Back to work today and two visits; both in Dean Street West. Make Mine (www.makemine.co.uk) was interesting but I'd probably not go again. It was my first experience and I found it a chaotic process, in that I ordered and then waited with a mass of others for my name to be called out. My choice of a Marrakech wrap (roast chicken, cous cous, roasted peppers etc.) was pretty expensive at £4.75. It was so huge and fat it was impossible to eat elegantly, so it's not something to eat with your boss, your boyfriend or a glamorous girlfriend. Strangely, despite it's size, I didn't feel particularly full afterwards. Still, others must think otherwise, as although it was relatively early, it was packed with people bringing in large lunch orders.
An after work drink with RM was called for and so we met at a pub called Nellie Deans. It appealed to me as I spent over 20 years in Yorkshire living next door to a lady called Nellie Dean (I'm sure there's also a song of the same name!). At 5pm the pub was relatively quiet inside although people were enjoying the best of the sunny weather by standing outside. The menu looked good value with sandwiches at £2.90 and mains like lasagne and sausage and mash for £4.50. The church like pews around the outside, were not very comfortable, the Chilean Sauvignon Blanc was was not particularly cheap or chilled (we had to ask for ice to be put in the chiller which would otherwise have maintained it at the room temperature at which it was served) and so I'd not rush back.
Not the most successful of days in terms of quality, but at least it's two more down.
Monday, 28 June 2010
Sunday, 27 June 2010
I've had my fill of houmous . . .
. . . . having just returned from Beirut where I've eaten every type of houmous available for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
During lunch time when it was too hot to sun bathe, I finally got round to updating all my lists. The definitive lists (which I am not going to change regardless of any new openings: my blog, my rules apply) are now published and this means that there is a grand total of 89 venues. So far I've done 11.
However with only 132 days left, I can't become complacent so, it's back to eating and drinking with a vengeance tomorrow when I return to work.
PS: I suspect that the Lebanese restaurant Kaslik on Greek Street (W), won't be my first choice!
During lunch time when it was too hot to sun bathe, I finally got round to updating all my lists. The definitive lists (which I am not going to change regardless of any new openings: my blog, my rules apply) are now published and this means that there is a grand total of 89 venues. So far I've done 11.
However with only 132 days left, I can't become complacent so, it's back to eating and drinking with a vengeance tomorrow when I return to work.
PS: I suspect that the Lebanese restaurant Kaslik on Greek Street (W), won't be my first choice!
Friday, 18 June 2010
Beirut calls . . .
. . . as we fly out tomorrow. So today was slightly disappointing in that I spent most of my lunchtime trying to find an Internet cafe so that I could check in on line (problems at work). Unfortunately as I was using the wrong flight number, I wasn't successful and by the time I'd finished, it was too late to eat out. So I grabbed a ready made sandwich and packet of crisps from the local corner store on Greek Street. Nothing to write a blog about.
However, I did try morning coffee from Nino's Paninos on Frith Street (East). At £2 it was a nice skinny latte but seemed very small compared to Cafe Nero and when I'd finished it, I wanted more. Still at least it's another place ticked off!
Still haven't found time to update the lists, but I'm taking my netbook to Beirut so maybe in between eating hummus and kebabs I may find a spare moment. Watch this space!
However, I did try morning coffee from Nino's Paninos on Frith Street (East). At £2 it was a nice skinny latte but seemed very small compared to Cafe Nero and when I'd finished it, I wanted more. Still at least it's another place ticked off!
Still haven't found time to update the lists, but I'm taking my netbook to Beirut so maybe in between eating hummus and kebabs I may find a spare moment. Watch this space!
Thursday, 17 June 2010
What a busy two days!
As I write this at 8.15pm on Thursday, I am feeling quite smug. Not only have I now finished verifying all the venues, but I've been very active.
