Time for a coffee

September 9, 2026September 8, 2026

Time for a Mixed Grill

I was staying at the Premier Inn at Heathrow, cheap and next to the car parking I had booked.

I didn’t really have the time (or the transport) to go somewhere else, so I headed down the restaurant for dinner.

They do quite a good value meal deal with two courses and a drink for £19.99, you can throw in breakfast the following morning and it costs £29.99.

I went with a starter and they had bao buns.

For my main course I upgraded to the mixed grill.

This was a sirloin steak, gammon steak, half a chicken breast and pork sausages. Served with beer-battered onion rings, garden peas, a fried egg, half a grilled tomato and skin-on chips. I was given a choice of salad if I wanted to. I went with the chips.

The steak and gammon were really nice. The steak was cooked to my liking and was well seasoned. The chicken I am assuming was pre-cooked and was a little rubbery having been cooked on the chargrill. The sausages looked a little overcooked, but in fact were just right.

The chips were crisp on the outside, but soft and fluffy on the inside.

The only thing that let the plate down were the onion rings which were overcooked and just crunch. I was asked how my food was before I tried one, otherwise I would have probably complained, but even then maybe not, as it was just three onion rings.

I do like a mixed grill and I was quite impressed with this plate from Premier Inn, to be honest my expectations weren’t very high. Compared to the mixed grills I had last year from The Landing Light and the Railway Inn, this was much better. Though it was missing a lamb chop!

September 8, 2026

Cheese Scone at Barrington Court

When visiting a National Trust property, my usual go to snack is a cheese scone with a tea (or a coffee). Though with the recent hot weather and I usually gone for a cold drink.

I drove off to visit Barrington Court, a National Trust property in Somerset. I had been there three times before, in March 2017 and November 2017. In both of these visits I was able to go inside Barrington Court. In 2020 it the house was closed for conservation work, delayed by the covid pandemic, the project is still ongoing. I made a visit in February 2025, Barrington Court was still closed, but I did look around Strode House and the gardens.

On this return visit in August 2025, the weather was significantly better, and I enjoyed walking around the grounds and gardens, as well as looking around Strode House.

I stopped at the café for a cheese scone. I chose the meal, so it came with some cheese slices and chutney, along with a hot drink. I had a green tea.

It was a very nice scone, I think I would have preferred a chunk of cheese over the cheese slices. Overall though it was an enjoyable scone and tea.

September 6, 2026

Crispy Chicken Bao Buns

I was staying at the Premier Inn at Heathrow, cheap and next to the car parking I had booked. I didn’t really have the time (or the transport) to go somewhere else, so I headed down the restaurant for dinner. They do quite a good value meal deal with two courses and a drink for £19.99, you can throw in breakfast the following morning and it costs £29.99.

I went with a starter and they had bao buns. Fluffy steamed buns, served with chilli, coriander, spring onions a choice of filling. There was crispy chicken and spicy mayo, halloumi and hot honey, or mushroom and hoisin. I think my first choice would have been mushroom, but didn’t fancy the hoisin. In the end I chose the crispy chicken and spicy mayo. You got two buns each with an individual piece of chicken.

The buns were light and fluffy. The chicken was nice and crispy and you could taste the chicken. The spicy mayo wasn’t too spicy and there was extra spicy mayo on the side. Each bun was garnished with fresh coriander, spring onions and slices of red chilli.

I was really quite impressed. I do like a nice bao bun, and these were really nice.

August 31, 2026

Dressed Crab and Grilled Sea Bream at Rockfish

In August when we had the partial solar eclipse I wrote about my visit to Brixham back in 1999 to see the total solar eclipse we had in the UK. Since that visit, I hadn’t actually been back to Brixham, though had visited many other places in that area. I made a plan to go back there, and hopefully get a nice lunch from one of the many fish restaurants that surround the harbour. Brixham has a large fishing fleet, and had the largest fish market in England.

I had looked online before I got to Brixham, and had seen Rockfish, I liked how as well as serving fish, they had a restaurant. I liked the look of the menu too, they had a nice looking set menu, which I thought I might go for.

I hadn’t booked, but they were able to find a table for me. I looked over the menu and had essentially chosen my two courses from the set menu.

Then the waiting staff came over and asked if I wanted to hear the fresh fish they had in, I went yes. They had an amazing selection of fresh fish choices. It was a little more than the set menu, well much higher!

I thought about it and decided I would go with the fresh fish choices. For my starter I went with the dressed crab, and for my main course I chose the grilled sea bream.

The dressed crab arrived, with both brown and white crab meat, along with some slices of bread.

This was delicious, lovely fresh crab, which I really enjoyed.

For my main course I had the grilled sea bream. This was described as succulent, sweet and gloriously meaty – a highly prized whole fish with clean, white flakes. It came with a tomato sauce and unlimited fries (I could have had salad or new potatoes).

This looked amazing and was beautifully cooked. It had great flavour and I really enjoyed eating it. Obviously it was a while fish, so I did have to fillet it, to eat it. I also had to turn other to get the other fillet.

The whole meal was delicious, I was pleased that I went with the fresh fish choices, I paid more, but it was worth it.

Service was excellent, warm and welcoming.

What was interesting was that you could buy fresh fish from the fish stall at Rockfish and for £6 they would cook it for you.

This was my first visit to Brixham in twenty seven years, after such a nice meal, I think I won’t leave it so long next time.

