Hi-atus.

This is a slightly unceremonious/unexpected return!

As you've probably noticed, I'm a terribly neglectful, especially when it comes to blogging. Hopefully I will have rectified this unsavoury character trait when I hit motherhood, otherwise my poor children will be left in supermarkets, wedged between the weirdly clinical cheese counter and a basket of that oddly unfresh but 'freshly baked' bread. 

Anyway, I haven't been around for a while and didn't think I'd be that bothered, or care much at all, but weirdly I do. So here I am. Only I have no idea what I'm going to be blogging about since I'm pretty sure I disqualified myself from food journalism after realising how much Mcdonalds meant to me and how I find 'spensive food tasty but ultimately unfulfilling. 

It's going to be an interesting ride, peeps! 

In the words of Julia Roberts' character in Notting Hill (which, by the way was a shitty film):

'... I'm just a girl, standing in front of the blogosphere, asking it to love her'

x

p.s. I did a double take when I checked my stats and there appear to be an influx of Latvian visitors who have actually read my previous posts. Thank you for giving a shit and I sincerely hope it wasn't a mistake/you'll return because I think Latvia is very cool and um, yes. 

Love ‘n’ Stuff!!! ♥

Aw, we look so happy and shiny! :)

As you may well know (yeah I’ve mentioned this on FB etc), my dearest friend Angela, took me to see Iron Maiden at the O2 which was super amazing and cool.

However, this post isn’t going to be about how awesome Iron Maiden were (if you’d like to know, just ask and I will wave my camera/photos at you like a woman possessed) but rather, I just wanted to say a massive THANK YOU to my best bud because it was a wonderfully lovely gesture and I had heaps o’ fun!

It also reminded of how great it is to be the recipient of some lovin’ especially when Angela told me about passing the love on to others.  So let’s lead by example and pass on the hearts and sparkles :D

I think the saddest thing is when we (and I am DEFINITELY a culprit) start taking our loved ones for granted so I’m trying to make a conscious effort to show my appreciation for the awesome people I spend my life with. 

RAWR. 

♥

Camera Backlog and Other Magic.

I've finally had time to go through the ole' camera and dig out some nice food snaps from this summer. It's going to be like show and tell, yay! :D 

Righty, so here goes:

OREO BROWNIES. 

Not too impressed with the excess light but they were super yummy and I swear that anything + chunks of Oreo = a good thing. Oreos make me super nostalgic too, I remember when I was in junior school and they weren't in supermarkets so I used to ask my poor mother to go specialist food places to get me my Oreo fix :)

Chrysanthemum Tea Jellies!! 

They are absolutely adorable, and we made them in these cutesy molds. I was totally gooey when I saw them...

Stockpiling Reese's 


BECAUSE THEY'RE SO YUMMYANDADDICTIVE. And because my mum spoils me. Hah.

Eating raspberries in Bloomsbury after taking part in that feature for The Times :)

Home-made macarons sandwiched with Nutella and peanut butter.


...yummy :D

BABY TOMATOES. 


We're growing them in our garden at the moment and they are adorbs.


p.s. I've been asked what camera I use and it's a Nikon Coolpix L120. I bought it as a bit of an exam stress impulse buy but it is one of the coolest things I own. It's super useful and sturdy, fits in my hobbit hands and wasn't expensive at all. (I'm not getting paid by Nikon to advertise btw, but it's just SO AWESOME). 

UPDATES ON LIFE AND STUFF.

So...*rubs hands together with glee*


There is some new stuff going down so here's a mini round up. Let's start with the most exciting of all (to me anyway, heh).


1. The BF. Omgz yeah, my bf is like WELL nice and everyfink. Seriously though, he's everything that is nice and perfect and good in the world. Also he laughs at my lame jokes, which can never be a bad thing. Har har har. ♥


2. I'm going to be in The Times Good University Guide supplement for this academic year :D They did an interview with me (about what clothes I like/my style/where I like to shop...Hoo boi!) and a mini-photoshoot, so keep your peepers out for that - will let you all know when it comes out, so you can giggle at my awkward camera face....


3. I've finally finished all my internships for this summer which is lovely and awesome. I had great fun, met loads of awesome people *big wave to the peeps* and learnt CRAZY amounts about the profession I hope to join :) I still have a couple of interviews coming up, so cross your fingers and toes that they all go ticketyboo :D


That is IT for now, I will be posting uber-soon. Also major apologies for not posting regularly, 6 weeks of hardcore interning means that Renie has very little time to write :(

Fit.

