To make space in my ever growing wardrobe I will be trying to find lovely new homes for some of my favourite pieces and have created a new section on the blog- Stella's Shop! If you are interested in any item drop me an email at stellalexandra@aol.com!
Wednesday 28 November 2012
Stella's Shop!
To make space in my ever growing wardrobe I will be trying to find lovely new homes for some of my favourite pieces and have created a new section on the blog- Stella's Shop! If you are interested in any item drop me an email at stellalexandra@aol.com!
Monday 26 November 2012
Saturday 24 November 2012
Columbia Road Flower Market
Far from being a secret anymore Columbia Road has becoming a bit of a place to be on a sunday morning or in my case afternoon (after all sundays are for sleeping in right?!). This because every sunday from 8 am onwards this little street in the heart of Hackney gets transformed into a wonderful flower market. Its not only the beautiful flowers and hugely entertaining traders that rather enthusiasitally and loudly try and flog their good and go down with their prices as the day goes on ( for a real bargain come around 2) but the great people watching that can be done here. Full of colourful character of all ages and surrounded by orchids and roses its a great place to have a walk around and has become a firm part of my sunday wonder around town!
Thursday 22 November 2012
Barrafina
Another week another review as Hunger Magazine's food critic around town! Below a little taster of the review that you can read in full here!
It’s not always about the latest restaurant opening when it comes to finding a new eating out gem for me, after all the restaurants that have kept their popularity after the initial opening hype have shown that it is the food and atmosphere that keeps the people coming back and not the latest food trend. At Barrafina this is definitely the case with queues stretching out of the brightly lit, tightly squeezed room where one of the few seats around the bar is in high demand any day of the week, its reputation making it one of the best regarded tapas joints London has to offer. I have always been a little dubious about the Spanish cuisine mainly as I’ve always perceived it as particularly meat heavy so was more than ready to be disproven by Barrafina. The interior immediately transported me into a warmer climate and even whilst in the queue (and I can almost guarantee that you will indeed have to queue) you can already get absorbed by the buzzing atmosphere and varied crowd in the room. Service can be a little rough; after all there are no waiters on the other side of the counter but chefs preparing your tortillas to order in front of you, but that all adds to the very authentic charm of Barrafina. Little touches like the typical glass bottles in which the water is served to the fresh sea food on display make this a modern, sophisticated yet also incredibly welcoming take on tapas..........
It’s not always about the latest restaurant opening when it comes to finding a new eating out gem for me, after all the restaurants that have kept their popularity after the initial opening hype have shown that it is the food and atmosphere that keeps the people coming back and not the latest food trend. At Barrafina this is definitely the case with queues stretching out of the brightly lit, tightly squeezed room where one of the few seats around the bar is in high demand any day of the week, its reputation making it one of the best regarded tapas joints London has to offer. I have always been a little dubious about the Spanish cuisine mainly as I’ve always perceived it as particularly meat heavy so was more than ready to be disproven by Barrafina. The interior immediately transported me into a warmer climate and even whilst in the queue (and I can almost guarantee that you will indeed have to queue) you can already get absorbed by the buzzing atmosphere and varied crowd in the room. Service can be a little rough; after all there are no waiters on the other side of the counter but chefs preparing your tortillas to order in front of you, but that all adds to the very authentic charm of Barrafina. Little touches like the typical glass bottles in which the water is served to the fresh sea food on display make this a modern, sophisticated yet also incredibly welcoming take on tapas..........
Wednesday 21 November 2012
Monday 19 November 2012
See-Through
Hat- Topshop
Blazer- Topshop
Clutch- Klear Klutch
Necklace- Topshop
Trousers- Topshop
Shoes- Margiela for H&M
Friday 16 November 2012
Caravan Kings Cross
From this week I will be reviewing the newest and best restaurants around London for the Hunger Magazine website! This my first piece which you can also read here!
Once upon a time fusion was the culinary "it" word in the restaurant scene, every chef it seemed trying to mix flavours and national cuisines so despertately that it more often than not saw results that were overwhelming in their premise ( and length of menu description) and underwhelming in their flavour. This is why I was a little apprehensive when I first studied Caravan's menu online which seemed full of dishes I had never heard of and mixing rather intriguing ingredients and textures from different countries through a list small plates. However Caravan had won my approval before I had even tasted the first mouthful. Here the location it is in and the carefully designed interior added as much to the overall dinning experience as the food for and has made it one of the most enjoyable dining environments I have eaten in . Walking up to the restaurant from Kings Cross station, it being another great addition in the regeneration programme that has seen another favourite of mine the Filling Station open up in this previously rather desolate and industrial area, I was greeted by a stunning light and water installation outside the restaurant and couldn't help but take a few snaps of the great contrast it created with the railway station as backdrop. This attention to detail is continued inside. Residing in a old grain refinery, Caravan has struck just the right balance between barren and slightly industrial yet also refined and welcoming and the whole atmosphere made it place you could spent hours in chatting, eating and watching people. After my little tangent about the interior the food is of course a crucial (although as I think not only) in judging a restaurant so when it came to ordering me and my friend chose adventurously, trying to sample as many of the unfamiliar dishes as possible. Of course some of these were more successful than others in my eyes, favourites were the grits with girolles and truffle oil and the cornbread with chipotle butter, while others were rather small considering pricing or lacked that certain wow factor that their description on paper promised. However as a whole as someone that eats out a lot I enjoyed being faced with unknown and challenging flavour combinations ( another dish for example contained a rather delicious mix of smoked trout, curry mayonnaise and french beans) and although it is a bit too pricey to make it a weekly haunt of mine I would definitely come back to celebrate a special occasion or to give my taste buds an occasional work out.
