Day 5 Holland Park part 2
Trip Start
Feb 05, 2010
1
20
90
Trip End
Feb 17, 2010
London, England, United Kingdom
Friday, April 9, 2010
London Day 2
We took it easy getting up and about. I had to fight the urge to get out of bed at 4.30 which seems to be the time I wake up no matter what city and time zone I am in. After considerable effort I went back to sleep until 8.30.
We had a civilised breakfast of omelet with capsicum, feta and shallot on toasted 'fagel', and coffee made from one of those gizmo coffee capsule machines. That was much easier than driving the one we have back home.
After revving up on caffeine, we made haste to the Westfield which is about a half hour walk away. This was to meet with Andrew whose office is in the complex. Quite an appropriate address, as this Westfield has some of the most expensive designer shops you will ever find, therefore, ‘Net-a-Porter’ is in good company.
While we wait for an appropriate time to invite Andrew down for lunch we indulge in a bit of industrial espionage at the grocery store, Waitrose. They are aiming for an up-market foodie image by recruiting two famous food people, Delia Smith and Hesten Blumenthal. One is ‘the nation’s favourite cook’ the other is ‘Britain’s top chef’. Sounds familiar, Maggie and Simon?
Our observation of the shelves of products is that labeling is important- it should be able to be clearly identified and read from a distance- I wonder how to achieve that with our products and all the information they have to hold.
The curry paste brand that commands the most meters of shelf space is Barts. They also have their own label of fish sauce, palm sugar, prepared garlic and shredded ginger and galangal etc. I’d say it is not worth trying to tempt Waitrose with a better tasting product because they have everything ‘just so’ as it is.
After checking that out, Andrew Mum and ate lunch at a Malaysian restaurant. Beef rending, roti, salad and dhal not terribly exciting. Andrew will have to come to Mamak next time he is in Sydney to try a better type of Malaysian.
We relinquish our hold on Andrew so he can go back to facilitating the conspicuous consumption of men and women the world over. While he does his part for the global economic upturn, we buy essentials- a hair brush for mum and sim cars for my phone.
After realizing that my phone has lockjaw and won’t talk to anyone while it is so far from home, I buy a lurid little pink number for £19.99 which includes £10 credit. That should last me from here to Istanbul, I’d say.
After that Nicole and Ruben meet us back here and we walk around Holland Park to keep him asleep. It worked wonders and he continued his slumbers back here…just until our dinner time. Anyway, he was good company when he awoke and he enjoyed a guided tour of all the mirrors in this house. Then he saw the chandelier!
Tomorrow we will leave Nicole and Mum to their own devices. Ruben-worshipping is probably going to feature high on their list of things to do.
Andrew and I will schlep off to Kew Gardens to catch sight of bluebells if we are lucky. If not we will have to satisfy ourselves with a curdled milk filled cake. Yum….
Read on:
Look out, too, for local specialities, like the sweet yeasted Sally Lunn cake at The Sally Lunn Shop, 4 North Parade Passage, Bath, or the quintessential Bakewell tart at Bloomers, Matlock Street, Bakewell, Derbyshire. Generally, the further north you go, the better the baking; test the truth of this by sampling the home-baked cakes in the tearooms attached to most National Trust properties. The snag with most of these places will not be the cake or comfort side of the equation, but the coffee.
Finest and most curious of all our native cakes are the Maids of Honour at Newens, 288 Kew Road, Kew Gardens. Here the coffee is reasonable and the room in the English Cosy style, while the cakes are excellent. Unshowy Madeira cakes, sponge cakes and Congress tarts are made to the same recipes as those used by the original owner whose sepia, knickerbockered image hangs above the shop counter. The Maids of Honour are a Tudor survival, puff pastry tartlets with a curd cheese filling made from milk curdled with rennet, and quite delicious.
Comments
Looks like great weather, thanks for keeping us up to date. Big effort sleeping in until 8.30. Kayak on the Thames?
E and I have been busy too. Last night rushed home after work, then we charged off to Frank's 21st in Camden. Love that M5 on a Friday night, and first time without a GPS. Found something called a map but was not sure what to do with it. Seemed to be a different page for every 100 metres, and it didn't speak to me after I had opened it up. And waited. Perhaps it could not find the satellite, but it stubbornly refused to give directions as I wondered what all the lines on the page meant. Nearly ended up in Canberra, which would have been quite a shock for J. Then after a couple of hours there, drove back, dropped E and went to Danielle and Andrew's 80th (2X40ths) at Cruise in the city. Arrived at 11pm, which is really making a late entrance. Now football today and speedway tonight to watch Frank do a few laps. So stick that up your Holland Park and Kew Gardens. In a nice way. G
Oh my goodness! I completely forgot about the sat nav being in my possession! Maps can be such a pain, can't they. Especially when you end up in the wrong place and there is nobody to swear at except yourself. Have the best time at the raceway- remember to wear a dust mask!
Love the photos! That curdled milk filled cake sounds deliicous! And when you mentioned the roti and the beef rendang, my mouth watered :)