This whole not buying stuff thing…

Has failed. Miserably.

I tried, I really did, but then I went on and bought new heels, flats, Scholl Pescuras (BUT THEY’RE SO GOOD FOR YOU AND LIMITED EDITION TOO!), cute silk blouses, Valentino scarves and things from Aquascutum which I tried to pass off as workwear and heaps of other things.

Luckily Part B of the plan, i.e. the bit that consists of me giving stuff away is in FULL SWING. I haven’t had a chance to package up everything but I am part way through and it’s looking good. Also I’ve been doing research on capsule wardrobe management, so I’m feeling optimistic. Being super organised is SO lovely and satisfying. *Nadal fist pump*

Anyway, onto the real shizzle…one thing that I have picked up on is the fact that I’ve bought SO MUCH CRAP that simply does not fit. It didn’t fit properly when I bought it, it doesn’t fit now and it will probably never ever fit, unless I fork out loads for a tailor to sort it out and I am not prepared to do that, because I’ll end up penniless and peddling my body for money to fix my clothes. All slightly pointless.

I don’t know why, but I’ve managed to go through life buying things that just aren’t right for me. I’ll do it once, vow never to do it again and before I know it, I’ll find myself saying ‘YES PLEASE’ to a pair of size 5 heels even though:

A) Renie cannot walk in heels properly without dying

b)    B) I'm a size 4 and will never be a size 5 because I’m pretty sure I’ve stopped growing

I am clearly quite a big moron when it comes to buying stuff. I’ve improved – the less rational me once bought a yellow coat because according to Urban Outfitters it was the ‘OMGZMUSTHAVEOFTHESEASON’ even though it made me look like Paddington Bear’s Chinese Counterpart, but I’m nowhere near the other bloggers who seem to get this capsule shit right.

Usually I’m not buying things in the right size because I’m in denial about my blubberous body, but rather they just don’t have my size so I’ll just buy it in a different one, because y’know, that’s what smart kids do.

I’d like to say it’s because I really appreciate the craftsmanship and want to buy it anyway so I can admire the bits of fabric and ornamental details some poor sod’s had to clobber together, but usually it’s just because I want it and am ok with shelling out for second rate stuff that doesn’t fit me. Which frankly, is absolutely retarded.

Talking to my friends, both boys and girls – this affliction doesn’t target a specific sex, y’know, most people seem to be guilty of it to some extent but really, it doesn’t make sense.

Surely if something doesn’t fit well and doesn’t make you look awesome because it is just not your size, you’d be better off NOT having it, rather than having it so tight you actually cannot breathe and look like a strangled sausage…or on the other hand, having something so baggy you look like a wooden spoon in a pillowcase.

One of my friends has the best test for clothes shopping which I constantly try to use every time I feel I am falling off the wagon. According to her ‘if this shit doesn’t make you look good and feel good, then why are you paying for it?’

I’m pretty sure everyone knows what makes them look good or not/whether it’s actually comfortable and you don’t feel like you’re being wedgified or like you’re lost in an ocean of fabric.

So let’s not settle for shitty, ill-fitting stuff, because no one wants to look like a they’re stuck in a fuchsia straitjacket or a wooden spoon in a pillowcase.  Unless of course, you’re into that sort of thing, in which case…don’t let me get in your way ;)

The Click

In one of my extended phone conversations with a friend, we suddenly wandered onto the topic of ‘clicking.’ By this, I’m referring to what is it that means you get on so well with some yet not at all with others.

This then made me re-assess my relationships with many of my close friends. I can see why I get on so well with some – mutual connections, a love of fashion, good food, obscure films, a similarly surreal sense of humour, the list goes on….but at the same time, my friend Elliott just get on well because we both have the amazing ability to make the other person laugh heaps (Seriously, I end up with tears in my eyes and gasping for air like a dying fish).

Maybe whatever it is that sparked our friendships has little or nothing to do with the fact that we have or don’t have things in common and more to do with the initial spark, the initial ‘click’ that made us both think that it would be worth the effort and bother to learn more about the other person.

