Yesterday's food - pub lunch followed by curry - grrrrrreat!!

Mmmm, I'm practically salivating just thinking about yesterday's food. I met some friends at the White Hart for lunch (again) and this time had an open sandwich with roasted veg and goat's cheese. It was on a smallish slice of granary bread, with roasted peppers, onions and courgettes and an enormous slab of charred goat's cheese. The cheese wasn't as delicate as some, and it was a little too much for me, but it was good with the veg and bread. The salad on the side had a tangy mustard dressing which I liked
a lot and there were Salty Dog (if I'm not mistaken) crisps on the side. It was all for £4.95 - a great lunch, as you can see above.

In the evening two friends I hadn't seen for ages came round for supper armed with lots of red wine. At Christmas I had been given a packet of ready-measured spices to make 'prawns in a hot and sweet sauce' (spice packet made by Kitchen Guru) and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to sample it. The spices included were cumin seeds, a mix of ground coriander and cumin, amchoor (dried mango powder), red chilli powder, turmeric and garam masala. I also used some red chillis, lots of garlic, a green pepper, onions, tomato puree and fresh tomatoes, finely chopped. The curry was fairly dry, so I added a couple of tinned tomatoes near the end to give a bit more of a sauce.

I always think a really good curry needs a few accompaniments to ensure lots of flavours, or maybe it's just because I'm greedy, but I decided to cook a variation on brinjal bhaji (with a whole aubergine, onion, a few cherry tomatoes to add some colour, lots of garlic and cumin) to have as a side dish, and served the lot with brown rice (it was overcooked and I do apologise), garlic and coriander mini-naans, yoghurt and an onion salad. We all had seconds (and some of us, thirds) and I shall do my best to make a similar curry again, perhaps without the Kitchen Guru's help this time...

BTW, you can't see any rice in the photo but it was there (it wasn't so overcooked it was inedible or anything), but it was just hidden underneath the rest in the bowl, I promise.

The White Hart, 191 Drury Lane, London, WC2B 5QD

Just look at those chips! The White Hart is the Oldest Licensed Premises in London, according to the plaque above the door, not that you'd think that from the interior, especially the raised, tea-room like area with a piano at the back. The bar was heaving with people as I met my friend for a quick lunch.

We knew the double-fried chips were some of the best in London so naturally we were going to share a bowl of those - at nearly 3 quid they seem expensive but they don't stint on the portions. I was feeling the effects of a Thursday night out so, again, wanted something filling and meaty and at only £6.50 the home-made spaghetti bolognese seemed like the right option and good value for central London too. My friend chose a roast beef open sandwich with caramalised red onions on granary bread (I think) with salad and a few crisps (which had the crunch and look of Salty Dog).

When they eventually turned up, both looked great - mine was steaming gently and her beef was wonderfully rare and thickly cut. I'm always wary of ordering roast beef sarnies as the beef is so often overcooked and disappointing, but I regretted my decision when I saw her plate arrive. My bolognese was too salty and didn't have enough richness for my liking - I would have added a load of red wine to improve it somewhat, but it had plenty of veg (mushrooms and carrots), which I like in a spag bol, and tasted believably home-made. Both our plates, and the bowl of chips were as clean as could be in record time.

The White Hart is definitely worth a visit, even if it's just for the chips. Or the marinated olives - you'll get a substantial portion in a delicious dressing. The food is tasty and good value, even if it takes some time to arrive, but make sure you have condiments on your table (we didn't at first) as everything needed a load of seasoning. Just thinking about those chips is making me hungry.

Honestly, this blog is not all about crisps...

14/10/06

but it struck me last night that these are surprisingly similar to Salty Dog crisps... in fact, if I didn't know the packet was different, I would say they are exactly the same. Interesting.

Hula hoops

13/10/06

Oohhh, they're fantastic, aren't they? Especially the salt & vinegar variety. They're just so much more satisfying than your average crisp. And, as a child, I occasionally used to have 'philadelphia and little rings' - an absolutely scrumptious high-fat snack. We'd be given a third of a tub of philly and a packet of hula hoops each and stuff the golden hoops with the famous cream cheese. The days of high-fat snacks were great.

Salty Dog crisps

12/10/06

They've got a good crunch, those crisps.