Archive For June 2018
Picasso: Between Cubism and Classicism 1915-1925 is a unique overview of the artist’s earlier and lesser-known years. This sumptuous volume illustrates Pablo Picasso’s celebrated journey undertaken in 1917, but also the periods just before and just after. He visited both Rome and Naples in the company of Jean Cocteau, French poet, writer, designer, playwright, artist…
Lee Kum Kee is collaborating with Rosie Chik of Smokin’ Lotus, a street food company, that has a regular slot at Kerb in London (King’s Cross and West India Quay) – she has created some recipes ideal for al fresco eating and barbecues. Here are two of them with more to follow. Rosie was born…
This is an exceptional summer in London. We are, at the moment, enjoying a heatwave and it’s the Royal Academy’s celebrated Summer Exhibition. It’s rather special this year as it’s the 250th year of this wonderful and sometimes controversial event. And one can make a day of it by having a delightful lunch at Le…
Ametsa with Arzak Instruction is a unique collaboration between Elena Arzak – voted Veuve Clicquot World’s Best Female Chef in 2012, her father Juan Mari Arzak, and Mikel Sorazu, Igor Zalakain and Xabier Gutierrez. This superb one-Michelin-star Basque restaurant is found at COMO The Halkin Hotel in London’s Belgravia, and it’s a convenient and worthy…
We are truly blessed with marvellous hotels in London. They are diverse, and one can always find something to appeal, no matter what one’s taste. If you are looking for 5-star luxury, an excellent location, and a selection of fine dining experiences, then perhaps Grosvenor House has your name on it and there is Anna’s…
Indian food has long been a favourite in the UK. Chicken Tikka Masala is said to be our national dish! But these days Indian restaurants fall into one of several categories. There are the high-end tapas-style of restaurants; we have Indian fine-dining; and we have those restaurants that offer a combination of both traditional and…
It will soon be the end of the school summer term for kids across the UK. What better gift than some superb chocolates for that hard-working teacher? My favourites are Lily O’Brien’s Collections. We are spoilt for choice when it comes to chocolate. There are bars and buttons for kids and superb chocolatey works of…
The Petersham Hotel Richmond is a perfect gem of a hotel and I am delighted to say it’s within walking distance of my home. OK, that walk would be a healthy trot of several miles but the hotel is near enough to be called local, and I am so pleased. This impressive building is perched…
What better setting for a classic court-room drama than this chamber at the beautiful, iconic and historic County Hall in London! The audience have the sense that they are in a real law-court as they watch the murder case unfold in Witness for the Prosecution. The venue is small, accommodating just a couple of hundred…
Aska is a stunning book from Phaidon Press. Aska has impact, beauty, charm and a great deal of imagination. This might not be the book for the novice cook, but it could be the inspiration for some new dishes for any already-accomplished budding chef. The black leather-look binding indicates that this is a book for…
I have now tried a couple of Co-op wines – a red and now this white Chardonnay. They are blessed with the common denominator of great quality for the price. I could have my wine-tasting head turned away from my traditional wine merchant and towards this supermarket! Made by widely respected wine makers Larry Cherubino…
Peter Gordon was born in New Zealand but moved to Australia in 1981 and completed a four-year cookery apprenticeship. He worked in Melbourne restaurants for five years before travelling around Asia. This trip evidently had a huge influence on Peter’s gastronomic future. In 1989, after two-and-a-half years running The Sugar Club kitchen, Peter moved to…
Richmond is a lovely spot in the summer, but enticing lunch and dinner choices can be thin on the ground. One wants something delicious, reasonably priced and at a good central location – and perhaps we might be vegan. Wagamama provides the solution to this rather tricky gastronomic dilemma. Wagamama Richmond is a light and…
Flying Too Close to the Sun is another unique-concept book from Phaidon Press. It is illustrated with every genre of art from every era. There is, however, a common thread and that is ancient mythology. One doesn’t have to have a degree in ancient literature to appreciate Flying Too Close to the Sun: the art…
No, dear reader, I am not a vegetarian, I am just a lover of delicious meals and that doesn’t always have to include meat – but it must have plenty of flavour. Gosh! products do. The ingredients and seasonings are well-chosen and present imaginative combinations. Gosh! is a company that specialises in vegetarian foods. They…
Battersea Power Station has a profile instantly recognisable, to Londoners at least. It was a coal-fired power station, and it was originally two separate buildings, one built in the 1930s and the other in the 1950s. The two stations had similar design and the combination created the iconic four-chimney façade. The station closed in 1983,…
We are blessed, in the Home Counties and Greater London, with a wealth of fine hotels. There are boutique hotels, glitzy city hotels, former ancestral piles, and then there are those few gems which are timeless and utterly charming, and they might combine a little of all of the above, and in memorable fashion.. That’s…
These are sturdy scissors and perfect for all those projects around the house that might need good blades and a bit of strength. But they are particularly useful in the kitchen where they offer a safe alternative to a sharp and heavy-duty knife. Smart Sizzors can also be used by youngsters who are showing a…
This exciting Summer issue of Timeless Travel includes a brilliant supplement on the site of Troy, 2018 having been designated ‘The Year of Troy’. In the magazine you can discover the beautiful town of Ohrid in Macedonia, visit Cupid’s Cove in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the site of the first permanent English settlement…
Malbec is a characterful red wine and is becoming more popular with restaurant goers and home sippers alike. This comes from the Bío Bío Valley in the southern part of Chile. The climate is cool and similar to that found in the Mediterranean. The soil is poor and clay-based and low in fertility, so ideal…