Sometimes, for me at least, it’s a shared experience. I met one of my friends at a MUN conference (NERDS FOREVER!) and weirdly enough, I still remember which countries we were delegates for (I was the UK and he was Belgium). I remember finding him intellectually intimidating at the time and feeling slightly inferior but to me now, that feels stupid. This isn’t because he isn’t as intellectually fierce as he was then, it’s just that when you bother to break that connection and get to learn more about the other person, you realise that you’re both pretty much made of the same stuff.

Whatever it is that sparks off any sort of relationship, there’s a certain degree of risk taking involved. Are you willing to invest time/effort and in some cases, money to get to know this other person, a potential someone? One thing I’ve found as I’ve grown older is that I’m far more willing to invest my time and energy in relationships with other people, despite the fact that I probably have more to do and less free time at any other point in my life.

Additionally, my ‘friendship’ standards have changed. Previously in my senior school days, any potential friends would be vetted – the clique they were part of, the school that they went to, the way they dressed, talked and their mannerisms all determined whether they’d make it onto my list of buddies or not. Looking back now, I’ve realised that my narrow approach meant that I’d missed out on getting to know a bunch of people I’d probably enjoy the company of. These days, I don’t have a ‘type.’ Provided we can spend a sufficient amount of time together without wanting to set fire to each other and make each other laugh/gigglesnort, there are strictly no criteria.

So maybe this whole ‘clicking’ thing and friendship analysis isn’t important at all. Perhaps what IS more important is mutual respect, not being bothered about artificial social limitations (does anyone really care about who’s ‘cooler?’) and just wanting to let your hair down, going crazy and having a truckload of fun. ♥

Declutterama: THE CHALLENGE

Desperately trying to wish the crap away and failing.

Hi, my name is Renie and I have a LOT OF STUFF. 

When I say ‘stuff,’ I'm referring to the mountains of unworn clothes, untouched books and unused gadgets that live in my room, invades my life on a daily basis and that seem to follow me around everywhere in a bizarre Hansel and Gretel trail of doom.

I finally realised today why my room is never really tidy or neat like other people’s rooms, despite the fact that I feel like I’m constantly putting stuff back to where it should be, re-arranging piles, sifting through things and sorting them out. It’s nothing to do with me not making an effort; it’s just that there is TOO MUCH. OF EVERYTHING.

I can think of a gazillion things in my wardrobe I've bought on a whim and have never touched (for good reason too…they’re totally minging!) A perfect example of this is a Marc Jacobs cardigan I bought a while back which honestly makes me look a bit like that purple dude who used to hang out with Ronald Mcdonald but got axed because he was a criminal and Mcdonalds figured that glamorising crime wasn’t cool. I’m pretty sure it wouldn't look good on anyone unless they were around 6 feet tall and a size 6. I am never going to fit this criteria and I don’t even know what was going through my MIND when I bought it. Actually, on second thoughts, I think I do. I was probably thinking something along the lines of: ‘OMG IT’S MARC JACOBS, I LOVE MARC JACOBS, I LOVE CARDIGANS AND I LOVE PURPLE. BUY BUY BUY, OH WOW BARGAIN, MEGA BARGAIN!!’ 

There is no-one to blame but me for the fact that I have too much of everything. I’m a rampant, obsessive shopaholic. My friends know it, my family know it. Renie just loves to buy things.  But now I’m almost slightly scared because my constant buying and craving of stuff is defining me as a person and I don’t think I’m entirely comfortable with that.

I guess I had a wakeup call coming. A close friend who I have known since forever told me that she thought I had 'spending problems' and that all I ever really talked about nowadays was that new bag/those new shoes/that new coat I really desperately wanted. She also pointed out that I was just as fun when I used to hang around in battered jeans and stupid t-shirts and thought that Proenza Schouler and Margiela were Italian cheeses/potential STIs and didn't freak out over things like labels and Italian craftsmanship. Owch. 

I knew that she didn't mean it in a horrible way but the truth hurts. I'm pretty sure I'm never going to revert back to the old jeans and t-shirt Renie and I don't want to either. But it has made me realise that I need to curb the mad spending and focus on the important stuff. I've gotten to the point where I'm spending for the sake of it and I'm pretty sure no one actually needs fifty t-shirts, piles of denim, or enough pairs of shoes to crush/spike someone to death. I don’t even really like denim. 

So anyway, the big plan is to declutter – by this I mean ACTUALLY REMOVING STUFF and giving it away to charity, friends and whoever wants it and not buying any more clothes, shoes or accessories for the rest of the year. Eek. 

