'That Japanese restaurant on Lenton Boulevard'

Last Friday was date Friday. I was taken on a surprise trip to 'That place on Lenton Boulevard' (Lenton, Notts, NG7). It's called Higoi, it's Japanese, they serve mainly sushi and sashimi and my goodness it is to die for.

On slightly untraditional form we ordered a bottle of Pinot. I should've been brave and tried the Sake, maybe next time, it was a really great wine actually. Maybe surprising for a very traditional Japanese restaurant .

I have read tons of fantastic reviews from people all around the country about Higoi. I urge you to have a read for yourself

I'd been before but was excited to introduce Mr M to the world of 'real sushi' 

We ordered a sushi main course to share and a sashimi main course to share. We were treated with a mango jelly appetiser before the sashimi arrived in this magnificent boat 

As it was date night I decided not to take too many pictures, but I can assure you the fish was so fresh, all of it absolutely delicious topped with different caviars and garnished with a variety of salad. 

Here's the sushi. Equally as amazing. I wish I could tell you what each one was but I was enjoying myself far too much! 

Definitely give Higoi a go. It's a little pricey, but worth every penny. I'm a fan of sushi in any form. Yo!, in a packet from m+s, a botched job by myself. But this place really is miles above the rest. 

Have yourself a sushi Friday too!

Boston, a far cry from Massachusetts but cabbage you can't fault this dinner!

Some of my friends and I have been sent to the depths of Lincolnshire for our second to last placement. We're away from Nottingham, away from our houses, our housemates and we thought away from good food. Turns out we were wrong. 

At our midway point we ventured out to Boston Spice, I only managed to take a few photos as I got a little carried away being out of my room and in a restaurant! The food was absolutely delicious, fantastic value for money as we made it early for the 'early bird menu; which was 2 courses for £10.95 they were all great sizes and the service was perfect. It felt incredibly traditional, we spotted others from the hospital that we recognised so clearly word has gotten around about how great it is.

I had these thai Chicken wings (amazing!) 

Here's a vague picture of tempura, some thai prawn crackers, and some strange cucumber water that tasted like sweet chilli without the chilli, brilliant though!

After that I got too excited and failed to take any pics, I had pad thai though, and B (opposite me ) had Thai green curry which she said was excellent. I dipped in, obviously, and I agreed. 

This week has been our last week so we trekked through the fog last night to The Mill. Relatively close to our accommodation and easy to access this experience began to rival our Thai time instantly as the pub was warm and welcoming and we were sat at our table within seconds of arrival. 

We shared the house wine between us, one bottle of the red (Ca'di Ponti) and one of the white (a pinot - Ancora). These were both extremely well received and whilst normally house whites tend to be a little on the heavy side this was light and refreshing and we all thoroughly enjoyed it. 

We took time pondering the menu but didn't feel rushed, we decided on a main and pudding plan. R chose a starter and transformed it into his own main course, adding two sides to his fishcakes making a cheaper but more exciting main course than most of the rest of us! Around the table there was a lasagne, a pair of steak and ale pies, half a cow (A's ribs), salmon fillet and a duck salad and not a complaint from anyone. We had side dishes in abundance, tons of chips to share (they must've been triple cooked as they were incredible!), side salads, onion rings and roast vegetables. We were stuffed!


The fishcakes starter/main

The lasagne with garlic bread

The salmon fillet in a white wine and dill sauce (I couldn't wait to start!) 

The pies! H and B tucked in, the puff pastry was a lone ranger on the top, this actually meant there was no sogginess which we decided was definitely a positive!

Chips, don't let perspective deceive you they really were this big!

Ribs (and some cheeky onion rings, again, as big as my face!)

Roast and herbed vegetables an oily affair but a delightful one!

Then came pudding choices, the special was white chocolate profiteroles, they only had two portions left and we scooped up both, topped with a scoop of ice cream from a Movenpick menu! (pistachio in this case!)

