Cake of the Day, The Butterleigh Inn's Butterleigh Brownie

The highlight of my brief trip to Devon was this warm and deeply chocolately brownie at The Butterleigh Inn in the delightful village of Butterleigh (near Cullompton).  It had a spongy consistency, rather than feeling heavy and dense, and served with clotted cream it was heavenly. 

I had it instead of lunch!

A Proposito, Weena 505, 3013 AL Rotterdam, Netherlands

This Italian eatery just outside Rotterdam Centraal station, is a bit of an institution. I’ve only ever visited on weeknights and it has always been packed throughout the evening. The glass exteriors give it a slightly sophisticated air after dark, but on this summer evening, we were bathed in heat and light, giving it quite a different atmosphere. The wine glasses are the largest I have ever encountered. You can’t help but enjoy wine in these glasses, which resemble goldfish bowls on the thinniest stems imaginable.

Forget printed menus, large double-sided chalkboards are presented to each table on request. Antipasti, meat, fish, pasta and risotto feature, and non-Dutch/Italian speakers always have fun trying to translate each ingredient listed.

Requesting an unspecified selection of the antipasti was a wonderful decision! A phenomenal array of wonderful looking food arrived – buffalo mozzarella, pecorino cheese, parma ham, salami, sun dried tomatoes, rocket salad, roasted red peppers, very ripe melon, roast courgette – each one full of flavour. The bruschetta was far better and more imaginative (and to my taste) than any I’d sampled in the UK, with garlic, basil and red chilli added to the tomato.

The foccacia was the wonderful really fluffy stuff, joyfully warm and drizzled in olive oil.

 Portion sizes are huge. I barely had room for a main course, but managed to regain some appetite given the deliciousness of my spaghetti, which boasted capers, olives, garlic and sausage meatballs in a tomato sauce.

Service, whilst usually very good, was umm...interesting on this latest visit. Our nonchalant waiter couldn’t see the problem in only taking 4 of the 5 drinks orders of our party. He could however see a big problem with serving parmesan to the person who’d ordered pasta with scallops. When she asked him for it he took on the gravest of tones and said “it is very difficult for me to help you… fish and cheese…No.” And then he flounced off. (Needless to say we stole the cheese grater when his back was turned and helped ourselves).


Service aside, the food quality, the portion (and wine glass size), variety and flavour here are truly excellent and I’d strongly recommend a visit should you ever be in Rotterdam!

The Bounty, Cockmarsh, Bourne End

Accessible only by boat or on foot, The Bounty was one of those pubs that I had heard plenty of great things about, but I hadn’t managed to ever visit. It was a warm and sunny day, perfect for our walk from Marlow. With its beautiful riverside location, I expected the place to be heaving with people, but whilst it was certainly busy, we were delighted to find plenty of outdoor tables available as we approached.

The Bounty manages to be quirky without being pretentious – there’s a skull proudly displayed by the bar, which as well as booze, sells greeting cards, Curly Wurlys and ginger beer (on tap). As well as a lovely range of bar snacks and a hot food menu, there was a cake of the day (my kind of place!) and ice cream also on sale.

The sign above the entrance to the pub welcomes punters to ‘The People’s Republic of Cockmarsh’ where “the laws of common sense apply”, and upon walking into the pub, my immediate reaction was that I’d walked into some other land. There was a queue at the bar but the bar staff were lovely and the wait didn’t seem to matter, as there was plenty to look at inside.

Given the heat of the day I drank lashings of firey ginger beer through a pink straw (I wanted to make the most of finding somewhere that served it on tap), but on the beer front there were some local Rebellion Brewery offerings (the fresh and hoppy Rebellion Blonde was sampled) and a fantastically named ‘Grumpy Cow’. The cider option was the extremely potent scrumpy, Old Rosie. D commented on the good condition of the beer which was at the optimal temperature.

The food is simple but brilliant.

Cheesy chips are great, but The Bounty goes one better and offers…STILTON CHIPS! Utterly utterly divine chunky chips covered with slabs of melting Stilton. The simple things taste the best. Other food sampled included an old school but still lovely bacon toastie, and a ham Ploughmans. Portion sizes were more than generous. The home cooked ham was clearly of good quality and there was plenty of pickle. Quavers were served on the side!

The outdoor area stretched out on either side of the pub, with a children’s play area (complete with Big Scary Tree) on the opposite side to where we were. Truly a place with something for everyone, I can’t wait to visit again.

