Bristol - 51

Here's a short one.

A: Stokes Croft - Bristol's eclectic, independent haven where anything local is praised and endeared. What a wonderful pub though, with three different levels, unusual interior and offered a whole range of different meals using all locally-sourced ingredients in true Bristol style. 51 was classy, yet rough on the edges and a nice change from the big chains that dominate most city centres.
 

J: Another friend joined us and we shared the portobello mushroom and brie burger, which was equally delicious and filling. We were told that all the food there had been tried and tested to make it as healthy as possible, and you could really tell. Even the chips felt healthier than usual and there was a slight tussle for the last few, which is always a good sign.

A: Having had a little gorge earlier, I wasn't fancying something too filling and to my delight the pizzas prepared were specially-made to be lightweight, yet full of filling and flavour. I went for an interesting choice in the butternut squash, ricotta and pine nut pizza. An unusual choice of mine, but not regrettable. A palpable, quaint pizza to fill that little hole - just what I wanted.

 

 

 

A & J 

London - VQ

3am and drawn to the light like a mosquito to a light, we stumbled across VQ along the Fulham Road in Chelsea. We had heard great tales; tales of jaegerbombs and brownies at 8am, of pancakes and breakfast treats at 1am - the legend awaited us in all its shining glory. A 24 hour bistro with a full licence.

Indeed the stories were true - pancakes can be consumed any time of day - with ice cream or bacon depending on what you fancy and alcohol does indeed flow throughout the night and into the next day and through that night too and so forth.

One friend opted for the pancakes - a good choice, albeit at £9. As a typical fairly drunk recent graduate, all I really wanted was a plate of chips. After a bit of a wait what the 'chef' returned to me was not quite what I was expecting. I have to admit, 'Truffle oil chips with blue cheese dip' for £3.50 sounded like a bit of a steal. Rather than some slightly posh fluffy potato scrumptiousness, I was presented with a bowl of what were essentially ready salted crisps. No hint of truffle oil to be found. I paid £3.50 for a packet of crisps... I can't even use the excuse 'this is Chelsea after all', even for Chelsea that's a rip-off. The saving grace though was the blue cheese dip which was actually very tasty with my crisps. My friend however, was not so lucky, ordering 'rustic Italian bread' and receiving - yes, you guessed it - toast.

Attempting to find the least over-priced drink on the menu was fairly difficult, but I settled for a strawberry and mango iced tea which was incredible. Just what I needed.

Having queued to squeeze into this tiny restaurant-bar to receive sub-standard, well-marketed food we were already pretty peeved. The final nail in the coffin was when we received our receipt which was the first time we were told that we were paying for entry to the dive. Frankly, I wouldn't have minded if we'd had to pay on the door, but to deceive us up to the point of no return is fairly disgraceful.

Like the mosquito and the light, we'd been drawn in by the allure of the light, only to receive an unexpected death, the death being our money, which felt like it was being snatched from our hands (hypothetically of course - the staff were actually fairly pleasant). We walked towards the light and got our comeuppance. Don't make the same mistake.

A

The Best Open-Sandwich Ever

I came across this go-to-lunch when I was scraping together what I could from the fridge one day, and it was so good, I haven't looked back.

I had made my own sourdough a few days before (get me), and was at the tail end of my little round loaf so decided to cobble together a toasted open sandwich. 

All we had in the fridge was some horseradish in the back, some beetroot under a box of eggs, and few whips of coriander. There was also some tinned mackerel in the cupboard. (I'm the only one in my family who likes tinned mackerel, or mackerel for that matter, and I know it sounds gross and akin to spam, but it is more neutral-tasting than the smoked mackerel you can get in the refrigerator aisle and is cheap as anything. It's a handy cupboard companion for times likes these).

Just pile it all on and nod smilingly as you realise how grateful you are you read this.

Toast the bread, top with mackerel, top with a big dollop of horseradish, sprinkle on cubed beetroot and finish with coriander. 

Trust me it's delish and I've made it for friends who all agree and hinted wildly for seconds, (which they obviously got).

I hope you enjoy. 

- J

London - Pix

Pix, Pix, you get all the Ticks, you give us a Mix of food on Stix.

It's a working progress.

But I'm actually a big fan of Pix. They are popping up everywhere, and if you ever fancy just a quick bite to eat for lunch, but don't want to spend much on food, money or time, then Pix is the place.

It is a self-serve 'pintxos' bar (think small tapas on sticks) and has an enticing sideboard lined up with all sorts of goodies, fresh from the kitchen. It is easy to keep a tally on price too, as shorter sticks are £1.95, while longer sticks are £2.95. I'm no maths whizz but I can do that.

The menu changes daily, and will differ in each branch, but the short (£1.95) stix might mean: vegetarian tortilla, fig and goats cheese on croute, aubergine and parma ham fritter, patatas bravas….

While the longer (£2.95) stix could lead to something like: calamari, chilli chicken kebabs, gazpacho, chorizo and manchego, etc etc….

You can find one in Covent Garden, Soho, Islington and on Portobello Road, so no doubt you will have wandered past one at some point.

If you're feeling peckish, yet have small change and a small appetite, duck into Pix.

