I had my first and best ever Jackfruit curry in Kerala in India a few years ago, it had been homemade especially for my friend Blanche and she graciously shared it with me. On a shopping trip to Brick Lane this week one of my favourite shops Taj Stores’s window display featured a pyramid of tinned […]
I’m happy my friend Shirley and I found tapas bar Da Prata 52 early in our stay as we went back twice! There was an excellent choice between fish and meat, twists on traditional Portuguese specialities and, last but not least, a good choice for my vegetarian fellow traveller. It’s run by two super friendly and very […]
We made it to Lisbon, the week it officially declared itself monsoon time, but at least we missed the snow in the UK. The lovely Lisboa Prata Boutique Hotel is close to Baixa-Chiado metro and by good luck we found ourselves in the perfect spot to explore gastronomic delights, as well as this lovely city […]
Sunday walks lined with food opportunities – what better calorie exchange could you ask for?! I set out to walk from my house near Victoria Park in Hackney to Mile End tube taking the scenic route through Victoria Park, along the canal and then through Mile End park. Victoria Park has a rather grand through […]
When my friend Flo told me about the excursion she had planned, I expected just another abbey hidden in the French countryside, albeit fine destinations they have been. The Abbaye de Valmagne turned out to be something really special and she had something up her sleeve she knew she would appeal to me, it’s a […]
When I first moved to Camden Town in London’s NW1 in the late seventies it was a bohemian collection of independent shops, markets, artists and a hotbed of creative ideas, liberally sprinkled with local eccentrics, winos, junkies and a substantial working class population (with Greek Cypriot and Irish making up good numbers) rubbing shoulders with […]
I remember clearly the first time I discovered pommes violettes in France, it was in Pezenas market and I did a double take of the small and extremely purple spuds and bought a couple of kilos straight away. I have always loved aubergines in their lustrous purple cloaks. Plump grapes so purple they are black. Figs […]