Bar Boulud at the Madarin Oriental in London has been on my ‘to-do’ list for nearly two years now and I finally had the chance for a visit recently. We were seated at a lovely, cozy corner booth for a late lunch, despite my making a reservation for the location in NYC. Whoops! Not to…
Tag: England
The Ampersand Hotel- London
Over a rainy birthday week, my mum and I spent the London portion of our British holiday at The Ampersand hotel in the vibrant South Kensington neighborhood of London. The grand building is conveniently located near the South Kensington tube stop, but not so near that you hear it. Perfection. The hotel interior design was…
Maitre Choux- London
A little sugar to kick off your morning, compliments of the Maitre Choux bakery in South Kensington. How gorgeous are these!? My Paris-Brest eclair was definitely my favorite birthday dessert of the trip! While I missed test driving any of the savories, they were the real star of the show for me. How creative, yet…
Il Portico- London
My <gulp> 37th birthday was just a few days ago and I was delighted to celebrate it with my mum in the UK. We’d spend a few days in Edinburgh followed by a few more in London, culminating with a meal at River Cafe, a new favorite special occasion spot. Well, the final day came…
The Hoxton Southwark
On a recent Saturday night stop in London, I decided to test drive The Hoxton Southwark after reading about it across multiple forums and hearing great things about other Hoxton locations. I would rate the experience as fine-ish, but would not return. The room was industrial chic and unfortunately wasn’t ready when I arrived at…
The Palomar- London
The Palomar, modern day Jersusalem cuisine as they call it, in the middle of bustling Soho. The intimate restaurant almost feels out of place among the theaters, Chinatown, and much larger restaurants for the theater crowd. This had been on my to-eat list for some time and despite not being able to snag a solo…
Mercer Roof Terrace
My only night at Vintry and Mercer, I was stoked to test out the Vintry Izakaya. I am a sucker for dim sum and all things dumpling! I made a reservation in advance and had scoured the menu for my top picks. Bummer for me, when I arrived home to the hotel and dumped my…
Vintry & Mercer London
A Friday afternoon all to myself in London!? Tick! Vintry & Mercer, a cutie new boutique hotel in an inconvenient location for a less than 24 hour stay? Double tick! The place looks to do a pricey nightly rate during the week, but I caught it for a steal on a Friday night when the…
Adore San Remo
A few days ago, I treated myself of a rainy afternoon in gorgeous, rainy, Londontown. I only looked at email occasionally and leisurely strolled from my fabulous, new, little hideaway in the financial district to Covent Garden. I had my heart set on finally dining at the Palomar, but it was in that weird close…
Kew Gardens
The reason for the stay in Richmond was, of course, to see the Kew gardens. The attraction was new to me and I was stoked to see the Chihuly installations that blew me away. Here’s a pictorial look into a mostly sunny afternoon of art, many steps, and the need for a pic-nic.
The River Cafe
The River Cafe had long been on my bucket list of restaurants to try with so many famous chefs training there on simple, Italian food. After landing in my somewhat far flung location in Richmond and seeing this was just across the river and a quick walk, I decided I had to snag a seat,…