Within two months of Nanna Mary passing away, the love of her life and my grandfather also passed away. He gave up the fight when he lost her. Shortly before this I was involved in a brutal attack, of which I am still feeling the after-effects, and I am also settling in at my new job.
People ask me, “what do you think of London?”, and my answer changes daily. Although any of the turbulence I’ve suffered here could have been felt back home; I’ve found it can be difficult to not let it impact my outlook on this city as whole, and my experience of it.
Needless to say I am counting down the days until my parents arrive in September. I just wish I could afford the time off to head to Italy with them as well.
I will find out shortly whether my current contract is extended, and if so for how long; then I can start planning some new adventures.
I have managed to keep myself busy and surrounded by friends which has helped immensely during any down time, so here is a snap shot of some of the more enjoyable moments.
Afternoon tea at Sketch – Parlour room.
If you know me at all, you know I love afternoon tea; and there is something so quintessentially English about indulging in it. Working my way through sandwiches, moving on to scones (with lashings of lovely clotted cream) and then licking the remnants of cake off my fork. All of this washed down with tea, glorious tea.
I have eaten in the Parlour twice now, and hope to eat at the Lecture Room, Library and Gallery shortly. For the purpose of this review I’ll discuss my most recent visit.
After ‘hopscotching’ our way through the entrance, and a 20 minute wait, our host escorted us to a corner table. The table was dimly lit by a tall light, and as I sunk into a large antique velvet chair I took some time to peruse the menu, which had been wedge between the pages of a dusty hardback book.
After umm-ing and ahh-ing over the delightful selections we settled on the traditional afternoon tea for £27 each (a champagne option with Pommery Brut Royal is available for £35 per person).
Simple sandwiches of smoked salmon, cucumber, egg & mayonnaise and ham & mustard were pleasant, and while is isn’t general practice for second helpings to be offered, our host kindly brought some more out for us when we asked. It is worth asking I believe, as I would think the cost per head is less justifiable otherwise.
The two fruit scones each (with clotted cream of course!) were beautiful, and to accompany there was a homemade raspberry jam.
Sweets on offer included a vanilla custard éclair (with violet icing), a madeleine, a chocolate ganache (with chocolate mousse), a fruit tartlet, a pineapple stick and a gingerbread cake. If I were to fault anything, it would be the pineapple stick which seemed almost an afterthought, as I couldn’t see how a stick of fruit was appropriate amongst the other offerings, and the gingerbread cake was very heavy on the palate compared to the other offerings. Being the chocoholic I am, the chocolate ganache was my favourite, alongside the fruit tartlet whose pasty was buttery, light and almost shortbread like in the mouth.
I think the portions were a little bit too small given the price, but the room (not to mention the bathrooms) itself is decadently stylish, if not a little kooky, which combined with the other guests made for a lovely ambience.
B@1 Spitalfields
This has become my go-to happy hour spot. The cocktail menu is ever-evolving, and 5pm – 7pm Monday to Saturday the menu is buy one, get one free. Monday-Wednesday there is also ‘Bartender's Choice’ where two cocktails are on special at £5 each all night.
Service is a little slow, but the substance of the cocktails more than makes up for it, and the staff are very friendly. If they’re particularly busy or are training new staff, they will often bring the cocktails to you so you don’t have to wait at the bar for them to be made. This is something of a rarity, particularly during rush hour.
I am yet to work through the entire list, but thus far my favourites have been Strawberry Shortcake, Irish Disco Biscuit and Twisted Mojito.
Taken from http://www.beatone.co.uk/
Irish Disco Biscuit - Ideal for those who have a sweet tooth, the peppermint and Baileys blended with Oreo cookies and ice cream is the ultimate guilty pleasure and perfect after-dinner drink. (The diet can start tomorrow)
Strawberry Shortcake - Strawberries and Cream in a glass, with extra nuts! This is a sweet mix of strawberry and Amaretto, you should skip dinner and go straight to dessert.
Twisted Mojito - Slightly sweeter than its Cuban counterpart, this drink is given its own accent with vanilla vodka and ginger ale to boost the minty citrus base.
London fields
Located in the eastern borough of Hackney this has proven a lovely spot to while away any sunshine-filled afternoons London is afforded. It is a huge space, and attracts an eclectic mix of park-goers, from hipsters to families with young children, loved-up couples and large group gatherings. BBQ-ing was allowed throughout the fields until recently, and is now confined to a particular quadrant but it doesn’t feel any more crowded. Ice cream truck by the entrance and alcohol allowed (unlike quite a few parks in Australia). There are even people wondering around selling cocktails and bulbs (lol!), albeit at inflated prices.
Fabric
I’ve been twice so far and am not completely sold. Something seemed lacking though I can’t quite put my finger on what. Perhaps I wasn’t inebriated enough. Also, I have only been on Friday nights where drum and bass is predominant, so I will have to see how it changes on a Saturday night. On the first visit there was no queue, on the second we lined up for about 40 minutes.
This venue is modeled in the basement of a former Victorian meat market, and split into three large club rooms playing a mix of drum n bass, break beat, hip hop, dance and house. At a capacity of around 3,000 the venue still remains tasteful and stylish, with décor incorporating marble bars, leather couches, stone walls, and even beds to recline on, with the moonlit stair ways also doubling as sitting areas.
The sound system is unrivalled by any club I’ve visited so far, you can feel the bass pulsing through you and being absorbed by the walls around you. I can’t fault the crowd either; lots of fun and easy to be around. The drinks are surprisingly cheap, though there is not a great deal of choice. Free water with ice was only available on the ground level; with the others demanding you pay for bottled water which I thought was cheeky.
