I’ve been a very lucky girl in my life. I’ve had the fortunate opportunity to eat in some of the best restaurants all over the world, to which I thank my parents for and my wonderful upbringing. The downside of that is (is there REALLY a downside?!) I have become accustomed to good food and good restaurants. Sure, I can quite happily eat pizza from a takeaway or even a McDonalds burger but deep down, I crave a good restaurant. I love trying new restaurants and it’s pretty much my aim to try two new restaurants every month until I create my own Ultimate List.
Before going to Barolo Grill, I hadn’t heard much about it. I knew a few people who went for Pre-Theatre food and they highly recommended it but even though people tell me their own opinions about a restaurant, I’d rather make my own. I’m fussy that way.
My dad was in town recently visiting from Paris and told me to pick any restaurant I wanted to go to and I’d go with my parents. Barolo Grill was the one.
We arrived just after 7:30pm, the restaurant was jam-packed, thankfully we booked a table because I wouldn’t have liked to have guessed how long we’d have had to wait for a table that night. We sat near the back of the restaurant, which was good for me taking photos. I hate taking photos of food in the middle of a restaurant and feeling like all eyes are on me.
Looking through the menu, there was so much to choose from, I think it took us about 15 minutes to figure out what on earth to order. The easiest was the drink order
On Sunday, I turned 30 *gulp* and my mom wanted to take me out for dinner, with my choosing any Restaurant in Glasgow to eat at. I choose Bo’Vine after hearing good things about it from my friend Stephen and then recommending it to my parents before I even tried it. It was about time it was my turn!
Before going to a Restaurant, I always check out the menu so I can drool and with Bo’Vines, I did just that! Everything looked great, but I was in the mood for steak AND lobster. Since I was the birthday girl, why ever not!
We arrived around 6:30pm, the Restaurant was pretty quiet. My parents who had been at Bo’Vine on a Saturday Night a few weeks prior, said the Restaurant was fully booked. I’m always very wary about going into a Restaurant when it is nearly empty, but because it was a Sunday, it wasn’t abnormal.
In my head as I looked through the menu again was lobster, a whole lobster. I wanted the Chateaubriand with Whole Lobster, to share… naturally. Best of both worlds.
That’s when lobster-gate occurred…
Bo’Vine had no lobsters left, they all sold out the night before. Unfortunately, when handed the menus, we weren’t informed that there were no lobsters left, which is the norm. My birthday cravings were dashed. After silent cries inside, we settled for the Chateaubriand (Medium) with Triple Cooked Chips, Rocket & Parmesan Salad and Fiery Peppercorn Sauce on the side for our Main Course. For Starters, I ordered the West Coast Scallop, Smoked Ayrshire Pork Belly, Pumpkin Puree & Pickled Walnuts. My mom ordered, Stornoway Black Pudding, Poached Hens Egg, Pancetta & Red Wine Jus.
When our starters arrived, I loved the way they were presented. My mom grabbed her fork and was ready to dig in before I let out a scream “NOOOOOOO I haven’t taken a photo yet!”. My mom, of course, is now used to me taking food photos so much so that she just responds with a little sigh and says “Hurry up, have you taken it yet?”.
Now we can dig in…
I’m very picky with scallops. I adore them but I’ve sadly had times where I’ve had scallops that weren’t cooked properly and suffered from the consequences à la The Great Scallop Disaster of 2009. I stopped eating scallops for 2 years after becoming drastically ill 20 minutes after eating them at a very famous Seafood Restaurant in Merchant City that shall rename nameless. I’ve never set foot in that Restaurant after the incident. Shame really.
Back to Bo’Vine… My scallops were cooked perfectly. Just the way I like them. My starter tasted amazing. The Scallops with the Pork Belly and Pumpkin Puree worked so well together. I could have eaten it all over again. If I had to find a fault with it, I’d say I wasn’t keen on the Picked Walnuts, but that’s just because I don’t actually like walnuts unless they are surrounded by chocolate.
