The Jugged Hare

Sunday roasts are a huge part of the Londoner lifestyle.  Looking for a good Sunday roast option, we headed into The City to check out The Jugged Hare.  This place is exactly what you would expect for a modern English pub.  When you walk in, the bar is backdropped by a menagerie of taxidermy that lets you know that you have entered a haven for meat-eaters, not particularly a place for vegetarians.  The dining room is sophisticated and comfortable.  You can envision business people talking deals over a large hunks of meat in here.

I ordered the "Jugged Hare".  This dish is exactly what it sounds like.  A rabbit stew is served inside of ceramic jug accompanied with mashed potatoes and cabbage.  The server said this dish is the best item on the menu and I can see why.  The dish was very tender, slow cooked meat drowned in a decandant red wine gravy.  The sides were the perfect accompanyment.  My husband ordered a bone marrow burger off the specials board.  This beast of a sandwich was shocking when they placed it in front of him.  It was super moist, but not too greasy.  And, no English meal is complete without a pudding -- we chose sticky toffee.  It was superb!

The best thing about the meal is that we found out the proprietors have two more places in Chelsea, so less travel.  We are looking forward to booking a pool table at The Cadogan Arms soon.  It's right down The Kings Road from us and is almost always packed.

Even though we didn't order any roast with as our meal, we had a lovely Sunday.

Image via London Evening Standard 

Image via Foodpedia

The Jugged Hare

Bone Marrow Burger

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Vienna's Cafe Culture

The Viennese have one of the great cafe cultures in the world.  Dropping into a posh cafe between museum tours is a great way to relax and refuel.  These cafes are stocked with decadent pastries and serve world class coffee drinks.  My favorite coffee treat was the melange.  A melange is similar to a cappuccino, but a little bit sweeter due to the whipped cream topping.  These are a couple of the cafes we enjoyed on our stay in Vienna.  Enjoy!

Demel is a not to miss cafe near the royal palace in Vienna.  We don't usually go for the touristy spots, but this was a time I'm glad we did.

The avocado tartare and salmon was the perfect, light afternoon pick me up.

A selection of to-die-for treats

The cafe was only half a block from the palace.  Of course, the proximity made the cafe full to the brim with tourists, but the service was prompt and the food was really good.

Hotel Sacher has another can't miss cafe in Vienna.  The world famous Sachertorte was created here.  Though the Sachertorte is world famous, it's not so tasty.  Kind of like dry chocolate sponge cake with a hard chocolate shell.  The side of whipped cream helps, but I recommend having a melange handy to help wash this treat down!

My melange!  I can't wait to get back to Vienna and have another -- DOZEN!.

Another can't miss treat is the hot chocolate.  This isn't the kind of drink you get from a Swiss Miss packet.  This is actually hot, melted chocolate.  So rich and creamy and DELICIOUS! 

Ramen Wars!

London has entered into an interesting time for foodies. In recent months three large ramen noodle bars have sprung up around the city offering delicious bowls of ramen made of slow cooked broths and fresh made noodles.  The city is buzzing about the options and the different atmosphere of each noodle bar.  I've tried two so far and and this is a bit about each!

Tonkotsu

My first London ramen experience was Tonkotsu in Soho.  Tonkotsu gives you an authentic noodle house experience.  When you enter, you walk past two large vats of slow cooking, steaming broth and into a super crowded space.  On their homepage, Tonkotsu says "No booking required. ....we'll find a table for you.".  And they do not exaggerate this statement at all.  Chairs and people and pints of Japanese beer are all crammed across entire lengths of long tables.  The people on the outer edges have to get up in order to let you past them so you can get to your seat.  It's really an atmosphere well suited for the British if you think about it.  Everyone is politely ignoring bumping elbows and overreaching waiters.  I could just imagine Dallas diners being a little overwhelmed by the tight quarters.  As far as the food is concerned,  the broth is made by slow cooking pork bones for 18 hours and adding pillow soft ramen noodles along with pork and eggs.  My ramen was really quite tasty.  The broth is super smooth with a deep, rich flavor.  The garnishes were fresh and the egg and pork were perfectly cooked.  I'm always a little weary of the pork because it can sometimes come out a little over cooked and dry.  This pork was very enjoyable.  I'll go back.

Bone Daddies

Bone Daddies is a little bit different in that the ambiance is definitely more rock and roll.  And, I mean that in a vinyl-record-player-blasting-hair-band-ballads sort of way.  When you walk into Bone Daddies, you have to squeeze past a small, yet posh, bar where hipsters crowd together and sip Japanese whisky.  I will say, though, the authenticity of the ramen bar still finds you in that you still get squeezed into impossibly cramped tables.  The other thing that sets Bone Daddies apart is their extensive snacks and extra toppings offerings on the menu.  We noshed down on yellowtail sashimi and pork ribs before our ramen.  The pork ramen was smooth and had a little more spice to it than Tonkotsu.  I felt like we were served a little less broth here, though.  The pork was cooked nicely and the extra egg was a nice final touch.

The tables at Bone Daddies have garlic cloves and garlic presses available to enhance your ramen -- this was my first time seeing this option in a ramen house.  My favorite touch is the jar of black hair rubber bands at each table just in case a lady's hair is getting in the way of her ramen enjoyment.  Brilliant!

