A Girly Day Out

It is so difficult for me to believe that I graduated almost two years ago now. Listening to the girls at work talking about their plans and their excitement to leave in the upcoming Summer, often brings a sense of nostalgia. It also made me realise that I hadn't seen some of my university favourites in too long! Next thing I know I'm on the phone to one of my best friends and ex-housemates, planning her visit down from Cambridge.

The Plan: a day of exactly what we do best - drinking, eating, drinking, shopping, and a little more drinking.

First stop. King's Road - for the 'most important meal of the day'. Breakfast at Bluebird. I love this restaurant, with greenery blocking the view of the road, it is quite easy to forget that you are in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Chelsea. 

It is the perfect place to be in Summer, with the comfiness of large outdoor sofas to 'set up camp' for a lazy afternoon in the sun, and the ever-changing menu of delicious food and drinks. During Wimbledon, there is also a large screen, so you can sit back with a glass (or pitcher) of Pimms, and simply, enjoy.

So on this 'slightly' cooler Saturday morning, we opted for freshly squeezed orange juice (hold the vodka atm!), toast with mushrooms and tomatoes, and a plate of fresh fruit and yogurt to share = delicious and relatively healthy - not breaking the diet just yet (but lets not speak too soon). Click here to see what else they offer.

Once breakfast ended and we walked along King's Road...(stopping at one of my favourite shoe shops - 'French Sole'), it had gone midday, signalling the start of cocktails - I mean 12 is socially acceptable right? (not that this would stop me - see my post on bottomless brunch). We jumped on the tube and made our way to Knightsbridge, heading for the doors of Harvey Nichols. 

After browsing the rails of the stunning clothes, and finally accepting that the price tags were currently out of reach, we made our way to the 5th Floor Bar. Quick note: although out of price range, this did not stop me adding to my ever-growing wishlist. Well it is my birthday in...ummm...four months.

1. Ivory Crepe Tuxedo Cape (Safiyaa)

2. 3Jours Sand Leather Tote (Fendi)

3. Tori Black Studded Suede Ankle Boots (Raye)

Or perhaps I'd be better investing in a lottery ticket.

This is one of my favourite bars in London. When you walk in, there is a sense of class and elegance, but not to the extent where you feel unwelcome and awkward. The brightly coloured pink and greens give a sense of fun and carefreeness, and the bartenders are some of the friendliest. But the best is saved for the beautifully prepared cocktails. 

The drinks that we tried:

Golden Star - Star of Bombay gin is shaken with Prucia plum liqueur, cinnamon and orange bitters and toped with Harvey Nichols Brut Champagne

Diva - This lavish and fruity cocktail features Finlandia Blackcurrant vodka shaken with fresh raspberries, passion fruit and cloudy apple juice. Served long.

Sky Cruise - (too classy to call this a pornstar martini) - Fresh passion fruit and Finlandia vodka are shaken together and served in a martini glass with a shot of Harvey Nichols Rose Champagne on the side. 

Mexican Flowers - This refreshing drink combines Patrol silver tequila, Cointreau, elderflower and grapefruit juice. 

Just writing this is making me want another drink, doesn't it make you want to try one? Here's the rest of the menu. 

As the clock struck 3...

Now, walking back through the clothes as we make our way to the exit (after a couple of drinks), it is even harder to resist the beautiful products on display. Luckily (or in actual fact, unluckily) my bank would not allow it! So we jumped back on the tube, making our way to Covent Garden.

This is by far one of my absolute favourite places in London. The street magicians, musicians and other randomness that you encounter, are entertaining, different and just fun! Team this with the shops and array of bars, and I could definitely see myself living here......one day!

It is also home of one of the Dirty Martini Bars (and in my opinion, still the best choice).

I always book a table for the whole evening when I go here, when you arrive (say, at 3pm), it is quiet, practically empty, and is a perfect time to get friendly with the bar and table staff. Queue 7pm and it is packed, if you are standing, there really is no space to move without knocking into someone, or worse, into someone's drink. It can also take forever to get to the front of the bar - the no1 reason for getting to know the staff and setting up a tab (though keep an eye on this, as it can end in quite a shock).

12pm also queues the start of 'Happy Hour' on a Saturday, that actually lasts 8 hours. Among other offers, martinis are half price during 12 and 8 - plenty of time to try quite a few!

Dirty Martini brings out new flavours for each season, and I have tried quite a few. My favourites being:

Chocolate Martini
Blood Orange and Vanilla Martini
Passion Fruit Martini

Though there are plenty more to choose from if they don't take your fancy.

After a number of drinks, every girl loves a dance, and these girls were no exception. We headed to Charing Cross, found our table, ordered a bottle of wine, and enjoyed the cheesy songs, and moves that Opal had to offer. Excuse the blurriness of the photo, but I guess it reflects the blurriness of my memory by this point.

And that is where the night ends. 

Have you ever been to any of these places, where are your favourite places to eat, drink and shop? Let me know you lovely lot!

Thank-you for reading...

Claire

xxx

Recipe Corner: Teriyaki Chicken with Coconut Rice and King Cabbage

So a couple of months ago I moved out of the comforts of my parents home. 

Coming back from university made me realise how important having my own independence had become. However, it also made me realise, I still had a lot of growing up to do.

