Author: jamesclay

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Gail’s Flat White

flat white coffee

I had arrived earlier than planned in London and headed to Ealing. I went for a short walk and then went for coffee. I was going to go to Artisan, I had enjoyed a coffee there on a previous visit. It was though very busy, and it was also very warm (what with the hot summer weather and all).

However, in the end, I went to Gail’s Bakery and had a flat white. 

The service was friendly and warm. The coffee looked nice and I took a seat. Only downside was the cup had no handle and I had no tray, so I had to carefully carry the hot beverage to my chosen table.

Coffee was delicious.

Did like the cakes and snacks they had available, the bread also looked delicious.

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Self-Catering in Germany

One of the reasons I blog, it’s more for me than other people. It’s a useful reminder for me about what I have eaten, what I have cooked, and as in this post challenges when cooking on holiday. So when planning and packing for a trip through France to Germany this July staying at an Eurocamp in Southern Germany, it was useful to refer to this blog post about self-catering when staying at La Croix Du Vieux Pont. I posted my thoughts on Le Grand Paris in Nesles-la-Vallée earlier.

In Germany we were staying in Landal Warsberg, close to Saarberg. It was an almost identical caravan to the one we stayed at in Le Grand Paris in Nesles-la-Vallée.

It was a two bedroom caravan which came with a well-equipped kitchen including a proper gas hob. However it did not have an oven, just a small combi over, and unlike other Eurocamp parks we have stayed at there was no outside gas barbecue.

I think we could have had a charcoal barbecue, but there wasn’t one provided, and I didn’t bring one with us. I wasn’t going to buy one for the four nights we were there, knowing for at least one night we would eat out, and one night we would be in Cologne watching the football.

I was glad to bring my own knives, as the provided knife was very small and very blunt! Always seems luck of the drawn what kitchen utensils and equipment you will get, usually there isn’t detail on the booking site, or on review sites. Alas there was a glass chopping board, I meant to bring my own chopping board with me, but forgot to pack it.

I appreciated the big fridge we had, and the freezer section. On self-catering holidays in caravans, in the UK, the fridge can be quite small.

In the end I cooked two meals in the caravan, pan fried meat with salad. As with our French campsite, I missed having a proper oven. For one meal I did pop to the camp restaurant and brought some French fries to go with lunch one time. I planned to do the same with an evening meal, but they had stopped serving takeaway at 6pm.

I did take my coffee machine with me, as I do like proper coffee, and don’t like drinking instant.

Missed having a barbecue.

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Glazed Pork Belly Burger

I enjoyed the mixed grill I had eaten at the Landing Light in Weston-super-Mare.

The Landing Light is a Marston pub. Though very close to where we live, prior to my previous visit, I think I had been there only once before, for a meal, and even then I am not sure I actually had. The Landing Light is not an old pub, it opened ten years ago, it has a modern retro feel to it.

I was tempted to have the mixed grill again, but in the end decided I would have something from the specials menu. Sometimes the specials at places are dishes to be avoided, but I was confident here that these were not what was left over, but extra dishes added to the menu.

I went with the Glazed Pork Belly Burger, two 3oz charred beef patties, maple glazed pork belly, Monterey jack cheese, smoked streaky bacon, burger sauce, pickled red onions, and seasoned skinny fries. Though I was tempted by the other two specials, the oven baked cod loin and the pan roasted chicken.

My burger arrived, it was huge and nicely presented.

This was an interesting combination. The pork belly was very tender, but not as flavourful as I thought it would be. The beef patties were nice, and had a good flavour. 

There was a side portion of coleslaw, which though obviously not homemade, added crunch and freshness to the dish.

I did enjoy the burger and it was very tasty.

Service was excellent and everyone else around the table enjoyed their food.

Did I have pudding, in the end I did. I had the chocolate brownie sundae. Warm brownie, ice cream, fresh cream, and a flake, what’s not to like! 

Decadent and indulgent, but also very nice.

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Self-Catering in France

One of the reasons I blog, it’s more for me than other people. It’s a useful reminder for me about what I have eaten, what I have cooked, and as in this post challenges when cooking on holiday. So when planning and packing for a trip through France this July staying at an Eurocamp outside Paris, it was useful to refer to this blog post about self-catering when staying at La Croix Du Vieux Pont.

This summer we were staying at Le Grand Paris in Nesles-la-Vallée, close to Paris, in France. We had a two bedroom caravan which came with a well-equipped kitchen including a proper gas hob.

However it did not have an oven, just a microwave, and unlike other Eurocamp parks we have stayed at there was no outside gas barbecue.

I certainly missed having the oven and the gas barbecue. I mainly did pan fried sausages and steaks, with salad. One night I did microwave rice, which wasn’t very successful, the next night I did some microwave pommes rissoles which were just okay.

I much prefer barbecuing meat when away, so missed the barbecue we had on previous campsites.

I think next time I will check for a proper oven and a barbecue when booking. Or check I can take a portable barbecue with me (another thing to pack in the car).

I have found the knives on holiday either blunt or broken, so I usually take a large kitchen knife and a bread knife that I use. I took a sieve with me, but in the end didn’t use it, and this caravan had a colander, which was unusual.

I took a pair of scissors as though sometimes there is a pair in the caravan, it usually is broken or blunt.

The other things I take with me our sandwich bags, cling film and foil. This is easier to store uneaten food but also for packed lunches To help with washing up and cleaning, I took some steel scourers, washing up sponges, j cloths, washing up liquid and tea towels. In addition I take spare bin  liners as well as a roll of kitchen towel.