My mom’s starter could be passed off as a fancy Scottish Breakfast without the Square Sausage, tasting so much better, I might add. The Stornoway Black Pudding was moist and full of flavour, a perfect soft poached egg on top ready for the yolk to be burst all over the plate and a piece of crispy pancetta to complement it all.
Needless to say, we couldn’t wait for the main course.
Perfectly cooked Chateaubriand served in a giant frying pan, complete with a mountain of Triple Cooked Chips, Rocket & Parmesan Side Salads and a little pot of Fiery Peppercorn Sauce on the side. The thing I love about Chateaubriand is the cut of meat is so tender, full of flavour & of good quality. Not to mention, the fact you can build up your own plate full of food; as little or as much as you like.
The meat was so tender while cutting it, just the right amount of pink & tasted great. I couldn’t fault the meat one bit. It was a great cut, full of flavour, seasoned to perfection & melted in my mouth. The Triple Cooked Chips were unbelievable. So crispy on the outside, light & fluffy inside. I so need to try making them at home now. They are worth it! I’m a huge fan of Rocket & Parmesan Salad, so simple but so tasty. The only downside was, the Salad was rather salty. I’m not sure if it was seasoned with salt or another dressing but the taste of salt was evident. I’m not a huge fan of salty foods so the Salad wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be. My mom however, said that the salad wasn’t that salty. This goes to show that everyone’s taste buds are different! Needless to say, I stuffed my face before starting to feel like I was going to explode. But I kept fighting through it! It was my birthday after all
After a good break, I found the strength to want to order dessert. Only problem was, I couldn’t choose. Luckily for me, I didn’t have to. I ordered them all. Oh yes. I ordered the Bo’Vine Grand Dessert for Two which consisted of: Chocolate & Chestnut Brownie, White Chocolate & Caramel Bavoise, Vanilla Pod Crème Brûlée with a Walnut Biscotti, Iced Popcorn Parfait with a Salted Caramel Foam, Plum Crumble, Cherry Oil Cake & a Chocolate Ice Cream Sundae with Profiteroles.
All I can say is WOW! My favourites were the White Chocolate & Caramel Bavoise, Vanilla Pod Crème Brûlée and Chocolate Ice Cream Sundae with Profiteroles. I had no complaints about those 3. I could have eaten them again and again. The others? I wasn’t such a great fan of unfortunately. I found the Brownie rather dry, it needed a cream with it to give some moisture. The Iced Popcorn Parfait with a Salted Caramel Foam was far too sickly sweet. I could only have one spoonful of it before having to move on to the next dessert. The plum crumble was far too sweet for my liking as well, my mom devoured it though. I was now at the stage where I could hardly move & couldn’t face eating anything else so I didn’t try the Cherry Oil Cake. I left it for my mom to try, which she said was extremely nice. I just couldn’t eat anymore.
Would I go back to Bo’Vine? Yes. I’d have the exact same Starter & Main Course. Dessert? If I had any room left I’d choose the White Chocolate & Caramel Bavoise. I would recommend you try Bo’Vine if you’ve never been before, Chateaubriand a must.
Have you ever been to a Restaurant which leaves a lasting impression on you & your friends for days, weeks and months? A Restaurant you can’t stop thinking about and recommend to everybody and anybody who’d listen.
Piccolino’s in Newcastle is just that.
A few months ago, I was recommended Piccolino’s by Club Individual while I was away on Business in Newcastle for 2 months. As a lover of one of their sister Restaurants, The Restaurant Bar & Grill in Glasgow, I couldn’t say no!
Via twitter, I booked a table (always handy!) for my friends who recently moved to Newcastle & myself. When we arrived, we were sat at the bar & given glasses of complimentary Rose Prosecco before sitting down and ordering. Looking at the menu, there was a lot of variety & it was hard choosing. I think we spent a good 15 minutes trying to pick!