The Artichoke, 162 Yarmouth Rd, Broome, Norfolk NR35 2NZ

As expected we were waiting outside The Artichoke before it opened at 12 noon (in keeping with D’s Mum’s pride in punctuality). And for good reason. This is a very popular pub. My second visit, I was looking forward to both the food and the drink. A regular entrant of the Good Beer Guide, it won Norfolk’s CAMRA pub of the year in 2009. Once the home of Crowfoot Brewery (a very long time ago), it truly boasts a great selection of drink –D likes the choice of real ales (they always have 4 on the hand pumps, 4 on gravity in the tap room, and my personal favourite, there are always three fruit beers on draught!) I’m always filled with excitement when I find fruity Belgian beers on offer!

I also love the look of the whisky bar, with around 70 varieties of malt whisky, decorated with pump clips and mugs hanging from the ceiling. The drink list is handwritten and presented above the bar, along with a note (consider it an old-school ‘status update’) about one of the regulars ‘Terry,’ and his new tow bar. It’s a cosy, welcoming place, with a real fire in the corner in the wintertime. The staff are exceptionally friendly, treating us like old friends (which D’s family almost are), and the bar seemed to fill up almost immediately after opening time.

My first beer was my favourite, ‘Kriek’ (Belgian Cherry beer), served in half pints only (due to the 6% potency), in an authentic Belgian Beer glass.

The menu is simple and traditional, with a daily changing specials board. We took our seats in the original restaurant area (a bit more atmospheric than the newer conservatory dining area in my opinion – and closer to the bar), and the huge portions of food arrived. Scampi and chips for D’s Mum and Gran, Plaice and Chips for D, and a Chicken and Mushroom Pie and chips for me (healthy wasn’t really a theme of the afternoon, as you can tell).

D’s plaice was “hoooge” (as the Norfolk folk would say), extending a long way underneath the peas and chips on his plate.

My pie was divine. Very generous on the filling, with large meaty chunks of chicken, ham and mushroom, topped with a slim rectangle of rich short-crust pastry, served with greens, carrots and wonderful crispy chips.

D’s Mum is a scampi expert, sampling all the pub scampi and chips, in the local area, and she rates The Artichoke as having consistently the best of the lot. Again, portions were large, with D benefiting from extra chips from his Gran.

Stuffed, I was somehow talked into sampling another Belgian beer. This time I opted for raspberry (Bacchus Frambozen), which I found less sweet and slightly less enjoyable than my initial Kriek. D went for the third available fruit beer, Peach (Timmermans Peche). This was a little too beery for my liking but it had a subtle peachy aroma and taste.

I really was going to decline dessert, having eaten far too large a lunch to manage the delicious sounding but hefty options of crumbles, sticky toffee puddings or bread and butter pudding. D opted for his favourite, Summer Fruit Pudding whilst his Gran went for banana fritters. D’s mum’s choice of Maple and Walnut ice-cream was my downfall though, and I found myself helpless to resist ordering such a magnificent sounding dessert from local ice-cream maker Parravani.

I was not disappointed – deliciously nutty and maple-y sweet, it felt luxurious and light at the same time.

We finished everything. Everything ordered that been wonderful. I’d more than happily visit a third time – highly recommended for both food and drink!

Cake of the Day: D's Birthday Cake

This is D's favourite cake of all time - a joint effort between his gran and his mum, the simplicity is what makes this cake great.  A plain sponge, with home grown strawberries and raspberries, inside (with lashings of cream), and on top, I throughly enjoyed sampling this one.

Bodean's BBQ Restaurant, 10 Poland St, Soho, London, W1F 8PZ

A spate of sunny bank holidays left us unprepared for the final one of the early summer, where weather was variable at best and we were feeling indecisive. The original plan was for a late brunch at Soho’s Breakfast Club. Alas, I arrived to find queues outside of the door. The combined wrath of the Transport and Hangover Gods, resulted in a later meet-up than planned, and a greater need for food.

Luckily, our saviour was Bodean’s. The heady smell of barbeque and neon signs of pigs drew my attention, and a little bit of loitering got us a table outside (along with a highly enthusiastic recommendation from the diners vacating the table). A good selection of bbq and chilli sauces were joined on the table with pre-emptive rolls of kitchen paper – a good sign of food good enough to guzzle with bare hands!

 Bodean’s now has four outlets in London and specialiises in food from it’s ‘oak burning smoke pit’- particularly ribs, chicken, pulled pork or ‘burnt ends’ (beef brisket in a barbeque sauce). Styled in the way of an American diner with a large restaurant area downstairs, our streetside outdoor location was perfect in the London humidity.

It seemed that the main decision to be made was to be made between the hot deli sandwiches or the ‘burnt ends’ trays of meat and chips. (Whilst other options of ribs, hotdogs and burgers were present, these seemed to be the most popular options). The sandwiches with the best name was the ‘Boston Butt’ (“the sandwich that made Bodean’s famous” – pork and coleslaw), but my decision was the pulled pork sandwich (a large, given that my stomach was rumbling and it was a mere 50p extra.

