Trick or Treat?

For some unknown reason,  I woke up at the arse of sparrows today and by 8.30 was desperate for someone to wake up and come with me for breakfast.

Luckily my mate Melissa is part Insomniac and finally got annoyed by my messages and agreed to meet. After last weeks top find in Chelsea, I figured West was Best and so did a bit of digging to find out if Shepherd's Bush has more to offer than a f#cking brilliant Caribbean take-away (Ochi in case you've been looking for a good one - as frequented by Rihanna...and me) and as I didn't fancy jerk chicken before 12, luckily I found a few good reviews about a place called Brook's Counter and Table.

Amazing that I lived in South by South West for 6 years and must have driven past this little gem at least 100,000 times without noticing it. In my defense (and not just because I am generally unconscious until 2 Starbucks Vanilla lattes), it is pretty unassuming.

But inside, it's all Treat and no Trick. Brook's Counter and Table is exactly what it says on the tin: one counter and some tables (ok and some chairs). But. Man. Oh. Man. That counter is packed with some amazing things. It's self service so you can go up to the counter and pick from the deli selection or on a Sunday from either the Breakfast or Brunch Chalk boards.

If you've ever read this Blog before you'll know that a few very simple things make me breakfast happy... must have: breakfast available all day (because today was a massive exception and usually I can't get my ass out of bed until 12 on Sundays); Eggs Benedict; great juices; great coffee and if possible a bit of imagination in the egg department and some creative alternatives to that boring old fart 'the Full English'. Well Brook's does Simple pretty damn well and completely nails every item on my wish list.

Melissa had a delicious sausage and egg towery thingy (picture does more justice to it) and I had a breakfast Tortilla (spanish styley egg, mushroom and sausage beast). I also had an apple, carrot and ginger juice as a small guilt appeasing atonement from 5 days of being fully off the wagon and quite possibly having consumed my body weight in whiskey...

So basically the Guilt reducing detox juice tipped it for me...this is a definite go back to. And it was 20 squids for 2 of us.

One final thing: if you happen to be in the Bush for a gig at O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire give Ochi a try too.

Brook's Counter and Table
140 Shepherds Bush Road
Hammersmith
London
W6 7PB
Nearest Tube: Hammersmith (a 5 minute walk from there or 10 mins from Shepherd's Bush Market or Shepherd's Bush, or the 220 Bus goes right past)
Website
How to find it

Ochi Website

Made in Chelsea

"I think it sort of says lunch, dinner and probably breakfast as well." Caggie Dunlop, Made in Chelsea

The Chelsea Bun

So after a six month lull and finally rediscovering my love of weekends, I have dusted off I ♥ Breakfast and got back on the wagon. My old friend and original I ♥ B side kick Barba Razzi was in London as a rare treat this weekend and so it seemed like as good a reason as any to go hunting for somewhere new for brunch.

Being Austrian and specific, B Razzi informed me that it needed to be somewhere near Earl's Court. Keen to avoid a greasy spoon, I figured Chelsea was our best option and so pashmina and knee high boot camouflage in place, I felt safe to head to SW10 in search of The Chelsea Bun, famous for its breakfasts and rated by Timeout as one of the best in the West for Breakfast and Brunch. Ok admittedly there was no pashmina as I don't own one, but I did polish my boots...

Two tubes and a cheeky taxi later we arrived at The Chelsea Bun. Cheap and Cheerful and just a tiny bit tacky, we opted for an outside table to enjoy the gorgeous blue sky autumn weather. Passing buses are a slight hazard and you're more likely to be ignored by the grumpy waitresses, but when blue sky dawns over London it's like swearing in Church to sit inside.

So seating sorted, what to eat then...

I'd already had a look at the website and had fallen a little bit in love with the Gourmet Breakfast Menu and one very attractive Malibu Omelet in particular. The name is misleading as you'd imagine egg whites and tofu but in reality you get a feasty, big assed combo of eggs, avo, salmon, marscapone cheese, cayenne pepper and hash browns. There are other brilliant options on the Gourmet Menu too, but the main thing that gives The Chelsea Bun a mahoosive tick in my book is the fact that they have a whole Benedict Breakfast section. Not the just usual 3 suspects but 7 different versions of my old favourite Monsieur E. Benedict. Even his Mexican cousin Tijuana Benedict makes a debut. Noice! Razzi opted for Benedict Royale. Avec Salmon.

