Frost has come across an excellent wine cocktail guide from the great people at formulawine.co.uk. Mixologists from five London based cocktail bars (Callooh Callay, Sketch, Stories, Detroit bar and Dabbous) have created cocktail recipes containing wine and we have a graphic to display the recipes. The guide gives delicious wine cocktail recipes but also interesting new places to visit around London. Let us know what you think. Will you try them all?
The Honky Tonk Chelsea makes an impression immediately. Outside the decor is black and classy, inside the first thing you see is a bar which serves the most amazing cocktails I have had in a long time, then you go into the restaurant at the back; balloon shaped light bulbs, banquets, pictures of Johnny Cash and the American flag all add to an amazing atmosphere. The menu is stuck to the table, which I love. I always want to keep my menu to double-check what I am eating and look at what else I might want.
The staff are amazing and friendly. There is a great family atmosphere despite the fact no one is related. Their passion and talent is easy to spot. As for the food? Here goes….
Chicken Quesadila; tortilla stuffed with home smoked chicken, applewood, peppers, cheese, peppers and onions. Served with fresh guacamole.
I love this starter. The guacamole was the best guacamole I have ever tasted. It was very fresh and tastes like it had just been made. The red onion really shone adding to both the texture and the flavor. The Quesadila itself was great; hot with melting applewood cheese which was smoky and nutty, along with the chicken. A very good starter and a simple dish done incredibly well.
New England Crab Cakes: sourced from Cornwall with a sweet chilli mayo dressing
The cakes were very tasty with a crunchy texture and flavorful crab and herb filling. The sweet chilli mayo was delicious. The rocket which made up the rest of the dish was a bit boring.
Honky Tonk Burger
7oz of rare breed Longhorn beef. Topped with cheese, bacon, caramelized onion, guacamole, salsa, baby gem lettuce and tomatoe with their burger sauce. Comes with a seeded burger bun and rosemary fries. It also came with a gherkin on top.
My first reaction of this burger was ‘wow’. When they say ‘fully loaded’, they really mean it. It was so big I had to eat it with a knife and fork. It comes with a side of amazing rosemary chips. The portion is huge so it really fills you up. Very good value and tastes great. The burger has different sauces and guacamole. Burger fans will love this signature dish, and for those who sit on the fence, get off now and try this; it tastes great.
Chicken Burger
The chicken burger was also visually impressive. It came with a lovely large slice of beef tomato as well as aubergines, peppers and more of that excellent gucamole. The burger bun was nice and crunchy. The rosemary french fries were a strong accompaniment. The portion was generous and won’t leave you hungry. All in all an excellent burger.
Cocktails
Dark & Stormy; lime, ginger beer and rum.
This is an amazing, classic cocktail. The Honky Tonk has a bar and I would happily sit there all day and just try every cocktail on the menu. All of their cocktails have an extra special something and add to the atmosphere of the restaurant. It is a brilliant American experience.
The Wibble; gin, sloe gin, grapefruit and lemon juice with blackberry liquor
I love sloe gin and this lived up to the expectations. The glasses are long so you get a lot of cocktail for your buck. This was sweet but not sickly. Delicious and moreish.
Honey Bourbon S’Mores
I had heard of S’Mores but this was my first time trying them. Basically they are bourbon biscuits, dipped in chocolate with marshmallow inside. Which might be one of the best food inventions EVER. I loved them and the criss cross sauce it came with on the plate. I want to eat these every day now. Oh, okay, every second day.
New York Cheesecake
Our other pud was a classic generous slice of thick New York cheesecake.
Bourbon shot followed with pickle juice.
We were given these two shots and did not know what they were. Well, now I know; they are AMAZING. Bourbon chased down with pickle juice. It tastes great and this kind of quirky twist is what the Honky Tonk is all about. Great atmosphere and attention to detail, thrown in with great classic food with personality. Do try this at home.
Tequila shot.
Need I say more? Happiness is me.
Honky Tonk is an amazing restaurant. It has great decor and atmosphere. The staff are brilliant and the cocktails and food are both brilliant. Head down for a good time and a great American experience.
