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26/07/2022

Last week Melanie, Chiara and I went to Stelle di Stelle, a pop-up restaurant nestled on the lower-ground floor of Harrods amongst fine wine from around the world. The restaurant is light and bright, and the food incredible. You may remember how disappointed I was with the food when I went to Rome back in May, well this Italian feast of fine dining certainly made up for that!
Stelle di Stelle opened in September, and will remain there until January 2015. Each month one of the top restaurants in Italy takes the stage/kitchen to serve up their signature dishes to UK foodies. The chefs have a whopping 13 Michelin stars between them, and we were lucky enough to experience the culinary expertise of Giorgio Pinchiorri and Annie Féolde from Enoteca Pinchiorri, a three michelin starred restaurant in Florence.

We started with cheese and ham paired with a beautiful Ferrari Maximum Brut Trento Doc.

Before moving on to chestnut mousse with pancetta, pine nuts, and rosemary. This was a strange one, it was delicious, there was no doubt about it, but I just couldn’t pin down what tasted so strange about it. The mousse was light and perfect, with just the right amount of pancetta so it didn’t overpower the chestnut.

After the intriguing mousse, we then moved on to one of my favourite dishes of the night, the octopus cooked in olive oil with pumpkin cream, coffee pearls, and watercress sprouts. I adore octopus, and this one was probably the best I’ve ever tasted. It was cooked to perfection; crispy on the outside, not too tough inside, and so full of flavour. The wine that was paired with this was another good one, really light and fruity, and the ideal accompaniment for the octopus.

Chiara doesn’t eat seafood so she had asparagus and artichoke.

Following the octopus was my absolute favourite dish of the evening, as it combined two of my greatest food loves; poached egg, and alba white truffle. You may remember my love for white truffle from my review of OPUS in Vienna, and this time around it didn’t disappoint. The poached egg was cooked perfectly, it was incredibly runny and blended into the truffle and cheese fondue. Ugh, so, so good.

Phew, I was starting to get a liiiittle bit full at this point, but I powered through! Next up was fusili al foretto with artichokes, scampi, and liquorice powder. This was another sublime dish, the pasta was the gorgeous Italian ‘al dente’ pasta, not soft and soggy like the English cook it, but rather full of texture and bite.

At this point the wines were starting to queue up (two of them were missing from the below photo – ignore the water, ha). I loved all of them apart from the beer, I’m really not a beer drinker. I did however, love the red wines, which I don’t usually enjoy!

Right, on to course number five (six if you include the amuse bouche of cheese and ham). Yet again my tastebuds tingled with delight as I took bite after bite of the lamb topped with garlic and thyme. The lamb was medium rare, and so incredibly sumptuous.

Finally we finished with bread, chocolate, oil and salt. Sounds strange, right? Right. But it tasted so good. I was so shocked at how well the crispy bread worked with the richness of the chocolate, but it really was perfect. I know I keep repeating this word, but seriously, this entire meal was perfect. I loved it so much, and I’d love to visit Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence now.

A huge thank you to Harrods for being so knowledgeable with the wines and giving us such a treat. We had the loveliest evening and my tastebuds are tingling just thinking about all of those dishes again. I can’t recommend Stelle di Stelle enough, but if you want to have the experience we did, book in quick before Enoteca Pinchiorri’s month ends on NYE!

26/07/2022

Christmas Drinks Fundraiser.
Over the years Lotte has featured on this wee blog quite a bit. She’s infamous for throwing the most extravagant parties, as well as always being there for a good night of dancing or venting about men over dinner and wine. Lotte does quite a bit of charity fundraising, and last night she had a Christmas Drinks gathering to raise money for the animal charity she’s running the London Marathon for; IFAW.
The theme was Christmas jumpers, and the evening was full of champagne, food made by Lotte herself (she’s also a wonderful cook!), and a huge raffle which included four humongous hampers! She raised over £228, and we all had immense fun whilst doing so. It was one of those evenings where I woke up to discover a load of tagged photos on Facebook, one of which was of me clutching half a dozen bottles of Champagne…naturally…

Thank you Lotte for such a lovely evening!

