’s ethos famously known as ‘the decisive moment’ to their work in colour.
Read my complete post at the OneTravel blog.
Yeah, this is a sponsored video but a hilarious one none the less.
Remember Fenton, that lovable Labrador who wreaked havoc as he chased a herd of deer across Richmond Park, London and Fenton’s poor owner who had us all rolling with laughter as he followed exasperated across the fields shouting manically for his dog to stop?
Filmed on a mobile phone by a 13 year old boy, that 47 second video clip became an instant global hit and was the UK’s most watched viral video of all time. And today’s the one year anniversary of the video going viral.
Fenton: 4GEE Remaster takes that original storyline and blows it up to epic proportions to showcase just how incredible the experience of watching YouTube is on your mobile, thanks to superfast 4GEE (5 times faster than 3G, with less buffering and HD on the move). Enjoy.
Tequila. That’s such a nought-y spirit. If you really wanna impress your boozing compadres while getting your drink on all feliz like, you must update your taste buds. It’s time for mezcal.
Newly opened Mezcaleria Quiquiriqui in Hoxton stocks an impressive range of two dozen or so mezcals. What’s a mezcal? Wikipedia sez it’s “a distilled alcoholic beverage made from the maguey plant (a form of agave, Agave americana) native to Mexico.” So, kinda like Tequila but mostly from Oaxaca (not Jalisco) and not made from Blue Agave. And if you’re looking to sip the premium stuff, it’s a lot better value for money too.
I checked out Quiquiriqui last night. Loved the vibe (and the super pervy wallpaper). I will return. But more than a cool place to drink, the mezcals on offer tantalized. If already mezcal aware, you’re in luck. If you’re ignorant to these Mexican delights, you are in for a treat.
I tried three mezcals during my visit. First, an introductory shot of Sombre, followed by a shot each of Real Minero Green, Alipús and De Maguey Mezcal Vida. Every single one of those shots was a winner worth savouring – smoky, beguiling and full of character. If I had kept on drinking last night and could only continue with one bottle … hmmm … it would have been a close call between the Real Minero and the Alipús. Ideally though, I would have kept sampling my way through all the different bottles.
Slinging its “finest handcrafted” mezcal drinks from Oaxaca, Quiquiriqui claims to be the first authentic Mezcaleria (that’s a bar that serves mezcal) in the UK. I know there’s already that first floor mezcal bar at the new-ish Wahaca restaurant on Charlotte Street, but I think the Quiquiriqui folks might have a point. As a bar, it is essentially just that. A bar … that serves mezcal. They do cocktails and sell Mexican beer (and micheladas) too. But that’s it.
Quiquiriqui is a hole-in-the-wall in the basement of the Golden Grill Turkish takeaway. Yep, once you’re done sidling up to the bar for shots you can climb back up to street level and grab a kebab on your way out the door. Speakeasy hipster cred? Check. Post alcohol nosh? Double check. There’s a jukebox at Quiquiriqui too, which during my visit was jamming out muffled sounds of 80s pop: enjoyable and somehow providing a well suited soundtrack.
Just as I was calling it a night (10ish), plenty of other people (mostly much younger than me and with jeans painted on) were starting to pour in and a deejay was setting up to spin. That was on a Wednesday. Tonight and over any weekend, I reckon this place will heave.
A good one for contemplative and/or convivial sipping in the early evening and for getting drunk ‘n’ sweaty later in the night, Quiquiriqui is located downstairs at the Golden Grill, 184 Hackney Road, E2 7QL. Find out more at quiquiriqui.co.uk and facebook.com/mezcaleriaQuiquiriqui.
London’s historic Covent Garden has announced its 2012 festive season calendar, and it promises several weeks’ worth of fun events and activities for the whole family.
Read my complete post at the CheapOair blog.
Here’s a quick list of some really good stuff I’ve come across lately but for whatever reason didn’t make it into their own blog posts on here, my tikichris-to-go Tumblr blog or one of my client blogs.
Bo Ningen: Wow. Japanese psychedelic rawk-n-roll. Just happened to catch a few songs performed live by these days at an in-shop gig at Rough Trade. Blew me away and reminded me of the type of music I spent way too much time listening to as a teen. Must have more!
Dishoom Shoreditch: Had din-din here with from friends visiting from Paris last week (congrats to David and Aurélie on getting hitched). Very cool and spacious, great menu and maybe even a more enjoyable offering than the original Dishoom on Upper St Martin’s Lane. Definitely a welcome addition to the neighbourhood!