Honky Tonk Chelsea
6 Hollywood Road,
London
SW10 9HY
Tel: 0207 351 1588
W: www.honkytonkchelsea.com/
Opening Times: Tues- Sat, 6pm-12.30am
Price: Low to high. Depending on how many of the amazing cocktails you have. The food sizing is very generous.
Honky Tonk Chelsea, a New York-inspired restaurant and bar, will be hosting a three day extravaganza to celebrate its first birthday. On the 5th, 6th & 7th September Honky Tonk will be offering its customers a massive 50% off their food bill for any bookings before 8pm, plus a free brunch per diner if you bring in your bill from one of the above dates. There will be live music and entrainment every night of the birthday bonanza. So come and wish your favourite American diner a big happy birthday this September!
Honky Tonk is the brainchild of Mark Cutler, one of the founders of Notting Hill institution, supperclub London and has readily become West Londons destination diner of choice. supperclub London is well loved for its innovative performances and creativity and Mark has developed this in Honky Tonk too. There is regular live music and entertainment, with a particular emphasis on a variation of the blues, jazz and rockabilly played over a hundred years ago when the first honky tonks sprung up in the Southern and Southwestern United States.
This autumn a little slice of the big apple will also arrive in Clapham in the form of a second Honky Tonk. Following on from the success of Honky Tonk Chelsea, the venue will offer an American-inspired restaurant, late night bar, and live performances.
HONKY TONK 1ST BIRTHDAY
5th,6th & 7th September
Honky Tonk
6 Hollywood Road,
London
SW10 9HY
Tel: 0207 351 1588
W: www.honkytonkchelsea.com/
Opening Times: Tues- Sat, 6pm-12.30am
Leonardo Italian Pizzeria in Putney is a rather quaint and distinctive pizzeria. You can take out or eat in. If you eat in you will love the restaurant area. It is upstairs, has wonderful homely decoration and looks out to Putney High Street.
But what about the food? For starters we had Classic bruschetta, this was the best bruschetta I have ever tasted in my life and the helping was very generous. If you go in and share one as a couple you will be given a cute heart-shaped bruschetta. A good personal touch.
For mains I have the lasagne and my colleague has a Campagnola pizza; mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce, with chicken marinade with balsamic vinegar. The pizza is very good and is huge. Enough for three or four people. The lasagne is also good but could do with less pasta and more bolognaise. Again the portion is good and it really fills you up. The lasagne is very good but I actually make the best lasagne in the world and nothing else has ever been able to compete. In fairness I will say the lasagne is very good.
The only dessert Leonardo’s does is homemade chocolate cake. However we could not manage it as the portions are so big. We will go back another day for it.
Leonard’s is a beautiful little pizzeria. The menu is small- though with plenty of pizza obviously- and they also do free delivery on orders over £10 and all day Sunday. Leonardo’s came to Putney after running a family business in Bari, Southern Italy for 30 years. Their food is traditional, inexpensive and good value. Highly recommended.
Leonardo
161 Putney High Street, London, SW15 1RT
020 8789 0605
www.pizzaleonardo.co.uk
Price: Low to high.
Sometimes it is hard being a writer and editor, especially one with their own magazine. Going to the South of France to review Toulouse was not one of those times. In fact, it is now one of my favourite places in the entire world and I will definitely be returning. The Pink City of Haut-Garonne is called the pink city because of the brickwork of the buildings. It is the 4th largest city in France with 437,000 inhabitants and it is beautiful, dynamic and friendly.
We flew with BMI Regional via Birmingham. We also had a great time in the No.1 Traveller lounge at Birmingham Airport before flying to Toulouse Business Class. The flight was incredibly enjoyable and included free food and drink. The service on-board was also great. Our air steward, Michael Love, seemed to know what we wanted before we did and kept us happy with Gin & Tonics and brilliant, yes it is possible, plane food.
Toulouse is the birthplace of Concorde, the Ariane Rocket and the home of Airbus.Toulouse has also had a 100-year love affair with rugby. Stade Toulousain are one of the Northern Hemispheres best teams. 7 million passengers are transported via Toulouse Blagnac Airport every year.