It started yesterday (16 June), when I visited Cafe Emm (Frith Street East) http://www.cafeemm.com/. What an absolute find! I went out just before 12 noon and sat at the only outdoor table (check the photograph on the website). The sun was shining, I ordered a glass of wine from the exceptionally friendly chap and I was in my element. I chose spinach salad with bacon (whole rashers not bits), avocado and blue cheese. It was all tossed with a really nice dressing. I finished with a skinny latte and my bill came to £13.30 which I thought was very good value for money. According to their website they have a two course evening special for £8.95 which must be tried. It's a lovely place to go for a simple, well cooked lunch and lovely service!
In the evening I met RM and colleagues, new and old, in The Crown and Two Chairmen pub (www.thecrownandtwochairmenw1.co.uk) on Dean Street (East side). Huge and noisy, it wasn't particularly conducive to after work chats but it did have rather nice Chilean Sauvignon Blanc for £15. We probably should have gone on a Tuesday night when they have offers on wine. Out of town colleagues were v impressed with my lists and mission!
Today I had another lovely lunch experience at San Valentino (Greek Street East). Again, an early lunch bagged me an outside table in the sun. I was absolutely ravenous after a few drinks the night before and so I was most impressed with a huge jacket potato with cheese, beans and a side salad (I wasn't sure about the accompaniment of chicken flavoured crisps but I managed to eat them). At £4.50 it was a fantastic filler and when I paid the bill I noticed they did lasagne (my death row meal) for £4.50. There are a few tables inside and all sandwiches are freshly made. They also open at 7am so it would be a good breakfast stop.
I am very aware that I've not yet updated my lists on this blog, but have so enjoyed the eating and drinking I've not had time!
It started yesterday (16 June), when I visited Cafe Emm (Frith Street East) http://www.cafeemm.com/. What an absolute find! I went out just before 12 noon and sat at the only outdoor table (check the photograph on the website). The sun was shining, I ordered a glass of wine from the exceptionally friendly chap and I was in my element. I chose spinach salad with bacon (whole rashers not bits), avocado and blue cheese. It was all tossed with a really nice dressing. I finished with a skinny latte and my bill came to £13.30 which I thought was very good value for money. According to their website they have a two course evening special for £8.95 which must be tried. It's a lovely place to go for a simple, well cooked lunch and lovely service!
In the evening I met RM and colleagues, new and old, in The Crown and Two Chairmen pub (www.thecrownandtwochairmenw1.co.uk) on Dean Street (East side). Huge and noisy, it wasn't particularly conducive to after work chats but it did have rather nice Chilean Sauvignon Blanc for £15. We probably should have gone on a Tuesday night when they have offers on wine. Out of town colleagues were v impressed with my lists and mission!
Today I had another lovely lunch experience at San Valentino (Greek Street East). Again, an early lunch bagged me an outside table in the sun. I was absolutely ravenous after a few drinks the night before and so I was most impressed with a huge jacket potato with cheese, beans and a side salad (I wasn't sure about the accompaniment of chicken flavoured crisps but I managed to eat them). At £4.50 it was a fantastic filler and when I paid the bill I noticed they did lasagne (my death row meal) for £4.50. There are a few tables inside and all sandwiches are freshly made. They also open at 7am so it would be a good breakfast stop.
I am very aware that I've not yet updated my lists on this blog, but have so enjoyed the eating and drinking I've not had time!
Tuesday, 15 June 2010
Good News, Bad News, Good News . . .
Tuesday 16 June 2010
Well, the good news is that creating lists on the blog were not as bad as anticipated and I managed to develop pages showing the venues down the three streets (both east and west sides) without too much trouble.
Yesterday, I started to verify the findings from http://www.streetsensation.co.uk/ with reality. Although I've only done Dean Street, the bad news is that I've now added five more places to the west side and one to the east side.
However, the good news is that yesterday, I manged to hit three venues in one day!
First of all, I started with a lunch time coffee (£1.75) and flapjack (£1.45) in Cafe Nero on Frith Street (west side). Yes, its the same old formula but this one does have chairs along the pavement and its a nice place to sit and watch the world go by. Directly opposite was an independent looking coffee place (called 34b) which extolled expresso and cappuccino in large letters. How will it compare? A couple of doors away from 34b was a place on my list called Jimmy's, which I know from the internet is a Greek restaurant. It had a dusty, tired looking blue door with no ground floor frontage. It would be very easy to walk past without realising it existed and so having been intrigued, I suspect it won't be long before I visit. I'll probably find a huge plate smashing emporium on the first floor.