For Starters, I ordered Calamari Fritti (£6.95), my friend Emma ordered Bruschetta Con Pomodoro (£5.25) & her husband Rory ordered Caprese which is a Tomato & Mozzarella Salad (£6.75). The dishes were presented beautifully, I instantly fell in love with the Calamari & the homemade mayonnaise which accompanied it. If I really had to find fault, the batter of the Calamari was a little too salty for my personal taste but it didn’t stop me from loving every single bite.
My friends loved their Starters as well. The Mozzarella was fresh, the basil pesto drizzled over it teased your mouth with a whole lot of flavours. The Bruschetta was equally as good. The amount of garlic on the tomatoes was perfect, very ripe, fresh and it was a great size as well. Usually when you order Bruschetta, it is usually too small or too big.
After the plates were taken away, our Main Courses arrived around 10 minutes later, the perfect amount of time to wait I think, not too soon so you are still digesting food & not too long that you are starving. It was really hard for me to choose my Main but I decided to try Linguine ai Gamberetti which is Sautéed King Prawns, Chilli, Garlic & Parsley (£12.50). Emma ordered Nodino di Vitello which is a 12oz Veal Chop, grilled with Rosemary & Lemon Butter and Hand Cut Fries (£21.95). Rory ordered one of the specials of the day which I don’t honestly remember the name of but it was a white fish (sea bass maybe?) oven cooked in baking parchment paper alongside herbs, garlic, vegetables & capers.
My main course was full of flavour, the linguine was cooked perfectly to my liking, the prawns were a great size & they didn’t scrape on the quantity I was served either. The thing I loved most about my order was the fact that minimal ingredients were used in something that had so much flavour, good simple food.
Emma’s Veal was literally to die for. I had a good few slices of it after begging her to try it & I have to tell you, I instantly fell in love. To me, that dish alone summed up my love of Piccolino in a few bites. Can you literally be that in love with a veal chop? Hell yes. It was very simple, full of flavour & cooked perfectly. Emma was also madly in love with her Veal Chop and also loved the mayo I had with my Calamari so much she asked the waiter if she could have some so she could dip her fries in it LOL. Oh it was good. So good.
Rory’s fishy dish (sorry I have no clue what it was!) was nice. I’m not a huge fan of fish so I never tried it but he really enjoyed it. The amount of capers that the fish was cooked in, made it very salty but not overpowering. The vegetables were cooked perfectly, melting in your mouth & the dish was a good size. Once again, the dish was full of flavour. Sometimes with fish, it can be very bland but this was not the case at Piccolino.
Main Courses done & it was safe to say that we were all stuffed. I wasn’t going to have any dessert, however, as soon as I saw that they had Pistachio Gelato (£5.50) on the menu, my eyes instantly lit up. How could I not eat my favourite gelato? I adore anything Pistachio. The Gelato was so smooth and creamy, I could have eaten more but alas, other than licking the bowl clean or ordering more Gelato, I didn’t I would have loved Pistachio Gelato with little grounded bits of Pistachio through it instead of being all smooth, but hey…. smooth is just as good! It was served with a Pistachio Biscotti which was nice & crunchy. Maybe the next time I go, they’ll have little bits in the Gelato for me? *wink wink*
Emma ordered Tiramisu (£6.20). It was light, fluffy, full of flavour from the coffee & smelt amazing. It was served with a light custard & you could have licked the plate clean as with everything we ate that day!
It’s safe to say that after that meal, Piccolino is one of my favourite Restaurants EVER. I am also quite lucky that I travel to Newcastle a lot with my new job so I will be able to visit Piccolino’s more often. My next trip? Next week! I can’t wait! The first thing I did was let them know I’d be booking a table I would without question, advise everyone and anyone to visit this Restaurant. You’ll leave with a smile on your face & it will not disappoint.
Piccolino’s is located in Stockbridge House, Trinity Gardens, Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 2HJ. You can also visit their website, facebook & twitter pages for more information.
It’s no secret that one of my guilty pleasures is Pinto after visiting since the first day it opened. My ultimate order? Char Grilled Steak, Brown Cilantro Lime Rice, Pinto Beans topped with oodles of Hell of a Hot Habanero Sauce. Full of Burrito goodness!
