Mambow from the South of London to the North

Mambow debuted from the South of London in Peckham and are now located in Clapton along with familiar faces from the team who relocated as well.
For food, we had the Lor Bak, Kerabu Sotong, blue rice and Gulai Lemak Pucuk Ubi Kayu.

The Kerabu Sotong is cuttlefish with winged beans, red pomelo and herbs but I had a feeling there wouldn't be any winged beans as stated on the menu because that week I didn't see any winged beans at the Asian Grocery shops which is a bad sign.

Just as expected, the winged beans were replaced with okra but unless you ask, you wouldn't be told about it.

The Lor Bak was beautifully executed, crispy beancurd skin with minced pork and shrimp filling, basically this item was very similar to a Chiuchow dish.

The Gulai Lemak Pucuk Ubi Kayu was worth trying because you get these cute pea sized eggplants which pop with some bitterness but I felt that there was too much peanuts in the dish and not much rainbow chards and the tempe was thin like crisps that it was almost non existent.

Last but not least, the blue rice was infused with lemongrass so if you like lemongrass then fine.

Dining at Blossoms by Khan

I have been meaning to dine here but the location and timing is difficult which was a tell tale sign that it would not turn out to be good because when I make an effort to place that I normally can't visit something is always wrong.

To be fair, it wasn't bad but the lamb could have been softer.

Food took ages to arrive even though I ordered at 5ish when the restaurant was empty but was told it was due to online orders which were placed at 16:30 but the restaurant opens at 17:00.

The pomegranate garnishing was probably an insult to the dish as they were not that fresh or ruby red in colour.

Last but not least, the meal would have been better if they didn't offer the after eights which looked like they have been passed around many times judging by the paper where they are creased while one of the pockets on top was split on the side.

Delicious noodles from Larzijan

I love Uygur food and luckily there are many places in London for it unlike Burmese.

Larzijan located in Dalston is slightly different as it is vegan and you get that home cooked goodness.

Unlike restaurants and food stalls, this one is seriously hidden where you are greeted with a shed that is the shop.

Seating is quite intimate so you will have to sit with strangers at busy times.

I had the noodles which were really tasty, when I was waiting for them, the aroma from the kitchen really made you hungry especially the black beans.

The noodles appear to be udon but the texture was really good as they were not too soft with a good bounce.

It was really tasty with the black beans, chunky ginger, turmeric and even the tofu was fully flavoured.

There were no annoying beansprouts which made my day.

The only trouble I had was the chopsticks which I am not good at and the seating which was a bit far from the table I had hold the plate which was a bit tiring to eat.

Overall, it was worth trying.

7ish Hours Smoked Short Ribs at Holy Smoke

Who doesn't love tender rib meat, this is what Holy Smoke does.
It is located under a railway arch in Bow where all the other kitchens are.

Holy Smoke is a little isolated from the other kitchens but directions are clear and there are a few benches nearby.

I had the 7ish Hours Smoked Short Ribs which is described as British breed Short Ribs (half a kilo including the bone) smoked roughly for 7 hours with a side of Homemade Pickled Cucumber & Coffee BBQ Sauce on the side.

Unfortunately, the meat was a bit dry and burnt that day so I may have got a dud portion that day.

What annoyed me was that I got the quantity but not quality.

It was so different to the one someone I knew posted a weekend earlier where the meat was moist and pink.

When I pulled the bone out, there was some blue kitchen towel so I hope there wasn't any more stuck in the meat where I pulled it out.

The thing that baffled me was the guy at the shop said it was edible butchers wrap but it definitely looked more like kitchen towel to me.

The pickles were on the sweet side.

@holy.smokesbarbecue

New Pride Shake 2023 at Shake Shack

While at Camden, I spotted the new Pride Shake 2023 which comes with pretty rainbow sprinkles in a limited edition paper cup so I had to try it.

The new Pride Shake is made with cookie butter frozen custard hand spun with rainbow crispies and topped with whipped cream and sprinkles according to their website but their instagram and print say biscoff.

For every shake sold, they will be donating £1 to their nominated charity. 

As always, their shakes are expensive priced at £6.40 but it was one off as I only get it when they have some captivating new flavours.

Overall, I really liked it but found the crunchy things annoying.

#ssgshakeshack

#shakeshack

@shakeshackuk

Camden Tea Bar

If you are a serious tea lover, this is the place to go.

It is conveniently located in Camden and with a nice seating area inside or al fresco by the balcony over looking Camden Market.

At the far end, there is an Aroma station where you can smell all the teas they offer which you can buy or have the teas there.

There are eight different types of tea bases ranging from herbal, white, black, rooibos, pu er, green, fruit to oolong.

They also have cold drinks like Green Vietnamese matcha, strawberry basil cucumber etc in the fridge.

I had the milky pudding oolong which did not disappoint, it was like oolong with a sweet rice aroma to it.

Overall, it was time well spent there and I also bought a pure chocolate tea which I have been looking all over for because other tea companies tend to mix other things like chilli or mint with it and they have plain here which was what I wanted.

Queen Mary Cafe University of London

Every university/educational institution will have a canteen or coffee shop but Queen Mary Café is unique in the sense it is literally named Queen Mary Café.

This café opened in 2021 serving drinks and food with a lovely area where people can chill or study there.

I had the vegetable soup served with a roll which was not bad.