I first noticed that The Haberdashery was a little different from the other coffee houses in our new London area of Crouch End because of this sign:It says, 'Unattended children will be given espresso and a free kitten.' I chuckled to myself all the way home - it was such a refreshing and funny sign … [Read more...]
Fäviken Magasinet, near Åre ski resort, Sweden, revisited
The atmospheric Fäviken Magasinet is housed in an old grain barn.I was a little apprehensive about my third visit to Fäviken Magasinet, the acclaimed restaurant run by young Swedish Chef of the moment, Magnus Nilsson, since often when you revisit a place, which you've been raving about, you are … [Read more...]
The Crouch End Knowledge: The Queens
From the outside this pub looks far too large to be any good, and it took some emotional blackmail type of comment from the Englishman to even get me through the door, 'But we said, we'd to try all the pubs!'The thing was that as soon as I'd written the first post about The Maynard Arms, promising … [Read more...]
The Knowledge Crouch End – Part One: The Maynard Arms
In the UK, there's a test called 'The Knowledge' for London black cab drivers. Before being awarded a licence, they have to pass a test of the best ways to navigate the thousands of roads, cul-de-sacs and one way systems in London. Basically they have to carry a complete A-Z in their heads. Not an … [Read more...]
Birthday dinner at The Savoy Grill, London
It sounds terrible but Daughter's birthday has always been a bit of a headache for me. I'm sure anyone who has a child born around Christmas will know what I mean. Firstly you have to make sure friends and family refrain from using same wrapping paper for both the birthday and Christmas … [Read more...]
The plot thickens…
This email popped into my inbox yesterday morning:Dear HelenaA link to your blog was kindly sent to me by a customer of ours enabling us to read what you have written about the restaurant. I find it genuinely upsetting that you felt the need to slate the restaurant on your blog, rather than … [Read more...]
Eating Out: Invisible Diners at The Hix in Soho
On Friday we had tickets to see the play of the moment, Anna Christie, starring Jude Law, at Donmar Warehouse in London. I'd been looking forward to seeing the play for weeks, even months. (More about that on my other site Strindberg's Daughter, here, soon.)In addition to the theatre, though, I'd … [Read more...]
Eating Out: Le Relais de Venise L’Entrecote in London
This French restaurant in Marylebone has a rigid format: You can't book tables and you will not be seated until the whole of your party has arrived. They serve just the one starter and main dish: salad, followed by steak and chips (or frites). The green salad comes with a delicious creamy dressing … [Read more...]
Lunch at Hix Restaurant in Soho, London
The Englishman and I have been doing a lot of lunching out lately. It's not by design or by some elaborate planning. (Very few things in our lives ever seem to be... just look at how me met!) Sometimes we don't go out for months, and then sometimes we have lunch together several times a week.Last … [Read more...]
Ladudu in West Hampstead
Ladudu I love Twitter. About noon today when both the Englishman and I were busily working away in our separate rooms at home, I had an email from him, 'Let's go for lunch.' He'd seen a Tweet via West Hampstead that a new Vietnamese place on West End Lane, Ladudu, had a special lunch offer: a … [Read more...]