26/07/2022

There’s a hot new place in London town, and it’s pretty awesome. The little sister of Burger and Lobster, they’ve ditched the burgers and sit-down style restaurant, and opened a ‘take-away counter’ style restaurant focusing on what people in the area want; easy, convenient food, full of incredible flavours. Smack Lobster opened a few weeks ago in London, and focuses on – you guessed it – lobster. Lobster rolls to be precise.

Located just off Oxford Street in Mayfair, Smack Deli is perfect for those of us who work in the area nearby, but don’t fancy the standard chain cafe lunches. The service is quick and easy, you choose from the huge menu, and pay at the counter as you order. You then wait for your lobster brioche, and have the option of taking it away with you or eating it inside at one of the industrial-style tables.

The prices are standard to be honest, not cheap, but not overpriced. I went for the California Roll to take away, along with a serving of courgette fries. The roll was insanely good, full of flavour, and oh my gosh the brioche. Dayum.

The courgette fries were….ok, a little on the salty side. But sadly the portion was insanely small for the price…

Overall Smack Deli is definitely worth a visit if you’re a lobster roll fan! They have some interesting flavours, and I think next time I’ll try the Seven Samurai. It’s not the cheapest lunch break at £7.50 for a takeaway roll and £9 to eat-in, but it’s good for a Friday treat day. It’s also an excellent choice if you’re not a fan of tourists, it’s down a little side street (Binney Street) opposite Selfridges, and has a nice downstairs seating area if you need to get away from the crowds.

16/07/2022

There are very few Australian restaurants in London, so for someone who was obsessed with the Aussie brunch when I spent four years living in Perth and Sydney, my biggest struggle with moving back to London has been the lack of decent brunch options. It’s difficult to find a great antipodean breakfast/brunch, and so when I heard that Sydney chef Damien Moley was opening Liv in Belgravia – just a 10-minute drive from where I live – I was SO excited I could hardly contain myself!
Liv Belgravia Australian Restaurant in London
It had been about a year since Adam and I last caught up without the pumping music and colourful lighting of a bar or nightclub, so I invited him along to find out how he’s been getting on since moving back to London from Geneva (you may remember I went to visit him in Geneva three years ago). The restaurant is located on Holbein Place just down from Sloane Square, and is a bright and welcoming space with friendly staff. It’s the type of place I wish I could spend every Sunday morning.

Liv Belgravia Australian Restaurant in London
Liv Belgravia Australian Restaurant in London
We started with freshly squeezed Orange Juice while we perused the menu, and I was instantly drawn to the Banoffee banana bread. Banana bread is one of the things I miss most about living in Australia – it was always my Friday treat. Sadly we were there too early and it wasn’t ready yet as it’s baked fresh, so I decided on the Avocado and tomato bruschetta with poached eggs, feta, mint, basil, sumac dressing, hazelnuts. Ugh, I have MISSED brunch dishes with loads of ingredients! I don’t know what it is about Australian breakfasts and dishes, but they seem to know exactly what ingredients work perfectly together and just throw them all in to create a dish of perfection.

Also I’m currently working out how to use my new camera, so please excuse the photos in the next few posts until I figure it all out haha.

Liv Belgravia Australian Restaurant in London
Adam chose the Green bowl which consisted of hot smoked salmon, avocado, soft egg, feta, beetroot hummus, lemon and cashew dressing. He absolutely loved it, and the staff kindly gave him a side of toasted sourdough as well!

Liv Belgravia Australian Restaurant in London
Damien was in the restaurant while we were there, so we had a chat and he kindly let us try their Ricotta Hotcakes! Oh my gosh. Adam and I were both blown away by the texture and taste,

Liv Belgravia Australian Restaurant in London
Catherine Lux - Editor of Lux Life London
We had the loveliest morning at Liv, it was the perfect place for a relaxed catch-up and delicious brunch! But next time I’m going later in the day so I can try the Banoffee banana bread!!

