London Daily Photo: Spreads

LDP 2011.06.02 - Spreads

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More Free Burritos: This Time At Tortilla, Hammersmith (Londonist)

More Free Burritos: This Time At Tortilla, Hammersmith
Londonist, June 1, 2011 at 15:30 pm

Tortilla burrito

In the future, burritos will be free to Londoners as Mexican fast food joints try to eat out a profit from the margins made selling beverages and sides.

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More Free Burritos: This Time At Tortilla, Hammersmith

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New Restaurant Review: Bistro du Vin, Clerkenwell (Londonist)

New Restaurant Review: Bistro du Vin, Clerkenwell
Londonist, June 1, 2011 at 13:3 pm

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Bistro du Vin is (as far as we can tell) the only non-hotel restaurant in the UK-wide Hotel du Vin chain. Setting up shop near Smithfield Market where Eastside Inn once garnered critics’ appreciation but apparently not enough custom to stay in the game, the French (with comfort food augments such as burgers) restaurant joins the Clerkenwell competition to try and steal a slice of the market share from nearby notables St John, Smiths of Smithfield, Hix etc (etc etc).

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New Restaurant Review: Bistro du Vin, Clerkenwell 

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London Daily Photo: Lucky Few

LDP 2011.06.01 - Lucky Few

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Photo Series: Ai Weiwei’s Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads at Somerset House (Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art)

Photo Series: Ai Weiwei’s Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads at Somerset House
Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art, May 2011

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What was a few months back originally scheduled as a press call to interview Ai Weiwei and an opportunity to photograph the artist with his Circle of Animals was altered to a sans artist event due to his disappearance in early April. Currently, Ai Weiwei’s whereabouts are still unknown. Although no explanation was given for his disappearance, it is widely believed Ai Weiwei was detained by Chinese authorities in response to the online publication of a photograph featuring Ai Weiwei naked except for a toy horse covering his genitals along with a caption in Mandarin that could be interpreted as “Fuck your mother, the party central committee.”

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Photo Series: Ai Weiwei’s Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads at Somerset House

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London Daily Photo: Nature Wins

LDP 2011.05.31 - Nature Wins

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London Daily Photo: Yon

LDP 2011.05.30 - Yon

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London Daily Photo: Ehhh …

LDP 2011.05.29 - Ehhh ...

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Pontoon “Launches” at St Katharine Docks

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On the outside I might have appeared all reserved and cordial but inside you can be sure I was singing “I’m on a boat motherf***er” to myself. The “launch” of Pontoon, the only private hire yacht on the Thames, was a fab way to spend an otherwise ordinary Tuesday night. The pommery flowed freely, the canapes where plentiful and tasty and the beaming evening sunlight twinkled on the water most delightfully. Of course, with hiring fees for this five-berth yacht running from £2500 to a helluvalot more, it was probably my only opportunity to enjoy such gloating at this exclusive venue.

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Yes, a few thousand quid certainly is a lot of moola but given this megaboat has event capacity of up to 70, the breakdown isn’t quite so bad really. A classic motor yacht built in 1975 by Camper Nicholson and updated with high-end fittings in 2010 with a natural wood terrace, roomy lounge, three double suites and two twin rooms, it’s one to hint hint nudge nudge your office’s partytime coordinator if there’s some reason to celebrate coming up.

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Moored at the already very pleasant St Katharine Docks, Pontoon opens 26th May. Interested (or just wanna gawk)? The Pontoon crew ain’t so hoitytoity they can’t throw up a page on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/PontoonLondon

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London Daily Photo: I Say Old Man …

LDP 2011.05.28 - I Say Old Man ...