Anyway my second hit of the day was an after work bottle of wine in Cafe Boheme (www.cafeboheme.co.uk). Unfortunately it was wet and rainy but we sat just inside whilst other braver souls sat outside under the awning. The service from the immaculately attired staff (black shirts and trousers with long white aprons) was excellent. We chose a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc which whilst not cheap at £23.50, was served in beautiful glasses with tap water being automatically offered. If we'd decided not to eat out, I'd have been tempted to try one of the small plates at £5 each. The prix fixe at £12.50 for two courses seemed good value and it was good to know that not only are they open from 8am for breakfast, they also serve my favourite early morning dish - eggs benedict. If I wasn't trying to visit lots of places, this would become a very firm favourite!
We then dashed diagonally across the road in the pouring rain to Maison Touareg (http://www.maisontouareg.co.uk/) for two reasons (a) it was near and (b) we are going to Beirut for a week on Saturday and I do like to tickle my taste buds with what is to come before I go. We avoided the Beirut special at £25 as it included pudding and mint tea and plumped for three hot and three cold mezze dishes. This together with a bottle of Lebanese wine from the Ksara Winery (which we visited last time we were in Lebanon) produced a bill of £54.80 including service.
Now I know that you may think that this is cheating, but before I started this challenge, but after I started my new job, I visited three places which I'm going add to my list of achievements. The first was on 9 June when I took a friend who was about to retire (after lots and lots of years) to Kettners (www.kettners.com). I've been there lots of times, and it never fails to deliver a slightly decadent, bohemian experience. After a bottle of champers, we headed for The Delhi Brasserie on Frith Street and with cobra beers and our usual staples (which for me is popadom, samosa, chicken vindaloo), the bill came to around £54 (the price of decent champagne in Kettners). The third hit, was on 11 June when after my leaving drinks, I was desperate for coffee and carbs. Cafe El Buen Gusto served up skinny latte (£1.70) and a fabulous bacon roll (£1.30) which helped bring me back to life. The bacon was freshly cooked in front of me and the roll was warm and crusty. With lashings of brown sauce it saved my bacon!!!
I'll be back walking the streets tomorrow to finish verifying my list so that my true mission can be baselined ready for monitoring.
Well, the good news is that creating lists on the blog were not as bad as anticipated and I managed to develop pages showing the venues down the three streets (both east and west sides) without too much trouble.
Yesterday, I started to verify the findings from http://www.streetsensation.co.uk/ with reality. Although I've only done Dean Street, the bad news is that I've now added five more places to the west side and one to the east side.
However, the good news is that yesterday, I manged to hit three venues in one day!
First of all, I started with a lunch time coffee (£1.75) and flapjack (£1.45) in Cafe Nero on Frith Street (west side). Yes, its the same old formula but this one does have chairs along the pavement and its a nice place to sit and watch the world go by. Directly opposite was an independent looking coffee place (called 34b) which extolled expresso and cappuccino in large letters. How will it compare? A couple of doors away from 34b was a place on my list called Jimmy's, which I know from the internet is a Greek restaurant. It had a dusty, tired looking blue door with no ground floor frontage. It would be very easy to walk past without realising it existed and so having been intrigued, I suspect it won't be long before I visit. I'll probably find a huge plate smashing emporium on the first floor.
Anyway my second hit of the day was an after work bottle of wine in Cafe Boheme (www.cafeboheme.co.uk). Unfortunately it was wet and rainy but we sat just inside whilst other braver souls sat outside under the awning. The service from the immaculately attired staff (black shirts and trousers with long white aprons) was excellent. We chose a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc which whilst not cheap at £23.50, was served in beautiful glasses with tap water being automatically offered. If we'd decided not to eat out, I'd have been tempted to try one of the small plates at £5 each. The prix fixe at £12.50 for two courses seemed good value and it was good to know that not only are they open from 8am for breakfast, they also serve my favourite early morning dish - eggs benedict. If I wasn't trying to visit lots of places, this would become a very firm favourite!