Edible Selby: Went along to the Edible Selby book launch and signing at St John Smithfield. Nice guy, cool book.
Ginger Pig: Last night I attended a sausage making class at Ginger Pig’s Marylebone butcher shop. And you know that old saying about laws and sausages? Well truth be told if you’re eating quality ingredient sausages (like they sell at the Ginger Pig) there’s little reason not to look inside. I learned a lot and now have a ton of my own handmade sausages. If you like meat and love knowing the provenance of your food, I highly recommend signing up for one of Ginger Pig’s butchery classes.
Big thanks to the incredibly kind friends who pitched in to give me the birthday voucher for this class. I’ve got some tasty sausages sitting in the freezer that I hope to share with you soon.
Instagram: Yep, Instagram feeds are now viewable on non-mobile browsers. I’m pretty pleased with how mine looks and think it’s cool I can share more photos with more people. Although now that folks can see my mobile photography a little bigger and on bigger scenes, I wonder if its time to get a new iPhone. And I really must admit that most of the time the app is really just an excuse to post pics of my cat being cute.
Taking Britain’s current craze for burgers to dizzying new heights, hotel group, Malmaison, has announced a new tall order to their brasseries’ grill menu: The Stack.
Read my complete post at the CheapOair blog.
With 23,000 square metres chocked full of wholesalers peddling more than 400 species of edible marine life, Tsukiji is not only the busiest market in Tokyo but the biggest fish and seafood market in the world. From fresh-off-the-boat tuna to freshly made traditional fish cakes with all sorts of other fresh and sometimes unidentifiable sea creatures and treats in between – Tsukiji is an ever bustling but still tourist friendly must-visit item on any foodie’s Tokyo checklist.
Read my complete post at the OneTravel blog.
There’s a fantastic street photography show on now at Somerset House. Cartier-Bresson: A Question of Colour features ten Henri Cartier-Bresson photographs never before exhibited in the UK alongside more than 75 works by 15 international contemporary photographers.
I’ve got a proper review of the exhibition coming up shortly. But before that hits the internet, I thought I’d take a sec to share some awesome tips presented by curator William Ewing during the press preview last week. Ewing was citing Cartier-Bresson through the tour he led through the exhibition and generally spouting all sorts of wisdom about street photography. Looking back over my notes from that day, they read more like I’d attended a seminar on seizing what Cartier-Bresson referred to as the “decisive moment” than actually viewing an exhibition.
Here are some of the finer nuggets of Cartier-Bresson inspired advice from the day. I thought about writing my own little personal account about each point, then decided they might resonate more if I just let them sit there on their own for you to ponder.
Cartier-Bresson: A Question of Colour runs until the 27th of January 2012 at Somerset House, located at The Strand, WC2R 1LA. Admission is free. Visit somersethouse.org.uk for more information.
Photography. It would be an understatement to say the craft is an important part of my life. Sometimes it feels like it is my life. That’s a good thing though. I’m still learning too. And even with respect to technique that I feel I’ve got down pat, I’ve found it’s never a bad idea to get a bit of extra knowledge from other photographers and other professionals in the field. So, it’s super cool to hear about this new and free resource that should find its way easily into my hands next weekend.
Check it out:
The Guardian is going to include a special, 84 page photography guide for free in its 17 November paper. The guide will contain seven different chapters of photo-rific lessons along with advice and tips from Guardian and Observer photography experts and other professionals in the field.
In the guide, The Guardian‘s head of photography, Roger Tooth, will encourage readers to take creative control of their cameras; award-winning photographer Dan Chung will give his recs for the latest gear; and critic Sean O’Hagan will suggest what the future might hold for this increasingly popular medium.
Wait. There’s more:
Each of the seven chapters will be accompanied by a special assignment, and readers will be invited to take part in an assignment competition and be offered a chance to win a place on a photography masterclass.
If you’re a shutter bug in need of a refresher course or you just wish you had a little more confidence when you shoot, keep this guide in mind and be sure to grab a copy of The Guardian on the 17th.
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Commendable is … their knack for coming up with a tasty variety of contemporary British dishes and offering diners invitingly cozy settings for enjoying such down-to-earth cuisine.
Read my complete post at the CheapOair blog.
Dreyfus Cafe is little independently owned cafe just down the street from my flat. It’s been open about a month and is a welcome addition to the neighbourhood. I’ve popped my head in a few times for coffee over the past few weeks. Good stuff! And I reckon the coffee’s already mingling confidently among those in any list of top Hackney cafe offerings. But it wasn’t until yesterday that I finally managed to sit down for a meal there. I had breakfast, it was good and I’m keen to go back for more.
