All That I'm Eating

Recipe ideas for budget meals, everyday cooking and a little indulgence. Travel inspiration and restaurant reviews too.

Vegan Afternoon Tea at Careys Manor Hotel

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careys manor hotel

This was a gifted meal.

I do love a good afternoon tea, everything about it just demands some time out to properly sit back, enjoy and relax. There have been a few occasions where I’ve slightly overindulged on the clotted cream I have to admit. I was invited to try the new vegan afternoon tea available at Careys Manor Hotel; I was really looking forward to trying it and was really curious to see the desserts most of all!

Careys Manor is just outside Brockenhurst in the New Forest so we spent the morning wandering around the Blackwater tall trees trail; a collection of some of the tallest and oldest trees in Britain. We then wandered over to the Blackwater arboretum to walk the sensory trail and see trees from all around the world. Both of which are free to get into and to park at. read more

Revisit: No 5 Bridge Street Winchester

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No 5 Bridge Street Grazing Menu

This was a gifted meal.

I do love Winchester as a city. Compact, historic, quaint and with just about everything you could need (including a fantastic tea shop) all in one place. At the bottom of the main high street there’s a subtle, unimposing restaurant called No 5 Bridge Street and we were invited for dinner. I have been before, the menu was completely different a few years ago, so I was looking forward to seeing what had changed.

Normally when I’m perusing a menu a few things will jump out at me and then I’ll whittle them down to what I will order. Not here. I wanted everything, absolutely all of it, I just couldn’t choose what to try because it all sounded so good. Fortunately the menu is designed to be a big sharing menu which helped but even then it was hard to choose which six to try first! Think of it like tapas but with plates inspired from all over the world: Japan, India, America, Britain, France and all sorts of other places. Just some of the things I picked out at first glance were: croquettas, crispy pork belly, beetroot hummus, jamon, hot smoked trout, charred leeks, stuffed courgette flowers, parsnip tart tatin, pulled beef sliders, lamb tagine, poached hake, dahl, smoked polenta, gnocchi…the list goes on and that doesn’t even include the specials. read more

The Ferry Cookham

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This was a gifted meal.

I hadn’t been to Cookham before having Sunday lunch at The Ferry a few weeks ago. In Berkshire and nestled alongside the Thames it’s a lovely village for a walk around, a nose in a few of the independent shops and finding somewhere for a drink, good food and a natter. Home to the Stanley Spencer gallery you could easily while away a morning before heading for some lunch. My top tip: get there early. Parking in Cookham is somewhat limited, there is a big car park just outside the village but if it’s a sunny day you won’t be the only one trying to park! Having said that, we did find a space after doing a couple of loops.
The Ferry Cookham has very recently been decorated along with a menu relaunch and we were invited to try out the new restaurant. With a riverside table in a bustling restaurant we settled down to look at the menu. There were plenty of wines and beers to choose from along with soft drinks; I had a Chilean Merlot (£7.55, 250ml) and the OH a local golden ale (apologies, I have forgotten the name of the brewery completely). There were several things that caught both our eyes on the menu: wagyu burger, pea and mint tart, smoky short rib of beef and battered halloumi. read more

The Newbury Tasting Menu

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This was a gifted meal.

I have to admit that I am a big fan of a ‘Tasting Menu’. An opportunity for the chef and restaurant to show off different styles, techniques and flavours; improved further if there’s matching wines to accompany it all. Also, let’s be honest, I’m a fan of anything that means I get to gorge myself on everything indulgent. I was invited to try out The Newbury Tasting Menu and was really looking forward to it; what to expect in terms of theme or style made me wonder what we would be served and yes, I was very excited about the matching wines. read more

The White Star Tavern Southampton

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This was a gifted meal.

I must start by saying that there are a few things I think everyone should know about Southampton. Firstly, it’s not just a place to get boats to and from. Secondly, it’s home to the UK’s third longest stretch of Medieval town walls (and believe me, they are pretty long). Thirdly, as a city to walk around in, there’s always something to see round every corner; from fantastic old buildings to modern architecture. Lastly, it’s home to The White Star Tavern which makes some of the most interesting food I’ve had in a while. read more

Lunch at Browns, Windsor

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Windsor Long Walk

This was a gifted meal.

I love Windsor. Partly because it’s both Windsor and, after a skip over the bridge, Eton. We went last weekend for lunch at Browns, Windsor but before we ate we had some exploring to do. As a compact town there’s plenty of wandering around shops that can be accomplished in no time at all but we opted for grabbing a drink and promenading up the Long Walk. On a frosty morning, looking back at Windsor Castle with a warm coffee in hand it was really rather beautiful.

Browns itself is in a great location overlooking the river. After ascertaining where the restaurant was we took a walk down said river and saw all the swans, geese and ducks. It sounds twee and somewhat romantic but I really don’t like geese, or swans. They honk. As you walk up the river you pass by some quite remarkable, if not small, landmarks. The first of which is the many-arched railway bridge. If you walk forwards through the arches you can carry on up the river, turn left you’ll end up at the brewery and just behind you is a life sized replica of a Hurricane plane. Turn back around and you can walk back to the restaurant through Alexandra Gardens; all that in just a morning. read more

Burley Manor – An Autumn Weekend Escape

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Burley Manor entrance

This was a gifted stay and meal.

A night away is a real treat; one where you have gone far enough that you’re away from home but not so far that you get bored of driving. The New Forest is much closer to me than I had previously realised (how I’ve not recognised this before is quite astounding) and a great place to get away from the hustle and bustle of day to day life so I was really looking forward to a stay at Burley Manor.

The hotel

Based in Burley, in the New Forest, Burley Manor is a wonderful, big old house that has been transformed into a modern hotel. There have been some new bits added so there are more rooms but as they are no taller than one story and red brick like the main house you don’t even notice they’re new. Throughout the lounges, dining room and conservatory (and most of the rooms too) you have an uninterrupted view of the beautiful New Forest countryside; which when we arrived was straight out of a Countryfile calendar complete with deer and everything. read more

Bar Centro Gothenburg

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First and foremost I must start by telling you that all the food in Gothenburg is really rather good. My top tip is to make sure you eat out with as many people as possible so you can nick food off their plate to try everything. Luckily we were travelling in a pack of four (the OH, his sister and her husband, and me of course). We ate out for almost every meal and whether you are in a coffee shop with some excellent kanelbullar, an Italian deli (Fratelli Gridelli) which makes just three pasta dishes (all of which were incredible) or a restaurant with a view (Gothia Towers I’m thinking of you) they know what they’re doing. The meal which stood out the most for me was the one we had on the first night at Bar Centro. Coffee shop by day, bar and tapas by night. read more

The Junction Windsor

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This was a gifted meal.

I do like a day out in Windsor. It’s such a compact city with Windsor Castle sitting right in the middle, beautiful parks and meadows for walking in and Eton perched on the end. We timed it just right on our last visit to see the changing of the guards; it was about as British as it gets and it was lovely to see. Lunch was planned at The Junction which opened earlier this year; I’d checked out the menu before we arrived and was looking forward to eating a bit of autumn. read more

Stop The World Cafe, Leigh-on-Sea

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This was a gifted meal.

I have already mentioned that Leigh-on-Sea is a fantastic town with a seemingly never ending road of independent shops, bars and eateries. We’d already spent hours wandering around; first down to the old town with fresh fish for sale in charming sheds and stalls then back to the top of the town for a nose round the shops. We are notorious for rushing round places and seeing everything within the first hour then wondering what to do next. Not in Leigh-on-Sea, we were entertained for hours. And then it was time for lunch in the beautifully charming Stop The World Cafe. read more

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