I LOVE going to London on business trips, looooooooove it! It's a great chance to see friends and visit my favorite restaurants, and we always manage to bring the sunshine! After 19 straight days of torrential rain, the sun came out on the day we landed, and I was hopeful that it was a good sign of a great week to come!
We stayed at Fraser Place for the first day, near Hyde Park. It's a neat place for long and short stays (£200 nett for a one bedroom apartment, although if you stay longer the daily rate is less), with functional one or two bedroom apartments a stones throw away from some great sights.
If you want to fit in a great load of sightseeing in one hour, pull on some running shoes and head to a park, any park! Since we arrived at our accommodation at 8am, that's exactly what I did, and it beats running Bowen Road x 1,000.
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| My running tour of Hyde Park: Kensington Palace - William and Kate's future residence. Shadow art display at The Serpentine. Royal Albert Hall and a big red bus. Lounge chairs by the Round Pond |
After a quick shower, we made a last minute booking at Bar Boulud at the Mandarin Oriental, in the vicinity of Harrods and Harvey Nics. They make a mean burger, as was evident by the number of burgers coming out of the kitchen! You have a choice of four, including a "Yankee" burger, as well as pulled pork and other options.
Bar Boulud is a chain of restaurants originating in the USA, opened by Michelin-starred celebrity chef Daniel Boulud. Now, this French American Bistro doesn't pretend to compete with Mr. Blumethal's gig upstairs, but instead is a casual place to have a nice meal with excellent service.
Their "Prix Fixe" set lunch menu is surprisingly good value at £23, and the portions were quite generous - I could have shared one menu with my mum.
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| Bar Boulud's Olive Bread. Lunch menu: Rocket Salad with mozzarella and a trio of aioli, tomato and tepanade toasts. Whole bone-in Pan-Fried Sole with Brown Butter Sauce. The Yankee Burger with a side of french fries. Lunch menu: Grilled Plaice with Creamy Polenta and Basil. The AMAZING dessert with the Prix Fixe menu, and free macaroons because they took our fries away before we were finished! |
Hong Kong Mother's Day fell on that Sunday, so we treated our mum to our favorite Italian in Notting Hill - Osteria Basilico. I called from HK in advance to secure a table on street level. On a sunny day with light streaming through the windows, it's much nicer than the dark yet still cozy basement level. We love this place for it's non-fussy, straight-forward and scrumptious food, not to mention at a great price.
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| Fresh selection at the Antipasto Buffet (only one visit) - £8.50. I practiced my piling skills from back in the old days (Four words: Pizza Hut Salad Bar), and this was more than enough for three of us to share as a start. |
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| Veal Milanese with rocket, artichoke and cherry tomatoes - £18.50. This dish was the only disappointment that I have encountered at Osterio, the meal was bashed way too thin, it was dry and completely uneventful. |
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| Fresh fettuccine, veal and rosemary ragout - £12.50. A mild and meaty sauce, one of my favorites. |
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Pasta special: Linguini with beef and mushroom ragout and truffle oil $12.50. The meat sauce was so flavorful, rich and tasty! A heavier option than the veal ragout, and the truffle oil aroma was a bit overpowering for my brother (mind you, he's a fussy eater)
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Hong Kong Mother's Day fell on that Sunday, so we treated our mum to our favorite Italian in Notting Hill - Osteria Basilico. I called from HK in advance to secure a table on street level. On a sunny day with light streaming through the windows, it's much nicer than the dark yet still cozy basement level. We love this place for it's non-fussy, straight-forward and scrumptious food, not to mention at a great price.