A word of warning on the portions. They are MONUMENTAL. Great for hangovers and also suitable as a one meal replacement for breakfast, lunch and dinner but probably a killer for the petite eater. Luckily, not an affliction I suffer from...

The service is definitely a little ropey, but the plates are so gigantic that when the food arrives it's about 2 hours before you need to ask for anything anyway. And any place that can offer you more than 25 ways to enjoy eggs deserves forgiveness for hit and miss staff. Plus Breakfast is available all day. Winner. And you'll get change out of a twenty so for Chelsea pretty damn reasonable.

You're unlikely to bump into Spencer, Hugo, Francis, Caggie or Milly* here. But hey is that a bad thing?

* The hapless cast of British Reality TV show Made in Chelsea (which I may or may not be slightly addicted to)

The Chelsea Bun
Limerston Street
Chelsea
London
W10 0HP
Website
How to Get There
Nearest Tube: Sloane Square (then take the 19 or 319 bus or be a lazy ass and get an £8 taxi if you're hungry)

DIY Brunch in Bed

So I'm finally able to justify my small addiction to trashy weekly magazines...

It turns out that Grazia inlcudes a great recipe each week. Right next to the horoscope if you're interested (no prizes for guessing how I found it then). I recently found this yummy breakfast one and although I can't claim to having made it, Iain has and it's brilliant - simple and delicious. So thanks Grazia for the following recipe and apologies for the slight liberties I've take with the wording...

Grazia's Brunch in Bed
Serves 2:
Cooking time 10 minutes (if you're Iain or Grazia, if you're more like me may be a bit longer)

The gubbings:
2 Flat breads, like a wrap or large pitta bread (we use Mission Deli Multigrain Wraps - yum)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tspn sesame seeds
30g butter
A pinch smoked praprika (we just use ye olde regular kind)
8 large free-range eggs (Grazia says preferably organic Dahling)
2 tbsp milk
50g labneh (Middle Eastern creamy yoghurt cheese - see my notes below on where to find)
A sprig each of mint, coriander and continental parsley (if you're lucky from your herb garden or if like me you manage to murder herbs on a weekly basis supermarket is the way to go!)
Salt and pepper

The how:
1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C.Fan 170 degreesC/Gas Mark 5. Lightly brush the flat breads with oil, season with salt and bake for 2 minutes until crisp. Remove from the oven and break into large pieces
2. Meanwhile, heat a small frying pan and toast the sesame seeds for 1 - 2 minutes until brown. Add half the butter and the smoked praprika, and allow the butter to melt. Put the sesame butter to one side in a small bowl. Wipe the pan clean.
3. Whisk the eggs, milk and some salt and pepper together. Melt the remaining butter in the frying pan, add the eggs and stir gently over a low heat until the eggs are done the way you like them.
4. Divide the eggs between 2 warmed dishes and top each with a dollop of labneh and the herbs, drizzle over the sesame butter and serve while hot with the toasted flatbreads
5. Enjoy!
6. Fight over who is doing the dishes/ cleaning the crumbs out of bed


Notes from Beedub:

• May or may not be consumed in bed - entirely dependant on how messy you are. Remember crumbs have an amazing ability to get into uncomfortable places...
• If like us you have no clue where to find labneh and are in London - Green Valley, a fantastic Middle Eastern suppermarket off Edgeware Road has it. Otherwise I suggest you look for your nearest Lebanese or Middle East supermarket. The hunt is worth it though - it's delicious! There is also an option to make it but pre-meditating what you're going to have for breakfast 24 hours (that's how long it takes) in advance just kills the romance (not to mention the challenge of finding muslin - I ask you who actually knows where to find that?!)

My new locals - Penk's and Gail's in Queens Park

Penk's

79 Salusbury Road
London
NW6 6NH
Nearest Tube: Queens Park
Website
How to Find It

It turns out that maintaining a Blog when you have a grown up job is harder than I thought it would be. Luckily I have discovered a few absolute gems close to my new apartment and so beating Saturday sloth isn't too tough.

So having left my beloved Tinto's behind in Fulham, I spent my first month in Queen's Park scouring my new hood to find a replacement. My friends know how much of a Starbucks addict I am, but as happy I was to discover one on my doorstep, ye olde Green Mermaid is no replacement for Tinto's.

