Tag: uk travel

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.

 

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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

Quay St. Diner, Bristol

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If you’re looking for a new brunch, lunch, dinner, all day dining spot in Bristol city centre, Quay St. Diner is the place to go. The California inspired restaurant is located in the former premises of Roll for the Soul, and has hit the spot with it’s laidback atmosphere, colourful interior and delicious menu.

Pride of place in their open kitchen is their custom charcoal grill, which has enabled them to build the menu around cooking over an open fire; ‘live fire cooking’.

We ventured in there on a rainy Sunday morning a couple of weeks ago, for breakfast (maybe brunch is more accurate, it was nearly midday!) and were absolutely delighted with it.

First off, the coffee – I ordered a latte (£2.80), while Tom had a flat white. I’m not really much of a coffee expert, but I loved the giant teal coffee cup, and thoroughly enjoyed the coffee!

The brunch menu, served 9am-12pm Mon-Fri and 9am-2pm on the weekend, is full of tasty, California influenced choices, from Pancakes and Fruit to Brunch Tacos topped with grilled tomato and ancho chilli salsa, smashed avocado, pumpkin seeds, fruit salsa and pomegranate!

We both went for the Huevos Rancheros (£7) – baked Mexican eggs in a tomato salsa with crumbled feta on top and sourdough dippers, and added bacon (£2). It was incredible. The salsa was a little on the hot and spicy side, but full of flavour, and the contrast with the feta was just right. Oh, and the thick chunks of bacon were amazing.

The all day menu also looks exciting; small plates, tacos, and a selection of burgers, steak, salad etc. We’ll definitely be back to try it out.

Quay St. Diner is a great, friendly and welcoming place, with full flavour, smokey, delicious food – go now!

Quay St. Diner, 2, Quay Street, Bristol, BS1 2JL. 

Food

Wallfish Bistro, Clifton

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Award winning restaurant, Wallfish Bistro is quietly tucked away on Princess Victoria Street in Clifton. It’s a small place, with a handful of tables upstairs and a few more in the basement, simple decor, and a laid back atmosphere. The menu offers contemporary British dishes, with an emphasis on fish and seafood.

As it was a special occasion (my mum’s birthday), we may have gone a little overboard with our food order, but once we’d read the menu it was hard to maintain self control – we wanted to try it all.

For the first round of food, between us we ordered an assortment of appetisers: Green Sicilian olives (£4.00), Radishes with mayonnaise and celery salt (£3.50), a Porlock oyster (£2.90) and the Scrumpy-fried oyster with jalapeno mayonnaise and pickled vegetables (£3.00). I’m not the biggest fan of oysters, but I had a little try of the fried oyster, and I’d definitely recommend it.

Then for a starter I had the Portland crab on toast with pickled cucumber, lemon and watercress (£9): big juicy flakes of crab, which contrasted perfectly with the tangy pickled cucumber.

For my main course I had the Smoked haddock (£18); a sizeable piece of fish, served up with braised leeks, saffron and a few mussels scattered around the edge. The combination of the sweet leeks, and the intensely fishy taste of smoked haddock was spot on.

Tom had the Rack of Cinderford Lamb (£22) which came with peas, girolles, shallots and green sauce. I don’t eat lamb, but he was adamant that it was the best lamb he’d ever had.

Finally, we made it to dessert, with a few simple offerings on the menu – I went for the Chocolate mousse cake with raspberries and creme fraiche (£6.50).

Wallfish Bistro is a perfect little place, however, the restaurant is currently up for sale, so if you’re tempted by all this insanely delicious food then call up and book a table ASAP!

Wallfish Bistro – 112 Princess Victoria Street, Clifton, Bristol, BS84DB

Cardiff Bay, Cardiff
Food, Travel

Thali at Chai Street and Cardiff Bay

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Last week, on an after work trip over to Cardiff, we decided to pop down to Cardiff Bay and soak up the last of the evening sun.

Cardiff Bay

I haven’t been down to Cardiff Bay in at least a couple of years, but it’s still just as buzzing as ever, with a lots of new exciting restaurants and bars around the waterfront.

Cardiff Bay, Cardif. Trousers: Zara, Tshirt: Monki
Tshirt – Monki, Cropped trousers – Zara, Sandals – Dr Martens.

Cardiff Bay, Cardiff

Chai Street, Cardiff Bay

This is my second visit to a branch of the Cardiff local gem, Chai Street Indian Street Kitchen. It’s a really laid back restaurant, with the best, bright and dazzling decor; ideal for just dropping in on a whim, or for a special meal.

Chai Street Indian Street Kitchen, Cardiff Bay

I went for the Traditional Chicken Thali (£11.95) – a spicy chicken curry, a potato curry, dal, raita, pickle, mini poppadums, rice and a naan bread. I love to try a bit of lots of different things, so thalis are ideal for that, plus the Chai Street thali is slightly different every time. Despite the heat, the chicken curry was definitely the highlight for me though.

Chicken Thali at Chai Street, Cardiff Bay

Tom, meanwhile, went all out and ordered the non-vegetarian Chai Special Thali (£13.25). This was a meal and a half, it included: a starter (baji), a chicken curry, a lamb curry, and some of the potato vegetable curry, as well as dal, raita, pickle, poppadums, rice and a naan bread.

Thali at Chai Street, Cardiff Bay

It was a really delicious thali (almost as good as Thali in Bristol), but I think next time I’m going to try out some of their ‘Street Delights’. The chicken lollypops (marinated with spices, ginger, garlic and then fried!), Prawn Chatpata and the samosas all sounded, smelled and looked incredible!