& now, as a special offer throughout January…..
So, if you are in Glasgow…. what are you waiting for? Pinto is one of the must visit places in Glasgow if you love quick & tasty Mexican food
Pinto is located on 138 Queen Street, Glasgow, G1 3BX
The beauty of social media sites such as twitter, they allow you to follow a whole host of different businesses as well as people. I follow a good amount of Restaurants on twitter, ones where I frequent a lot and others where I’m dying to go to. The people behind the account, make time for you, chat away to you and from those conversations, entice you into going to their Restaurant.
For me, two Restaurants stand out. Piccolino’s in Newcastle’s Quay Side and Restaurant Bar & Grill within Glasgow’s Princes Square. I love both Restaurants & the staff behind the twitter accounts. I’ve boasted about how good Restaurant Bar & Grill is already on my blog & twitter with reviews of food & events there, I can’t get enough of the place. I even got my parents hooked!
While in the Newcastle office for 2 months, I was recommended to go to Piccolino’s. So I did. It didn’t disappoint. I instantly fell in love with their Calamari, Veal Chop & Pistachio Ice Cream. I’ve recommended the Restaurant to everyone and anyone who goes to Newcastle, even my father who lives & works in Paris but goes to the Newcastle Office of the company he works for a lot.
& Now, I’m due to go back to Newcastle for work again for a while. Piccolino’s is where I’ll be heading ASAP. They also know me very very well now as you can see from the twitter conversation below….
@ananyah Should we start preparing the pistachio ice-cream? ;-)
Last night I got an email from Starbucks talking about the launch of My Starbucks Rewards and the benefits. Now, every time you pay using your Starbucks Card, you’ll get a star. Every time you collect 15 stars – you will be given a free Tall drink! Not bad.
The app’s loyalty scheme will encourage people to qualify as a ‘gold level member’ to get free drinks. Customers paying with a registered Starbucks Card will get a free drink every 15 visits. After 50 visits they move from Green to Gold Level and get extra benefits such as free espresso shots, soy, syrups and whipped cream. If you already were a Starbucks card holder, you are automatically upgraded to Gold.
Your Starbucks Card works exactly the same, you will still receive vouchers for free drinks during promotional periods and the best new feature? If you have an iPhone, you can now pay for your drinks via the Starbucks App in the UK which is available on iTunes from today. Since the launch of mobile payments in America last January, there have been over 26 million mobile transactions and approx $110 million has been loaded onto Starbucks Cards directly through the mobile app. No more worrying about trying to find your card in your bag or forgetting it at all. It’s about time!
I downloaded the new version of the Starbucks App & played around with it, up until the point where you are barcode scanned. Sadly I am nowhere near a Starbucks at the moment so I can properly try it out, which I am not happy about. Serious caffeine withdrawals!
Looks good & I can’t wait to try it! Triple Venti Caramel Skimmed Caramel Drizzle Caffè Latte anyone?
& so is overdosing on amazing food! When else can you get away with stuffing your face like a squirrel full of chocolate for breakfast? or eat until you physically cannot move?
Don’t get me started on all the alcohol. I don’t think I have ever drank as much in my life as I did on New Years Eve. Champagne, Red Wine, Vodka/7up, French Martini’s.. the lot. I drank, I mixed, I got drunk. I regretted it. Cue the 3am toilet run, vomiting my guts up, wrestling with party poppers that were tangled around me & passing out fast asleep hugging a towel.
Was it worth the monster hangover the next day? Hell yes. But please don’t let me smell or look at alcohol for at least the next 2 months. I don’t think my liver could cope!
Working in IT & Coffee are a natural partnership. I can sit at my desk at work, drink over 6 cups a day then go home and have some more. I crave coffee, I want coffee, I love coffee and I find people who don’t, strange. I was recently sent 250g of Guatemala Finca Santa Clara Genuine Antigua Coffee from Kopi who are a monthly gourmet coffee company & spent an entire evening drinking an obscene amount of coffee within a brink of overdosing, enjoying every last mouthful
Kopi love coffee. Our premium bean habit warms us up, wakes us up and inspires us to shake things up. Too long we’ve put up with one-size-fits-all coffee from supermarkets and only danced around posher brews. Until now.