In all honesty, I got used to dinner being made for me, meaning I didn't have to worry when I came home from work. So much so, that it came as a slightly unwelcome shock when I was faced with cooking on the first night....

Queue, my freezer being piled high with ready meals and the telephone number of take-away restaurants being placed on speed-dial. I am well aware of the negative health effects that this lifestyle can bring. So, entering into the new year I promised myself a change - starting the buying of cookbooks and the research online, searching for cheap, tasty and healthy meals, that I could easily cook. 

So here is the recipe of one of the meals that I found and loved: Teriyaki Chicken with Coconut Rice and King Cabbage.

Ingredients (for 2 people):

1/2 January King Cabbage, sliced
1 Garlic Clove, chopped
4 Chicken Thighs
1 and 1/2 tbsp Coconut Powder
1 cup Basmati Rice
1 and 1/2 tbsp Cashew Nuts
1 tbsp Ginger, chopped
3/4 tbsp Honey
1 and 1/2 tbsp Soy Sauce

1. Boil 350ml of water in a pot (preparing for the rice). Chop the cabbage in half and then thinly slice one half of it. Peel and chop the garlic finely and very thinly, slice the chicken.

2. Stir 1/4 tsp of salt and the coconut powder into the boiling water. Add rice to the pot, cover with lid and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and leave to rest for 10 more minutes.


3. Put a non-stick frying pan on a medium to high heat and toast the cashew nuts (careful, as they burn really easily!). Remove them from the pan and put to the side for later.


4. Peel the ginger and finely chop.

5. To make the teriyaki sauce, simply mix the garlic, ginger, honey and soy sauce together thoroughly in a bowl with 1tbsp of water.

6. Put 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan on medium heat and add the cabbage with 1/4 tsp of salt and a good grind of pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes until it has cooked down.

7. In the meantime, heat 1tbsp of olive oil in another frying pan on high heat until it is almost smoking. Cook chicken in two batches for 2-3 minutes to brown it off.

 

8. Put the chicken back into the pan and add in the teriyaki sauce. Continue to cook for 2-3 minutes. 

9. When the cabbage has cooked down, add it to the chicken and stir everything together.

10. Fluff up the rice with a fork and serve with the chicken and a sprinkling of toasted cashew nuts...

And there you have it. This meal is healthy, but so, so, so tasty. That coming from a girl who could quite happily live in a world with no veg, and look, there's me enjoying cabbage. 

Hope you enjoy! Let me know if you give the recipe a try, and if you have anymore recipes to recommend, that would be amazing.

Claire 

xxx

Bottomless Brunch @ The New Street Grill

So what is brunch?

Brunch: (n) the socially acceptable excuse to drink before noon 

Now if that doesn't sound perfect then I don't know what does. However it gets better. A number of restaurants have introduced the concept of a 'bottomless brunch' to their menus.

Simply 'bottomless brunch' is where, for an allocated amount of time, you a provided with a certain alcoholic drink, which is continually refilled until the meal is over. Picture your local cafe, where the waiter tops up your mug with tea or coffee, but with prosecco instead - it's like a dream, right?

Now when it came to researching anything to do with school work, it would take a lot for me to even start, but tell me to research the best restaurants, to find those offering unlimited prosecco deals, and it will be done in a matter of minutes. 

So I found a number of different places:

1. Bourne and Hollingsworth Buildings  (Farringdon) 
2. Avenue (St James') 
3. New Street Grill (Liverpool Street)
4. One Canada Square (Canary Wharf) 
5. The Great Exhibition (East Dulwich) 

Oh and there are a lot more...

Now what with these and my dress choices (from the blog post "The Perfect Dress"), I really am faced with some tough decisions, aren't I?

Each of these restaurants offer one or more of the following: unlimited Prosecco, Bloody Mary's, Mimosas or Bellinis. It probably doesn't come as much of a shock that I chose a restaurant that offered the Prosecco option (if you didn't know, it's one of my faves). 

And this was...

The New Street Grill

Its just a little walk away from Liverpool Street Underground Station and is just round the corner from a Dirty Martini (one of my all time favourite bars). 

The restaurant itself is lovely and the staff are so friendly and accommodating, though I suppose they could have been nasty and rude, but as long as they continued topping up my glass I would have been happy. 

The food was delicious and there were a number of options to choose from. It was also good value for money in my opinion. A lot of the other restaurants listed above, have a much higher price associated with them. 

Here, we both opted for the 'New Street Grill Full English' at a price of £12 (see picture). They also offer a two-course or three-course set menu for £20-25. Take a look at the menu to see all the other options available. 

Now the unlimited prosecco can be added to any brunch on Saturday or Sunday for an additional £15. Believe me, if you're anything like me, you will definitely get your moneys worth.

Now, once the food was gone and the prosecco stopped flowing, I made the mistake of turning to the cocktail menu. 

Luckily we had the will-power to stop at just one each, as each cocktail was a little on the pricey side. 

However if you deserve a treat, then it is definitely worth having one or two, as they were absolutely delicious. Oh and it goes without saying, that if you're being treated, then you might as well set up a tab and get comfortable.

So....I definitely recommend this place to anyone, particularly if you love to brunch with the girls (and boys)....who doesn't love brunch with flowing prosecco and a side of gossip. I definitely plan on going back...and soon!