Showing posts with label food porn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food porn. Show all posts
London, UK
The Ultimate Afternoon Tea Experience in London
While in London last month, I had the pleasure of having afternoon tea at the Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon at Fortnum & Mason. I've always been a huge lover of afternoon tea, so the idea of having afternoon tea in England where the tradition originated had me excited enough to wanna spontaneously combust. If we were only going to have afternoon tea once in London, we had to do it right! So I researched all of the best and most famous places. Just kidding. My friend recommended Fortnum & Mason and I was like "OMG that sounds amazing!" and that was that.
I went with a group of friends, so some of us ordered the "Savoury Afternoon Tea" and some of us ordered the regular "Afternoon Tea" (which comes with sweets instead of savouries) so that we could try a bit of everything. The main thing to know about the afternoon tea at Fortnum & Mason, and the point that sold me on it, is that yes it is on the pricey side at £44-£48 a person, but it's essentially all-you-can-eat! Anything you like, you can ask them to bring more of. Furthermore, at the end of the meal, you get to choose a slice of cake from the cake carriage!
Fortnum & Mason has been selling tea for over three centuries, so instead of going with my usual standby choice of "English Breakfast" (although it was super tempting to actually have it in England for the first time), I decided to try the "Royal Blend." No regrets but they do allow you to switch tea blends if you so desire.
These are the savouries we got. I've seen pictures of some different ones on Yelp so maybe the menu changes seasonally. There's a wild mushroom puff with truffle, English asparagus wrapped in Parma ham, savoury choux with smoked salmon tartare, lobster and egg mayonnaise, and pea panna cotta with quail egg and cheese straw. The Savoury afternoon tea also comes with savoury scones; we got a cheddar cheese onion scone and a Portland crab scone. Surprisingly, those were pretty good, and I didn't mind the fishy spread that was served with them at all.
The tea sandwiches: smoked salmon, coronation chicken, cucumber and mint with creamcheese, honeyroast ham with mustard, and rare breed hen's egg salad. Honestly, I was a bit disappointed with the sandwiches as the fillings were so sparse and the bread was a bit stale. I was expecting tea sandwiches in England to blow me away, but I've definitely had much better in the States.
The presentation of the pea panna cotta with quail egg and cheese straw was so pretty, but the taste was overwhelmingly green and vegetably. Something to try once and never again in my opinion haha.
This is the regular afternoon tea, served with individual patisserie rather than savouries, and regular scones with clotted cream, lemon curd, and fruit preserves (not pictured).
I never think these types of little sweets are very tasty, but it's fun and interesting to try.
The cake carriage...we were so stuffed by this point that we didn't even all get a slice! We just shared a few instead:
Echo Park, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Easy Sundays: Brunch at Winsome
A simple outfit for Sunday brunch. It took me a while to get on the culotte train. They reminded me too much of gaucho pants when they first cropped up, which I was never a very big fan of. By the time I finally got on board with them, we were well into Fall, and I figured I shouldn't bother because winter was coming and the trend would probably fizzle out by springtime. Now here we are, nearly into summer, and culottes are still going strong. Styling them can be a bit of a challenge so I decided to take all of the guesswork out of it by going with a culotte jumpsuit from Boohoo (note: runs really small; I recommend going up two sizes). It's definitely perfect for those lazy Sundays spent lounging around; super comfortable and requires no thought to wear. However, because of the culotte silhouette, it still looks stylish enough to wear out.
Shop culotte jumpsuits:
I'd been wanting to try the brunch at Winsome, which is a fairly new restaurant in Echo Park (right by the edge of DTLA and Chinatown). We didn't have a reservation and had to wait about 20 minutes, so we grabbed a chocolate chip cookie and iced latte (and then we proceeded to take the above outfit pictures in front of their nice exterior). The cookie and latte were so good together, I don't think I ever want to enjoy an iced latte without a cookie again.