Our next stop on this ramen tour MUST be Shoryu Ramen.  I can't wait to see what they have to offer.  By the looks of things, they have also have an array of sides to choose from, similar to Bone Daddies.  I'm not sure we have a clear winner or loser here.  Both noodle houses have great food and unique atmospheres.  I guess we will just have to keep trying new ramen places until we find a definite winner in these Ramen Wars!..... that's going to be my excuse at least. :-)

A little Italian right around the corner

Before I came to the UK the first time, I had really low expectations on the food.  I'm glad to say that there is the same caliber of food preparation that you would expect from a leading world city.  I'm also glad to say that we found the most magical little Italian restaurant just around the corner from our flat.  You know the kind.  The maitre d knows you by name.  The wine list is extensive, but just enough to be accommodating and not overwhelming (they have my Bellavista on the menu).  The type of place where they just start bringing meats, and breads to your table before you even order.  Behold! Osteria dell'Arancio!!

Below is a sampling of the items we enjoyed.  The standouts were the octopus salad, which the waiter said was the most "chef-y" item on the menu (which, of course, sold us on the item) and the spicy pappardelle dish I had as my main.  Oh, and, yes, that is bacon wrapped around those lamb chops!

I'm excited because we are headed back for dinner on Jan 29 for a Barolo tasting.  We are going to bring some friends and try some free top of the line wines.  Can you think of a better reason??

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland is part traditional Christmas market, part food/drink festival, part state fair. If you know anything about middle America, you know we love our state fairs!  I've been to the Hyde Park Winter Wonderland twice this year and am totally impressed by this event.  The massive crowds of people, the rides, the rubber tiled ground (so your toes do not get muddy, so typically polite) and yummy food makes this event a can't miss.  Our first night, we b-lined to the first (of many) mulled wine stands.  I was SMITTEN!  Mulled wine is like a mixture of warm apple cider with the heaviness of an actual red wine.  You can smell the cinnamon and other spices permeate off of your warm cup of delicious drink.  I think I had at least two!

Next was the food.  Would you be shocked to know that we started with a cheese plate with ham?  Followed by a sausage, then a bacon and cheese covered pretzel?....Well, you shouldn't be....because we did!

Aside from the cute German market style wooden stands that sell everything from fur hats to wooden ornaments, there is the live music.  Inside the large Bavarian tent, there are live DJ's and bands for those who dare to dance and not care.  It's a blast.  Aside from the live music, there are tons of rides.  I will definitely come back next year.  Winter Wonderland is so much fun!

Festive Entrance!  All admission is free.  Just pay for food, drink and rides.

Pretty massive crowd, but in true Brit fashion, everyone was courteous and you feel really safe.

Some yummy cheese and meat plate for walking around and looking at all of the cute booths.

Mmmmmm.....Mulled wine!

Me & Hubs, cheesing it up. xo

First live music section.  So many happy people!

Bavarian tent.  Live DJ.  Lots of dancing and so much fun!

I'm thinking that this might be the reason for so much dancing??...... or maybe the bottles of Veuve in the fridge for sale?

Me and the Hubs cheesing it up with some liters of beer....hey, we're in the Bavarian tent after all!

I'm sorry, but I have a thing about taking pictures of people taking pictures with their iPads.

Fun wooden gifts

Marzipan treats

"Rodeo Reindeer" - I had the biggest laugh at this!  The bar around the corner from our old apartment in Dallas had a mechanical bull on the front deck... I have never heard of anything like a mechanical reindeer!

Rides!

My little sister from college is visiting us for Christmas break.  Making an appearance on the blog.  Hollar!

So many rides!

Mmmm.... More mulled wine!!

Tuscany on Valentine's Day

During our Tuscan road trip, we were in the hill town of Montepulciano, Italy, on Valentine's Day.  We didn't make any restaurant plans ahead of time (good going E!), so we relied on TripAdvisor.com for recommendations.  After a quick search, we found Borgobuio.  The dinner was a blast!  The owners are a married couple, Piers and Elda.  Elda is the chef and Piers runs the front of the house.  While waiting for the wine to breathe, Piers brought over a leather bound book which showed Borgobuio ranked in the top 100 restaurants in Tuscany and had me read the entry aloud for all the guests -- he was VERY proud!  Piers gave us the best wine service either of us have ever received.

The atmosphere is intimate and comfortable.  The food was arguably the best meal I have ever had.  I loved dining in a former cellar.  The architecture was so interesting.  Also interesting was the flat screen TVs playing concert DVDs during the meal.  That element prompted some bad reviews on TripAdvisor.  I feel like seeing "Cool and the Gang" in concert was just the quirky touch that really revealed Piers sense of humor.  As soon as we walked in the front door, we knew this was going to be a special night!

We had a very special Valentine's Day together.  What is your favorite romantic evening?  I'd love to hear about your special night stories!

Cured by Cured Meats!

Ever just have one of those days?  Software isn't working, customers constantly calling, the boss is MIA?  Well, maybe it's not that's not your specific tipping point, but when you work in a high tech startup, you often find yourself backed against a wall.  When that happens to me (and/or Eric -- who works for a different high tech startup), I pull out the big guns.  By guns, I mean delicately wrapped, freshly sliced cured meats and cheeses.  Nothing turns my frown upside down like a meat and cheese plate.  This a plate we recently put together at our house.

Meats (1) Iberico Loin, (2) Jamin Iberico Reserve, (3) Porchetta, (4) capicola.
Cheeses (5) Truffle Goat Cheese, (6) Aged Cheddar, (7) Truffle Tremor (basically truffle Brie), (8) Roquefort (soft bleu cheese), (9) Dunbarton (hard bleu cheese - a bleu for people who do not like bleu cheese like me!).

Try adding some truffle honey and fig confit with some crackers to top off this spread.  Serve as afternoon indulgence or an appetizer which will certainly cure the day you are having!

What are your guilty pleasers?  It can be food, wine, yoga, anything.  I'd love to hear about what gets you going after a hard day.