Kopi are dedicated to bringing you outstanding single-estate coffees from around the world. Beautiful, freshly-roasted brews you won’t find in the usual places – delivered straight to your doorstep, once a month.
We also share our insider knowledge on how to get the best out of your coffee – how to make it, how to enjoy its perkily unique characteristics – and reveal some of the remarkable stories behind each one. All for the price of two grande lattes and a banana muffin.
Guatemala Finca Santa Clara Genuine Antigua Coffee was their October blend which is described as “a lovely full body, filling the mouth with a generous, lingering velvetiness & prized for its pronounced, well balanced chocolatey/spicy acidity”. One thing I love about Kopi is that you can learn all about the coffee you are drinking. The website explains where the coffee originates from, the history behind it, how it is prepared and processed which is something you generally wouldn’t expect to find.
So the tasting began. I got my cafetière, put 4 scoops of freshly grounded coffee beans into it, topped it all up with water & let it settle for a few minutes before pushing the plunger down. I poured a cup, added a tiny bit of milk & waited. The first thing that hit me was the smell of the coffee. It was amazing. One of my favourite things ever is the smell of fresh coffee. I took a sip & as the coffee was described, it was velvety & very very drinkable. I poured over 8 cups of the coffee in the end & kept wanting more. Addicted? Yes. I’ve never tried Guatemalan coffee before and probably would never have if it wasn’t introduced to me by Kopi.
I love the idea of Kopi. What better way of being introduced to a variety of different coffees from all over the world by being sent a surprise 250g package monthly along with a little booklet describing it in detail? Kopi have a team of dedicated “professional coffee gurus” (I so want that job!) who have close relationships with the world’s best coffee regions and farmers. The coffee they select, from over 80 countries worldwide, is not available at your local supermarket so you’ve probably never been introduced to it before, making it extremely special.
Our focus is obsessively on unearthing outstanding original coffees – well-farmed top quality beans that have an amazing aroma, taste and a strong story. They could be from award- winning single estates or simple small co-operative farms – wherever the best beans are at that time of year.
Kopi is a monthly subscription service & subscriptions start at £9 a month for a 250g bag of coffee, you can choose between grounded or beans depending on your preference. Your coffee is posted to you around the 14th of every month, you can cancel your subscription at any time if you are not happy & you can even gift a subscription of coffee to someone, an amazing gift for a coffee addict in your life!
Pasta, the carbs of happiness. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love pasta (well, unless you live a Gluten-Free life!). My favourite? Tagliatelle, Linguine & Penne. So when the chance came up to transform myself into a pasta making Italian Goddess, I snapped it & headed to The Restaurant Bar & Grill in Princes Square for the evening. Slightly ignoring the fact that I am neither Italian or a Goddess, but my very vivid imagination allowed me to dream!
I arrived with my friend with no idea what we would be doing (or let ourselves in for!) & sat down with a complementary glass of Shiraz Mouvedre Percheron Red Wine from South Africa (small glass £4.25, large glass £5.75 & entire bottle for £15.50). I took one sip of it & I fell instantly in love. I rarely drink alcohol but my oh my if I could have hugged that glass of wine, I would have. My love affair with that wine began.
We were then shown into the function room with 7 other class members and met by the Head Chef & his Boss who was here for the occasion. Tables were laid out with the key ingredients for our pasta adventure along with aprons and paper chef hats. The chefs then spoke about the history of pasta and discussed various types of pasta before demonstrating how to make the dough for pasta. It was then left up to us to make our own! Scary thought!