- J

London - Mildred's

Mildred's is a hugely popular vegetarian cafe on Lexington Street in Soho, found opposite the achingly cute and nostalgic Andrew Edmunds, which I am determined to go to sometime soon. (Voted the most romantic restaurant in London, I believe, if anyone wants to know).

But back to Mildred's. I met a friend there after work one day as we decided to go for an early supper. We arrived about six-ish to an already packed out place and were lucky to get a table straight away, but my GOD on leaving an hour and a half later the whole scene had changed and there was the largest queue trailing out the door and along the street. People looked pretty happy though with glasses of wine in hand and lots of merry chitchat going on, but be warned, if you don't want to wait, get there early.

The food was scrumptious and every plate that went past made you go 'oooh, I should have ordered that!'. Which is always a good, if slightly frustrating sign. We both plumped for the 'organic energising detox salad', which sounds intense, but was actually just a mountain of simple deliciousness. It consisted of beetroot, carrots, fennel, sprouting beans, sultanas, coriander and toasted seeds, all topped with goats cheese and a delicious orange, ginger and lime dressing.

Oh and by 'mountain' I really mean mountain. The portion sizes here are alarmingly generous, which is of course wonderful, and I ploughed my way merrily through to a gratifying sense of fullness. All at £7.95, which is cheaper than Wagamamas, if you need more persuading.

Elsewhere on the menu is: halloumi burger, an aubergine and chickpea tagine, an organic blackbean burrito, oh the list goes on, and so does my food envy.

The puddings too looked wonderful with the pecan pie particularly calling to me, but alas, what with my mountainous salad and sharing some sweet potato fries on the side, there was just no way.

I'm determined to go back soon however, and I think you should head there too. To Mildred's!

- J

Raw Vegetable Pad Thai Salad

Ashamedly, I love hearing about the newest health food craze. I even recently bought two litres of aloe vera juice thinking I was pre-empting the 'next big thing'. Damn you, Holland and Barrett one penny sale. I'll now be taking teaspoonfuls of the stuff until the day I die.

As you might have been aware, one of the latest trends was to eat everything raw, or, as the advocates preached via glossy instagram snaps: 'as nature intended it'. So obviously, and fairly self-consciously, I gave it a go.

Here is the recipe for a raw pad thai vegetable salad that was actually delicious. Honest.

p.s. I don't own a spiraliser, for some reason I'll buy aloe vera but not utensils - so just use a peeler/chop finely and keep going at it, you'll feel like you've earned it more that way.

Ingredients:

- 1 courgette, spiralised/peeled/julienned (you just want thin strips of it)
- 1/2 a red cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1 red pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 carrot peeled/thinly sliced
- 200g peeled broad beans
- handful of sesame seeds

For the sauce:

- 1 tbsp peanut butter
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 thinly sliced garlic clove

All you do is: in a large bowl mix together all the prepped veg, in another mix together the sauce, pour over, and scatter with sesame seeds.

It's super yum, healthy and pretty filling. Although I have an insatiable appetite and so had mine with some homemade pitta and aubergine dip on the side. No-one likes to be hungry.

Enjoy!

- J

London - Gordon's Wine Bar

If you ever find yourself wandering along the Strand, searching for a new spot to meet friends for after-work drinks, or indeed, have a Tinder date looming and have no clue where to go, (no smirks, Tinder happens), then Gordon's Wine Bar is the perfect place to wile away an evening.

The back entrance resides hidden along the long cobbled Villiers Road that leads towards Embankment Station, far down on the left, through an unassuming gate. If you weren't looking, you wouldn't think to notice it. (I say back entrance because when we arrived, the front appeared resolutely closed. So closed in fact, it looked like it hadn't been in business for 20 years). However, don't be fooled, it is the oldest wine bar in London, and everything about it really plays up to this idea.

Once through the gate you're in a startlingly long terrace, lined with umbrellas, tables and upturned barrels, acting as smaller tables on which to perch. Now descend down the steep stone stairs of the (back) entrance into what at first is almost total darkness, and be delighted by the dark, stone-walled, candle-lit, buzzy den that is Gordon's. The only aspect that didn't necessarily exude age and fit with the decor was the lovely, if slightly out of place, well-groomed bartender, sporting a bright pink low necked-tshirt in a way that I'm more accustomed to seeing in Soho.

Sidle your way through the busy throng and you'll emerge into a low-ceilinged, dark, candlelit stone tunnel. Very Phantom of the Opera. Very fun. We luckily managed to nab a table in the corner and brought with us our vittles. (Excuse the use of 'vittles' but I'm feeling old fashioned just thinking about it).

Aside from an extensive wine list Gordon's also does very popular cheese platters. You choose which cheese you want from the sixteen varieties available at £5.50 each (I hugely recommend the Isle de Avalon, man it was good), and it comes on a wooden plate with hunks of bread. You get proper chunks (and hunks) too, there's no messing about when cheese is involved.

You can also get hot food platters, consisting of things such as chicken wings, ravioli, moussaka, the list goes on. Similarly, you can also order from the outside grill, which does burgers, halloumi, steak sandwiches and the like, all around the £8 mark. Gordon's not only gives you choice, but it doesn't stint on the portion sizes either.

I really enjoyed my visit and it has really livened up the otherwise slightly dull Strand for me. So if you're looking for somewhere with ambience, atmosphere and great food, then give it a whirl. Or even if you just like cheese.

- J