Bill's in Covent Garden

So after a long cold day at Twickenham we headed in to London's West End for a spot of dinner. The choice was down to me, it was a family day out with partners, 8 of us in total, so no pressure then. Haha.

Bill's only opened 1 month ago and has had some great review one of which from a good foodie friend of mine, so with a good menu and decent prices I thought it would be a good place to keep everyone happy.

We booked a table just incase, but as it goes it was dead especially compared to Jamies Italian next door, but I must give it it's due it has only been open for a month and it was the day after boxing day, oh and it is a fairly new brand.

All 8 of us walk in and find our table waiting for us, our reserved table for 8 that was oddly set for 10??? Any who after a little musical chairs we sat and ordered our drinks. At each place was a large orange, which was nice but a little odd, just their kind of quirky way I guess. We were sat amongst all Bill's deli products stacked hight to the ceiling everywhere you looked, all of which of course was for sale. They very cleverly have a shopping tick list on your table too which I thought was a fantastic way of capitalising on your customers pockets. You simply tick what you would like to order and give it to a member of the team and they will have it ready for you when you leave. My boyfriends lovely parents were of course sucked in to this nifty bit of marketing and bought a few treats to take home with them.


Now one thing that really did bother me, is that there was nothing to tell me about Bill, who is he? whats his story? As soon as you walk in you are hit with a wonderful visual treat of goodies in cool retro packaging and blackboards with messages on but nothing, not a word, well that I could find anyway about this Bill bloke. I must have made quite a fuss as before long I was being updated but the boys - they had asked our waiter and he had told all, now do bare with me as at this point this is third hand information but it went something like this... Bill owned a greengrocers and then opened some restaurants. Sorry I do hope that isn't too much of a let down but then perhaps your not interested any way?? I have checked the site and there isn't anything on there either so I am afraid that will have to do.

Right on to the food!!

I have the mezze to start and shared it with my boyfriend - it was nice, nice and fresh nothing amazing just nice, but it was served on a slice of wood with its bark still on which I thought was lovely and it came with diagonally cut bread which had been splashed with olive oil-very nice.

Main course I went for the special which was the T-bone steak - bloody lovely - cooked to perfection! I also ordered a side salad which I didn't need and wouldn't have ordered if the waiter had told me everything the steak came with. I did ask and he said chips, but saying that the rocket that came along with the steak and chips was not a patch on the side salad I ordered, it was very very good indeed, and topped with seeds too.

All in all a nice place the type of place for a bite to eat nothing fancy maybe a lunch with a friend of a quick something on a impromptu meal out.

Lunch this afternoon with my boyfriend and dad in prep for Christmas. We popped along to my fav pub/ restaurant local to my mum and dad's called The Square and Compasses, in the village of Fuller Street Essex, which to get to we tackled crazy snow and sludge, its that good. Mostly local produce even down to their Ale its a really nice spot. We were offered a festive menu and a regular menu, all of us opted for the regular one. I had gammon, egg (poached) and chips, my boyfriend had homemade burger and chips and my dad had ham egg and chips. The boys also had local ales which needless to say went down very well indeed. The burger by the way was massive a very generous portion indeed.

We sat at our usual table, next to the wood burning stove where there is a cute little note to customers say "please feel free to lob a log on the fire" this place is full of lovely little things like that.

The menu features a lot of locally shot game, including pigeon, pheasant and partridge. True to their surroundings this to a lovely little local pub restaurant that serves great local food and drink.

live music over a steak and wine

Giuseppes Ristorante is tucked away down The Kings Yard off of Borough high street, London Bridge. I was taken there by a friend who has been going for years. Its brilliant as you walk do the steep steps you can hear the live Italian music blaring out. We turned up on a Thursday night before xmas without a booking, it was packed, but we were offered a table, possibly the worst table i have ever sat at, it was a table for to half tucked under the stairs we had just walked down. But we took it and ordered quickly, I had.... surprise, surprise - steak. And my friend had veal. 

The guy that sings cheesy Italian songs really interacts with the room and before you know it people are singing along with him and well everyone is just having a great time, it can be a little hard to hear each other but its not the kind of place you would go to for a quiet meal. 

Its such an enjoyable dinning experience, all a bit ruff around the edges - my potatoes looked tined then roasted and the other veg, boiled within an inch of their lives but its such fun and well worth going to, especially after drinks with friends.

Italian by Germans

Vapiano, is a great restaurant/ eatery siting on Great Portland Street, London. I've been a few times i think its been open for a couple of years now. Its a straight forward well designed pizza, pasta place set out over 2 levels. You walk in and are greeted by smiling face who asks if you have been before and if you haven't explains how the concept works. Its brilliant really. The idea is you are given a card like an oyster card/ swipe card which holds all your spending on each guest is give one so its great for large groups you simply pay for what you have. So you find a place to sit, choose from a long bench a high small bench or soft seating up stairs and everywhere you look there is fresh basil, pots and pots of it.  

The menu is very simple and easy to read, once you have decided what you would like you have to go to the food area and place your order, once you have ordered you swipe your card and either wait there till its ready - this is fine for pasta or salads but most of the time with a pizza you are given a flashing vibrating thing that you take back to your table and wait till it goes off, which is your green light to go and pickup your freshly made pizza. 

They have lots of jugs of tap water too that you can help your self to and they have a small bar area near the entrance where you can pick up a glass or bottle of wine. 

I love it there its good fresh food reasonable priced and great a quick spot of lunch or a bite to eat.

Go and check it out its well worth a trip. 

Carluccio's again

Lunch this time, for a work/pleasure thing. It was the one in Fenwick's Bond Street. We had a glass of wine each and i ordered the seafood salad with out the chilli. It was fine nothing special. The service was good and the bill was acceptable.

I'll keep it short and sweet as they seem to feature quick often on here.

New Indian in WC2

I popped a long to the Dishoom the other day with a friend. Its stunning the most stylist Indian restaurant I have been to. The service was brilliant we were served by this barrow boy type, turns out he's an actor too. The menu was straight forward enough with lots of choice and well priced. The way i experienced it was its very western for example they serve their version of cheese on toast and fish fingers. We were advised of the special curries of the day and ordered. We were recommended to order a couple of dishes and share, so we did and it was lovely.

They have a wonderful mix of excellent surroundings and great food. If I am honest I was more taken by the venue than the food, but either way they have done their job as i have already recommended it to many of my food loving friends.


I did request some images but have never received them so have sadly only screen grabs for you but, you will see what I mean by excellent venue.

lunch with mum and dad in the country

A cold snowy saturday in the country, we decide to drive out to an old favourite pub called "The Dog and Gun". I have never been but my parents have many years ago. It was dead we were the only people in the place. We were told that they had been shut all week due to the snow. 

Enough about the snow.

We sat down next to a window in the restaurant area, tall leather chairs with nateral wood tables. Food was to be expected - pub grab albeit posh pub grub. What they did do which i thought was a nice touch - they had a black board offering todays cut of beef. Sirloin was the cut de jour and you could choose what size you wanted, each oz was charged accordingly. 

My dad and I opted for the beef and veg stew with cheesey dumpling!!! amazing just what we needed on a cold day. The dumpling - which of course I was not allowed was so so good I have a little taste and then handed it over reluctantly to my dad. Mum went for the steak 6oz, she said it was a little tough but you would never guess as she polished the plate off including the mound of deep fried onion spaghetti that was pilled on top. 

I would go back for sure.