Adventures in food
A meeting of Portuguese and Goan cuisine is rarer than hen’s teeth, so I can’t believe just such a restaurant has opened on our doorstep! The bright blue and yellow exterior of the charmingly named Mr Todiwala’s Petiscos adds a welcome splash of colour to Queens Road – the heart of Buckhurst Hill – and …
It was a stunning Easter Sunday and we had booked afternoon tea at God’s Own Junkyard. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the sweet chorus of the A406 played in the background. The local population was out enjoying a beer, turning a nice shade of pink ready for the return to work. The …
Sunday, December 30th marked a big anniversary for us – two years since A and I first met through Guardian Soulmates and almost that long since we started writing the Second Bites blog. We still love exploring new food and restaurants together and hope there’ll be many more fun meals to come. To mark the …
The 30th of the month arrived; 23 months into our relationship and the traditional anniversary was upon us. We decided to follow up on the recommendation from a friend and booked a table at Blixen on Spitalfields market. Blixen is located on the South side of Spitalfields market on Brushfield Street. This is an area …
We were lured to Balans by an enticingly brief mention in The Guardian from Grace Dent, an admired food writer and East End local. So off we set for a lunchtime treat. Balans Soho Society is a small chain of eight restaurants, all in London. At Stratford’s Westfield shopping centre they are located on The Street, …
Two and a half years of monthly visits to Lowestoft, and we have become experts on the local dining experience with all its eccentricities. Our explorations most recently led us to The Jolly Sailors in Pakefield. Booking ahead in Lowestoft is usually a good idea although it depends on your eatery (and whether they deem …
We had been meaning to pop in for quite some time, and finally made it. IG9 Brunch & Cafe has recently had a bit of facelift, and very fresh and invigorated it’s looking too. It now has a book exchange and comfy seats by the window. The layout is comfortable and not over-crowded, always a temptation …
As the other Instagramming clientele were ushered to their seats the troglodytes were shown downstairs (that will teach me to reserve a table for brunch, even if they say you can). Our low ceilinged cave had one long table easily able to seat the three of us and was lit by tealight candles, creating flickering …
Sunday = Brunchday in our house and when we heard that one of our favourite cafes, The Green Owl in Buckhurst Hill, had opened a sister eatery in nearby Loughton, the temptation to try it out was too much to resist. The Green Owl Canteen may technically fall in Loughton, as advertised, but I’d say that …
The longer you have to wait for a treat, the sweeter the taste. Months ago we promised ourselves the reward of a slap-up dinner to celebrate the new job that I didn’t yet have. We’d even chosen the restaurant: Sarastro, a turkish restaurant with a difference, in London’s Covent Garden. If you’ve walked up Drury Lane …