Friends, Food and a Spot of Fashion

Would you go for the ordinary when you could get exceptional for just the same? I believe in seeking out the best and at great value. The meal at Hambleton Hall that I wrote about a couple of months ago is one such example. A group of truly exceptional restaurants around Rutland now offer 'lunch for less' deals which means you can get Michelin quality food for pub-grub prices. My friend Rosie and I with our other halves have been trying to make the most of these and we recently met up at The Olive Branch in Clipsham for some natter and posh nosh.

   

Rosie and Pete chose the Tapas option from their menu and  Ed & I chose from the Set Lunch. The food was top notch, mostly. Although the main meal tapas seemed less than generous, the dessert tapas more than made up for it. In  true 'me' style, I also opted for the weirdest item on the menu which in this case was cold pressed ox tongue with salad. It was a bit like kissing a cow that had just chomped on grass but I ate it all anyway.

The  beer garden at the Olive Branch was in full summer glory, I was wearing two of my favourite fashion pieces and Rosie was her usual chic self. Clearly, outdoor outfit shots were the natural follow-on from our meal. Rosie's style is classic chic with a dash of British prep. She is wearing a lovely turquoise dress from Warehouse, a denim jacket from Dorothy Perkins, My Flash Trash ring picked up during our day out at London Fashion Weekend and a pair of pretty ballet pumps from New Look. The air was slightly nippy and Rosie kept the chill off with  an embellished scarf bought from one of my favourite shopping haunts in Mumbai.

I've been meaning to get my X-Large Lulu Guinness Lips Clutch out to play for a while and this seemed a perfect occasion. It is much more practical than the regular lips clutch's and I bagged it for 70% off in a TK Maxx Flash Sale. One of my best buys in a long time. I'm also wearing a Vivienne Westwood Marghi Check Blouse via another online flash sale and a pair of old Levi's. My trusty M&S nude heels take me to work and play with equal ease.

What summertime adventures have you been up to? Ann x

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Photography by Edward Chandler

Quirky Restaurants: The Yoga House, Mumbai

In the heart of bustling Bandra ( a very popular suburb of Mumbai), in the very quaint Chimbai Road area, is a little oasis called The Yoga House. I'd read about the place in the Indian edition of Vogue and wanted to check it out myself. I half expected an over-rated hyped-up place that sold eastern philosophy to western tourists. I was wrong. If I had to use a word to describe the place, it would be authentic. The eating area is very Ghandian cool. They burn frankincense in the evenings. The menu is wholesome yet unpretentious and reasonably priced (relatively speaking).

We visited the yoga house one Friday evening whilst briefly stopping over in Mumbai. We sat by the open air eating area,  looking at a fraction of the Arabian sea in the near distance, listening to hymns from the church next door and the yoga teacher possibly explaining Anjaneyasana pose. I drank a virgin mojito and Ed sipped Mami's coffee which was essentially Nescafé with jaggery and cinnamon. It was blissful.

The menu has interesting titles and I chose 'I am Dancing' for my main which was essentially an Indianized brown rice paella. Ed had 'I am Detoxing' which a scrumptious quinoa burger. Both dishes were thoroughly satisfying, wholesome and delicious. We shared a baked apple and ice-cream number for dessert which was nice too. We figured that a wheat grass shot ( at Rs.60 a go i.e less than £1) seemed a nice way to finish off the meal.

Watching the yoga session made us both want to go join in. Sadly, you can't really do yoga with a full belly. We asked the staff for details of the Yoga course and I was little shocked by the prices. India has moved on so much since I last lived there. They Rs.600 per session or Rs.7000 for unlimited classes a month which seemed a little more expensive than what I'd pay in the UK. And yet, they seemed very popular.

Seemingly expensive yoga sessions aside, we think it is a great place to hang out and enjoy some serenity amongst Mumbai's chaos. The detox diet has inspired me to start using more brown rice and quinoa back home.I'd definitely recommend a visit to The Yoga House if you ever happen to be in Mumbai.  Ann x

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Hambleton Hall and the Art of Fine Dining

 

In an era where casual dining and lack of formality (whatsoever) seems commonplace, visiting Hambleton Hall felt like time-travel.  I've been reading a few lifestyle blogs and books of late that bemoan the lost art of civilised dining. How often do you have your table perfectly laid, well presented and all your best crockery and cutlery out? Chances are, probably when you entertain? I must confess I've done my fair share of slobbery and we still sometimes choose to sit and eat in front of the television too. I have feeling that after our little visit to Hambleton Hall, all that is about to change.

I have to thank my friend Rosie for a) pointing out the lunch for less offer b) convincing Ed to actually go ( can you believe it!). Previously, thanks to various posh tales, I'd always envisaged the Hambleton Hall to be somewhere I'd fancy going for a glass of sparkling water due to its limited affordability. However, the lunch for less offer meant you got to actually have a proper two course meal for just £24 ( plus service tax)!! Assuming it was a winter offer, I quickly booked us in for Saturday lunch. I had to book about a month in advance. I now understand that the offer runs all year and gets slightly cheaper in winter. 

