As the sun finally starts coming out and we
start seeing warmer days (this week its been hitting 29 degrees!) it’s time to
get yourselves to the pub or out in the garden with a drink in hand enjoying
those rays of vitamin D. If you know me you know that I’m not a particularly
big drinker as in I don’t enjoy going out and getting smashed every weekend and
I certainly don’t enjoy the hangover that come with that. So you could say I’m much
more of a light casual drinker having a drink every now and then, and with that I
therefore like to enjoy my drink a lot more.
Usually in the summer my go to alcoholic
drinks are either Malibu or Cider as they have a very distinct taste that I
love. This year however I had tasted a sample of a different brand rhubarb gin
and couldn't get the delicious taste of it out of my head. As I couldn’t remember
the name of that brand I scoured the internet and started to sew photos of the
Warner Edwards Rhubarb Gin online. This then led me to ask for it at every
occasion in bars (not very many stock it), then realising I love the the taste,
and that it's not stocked in many supermarkets. I however planned to buy it online
until I saw it in Waitrose this week and stocked up immediately.
10 comments
As I’m sure you all know by now I love a
good brunch and have been reviewing the places I go. This review from a few
weeks ago was when we went out for a late lunch to Bread Centrale.
We had been wanting to here for a few weeks
and finally found the time so walked down the river – which was also really
nice, and headed in. first impressions are that this isn’t much of a place with
it not being obvious from the outside and then the décor inside being slightly dated,
but this didn’t put us off. The menu is good and I was drawn to the ‘build your
own brunch’ as in this you can put together your perfect brunch with a range of
breads, eggs, meat and sauces. I went for sourdough, poached eggs, bacon,
sausage, and avocado. Jack however decided to go for a BBQ Asian Chicken pizza
as we did go pretty late for brunch terms.
Rules Restaurant is the oldest restaurant in London having been opened in 1798. It is on Maiden lane (Covent Garden) and serves a range of traditional British cuisine and game. It has a strong claim to fame having a staring role in Downton abbey and James Bond Spectre! (How exciting!). I was lucky enough to be taken here for my 25th birthday meal and was so impressed I just had to write a little blog post review about our time there.
We booked a table for 2 about 2 weeks before our visit on the 30th March and even then they were nearly fully booked so we had to have an early dinner at 5pm, this was perfect for us as we wanted an earlier meal so wasn’t an issue, but of you are hoping to eat a little later I would suggest booking even more in advance.
When we arrived it was lovely, there was a very smart and kind doormen to let us in and then the host greeted us and took us to our table. We were sat in a corner by the window, a lovely table and I was immediately in awe by the décor. Now the rules interior won’t be to everyone’s tastes but as someone who is a fan of the National Trust and tradition I LOVED it! There were an array of impressive deer heads and antlers, multiple photos as well as huge silver trophies and a beautiful ornate mirror. Everything is a deep dark red with very traditional patterns.
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| The Interior |
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| The Menu while we were at Rules |
Once we were seated we both ordered a cocktail (special occasion and all), I had the Kate Middleton’s ‘Royal 29’ a very strong Gin and vodka based drink while Jack had a Black velvet served in a silver tankard – a nice extra touch! The waiting staff were all really nice, friendly and very professional and were on hand at any moment. We ordered fairly quickly and everything came out promptly and we didn’t feel that we had to wait particularly long for anything.
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| Kate Middleton's 'Royal 29' |
To start, we had an oyster each which were great! – I have only ever had one before and this was a significant improvement! I then also had the Duck Rillette, a pate style starter while Jack had the Sea Trout Gravadlax special. Both were so flavoursome and very much enjoyed!
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| Duck Rillette |
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| Sea Trout Gravadlax |
Now to mains, I wanted to have something a little different so went for the Rabbit leg while Jack stuck with the seafood theme and chose the seared Diver Scallops. Both were again delicious and I can honestly say there was so much flavour in the rabbit dish that I was so impressed by it – I would highly recommend this if you ever get the chance to go. With our mains we also decided to have some wine and went for the Volnay 1er Cru Robardelle, a very smooth fruity red. We really liked that there was the option to have certain wines by jug as a bottle can sometimes be a bit much!
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| Seared Diver Scallops |
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| Rabbit Leg |
Now onto the dessert we both had the Chocolate Tart with Vanilla Brulee Centre and this was honestly a showstopper! There was GOLD on it! GOLD!!!! Not only did it look amazing it was delicious too! While on the topic of dessert as we had already gone all out we thought hey let’s get some dessert wine, so we did! I had a glass of the Taylor’s Quinta de Vargellas and Jack had a glass of the Tokaji Aszu 6 Puttonyos Patricius and this has got to have been the only thing in the whole evening that I got a little bit of food envy for - after trying both wines I did prefer the one Jack had picked, it was slightly sweeter, lighter and tasted like melted honey, much more up my street than the darker one I had picked – but don’t get me wrong they were both delicious!!
