Forks and Brushes

WA Cafe is not any cafe, it is a Japanese patisserie. WA is an independent cafe and have their own bakery on-site to make cakes and buns freshly everyday.

After I went to Tokotsu Ramen Bar in Selfridges ( post here ) to fulfil my ramen obsession ( another post here ), I was going to head to Duke Street Emporium for a coffee ( more post here ). Thank god I walked down the wrong street and found Smack Lobster Deli !

I am from Hong Kong and in Hong Kong, ramen places are as crowded as Pizza Express in the UK. In the past months, London seems to have caught the ramen bug too! I am overjoyed - what's better to have a bowl of hot broth noodle goodness in winter?! Today I want to share 4 of them with you. There are veterans but also new kids on the block. At all the visits, I ordered their basic/ standard/ original tonkatsu as a controlled comparison.

What makes a restaurant stand out? The variety of food? The quality of food? The price? The location? All these are important. But for me, a great customer service definitely lurks me back more than anything else.  I have talked about Shoryu Ramen before because of their delicious ramen ( post here ). Shoryu has opened their 3rd branch at the quirky Carnaby Street about 3 months ago. So I went to try the other day with my sister +Cynthy Chui  .

Bills, Ealing Branch (28-30 New Broadway, Ealing) Last week Bill’s Café & Restaurant has just launched their Spring menu, so I had been into the Ealing branch to try out a few. (A big hello to the lovely waitress Justina! She is a gem!)  Some old favourites are staying, like Bill’s Burger, Fish Finger Sandwiches, Marinated Chicken Skewers. There are also some new dishes. Three dishes on the menu have caught my eyes.

End of February was Scott’s birthday. Instead of giving a present, we would arrange something to do together, either a short getaway or a special restaurant that we want to try. This year, I arranged to have lunch at the legendary River Café!

You should have seen my blog about my family trip to Paris and mini haul . We didn't go to any fancy restaurant this time as it was a very last minute decision that we were going to Paris, so not much time to research beforehand. However, we did accidentally find a very good Vietnamese restaurant (later on confirmed by my friend Kate, who lived in Paris for 3 years, that this was her absolute favourite Vietnamese restaurant in Paris) It was my dad's suggestion to check out the Chinatown in Paris. He found out the metro station was Olympiades. As we came out from the station, er.... we didn't know where we were, streets were looking quiet. Then we saw a chinese guy carrying some shopping, walking from a street, heading towards us to the metro station. So we thought "ah! There must be a chinese supermarket nearby! Let's walk down the street where he was coming from!" How clever we were! Because that street was Rue Nationale, and as we walking along, we saw P

When all the hypes has been around the popular American burger chain Five Guys on Long Acre, not that far down the road at the heart of Covent Garden, I was pleasantly surprised that another popular American burger chain Shake Shack has made their debut appearance in London! I had good memories about Shake Shack because I was blown away how tasty their burger & chips were when I last visited New York.

Shoryu Ramen first caught my eye when I was waiting for a bus & saw this long queue outside their restaurant. Queueing outside a ramen bar is a popular scene in the far east, like in Hong Kong. But this was the first I saw in London. So I was definitely intrigued. Is Shoryu Ramen really worth queueing for? Or are they just another Wagamama?

Despite the occasional stormy days, London has been consistently hot in the past few weeks. So for my morning coffees, I have been switching from a hot Americano to an iced Americano. The normal method to make an iced Americano is to pour a shot of hot espresso over a glass of ice, then top up with cold water & more ice.

From time to time, I will have nights where I am on my own, not wanting to go home just yet after work. In these nights, my favourite place to go is Selfridges. And in these nights, my favourite place to eat is The Food Garden Cafe - the top floor food court inside Selfridges .

I know what you are thinking, "restaurant inside Peter Jones?!" Technically, it's not even a restaurant,  it is a food court style canteen. So why it can make it into the Foodie Friday feature? As the name suggested, it is on the to floor of Peter Jones Department Store (part of John Lewis Partnership).  The whole space is light & airy flooded with natural light. 

It was just a usual dull but busy day at work,  I got an email from Scott my boyfriend saying "hey, I got a treat for you tonight!" I scrolled down the email, he had made a booking a Kettner's in Soho! I have heard so much about this famous restaurant, and I have been wanting to try for ages!! We arrived at 7pm, a little early for our 7.30pm booking, so we went to the bar for a drink first. The bar area had the usual various high & low table, but they have a couple of booths that you can book with friends!

Fenwick Bond Street is a through and through hidden gem - Not only you can find some couture brands that you can't find in a mainstream department store, but recently my sister (@beautyorbread) & I have discovered their exquisite restaurant, Bond & Brook.

No, I don't mean the house for his pet dogs... This is the new Jamie Oliver's fast food & diner pop-up on Shaftesbury Avenue.

" The manly chocolate milk for men with added man " - the tag line for the new chocolate milk drink in the market.

Of all the meals in the day, breakfast is my favourite. To be more specific, a COOKED breakfast is my favourite. Carluccio's and Cote Brasserie are the two nice restaurants at my work area that open at around 8am, early enough for me to have a sit down breakfast before go into my office. (No, not everyday - it is like a treat - on payday, or a friday, or a particularly sunny morning).

Having been lived in London for the past 10 years, I have never been to the Young Vic Theater ever. My sister (@beautyorbread) has once told me how good the little restaurant is inside the theatre. But that was a few years back. For some reason, Young Vic was never on my map.

Thank you Essie Button for mentioning this Jewish Deli in one of her vlog.  In her vlog, Essie excitedly said "I cannot get enough of its menu!!". I thought, "Wow, it's a pretty big statement for a cafe/restaurant!" I was intrigued. So my sister Cynthy (@beautyorbread) and I decided to check it out and went there for lunch.

I love going shopping at Shepherds Bush Westfield. Everytime I go, I always get a bite to eat there - so many restaurant to choose from and there are never-ending choices in the food court. But most of the time, I look for a cheaper alternative - Chop Chop Noodle Bar next to Shepherds Bush station.