Magical lockdown sustenance–

YUH-MEE!  Hutong has reopened, and we could not be happier…this joint ROCKS!

The whole staff in any Hutong restaurant that you visit are totally switched-on, inviting and helpful…we love these folks.

The decor is uplifting, and the vibes are magical and satisfying.

And the food and drink are as good as any that can be had in other fine dining establishments…during this visit we are gobbling spicy squid, lobster dumplings with the signature Hutong crust, red lantern soft-shell crab, special fish with noodles and red peppers and soy bao for dessert. . .everything is washed down with cocktails called Szechuan Dragon and Master Qin and a nice bottle of Chenin Blanc–mmmm, aaaaahh–hao-hao!

Things are slowly coming back to life…keep wearing your masks, keep washing your hands, keep social distancing and keep eating and drinking well.

Enjoy whatever you can NOW…this thing is goin’ here, there and everywhere, and where it will stop nobody knows.

I send you soothing vibes from one of the many Hutong restaurants that can be found all over the planet…feel them…they will help you sleep well tonight and every night.

It’s lovely out there.

Nose-to-tail…supremo!

MMM!  Here we are gobbling away at a joint called ‘St. John’ located on St. John Street in the Clerkenwell section of London, and it is totally delectable…jaaaaa!!

St. John is owned by a dude called Fergus Henderson who is one of the first chefs to elevate the whole snout-to-tail craze to a level of respectable and desirable dining.  Fergus made bone marrow cool and delicious. . .he sends out four bones full of marrow that we have to dig out and spread on perfectly toasted slices of hearty bread…add some lightly-dressed bitter greens and sliced onions, and we have an appetizer that soothes my belly and helps us do our part in consuming every last bit of the animal…nothing goes to waste here.

We also devour sardines with butter, greens, and lemon…WONDERFUL–tasty fruits from the sea!  We then move on to saddle of hare and a pigeon squab. . .both cooked with care and both wild, gamey, and tasty…we have a side of potatoes and possibly the most delicious cabbage we have ever eaten. . .mmmm, aaaahh–we are enjoying this!

The whole meal is washed down with a tasty bottle of chablis. . .we will drink chablis with anything and everything–absolutely delightful.

Then we end with a sticky toffee pudding that makes us go, “MMMMM!”

This place is legendary in the food world, and it totally rocks. . .the space is finely carved into an old building in this funky section of town–nice big bar in the back that offers interesting snacks from the kitchen…and then the main restaurant on an upper level…all white decor, super-chill staff, fascinating grub, and free-flowing drink. . .plus, the good vibes of Fergus are here reminding us to respect all of the creatures on the planet that provide nutrition and sustenance to us.

Definitely consider eating at St. John the next time you are in London. . .this place deserves your attention.

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It’s lovely out there.

Wow…just WOW!

MMM!  Here we are puttin’ on a major feed at a place called ‘Dinner by Heston Blumenthal’ located in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London, England, and this place is totally rockin’ our world…jaaaa!!

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal has two Michelin stars, and it is easy to see, smell, feel, and taste why. . .everything here is beyond spot-on.

We are warmly greeted by the hosting staff when we arrive…we sip champagne at an austere bar while waiting for our table to be ready…we are escorted to our table smoothly and efficiently…we are greeted by our waitperson calmly yet kineticly–there is good energy here.  Then we are presented with our menus…the menus are incredibly interesting–dishes of the day are listed on one side, and the history of each dish is briefly described on the other side where we learn that all of the items served in the restaurant are based on old British recipes that go back as far as the 14th century…woweewowow!  Of course, I am eating dishes from the 14th century…from a cookbook used to prepare meals for Richard II that dates to the year 1390…’sblood and zounds!!

So, here is what we are devouring: something called ‘Rice & Flesh’ from 1390–uniquely delicious, never had anything like it before and could eat it again and again…’Frumenty’ from 1390–possibly the most delicious grilled octopus we have ever had covered with smelt, smoked eel broth and pickled veggies…’Chicken & Cauliflower’ from 1390–absolutely tasty and delectable…’Hereford Ribeye’ from 1830–cooked perfectly, covered in pellets of bone marrow, never had a better piece of meat anywhere on Earth, superb.  All of this is washed down with a great bottle of chablis…yes, chablis, I will drink fabulous white wine with ANYTHING…jaaaa!