I also took the following ingredients, though I know I could get some of these in French supermarkets, I wanted to avoid spending extra money on basics that I already had in the kitchen.

      • Olive oil
      • Salt
      • Pepper

I appreciated the big fridge we had, and the freezer section. On self-catering holidays in caravans, in the UK, the fridge can be quite small.

I did take my coffee machine with me, as I do like proper coffee, and don’t like drinking instant.

The campsite didn’t have a shop, so we were dependent on going into the village for supplies. Nesles-la-Vallée had a couple of small supermarkets, in addition they were two boulangeries and a charcuterie. It was nice to buy baguettes and breakfast pastries from the boulangerie.

One day I also bought some delicious fresh eclairs from there as well.

The local town of L’Isle-Adam had a larger supermarket with a wider range of produce.

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It wasn’t the same

breakfast

I have written about the excellent breakfast experience at the Fuller’s hotel, Drayton Court. I have had similar experiences at other Fuller’s hotels, such as the Queen’s Head in Kingston and the Fox and Goose on Hangar Lane. I recently booked the Hand & Flower in Hammersmith.

Well, I had expectations that the breakfast would be of a similar quality. I was one of the first in for breakfast, as I had an early start that day. The breakfast arrived quite quickly, but then again I was the only person eating breakfast at that point.

It certainly looked like the other breakfasts I have had at Fuller’s hotels, however though it looked the same, it wasn’t the same. Sadly it was a similar experience the following day.

Essentially it tasted like yesterday’s breakfast heated up. The bacon was certainly not freshly cooked. On one day the sausage was still cold in the middle. The mushroom was good though.

It wasn’t awful, but it certainly wasn’t good and nowhere near the standard of similar breakfasts at Drayton Court and The Fox and Goose. I know I could have complained, but I am not sure what I would be complaining about. Hey, your breakfast could be better…

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Time for a nice flat white

One of the reasons I like coffee from Caffe Nero is that the experience across the different branches is consistent. 

It isn’t necessarily the best coffee you can buy, but I like the coffee. It also helps that I have a regular Three offer a £1 coffee deal.

In Bristol in the Clifton Triangle is a branch of Caffe Nero which is deceptively larger on the inside than it looks on the inside.

I had a flat white, which was really nice.

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Master Bao Buns

When I am at Westfield and having lunch, I usually make the decision to go to Master Bao for a couple of bao buns. They are cooked to order and are always delicious.

This time I went with the Shiitake Mushroom Bao, which was teriyaki Shiitake mushrooms, pickled onions, and miso.

A little big and messy to eat with your hands, but the bun was soft and fluffy, and the filling was intense and delicious.

I also had the Mr Bao, this was slow braised pork, house pickles, and roasted peanut.

Same fluffy bun, and some tasty pork with the added crunch of peanuts.

Really nice food which I enjoyed.

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Crispy Calamari with Asian Salad

For a number of years, I’ve been staying at the Drayton Court Hotel in Ealing. It’s a budget-friendly alternative to pricier central London options. Plus, the Elizabeth Line makes getting downtown a breeze. West Ealing Station, just a short walk away, whisks you to central London in under 20 minutes by train.

I was eating in the restaurant and for my starter I went with the crispy calamari with asian salad and miso mayonnaise. I have found that how a restaurant cooks calamari is a good indicator of how they approach their menu and their cooking.  I wasn’t sure what to expect, so what I got was quite a surprise.

I wasn’t really expecting the asian salad to be so dominant on the plate. I was expecting a little more calamari than what was on the dish. I am not sure how well the batter worked, it was certainly crispy, but I do feel that it overpowered the squid.

I think the best way to describe this plate of food was “interesting”. I don’t think I would order it again if it was back on the menu. However it was a very different interpretation of crispy calamari and I would applaud Drayton Court for putting this kind of starter on their menu.

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Burger and Chips

For years, the Drayton Court Hotel has been one of my favourite hotels in London. It offers a fantastic alternative to pricier central locations. Thanks to the Elizabeth Line, getting to the heart of the city is a breeze.

I had been busy in London all day and though I had eaten a nice lunch, by the evening I was a little peckish. Looking over the menu, I did think I quite fancy a burger, so I went with the cheeseburger and chips. I always think that if you buy a burger in a hotel or in a pub, that it needs to be special, something better than you would buy from a high street burger chain, especially when you consider that you are paying a lot more money for the burger as well.

The burger was dressed with Monterey Jack Cheddar, pickle, burger sauce, lettuce and tomato; all served in a brioche bun, along with a portion of chips.

burger and chips

This was a tasty burger and I enjoyed the chips as well. The burger was intense and meaty. The accompaniments worked well. I also liked the chips.

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Great flat white

I kind of guess I am getting to be a bit of a flat white aficionado as it is my coffee of choice when I am drinking coffee out and about. At home I usually have an espresso or a lungo. 

My first experience of the flat white was out in New Zealand in 2009, and I really liked it, a more intense coffee experience than the cappuccino I was use to, and much nicer than an americano.

I had some time to kill at @Worle, a local gym in Weston-super-Mare. So I ordered a flat white. What I did like, was they let me take a seat and they would bring it over to me. I really like it when coffee places do that, much more civilised than waiting around for your name to be called. I once lost a coffee like that, so much so, that I rarely use my name, James, when asked for my name in a coffee place. Too many people called James who drink coffee, who would believe that.

My coffee arrived and it looked great. It was also an excellent coffee. Sometimes I worry about coffee places in places which aren’t coffee places, such as gyms. However this place knew how to make coffee and the coffee itself was expertly roasted as well, good strong flavours. I was impressed and enjoyed the coffee.