It’s going to be a crazy experience and the withdrawal symptoms aren’t going to be pretty but it’s really probably for the best before I end up like Billie Jean James, a lovely old lady in America who was a compulsive hoarder and was crushed to death by her own stuff. Yowzers. 

P.S. I’ve just told my mother who a) burst out laughing with scepticism and still hasn’t stopped b) told me to sober up and stop drinking whatever I’m drinking. Encouraging stuff!

What Renie ate...in Dublin!

So, I had promised to visit a good friend of mine in Dublin before I started uni...second year was over and I figured I should stick to what I said and booked myself a 'rail and sail' ticket (basically training to Holyhead and then getting the ferry to Dublin Port...but railing and sailing sounds so much cooler).


I learned a few things on the short journey to Dublin:


1. I am unable to count train carriages and this can have serious consequences e.g. the train separating and you being on the wrong bit


2. I am bad on ferries. By 'bad' I mean I have to sprawl over a whole table and wail to myself in order to stop myself from emptying the contents of my stomach everywhere. 


3. Playing House of the Dead II (which by the way, is totally old skool) does not make my being sea sick any better. It makes things worse. Much worse. 


4. Being out of the city is totally ok. Wales is nice. Sheep are nice. Castles and scary empty bays with real shipwrecks are very cool.

Luckily I got there in one piece and had a fabulous couple of days and even made it back without injuring myself or anyone else, victory pour moi! Anyway, onto the interesting bits...


Burgers at Bobo's 

The interior

Bobo's Cheeseburger and Rosemary Salt Fries

...And now for the close up!

According to Time Out, Bobo's do the best burgers in the whole of Dublin. They tell no lies. They use fresh, locally sourced beef and make them into possibly the yummiest burgers I've ever had (I may be speaking too soon though as I'm going to #Meateasy on Monday, heh!). The rosemary salt fries were pretty excellent too. Now every time I have fries, I want rosemary...Bobo's what have you done to me?! 

Cake and Coffee at Keogh's 

This was the ultimate pick me up after I got into the city! My friend took me to an adorable café near the tourism office (which by the way, is in a super nice building) and after a latte and a huge slab of chocolate cake served with a ginormous cloud of thick, cocoa dusted cream, I was back on my feet and ready to take on the world/crash, sit around and eat even more.

This photo makes me paw hungrily at the screen and want cake

The Farm

We figured that we should have a big, blow out dinner before I left and we were all in the mood for some place nice. The only problem was that we hadn't booked, it was a Friday night and Renie is a little bit picky. I vetoed a couple of places, including Dunne & Crescenzi - (the menu was boring) but then we stumbled across The Farm, which is all cutesy and organic and the menu and reasonable prices = major wins!

Also they had outdoor seats with blankets and little pictures of farm animals tiled on the walls - macabre but also adorable! My initial plan was to go all out and have three courses. I managed two. This either suggests that I have a tiny, pathetic appetite or that the portions were huge. We all know the former isn't true, so here are the photos to prove the latter. 

We had...potato and leek soup, which was delicious and fresh, cottage pie and the real star of the show was the roast organic loin of pork which was marinated in garlic and stuffed with butternut squash, sage and onion. They served it on a mini mountain of creamy herbed mashed potato.  

Crazy good milkshakes at Shakes

I'm kinda familiar with milkshake bars now because they have been EVERYWHERE since forever. That doesn't stop me from getting horrendously excited whenever I see one, especially when a) it's all cutesy inside and b) the proprietor is super nice.

I'm usually a Reece's Pieces kinda girl but then I saw the VIP shakes...I ended up with 'Monkey Business,' which consisted of my fav - Nutella, vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, fresh banana which was all topped with whipped cream and a Flake. I'm pretty sure I'd gone over my RDA of fat/sugar but it was definitely worth it. 

 So...that's what I ate, there will be more in part II! :D

Balfour, Bloomsbury

We went to Balfour in Bloomsbury for lunch and a catch up/goodbye to one of my friends who is returning to Germany this week. It's such an adorable restaurant - in a lovely, not too busy part of London. The weather was pretty awesome too, so perfect for alfresco dining!