Toulouse has more than 2000 hours of sun a year and more than 1000 restaurants. Sold yet? Whether the answer is yes or no, read on….
We arrived in Toulouse via Toulouse Blagnac Airport, a beautiful and stylish airport and made our way to our hotel, the Citiz Hotel, a modern four star hotel in the heart of Toulouse. It opened in 2010. The hotel has air-conditioning, free wifi and a car park near the hotel entrance. The hotel faces Wilson square and is only a 15 minute drive from Blagnac airport. My hotel room was incredibly stylish, the bed was large and comfy, the bathroom was elegant and the shower powerful. There was a minibar, safe and a flatscreen TV. I also had a balcony and a wardrobe. The hotel also does a great breakfast spread and the staff are very helpful.
Rio Loco, the world music festival that happens every year on the 21st of June to get all of France partying, happened while we were there. We had lots of fun listening to all of the different music and went to bed in the early hours.It was like one huge street party. Definitely recommended.
We went on a walking tour offered by the Toulouse Tourist Board.This was informative and very enjoyable, a great way to see the city. Great things to see include The Capitole (the City Hall), Saint-Sernin Basilica, The Jacobins Convent, The Hotel d’Assezat (built by Nicholas Bachelier for Pierre d’Assezat who made his fortune from Woad, a plant used in dyeing. More of which later), the river Garonne and The Augustins Museum, an amazing fine arts museum with beautiful pieces. It has a lot of 19th century sculptures.
J’Go, 16 Place Victor Hugo, 31000 Toulouse. Tel: 05 61 23 02 03. They accommodate people regardless of importance and budget and have authentic cuisine from the love of Gascon culture. The fruit and vegetables are grown by farmers in the South West and is in season. They also buy the whole carcass of animals from farmers in their region. The food we had was amazing and a brass band started playing outside while we were eating. The waiter also really knew his stuff. Check the pictures out here.
Cite de L’Espace. Avenue Jean Gonord – BP 25855 – 31506 Toulouse cedex 5. This wonderful space adventure theme park is dedicated to space. We went to Mars (Almost), walked on the moon thanks to the Moonrunner (I was six times less than my usual weight, which was great!), and saw a documentary on the Hubble Telescope in their glorious IMAX Big Screen 3D cinema. The theme park covers 5 hectares and receives 270,000 visitor a year, but it should be more, Globally, 50 million Euro has been invested into the Cite de L’Espace and it shows in the quality. They do tours in English in the summer and have had over 4 million visitors.
There is also a 53 meter high Ariane rocket, I am now one of the privileged few to go into Soyuz Vessel, the indestructible Russian spacecraft. There was authentic Moon Rock on loan from NASA which was brought back by astronauts during the Apollo 15 landing, rock from Mars, great photos which show how the earth looks from up close, to outer space, there is also exhibitions, a children’s area, a planetarium, restaurant and lots of experiments to test yourself on. Do not go to Toulouse and not go to the Cite de L’Espace. It is a must visit.
Cite de L’Espace is accessible to disabled people.
Le Chai Saint-Sauveur, 30 rue Bernard-Mule- 31400 Toulouse. Tel: 05 61 54 27 20
This was a brilliant restaurant with a rustic, country feel. The food was amazing and so were the staff. Highly recommended. See the food here.
Terre de Pastel is a museum, boutique, spa and restaurant opened in June 2013 in Toulouse-Labege. The spa is amazing, with lots of different treatments, an idyllic swimming pool, sauna, Turkish bath, jacuzzi, herbal tea shop and a gym. The museum is informative, telling the story of the woad plant which is responsible for the pastel, the wonderful blue colour. You will learn about the history of blue, the symbol of blue, traditional applications and all about the woad plant, which grows in a field and looks like a rapeseed field; pretty and yellow. Sandrine Banessy, the owner and also author of books on woad, showed us how the woad dyes fabric. It was incredibly interesting and the woad will continue to dye the fabric blue until the fabric is dry.
