Lunch at Botinica Hall

Botinica Hall is new at Clapham Junction where the former Debenhams department store was.
It is more like a social place where you can dine and work with plugs and wifi etc.
Service was slow especially at the end when you are waiting for the bill.
I suppose the menu was reasonable but I made the wrong choice that day, I got the Italian po boy which was pizza dough style and the bombollini.
The vegetarian options are actually quite good like the nduja gnocchi.
The bombollin was really disappointing, they looked nothing like mini doughnuts and were dusted with so much sugar that it defeated the purpose of the nutella.
It was similar to those Chinese doughnuts but nicer because it wasn't so eggy and soggy while too dark for my liking.

Build your own poke from Island Poke

Finally tried island poke because I ran out of options.
I got the build your own poke with sushi rice, ahi tuna and smashed avocado with yuzu dressing.
I was annoyed I didn't notice the sauces by the cutlery because I would been happier with the light soy sauce as it isn't sweet like the yuzu.
They also had green sriracha.
The avocado was like guacamole so I could have done without it as I prefer pure smashed avo.
Anyway, the food was ok, the tuna could have been better because I got some annoying cuts with lots of chewy white connective tissue.
When I have my sashimi, I always avoid salmon and tuna when I visibly see connective tissue.
On a side note, the summer poke bowl with dill looks fantastic.

McDonald's new Raspberry and White chocolate pie and KitKat Ruby Chocolate McFlurry

New KitKat Ruby chocolate McFlurry and white chocolate raspberry pie from Mcdonalds from 7th Feb!!
I got my hands on the raspberry and white chocolate pie which was quite nice but a bit too sweet.

The white chocolate was more like custard and I didn't enjoy the raspberry seeds from the raspberry side.

I had the KitKat Ruby Chocolate McFlurry without the raspberry sauce and loved it because I could appreciate the ruby chocolate more without the super sweet raspberry.

Greasy spoons with a Chinese kick at Spicy Noodle Cafe in Balham

I love traditional caffs that serve a proper fry up.
This time I visited Spicy Noodle Cafe which was actually unsuspectingly a caff.
20 years ago this cafe was acquired by SL who has added Chinese dishes to the menu while fry ups are cooked in a wok.
It felt like a Chinese Take away but caff style with breakfast and Chinese.
I made several visits because there were so many things to try on both the Chinese and English menu.

Personally, the English menu was more to my palate.

The Chinese menu was a little too sweet for my liking but better than many other places.

A quick review of what I have tried:

English Menu:

Ham. Egg and Chips: Ham, Egg and chips are food of Gods but every element has to be perfect for that winning satisfaction.
I have been observing the food served at this place so I was assured.
The ham was glistening and moist, full of flavour without being too salty, the eggs were perfectly done with a runny yolk as well as the egg white being bang on with that delicate jelly yet bouncy texture.
Last but not the chips were to my liking, nice and anaemic in colour and same as the ones served in my favourite fried chicken shop.
Eating this was pure joy, each mouthful was delicious especially the ham and egg white while dipping my chips in the yolk.
Each bite was different!! Sometimes it was egg and chips, sometimes it was ham and chips, or ham and eggs!

Bubble: a nice mash of potato and peas, delicious with salt and pepper

Cheese on toast: flawless with proper melted cheddar

Roast Lamb: Bit dry and tough, not enough gravy.

Roast potatoes were the frozen ready ones which were a bit dry and hard.

Cheese and Salad Roll: Best cheese salad roll I've had in ages.

It literally took me back to school dinner days where they were wrapped in clingfilm.

I loved that traditional roll which has that yeasty smell and chew.

The lettuce had that crunch, the tomato umami, the tasty cheese and the freshness of the cucumber.

Pure foodgasm.

The presentation of this couldn't be better because it was freshly made so all the salad was fresh, vibrant and glistening.

Liver and Onions: much better than other greasy spoons but I think it's just not my cup of tea because the texture of the liver is too hard and firm.