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London Daily Photo: One and All

LDP 2011.05.27 - One and All

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London Food & Drink News: 26 May 2011 (Londonist)

London Food & Drink News: 26 May 2011
Londonist, May 26, 2011 at 17:00 pm

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A taste of what’s what in recent and upcoming London food and drink news …

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London Food & Drink News: 26 May 2011

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London Daily Photo: Pimms O’Clock

LDP 2011.05.26 - Pimms O'Clock

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Hats Off to Mexican Street Photography – Limited Edition Prints at Benito’s Hat

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I had a blast at last week’s opening of the Hat’s Off to Mexican Street Photography exhibition at the new Benito’s Hat location on Great Castle Street near Oxford Circus. Yummy food and drink (plenty of it too!), good convo and killer street photography – yeah. Here’s a link to a few more photos from the opening, and here’s some small rez pics of the photography on display (but I highly recommend popping round for a proper look see) as well as some info on how you can purchase them as limited edition prints.

Nayeli Cruz (aka naye lee on Flickr) is a photographer from Mexico City with four photos in the Hats Off exhibition:

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Nayeli Cruz_2_2 Nayeli Cruz_5

Also featured with two shots in the show is Ferman Guzman Martinez (aka Reflex… yo guerrillero on Flickr) from Chimalhuacan just outside Mexico City:

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All prints are limited edition (ten each) and available to purchase at a mere £42. Want one? Contact Ben at mexican@benitos-hat.com for details. The exhibition is on view through the summer.

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London Daily Photo: Of Centre

LDP 2011.05.25 - ... Of Centre

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London Daily Photo: John Wesley’s Strangely Warmed Heart

LDP 2011.05.24 - John Wesley's Strangely Warmed Heart

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Street Photography Tips (Photography Tips)

Street Photography Tips
Photography Tips, 23 May 2011

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Street photography is fun and offers unlimited opportunities for learning your gear and developing your own style. Documenting life on the streets through photography is a brilliant way to explore any urban environment and is becoming increasingly popular and deservedly respected as a genre. Here are some basic tips to help you be a better street photographer.

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Street Photography Tips

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Extra-ordinary @ Core Gallery (Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art)

Extraordinary @ Core Gallery
Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art, May 2011

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Francis Bacon meets Donnie Darko” in an exhibition exploring a “disjointed world of macabre coexistence”. That’s how Core Gallery curator, Rosalind Davis, describes Extra-Ordinary, a subversive mixed media show by three London artists (Tom Butler, Alyson Helyer and Marion Michell, co-curated by Jane Boyer) diving headlong into the depths of identity and the psyche, the real and the unreal, and the anguish of memory.

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Extraordinary @ Core Gallery

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London Daily Photo: Gift for You

LDP 2011.05.23 - Gift for You

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London Daily Photo: O Light! O Reason!

LDP 2011.05.22 - O Light! O Reason!

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Photograph Fitzrovia and Win with Diemar/Noble Photography Gallery (Qype does London)

Photograph Fitzrovia and Win with Diemar/Noble Photography Gallery
Qype does London, May 21st 2011

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One of my favourite art spaces in London, Diemar/Noble photography gallery, has just announced a cool photography competition with a theme celebrating its Central London location … and offering the public an opportunity to show their work on Diemar/Noble’s walls and win some fab prizes.

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Photograph Fitzrovia and Win with Diemar/Noble Photography Gallery 

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London Daily Photo: Green Shine

LDP 2011.05.21 - Green Shine

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London Daily Photo: Urban Landscaping

LDP 2011.05.20 - Urban Landscaping

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Spotted in Atlantis

AtlantisThePalm

1539 guest rooms, 484 deluxe rooms, 744 Atlantis Rooms, 145 Imperial Club Rooms, 22 Imperial Club Suites, 31 Regal Suites, two Presidential Suites, two Royal Suites, two Lost Chambers Suites and one Bridge Suite: That’s Atlantis, The Palm – Dubai’s ocean-themed destination resort located at the centre of the crescent of the man-made Palm Island. It’s over the top (and under the water) with 46 hectares of fun and extravagant luxury including (get ready) …

  • the largest water park in the Middle East,
  • 17 hectares of action rivers, waves, slides and pools,
  • a 700 metre beach with sun loungers and VIP beach cabanas,
  • one of the world’s highest free fall water slide,
  • a 2.3k looped river ride,
  • hectare after hectare of lagoons, including “The Leap of Faith” shark-filled lagoon,
  • 90 minute shallow or deep water dolphin interactions, and …
  • The Lost Chambers maze of underwater corridors and passageways offering a journey through ancient Atlantis and featuring more than 65,000 marine animals such as piranha, giant arapaima, moon jellies and eels in the largest open air marine habitat in the Middle East.