Word on the street is that Dreyfus opened with a sputtering start but that any early day wrinkles have now been ironed out. I didn’t notice any foibles during my breakfast, and the coffee was still impeccably pulled.
For brekkie, I had Finnish toast (essentially French toast served with fruits of the forest coulis) for the very reasonable price of £4.75. As the above photo suggests, I got an extra pancake and a piece of grilled bacon with maple syrup on the side as well (for research purposes only of course). Everything was tasty, and I was all carbed up with a pre-emptive reward for the impending afternoon of boring errand running.
The rest of the breakfast menu sound just as good … as do the sandwiches, eat-in hot specials, home made cakes etc. The kitchen seems to look north and east for inspiration. Nordic meatballs with lingonberry and beetroot sauce and mash (£8.75)? Pastrami, gherkin, sauerkraut, gouda and mustard on a rich rye bread (£4.15 out, £4.95 in)? A daily changing roster of cakes and desserts? I’m tempted to make this place a regular haunt.
They’ve got WiFi too and (at least for the time being) appear to be a pretty mellow place during the week, if already a buzzing hub for the local weekend brunch set on Saturdays and Sundays.
Dreyfus is located at 19 Lower Clapton Road, E5 0NS. Visit the cafe online at dreyfuscafe.co.uk. They post a lot of updates and specials on their Facebook page too:
facebook.com/dreyfuscafe
Set on the edge of Tokyo Bay and located near the narrow noodle-shopped lanes of Shinbashi, fashionable and upscale Ginza, ancient and green Hamarikyu Gardens and the super bustling Tsukiji fish market, the central Tokyo neighborhood of Shiodome provides an excellent base for exploring all that Tokyo has to offer foreign visitors. I stayed in the area during a recent visit and found Shiodome to be an ideal settling for my first visit to this fascinating and massive mega city.
Read my complete post at the OneTravel blog.
A couple of times this past week, I meandered my through the gargantuan World Travel Market maze of exhibitors. This “leading global event for the travel industry” is held every year at ExCel and hosts more than 45,000 attendees literally from all over the world and approximately 5,000 exhibitors representing practically every aspect of travel and tourism you can imagine, including sometimes lavish exhibits from national and regional tourism boards.
This year’s WTM was certainly a gawk fest. There were lots of freebies too – the Italians were doling out free gelato, the Bolivians offering coca tea … free Pisco sours from the Peruvians! Want your picture taken holding a white falcon? Abu Dhabi Tourism and Cultural Authority, Stand ME300.
But were my meanders worth my time? Short answer is time will tell. The extravaganza is mostly B2B stuff that ain’t got nothing to do with a dude like me. Still, I think I may have had a handle on how to make the most of WTM: do your homework, be direct, be efficient and follow up with any contacts made.
I tried to milk WTM for any opportunity to learn as well and attended a handful of interesting talks. Not necessarily revelatory, but the How To Measure Travel Blogger ROI panel discussion was noteworthy and got me thinking about ahow I can do the stuff I do with a bit more orientation towards the business side of things.
I ran into a bunch of folks I know too (big up to the Tripbod peeps). This wasn’t my first WTM. However it was the first time there that I actually felt I was even marginally part of the travel industry.
And, most importantly, I think I made some fruitful contacts. I’ve got a tall stack of business cards to sift through over the weekend. I guess if you see me blogging about travel ever more in the next year or so, it might be safe to assume my time at WTM was well spent.
Find out more about the World Travel Market at www.wtmlondon.com.
When Danish/Swedish tag team Bronte (from Denmark) and Jonas (from Sweden) opened Scandinavian Kitchen in 2006, the plan was simply to make available to themselves and their ex-pat communities all the food and drink they missed from back home. Little did they realize that come six or so years down the line, all things Scandi would become so staggeringly trendy here in London. Now the duo seem to be sitting pretty peddling all sorts of Scandinavian treats from their homey and practical little Fitzrovian cafe and shop.
And just in time for Christmas, Bronte and Jonas are offering four different “taster boxes” with cold meats, cheeses, sweets, drinks and condiments from Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. I was at the launch for the taster boxes and very much enjoyed my Nordic nibbling session. Pickled herring? Ginger snaps? Oh yeah. I didn’t mind downing a few festival cups of glögg or (I forget how many) shots of aquavit either.
