Lifestyle Blogger
I’m the first to admit that I’m probably a little addicted to my phone, Instagram, my blog, online shopping, etc! To be fair, I’m online for the majority of my day working in social media and as a blogger too, this normally works it’s way into my evenings so it’s just a part of my every day existence.
200 Degrees is the newest coffee house to hit Nottingham and it’s the reason I’ll never be going to Starbucks or Costa ever again! You just have to walk past it to realise that it’s not your average coffee shop or cafe, it’s a totally new entity full of amazing homemade food, the best coffee in town and truly friendly staff. They also have a Barista School, they roast their own coffee and have been supplying other coffee shops in Nottingham for a while before they started their own coffee shop. Check them out on Instagram too for some serious caffeine-induced eye candy. Also, definitely try the ham, leek & chilli jam panini, it’s insanely good. Leeks in a sandwich? Trust me.
There’s nothing better than eating absolute rubbish in front of the telly when it’s chilly outside and I’m A Celebrity and X Factor are gracing our screens! I know, I know, I’m probably poisoning my brain as well as my body but every once in a while, who cares? Especially when it’s super easy with the JUST EAT app, you don’t even need to ring up the takeaway anymore, you can browse all the ones in your local area on your iPad and just clickety click which one you like. Luke and I had this cheeky Chinese takeaway the other night courtesy of JUST EAT and it was very, very welcome. And not just because we were running out of Tupperware and now we’ve got 4 more boxes! Also, check out our super cute Christmas tree in the background!
I’m a proper breakfast queen! I can never go without it and will never understand people that can go until lunch without eating anything. Usually, Luke and I have eggs either scrambled, fried or poached with bacon, toast or avocado. Occasionally we’ll have muesli or porridge if we fancy a chance! When Alpro got in touch with their new campaign all about their soya yoghurt ranges I was really excited.
Luke and I have been together a year last weekend and we took the opportunity to vist an amazing hotel in Yorkshire called the Ox Pasture Hall Hotel, a few miles outside of Scarborough. We decided to really celebrate in style as we’ve been through a lot together in such a short time and felt like we deserved a treat!
I’m sure you’ve all read my scathing review of the new Low n Slow Smokehouse in Nottingham – Jim’s Smokehouse. If not, you can read it here! Anyway, it was completely truthful and I meant every word because it was truly awful and I didn’t have a nice time. But, I appreciated that it was a very busy night for them and they were probably overwhelmed by the whole ordeal BUT that is no excuse for poor quality meat and bad cooking.
When we saw an ad on Facebook for a ‘Free BBQ Opening Night’ at Jim’s Smokehouse, a new southern American BBQ restaurant it looked like a good destination for a cheeky after work dinner! I mean, who doesn’t love a) a free dinner and b) Texas BBQ food. We’re talking beef brisket, burgers, ribs and chicken. Jim’s Smokehouse has recently opened in the Lace Market area of Nottingham and is described as a Texas Smokehouse in which everything is cooked Low ‘n’ Slow.
Annie’s Burger Shack is one of those mysterious places that you hear about along the grapevine, the town is always full of rumours about how incredible the food is and how much you need to go there to experience the cool atmosphere. Annie’s has recently moved to bigger premises (they’ve been open since 2009!) and is now in the heart of the Lace Market in Nottingham, a short walk from the town centre. Luke and I ventured there the other night on an impromptu whim after a cheeky pint because our tummies were talking and we needed a proper burger! Because we didn’t book we had to sit outside and were not given table service, we just had to order at the bar. This was absolutely zero problem because the weather was really warm and we’ve got no problems going up to order our food!
When you say ‘Stoli’ to me, I automatically think of Ab Fab and Patsy’s classic Stoli & Bolly combination. Who doesn’t? But the old classic is getting a modern 2014 re-vamp. Stoli went on a tour in a 1950s van around London with their new Stole Lemonade creation, offering it up to the lovely local public! Unfortunately, I was unable to go but I really wanted to try this glorified vodka lemonade so they kindly sent me a bottle and I wanted to share the recipe with you guys! It’s a really refreshing summer drink and it’s great because you can alter the sweetness, lemony-ness and vodka measure in your own pitcher unlike the giant watery Wetherspoon’s pitchers that sometimes grace the table. Grab yourself a pretty mason jar and some straws and settle down for an evening in the sun. Multiply the recipe by 4 to share the pitcher with friends.
Today I’m reviewing a little place that I’ve wanted to go for a while now as I’ve always loved the way that it looked and the branding and the general feel of the place looked great so at the weekend I ventured along with the intention of doing a little review to see if it was up to scratch to recommend on next week’s Grazia regional blogger feature – #WhatToDoThisWeek, where I give people the heads up about somewhere fab to go in Nottingham for the coming week.