August 29, 2026

Unhappy Cauliflower

I was shopping in a supermarket when I found these sad looking cauliflowers. I certainly wouldn’t be spending my money on these.

August 27, 2026

Tricolour Tomato and Burrata Salad

I really like this simple salad of fresh Italian burrata cheese with tomatoes.

For this salad I took a selection of tomatoes I had in the fridge. They were from The Heritage Tomato Collection, a box of tomatoes I had got from Waitrose.

Sweet Rich Juicy Aromatic Vibrant Fresh. A Carefully Curated Range of Heritage Tomatoes. Bringing Back that Real Tomato Taste. Discover our carefully curated range of heritage tomatoes, grown in the UK for exceptional flavour and authenticity. Our selection changes throughout the season, ensuring you receive the freshest varieties at their peak. Each mix is chosen to celebrate the diversity, colour and rich taste that heritage tomatoes are known for.

I took three different colours of tomatoes, sliced and the dressed with salt, pepper, olive oil, and white wine vinegar.

Burrata is an exquisite Italian fresh cheese with a unique texture. It starts with a pouch of fresh mozzarella, which is then filled with a rich, creamy mixture of stracciatella—shredded mozzarella curds and cream. The name “burrata” comes from the Italian word for “buttered,” which perfectly describes its luxurious consistency. When sliced open, the firm outer shell gives way to a soft, spilling interior. This creates a delightful contrast between the solid exterior and the milky, buttery filling.

August 26, 2026

Awesome Bento Box

A Friday lunch break in Bristol took me to the vibrant Finzels Reach Market, where I picked up an incredible bento box from She Sells Streetfood featuring beef donburi alongside tan tan udon noodles.

With the Beef Donburi, the beef itself is incredibly tender and packed with savoury depth.

What really elevates it, though, is the contrast. Crispy fried onions bring a satisfying crunch, while pickled vegetables and cucumber salad deliver just enough sharp acidity to cut through the rich meat.

Another wonderful dish is the Tan Tan Udon. Pure comfort in a bowl.

Soft, chewy udon noodles are mixed with seasoned minced pork and fresh pak-choi, all submerged in a rich, creamy broth. Every single spoonful gives you a bit of everything—no sad, bare bites here. Whatever you do, don’t skip the crispy chili if they ask. That extra kick of heat ties all the creamy, savoury flavours together into absolute perfection.

It was an absolutely delicious meal, rich, balanced, and completely delicious.

August 17, 2026August 17, 2026

Double Pistachio

I do enjoy walking around Portishead Marina, it’s a lovely place. There are quite a few places to get food and drink. Reality is that I don’t go to many of these, as lots of other people like the marina too, and a lot of places are very busy. I also seem to be there in the afternoon, so too late for lunch and too early for dinner.

It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in August, so I was expecting places to be very busy, however when I got to Cafe Mokoko I was pleasantly surprised that it was busy, but not too busy, no queues.

I ordered a pistachio oat latte and a pistachio ganache pastry. So, I had one drink and one pastry and even I was a little surprised that the total cost was £9.90. So nearly ten pounds. I know it sounds like an old man complaint, but it did feel a little steep to pay nearly ten pounds for essentially a coffee and a snack!

I am guessing that I have been spoilt with the Three+ app where I was getting £1 coffees from Caffé Nero for the last couple of years. When it was sunny I would often have a pistachio latte, so having to pay full prices was unusual.

I went with the oat version of the latte as I don’t normally have milk in my coffee, and I rarely have milk with cereal either. It was almost an impulse decision to go with the oat milk version, I think it was partly as it was on the sign next to the till.

I did enjoy the latte. I could tell it was made from oat milk, but it worked. There was a good taste of pistachio, and it wasn’t too sweet either. Nice and cold as well. Certainly, would have this again, on another visit to Cafe Mokoko.

The pastry was a croissant style pastry filled with pistachio ganache.

I did think this might be too sweet and sickly, but actually it worked well. The pistachio ganache was not too sweet and was absolutely lovely The combination of flaky croissant style bread with the soft flavourful ganache was perfect.

This was a lovely drink and pasty. Often Cafe Mokoko can be really packed and busy, but today it was just about right, there was a lovely atmosphere. They have outside seating, but I chose to sit inside (it was cooler) and had lovely views of the marina. I will be going back there again.

August 10, 2026

Waitrose Honey & Mustard Deboned Chicken

I was in Waitrose looking for something for my dinner and I saw this Honey & Mustard Deboned Chicken which had been reduced from £11 to under £4. A bit of a bargain I thought.

This is a deboned chicken, in a honey and mustard marinade. You cook it in the provided tray in the oven for 35 minutes.

I thought it was actually very good, the marinade had a good flavour. It wasn’t a large chicken so don’t expect it to feed lots of people. I am not sure that this is worth paying £11 for, but for the reduced price it was good value.

August 8, 2026

Creamy Cajun Pasta

I used a Morrisons Cook It Creamy Cajun Pasta Seasoning & Paste Flavour Kit, which cost a pound. It was very easy; I cooked some fresh tomatoes and mushrooms in a pan. Added the dry seasoning and cooked for a few more minutes.

I then added the cooked pasta, seasoning paste, and spinach to the pan. Combined everything before adding some single cream. I also added some grated parmesan cheese.

I really enjoyed the pasta, and it would be something I would cook again.