The agua frescas were really good! My favorite was the cucumber one with mint and green apple. Super refreshing.
The duck egg toast.
The potato rosti with sunny-size up egg, brisket corned beef and charred cabbage.
Both entrees were on the savory side with similar flavors. I kinda wish I went for something sweet instead, but overall it was a good meal and we'd be back! Especially for the agua frescas.
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Free Range LA
When I was in college, one of my favorite things to eat was the buttermilk fried chicken sandwich from Bakesale Betty, and it was definitely something that was sorely missed after moving to LA. Now, there are many places in LA claiming to serve up a "famous fried chicken sandwich," but only one that can fill the void for me: Free Range LA. I'll admit I was first attracted to their chicken sandwich because it has a similar look to Betty's with the spicy-looking mayo-free coleslaw. The flavors turned out to be quite different however, with Free Range's having a slight sweetness from the bun and mustard, but it turns out to be something that is equally delicious if not more so (and that is very hard for me to say because I am very loyal to old favorites and the nostalgia factor is hard to get over). The sandwich never disappoints; the fried chicken is always served hot, juicy, and tender, with all of the flavors of the sandwich melding together magnificently. Often times, Saturdays will find us searching out the truck at its usual Saturday location outside of Stumptown Coffee (locations can be found here or on their Instagram page) and the meal is never one to regret (except that one time that they were out of chicken).
I've tried a few of the different things on the menu. The avocado toast has an egg cooked into the thick slice of bread which is interesting. I've also tried the protein plate, which I ordered because I felt guilty about eating too many carbs (Bread Lounge is right down the block, so I can't resist getting one of their delicious croissants as well). But quite frankly, if you are coming to this truck for something other than the namesake fried chicken sandwich, you are doing it wrong!
One last shot of that juicy fried chicken for good measure.
Chicago, IL, USA
Brunch at the Signature Room at the 95th, Chicago
Brunch with a view This is Lake Shore Drive and Lake Michigan from the 95th floor of John Hancock Center, where the Signature Room is located, taken from our table. It was my first time seeing one of the Great Lakes so I thought it was pretty incredible. Definitely a lot bluer than I thought it would be, and I think the fact that there are beaches in the Midwest is super awesome!
John Hancock Center, which is 100 stories tall. It has an observatory called 360 Chicago but wouldn't you rather enjoy your view with a meal? That was my mindset at least, I love brunch so of course I was eager to book the brunch buffet at the Signature Room!
We checked in for our reservation and asked for a window seat (window seats are first come, first served). Since there was a 20-minute wait for that we went up to the lounge on the 96th floor for drinks.
The buffet consisted of pastries, some seafood items, salads, meats and cheeses, fruit, and yogurt. And mini quiche! For some reason, mini quiches are just so much more delicious than regular quiche, don't you agree? Ugh those croissants looked generic but they were so good. I am such a carb monster! There was also made-to-order omelet bar as well as a dessert bar that I never got around to.
The oysters were so good that I went back for more!! Usually I find that buffet oysters are not quite up to snuff but that wasn't the case here.
The brunch buffet also includes a menu of entrees which can be ordered. You can order more than one entree per person so its pretty spectacular. We had the Belgian waffle, the steak and eggs, and the eggs benedict. Everything was delicious. All in all, the brunch buffet was well worth the $45 price tag and easily one of my favorite meals/experiences in Chicago. It's a must-do in Chicago in my opinion!Downtown, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Vista Hermosa
Vista Hermosa Park is one of mine and my boyfriend's favorite spots in LA, and it's still quite under-the-radar which is the best thing about it (although it's definitely gotten a lot more crowded compared to when we first discovered it). Situated on a hill, it's a true urban oasis with stunning views of Downtown LA's skyline. A must-visit if you're visiting Los Angeles. When we awoke to agreeable weather this past weekend, we knew we had to make the most of our day by indulging in one of our favorite pastimes--picnicking.
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