Chinese Menu:

Prawn noodles: delicious fine egg noodles with bouncy tender prawn but overall a bit sweet for my liking.

Beef Ho Fun: Again, nice and clean compared to Chinatown, it was not heavy or oily.

Wonton Soup: Sweet while the wonton fillings was a bit mushy.

Mushroom Tom Yum Soup: Very tasty but not tangy enough

Singapore Vermicelli: nice but they do not use the finer ones that I like by Yeoh's, overall ok and you can taste the curry powder.

There are three other Asian English Caffs out there which I have tried.
One is English and Thai while the other one serves English and Chinese roast on one plate.
Last but not least Billingsgate Cafe which serves Chinese noodles on Monday morning which takes effort to try.

Wing Loon is also a caff in Waterloo but serves 100% Chinese food.
 

Ukrainian fare at Serenity Restaurant, Harrow on the Hill

Serenity, an authentic place for Ukrainian food which is off the radar at Harrow on the hill.Unfortunately the jellied chicken and squid ink plemeni were sold out.
The highlight was the borscht soup with Salo [pork lard slices], soup contained pork.
The plemeni was the usual, ordered lamb which turned out to be chicken because they were not labelled.
The Kyiv cake was lovely and light made of chewy meringue nuts and cream.
Menu says hazelnut but found peanuts.

Would have been nice to try the stuff that was sold out because the dumplings and other stuff can be bought at Eastern European supermarkets.

Schiacciata flatbread from Florence

Stumbled on Dal Fiorentino which I thought was an Italian deli that has been here for years but apparently new.
There are two locations, Hoxton and Brick lane.
When I saw their Schiacciata sandwiches I couldnt stop thinking about it so had to pay it a visit.
They are priced from 5 to 8 with various choices or you can choose the fillings.
Scanning the options, clearly the Inferno was a winner with mortadella, gorgonzola, black olive paste and sun dried tomatoes.
All my favourite tasty elements in a sandwich.
I like the way they use the wooden block to cut the bread precisely.
The mortadella is sliced to order and a good quality one because there are pistachios in it.
They definitely don't skimp on it too.
Taking a bite, it was well worth my visit.
I loved that chewy yet soft fluffy bready texture and then the crisp surface.
I felt that it was more satisfying than a baguette because of the surface area/ratio of bread/crust.
Not to mention the foodgasmic filling.
Finished with the pistachio Schiaciatta for dessert.
When they were making it, there was so much slathered on, I was expecting her to stop but more was spread on.
The quality of this spread is banging, thick and nutty with a slight dryness that you get from peanut butter but didn't see what brand it was.
Again, heaven! Schiaciatta is good sweet or savoury.
To be honest, the pistachio is good enough for two if you have one side each!

Breakfast with bottomless tea at Jack's at the Junction, Clapham Junction

DIY breakfast at Jack's at the Junction in Clapham Junction.

On my way to ASDA, I always pass this café.
Finally went in for a quick brunch and sat by the window since I was on my own because that spot is nice and bright for food pictures as well as being quiet.
I think I was definitely anaemic that day because I was craving for spinach and black pudding.
The guy who plated it contrasted the colours nicely.
The black pudding is always a good way of testing out their food because you can taste to see if its tainted with bacon or sausage during cooking.
Anyway, my breakfast was definitely impressive especially when it was presented and the spinach was leafy and green.
It was a big pile and not shrivelled up so I will be back for more.
The rewarding thing is the bottomless tea which is much needed after a fry up.

Went back again on another day and ordered the DIY again, this time I got Corned beef hash, double spinach, bacon, sausages, poached eggs and avocado but they forgot it was double spinach so I just had one.

The Corned beef hash was surprisingly nice with the onions but was on the sweet side and the carrots were hard and not quite fresh, other than that the bacon quality was good.

The sausages were surprisingly nice but could have been softer in the middle but that's to do with the meat ratio.