I had a sundae of Movenpick, choosing caremelita and dark chocolate (look at my chocolate straw!)

Treacle sponge with ice cream

A couple of us had a cheeky baileys to top it all off.

We wandered back, not necessarily in a straight line, feeling full, satisfied and merry. If you ever find yourself in Boston definitely give The Mill a try, it was worth every penny we felt. We've also frequented Burton House, the Brewers Fayre, that's great for a quiet drink, lunch is quiet with lots of locals and good value food but nothing on the Mill. 

The buddies i've got here have definitely been what's made this placement great. Without them i'd have had a rubbish time, the food also made it better. Thanks team for a great few months. Hope you enjoyed reading about our adventures! 

A French Affaire

Some of my oldest friends from medical school and I had a much needed reunion last week. Our longstanding seminar group leader picked one of his favourites (one of my favourites too) Petit Paris. It was as good as I'd remembered, if not better. 

The decor is quaint, all the waiters we were served by seemed to have just stepped out of France themselves with strong French accents, the East Midlands twang seems to have not affected them thus far! Whilst it has been said to feel a little stuffy and outdated it can't be denied that it has such a feeling of authenticity this could be overlooked. 

One thing to note is the wine list; all fantastic French wines, we sampled both the Sauvignon Blanc and the Pinot Grigio. (the Pinot definitely my favourite and one of the nicest wines I've had In a while) 

They do a fantastic value pre theatre menu with 2 courses for £10.95 and 3 for £13.95! We all tucked in some indulging in the chicken liver parfait to start, D had the bouillabaisse and T the Moules marinière. I didn't manage to take any photos as I was too busy indulging in wine and olives!

For my main course I had a pan fried Hake with Atlantic prawns and a white wine sauce. It was delicious! The fish was so meaty and perfectly cooked

Poached salmon with a red wine sauce and crushed peas

The service was always with a smile with a new glass for each wine we tried and bread for the table!

Lamb shank. Mmmm 

Tagliatelle Jean Louis. 

Then came my favourite bit. The wonderful array of puddings 

My cappuccino parfait 

J's poached pear

Frangipane tarte

And finally some gorgeous coffees to top off a lovely evening. After 5 years of med school we still have so much to talk about and catch up on and fantastically still manage to find some of the nicest food in Nottingham. I can't wait for the next reunion, they just keep getting better!  

I mexiCAN!

Fast food has given itself such a bad name in the past, things are about to change. There's so many fantastic places to buy a quick and easy meal these days, take Tossed, in Westfields White city and the Wahaca Experiment Centre on the South bank, it's not long before they make their way further north. In Nottingham we've got Mexican! Mexican has always been a firm favourite of mine, and whilst flour tortillas are off the menu there's still taco's which are super yummy!

This Saturday took me on my second trip to BarBurrito, this has the fastest and friendliest service of anywhere I've been in Nottingham, and the food is fantastic. 

First you're greeted by the bright colours, outside furniture and comfy booths, with a large serving counter at the far end. Our favourite server was there again to talk me through (again) the options, everything sounded so tasty but in a panic I ordered the same as I had last time. Maybe it can't get any better.. I'll find out next time 

I had hard shell tacos; two with Char Grilled Chicken and one with Slow Cooked Pork, then was the choice of spicy or mild beans I had mild (chicken!), optional guacamole, sour cream, salad, jalepenos, salsa (mild, medium or hot) and of course cheese. It all came in a snazzy basket lined with BarBurrito initialled paper. 

M had a burrito, a warmed, soft tortilla with meat of your choice (he went for chicken, chicken), with spicy rice, mild beans, medium salsa, guacamole, salad, sour cream, a few tentative jalepenos and again, of course, cheese. 

We munched into our Mexican with massive smiles on our faces and left full enough to take on the rest of the days revision/shopping, maybe mostly shopping. I definitely would recommend BarBurrito if you're ever in town and need a quick bite to eat, it'll keep you satisfied til dinner and certainly won't break the bank, mine came to a comforting £6.15 (and you get student discount!) 