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All that and much much more amid a lush tropical landscape, world class shopping and a Michelin Star studded line up of restaurants associated with some of the world’s top chefs: Nobu, Locatelli, Santi Santamaria, Michel Rostang. For those wishing for a sneak peek at such opulent splendour, the resort’s new “Spotted in Atlantis” interactive video is well worth a look. Kind of reminiscent of “Lost” (one of my all time favourite TV shows), there’s a bit of intrigue to this vid. Have a look:


Interested in a visit to the spectacular Atlantis Hotel? There’s a whole lot of info available at www.SpottedInAtlantis.com where you can submit a photo of yourself or a friend and be a part of the experience, also www.atlantisthepalm.com, and blog.atlantisthepalm.com.

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London Food & Drink News: 19 May 2011 (Londonist)

London Food & Drink News: 19 May 2011
Londonist, May 19, 2011 at 16:00 pm

Aubergine with Tomatoes and Eggs

Photo by Helen Graves

A taste of what’s what in recent and upcoming London food and drink news …

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London Food & Drink News: 21 April 2011

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London Daily Photo: Tree Huggers

LDP 2011.05.19 - Tree Huggers

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London Daily Photo: Soothed

LDP 2011.05.18 - Soothed

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London Daily Photo: The Epoch Times

LDP 2011.05.17 - The Epoch Times

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London Daily Photo: Strangers Die Everyday

LDP 2011.05.16 - Strangers Die Everyday

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London Daily Photo: Kynance Shafts

LDP 2011.05.15 - Kynance Shafts

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London Daily Photo: Whole Hog

LDP 2011.05.14 - Whole Hog

Online cooking schools are great option when you have a passion for cooking and want to learn at your own pace.

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In Pictures: Dishoom’s Chowpatty Beach Hits Southbank (Londonist)

In Pictures: Dishoom’s Chowpatty Beach Hits Southbank
Londonist, May 13, 2011 at 15:30 pm

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Cool cocktails with Indian spice (Londonist particularly approves of the Bombay Pimm’s – Pimm’s, Saffron gin, pomegranate, orange, mint and ginger beer – but like all the cocktails we sipped), a street food version of Dishoom’s Upper St Martin’s Lane restaurant menu and a hopefully sunny summer should all add up to some delicious fun at this newly open stylized Bombay beach bar set on the Southbank.

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In Pictures: Dishoom’s Chowpatty Beach Hits Southbank

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Exhibition: Some Photographs Taken In France at Diemar/Noble (Londonist)

Exhibition: Some Photographs Taken In France at Diemar/Noble
Londonist, May 13, 2011 at 14:40 pm

Toulouse-Lautrec Taking a Dump on a Beach

Want to see some cheeky photographs of Toulouse-Lautrec taking a dump on a beach? That (taken by art dealer Maurice Joyant at Le Crotoy, Picardie) and much more is on show at photo gallery Diemar/Noble in Some Photographs Taken in France.

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Exhibition: Some Photographs Taken In France at Diemar/Noble

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London Daily Photo: Queue

LDP 2011.05.13 - Queue

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Dishoom Chowpatty Beach Opens at Southbank – FUN! (Qype does London)

Dishoom Chowpatty Beach Opens at Southbank – FUN!
Qype does London, May 12th 2011

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Bringing Bombay’s famed Chowpatty Beach to Queen Elizabeth Hall Terrace, celebrated Indian restaurant Dishoom  will be mixing up summer cocktails with Indian spice along with some pretty tasty street food (had some killer calamari tonight) and a range of “spontaneous events including impromptu, unplugged gigs” from tomorrow until the 4th of October at Queen Elizabeth Hall Terrace.

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Dishoom Chowpatty Beach Opens at Southbank – FUN!

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