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| Chocolate Tart With Vanilla Brulee Centre |
Now We have talked about the food I wanted to quickly chat a little about the atmosphere as it was really relaxing and calm, the other patrons were of a variety of business men and friends catching up over dinner, so we did not feel out of place. I did notice that we were some of the youngest in there, however this didn’t make any difference, it was just something that I did notice.
Once we had finished it was time to pay, and this is my only little warning about Rules, we knew the price range going into this meal so were not surprised that a 4 course meal with cocktails and wine (and the gratuity charge) came to £250. So this is an expensive place to eat, however we had a lovely time celebrating my 25th birthday and I could not recommend Rules highly enough for a special occasion or as a more luxurious place to eat. We would love to return to Rules in Grouse season as neither of us have ever tried Grouse. Rules have their Grouse season from August - December so I'm sure we will find an occasion to visit during this time as we really enjoyed our visit.
You can book a table online on the Rules website or by calling +44 (0)20 7836 5314.
Let me know your thoughts on Rules in the comments below. Have you ever eaten at Rules? What would you order? Also let me know your favourite restaurants in London, I am always looking for new places to try.
Make sure you are following this blog for a new post every Monday 10am, you can follow by subscription (put your email in the box on the left hand side) or follow me on bloglovin. You can also keep up to date with what I’m up to over on my twitter and Instagram profiles, or if you fancy come and chat over on my (new) Facebook page.
Until next time
Emma Jayne
xxx
Welcome back all! Today's post is probably
one of my favourite types – FOOD!! I love eating out and have put a little mission on to blog about more of the places I go to let you all know my
thoughts and if you should also check it out!
So while I was in Dubai for Christmas Jack
and I escaped family life and headed out to Peir 7 at the Dubai Marina to eat at Fume.
We arrived for an early dinner at about 5.30 and were taken to a lovely table
overlooking the Marina. Were were given plenty time to decide on our drinks and
meals before the waiter came back. I picked the spiced Pina Colada type drink
and Jack had an 'Ultimate Gin and Tonic.
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| Jack with his Ultimate Gin and Tonic |
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| Me with my Pina Colada |
The food didn’t take long to come, we
started with what is described as ‘Sourdough Bread with Smoked Butter and Lava Salt’ - sounds fancy right? So we were little shocked when some standard toast arrived (I think we were
expecting fresh rolls), however is was alright.
Onto mains I chose a huge Angus Rump Burger and Jack
had a Beef Cheek Rendang with Pitta Bread and both meals were lovely. Once we had
finished however it look a long time for anyone to clear our plates and at times it
felt as though there were no staff at all while others were not being observant
and clearing our table.
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| The Angus Rump Burger |
However, once we had finally had the mains cleared we went in for
dessert. The dessert choice was great, possibly the best part of the menu! I went for a Banoffee Parfait and Jack
went for the Foot-Long (YES FOOT LONG!!) Nutella éclair. Now these were easily the showstopper
portion of the meal, both were beautify presented as well as tasting amazing
and we finished them off in a matter of minutes.
It again took a little while once the
desserts had been cleared for the bill come (we asked for it when the waiter
took the plates) so that was a little disappointing as we were ready to head
back home, however as Jack and I enjoy each others company it wasn’t the end of
the world.
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| The Banoffee Parfait |
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| The Foot Long Nutella Eclair |
Now onto the price. Fume is reasonably priced for Dubai standards with a main meal costing between 55-85aed (~£12 -£20). The desserts were also reasonable (for Dubai) with each coming in at around 35 aed (£8). We were lucky enough to have a ‘The Entertainer’ voucher that took the price of one of the main meals off bringing the whole cost of the meal down (YEESSSS!!!) making it very palatable and pleasant.
Overall I think I was expecting a little
more from Fume with it being in the prestigious Peir 7 complex, however it was
very much a no fuss eatery with good wholesome food and a lovely location. I
would recommend for a easy eat with family, but possibly not for that special
event or occasion.
Let me know in the comments below if you
have eaten at Fume and what your thoughts are? Also where are your favourite
places to eat in London (we are back home now) – I am always looking for recommendations.
Make sure you are following this blog for a new post every Monday 10am you can follow by subscription (put your email in the box on the left hand side) or follow me on bloglovin. You can also keep up to date with what I’m up
Until next time
Emma Jayne
xxx
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