I seriously love independent restaurants like the Balfour - the menu was eclectic and crazy, and we managed to identify French, Italian, English and Spanish dishes on the menu despite the fact that it markets itself as an Italian. We unadventurously all went for the Chicken Milanese which was huge and came with loads of spaghetti in a light tomato sauce and salad with the yummiest dressing ever.

Dessert was amazing, I'm a massive panna cotta fan and when I saw a coconut version on the menu I pounced. Unfortunately, we couldn't taste any coconut at all but we weren't too bothered because the raspberry coulis was delish.


We also had wine and Sangria which was reasonably priced and lovely. Seriously recommend a visit, especially when it's sunny out!

PANNA COTTA FOREVER. 

Arbutus, Frith Street and SNOG.

We’d been planning on paying Arbutus a visit for some time, having been to Will Smith and Anthony Demetre’s other joint ventures, Les Deux Salons and Wild Honey so post exam celebrations provided us with the perfect opportunity to sample what was on offer at the Michelin starred establishment. I stupidly forgot to book, but we were lucky enough to get a small table opposite the bar which was perfect for watching the barman making cocktails and watching people come and go.

I started with a haddock and squid burger – essentially a lightly fried patty of oily, rich haddock and tender squid which was intensely infused with lemongrass and coriander. Dressed with razor clam chunks and a light pea and mint sauce, it was the perfect way to start the meal. Arbutus change their menu every day but variations of the seafood burger are a staple on the menu and it’s pretty obvious why.

Roast piece of beef, caramelised onion purée, roast beetroot and THE GRATIN

Our mains were similarly yummy. I went for the fillet of roast beef which was perfectly cooked and was still slightly drippy when cut open and was served with baby root vegetables. I have to credit Arbutus with making me like beetroot again after years of not ever touching the stuff. It also came with a little cast iron pan of the most sublime potato gratin I have ever eaten. Yi-Bin had the cod, which was apparently superb.

Icelandic cod, roast sweet onions, Swiss chard, tomato relish

We skipped dessert because I’d been craving Snog since the start of exams. I was slightly disappointed to find that they no longer offered pomegranate seeds as a topping and that their new passion fruit flavour was a bit rubbish – too sour and totally lacking in flavour. Instead we had adzuki bean paste and blackberries on green tea frozen yoghurt which was a slightly odd but yummy combination. We also sampled their new passion fruit flavour but it was really sour and ugh. Sticking to the green tea for now. 

           

Garlic & Shots: TAKE II

Ooh-er.

They have finally redeemed themselves! I decided to be generous (haha) and give them another chance because I’m nice and everything was pretty much perfect.

We shared the garlic bread and mushrooms which were weirdly cold and came with an odd yellow garlic mayo type dip, but it was pretty nice all the same. We also tried the honey and garlic ribs which were amazing. It was smothered in a syrupy, sticky garlic infused coating which was just perfect. It was served with perfectly crisp potato skins and a baked head of garlic (I managed half before actually seeing cartoon green garlic fumes everywhere) and coleslaw on a huge platter. Sharn had the garlic pasta which was apparently very yummy. 

Portions were HUGE. I’m pretty sure the ribs were meant to be for two, but I demolished pretty much all of it anyway because my food baby needed feeding up post exams. Service was fab, our waiter was amazing despite being the only one working on a busy night and I’ll be returning for definite – no sign of ‘Burger King’ lady. Hurrah! :)

DON'T TOUCH STATION FOOD. EVER.

Ok, so I rarely go on long train journeys. This is because I am evil and like to ruin the environment by zooming around in an air borne vehicle, watching the plants and small creatures of the world slowly waste away, as CO2 and all sorts of nasty chemicals billow out from the exhaust pipes of the plane (wait, do planes even have exhaust pipes?!)

I jest. I just dislike the idea of being trapped in a metal box, bumping along the ground until I get to wherever it is because being in a metal box hurtling through the air is SO MUCH MORE EXCITING. I love that weird ‘holiday’ feeling you get, even when you’re really not going on holiday anywhere and you’re about to have a mini-heart attack because you can’t remember whether you’ve locked the door/remembered to pack your socks.  I also like the whole ritualistic safety procedure thing the flight attendants do. I always stare attentively because I am overly afraid of the plane crashing and feel hugely sorry for them because only nice people and those terrified of plane tragedies seem to be listening.

Another thing which makes me prefer air travel is the fact that the food is just less crappy. And even when it is a crappy, sloppy mess you can totally pretend that it’s free and when it’s served to you by a reasonably attractive and friendly flight attendant with a huge smile it somehow makes it a less miserable meal. Cool.

