Time for a coffee

November 11, 2026

Ramen DAMBO

I was thinking about where in Wimbledon to get something to eat. Every time I had passed Ramen DAMBO in Wimbledon there had been a queue outside. To me, this is a good sign. Yes, it can mean that the place is fashionable, usually though it means the food is good.

I do like ramen and so it was pretty much a no-brainer to give Ramen DAMBO a try. Ramen DAMBO is a Japanese chain, but they only have one branch in the UK. As well as branches in Japan there are also outlets in the US and Canada.

We joined the queue, but it wasn’t too long before we were invited in and we sat at the counter.

We sat and checked our menu and our order. You are literally given a piece of paper, and you mark off what you want.

There is only ramen on the menu. You can either have the pork chashu option or the vegan version.

There are four options for both the pork and vegan ramen.

The classic ramen, a milder shio ramen. There is also the miso ramen, and the negi-goma ramen which comes with sesame oil and roasted sesame seeds.

When we went there was an Autumn special of Ginger Tonkotsu Ramen

You can choose the thickness and firmness of your noodles. Likewise you choose the richness and thickness of the broth.

I added Karadare, which is a spicy sauce to my ramen. You can also add some toppings, I went with ramen egg and extra pork chashu.

It wasn’t too long, before our bowls of food arrived.

After a couple spoonfuls of the broth, I immediately understood why this place was so popular. It was amazing, the richness and intensity of flavour just blew me away. I could have had a bowl of that broth. The pork chashu, which is braised pork, was tender and full of flavour. I enjoyed the Karadare and egg as well. The egg, with the soft yolk, was lovely and added to the ramen.

This was probably the best ramen I have ever had. Actually it was the best ramen I have ever had. It was rich, tasty and delicious. Would I go again? Of course, I almost wanted to order another bowl straight away.

November 9, 2026

Black Sheep Breakfast

Usually I have breakfast in the hotel when I am staying in London, however on a recent visit to London there was an issue with my booking and I didn’t have an included breakfast. Rather than pay up, I headed off to the location for the event I was at. This was Triton Square, Euston, London.

I headed to Black Sheep Coffee for some breakfast. I quite like Black Sheep Coffee but reflecting I actually don’t go there very often.

I used the touch screen to see what they had for breakfast. I am not a fan of these screens, they feel very impersonal and make the whole eating experience rather too transactional. However they do give you a chance to find out what is on the menu, which may not always be obvious, and where appropriate customise as well. I went with a flat white with skimmed milk, and a breakfast muffin. I took a seat and waited for name to be called.

It wasn’t long before the muffin and coffee was ready. I did have to go to the counter to pick it up, went up twice, once for the muffin and then again for the coffee.

The coffee was excellent, I have found coffee from Black Sheep Coffee to be really good, and this branch was no exception.

The muffin was tasty, the muffin itself was soft and fluffy and the bacon and egg had that savoury tone you want from a breakfast muffin.

I enjoyed my breakfast and I left to attend my event.

November 8, 2026

Toasted cheese sandwich

I made myself a toasted cheese sandwich using some sourdough bread from M&S.

I took two slices of bread and filled it with cheese. I then took a frying pan and added some oil and butter. I put it on a low heat, placed the sandwich in the pan and put the lid on.

The concept is to crisp up the bread, but also melt the cheese.

I enjoyed it.

November 7, 2026

Soup and a Scone

It was a rather misty morning in November when I made my way over to Wraxall to visit Tyntesfield. The National Trust owns Tyntesfield, the property is an ornate Victorian Gothic Revival house with extensive garden and parkland, not far from Bristol.

After enjoying my exploration of the house, I headed down to the Orangery to see the pumpkin display. I then took a leisurely walk back to the house, and Home Farm. There I had some soup and a cheese scone. Usually when visiting Tyntesfield there are quite long queues for the cafe, however this time I must have timed it just right, as there was virtually no queue. By the time I finished my food, there was a much longer queue.

They didn’t have pumpkin soup, but they did have leek and potato. I was tempted by the pie and mash they had on the menu, but wasn’t overtly hungry.

I took a seat and it wasn’t long before my soup and scone arrived.

The scone was excellent, light and cheesy. It would have been nice warm, but even so I did enjoy it.

The leek and potato soup was delicious, thick, warming and just what was needed on a cold misty day in September.

November 5, 2026

Lightly Dusted Calamari

I was in Birmingham for a conference and had arrived the night before. I was staying near Brindley Place and there are quite a few places around where you can eat.

In the end I found myself at The Brasshouse. I realised I had eaten there a few times before.

I went with some calamari as a starter, however it arrived at the same time as my main course. I had ordered via the QR code on the table. I hadn’t realised that I needed to order the food separately, so that my starter arrived before the main course.

This was described as lightly dusted calamari with a sweet chilli dip. I am not I would describe it as lightly dusted. The coating was nice and crispy and the squid was okay. There was a large garnish of pickled red onion, not sure that much was needed.

I think the best way to describe the calamari, was, it was okay. It was kind of what I expected though.