We follow all of this goodness with a fine selection of English cheeses and a good glass of 20-year-old port…then we ingest an absolutely wonderful dessert called a ‘Tipsy Cake’ from a recipe that goes back to 1810 and includes a hunk of pineapple cooked on a rotisserie–magical, scintillating, delightful. . .could eat this again and again…mmmm, aaaaahh!!

If you really wanna blow it out the next time you are in London, then consider dining at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal. . .Heston is the guy who runs The Fat Duck out near Brighton which was voted the “World’s Greatest Restaurant” back about 15 years ago or so. . .of course, you can rest assured that this guy knows what he is doing, and though ‘Dinner’ has only two Michelin stars (Fat Duck has three) you will still have a meal to remember for many months and years to come.

Eat great food…drink great beverages…no one knows what is going to happen five minutes from now so enjoy yourself right this very moment…cheers!

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It’s lovely out there.

Drinks…veddy niiiiiice–

BAM!  Let’s do drinks at Bar Boulud in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel here in Londontown. . .uhm, ok, let’s DO!

The London Mandarin Oriental is voluptuous and bold and full of marble EVERYTHING.  Marble walls, marble floors, marble columns, marble bathroom stalls, etc.. . .all feels a bit imposing, but we manage to find our way into Bar Boulud and are pleased to find a respite from all of the marble overload. . .mmmm, aaaahh!

Daniel Boulud knows how to make us feel calm and welcomed and soothed.  Bar Boulud is staffed with peppy young dudes and dudettes eager to please us…this makes us oh-so happy.  We order up a vodka martini–Grey Goose pleeeezzzz…and a G ‘n’ T with Sipsmith’s London Dry–pretty pleeeezzzzz. . .and we are good-to-go.

So, if you find yourself wandering around in the London Mandarin Oriental some time looking for something to wet your whistle, then do know that Bar Boulud on the lower level of the hotel is a wonderful option for you. . .and if you find yourself really enjoying your moment at the bar, then consider ordering up some grub…I am confident that all of the menu items served here are as good as at any other Boulud establishment on the planet.

Enjoy!

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It’s lovely out there.

Spot-on hotel…South Ken.

POW!  The Pelham Hotel is a great choice for us here in London because it is right across from the South Kensington train station in the heart of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea…which is pretty much where we want to be all of the time…jaaaaa!!

The Pelham is staffed by crisp young folks from all over Europe: Spain, Italy, Portugal…and a few English just for good measure.

There is a good Italian restaurant on the lower floor…lots of people eat here every night. . .and room service is available 24/7, which we always love.

The hallways and rooms are cozy and a bit cramped, but the showers are A-number-one…fabulous water pressure with water temperature as hot as you want it to be. . .we absolutely love showering at The Pelham…might be my favorite thing here…mmmm!

Everything you want to do is within walking distance or an easy ride on the Underground or an even easier taxicab ride. . .Hyde Park, Covent Garden, Royal Albert Hall, Stamford Bridge, The Thames, Parliament, London Tower, etc. and so on are all nearby and available for you to enjoy.

So, please consider a stay at The Pelham the next time you pop into London. . .you will love it here–I gar-ron-taaaayy!

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It’s lovely out there.

Pour and gobble–

MMM!  Here in London, England the sausages come with delicious warm gravy that we pour liberally and joyfully before gobbling away…

…the wine pours endlessly–when we need a break from bitter ales–as we sip it all away…

…the charcuterie is sourced locally and sliced delectably thin for maximum enjoyment…

…and the crumbly fruity desserts come with warm soothing custards that we pour enthusiastically and diligently before inhaling everything completely and unabashedly.

We take eating and drinking in London very seriously because all of the lovely ladies and gents who are preparing and serving this stuff to us take it very seriously as well.  Food culture is ROCKIN’ here, and we are oh-so happy to be lucky enough to experience it yet again.

Please come to London some time. . .one of the world’s great cities is waiting for you…what are you waiting for?

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It’s lovely out there.

Roaming Londontown–

JAAA!!  London is full of tasty steak and ale pies served with plenty of mashed potatoes and boiled veggies…gotta have those boiled veggies–mmm!!

London is full of pubs…just step up to the bar, order your beverages–I am partial to bitter ales–CHEERS!!, and sip the day away.

London is full of statues and monuments. . .Wellington is one of our favorites…he defeated Napoleon at Waterloo and cooked beef wrapped in pastry dough…c’mon, you gotta love this guy and all of his statues, right?  RIGHT!!