With trains you have the weird buffet cart/canteen/café/death pit thing which I have never ventured into but by the sounds of it, is probably a carriage at the end of the train with plastic tables and chairs, smelling of stale coffee grinds and time-hardened cardboard sandwiches circa 1996.  This leaves the resourceful traveller with very few other options – one of them being buying food at the actual station itself.

This would be fine if the food here wasn’t also so abysmal and expensive that it makes you want to put your head in your hands, weep and wonder what you’ve done in your past life to deserve this mistreatment. There are the same old chains everywhere which I wouldn’t even care about if the stuff they served was semi-edible. I found myself in the unfortunate position of being desperately hungry and stuck in Euston Station (something I seriously do not recommend).

Having no choice but to go to some horrendously lame sandwich chain, I bought myself a regular latte which was the size of those weird tubes you put urine samples in and a mini-baguette the colour of NEON with some unidentifiable mulch in it. I think it was supposed to be a crazy breakfast bonanza but the more I looked at it, the more I wanted to cry. It was the first time I’d ever eaten something I couldn’t identify – I could see egg, cheese (cheese, who on earth has cheese for breakfast, are you CRAZY!?) and the rest was UFM (unidentifiable food-ish matter). Even the identifiable bits were bad. The egg tasted like it had been whipped up from powder and water, World War II style and the cheese was plastic and limp, like it had been in a terrible and violent bar brawl and lost.

I think my latte was ok but I was so worked up and craving the sweet rush of caffeine I think I was beyond caring. Next time I am doing what the smart guy sitting opposite me was doing – loading up with a bag of goodies from M & S because I swear, if I have to eat food from that place or a similar hell hole again I will go crazy and start chewing on other passengers like one of those zombies in 28 days later.

I’ve just realised I’ve reviewed a sandwich joint in a train station. Being on a long train journey has made me sink to an all time low. I’ll be doing the buffet cart next. 

Zurich and Tibits! ♥

For those who I haven't already bored to death with details from my saunter in Zurich last December, CLICK HERE to read my piece on the Tibits Website! 

Also, I finally got round to taking a trip to Tibits in Heddon Street, Mayfair last month and it was just perfect. I seriously recommend the classics - their baked vanilla cheesecake and signature green bean salad are just to die for and their new additions are pretty awesome too. 

My current favourites are the pepper tofu and cucumber salad and the kiwi, mint and ginger lemonade - also it's great place for al fresco dining now the weather's getting better ♥

p.s. Would like to thank Anina for making a nice lunch even better! :)

Group photo at the Tibits Anniversary Party!

Dinner for one.

Probably running away from yet another bad dinner date. 

Ok, so I’ve had lunch by myself a few times – a quick dash to Pret or grabbing a cardboard sandwich mess from the uni café but never a full blown, sit down dinner. I suppose to me, having dinner out is more than just eating. To me, dinner out means catching up with friends, bonding and just spending quality time with people I genuinely care about. In most cases, food usually comes second to the people I'm eating with, to the point where sometimes I’m either totally unbothered by crap food or I’ll just quickly mention to that it’s bad/good/really good and return to the main conversation.

Anyway, against this backdrop of thinking, I found myself in the awkward position of being all dressed up and having nowhere to go.  I figured it was the perfect opportunity to do something I had wanted to for quite a while…dinner date myself.

According to my friend Chris, you are your best date. This makes perfect sense – you know what you like/don’t like, you’re unlikely to start up banal conversation and in all honesty, you probably know that you’re relatively fun to hang out with in the first place. This made me think back to all the times when I’d been stuck with someone at a restaurant, alternating between planning a Great Escape-esque exit plan and desperately wishing that the floor would develop into a huge black hole and suck me into vast and infinite nothingness. I suppose I could at least guarantee that wasn’t going to be happening this evening.  

So, with my companion sorted, it was time to figure out where the hell I was going. I’d been wandering around peering into various places when I spotted a man sitting at the front by himself with a huge cheeseboard. This then made me realise that I wanted to be like the man with the huge cheeseboard and have no one to interrupt me while I got my kicks from munching through mounds of unpasteurised dairy and in the process, potentially contracting Listeria like the hardcore risk taking rebel I am.