For any coeliacs, there's no specific gluten free menu but you're able to have the hard taco's, nacho's, the burrito bowl and any of the fillings (except the cheese sauce) Amazing!

It's 'Food that mex the world spin faster!' 

Date night with the wife and the Mr

 I can't believe I've never written about this place before. After a long ago valentines date, a house meal out, a birthday date with the Mr and a girlie night out with P, I'm finally sitting down to write about the place where I ate the best meal of my life!

It sounds like a gross exaggeration. But when I think about it. I don't think I've had so many different tastes, textures and flavours in one meal that worked oh so well together 

The incredible underground haven is 'Iberico World Tapas' having its pride of place underneath the crime and punishment museum in lace market. This place is far from a punishment but could definitely be likened to a crime. 

The idea is they've taken the normal Spanish tapas restaurant and added some foods of the world. Food from England, food inspired by the Far East, American style chicken wings and green inspired lamb. 

You're in the basement, in a small alcove. A delicious wine menu is offered and a little advise with regards to the menu. Definitely ask for some help as they just want you to enjoy all it has to offer

The recommendation is that you have a ham platter and a cheese platter. Either the 'world ham or the Spanish ham' likewise with the cheese. I've tried both. They're both fantastic. 

Then it's choosing from the huge variety of dishes. The 'inside out chicken wings' are a must. The beef kebabs also a fantastic recommendation. Most recently I indulged in the mussels and I'd say if you're a fan of mussels give them a try. You'll never want plain mussels again! 

We tried the mushroom carpaccio. Served in a cool wooden platter 

Here are the infamous chicken wings 

When I went with P we tried the express dinner menu. It's just 14.95 and you get Catalan bread (like bruschetta - I had olives) two tapas dishes and a pudding

The pudding was definitely worth it even if we were a little full. I had a strawberry parfait 

P had a cotton cake! Exciting !  She said it was incredibly smooth 

The 'Express menu' really is fantastic value for money, with the bread as a starter and the two tapas dishes with pudding, you get world class food for such a bargain. Definitely give it a go, or wait for a special occasion and the whole menu can be your oyster :) 

Better than my pantry, A PUDDING PANTRY!?

Hello!!

So I've been off the radar for AGES, I had exams, I had holidays, I was shipped out of Nottinghamshire for 3 months. But whilst i'm doing my studying in Boston, Lincolnshire I'm still back in Nottingham on the weekends. 

I haven't stopped exploring the culinary joys of Notts in this time tho! There's been some great additions recently and whilst journeying through town today I saw some exciting new developments yet to be opened as well!. 

So a few months ago saw the opening of 'The Pudding Pantry', when people ask me where this is I find it a tricky one to describe as it popped up in a place where there wasn't anything before. The best I can do is that it's in trinity square, just down from Harvester and GBK. Theres a white picket fence in the middle of the path, a nice outside seating area reminiscent of when it was warm and sunny outside.

F and I went for a much needed catch up and a very satisfying soup and salad. We sat in the window and prepared ourselves for great chat and some good old people watching!

The salad was delicious; puy lentils and butternut squash (I added ham), i felt sad as it was quite a bit more expensive than F's soup (butter bean, parmesan and italian herbs) but the lentils and ham was a fantastic combination and I was definitely not disappointed. 

F got some gorgeous sourdough bread with her soup and we both indulged in some fancy ginger beer and rose lemonade to accompany our meals!

I was frustratingly left a little unsatisfied but the puddings were so tempting we needed an excuse. This was the honeycomb parfait with hazelnuts, popcorn and chocolate sauce, and all gluten free too! and it was absolutely incredible. 

If you've not been already I definitely recommend a trip to the 'Pudding Pantry', i've heard (and seen) fantastic things about their breakfasts and particularly the milkshakes. Let me know what y'all think!