We then dashed diagonally across the road in the pouring rain to Maison Touareg (http://www.maisontouareg.co.uk/) for two reasons (a) it was near and (b) we are going to Beirut for a week on Saturday and I do like to tickle my taste buds with what is to come before I go. We avoided the Beirut special at £25 as it included pudding and mint tea and plumped for three hot and three cold mezze dishes. This together with a bottle of Lebanese wine from the Ksara Winery (which we visited last time we were in Lebanon) produced a bill of £54.80 including service.
Now I know that you may think that this is cheating, but before I started this challenge, but after I started my new job, I visited three places which I'm going add to my list of achievements. The first was on 9 June when I took a friend who was about to retire (after lots and lots of years) to Kettners (www.kettners.com). I've been there lots of times, and it never fails to deliver a slightly decadent, bohemian experience. After a bottle of champers, we headed for The Delhi Brasserie on Frith Street and with cobra beers and our usual staples (which for me is popadom, samosa, chicken vindaloo), the bill came to around £54 (the price of decent champagne in Kettners). The third hit, was on 11 June when after my leaving drinks, I was desperate for coffee and carbs. Cafe El Buen Gusto served up skinny latte (£1.70) and a fabulous bacon roll (£1.30) which helped bring me back to life. The bacon was freshly cooked in front of me and the roll was warm and crusty. With lashings of brown sauce it saved my bacon!!!
I'll be back walking the streets tomorrow to finish verifying my list so that my true mission can be baselined ready for monitoring.
Sunday, 13 June 2010
The scale of the challenge is revealed , , ,
. . . Well I've now completed the first two tasks. I've had a formal weigh in and secretly stored the results which you are obviously not privy to. However, my partner, RM, has acted as independent scrutineer and can vouch for my integrity.
I've also used http://www.streetsensation.co.uk/ to do some initial research on the number of venues. The results are:
Dean Street (West side) - 3
Dean Street (East side) - 19
Frith Street (West side - 14
Frith Street (East side) - 15
Greek Street (West side) - 10
Greek Street (East side) - 20
Making a grand total of 81 eateries before 31 October (i.e. in 20 weeks) an average of just over 4 per week.
How do I feel about this? Well it does seem quite daunting as I'll need to make up for the weeks when I'm away on holiday. However, if I have a pre-dinner drink, a meal and then a nightcap, I could manage three in one night!
The good news is that there does seem to be a lack of chains although there is the ubiquitous Pizza Express, Pret and Cafe Nero and perhaps more worryingly, I'll have to go somewhere I vowed I'd never step foot in: an Angus Steak House. There's also a good mix of food from around the world, including Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, India and China.
So, I'm now going to check my findings to make sure there've been no changes and then I'll attempt to publish the list on my blog. This may be easier said than done, as yesterday it took me ages to try to re-size my photograph so that it didn't overlap with text. In the end, I gave up and decided to try a different design, which seemed to work. Hopefully lists will be much easier!
I've also used http://www.streetsensation.co.uk/ to do some initial research on the number of venues. The results are:
Dean Street (West side) - 3
Dean Street (East side) - 19
Frith Street (West side - 14
Frith Street (East side) - 15
Greek Street (West side) - 10
Greek Street (East side) - 20
Making a grand total of 81 eateries before 31 October (i.e. in 20 weeks) an average of just over 4 per week.
How do I feel about this? Well it does seem quite daunting as I'll need to make up for the weeks when I'm away on holiday. However, if I have a pre-dinner drink, a meal and then a nightcap, I could manage three in one night!
The good news is that there does seem to be a lack of chains although there is the ubiquitous Pizza Express, Pret and Cafe Nero and perhaps more worryingly, I'll have to go somewhere I vowed I'd never step foot in: an Angus Steak House. There's also a good mix of food from around the world, including Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, India and China.