On arrival, we were ushered into the drawing room where we ordered our pre-meal drinks and engaged in seemingly civilised talk (I was actually quietly telling off Ed for not dressing up enough). I'm usually over-dressed to most places but here, I just about fitted in. I will do a separate outfit post shortly. There were a couple of elderly couples and a small group of younger couples/friends sat around us in the drawing room. Everyone was dressed like they were going to a very fancy wedding. The couple that sat across from us were particularly cute as the gentleman treated his partner with such quaint and old-fashioned chivalry. We stayed in the drawing room for a while, consuming complimentary amsue bouche, sipping cocktails  and pondering over menu choices. Eventually, we were escorted in to the dining area.

We chose from the set menu and opted out of starters. I ordered trout for my main course and Ed had lamb. Whilst the menu was unassuming, the food itself was pretty spectacular. The combination of exquisite flavours and textures plus the stunning presentation made our meal a phenomenal experience. Ed and I like fine dining and have been to plenty of fancy restaurants but this place was rather special. Just when we were thinking it couldn't get better, our desserts arrived. My apple crumble souffle with a dessicated slice of apple was otherworldly. Ed's cheesecake was simply spectacular looking and tasty too. Also, in between courses, the young waiter attending to us combed our table with a silver crumber. Clearly, attention to detail is all important at Hambleton Hall.

 

To finish off our fabulous meal, we ordered a cafetiere of freshly ground coffee. The coffee aromatic and delicious and accompanied by a tray of dainty macarons, jellies and chocolate. I was particularly taken by the mango jelly topped with popping candy. Mentally, I  started re-creating a grape version of the jelly with our allotment bounty from last summer. Ed and I went for a little stroll around Hambleton Hall before heading back home. I will do another outfit post including some of Ed's lovely photos of the gardens shortly. I can't wait to go back to Hambleton Hall again, hopefully in the summer.

Have you had a fabulous meal recently? Or have you been inspired by an exquisite recipe or image you've seen somewhere? I'd love to hear. Ann x

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Escape to Eritrea via London

OK, here is a random question; how much do you know about Eritrea? A couple of my mates confessed they had not heard of the country before and others said they knew it was somewhere near Ethiopia but that was it. Fact is, I knew little about Eritrea until I discovered Eritrean food. London is great like that. You find most most cultures represented there, even if in tiny proportions. My first encounter with Eritrean food and culture was a couple of years ago at a lovely restaurant called Mosob in Westbourne Park. The restaurant owner provided us with lots of insights into Eritrean culture and even organised a little quiz to test our knowledge of the country.

Westbourne Park is a bit of trek from Kings Cross and we like to spare a few hours to visit Mosob. It gets a bit tricky as we often tend to go down to London with work or on day trips. Also, they only open after 6 PM on weekdays, another point worth noting. Nevertheless, it is a great place to check out. More recently, I also discovered Adulis, another Eritrean restaurant, which is easier to get to from my London Offices. I like having a few different options at hand.

 

Eritrean food is has many similarities to South Indian cuisine. Injera, the staple on Eritrean menus, is a bit like the South Indian dosa. It is eaten in a similar fashion, expect that it is not served at room temperature. Similarly, Eritrean food is eaten with your fingers and without cutlery. You use the Injera to scoop the side dishes, a bit like a pseudo spoon. And the side dishes are often spicy-even by my Indian standards! And like Indian food, Eritrean cuisine is hearty, flavoursome and makes you feel happy in your tummy. Except, if you are wimpish and can't handle a spicy dish.

No Eritrean meal feels complete without a coffee ceremony. Fresh coffee beans are are roasted over hot coals (you are encouraged to sample its rich aroma) and then ground. The ground coffee is then emptied into a Jebena and boiling water added to brew the coffee. The coffee is served with pop corn and accompanied by the burning of frankincense- my all time favourite fragrance. In fact, it was after one such coffee ceremony that I decided to buy some frankincense for our garden chimnea. I'm just hoping we have at least a few days of summer this year to use it again.

 

 If you want to learn more about Eritrea, I suggest checking out the Visit Eritrea website or Lonely Planet. If are happy staying in blighty and travelling via food experiences, I'd recommend both Mosob and Adulis. Ann x

* First photo via http://www.mvmtravel.com/

Engineering meets Gastronomy at the Wapping Project

I love visiting London. Its an inspiring place and home to the quirkiest of restaurants and boutiques. Ed and I enjoy exploring unusual eating places and the Wapping Project was on the list. I vaguely knew it was a decommissioned hydropower station of sorts but that was about it. What I saw was thoroughly was inspiring, especially when you've seen several un-glamorous versions of similar structures. Clearly, creative thinking and entrepreneurship can achieve the unexpected. The Founder and Director of Wapping, Jules Wright, was at Wapping and gave us some fascinating insights into the structure's past. It once enabled the operation of lifts, machinery in most of Central London and also provided back-up for the Tower Bridge. For more info check out the Wapping Project website.  Now I need to get my colleagues thinking on what defunct structures we can convert into cool projects. The food was top-notch and the ambiance and service could not be faulted either. As we got to Wapping after a long day at the Olympics, I'm dressed in more of day wear. Here I'm wearing an Americal Apparel tube dress and  £1 cheery necklace from a local charity shop. Ann x