Tag: restaurant recommendation

Food, Travel

Glasgow, Scotland

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We dithered so long on where to go over the Easter weekend break that flights got crazy expensive, so in the end we made a last minute (slightly crazy) decision to drive up to Glasgow.

When I told some people we were planning on driving to Glasgow on Good Friday, they laughed hard and told me we’d be stuck in traffic for days, but actually the drive took about 8 ish hours. Plus we stopped off at the Tebay Services, which has an amazing farmshop and restaurant – a big step up for your usual Burger King/McDonald’s services.

Once we made it to Glasgow, we checked into the impressive Grand Central Hotel, which is attached to Glasgow’s main train station. It’s a 19th century railway hotel, with an amazing lobby, and endless corridors with little alcoves.

Bread Meats Bread

We headed straight to Bread Meats Bread for burgers – a casual diner-style place with booths right in the centre of Glasgow.

I went for the Full House Burger (£11) a chunky, tender beef burger with smoky Scarmoza cheese, BBQ beef brisket, crispy fried onions, spicy beef mayo and pickles. It was insanely delicious; juicy and full of so much flavour and lots of sauce, which is always a winner.

We also had a side of Buffalo Fries (£4.50) which had loads of hot buffalo sauce, blue cheese mayo and crispy fried onion.

Bread Meats Bread – 104 St Vincent Street, Glasgow, G2 5UB

Kimchi Cult

Tucked away in Glasgow’s West End is the absolute must-visit, Korean style fast food Kimchi Cult. It’s a tiny little place; casual take-away, order at the counter kind of place, with a couple of benches if you want to eat in.

Obviously Kimchi is a key part of their menu; it’s made to a special Jeonju regional recipe passed down through generations, and seriously delicious.

We tried two Baos (Taiwanese steamed buns): slow roasted bulgogi brisket with kimchi, spring onions and sesame seeds (£4.50), and panko prawn with shredded cabbage, mayo and tonkatsu sauce (£4.00).

Then we had the Bulgogi fries (£7.50) with slow roasted brisket, spring onions, house kimchi hot sauce and mayo, which were so tasty. And Tom had the Korean Fried Chicken (£7.50), which was apparently on the level of the amazing fried chicken we had at Front Porch in San Francisco.

Kimchi Cult – 14 Chancellor Street, Glasgow, G11 5RQ

The Spanish Butcher

On the Sunday we decided we wanted an epic roast, so we did some frantic searching and discovered The Spanish Butcher.

With high ceilings, simple decor and loft-style vibe, The Spanish Butcher has a classy but relaxed atmosphere. We walked in at about 2pm and were seated straight away; almost immediately we saw their amazing roasts being served and we knew we’d made a great choice.

To start with we shared Jamon Iberico Croquettas with roasted garlic alioli, and the Cured Iberican Meats. Then I had the Roast Sirloin of Beef with beef and jamon jus, and charred red pepper, paprika cauliflower, red peppers, plus amazing olive oil and thyme roast potatoes. The meat was actually perfect; tender and juicy, with so much flavour packed in.

I honestly think it might have been the best roast I’ve ever had, and at £16 for one course or £19 for two courses, it was really reasonable as well. If you’re looking for an amazing Sunday Roast in Glasgow, make a bee line to the Spanish Butcher.

The Spanish Butcher – 80, Miller Street, Glasgow, G1 1DT

Platform

Another place you need to check out on your food tour of Glasgow is Platform. It’s a street food market, full of amazing independent stalls and ideal if you can’t decide what you want to eat!

Platform – 253, Argyle Street, G2 8DL

Exploring Glasgow

We managed to pack a lot into what was really only two full days in Glasgow. The first day we visited The Lighthouse and then walked from our hotel over to the Kelingrove Art Gallery and Museum, and saw the iconic Glasgow University buildings and the Hunterian Art Gallery.

We strolled along Argyle Street, which is full of interesting places to eat, drink and shop and popped into Lebowskis.

In the evening we went to the The Stand Comedy Club, which was actually hilarious.

On our second day, after our roast, we headed out in the other direction and walked through The Barras, saw Barrowland Ballroom, and then visited Glasgow Cathedral and the Necropolis.

