An Instagram restaurant round up

Sometimes I head out to eat and forget my camera or take my camera and the lighting is rubbish. So I use my handy old phone - thank god for iPhones eh? The picture quality isn't the greatest but sometimes you've gotta live in the moment and just snap a quick picture eh? Sometimes it's a bit of a chore to eat cold food after photographing it 50 times at different angles. It seems a shame not to write about them so here are a few mini reviews of the restaurants I've enjoyed lately.


Pix
Over the Bank Holiday weekend a few friends and I decided to take advantage of infinity Sunday at tapas restaurant Pix. For around £37 - including service charge - we had 90 minutes of unlimited cava and pintxos. Pintxos are typically eaten in the Basque region in Northern Spain in bars. They're typically served on bread with a cocktail stick through the middle to hold it all together. Now I've never had the real deal yet but these were absolutely delicious. My favourites were serrano ham on tomato toast,  four cheese fritter, meatballs in a tomato sauce and chorizo with manchego cheese. I was really impressed at how attentive they were despite it being ultimately a self-service restaurant - all of the pintxos are situated at the bar. The price really couldn't be beaten and with my greedy friends, we definitely got our money worth. It was a fantastic way to celebrate Bank Holiday weekend.


Tony's Pie and Mash
As much as I love going out for a fancy meal and trying new cuisines, sometimes you just can't beat some childhood comfort food. The East End/ Essex favourite of pie, Mash and liquor isn't pretty or going to win any awards for being the most nutritious meal on the market. But there's something special about it. It reminds me of my childhood and whenever I tuck in, I can't help to be transported back to being a young child with my granddad as he tucked into his favourite meal. With lashings of vinegar, these mince meat pies with mash potato drowning in liquor sauce can't be beaten. Tony's is pretty famous in these parts, David Beckham for one is a frequent visiter among other well known people. At only 20 minutes away we really should make more of an effort to visit more.


Pan De Vie
I was lucky enough to be invited along to the launch night of a new Asian fusion bakery in Covent Garden. It combines European baking and patisserie methods with exotic Asian flavours such as matcha and green tea. I hasn't tried any Asian cakes or bakes so was pretty excited to try my first ones. I loved the addictive Japanese cheesecake and the green tea and white chocolate tart - a great combination of flavours that really complimented each other. It's a great place to go if you fancy a sweet treat that is a little out of the ordinary.


Voodoo Rays
Buying a pizza by a slice is still a novelty in London, those darn New Yorkers have everything. This pizza joints offers massive 22 inch pizzas sold by slice priced at just £4 each. Hannah and I decided to head to the Boxpark branch after I accidentally took her to the wrong part of town for a press event. Smooth. The pizza isn't the best I've had in London but it was good. I loved the thin crispy base, generous toppings and the portion was massive. It's a great place to stop off if you're in Shoreditch area for a quick bite to eat after a night out - it's open until 3am on a Saturday night.


Shackfuyu
After trying every other restaurant in the Bonedaddies group, it was left for me to tick Shackfuyu off the list. We all went out for Michelle's birthday when she got back from Hong Kong so obviously we decided to go all out. It's definitely not cheap but it's worth the money. The stand out dish for me was the Korean chicken wings. I just couldn't get enough - they were so incredibly moorish! I could have eat portion after portion. Make sure you order the famous Kinako French toast with green tea soft serve ice cream.
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OOTD: Black and white gingham skirt





Outfit:
Light wash denim jacket: Primark (similar)
Black sleeveless roll next body: ASOS
Black and white gingham midi skirt: Topshop (similar)
Black and navy quilted pointed pumps: Primark (similar)
Poppy red Lily: Mulberry

The sun finally arrived last weekend eh? After snow, hail and rain over the last few weeks, I didn't think the sun was going to put its hat on at all this year. In celebration of the warm weather I decided to get my pasty pins out for the first time this year. Those lucky people of Walthamstow. This is one of my fail safe summer outfit. A light cotton midi skirt, body and denim jacket. Job done. It's so easy to pop on and keeps me nice and cool. This denim jacket will be worn to death over the common months. Fingers crossed this nice weather to continue although I have heard some nasty rumours of thunderstorms. Sort it out Mother Nature!


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Review: Eat 17, Walthamstow, east London


Like I mentioned in my Walthamstow post, we sampled brunch at Eat 17 last weekend. Eat 17 had been on my radar for a while but we just never got round to ticking it off the list. We have been venturing towards central London for brunch recently but after battling the crowds every day on the tube for work, I want to leave that all behind at the weekend. So east London it was. Somewhere we could drive and not have someone else's sweaty armpit in our faces.




Being the greedy little piggies that we are, we wanted to try everything on the menu. But, in the end we settled for three to share. I know, we showed so much restraint didn't we? One of the surprise favourites was the Walthamstow rarebit on toast. We only plumped for this because we didn't want any more eggs but what a great spontaneous decision it was. With oodles of gooey, melted cheese, dollops of Worcester sauce and a slightly spicy mustard after taste, the delicious dish hit the spot.

Next up was the Lincolnshire sausage sandwich with their own onion jam. Served in a sweet brioche roll, the chunky sausages were on top of a generous layer of onion jam - not too dissimilar to a chutney. The sausages were flavoursome and cooked with perfection. Offering a perfect crunch!

Finally it was time for the homemade baked beans with chorizo and a poached egg on top. I'm not really a fan of baked beans if I'm perfectly honest but being the dutiful girlfriend I am, I let this one through because my boyfriend is. But boy this completely threw a curveball into the mix. Full of butterbeans and kidney beans in a sweet tomato sauce, it was a revelation. The chorizo helped to add a much needed kick to the dish - such a good combination.



After hearing so much about Eat 17, it was so lovely to see that it lived up to the hype. It has a solid brunch menu - traditional favourites with their own little twist. The portions are great value for money and just the right size. I think the bill came to around £35 which isn't too bad at all for three meals, a coffee and a diet coke. The atmosphere is lovely, the staff are very attentive and it's in a wonderful location. Definitely put it on your list if you're ever in Walthamstow or even plan a trip east especially. You won't be disappointed!

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A Essex based lifestyle blogger who lives a champagne life on a lemonade purse!

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sophie.warner89@yahoo.co.uk.

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