Where I've Eaten Lately

I'm trying to eat less burgers at the moment, so as a way to make me feel better about that, I'm ogling my instagrams (foodstagrams, if you will) and reminiscing about awesome burgers of the past. I like these posts, because I often want to share info about great places that I've eaten, but don't always have the time to write a full on blog post about it. So, like my last foodstagrams post, I'm going to share some of my favourite recent meals with them. Go! Seek them out! You will not be sorry.




Pudding Platter - The King's Arms, Berkhamsted
We went here back in May, but I haven't stopped thinking about this! We actually met some friends for a drink, but when we got there they were just finishing up lunch and considering pudding, and that got us considering pudding too. The pudding platter involves chocolate brownie, salted caramel ice cream, vanilla panna cotta and - oh yeah - those are nutella stuffed donuts. We shared it. I wish we hadn't. I wanted more of everything. And I still do. They're opening a branch of this gastropub in St Albans soon, so this platter will be dangerously close. I'm going to have to have it again... and soon.


Chateaubriand & Cocktails - Sophie's Steakhouse, Covent Garden
Matt took me here as a birthday treat, and boy, was it ever. Even though it's right next to Byron, I'd never noticed it before so it was a really nice surprise. When we walked in, we were given free salami and I got a free birthday cocktail (tip: wear birthday badges at all times). We shared a to-die-for chateaubriand steak, with sides of mac 'n' cheese and fries. Oh god, it was so good. Not the cheapest place in the world but somewhere I will definitely be going back to. I love, love, LOVE steak but it's often disappointing - overcooked, underseasoned steak is not my thing. This was perfect - I made a point of trying it without any sauce and the flavour was incredible.


Burger - The Horn, St Albans
Anyone who's spent any time in St Albans will probably know The Horn - it's a pretty decent little pub, known for live music, but was always somewhat on the grubby side. They've cleaned it up recently though, and invested a bit more in the menu. We won the quiz here a little while back, and were only given a week to use our bar tab so we popped back for dinner before the next quiz (which we came third in). I was really impressed by the food! The burger was yummy, with REAL cheese - not that crappy cheese sauce stuff - and the chips were to die for.


Pretty Much Everything - Wahaca, Islington
So there's this place? Called Wahaca? It's like, Mexican street food? But in small portions? So you can try lots? Ohhh, you've heard of it. Ha, I know most of you have - but if you haven't, or if you just haven't made it yet, go there! I love it so. I'm here for the taquitos, the steak and cheese tacos and the chorizo and cheese quesadillas. And the sweet potato wedges. And the margaritas. FLIPPING NOM.


Big Fat Greek - Relish, St Albans
I discovered Relish Burgers a couple of weeks ago by chance - it's next to the Alban Arena theatre, in a spot that's always been a little cafe. We tried it out the very next day, and I was really impressed. They have a really decent menu, with some unusual burger combos as well as the classics. There's a good selection of sides, and they do hard and soft milkshakes - the peanut butter one is amazing, but I'm going to need to try the boozy peanut butter and jelly one at some point.


Lamb Shank - The Greek, Hemel Hempstead
The staff in this restaurant are so lovely and the food is amazing. Huge portions, little prices! The meze isn't the best I've had, but the lamb shank was really, really good. Super tender, super flavourful and enormous. That red wine gravy and mash was epic.


Hot Dog (all the way) - Five Guys, Birmingham
I went to Five Guys in Virginia about 6 years ago, and really don't remember much about it except that they gave us free monkey nuts. Since then, it's hit the UK - and the monkey nuts have come too (they're symbolic of the fact that the fries are cooked in peanut oil). I tried out the branch in the Bullring with Sarah and Gem, and it was really good. The hot dog was very messy - I used about 40 napkins - but so very tasty, and I loved that it was fine to pile on the toppings. The cajun fries were also excellent, although your breath will be garlic central afterwards (just a word of warning).


The Cheese Room Experience - Vivat Bacchus, Farringdon
This was yet another birthday treat c/o Matt - the boy did good. Steak AND cheese? Yeah, he knows me pretty well. The Cheese Room is a refrigerated room with lots and lots and lots of cheese and the staff are happy to let you try as much of it as you want (and oh, we did). Once we'd sampled a few, we chose our favourite 5 and they turned them into an awesome cheeseboard for us, along with the perfect accompaniments - brie and blueberry jam? DAAAAAMN. I'm dying to go back (although I might not share the cheeseboard this time...)


The Meating Room Burger - The Meating Room, St Albans
This is a new burger place in St Albans, and unlike Relish, they have a super simple menu. I quite like this though - they're focusing on good, classic burgers and they're doing them damn well. Those are rosemary dusted chips and there's a salted caramel milkshake on the menu, yeah, you can see why I like it. The service was super fast and super friendly, but it's quite tucked away, so if you're in the area, pay them a visit.


Brazilian Fiesta Chicken Pizza - Domino's Event
I got invited to a party by Domino's a little while back to launch their Brazilian range. The World Cup may be over, but the pizzas are still there - and they were really good. JUST spicy enough and I loved the creamy drizzle and I'm really trying to convince myself that I still want something healthy for dinner and not Domino's because god this pizza was good.

What's the best thing you've eaten lately?