16/07/2022

I’ve been a big fan of Bob Bob Ricard for many years, so when I had the opportunity to check out new sister restaurant, Bob Bob Cité, I jumped at the chance! One of my friends from Sydney, Nicole, was in town recently so I booked it in for when she was visiting and we had the best time! The new restaurant is so beautiful, and although it feels super different to Bob Bob Ricard, it’s still swanky and glamorous and all the things you think of when you think of Bob Bob Ricard, but in more of a contemporary French style rather than Russian.
Bob Bob Cité, London, Restaurant Interior


The food at Bob Bob Cité was amazing and we loved every course. After plugging in our phones to charge in the handy in-wall chargers, pressing the ‘Press for Champagne’ button and sipping on champagne, our starters arrived and we tucked into the Duck Egg Au Plat and Crabe Mayonnaise…
Press for Champagne button at Bob Bob Cité, London
Duck egg au plat at Bob Bob Cité, London
Crabe mayonnaise at Bob Bob Cité, London
For our main course we chose a glass of red wine each, with the Beef Wellington to share. A 35-day Aged Scotch fillet with truffle jus arrived, along with the creamiest truffled mash, and glazed carrots!
Beef Wellington at Bob Bob Cité, London
Beef Wellington at Bob Bob Cité, London
Carrots and truffled mash potato at Bob Bob Cité, London
Beef Wellington at Bob Bob Cité, London


After a short break to let our main course go down, we chose our desserts. Nicole opted for the delicious Île Flotante, a Floating island with Vanilla Anglais, soft toffee and toasted almonds.
Île Flotante dessert at Bob Bob Cité, London


I on the other hand chose the Lemon tart with soft meringue. The lemon tart was delicious but not quite zesty enough and it lacked the expected pizzazz and tartness.
Lemon tart at Bob Bob Cité, London
Lemon tart at Bob Bob Cité, London


Overall our meal was delicious and the perfect girls evening! We spent hours catching up over champagne and exceptionally good food. It is important to note though that you shouldn’t expect a carbon-copy of Bob Bob Ricard. Bob Bob Cité is it’s own restaurant, and although a sister restaurant, the menu is very much more of French brasserie-style rather than Russian opulence. The restaurant design also feels much more contemporary and sleek compared to the ostentatious Soho outlet.
If you’re looking for somewhere for a special occasion, definitely check out Bob Bob Cité!

12/07/2022

I first went to Wimbledon 12 years ago when I was 16. It was just a few weeks before we moved to Australia, so my mum took me and we queued up to try our luck for tickets. Unfortunately there weren’t any No.1 or Centre Court tickets left so we had to settle for No.2 tickets, but thankfully because of the rain that year a lot of the matches had been cancelled, which meant Rafael Nadal was playing against Mikhail Youzhny on Court No.2! After an epic five set match Nadal won, and I was hooked.
Since then I’ve often tried to get Centre Court tickets and failed, and after seeing both Nadal vs Federer and Venus Williams vs Serena Williams in the Australian Open finals in 2017, and Djokovic vs Berdych in the ATP Tennis World Tour in 2015, I FINALLY got to Centre Court yesterday! So I thought I’d tell you a little bit more about the day…



All last week I tried to get returns and resell tickets on Ticketmaster and failed miserably, and then Scott messaged and said he had a spare ticket and did I want to go – erm, HELL YES. I’m disgustingly sick right now and have had the worst cold all week, but no way was I going to miss this opportunity after 12 years of trying to get Wimbledon Centre Court tickets!! So I stocked up with cold & flu tablets, cough sweets, hand sanitizer, and tissues in Sainsbury’s and jumped in an Uber to Wimbledon!
We arrived around 10:30am and picked up our tickets from Gate 4, then headed to the practice courts. Sadly the queue for the practice courts was around 40minutes, so we decided to skip that and head to the American Express lounge.
The Wimbledon American Express Lounge
Both Scott and I have AMEX cards (as you’ll already know if you’ve read my guide on how I earned 180,000 airmiles to pay for my First Class round-the-world ticket), but each AMEX card holder can take in a guest, so if only one of us had an AMEX card we still could have gone inside. There was a small queue for the lounge but it moved quickly, and after signing in we headed upstairs to their terrace. Naturally I wore my ‘Wimbledon green’ dress…



You do have to pay for drinks – it isn’t like an airport lounge – so we got a Pimms each and a blueberry muffin and sat by the window overlooking the balcony and smaller courts. The lounge is air-conditioned, and has loads of charging points with chargers for the three main USB types so it doesn’t matter if you forgot yours!