Luckily Starbucks and Sainsbury's are about the only major chains to be found on Salusbury Road. Everything else is individually owned and lovely. It's a little slice of country life that feels about as far from the crack fest of Kilburn High Road as Mars.

Penk's and Gail's are neighbours on Salusbury Road but Post Code is where the similarity ends.

Penk's describes itself as a Bistro, but it's more quirky than that. By night, it is an arty, velvet-curtained boudoir. By day, the glass doors and curtains at the front are thrown open and it becomes a light, bright cafe that could be in Paris. I've eaten breakfast, lunch and dinner there and no matter the time of day or night, the lovely owner is always there, presiding over his tiny gourmet kingdom.

It only opens for breakfast on weekend's (just as well or I think the poor man would collapse) but oh joy it serves breakfast until 1pm - which suits my lazy ass to the tee. The breakfast menu isn't massive, but there are some special treats there including - to my delight - Kedgeree!

Growning up as the african child of a Scots father who was raised in Burma, I have been fascinated but so many quintessentially colonial food traditions.  I have been desperate to try Kedgeree as long as I can remember. In case like me you aren't British, Kedgeree is a slightly bizarre but yummy spicy rice conncoction made with smoked haddock, bacon, egg, yoghurt, parsley and sultanas. As a Kedgeree virgin, I am no expert but it was lovely and a really unusual breakfast.

Iain had a good solid full english which was brilliantly cooked. Other things we could have had - pancakes, healthy mueslie bits and pieces and my standard heroes Eggs benedict, Florentine and Royale.

Oh and a Bloody Mary. Good to know for the itchy scratchy Sundays...

BTW - if you're in the area, give the 5.30 pm cocktail tasting menues a whirl.

Gail's
79 Salusbury Road
London
NW6 6NH
Nearest Tube: Queens Park
Website

Gail's is part of a slightly preteniously named chain of Artisan Bakeries, Darling. Which is fancy pants speak for a deli bakery combo. It's pretty busy on weekends so you might struggle to get a seat. If it's a nice day, my suggestion would be to grab one of their amazing sandwiches or the sundried tomato quiche or delicious gruyere pastry corner thingy and head for Queen's Park to sit in the sun.

If its a bit miz outside or you just feel like a sit down, then hustle your way to the back to find a seat. Relooking at the website writing this, I realised that there are a lot of scrummy things to eat which I missed as I had a slightly strange egg dish with the hollandaise served solid on the side (sound weird and it was!). I would definitely give it a second chance though as I have had the sandwiches a few times and they are brilliant.

* Gail's photo borrowed from the website

What do you get when you take a Hotel Lounge and add a fire place, 2 men in fuschia underpants, 3 blondes and a bottle of pink champagne?

... Brunch in Shoreditch Darling

It's been a while since I have woken up before going to bed on a Sunday, fully clothed (or totally naked depending on the context) and staggered straight to the nearest Greasy Spoon, pausing only to wash my mouth out with a swill of vodka.

Today, thankfully was no such day, having risen in a very civilised manner in the leafy suburbs of North West London.

For two of East London's more flamboyant residents however, it appeared to be exactly that sort of Sunday. A very tight pair of raspberry cord trousers, jiggling next to a very ripped pair of jeans (revealing a peak of very tight pink unders) caught our attention as we settled into leather sofas right next to the fire in the Hoxton Hotel.

We were momentarily distracted by the menu until with a shriek Ripped Jeans stripped off his skin tight black shirt, declaring it 'Filthy' before whipping it around his head ala Brokeback Mountain and hurling it into the fire next to us. Thankfully it wasn't a Primada special and didn't explode into a burst of acryllic pyrotechnics, instead favouring an elegant Poof and Fizzle. Oh and a waft of Eau de Tom Ford.

And so we met the neighbours...

Somewhere in between Eggs Benedict and Earl Grey Tea, Ripped Jean's side kick slid over and perched one of his raspberry coloured butt cheeks on the arm of our couch, waving a bottle of pink champers in our direction. It turns out Raspberry Butt Cheek (RBC) hails from Sicily with dubious business ventures in Brazil and Colombia. Who knew food import and export could be so lucrative?