October 29, 2026

Tiny Rebel

I was visiting some friends in Cardiff at the Tiny Rebel bar. As I was driving I had an alcohol free beer, however the only one they had was the Tropical IPA.

Pineapples. Mangoes. Peaches. Passion Fruits. We’ve got the lot. And we’ve only gone and put them all together. Banging.

It was, well let’s just say it was interesting. It was a little too fruity for me.

I also had some crispy chicken tacos, which were very nice. Interesting fusion of ingredients, fried chicken, grilled peppers and onions, Chinese seasoning, and curry sauce. They were tasty, but the flour tortillas felt a little stale.

October 28, 2026

Hill Lamb Osso Buco

I recently tried the Sainsbury’s Discovery Hill Lamb Osso Buco.

Slow cooked bone-in Welsh Hill Lamb leg in a tomato and white wine sauce with onions, carrots, bacon, rosemary, bay leaf and a sachet of parsley, lemon zest, garlic and olive oil gremolata.

This is from a new modern chef-created range of dishes by Sainsbury’s; that also includes Angus Featherblade, Braised Beef Cheeks, Coconut & Chilli Chicken, and Baharat Spiced Lamb Rump.

With the Hill Lamb Osso Buco it is a simple matter of removing the lamb from the pouch, and putting it in the oven to heat through.

I served mine with mash. I did feel that there needed to be a lot more of the sauce, and there was minimal carrots and onion in that sauce too. The slow cooked lamb was very tender and I did like it.

When I bought it, it had a Nectar discount, but since then it is now back at full price of £18.50. I am not sure I liked it that much to pay that sort of money. It’s an interesting recent tactic by Sainsbury’s with their slow cooked Discovery range. They also have a Texan inspired craft BBQ selection as well. These were similarly priced. I haven’t seen similar dishes at M&S or Waitrose. I wonder if they will be successful?

October 27, 2026

Back to Flat Iron

I had seen some positive reviews of Flat Iron Steak in Bristol and tried them out. I enjoyed my meal and decided I would visit again.

I was given a lovely warm welcome and I took a seat. The menu is quite limited. Pride of place is given on the menu to the Flat Iron steak. They also have specials of a ribeye and a cheeseburger. On the day I was there they also had two wagyu specials of skirt and bavette for £24 each on the blackboard.

I decided I would try the ribeye steak, which is more expensive than the flagship flat iron steak. This time I did go with the homemade beef dripping chips, which to be honest was more like fries, and were over-cooked for my liking. I think I should have gibe with the truffled macaroni cheese or the crispy bone marrow garlic mash. I was even tempted by the kale and parmesan salad on the specials board.

It wasn’t long before my food arrived on the table. The steak, which wasn’t sliced (as they did the flat iron) was seasoned, and presented on a wooden board with a stone insert.

The steak was cooked medium rare, as ordered. The steak was mostly tender and had a good flavour. I enjoyed the steak, however it wasn’t as good as the flat iron. In the end I was to be honest a little disappointed. I suspect part of it was that the last meal I had at Flat Iron was excellent, this was okay, but compared to my previous experience I was a little disappointed.

Though, as with last time, the service was excellent. You also get a free ice cream, however as it was cold and wet, I decided not to have it this time.

October 25, 2026October 25, 2026

Kreonidis Traditional Greek Taverna

I had flown to Thessaloniki in Greece for five days for a conference. We had a meal at the Kreonidis Traditional Greek Taverna. The meal consisted of a range of traditional Greek dishes.

I was particularly impressed with the stuffed vine leaves, I have had these in the UK, but I didn’t enjoy them. I was persuaded that these at Kreonidis were very good, so I tried them, and they were delicious. I also enjoyed the lamb souvlaki.

 We had a real mix of dishes, some were excellent, others were just okay. I did feel that the essence of the sea was missing from the dishes that were served, I would liked to have seen more seafood. It was a nice meal and I enjoyed it.

October 24, 2026October 24, 2026

Crab Sandwich at the Riverside Tearoom

I had spent much of the day exploring Orford Ness in Suffolk. What was once a secret military base was sold to the National Trust back in 1993.

After catching the boat back to the quayside, I decided I would have a cold drink from the Riverside Tearoom. However, upon reading the menu, I was tempted by the fresh crab sandwich that was on the specials board. I placed my order at the counter and took a seat outside.

It wasn’t long before my sandwich arrived, which had been made fresh to order. This was a round of sandwiches made with white bread and filled with a mix of fresh brown and white crab meat. Alongside was some salad and a bowl of crisps.

Regular readers will know I generally don’t do sandwiches. However, I am a fan of crab, so I wasn’t going to give up the opportunity for some fresh crab (even if it was in a sandwich).

This was a delicious sandwich, and you could really taste the freshness of the crab. The bread was soft and quite good. I also liked the salad and crisps.

When I was planning my trip to Suffolk I had originally thought about having lunch in Aldeburgh, but I was too late for that. Another idea I had was to visit the Butley Orford Oysterage but I was too late for lunch there as well. So, though I ended up at the Riverside Tearoom I was pleased with my lunch.