Next we stopped off at the Drygate Brewery for a couple of drinks in the sunshine, and picked up a Tantrum Doughnuts on the way back.

Glasgow is a really fun, quirky place for a weekend visit. I was overwhelmed by the number of amazing, independent restaurants, there were so many more that I wanted to try. It’s definitely somewhere I’d like to explore, but maybe we’ll take a short cut and fly next time.

 

Food

The Bite, Dalston

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Nestled on Kingsland Road, Dalston is a delightful little Italian restaurant, The Bite. We stumbled on it, late Saturday evening, tired and hungry for pizza; it didn’t disappoint.

The Bite has a casual, cosy feel, with friendly staff and a typical Italian menu: pizza, pasta, calzone.

Their pizzas are Neopoliatan style, with a thin base and lots of sauce.I went for the Capricciosa and to be honest, it was absolutely just as good as the ones I’ve had in Rome and Venice.

A lovely thin but doughy base, with a very generous helping of mozzarella, plus cooked ham, mushrooms, artichokes and green olives. For all those crazy pizza combinations out there, is there anything better than this classic?!

The Bite is a no frills kind of place, but cute and welcoming, with lots of delicious Italian comfort food.

The Bite, 533 Kingsland Road, Dalston, London E8 4AR

Food

Greens, Zetland Road, Bristol

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Turn off the busy parade of Gloucester Road, and you find a handful of cute, independent restaurants along Zetland Road. One of my favourites for a special occasion is Greens; serving a small menu of traditional British dishes with influences from international cuisines, using high quality, local ingredients.

Greens is a ‘neighbourhood’ restaurant, taken over by Head Chef Martin Laurentowicz, and front of house Nick Wallace, in 2012, whose partnership began in fine dining restaurants in Scotland.

From the outside, Greens looks cute and cosy; very enticing when you walk past at night. And inside it’s decorated very simply, with a cool, intimate atmosphere. It’s the kind of place you can dress up for on date night, or pop in on the spur of the moment if there’s a spare table.

Last time we went was over the weekend between Christmas and New Year, the time when you have no real clue what day it is. There were a handful of other tables, a mix of families, friends and dates.

To start I had the wild mushroom and buffalo mozzarella arancini with aioli and truffle oil (£8.50). Mushroom and mozzarella are always a perfect combination, so these were fried delights.

This was followed traditional Cullen skink with smoked haddock, braised leeks and cripsy potatoes (£16.50). Cullen is a thick Scottish soup – the smoked haddock flavour was almost overwhelming, but the braised leeks added a little taste of sweetness. Overall, it was a little too salty for my taste, but I did enjoy it.

Finally we shared a sticky toffee pudding with ice cream and cream. It was rich, decadent and amazing.

Greens is a lovely little place for an evening meal, especially if you catch their evening set menu of two courses for £17.95 or three courses for £23.95, Monday to Thursday.

Greens Restaurant. 25 Zetland Road, Bristol BS6 7AH.

Food, Travel

Las Vegas

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On our whirlwind tour of California, we also managed to skip over the border into Nevada, and spend a couple of nights in Sin City – Las Vegas.

MGM Grand Las Vegas

We drove through the desert from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, which took about 5 hours and was filled with some incredible, expansive views of desert and mountains. When we got to Las Vegas, we dropped the hire car at the airport and got an Uber to our hotel, the MGM Grand.

If we were going to Vegas I wanted to get the full, vibrant, brash experience – and staying on the main strip at one of those massive hotels and casinos was essential. Nothing can quite prepare you for just the size of everything in Vegas; the MGM Grand has over 6,000 rooms, plus a sprawling casino with over 2,000 arcade games and slot machines. There’s also restaurants, shows and events, and an impressive pool complex – you could pretty much spend your whole trip inside the hotel.

However, for our first night we had a quick turn around and out to catch LA Lakers vs Golden State Warriors at the T Mobile arena. I don’t think I’ve ever watched a basketball game before, but despite watching from up in the heavens, the atmosphere was insane, and the game itself is so quick and skilled that it literally kept me on the edge of my seat.