Once upon a time fusion was the culinary "it" word in the restaurant scene, every chef it seemed trying to mix flavours and national cuisines so despertately that it more often than not saw results that were overwhelming in their premise ( and length of menu description) and underwhelming in their flavour. This is why I was a little apprehensive when I first studied Caravan's menu online which seemed full of dishes I had never heard of and mixing rather intriguing ingredients and textures from different countries through a list small plates. However Caravan had won my approval before I had even tasted the first mouthful. Here the location it is in and the carefully designed interior added as much to the overall dinning experience as the food for and has made it one of the most enjoyable dining environments I have eaten in . Walking up to the restaurant from Kings Cross station, it being another great addition in the regeneration programme that has seen another favourite of mine the Filling Station open up in this previously rather desolate and industrial area, I was greeted by a stunning light and water installation outside the restaurant and couldn't help but take a few snaps of the great contrast it created with the railway station as backdrop. This attention to detail is continued inside. Residing in a old grain refinery, Caravan has struck just the right balance between barren and slightly industrial yet also refined and welcoming and the whole atmosphere made it place you could spent hours in chatting, eating and watching people. After my little tangent about the interior the food is of course a crucial (although as I think not only) in judging a restaurant so when it came to ordering me and my friend chose adventurously, trying to sample as many of the unfamiliar dishes as possible. Of course some of these were more successful than others in my eyes, favourites were the grits with girolles and truffle oil and the cornbread with chipotle butter, while others were rather small considering pricing or lacked that certain wow factor that their description on paper promised. However as a whole as someone that eats out a lot I enjoyed being faced with unknown and challenging flavour combinations ( another dish for example contained a rather delicious mix of smoked trout, curry mayonnaise and french beans) and although it is a bit too pricey to make it a weekly haunt of mine I would definitely come back to celebrate a special occasion or to give my taste buds an occasional work out.
Thursday 15 November 2012
Abeno Too
I have
always been a big fan of the Japanese cuisine. Growing up near Duesseldorf,
which rather curiously has the third largest Japanese community in Europe, I
was from a very young age exposed to authentic and high quality Japansese restaurants where the majority of diners were Japanese and no
concessions in terms of recipes and flavours were made for people that weren’t.
This has made eating Japanese in London a little difficult for me. I have
always been a big fan of a good ramen noodle soup and although we seem to be at
the beginning of a bit of a ramen revolution ( lots of ramen bars seem to be popping up around Soho at the moment) until now I have not had one that has
come even close to ones I have happily slurped down in Duesseldorf, sadly often
adopted to suit English palettes. Sushi is another problematic area. Generally
speaking I have yet to find an amazing and affordable sushi bar and have for
now on a student budget given up on discovering and devouring great sushi in London. Of course
there are places making amazing sushi and
receiving rave reviews for doing so but these, particularly Sushi of
Shirori and Sushi Tetsu, although on my to try list will probably remain there
until a special occasion like a birthday can justify me spending £50 plus just on rice with fish on top (although in
these cases most likely some very good fish).
For these reasons up until now I have never been compelled to feature
a Japanese restaurant but after a friend told me about a Japanese dish called
Okonomiyaki that one could apparently try cheaply and well made at Abeno Too, a
short stroll from China Town, I was more than up for trying some Japanese
cusine after such a long time! Okonomiyaki is for those of you that don’t know
a kind of savoury pancake/omlette that can be filled with various ingredients,
all mixed in a batter and then grilled right in front of you on a special iron
plate also known as teppanyaki. Once grilled to perfection the okonomiyaki is
then topped with konomiyaki sauce (similar to Worcester sauce but thicker and sweeter), seaweed flakes, bonito
flakes, Japanese mayonnaise,
and pickled ginger with the mayo and konomiyaki
sauce left by your side to add as you go along. As many of you know I am a bit
of a condiment fiend so all these strong yet complimentary toppings and sauces
with the ability to add more to your heart's content gained Abeno Too instant brownie points. Of course
watching the waiters mix up and grill your okonomiyaki is also a rather fun spectacle and highlights how
freshly prepared everything is here which might mean you don’t instantly get
your food but that you are really part of the whole cooking process here. On
the two occasions I have been so far and which will definitely not be the last
I went for the prawn okonomiyaki but there is an almost limitless number of variations
one can have, whether you want steak,tofu or pork in yours Abeno Too will
happily oblige. I also tried some other Japanese classics like Gyoza and Yaki
Soba which were, although not the best I have had, solid and authentic attempts,
of course here the okonmiyaki the real star of the show. Tasty, fresh,
authentic and not breaking the bank Abeno Too has finally answered some of my
prayers for good Japanese food in London and is definetly somewhere to try if you
fancy something a bit different. I will however of course not quitegive up
on my quest for good ramen and inexpensive sushi so keep your eyes peeled!
Cinnamon & coffee ice cream layered with coffee jelly
Matcha ice cream
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