Anyway, after darting into potential cheese heaven, I finally got to say what I’d been wanting to all along – asking for a table for one. I’ve been told that when you’re a girl asking for a table for one it usually garners one of two reactions. This is either an inquisitive, slightly confused look as the maitre d’ wonders whether they’ve misheard or a look of sympathy as they assume there’s a bad reason as to why you’re engaging in lonesome dining. I got neither.

In the Russian roulette world of table service, I had hit a definite jackpot. The service was in short, totally awesome and in fact, better than if I had been with someone- I was able to summon a waiter with just a quick glance. I think dining alone is also a pretty good way of reviewing restaurants. Your experience as a solitary diner really says a lot about the level of service in a restaurant. I’ve heard stories from friends of being pushed into the darkest, deepest depths of the restaurant and getting crappy service due to being alone. Not here though - I was given a table for two, right by the huge stained glass window.

I also found myself actually caring about what I was eating. When you’re engaging in heated conversation with someone, you don’t really get an opportunity to sit back and appreciate the presentation and execution of what you’re presented with. Another plus is that you can tone down table manners and just focus purely enjoying the food, as opposed to freaking out over whether you’re conducting yourself improperly. It also means going totally WILD and ordering two starters/mains/desserts, dabbling in everything, hogging the whole table and just having a relaxed dinner. It’s an oddly liberating experience and the perfect opportunity to indulge in some one on one time, be totally selfish and focus solely on you having a fab evening. There are no worries about whether other people are having a good time, no obligation to entertain and no awkward ‘what next?’ especially at the end of dinner dates.

So those are the positives. I won’t lie; there are a few not-so-great things about solo dining. Maybe I’m just overly into the social element of dining but I really missed the companionship element. I’m totally fine with spending time by myself but I do think it is possible to OD on Renie-time.

Also I seriously lucked out with my first ever solo dining experience. I’ve heard from (mostly female) friends that it can bring with a whole host of problems. Unwanted male attention from idiots who think they’re doing you a favour, too much table service because they feel sorry for you, feeling like the desperately lonely batty cat lady while staring at loved up couples, being over-charged and too afraid to deal with it, dealing with odd looks from waiting staff and other diners or just being treated like crap because you’re a woman dining alone and they assume you’re a loser who was unable to get a date/you don’t have friends/you won’t complain about bad service.

There’s also another gender divide when it comes to what people think about solo dining. Most of my male friends are totally unbothered about going it alone and finding it relaxing/therapeutic and it’s a regular, completely normal occurrence for them. Less so with the girls.

Maybe it’s because girls are expected to be taken out to dinner by interesting male companions – the dinner date concept is central to dating these days and it’s impossible to get through the early stages of a relationship without the obligatory dressing up and going out for dinner at some trendy wherever, complete with playing footsie under the table, gooey staring and the awkward over the table hand holding.  Or maybe it’s because girls are meant to come in a gaggle – a bunch of girls getting together for dinner, drinking cocktails and discussing the hottest new club/men/fashion/gossip (we need to thank Sex and the City for this). Maybe it’s a combination of both or maybe it’s neither.

Hey, maybe we should just not care and be totally comfortable with who we are and extend this to spoiling ourselves, not giving a toss about what waiters/other diners think and just celebrating our own awesomeness over a full blown, multi-course orgy of gourmet decadence? Yes. 


Mini-update: For those asking, I dined at Bibendum. Seriously recommend! :) 

Starbucks, I love you but…

Make mine a soya skinny venti hazelnut coffee frapp with cream and an extra shot, please

Like many others, I am in the unfortunate position of being stuck in a bizarre love/hate relationship with Starbucks so I figured it was time to take a deep breath, air our differences and embark on some much needed relationship counselling to sort out our problems.

Ok, so let’s start with the good:

You have brought me so much joy. We hang out together loads, you’re reliable, consistent and you play weird but calming ethnic-y-meets-jazz-meets-blues type music while I’m reading stuff for tutorials. You’re always there with a comforting latte when I’m having a bad day or a double espresso when I am on the verge of an examstressrevisionoverload mental breakdown. You have been tolerant of my incredible neediness and whinging. I have been tolerant of the fact that you are seriously expensive to be in a relationship with and a bit on/off with the quality of your coffee.