The shop at Terre de Pastel made me want to spend all of my euros and go over my luggage allowance. There is a great selection of homeware, cosmetics, food, haberdashery and books. It is almost all blue. There is also a restaurant with great food and wine.
Le Py-R. 19 descente de la Halle aux Poissons – 31000 Toulouse. Tel: 05 61 25 51 52. Chef Pierre Lambinon has won many awards and it was easy to see why, the food in his small gastronomic restaurant was amazing and unique. Pictures here.
The Victor Hugo Marketplace. This is the most prestigious marketplace in all of France. It has 5 small restaurants on its upper floor. I bought some great cheese here.
All of the above places are where you should go if you visit Toulouse. It is a wonderful city and everyone I know loves it. Frost loves….
For more pictures check out Toulouse in Instagram Pictures Part 1, 2 and 3.
Get the Toulouse en Liberte City Card at the Tourism Office to get more than 250 discounts on hotels, restaurants, museums, shops and tours.You can also explore by boat.
www.tourisme-midi-pyrenees.com
Have you ever been to Toulouse? Make recommendations below.
About No.1 Traveller – fast facts
· No.1 Traveller specialises in premium hospitality and provides a complete ‘driveway to runway’ service – smart Chauffeur-driven airport transfers, express train tickets, airport parking, airport meet-and-greet and airport lounges (No.1 Traveller’s own collection, plus associate lounges abroad)
· It works with airlines, businesses and individuals to offer a convenient and comfortable service to take the stress out of going to and through airports – the smart traveller’s choice
· No.1 Traveller can be booked by anyone at www.No1Traveller.com or passengers can make their way to the reception of the airport lounge on the day
Airport lounge: Birmingham
· Opened October 2012; the first of No.1 Traveller’s lounges outside London
· Accessible to all passengers travelling through the airport
· Open daily from 0430hrs – 2030hrs; facilities include a range of seating areas across two levels, fully-tended bar, bistro area serving complimentary hot and cold dishes, complimentary newspapers, magazines and internet access
· Entry £27.50 per adult at reception, for up to three hours access (children £17.50 each), £22.50 if booked in advance (children £15)
BMI regional operates over 450 flights a week throughout the UK and Europe with one way prices starting from £59. bmi regional flies from Aberdeen, Antwerp, Bristol, Bremen, Billund, Birmingham, Bristol, Brussels, Copenhagen, Glasgow, Gothenburg, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Esbjerg, Frankfurt, Hannover, Hamburg, Lyon, Milan, Munich, Norwich, Manchester, Toulouse and Zurich. All flights include complimentary food & drink on-board, free 20kg hold baggage allowance and 30 minute check-in. bmi regional is the world’s most punctual airline having recently been crowned the title for the 8th consecutive year. For more information, visit www.bmiregional.com.
Following on from Part 1 and Part 2 here is the part people have really been asking for: food! French food really is amazing and I had some amazing meals. As you can see from the pictures. Our Toulouse Travel Guide is here.
Breakfast at the Citiz Hotel. They had a great buffet spread.
Dinner at J’GO Toulouse. The best pork and chips I have ever had in my life. While we were having dinner a brass band started up outside and played ‘Funky Town’ and other classic songs.
Pate, bread and salad.
Pork and chips. This was the best pork and chips I have ever had in my life.
Chocolate fondant.
We had an amazing Lunch at La Chai Saint-Sauveur. Their veal was superb, followed by strawberry pie and a cute strawberry macaroon. The second picture is Esme’s vegetarian meal.
Salmon with pate and beetroot sauce. The salmon was marinated and divine. 
Esme’s vegetarian dish. Asparagus and onion on pastry. Veal and Asparagus with onion and pastry. 
Strawberry Pie with a cute strawberry macaroon.
Py-R Restaurant, Toulouse. The food was absolutely divine.
Bread and bread stick. I love the dish.
The starters. Yummy. 
Poached egg, pork knuckle baked broth, cantal paste, peas just creamed, vegetable tray: red shell onions, sprouts, broken hazelnut shortbread.
Peas just creamed.
