Travel 2023 – Cunard Queen Mary 2 – Day 3 (Hamburg)

Wednesday, 20th September 2023 After getting an early night, we were rudely awakened by an announcement over the ship’s tannoy system at 06:45. It was our Captain informing us that we were not in Hamburg as planned. We weren’t even in the River Elbe on the approach to Hamburg. Bad weather overnight had seen the…

Travel 2023 – Cunard Queen Mary 2 – Day 2 (At Sea)

Tuesday, 19th September 2023 As newbies to cruises, this was likely to be the day when we’d get a better idea of whether it was for us or not. The Queen Mary 2 was still somewhere in the English Channel and would be very slowly heading towards the North Sea and then Hamburg, so we…

Travel 2023 – Cunard Queen Mary 2 – Day 1 (Southampton)

Monday, 18th September 2023 We’d never been on a cruise of any sort before, assuming you don’t count long ferry trips to and from Finland or overnight journeys between the UK and Europe. But we have friends, John and Janice, who have been many times and love the whole experience. So much so that we…

Food 2021 – Banquist, Jitin Joshi

Saturday, 6th February 2021 – Banquist, Jitin Joshi Banquist have been consistently good through the entirety of the lockdowns/pandemic stay at home sessions, with a number of excellent meals curated by some very well known, well-regarded chefs. The latest one was the work of Jitin Joshi, former executive chef of Gymkhana, a Michelin starred Indian…

Food 2020 – The Ambassador General Store, Trishna

Saturday 14th November, 2020 – Ambassador General Store, Trishna Seafood Experience I got wind of the Ambassador General Store restaurant box delivery scheme through one of Jay Rayner’s restaurant review columns in The Observer and promptly noted the details for future use. Having eaten at Trishna back in February, and having loved the experience, the…

Food 2020 – Sauce Supper Club Dine at Home, Tom Shepherd

Tuesday 13th October, 2020 – Sauce Supper Club Dine at Home, Tom Shepherd In pursuit of interesting food, and always open to a chance to experience some different restaurants even if we can’t go out, I ordered a box from the Sauce Supper Club with whom we’ve had dealings now and then in the past….

Food 2020 – Banquist #010, Gareth Ward

Saturday, 7th November 2020 – Banquist #010, Gareth Ward This was one I’d been looking forward to, what with the chef in question having quite the reputation, as well as a Michelin star or two. We are speaking of Gareth Ward, the man at the pass at Ynishir.Grace Dent had reviewed it recently, and it…

Food 2020 – Haar at Home (Goan Lobster Box)

Saturday 12th September, 2020 – Haar at Home (Goan Lobster Box) After a lobster box from Côte, it was time to wheel out the big guns in September with a box from Haar. This is a restaurant in Scotland, headed up by Dean Banks, a former Masterchef finalist, who opened the restaurant a year ago….

Food 2020 – Côte at Home (Lobster and Frites)

Saturday 1st August, 2020 – Côte at Home (Lobster and Frites) As people who usually go out to eat quite a lot, I’ve enjoyed doing my own more adventurous than normal cooking at home, but now and again it’s nice to let someone else do all the heavy lifting. A review in the Guardian in…

Food 2020 – The Folly/The Brothers, Towcester

Saturday 7th June, 2020 – The Folly/The Brothers, Towcester We have had a somewhat up and down relationship with The Folly Inn, our most local gastropub, over the years with some very good food and some that really hasn’t hit the mark, along with service that can be very hit and miss but can also…