Saturday 26 August 2017

REVIEW: Giraffe's new tapas menu

Places to eat in Liverpool Street, Spitalfields, London - Giraffe tapas review
Places to eat in Liverpool Street, Spitalfields, London - Giraffe tapas review
Places to eat in Liverpool Street, Spitalfields, London - Giraffe tapas review
Places to eat in Liverpool Street, Spitalfields, London - Giraffe tapas review

I used to be seriously obsessed with Giraffe. It was one of my favourite places to eat whenever I went to London – I was obsessed with their flavours, the cocktails, the whole ambience... not to mention the little plastic giraffes they used to put in your drinks (do they still do that?). And then I don’t know what happened. I think I discovered other restaurants and just... moved on. Sorry, Giraffe.

But it’s ok, because they invited me back to try out their new tapas menu! Well, it’s not that new – they invited me absolutely AGES ago, and I was rubbish and have only just got round to going. It’s a great deal though, you get 3 tapas for £14.95 or 5 tapas for £24.95, and there’s an offer on right now where if you go for the 5 tapas option, you also get a bottle of wine! Amazing!

Obvs we went for the five-and-wine deal because OBVS, but it was difficult to choose just five dishes. There are some delicious sounding options like pan-roasted chorizo and honey, patatas bravas, tacos, gyozas, flatbread, Japanese style chicken... hungry yet? QUITE. Here's what we went for...

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Saturday 19 August 2017

HOME: The best places to visit in Tring

Recommendations for places to eat, drink and explore in Tring, on the Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire border
Recommendations for places to eat, drink and explore in Tring, on the Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire border
Recommendations for places to eat, drink and explore in Tring, on the Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire border
Recommendations for places to eat, drink and explore in Tring, on the Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire border
Recommendations for places to eat, drink and explore in Tring, on the Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire border

It’s over a year now since we decided to move to Tring (our actual move will be a year in December – buying a house takes time, you guys) and I honestly think it’s one of the best decisions I (well, we) ever made. As much as I’m happy with our house – and I am, I feel incredibly lucky to have such a lovely home and to have parents who supported and helped us to get there (and I will always be honest about the fact that we DID have help, because it would have been so difficult to do alone) – I’ve really fallen for our little town.

Whenever I Instagram a picture of the pretty high street or the incredible views from the top of the park or my latest favourite restaurant, I hope that I’m inspiring someone, somewhere, to pay Tring a visit. Sure, it’s a 45 minute train journey from London and then a bit of a walk from the train station once you get there (that 35 minute walk is, I think, why Tring was still just about in our budget), but it’s so worth it once you get there! It’s surrounded by breathtaking scenery, it’s full of cosy pubs and independent eateries and it’s just so bloody nice. It’s the kind of place where there are boxes of fresh flowers along the high street, flowers that horrible teenagers don’t rip out when they’re bored. It’s the kind of place where people chat to strangers, where people saw us looking in the windows of estate agents and asked if we were joining the community. It’s the kind of place where every building on the high street, even the Costa and the Prezzo looks like it has an interesting history behind it.

I’m a fan.

Anyway, I really do think you should visit Tring for the day, or even a weekend. It’s only a 25 minute drive from Watford, it’s a direct train from Euston and it’s worth it when you get there. And if you do visit, I’ve compiled a little list of my favourite places in Tring... so far. There’s so much more I haven’t had the chance to discover, so please make recommendations if you know the area!

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Saturday 12 August 2017

REVIEW: Busaba Eathai, St Albans

Review and recommendation of a Thai restaurant in St Albans - Busaba EathaiReview and recommendation of a Thai restaurant in St Albans - Busaba Eathai
Review and recommendation of a Thai restaurant in St Albans - Busaba Eathai

It feels like ages since I’ve done a food review, but that’s my fault – I’ve not been as active on the blogging front this year as I have been previously. There’s just been so much going on with the house and the wedding – not to mention working full time – that I haven’t had much brain space for it. But I like blogging, and I missed it, so here I am to talk about delicious Thai food.

I first visited Busaba Eathai in St Albans last year with my friend Fiona, to go to their opening. It was a great evening with some seriously good food and cocktails, and I resolved to come back soon... with Matt, who was most put out that he missed it. And Busaba must have heard his whinging, because they invited me back to try out the rest of their menu. I booked it in for the day after my birthday, and it was the perfect end to a foodie, boozy weekend.

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Sunday 6 August 2017

WEDDING: Tips for going wedding dress shopping



With just over 9 months to go until our wedding day, I have already purchased the dress! I wasn’t intending to buy it this quickly – I thought I’d have a bit of a look over the summer – but then various local shops started to announce their sample sales and I thought I might as well squeeze in some appointments.

As I confessed on Instagram Stories a little while ago, I was really intimidated by the idea of wedding dress shopping. I think there’s so much pressure on this one item of clothing that it’s hard not to feel a little overwhelmed. I was scared about spending too much money, I was scared that nothing would suit me (I've never found a maxi dress that suits me, and white is one of those colours I NEVER wear), I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to choose and I was scared that I’d feel disappointed. I think this is pretty normal.

In reality, everything was fine. It was actually a pretty enjoyable time, and I wanted to blog about my thoughts to help anyone else in the same boat as I was a couple of weeks ago. I really didn’t know what to expect, and I overthought it for a while instead of just getting on with it. In the end, I took a Friday off work and booked in three appointments with my Mum and my sister in tow. Three doesn’t sound like loads, but it takes time to get in and out of those big dresses, and even more time gazing at yourself in the mirror looking like a princess, so it was plenty – I was pretty done in by the last appointment!

I’m not going to share photos of me in the dresses on here because Matt really doesn’t want to see me in any wedding dresses yet, and I sort of like that - there is something kind of transformative about them, I have to say. So here’s what I learned…

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