At some point, in a pause between his elegant lobbing of our sugar cubes at Ripped Jeans, RBC managed to completely floor our hereto impeccable Gaydar, by desperately trying to lure Melissa to a hotel room for a shower. Thankfully the appearance of the very anxious and unimpressed looking Manager distracted him long enough for us to escape.

Truthfully in this instance, I can't tell you a tremendous amount about the food as the company was far too entertaining, but then again who needs food when in the immortal words of RBC ... 'ave you hever 'ad Tequila for breakfast?'

Clearly the man was onto something - we haven't had so much fun at breakfast in ages...

....you should try it sometime.

The Hoxton Grill @ The Hoxton Hotel
81 Great Eastern Street
London EC2A 3HUWebsite
How to Get There
Some retrospective useful info...
Full breakfast menu until 12pm, Bruch til 4pm

Talho Capixaba Delicatessen, Rio De Janeiro

Guest Writer: Marta dos Santos (Tata, Queen or Smithy)

 

So Marta. One amazing, beautiful, strong Brasilian lady who abolsutely knows how to keep me, a big crew and the occaisional  Famous Face inline. Marta was one of my travelling family for the past few years and when she is not touring with a band, she lives in glorious Rio. Finally she has been home long enough to write something for me and kick off the South of the Border section...

 

Talho Capixaba Delicatessen

 

Av. Ataulfo De Paiva

1022 - Leblon

Rio De Janeiro

+55 21 2512-8760    

 

Website  

Where to find it

 

This one is one of my favorites.

 

Low key, but very cool and a bit pricy. But for sure, worth every penny!

 

Holds 50 pax, spread along on the outside tables, 4 high chairs by the balcony where you can see you order being prepared and on the tables at the back on a quiet comfortable room.

Talho Capixaba, used to be a butcher house with special cuts of meat, until they decided to diversify and also offer all sorts of bread baked in the house, cold cuts, juices, sweets and other goodies.

 

 

My option of breakfast is a grilled cheese sandwich with sliced turkey breast, on whole wheat bread. To drink along, melon and mint leafs juice.

 

The round thing looking like a flat cup cake is a Brazilian favorite, cheese empada. A must!

The Botanist - London, Sloane Square

"Why do I drink Champagne for breakfast? Doesn't everyone?" Noel Coward

No 7 Sloane Square
London
SW1W 8EE
Nearest Tube: Sloane Square
Website
How to Get There

Starting this Blog has developed a very happy Sunday tradition of getting off my lazy ass and exploring London to find interesting places to eat Breakfast and meet up with old friends. Oh and, on the odd occasion, to throw in a small reason to celebrate with a bottle or two of champagne (like, in the words of Melissa, Beedub becoming an F Word).

Today the tradition continued with a celebration of the end of my life as the eternal bachelorette. I put Fee in charge of decision making and her unbeatable breakfast compass came  up with The Botanist. So to Sloane Square we trekked, meeting up with other Iheartbreakfast veteran supporters Barbara P and Melissa plus old friend Tams. Truth be told, I might possibly have been slightly distracted by catching up on months of news and several glasses of Champagne, but The Botanist still managed to make an impression.

Apparently, it is best known for Friday evening drinks, but their breakfast menu is respectable with a good mix of predictables and a couple of eye catchers. Personally, I think any place where the Breakfast menu starts with Bucks Fizz and rolls gently past Bloody Mary's into the food options warrants a recommendation. I managed to concentrate long enough to order the Crepe Complete (tricky one to order after two glasses of champagne). When it arrived it turned out to be a winner - a very crafty combo of eggs, bacon and Gruyere cheese served in a crepe.

Some of the girls choices - pancakes with bacon and maple syrup; the iheartbreakfast regular Eggs Benedict and porridge. All of which got the thumbs up even from Fee who carries a PhD in Pancakes. Also worth mentioning, they serve real mint tea brewed with fresh mint leaves and their machiatos come with a stirring chocolate stick.

Price wise it's not bad - sans champagne it was £20 each. Almost in the home straight for a full house Beedub tick, the only hiccup was slightly sketchy service and the fact that breakfast service stops at 11.30am. Nevertheless, if like us, you order a few bottles of bubbly you won't even notice, so all in all this is a goodie. Try it.

Also, if you're not a Fulham/ Chelsea local, the Saatchi Gallery is just round the corner and is worth popping in at, even if you can't make head or tale of 'icecream headed man shags antelope'...