It may be cold and grey but there is something about a sheep-shaggers derby that can really warm the cockles.
For a second consecutive season, Cardiff defeats their South Wales rivals of Swansea at the Cardiff City Stadium…
Until we speak again, 2-0 last season, 3-0 this season… let’s see that trajectory continue!
Nor any drop to drink… but a room with a view that let’s not a heart sink (apologies to Samuel Taylor Coleridge and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner!)…
Water, water, everywhere you look…
Even up the side streets, you’re just as likely to need a boat…
Water, water, everywhere… so it must be Venice…
Until we speak again, “Water, water, everywhere… nor any drop to drink. ” But maybe that’s what S. Pellegrino was invented for…
History, culture, atmosphere, the home of the Renaissance… Florence has it all in abundance…
Who’d have thought it was the place to devour a whole cow as well? From the stomach as a burger from a hole in the wall…
To a high-end experience of a slow cooked cheek…
Then there is the quintessential Florentine Steak. Brought to your table prior to cooking. All that’s missing was a name… let’s call her Daisy for polite dining…
Until we speak again, go to Florence and be drawn into an atmospheric experience and a feast of consumption…
Eating out is always a treat to be savoured. But just occasionally, it’s raised to another level when you get to ponder the question… they did what?
Restaurante Lebeche in Santa Cruz (Tenerife) is definitely one of those moments.
Arriving there a few minutes before opening already provided me with that rare few moments of being in my own private restaurant. I was greeted by name, from the reservation made earlier, and briefly enjoyed being outnumbered by the attentive staff.
My appetite dictated that I was going to eat light this evening. The Prawn Carpaccio may resemble a contemporary art installation, but it also provided the ideal starter of a delicate mix of flavours.
I was thinking salad as a main course. However, a combination of tomato, watermelon, ice cream, and a topping of pistachio certainly wasn’t what I was thinking. Ensalada Lebeche is quite something to behold… a dish that asks you to double-check that you’re still on planet Earth. Other worldly definitely describes this dish… in a very good way.
Now, I’m not one who usually indulges in the desert end of the menu. That local white wine needs my full attention. But I’d seen from previous reviews that this place does something original in its presentation of Tiramisu. Eating light has the advantage of leaving space for the unexpected. And was this Tiramisu unexpected…
Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you… the gorgeously balanced dish arrived in a cafetiere!
Until we speak again, it’s nice to identify a wonderful restaurant while gazing down on the street below from your private sun terrace…
For those of you looking for a feelgood Christmas tale, look away now. This is a tale of architectural wonder… of reality, not make belive fairytale. This is where Santiago Calatrava stamps his signature on various places around the planet… and we gaze in awe (well, some of us do anyway).
He was born in Valencia and first came to my attention when visiting the Freedom Tower in New York City in 2017. Santiago Calatrava was responsible for the futuristic design of the new World Trade Center Transportation Hub.
So, where does Santa come into this picture, you ask. Well, seeing as you asked so politely… here I am in Santa Cruz, Tenerife, and would you believe it, Santiago Calatrava got here before me. He designed the Auditorium de Tenerife Adan Martin… a stunning performance venue on the harbour…
And what of Syd, you ask. Well, it’s just my random thinking that if you take a look at the Sydney Opera House when you’re next passing by that way, have a think of what those architectural curves remind you of.
Until we speak again, as Juno often remarked… I might have been her erstwhile servant, but get a proper hobby fella, and pack in these random trains of thought 🤔
I wonder what you were thinking when you read this blog post title… well, sorry to disappoint 😞 I’m sure saucy times are to be had in Cardiff, and I……. no, I think I’ll get back to the actual subject of the post.
I’m talking egg yolk, double cream, mushroom, blue cheese, parsley, black pepper, and parmesan. Add some chicken and a pasta of your choice (penne does it for me), and you have Cardiff Sauce, a carbonara dish that defies most peoples preconceptions of Cardiff cuisine.
Chips and rice with curry sauce are so Caroline Street at midnight after a session on the falling down juice. For those in the know, with time and cash to be a little more discerning in culinary tastes, a treat awaits a mere 200 yards away from the world renowned Chippy Alley.
Ciliegino is a small independent Italian restaurant that quietly goes about its business in the city centre. In my albeit highly biased opinion, it has one major setback… it’s located in the heart of shopping mall foodcourt terrain. A place where chain restaurants thrive at churning out consistent mediocrity.