You have given me that amazing piece of plastic that is my Starbucks card which entitles me to more of your love and you spoil me ENDLESSLY with free shots, syrup, soya, cream and wifi. In short, you treat me like a total princess and I am pretty sure that if you were a real person, things would be working out GREAT between us (most of the time anyway).

However I am now going to have to focus on the bad because there are some things you do which really get on my (coffee) beans and we need to talk before our relationship goes awry, mister.

1. Why do you have to put those massive jars of waffles and cookies in front of the counter!? You know I have serious hand-eye co-ordination problems and it’s already quite hard for me to swipe my card (which you constantly encourage me to use by giving me rewards) without dislocating my shoulder because of the funny angle at which you place your machines.

Adding extra obstacles in the form of huge-ass glass jars is NOT helping the situation. Also, I end up feeling like an incompetent fool when the kindly barista behind the counter has no choice but to swipe for me. You don’t make this easy for them either –whenever they have to reach around the assault course that is the counter to help me swipe, it reminds me of an octopus tentacle cautiously wending its way around plants on the seabed, afraid of disturbing the little creatures living in the sea foliage. WHY?!

2. Your food is atrocious. Other than your delectable blueberry cheesecake which is like heaven on earth times a gazillion squared, your food is laughably bad. Well, I’d be laughing if I didn’t spend virtually ALL MY FREE TIME round at your place eating your lame food because I’m too lazy to get it elsewhere. I swear your menu has hardly changed since we first started out other than the occasional, uninspired seasonal add on. Don’t get me wrong, I love cheese and marmite and I love the fact that you have all the desperately boring/standard stuff but seriously, get creative with food and innovate otherwise I’m going to have a filthy, passionate affair with Pret and THEN you’ll be sorry.

3. STOP TRYING SO HARD. Seriously, you’re really cool and I really dig the fact that you’re taking advantage of your global dominance and making an effort to be helpful and stuff but come on now. Stop trying to shove the ‘Fairtrade/Charity/Aren’t I good?’ thing in my face. Yes, it’s nice and great that you have a CSR programme and that you do a lot for charity. It’s also fantastic that you’re all Fairtrade now, but making out you’re saving the world, bean by bean? Shut your face and just give me my latte.

4. You’re so samey. I know you’re a chain and you want to be comfortingly samey same-same everywhere you are but I think it would be cool if you let your customers/baristas have a small say when it comes to interior décor. 

Here’s a suggestion: Instead of using the same blandgraphicminimalistshape crap a bunch of randoms from a creative design team have crafted to hypnotise people into buying more of your crazy coffee beans, how about using some local artwork? I’m not suggesting that you fill your coffee houses with awkward, badly proportioned oil paintings of nekkid ladies and Tabby the cat done by the local WI but there are a LOT of super cool, up and coming artists around in major cities and it wouldn’t hurt to maybe showcase some of their work, would it? Plus if you’re so into the whole ‘using my superpowers for good’ thing (which by the way, I find totally hot) surely you could give it a try? Just sayin’

5. Toffee Nut Latte is for life, not just for Christmas. Only you, Starbs, could be enough of a tease to create one of the most tear-inducingly yummy drinks in the whole entire world and then totally screw me over by making it only available during the seasonal period. I’d be totally cool with that normally but when you let the people across the pond have TNL ALL YEAR ROUND, it’s just not fair. I love slowly licking those little toffee sprinkles off the foamy cream top. Sometimes, it’s the highlight of my day, you hear me?!

On the other hand, you probably can’t deal with the fact that I:

1.       Make picky, headache inducing orders which don’t make sense (soy with cream, skinny with cream…hey I just like cream, ok?!)

2.       Have to order things extra hot and demand that things are stirred for me (I’m a delicate flower and stirring is complicated and dangerous)

3.       Get all angst ridden when you run out of soy (lactose intolerance, blame my ancestry)

4.       Am clumsy and often scald myself/spill stuff everywhere/generally break your shops because I have problems with coffee-in-hand walking/life in general (I’m so sorry, will you still love me? Please?)

I know I’m moany and complain a lot, and you’re not perfect either but we’ve had a pretty good run, stayed totally loyal to one another (that time at Pret was a one off and I swear it was totally physical and meant nothing to me).

I’m pretty sure there are at least a few more years left in our relationship. That’s if you consider my suggestions and start getting your act together. Plus I love you enough to give you a cutesy ole nickname and that’s a sign of HEFTY COMMITMENT, Starbs.