So, I'm now going to check my findings to make sure there've been no changes and then I'll attempt to publish the list on my blog. This may be easier said than done, as yesterday it took me ages to try to re-size my photograph so that it didn't overlap with text. In the end, I gave up and decided to try a different design, which seemed to work. Hopefully lists will be much easier!
Saturday, 12 June 2010
Saturday 12 June 2010
It began as a bit of fun. Earlier in the week I'd started a new short-term job in Shaftesbury Avenue. Not only was the job new, but the location, Soho, was new as well.
I'd decided to make the most of lunch hours and get to know the area. So my first lunch break saw me walking up Greek Street to Soho Square and back down Dean Street. What a revelation: none of the seedy sex shops I'd expected but a cornucopia of bars and restaurants with food from all over the world. Being a bon viveur, I was in my element and wondered how many I could visit during the four months I'd be working in the area.
After a few drinks at my leaving do later in the week (yes, I know you're supposed to have this before you leave but I'd postponed it from the week earlier due to half term when everyone except me was off), I made the rash statement that I'd try to visit every bar and restaurant within the confines of Greek, Dean and Frith Streets.
Sobriety kicked in yesterday, but having recently watched the DVD, Julie and Julia (where Julie Powell attempts to cook all 524 recipes from Julia Child's book Mastering the art of French cooking), I thought 'why not?' I do not yet know the scale of the challenge but I have found a fantastic website http://www.streetsensation.co.uk/ which should help enormously.
So, as a Programme Manager, I need to scope out the project, develop a plan and create a risk register (the main risks at the moment appear to be a huge increase in my waistline (i.e. lbs gained) and a huge decrease in my bank balance (i.e. £s lost).
Additionally, as a virgin blogger I need to get to grips with what its all about! Hopefully as this happens, you'll see my blog improve, so visit me regularly!
My partner has suggested that in order to mitigate the main risk I also record my weight, as well as recording details of where I've been and what I've eaten. This is a step to far, but I will limit it to reporting weekly on pounds gained or lost (in my dreams!).
Well, I've now committed myself in writing, so I will go and get weighed and then start to work out how many places I need to visit in the next few months.
I'll be back soon with the results of my findings!
It began as a bit of fun. Earlier in the week I'd started a new short-term job in Shaftesbury Avenue. Not only was the job new, but the location, Soho, was new as well.
I'd decided to make the most of lunch hours and get to know the area. So my first lunch break saw me walking up Greek Street to Soho Square and back down Dean Street. What a revelation: none of the seedy sex shops I'd expected but a cornucopia of bars and restaurants with food from all over the world. Being a bon viveur, I was in my element and wondered how many I could visit during the four months I'd be working in the area.
After a few drinks at my leaving do later in the week (yes, I know you're supposed to have this before you leave but I'd postponed it from the week earlier due to half term when everyone except me was off), I made the rash statement that I'd try to visit every bar and restaurant within the confines of Greek, Dean and Frith Streets.
Sobriety kicked in yesterday, but having recently watched the DVD, Julie and Julia (where Julie Powell attempts to cook all 524 recipes from Julia Child's book Mastering the art of French cooking), I thought 'why not?' I do not yet know the scale of the challenge but I have found a fantastic website http://www.streetsensation.co.uk/ which should help enormously.
So, as a Programme Manager, I need to scope out the project, develop a plan and create a risk register (the main risks at the moment appear to be a huge increase in my waistline (i.e. lbs gained) and a huge decrease in my bank balance (i.e. £s lost).
Additionally, as a virgin blogger I need to get to grips with what its all about! Hopefully as this happens, you'll see my blog improve, so visit me regularly!
My partner has suggested that in order to mitigate the main risk I also record my weight, as well as recording details of where I've been and what I've eaten. This is a step to far, but I will limit it to reporting weekly on pounds gained or lost (in my dreams!).
Well, I've now committed myself in writing, so I will go and get weighed and then start to work out how many places I need to visit in the next few months.
I'll be back soon with the results of my findings!
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