So, I can happily report at being amazed by the fresh quality of an antipasto duo starter…
The sparse wine list even managed to offer a Puglia gem of an Italian red wine…
Until we speak again, saucy times in Cardiff have taken on a broader outlook, and the Beef lasagne was a homemade treat as well…
What’s the difference between Russia and the USA? The leader of one of them going forward hasn’t been convicted of any charges… yet? Only one openly boasts his misogyny, while the other enacts it more secretly.
Beyond that, they seem to broadly share psychopathic, narcissistic, lying tendencies on an industrial scale.
On the morning of 6th November 2024, a deeply troubled world took a devastatingly darker turn, as one of the few bastions of freedom and openness embraced it’s full on Dumbfuckistan character.
That this wasn’t the will of the minority is perhaps the most shocking outcome of the last 24 hours. Even the popular vote has underpinned this world tragedy. For once, it seems the anachronistic Electoral College, famed for truly stealing elections from the people, has provided the American people what they want.
Until we speak again, I will uphold my personal principles of so-called, lefty liberal elite wokery by enacting my own boycott of the USA. I don’t intend to spend…
… on an economy of a country that can shut down its collective mind to the behaviour of a narcissistic racist misogynist and promote him to Liar-in-Chief.
The years ahead will be interesting… for all the wrong reasons. Goodbye, America… from someone who visited quite often and loved many things about your former country!
No, this post isn’t going to be about a historic event… or even a memorable holiday trip. This is one of those moments when you realise you’ve been occasionally walking past a culinary gem in a Cardiff city centre arcade for five years. Then, a random look at Google maps reviews brings the shocking truth about what you’ve been missing. It’s 11.30am on a Thursday morning as you realise there is only one place lunch is going to happen… it’s time to visit Hanoi 1991 in Cardiff’s enchanting Royal Arcade.
As with so many gems the menu is pleasingly short… as displayed near the entrance and above the counter. This is Hanoi street food authentically presented and deliciously flavoured.
Grilled Pork ‘Banh My’ with a Vietnamese Egg Coffee… was the choice for a fist visit. But in no more than 48 hours I was drawn back to try the equally appetising Lemongrass Beef ‘Banh My‘.
Until we speak again, I’ll just have to stay mesmerised by that Vietnamese Egg Coffee! If you think a cappuccino style presentation coffee with deep foam made of egg yolk, milk and sugar sounds like a strange combination you would be technically correct. But, one taste and you suddenly know your coffee has just doubled up as your dessert. This was the real reason for returning a second time within 48 hours. The third visit will not be too far away.
Cardiff is forever evolving, but awakenings are the order of the day down at the Cardiff City Stadium. Nobody would argue that the first couple of months of the season look pretty much like the old tax offices in Llanishen…
An early sacking of the manager may not be what is ordinarily wished for, but it offers opportunities to dream of new beginnings… something like the changing face of the old Brewery site near the city centre…
But who would have thought the green shoots of renewal would blossom so rapidly…
Until we speak again, whisper it… can we play Plymouth every week… please?
It’s not often I go to a fabulous restaurant on holiday and risk it a second night running. You know all about those wonderful memories that you could be putting in jeopardy!
Well, Alegoria was that good, I just had to roll the dice. The atmosphere is somewhat like a Greek taverna… but this definitely isn’t Greece.
The welcome was warm from the moment I arrived and throughout the meal from a small group of staff who really seemed to be enjoying their work. So this is clearly not one of those chain restaurants churning out mediocrity with a fake smile.
The menu is relatively short, so the quality of what is presented on the plate is a top priority. So this isn’t one of those places that aims to offer something for everyone.
For the record, the accompanying photos include padron green peppers and melt in the mouth iberic pork cheek on the first visit. The second visit matched the whole experience with melon & iberic ham followed by a gorgeous ribeye steak seasoned with just the right level of salty tears!
Unlike a few other places I visited nearby, a selection of wine by the glass was offered, and I found something I had never heard of but was one of those wines where one glass could never be enough… just like one visit to this restaurant is never enough.
Until we speak again, you don’t think I’m going to tell you where it is, do you? You’d all be going there and I’d have to book my table!
The previous ‘iberic‘ references might also help. It’s not France, Italy or Portugal… but it might be close to them on a big map. The city has a successful football team in the mould of Pep Guardiola, and also miles of beachfront and marina with Olympic references. It’s also located within 100 metres of a very busy tourist street where people Rambla along… but unless you’re searching for it, you’ll never see it.
JUNO's VIEW 