If you find yourself down at Cardiff Bay, hungry and fancy some authentic Indian street food, then definitely check out Chai Street. They also have restaurants in Canton and on the High Street in Cardiff – so there’s no excuse not to visit.

Under the Stars, Bristol
Food

Under The Stars, Bristol

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Located at the top of the harbourside in Bristol, Under the Stars is a lovely little bar and restaurant on a boat. It’s ideal in the summer when you can sit out on top and enjoy the harbour, but even in the winter the downstairs area is perfectly cosy. We had a little table by the window so we could look out over the harbour.

Under the Stars serves tapas and Pizza, all of which sounded too good, so we ordered both!

Oak Smoked Trout and Spanish Chorizo
Oak Smoked Trout and Spanish Chorizo

Under the Stars tapas

Oak Smoked Trout with roasted piquilo peppers, sherry vinegar and chilli oil (£5)  Incredible flavours, the chilli was an amazing twist to the strong fish flavour.

Spanish Chorizo cooked with Somerset Cider, red onions and garlic (£4.50) You absolutely have to order this, the meat is soft and deliciously infused with the flavours of the cider and red onions. Use the extra bread to soak up the leftover sauce – don’t waste a drop!

Patatas Bravas with tomato chilli sauce and alioli (£3.75) Not the most exciting of the tapas dishes, but the chilli certainly added a kick. It worked well with the other two intensely flavoured dishes.

Patatas Bravas
Patatas Bravas

Pizza at Under the Stars

Calabria – Italian nduja chilli salami, buffalo mozzarella and black olives (£10.00)
Thin and just a little crispy on the crusts, there was plenty of cheese and the salami was just the right amount of spicy, and of course the olives- a pretty perfect pizza!

Calabria Pizza

Under the Stars is a lovely little boat perfect for a romantic meal, or a quiet evening with friends. I look forwards to going back in the summer and sitting outside enjoying the sunshine and harbour side atmosphere.

Travel

Falmouth, Cornwall

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Falmouth is one of my absolute favourite places, a long stretch of beach (no waves for the surfers though), and a cute, winding high street filled with unique shops, art galleries, cafes and restaurants:

Rick Stein’s

You can’t book a table at Rick Stein’s so you just have to turn up and keep your fingers crossed that the queue isn’t too big. We went with the intention of going elsewhere if the wait was long, however once we were inside, and we smelt the fish, we couldn’t resist.

After about 20 minutes and we were sat at a high table near the kitchen. The atmosphere is laid back and casual, but definitely a few steps up from your local chip shop at home.

We were all tempted in by the three courses for £20 menu. To start with I had the Amritsari Fish, which was fried sea bream in a chickpea batter, garlic and ginger sprinkled with chat masala. It was the perfect combination of flavours – the pieces of sea bream were quite spicy but you could still taste the flavour of the fish and it was served with a cool cucumber raita dip.

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For the main course we all went for the cod, after all Rick Stein’s is THE place for fish and chips in Falmouth. The batter was delicious and crispy, the chips were chunky but not too big, and even the mushy peas looked good.

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For pudding there was a choice between strawberries with pouring cream, Lemon Posset with mixed berry compote, or sticky toffee pudding.

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Rick Stein’s is definitely worth the wait, but the dishes are large so if you have a small appetite maybe just enjoy a main dish.

Discovery Quay

If you’re looking for somewhere to eat in Falmouth, then Discovery Quay is a good place to start – you have your regulars Pizza Express and Zizzi’s but also three sister restaurants The Ranch, The Shed, and The Shack, all catering to slightly different tastes

The Shed

Half cocktail bar, half restaurant, The Shed’s menu is very simple but it captured our attention and I was keen to try the Shed Burger.

Cornish beef, bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, a big slice of pickle, onion rings, and BBQ sauce served in a brioche bun with fries. Just as incredible as it sounds. The only, only let down was the tiny portion of BBQ sauce – I completely forgot there was supposed to be BBQ sauce until I tasted it in the last few mouthfuls. But, it was still very nearly perfect.

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The Shack

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You can order Oysters individually for £2 each.

I had the Sea Bass with sweet potato mash, green beans and capers. I can’t quite explain how good it was – the combination of flavours was spot on. image(13)

 

We also had some delicious lunches while in Falmouth, in between pasties, which are definitely worth mentioning:

Trelissick
Trelissick is a beautiful National Trust property that runs down to the River Fal; it’s a great place to stop off for lunch. Entrance to the gardens is £8.50 for non-member adults, but you can park for £4 (or free for members) and enjoy their lovely cafe as well as take a look at the art gallery. They have sandwiches, toasties, pasties and hot food options..

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I had a bacon, brie and cranberry toastie – a combination that’s hard to resist – and it was amazing.

Truro Arts Cafe

No trip to Falmouth is complete without a trip on the river –  the FalRiver Enterprise boats goes from Falmouth to Truro(stopping by St Mawes). The trip takes about an hour and a half – two hours, and it’s definitely worth it.

In Falmouth we sat outside the Truro Arts Cafe, next to the Royal Cornwall Museum and had smoked salmon and cheese sandwiches surrounded by lovely flowers.
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 Charlotte’s Tea House

Located upstairs in the Coinage Hall, Truro, Charlotte’s Tea House is a step back in time to the Victorian era, with traditional cream teas and a selection of homemade cakes. They are only open until 4.30pm though!

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Pasties!

Lastly, you can’t go to Cornwall without eating at least one pasty. Rowe’s bakery had some amazing combinations, including pork and Ratler cider, and steak and Doombar. My favourite was the extremely cute, and delicious, Pixie sized traditional pasty from Oggy Oggy.
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