Hake, Avocado guacamole, celery paste cooked in a sugar, fennel, cherries, Pedro Ximenez, Jerez Almonds, leeks vinaigrette, beans, chorizo bellota, crunchy noughat nuts.
Chouchou, red fruits, Vanilla cream, Air Pepper.
All of the restaurants were amazing. The food was out of this world. I highly recommend a visit to all if possible, at least one if not.
Have you ever been to Toulouse? Make recommendations below.
BMI regional operates over 450 flights a week throughout the UK and Europe with one way prices starting from £59. bmi regional flies from Aberdeen, Antwerp, Bristol, Bremen, Billund, Birmingham, Bristol, Brussels, Copenhagen, Glasgow, Gothenburg, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Esbjerg, Frankfurt, Hannover, Hamburg, Lyon, Milan, Munich, Norwich, Manchester, Toulouse and Zurich. All flights include complimentary food & drink on-board, free 20kg hold baggage allowance and 30 minute check-in. bmi regional is the world’s most punctual airline having recently been crowned the title for the 8th consecutive year. For more information, visit www.bmiregional.com.
We went to Frankie and Benny’s in the Rotunda in Kingston last Wednesday after we saw the excellent new Star Trek film review here. Frankie and Benny’s is a fun, affordable Italian American style restaurant. it has an excellent atmosphere. The decor is good and I like the old black and white photographs of Frankie and Benny up on the walls. We sit in a stylish booth with a comfy banquette on each side. The service staff were friendly and attentive. We take advantage of the two course for £10.95 deal available all day on every day except Saturday.
To start with we have a blue cheese mushroom crostini. Button mushrooms tossed in a rich blue cream sauce and served over toasted ciabatta. Rich and creamy.
We also have the crab bruschetta. Tomato, red onion, crab, basil and pepper again over toasted ciabatta. You can’t go wrong with a good Bruschetta.
For our mains we have the Philly cheese steak sandwich. Steak sautéed with red pepper, red onion and sliced mushrooms. Piled high in a toasted ciabatta bun with philly cheese sauce. As you can see it was pretty decadent. Frankie and Benny’s always gives you excellent portion sizes.
We also try the veggie Gnocchi bake. Gnocchi tossed tomato sauce, red onion and green chilli, topped with mozzarella cheese. Very tasty and lots of chilli.
At two courses for £10.95 you can argue about the price. A great place to feed the whole family.
http://www.frankieandbennys.com/
Tel: 0208 439 1270 Unit 7, First Floor
Frankie and Benny’s Kingston
The Rotunda
Kingston
KT1 1QT
Following on from Part 1, here is Part 2 of Toulouse in Instagram pictures. Part 3 is here with lots of pictures of food. Here is our in-depth Toulouse Travel Guide. Hope you enjoy.
Moon Rock at the Cite de L’Espace. Rented from NASA.
Breakfast at the Citiz Hotel, a great four star hotel in a convenient, central area. I love hotel dressing gowns.
We had an amazing Lunch at La Chai Saint-Sauveur. Their veal was superb, followed by strawberry pie. pictures will be in the food special.
Next we went to the Terre de Pastel Museum & Spa. This is newly opened in Labege.
Sandrine Banessy, the owner of Terre Pastel shows us how the woad plant dyes things blue.
I then walked around the city with Esme.
Dinner at Le Py-R. With fellow travel writers. The food was superb.
Victor Hugo Marketplace.
More Marketplaces. There was a great variety of stuff.
BMI regional operates over 450 flights a week throughout the UK and Europe with one way prices starting from £59. bmi regional flies from Aberdeen, Antwerp, Bristol, Bremen, Billund, Birmingham, Bristol, Brussels, Copenhagen, Glasgow, Gothenburg, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Esbjerg, Frankfurt, Hannover, Hamburg, Lyon, Milan, Munich, Norwich, Manchester, Toulouse and Zurich. All flights include complimentary food & drink on-board, free 20kg hold baggage allowance and 30 minute check-in. bmi regional is the world’s most punctual airline having recently been crowned the title for the 8th consecutive year. For more information, visit www.bmiregional.com.
Have you ever been to Toulouse? Do you think you will visit?