Tim & Parisa: Saturday morning(ish) brunch at The Electric Brasserie in Notting Hill, right smack in the middle of the Portobello Market.
(BTW, to all of you who have written me while I’m abroad - I will respond to each and every one of you…I just have to wait until I’m back so that I’m not a rude constantly-in-front-of-computer guest. Thanks for understanding :) xo.)
Woke up this morning to find this in my inbox: a little present from Stephen, Dave, Kendrick & Lucy (that’s Dave on the left). Miss you guys too!!!
British taxis make me smile like this.
I suppose now would be a good time to discuss the little gaffes, cultural and otherwise, that have caused me to turn a deep pink over the past few days.
First, I discovered within four hours of arriving that one does not request a “to-go bag” in London; you finish your meal, or you don’t. I asked to “have the rest wrapped up” during our first meal out (at The Oak), and the waiter sort of smiled at me and walked away. Parisa later explained that he likely was totally confused by my request, because nobody ever has anything “wrapped up.” That makes sense, I suppose, given that portions here are much smaller.
Second, I have managed to have near-death experiences every single time I have attempted to cross the road, due to the whole “driving-on-the-other-side-of-the-street” thing. I was actually hit by a car the first time I visited London, when I was 16 - I went shooting out into the street to hail a taxicab and looked the wrong way, and was promptly struck by another cab (I rolled off the roof and went flying up in the air, but was totally fine). Parisa guides me around like a small child whenever we take walks.
After dinner at The Botanist, with (from left) Alex, Emma & Parisa.
The Botanist
Pigeon appetizer
Tim: “Look natural.”
So “naturally” I pulled out my very best Zoolander.
At TopShop, I briefly debated buying one of the two minidresses pictured above, but ultimately decided that they’re a little too Pretty Woman for my taste, if you get my drift. I ended up buying a floral crop top and a black sequined bralet (because every woman needs one of those). Which I guess means I went the Pretty Woman route after all.
Update: I’ve gotten about a billion emails (including one from Julia and two from my mom) saying that I should buy this dress. It’s about $50. Should I?
My lunch at Borough Market: a pork belly and applesauce “butty” and the biggest meringue I have ever seen in my life. I chose the butty because a) I had no idea what a “butty” was, but desperately wanted to order one, if only to giggle like a five-year-old when I said “butty,” and b) because it had the longest line of any stand in the market, which is usually a good sign. It was good good good good good…fatty, salty meat mixed with sweet, crunchy rinds and perfectly textured applesauce inside a soft, super-fresh roll.
I chose the meringue because it was described to me as being “squidgy” inside. And yep, that pretty much described it: the inside was hollowed out, and the walls were smeared with a sweet white pudding. Now bursting at the seams, I wandered off towards TopShop on Bond Street.
At this very friendly man’s stand, I tried strong cow’s milk cheese topped with a spoonful of quince jelly. My very first time tasting quince, and most certainly not my last.
Quince jelly, by the way, is made from the hard yellow fruit of the same name. Quince looks a bit like a pear and is too tart to eat raw, but turns sweet and pink when cooked.
For some interesting quince-based recipes, go here.
Around 1:40, I arrived at Borough Market absolutely ravenous, and was immediately tempted by these enormous pots of curry. Even though I don’t really like curry, I just thought they looked spectacular (my mind, however, was made up for me when the nice man pictured above handed me a spoonful to taste and I just about choked from the spiciness. Smile, pass.)
The coolest thing about Borough Market is that it’s very interactive - multiple people came up to me and gave unsolicited (but very welcome) opinions on what I should have (the venison burger, curry, and meat pies were repeatedly suggested).