Pimms at Wimbledon
American Express Terrace Lounge at Wimbledon
Sue Barker at Wimbledon
American Express Lounge at Wimbledon


We were also given a complimentary mini ear-radio to listen to all of the commentary throughout the day which was actually really great! AND we saw Sue Barker on the balcony practising her lines!!
Eating at Wimbledon
We thought it would be a good idea to get some proper food before heading to Centre Court for the first match at 1pm, but as I wasn’t feeling well I didn’t want anything too heavy. There are lots of food areas dotted around, but we found the one underneath Court No.1 was the best for a good selection of different types of food. Also, on our way to get food we saw Roger Federer practising on one of the smaller outside courts!!

Roger Federer practising at Wimbledon
Anyway, I just got a sandwich, but the fish & chips looked amazing and the pizzas smelled insanely good! The only downside was the lack of seating, so we ended up perching near a flowerbed.

After my delish tuna & cucumber sandwich we wandered over to the Strawberries & Cream area opposite Centre Court. We had full intentions to just get strawberries & cream (which was a reasonable 2.50), but then we saw the Strawberry Sundae…and seeing as I haven’t been eating much this week I decided to treat myself. It was made up of strawberries, natural frozen yoghurt, strawberry sauce, and a bit of meringue, so it wasn’t tooooo calorific, but SO delicious!

Strawberry Sundae at Wimbledon


Also, you can take a picnic in if you want, it just can’t be in a hard-sided cooler bag or box, and you can’t take in opaque drinks bottles and flasks that are over 500ml.
Experiencing Wimbledon’s Centre Court
So, Centre Court!! I vividly remember my mum and I sneaking into the outside part of Centre Court and watching a bit of the action from the open doorway – we saw a glimpse of Lleyton Hewitt and got crazy excited – so it was super surreal actually sitting in Centre Court rather than peeking through the door! I really wish I got tickets myself so I could have taken my mum, but maybe next year.
Scott and I took our seats in Block 310, which was a similar view to the view Sid and I had at the Australian Open. It was great because we were able to watch the match from an amazing vantage point without having to flick our heads from side-to-side with each hit. We also had great fun playing eye-spy in the Royal Box – we spotted Camilla Parker-Bowles, aka the Duchess of Cornwall, and Shirley Bassey!

Centre Court at Wimbledon
Centre Court at Wimbledon Royal Box
Djokovic vs Goffin
The first match we saw was Djokovic vs Goffin! I’d seen Djokovic play back in 2015 and the match was just as quick, with Djokovic winning within 3 sets and just under 2 hours. The first set Goffin was way ahead and smashing Djokovic, and then in the second set it totally switched!
Centre Court at Wimbledon Djokovic vs Goffin
Centre Court at Wimbledon Djokovic vs Goffin
Centre Court at Wimbledon Djokovic vs Goffin
Centre Court at Wimbledon Djokovic vs Goffin


Federer vs Nishikori
The Federer vs Nishikori match was SO INTENSE! Omg, the entire way through the 3 sets and 3 hours it was so close the entire time – Nishikori was really incredible, but ultimately Federer just had far more stamina and Nishikori got super tired after the second set. After two insanely close sets, where we frequently thought Nishikori could actually beat Federer, in the third set Federer just started ramping things up and the final game ended within minutes!



The atmosphere was electric and although I love watching Wimbledon on TV, nothing can beat actually being there in Centre Court in person! For me, it was well worth the money and I’m hoping next year I can finally get tickets to take my mum with me!!

12/07/2022

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