The seductively named ‘Original Sin’ Premium New York Hard Cider was the girls’ drink of choice (not that ‘hard’ for cider – a paltry 5.5%), whilst D was impressed with the real ales on offer and enjoyed the Sierra Nevada Porter (dark, rich and treacley). Ginger beer and Root Beer also featured on the menu, however A warned against the latter and its ‘mouthwash’ like properties.

Thankfully we didn’t have a long wait, and our hugely generous portions were very welcome by this point. The sheer amount of meat in the sandwich was almost daunting, but the softness of the bread and the melt in mouth nature of the pork, slathered in the chilli and barbeque sauce I added went down a treat. Crispy chips and creamy coleslaw added to the undeniably unhealthy, but extremely tasty meal.

The heat of the day turned to heavy rain, and sheltering under the restaurant’s awnings as we finished our meals, the heat from our stomachs kept us happy and satisfied. The gargantuan portions and sheer tasty meatiness in a part of London usually overrun with tourists, made us feel that we had certainly found the best location possible on this bank holiday. It was a short walk to The Pillars of Hercules for a cup of tea (to aid digestion), a drink or two and an afternoon of card game playing. A perfect way to while away a rainy bank holiday Monday afternoon.

Sauterelle, Royal Exchange, City of London, Greater London EC3V 3LR

After a tough week and an afternoon working in the City, myself and A were ready for a classy Friday night dinner and a chance to catch up. I’d often walked straight past the Royal Exchange just outside Bank Station, entirely unaware that a high-end shopping centre and an extremely posh café, was housed inside. I was even less aware that it was the home of French restaurant ‘Sauterelle’ (or Grasshopper if translated), even after stepping inside the grand building. Eventually I spotted a menu and small staircase leading to the mezzanine level restaurant.

My expectations were fairly low. I’d booked a special offer set menu through a popular dining website, and given that we were being offered a bargainous three courses for £23.50, I expected either to be rushed through the meal, presented with miniscule portions or sitting in an awkwardly silent restaurant lacking diners or atmosphere.

It looked like it might be the latter situation as we arrived in time for our 7.30pm booking, to find the restaurant area quiet. The friendly and very professional staff however stowed away our bags and asked if we’d like a drink at the decidedly more busy bar before our meal. It seemed like a good plan, so we propped up the bar surrounded by a good number of Friday night drinkers, sipping our wonderfully chilled white wine (from an extensive drinks menu) entirely relaxed and unhurried as we enjoyed the ambience of the busy bar.

Before too long, our tummies rumbling, we were ready for food. The courteous staff gave us a fantastic table overlooking the Grand Café below. The glass ceilinged building was bathed in the evening sunshine, becoming more atmospheric as dusk descended upon us.

The set menu was pleasingly varied, with four options for each course covering a wide variety of dishes, all of which sounded appealing. There was no overlap in our final choices and our expectations were now far higher than when we’d arrived.

The attentive waitress presented us with a array of exciting breads. I was tempted by the walnut and raisin bread just before the beautifully presented starters arrived. My fear of small portions was entirely unfounded and our first gleeful mouthfuls, we were delighted with our choices. A had opted for Galician octopus and chorizo with potato salad, basil, watercress and capers (pictured below), whilst mine was a more traditional Braised pork, with apple, Alsace bacon and celeriac puree but presented in a stylishly innovative fashion. The succulent morsel of pork was perfectly matched with the sweetness of the apple and the saltiness of the bacon.

The size of the dish was ideal and had whet my appetite, as I took more bread – this time a dark, strongly flavoured Guiness concoction.

It wasn’t long to wait for mains though. I’d opted for a simple seasonal risotto with fresh peas, broad beans, wild garlic, English foraged mushrooms. Whilst without meat, the flavour was strong and the texture rich and creamy.

As filling as my main had been, we were both craving for a sweet finish to the sumptuous meal, but again very different options appealed. A went for a fruity Iced Orange Parfait, with pistachio, mascarpone, ginger biscuit, and a blood orange salad (pictured below), whilst chocolate is my weakness so I couldn’t resist the Madagascan chocolate, balsamic macerated Muscat grapes, and almond ice cream.

Again presented brilliantly the rich chocolate dessert was an absolute dream. Intensely dark chocolate had a nutmeg like warmth and spiciness, and was perfectly coupled with sweet of (cherry like) grapes and coolness of the almond ice cream.

It had been a dream of a meal. Each dish tasted wonderful and the service, location and atmosphere had been impeccable, the sheer good value of the set menu making it even better. A gem of a find!