And, of course, London is full of the best street signage on the planet…a fine example of which can be seen above.  Yes, PLEASE…NO DOG FOULING. . .this is a wonderful sentiment to spread far and wide. . .mmm, aaaahh!!

Please…come to London some time…you will love it here.  Quite possibly the most cosmopolitan city on Earth and most definitely in the top five of greatest towns known to mankind. . .it’s here waiting for you, what are you waiting for?

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It’s lovely out there.

Oldest restaurant in London–

BAM!  Here is the oldest restaurant in London: Rules…located on Maiden Lane right smack dab in the heart of town.

Rules was opened by a dude called Thomas Rule back in 1798.  It started as an oyster bar of sorts and became so popular that it expanded into a full restaurant somewhere along the way.  Also somewhere along the way it grew in reputation by serving excellent British fare to all people famous and infamous who walked through the entryway…the who’s who of diners here covers everyone from Charles Dickens to Winston Churchill to Laurence Olivier, etc….Daniel Craig dined here as James Bond in ‘Skyfall’…AND my wife and I dined here. . .so that about covers it–cheers!

During our visit we sip drinks in the upstairs bar–warm and soothing…then we head back downstairs to our corner table in the fascinating main dining area…the walls are covered with photos, paintings, animal heads, drawings, light fixtures, etc. that Mr. Rule collected over the years and that the two subsequent owners since the Rule family gave the place up also collected.  Everything is interesting and worthy of attention. . .and fortunately the thing most worthy of attention here is the food–jaaaa!!

We gobble oysters in honor of the humble origins of this place as an oyster house–briny and delicious. . .celeriac, leek & oyster soup–delectable and restorative. . .Dorset crab salad–refreshing and uplifting. . .braised pork cheeks and a slow-cooked beef featherblade–both meaty, tender and delicious. . .and we end with a sticky toffee pudding–MMMM!!  All of this is washed down with a fun bottle of Gigondas. . .perfect.

Rules is in the heart of Covent Garden…lots of tourists and partiers around…we thought this might end up being a cheesy and touristy experience, but much to our joy and surprise, Rules rocked our world with spot-on staff who welcomed us with open arms, seduced us with an other-worldly atmosphere, and satisfied us with totally high-quality food cooked with skill and served with flair.

We love Rules, and I know that you will too if you ever find yourself here….mmmhhmmm!!

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It’s lovely out there.

#1 pub, west London–

BOOM!  This place gets my vote for the number one pub in west London: The Anglesea Arms located on Selwood Place in the South Kensington section of town…jaaaa!!

The Anglesea has outdoor seating, lots of cozy nooks and crannies inside, a welcoming dining room in the back, an extensive menu of extremely tasty grub, and lots of ales, bitters, and lagers to keep the most discerning drinkers happy. . .plus, the staff are all spot-on and helpful, and the atmosphere here is chill, relaxed, and conducive to chatting and sipping. . .in short, this place ROCKS…mmmmm!!

On this particular visit you see us enjoying a scotch egg, a potato and leek soup, and pints of tasty bitters–don’t recall the brand, but oh-so tasty. . .I’ll have to come back and note the specific ale that we are enjoying at a later date…it’s hard work, but I am willing to do it for you if you are willing to wait for this vital information…cheers!

Please consider popping into The Anglesea Arms for a pint or three the next time you find yourself hangin’ out in South Kensington, London. . .Charles Dickens used to live a couple of buildings from here so you know it’s a respectable neighborhood.

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It’s lovely out there.

West London reverie–

MMM!  It is cozy and welcoming over here in west London…you gotta check this out before you move to the next realm.

Our favorite things to do in west London, specifically the South Kensington area, include strolling over to the Chelsea Embankment for easygoing views of the River Thames. . .off in the distance is the Battersea Power Station, the National Theater, Parliament, and various points in south London. . .and when the sun is out–which can be quite rare and sporadic–this is easily one of the most beautiful towns on the planet.  So we are enjoying this day immensely–jaaaa!!

Then we head back to Fulham Road where the streetscapes and buildings often put on a show for us. . .add sunshine, VOILA!, magic.

And if we walk west on Fulham Road long enough we arrive at Stamford Bridge, the home stadium of the Chelsea Football Club–one of the best in all of Europe, where we pay our respects and move along. . .

. . .time for another pint and snack in one of the many pubs in the area.  Until next time: cheers, big ears!

To see more amazing images from around our tiny planet simply click on a location of your choice in the category menu on the ‘About’ page of this blog. . .dive on in. . .so much to see and sooooo little time.

It’s lovely out there.