Happy Birthday Grandma!

It's my Grandma's 70th birthday this coming week and to celebrate we had a big family lunch in London. We ate on the top floor of the Park Lane Hilton at the restaurant which is called Galvin at Windows. 

The hotel is located in the heart of Mayfair and is opposite Hyde Park. The restaurant has a bar attached to it as well so you can enjoy the views over drinks before sitting down to eat.

I had dinner at a sex shop

Okay it wasn't literally a sex shop, but I genuinely thought I was walking into one last night when we arrived at where my dad had booked our family dinner. And after being greeted by a skimpily dressed mannequin in the doorway I was just waiting for the maitre d to say to my dad 'sorry Sir your in the wrong place.' Luckily my dad had actually got the right address and saved both mine and my sister's embarrassment when we we shown downstairs to where the bar and restaurant are located. 

La Bodega Negra is situated in the heart of Soho, London in a converted sex shop. However unlike most restaurants it doesn't have the name written outside, simply neon lights with the words 'Girls Girls Girls', 'Adult Video' and 'Peep Show' lit up in the window. Hence my initial confusion. Bodega Negra, serves a Mexican style cuisine, more refined than your standard tacos and fajitas. 

It's tricky to describe exactly what the decor is like inside. Imagine a dimly lit, vaulted space, with every wall and detail being a piece of artwork in itself. The most incredible detail in the restaurant is what has been named the 'puppet room' and it was designed by the Shoreditch set designer - Eden. The walls are lined with the city landscaped cut out of cardboard with dolls dotted around and wooden chairs hanging from the ceiling. There's always something new to spot, including an upended grand piano. 

 The only complaint I have is that I couldn't take any really good photos due to the fact it was incredibly dark, until our waiter very kindly went and got a torch so I could at least share with you some of the delicious food, but I suppose this means you will all just have to go and check it out for yourselves. 

Onto the best part.. The food. Which was quite simply amazing. I love a good mexican and this is definitely up there with some of the best Mexican food i've eaten. 

The menu is ideally designed for sharing, not that i'm a huge fan of sharing my food but if there's enough of it I suppose this is a good way to taste a bit of everything. To start you have a huge choice, we decided to order guacamole with sesame tostados, lamb and crab tacos, prawn ceviche and some quesadillas. All of which I would highly recommend. Especially the guacamole. I love guacamole. 

For main courses both my sister and I wanted the chicken which was done with spicy chimichurri, asparagus and roast potatoes, but I was difficult and asked for it with coriander and lime rice. Oh and another side of guacamole, I told you I liked it. 

My parents went for the steak and lamb both of which looked just as yummy. 

When at a mexican restaurant you can't finish the meal with anything other than Churros. And churros with melted chilli chocolate for dipping are an exceptional end to a meal. 

Definitely worth a visit to Bodega Negra, they have amazing food and there's a really quirky atmosphere in the restaurant, certainly very different to anywhere i've eaten at before and I will without a doubt be returning.

The best ribs in the entire world

Something that has always confused me and probably will continue to baffle me is how on earth people can actually be vegetarian, especially when there are ribs in the world like the ones i'm about to introduce you to. I am a complete carnivore, I eat every type of meat and I love it as you can probably tell. 

Last night I was taken to Sam's Brasserie and Bar in Chiswick, and I experienced the best ribs I have ever tasted. They overtook the ones I ate with my best friend Imi whilst on a ski holiday in St Anton, which let me assure you were bloody good. 

Dinner in Duke of York Square

As you may have noticed by now I love food, and I especially love going out for dinner. Whilst i'm always aware what i'm eating and regularly go to the gym I think it's important to treat yourself occasionally. 

A sunny afternoon by the Serpentine

Hyde Park is without a doubt up there as one of the most beautiful areas in central London, if you're ever silly enough to doubt how incredible London is, visit this park on a sunny day and you'll soon be convinced London is the best city in the world, which it is.

I went on a little trip with my boyfriend, his brother and a friend to Hyde Park after a bit of rowing on The Serpentine we headed over to The Serpentine bar and kitchen and sat down in the afternoon sunshine for a drink and obviously some cake.

Father's Day Treat

Like me, my dad's choice of dessert is always anything revolving around toffee, caramel or treacle. (And the occasional bit of chocolate). And seeing as it was Father's Day yesterday my sister and I decided to demonstrate what wonderful daughters we are and make him his favourite dessert - Treacle Tart. 

Out for Brunch

My sister has been quite unwell recently and wanted to get out the house so we decided to go out for brunch to a small, independent, artisan bakery close to us in Surrey called Chalk Hills Bakery. 

