Restaurant review: Caravan, Kings Cross, north London

Located in Kings Cross' Granary Square - fast becoming my favourite place in London for dinner-, Caravan is housed within an old Victorian grain store. Giving off cool industrial vibe, the restaurant offers sharing plates of good, wholesome food with a great terrace out the front. I'd only been for breakfast but as we were in the area, we decided it was time to check out the full menu for an early dinner. What a great early dinner it was!

We opted for a pizza and three sharing plates which was more than enough to leave us feeling satisfied. So for the sharing plates? We pumped for wonderfully creamy jamon and smoked san simon croquettes with a slightly garlicky saffron mayo, a fresh Burmese chicken salad with ribbons of carrots and beansprouts topped with coriander and roasted cashews before finishing off with a warm Jersey Royal potatoes, watercress and pine nuts topped with a soft boiled egg. But the star of the show was the delicious chewy pizza topped with spicy ndjuda sausage, wilted spinach and sprinkling of chilli power.

All the dishes we tried were spot on and I think the £50 we paid for the meal - including a beer and cider - was great value for the quality of the food. It's a great place to go for an early weekend dinner, the atmosphere is buzzing and although the service was a little slow, the servers were very pleasant. I can't wait to go back and try even more of the menu soon.

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Restaurant review: The Diner, Camden, north London

I have a lot of nostalgia for The Diner so was delighted to be invited to the launch of the newly refurbished Camden branch. So my BFF and I trotted down after work for a lovely sunny evening on the rooftop terrace, enjoying far too much food and a bit too many cocktails for a Wednesday evening. Confirmed when I work up the next day for work with a bit of a sore head...

So what did we try? EVERYTHING. Highlights included the bacon wrapped crispy tator tots with a delicious jalapeño dip, WTF fries consisting of french fries with shredded tangy BBQ pork, oozing cheese, crispy bacon and topped with a perfectly fried eggs and chilli flakes, boneless southern fried chicken and flavoursome buffalo chicken wings with a creamy blue cheese dip. But my favourite were the tator tots loaded with crumbled blue cheese, beef chilli, lashings of sour cream and chopped spring onions. They were incredible and I really didn't want to share.

The Diner has has a great makeover, the roof terrace really is something special looking out over all the action on the high street. It's in a superb location, just a short walk from Camden Town tube station. The menu is always so consistent and pretty reasonably priced. A great choice if you find yourself in the area for a few drinks. Thanks so much for such a great evening guys!

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The new spring menu at Cafe Rouge

When Cafe Rouge invited me over to try their new spring set menu, I couldn't say no to them could I? So I gathered my (very) pregnant friend who is now glowing for an early evening dinner to catch up on all the gossip and remark at just how we've managed to have the first baby in our group of friends. It was the perfect remedy for the Monday blues.

I'm a huge fan of fish so I had to plump for mackerel pâtè made with creamy crème fraîche and a hint of spicy horseradish. A side of pickled cucumber and a couple of slices of toasted rye and carraway bread finished the dish off. The portion size was perfect with the two slices of bread being the ideal amount to smoother on a generous layer of pâtè. My friend opted for a salty ham hock, pea and mustard terrine with a shallot and raison chutney paired with a couple of slices of toasted rye and carraway bread. It got her seal of approval from the first bite!

Still with mussels on my mind from my trip to the South of France, I went for the French classic of moules and frites. The creamy white wine sauce was absolutely delicious and perfect for dunking chips. I looked on envious at my friend's double cheese and sundried tomato tart, hoping to sneak a bite! Despite having groaning bellies we both went for dessert, determined to take one for the team. A couple of scoops of salted caramel ice cream for me and a light lemon mousse with a crunchy almond  tuile for her.

Service couldn't have been better and the menu was varied with something for both veggies and meat eaters to tuck into. Available from 12pm until close every day, it can be enjoyed any time of day. It's a great option if you're in the West End and need a quick meal before you pop to see a show. Thank you so much for having us Cafe Rouge!

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Restaurant review: The Hanoi Bike Shop, Glasgow, Scotland

Glasgow is a great foodie city, I don't think you could ever run out of places to eat. Hanoi Bike Shop, the only Vietnamese restaurant in the city, was just a ten minutes stroll from our apartment. Vietnamese is one of my favourite cuisines to eat so I knew we had to squeeze in a trip. Boy am I glad we did as it was glorious! Hanoi Bike Shop offers small sharing places, with the dishes on the menu all as locally sourced as possible and made from scratch.