The ratio that they use to make Pasta is 100g strong flour to 1 egg, pretty basic. Flour was poured onto the table, a well made & egg cracked into the middle making a well. The mixture was then worked on a flour bench until it all comes together resulting in a smooth ball (same texture as a boob, according to the chef!). The dough is then cut in half, patted with flour with the palm of your hands then you are ready to pass it through the pasta machine changing numbers from the highest to lowest passing it through several times on each number. We were told that some places pass it through the machine around 20 times which seems a little excessive but I’m sure the pasta would have been so smooth and silky! Stephen and I opted for 6 times. Passing, folding, passing again, dusting with flour, passing, folding on repeat until we got the pasta as thin as we wanted. I decided to make ravioli whereas Stephen decided to make Spaghetti, Tortellini & a letter P for Pasta with leftovers. My ravioli was stuffed with Ricotta Cheese & Spinach, cut & then folded over. Egg yolk was then used to stick the ends together before using a cutter to make little wiggly corners. That is when it got a little difficult! The room was so warm that the pasta started being sticky so we had to keep flouring the table to rescue our pasta. Thankfully it was all in 1 piece and we put it onto our trays for the judging panel! Nerve racking getting our pasta judged by appearance, consistency & texture when it was the very first time we EVER made pasta.
While the judging was taking place, we all sat down to dinner. For appetizers, Bread with Olive Olive Oil & Balsamic Vinegar dip and Olives in Garlic & Herbs. For main course, I decided on Linguine ai gamberetti (Sauteed king prawns, chilli, garlic & parsley). Stephen had Tagliatelle alla Bolognese (Slow-cooked beef & tomato ragu). Both dishes were amazing. I’ve always loved eating at The Restaurant Bar & Grill but this was the first time I ever ate pasta there. I was not disappointed at all. The king prawns were cooked perfectly, the pasta so soft and silky & the herbs complimented it all. Stephen’s ragu was the perfect mix of beef, tomatoes, garlic & herbs. I kept stealing some of his it was that good! After the main course we had a little break before dessert & I abused my love of Shiraz Mouvedre Percheron ordering a few LARGE glasses of it. It is the type of wine that is rather dangerous because it is so easy to drink. I loved it so much, I had to ask Rosanna the Events Manager to send me the name of it the next day as there was no way I would have remembered it. Tipsy on red wine is so much fun! I still have a love affair with that wine, every time I go to the restaurant, I have to have a glass of it with dinner. But enough about that wine, the dessert needs to be discussed! I had the Summer Fruits pudding with clotted cream & Stephen had the Limoncello Cheesecake. Aaah puddings how I adore thee! I think that is the quickest I’ve ever ate something & wish I ate it all over again. The meal as a whole was superb & I couldn’t shut up about it for days afterwards!
The entire event was a huge success. Sadly Stephen & I didn’t win first place in the judging competition but we all left with goodie bags which had an apron, a recipe guide on making pasta at home, a £10 voucher to use within the restaurant & a little box of chocolates. I had an amazing time at the event put on by Rosanna & would recommend it to anyone wishing to do something different one evening! The event & dinner lasted around 4 hours and cost £30 which is a bargain if you think about it! The food within The Restaurant Bar & Grill is by far my favourite in Glasgow & even if you can’t make it to any of the events they put on, I would recommend that you have dinner there at least once. I found the restaurant by chance & haven’t looked back. To die for.
I have to say a huge thank you to Rosanna & the chefs for putting on a great event! Can’t wait until I get to the next one…. cocktails anyone? *hiccup*
Ananyah is the alter ego of Michelle, who grew up in Singapore & Kuwait but is technically Scottish even if the accent isn't there! She now divides her time between Glasgow & Paris and could quite happily eat herself to death with macarons à la pistache, cupcakes & starbucks <3
Working in the IT Industry, she loves everything & anything to do with cooking in her spare time, has a handbag addiction, loves to take the most random photos & drools over shiny gadgets *swoon*
I would have loved Pistachio Gelato with little grounded bits of Pistachio through it instead of being all smooth, but hey…. smooth is just as good! It was served with a Pistachio Biscotti which was nice & crunchy. Maybe the next time I go, they’ll have little bits in the Gelato for me? *wink wink*