Scandinavian Kitchen’s taster boxes are smart gift ideas for the clued in foodies in your life and offer the chance to get some very Christmassy treats without having to trek to the North Pole (doesn’t Santa live somewhere in Scandinavia?). The boxes range in price from £38 to £55 including nationwide delivery. There’s a Scandi Christmas Box, a Scandi Chilled Gourmet Box, an Aquavit and Chocolate Box and Scandi Drinks Selection. You can buy them online or in the shop.
Scandinavian Kitchen is located at 61 Great Titchfield Street, W1W 7PP. Visit the shop online at scandikitchen.co.uk.
A Guide to London’s Classic Cafes and Fish & Chip Shops is a fantastic resource for scouting out the last bastions of London’s old school takeaways and traditional fast food. Whether you’re keen for a little retro kitsch with a side of history, doing a bit of amateur anthropological field work or simply looking for a good place to have a cuppa, the 50 plus caffs and chippies covered in the guide represent some of London’s most interesting eateries.
Read my complete post at the OneTravel blog.
The UK’s biggest fiddle festival and one of Europe’s leading events in its field is back for a 17th consecutive go at bringing the world’s best fiddle players and fans together for a full weekend of “all things fiddle.”
Read my complete post at the CheapOair blog.
Partnering with Wallpaper magazine, VICE and Ketel One are on a quest to find contemporary craftspeople who bring traditional skills into the modern day and striving to take their work, careers and talents to the next level.
Folks keen to establish a craft legacy of their own keep reading. Up for grabs is the chance to show your stuff in a high profile Modern Craft Exhibition and to be included in a unique Modern Craft Directory – plus coverage in Wallpaper.
Throught the Modern Craft Project, selected craftspeople will also get a shot at winning a share of the Ketel One Legacy prize fund (UK: £30, 000; Germany: 30.000€).
The Modern Craft Project competition is open for entries now and close 30 November 2012.
Find out lots more:
https://www.themoderncraftproject.com/en-gb/
Thomas Schütte: Faces & Figures presents key pieces from the German contemporary artist’s most famous series alongside new works made especially for the exhibition.
Read my complete post at the OneTravel blog.
I swung by the Malmaison London hotel for lunch today to sample the new mega-burger created by Mal’s Executive Chef John Woodward. Called The Stack, the burger is a massive tower of juicy, beefy meatiness consisting of …
Yep, I managed to eat the whole thing, minus a few fries. A glass of house Merlot was a smart sidekick for The Stack – working well enough with both the foie gras and the beef.
The Stack costs £19.95 … which I reckon to be good value. It was certainly filling and tasted great. Sitting here writing this review now, I have no need for an evening meal (but don’t really feel bloated either).
Malmaision London is set deep in the foodie quarter of Clerkenwell at 18-21 Charterhouse Square, EC1M 6AH. The hotel’s lower ground floor brasserie is a bit of a haven too and well worth sneaking down to tuck into a cheeky and chunky cheeseburger. But the burger’s been launched at all the Mal’s throughout the UK. More info at malmaison.com.
Kemey’s a project collaborator on this. Check it out and please help if you can!
This Dalston pub caused controversy when they installed these Rolling Stones-style lips urinals. Erotica also covers the walls. A bit of fun or misogyny?
View the complete feature at the LBM 97.3FM website.
Tiny little St David’s, located in Pembrokeshire on the west coast of Wales, is a fantastic and scenic place to visit. It also has the distinction of being “Britain’s smallest city.” Despite the village feel of this community of approximately 2,000 residents, St David’s has official status as a city, due to some fascinating historic acts.
Read my complete post at the OneTravel blog.
It’s really cold. And I’m such a cheapskate I don’t want to turn on the heat. But if I can find a simple baking recipe then I can have something to eat and warm the flat by having the oven on. So I looked around online for something easy to bake and came across this one from Baking Mad for Guinness cupcakes. This cupcake recipe was a piece of cake to follow (pardon the pun), and the only thing I did differently was to use a chocolate frosting rather than the cream cheese icing that the recipe called for (although I think that’d be tasty – I was just in the mood for some chocolate).
Like most food I make, my Guinness cupcakes came out of the oven looking kinda of ugly but I can assure you they’re delicious. I’ll probably have another before I go bed, and I’ll definitely use this recipe again.
Maybe a smart recipe to file away for St Patrick’s Day, but honestly Guinness cupcakes are perfect for any chilly night and have a very autumnal flavour to them.
