Profil von peterbjones

Excellent burritos and filling too. I played safe and chose the chicken although the carnitas (seasoned pork braised for 8 hours) were recommended to me before I found out they hadn’t brought that option to the Qype summer party.

For a reasonable £5 I think I’ll have to try that option at Unit 110 The Canal Market, Camden High Street!

With a fine selection of excellent draft beers, pints of prawns and native, or Irish rock, oysters The Westbridge Public House and Dining Rooms certainly has all that is necessary for a most pleasant evening. The staff are friendly the atmosphere relaxed although you do feel as if you are surrounded by knowledgeable people enjoying the best things in life..

When we asked Charlie, the owner, why you should only eat oysters in months with an “R” in them, the explanation was that the breeding season is over summer and for various reasons the eating quality declines somewhat. I’m far from being an expert on oysters, but I felt I was in expert hands and had a first class oyster experience.

Unfortunately I failed to sample the 6.8% Duvel on tap which was getting rave reviews, so next time I am in the Battersea area I’ll be popping in to find out why.

One small point to note if you are visiting for the first time is that the Qype map indicates the location is on Albert Bridge Road, when it is in fact slightly to the West, but not too far away, on Battersea Bridge Road!

It’s all about the product as far as I’m concerned and the pint I had at the end of our tour was excellent. I understand that the Wandle cask ale is a “session” ale in that it is light enough to drink many pints in a session. It certainly tasted good enough for me to want another - although I didn’t have the cheek to ask for a second.

Not being an experienced brewer it is difficult for me to comment on the brewery compared to others, as I guess that the small number of other London brewers are equally passionate about their product. Having said that, Duncan Sambrook certainly came across as passionate and committed to the future of Sambrook’s Brewery and I can only wish them every success.

I’ll certainly be tasting more if I visit a London pub where it is stocked.

Waterstones, on Gower Street, is certainly a very good book shop as can be expected with it being next to one of the London University campuses. It is housed in a huge, characterful, building and is arranged over several floors.

However, to me it feels somewhat dated in its design, possibly due to the limitations imposed by the building. It feels a bit like stepping back in retail time by about 20 years. If you like exploring the range of books available in such a place this probably doesn’t matter, but to me it felt undesirable to spend too much time in there.

Overall a good book store despite the somewhat dated retail experience.

The Lyceum is a great Sam Smiths pub on the North side of Waterloo bridge. It’s wood panelled and quite cosy. I think the downstairs area is best as there are some little booths with built in tables that are good for small groups to chat in and offer some privacy. There is a medium sized bar there too.

The upstairs is less characterful, although they do take food orders. I think this ends around 7:00pm.

The drinks are reasonably priced considering the pubs central location just on the edge of London’s West End. Overall a reasonably priced pleasant place to meet for a drink with friends.

Stanstead Airport is one of the airports used by low cost carriers, such as Ryan Air, because it is cheaper to use for airlines as the landing and taking off slots cost less. It functions fine as an airport, but is nothing special.

One disadvantage is its distance from London. It takes about an hour to get there by coach. I tend to use the Terravision service which goes from Victoria or Liverpool Street, and costs about £13 return which isn’t too bad.

As long as you know that you are paying for a budget service, and that is all you expect, I think Stanstead Airport is more than adequate.

The Tower of London is a classic tourist destination and is home to the Crown Jewels, Beefeaters and London’s ravens. There is a lot of Royal history associated with this place, much of it quite dark in nature such as the murder of the two little princes. On a lighter note I believe a polar bear was kept here at one time and was allowed to go swimming in the Thames!

I believe I have seen some two-for-one offers associated with tickets/tours to the Tower of London so if you are planning a visit it is worth keeping your eyes open for such offers in the tourist brochures.

Picadilly Circus is undoubtably a tourist trap now but was, I believe, considered to be the centre of the British Empire at one time. Basically it is a large traffic intersection surrounded by some imposing buidlings and the iconic advertising screens.

The Eros statue is located here, and there are a number of good shops such as Lillywhites, The Trocadero and Virgin.

One top tip if you want to get a good view if Picadilly Circus is to grab a window seat on the upper floor of the Burger King. There are four or five tables with floor to ceiling windows which are a great place to watch the action below from.

Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium is certainly a spectacular venue despite being a couple of years old now. It has been constructed without any internal supports blocking any of the seats views so you are guaranteed to get a full view of the field even if many of the seats are a long distance from the actual action.

Unfortunately I found it a little souless as it is motly exposed concrete with integrated bars and burger sales points which all look the same. On the upper levels there are views out over London too, but not much to see in this part of Holloway.

Definately worth a visit if you get the chance to see Arsenal play, but otherwise somewhat disappointing.

The Abbey is what I would call a good pub on Kentish Town High street. The drinks and food are good and there is often live music should that be what you are loking for.

There is also a large outside space and raised “balcony” area. There are heaters too and even a small room next to this balcony area to pop into if it starts raining. Overall I would say this is one of the better pubs in Kentish Town.