Beautiful Watches

I am a self confessed addict when it comes to buying jewellery or any accessory for that matter. And probably when it comes to clothes in general come to think of it. So I wanted to blog about a watch or a watch company more to the point that I am currently completely in love with and my want for one of these beautiful watches is increasingly becoming a necessity.

An afternoon in Kew Gardens

My best friend Carlotta and I decided we felt like doing something different and so instead of spending our day out shopping or going out for lunch we went to explore Kew Gardens. 

We were also intending on visiting the Wetlands Centre in Chiswick, to attempt pond dipping for the first time since we were about 10, but it started raining so we decided to go home and have tea and cake instead and save tadpole fishing for another day. 

Big Easy

Having finished first year my best friend from uni, Georgia, and I are currently looking for an apartment which we're going to be sharing with our friend Harry. So we spent a very long day going between different houses and flats in the Fulham area, and by the end of the day we had finally decided on an apartment and thought we deserved a celebratory meal followed by a few drinks, so we headed over to one of my favourite restaurants - Big Easy on Kings Road. 

Date Night by the River Thames

I was taken for dinner at a cute little local restaurant near the River Thames in Chiswick, London called Annie's and I cannot recommend it enough.

It has a cosy, romantic and friendly atmosphere created by the glamourous yet homely decor. You're greeted with ornate mirrors, candles, pretty displays of flowers and rustic wooden furniture. 

If the setting wasn't already perfect the food only tops it, the cuisine is mainly British, with a hint of Mediterranean in some of the dishes.

To continue the rustic and homely feel the dishes are beautifully presented in true brasserie style on wooden boards. 

Being incredibly indecisive it took me a while to decide what I wanted to eat as everything looked so delicious, the burger looked amazing, but in the end we settled on sharing the whole chicken which came with hand cut chunky chips, salad and lemon aioli. 

Truthfully, I would happily have consumed the entire menu in one sitting. 

After finishing the entire chicken we were tempted by the renowned Sticky Toffee Pudding, which I have to say was the most delicious pudding I have ever tasted. 

I love it when restaurants give you huge portions - and this restaurant did not disappoint.
 Thankfully we'd decided to share it or I would have felt even more unwell after finishing. 

But it was definitely worth every calorie I then had to burn on the treadmill the following day and I would recommend anyone who visits Annie's to try this dessert, you will not be disappointed.

After dinner, the sun was beginning to set so we crossed over the road and walked along the river front past Oliver's Island (apparently where Oliver Cromwell hid before he was beheaded) and then settled down on the river bank for a glass of Pimms at The City Barge (a pub), as the sun set over the river.

I personally can't think of many better ways to spend a summer evening. 

A sunny lunchtime on a roof terrace

After a morning walk in the sunshine around both Green Park and Hyde Park, my friends Daisy, Georgia and I decided that we deserved a reward, whilst running through the list of places we could quench our thirst with a glass of Pimms, inappropriately early in the day and preferably somewhere in the sun, we remembered Aqua, and headed over to their roof terrace to enjoy the sunshine, views and of course the cocktails. 

Cake Pops!

As it appears that in Surrey there is nothing really to do but cook, I decided to help my sister, Georgia, make some Cake Pops.

What are Cake Pops?

They're the new craze in the baking world, and I can definitely see why. They are basically minature balls of cake on a lolly pop stick, coated in pretty much whatever you want and they are amazing!

Healthy Flapjacks

I decided to come home for the weekend, home being just outside London in Surrey.

Having finished all my work and exams for the year I was at a loss with what to fill a day in the country with, whilst sunbathing was a tempting option I soon got bored and decided to be creative and bake something yummy.

In a bid to maintain my 'Summer Body Diet' i thought I better come up with something I could justify eating quite a few of, whilst also satisfying my sweet tooth. That's where my Quinoa, Cinnamon and Raisin Flapjacks came in.

My First Blog!

So who am I?!

My name is Emma and with my first university summer ahead of me, and 4 and a half months of doing pretty much whatever I want I thought I would start a blog to write about all the adventures I embark on. 

I have just finished my first year at Kings College London, and it's fair to say I have loved pretty much every second.. Apart from the last minute essay cramming, but I suppose that's all part of the experience. 

Having lived most of my life just outside London in the fairly sheltered county of Surrey I had never really got the chance to explore all of what London has to offer, so in my first year living here I have done my best to explore as much of London as I could fit in, and not just the nightlife. 

This is going to be a lifestyle blog and will focus on what I get up to in the coming months, I will be based in-between London and Surrey and will blog about any fun activities I do or events I attend, as well as a couple of holidays to keep my tan intact. 

Hope you enjoy! 

xxx