We opted for some prawn crackers and a creamy peanut butter and chilli sauce to help us pursue the menu. They recommend three to four dishes per person so that's exactly what we ordered. Highlights of the meals included spicy chilli and cauliflower bites, dense sesame seed chicken livers, a flavoursome rich pheasant curry served in a clay pot and sweet honey and crispy salted duck leg. The dishes were so moreish and light with each one just as good as the previous. You really could taste the high quality of the food served with each bite. The portions were a great size for sharing plates - sometimes restaurants can be a little tight when it comes to small plates.

It was all really reasonably priced and service was attentive and informative. It was one of our foodie highlights of the trip and I'll definitely visit again if I ever find myself in the city. It reminded me once again why Vietnamese scores so highly on my tastebuds.

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Restaurant review: Yuu Kitchen, Whitechapel, east London

As soon as I looked online at the menu at Yuu Kitchen I knew I was going to take up their invitation to try their new dishes. It looked delicious! Located on Commercial Road in the East End, the Pacific Rim inspired restaurant specialises in sharing plates. The best kind of restaurant in my opinion because who doesn't like to try and sample everything on the menu?

To help stop our rumbling bellies as we pursued the menu, my BFF and I decided to order some addictive salted edamame beans and crunchy pork chicharron (pork scratchings) to wet our appetite. They were the perfect introduction to the menu and left us craving more. Our stand out items included the moreish sweet & sticky aubergine which left us desperately needing more as soon as it was finished, tender salt and pepper calamari, twice cooked pork belly bao with the perfect accompaniment of BBQ sauce and cucumber pickles and baby back ribs with a decent amount of heat, they just fell off the bone. A deep fried bao filled with creamy pistachio ice cream was such a game changer. It was probably one of the best things I have eaten in a long time. A revelation!

The menu was fun and inventive. It fully deserves its place in the London restaurant scene. We got to sit at the bar which I highly recommend. It was great fun watching the busy chefs work their magic and they were so helpful, answering any questions we had about the food. In fact all the staff couldn't be any more helpful. A Friday night very well spent - thanks so much for having us Yuu Kitchen. We had a blast!

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Restaurant review: Chick N Sours, Seven Dials, Covent Garden, Central London

Chick n Sours has been on my to-visit list for ages but like so many restaurants in London, I just had't made it round to visiting. They're popping up quicker than I can visit! But Elodie came over to London for a visit so it seemed like a great excuse to get all the girls together for a feast of chicken, laughter and gossiping. I left wondering why on earth I had left it so long to visit...

We entered to dark mood lighting - a blogger's nightmare-  and banging indie tunes, immediately putting us in a good mood. After consulting Hannah for advice as she had been before, we ordered an insane amount of food to keep us busy for the next two hours. Sadly I didn't try any of the cocktails as I'm on a budget but they're definitely on my list for next time!

Keen for all the chicken, we ordered hot crispy chicken wings covered in an addictive sweet sauce, straight up chicken tenders tossed in seaweed crack and spicy Szechuan aubergine sprinkled in sesame seeds for the token veggie dish. The chicken was succulent, the coating was deliciously crisp and the flavours were punchy. They all provided a great introduction to the menu.

As soon as I saw the K-Pop burger on the menu I was sold. Sandwiched in between a toasted brioche bun, the tender Korean chicken thigh was coasted in gochujang majo and chilli vinegar. The finishing touch was lashings of fresh Asian slaw and lettuce. It was an absolute beauty of a beast. The other dishes on the table included house fry served with unusual pickled watermelon and seaweed crack, and the guest fry coasted in a sweet and sour sour sauce with a soy pepper and pineapple garnish. A few bowls of fries and a selection of inventive dips completed the meal.

We all left nursing very full bellies and sore jaws from laughing too much. Chick n Sours was absolutely delicious and I really can't wait to go back again. The food was superb and it arrived nice and quick, leaving us with plenty of time to gossip during our two hour time slot. Make sure you book in advance and come feeling hungry. You will want to order EVERYTHING!

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