La Salsa Cantina

Located in the depths of the Showcase Mall on The Strip, in a weird twilight, La Salsa Cantina offers probably one of the cheapest breakfasts in Las Vegas. If you’re there before midday, they have a $5 breakfast deal with eggs, bacon, tortilla and potatoes.

We however, decided to splash out on the breakfast quesadilla and the breakfast burrito.  It’s pretty much the definition of ‘cheap and cheerful’; a generous breakfast, lots of flavour, plus 99 cent Bloody Marys, what’s not to love?!

Las Salsa Cantina – 3785 S. Las Vegas Boulevard #1500, Las Vegas NV 89109

Las Vegas Strip

We started off after breakfast with a beer at the Sin City Brewing Company and a little shopping in the Miracle Mile shopping centre. Then we made our way back out to The Strip, and just wondered around all afternoon, taking in the pure excess of everything.

We checked out the flamingos at Flamingo Las Vegas, we had a drink in Caesars Palace, and we explored The Bellagio, before heading back to the MGM Grand.

Downtown Las Vegas

For our second night in Vegas, we decided to explore Downtown Las Vegas – here you can find some slightly smaller, and older, casinos such as El Cortez and the Fremont Street Experience, as well as amazing sushi.

Fremont Street is the highlight of Downtown Vegas, with the world’s largest video screen dazzling you from above, there were small stages with performers, as well as, of course, more casinos. It’s definitely worth venturing away from the main strip to explore downtown. 

Bocho Sushi, Las Vegas

One of the best meals for our entire trip, was the sushi at Bocho Sushi. We sat at the downstairs sushi bar, and ordered excessive amounts of food, it’s Vegas after all.

Starting off with 6 delightful beef gyozas ($7) and miso soup ($3), we followed up with a Spicy tuna roll ($6.50) and a California roll ($6).

We also tried one of their speciality rolls, Disco Inferno ($13) – spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, seared escolar, jalapeno, spicy mayo, spicy house sauce, eel sauce, with green onion and tobiko on top. Seriously, seriously, fiery and delicious.

Bocho Sushi – 124 S 6th St #150, Las Vegas, NV, 89101

Find out more about our drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

Food

Edit: Audiophile restaurant on Cheltenham Road

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One of Cheltenham Road’s newest offerings, Edit, is a unusual blend of classy tapas restaurant and cosy music bar. Labelling itself as an ‘audiophile restaurant’, the concept is inspired by Tokyo’s food and drink scene; offering Asian-inspired tapas style small plates, with an impressive Klipsch heritage sound system playing a range of ambient, soul, funk, electronica and world music. The idea is to delight all of your senses, and it achieves this, for the most part.

It’s very much a ‘drop-in’ place, with long high tables and bar chairs – making it feel casual yet a little sophisticated at the same time. The drinks menu is extensive and impressive, prepare yourself to be dazzled by a wide range of spirits, sake, beers and wine.

We decided to order and share a variety of their small plates and snacks; mushroom and miso bao, kimchi, fried squid with mango chilli sauce, chicken dumplings and prawn dumplings. For five dishes and two drinks it came to £32. 

Fried chicken dumplings from Edit, Cheltenham Road

While the food arrived in seemingly random dribs and drabs (including one of our plates being delivered to the couple sat next to us), it was all incredibly delicious.

Fried squid, Edit, Cheltenham Road, Bristol

The slightly spiced, fried chicken dumplings in gyoza style parcels, were the standout dish for us. But the fried squid was a close second; it would be a perfect dish to pick at while having a few drinks. I would advise ordering quite a few dishes if you’re hungry, they’re little and delightful and definitely leave you wanting more.

Mushroom and miso bao, Edit on Cheltenham Road, Bristol

Despite the slightly disorganised service, and a missing dish, we will definitely be returning.

As a concept, Edit is unique and quirky, just right for the Cheltenham Road/Gloucester Road junction that it finds itself on. However, it’s definitely more of a drinks,snacks and music venue, than somewhere you want to come for ‘dinner’ and leave completely filled up.

Find out more about Edit on Cheltenham Road, Bristol here.