Day 1 NYC

Our first morning in New York City started earlier than most.  I find with the jet lag you might as well rock with it and get started.  No sense trying to hang about in bed when there is a whole city just waiting for you.

We had to go from midtown all the way down to Tribeca for breakfast.  I know, I know, this sounds like lunacy.  Well, yes, it is.  But it is also the place you go for the best meal in town at just about anytime of the day. 

I first discovered Balthazar's way back in 1998.  My friend, Kerry, and I decided to stop off in New York for a long 4 day weekend before I went on to Denver for my sister's baby shower and she went on to Florida for, well, whatever you do in Florida.  Besides, it was my 35th birthday and where else do wild and crazy single girls go to let their hair down and celebrate? 

My birthday dinner started off by us being seated in a corner table right next to the windows with members of the Kennedy family sitting to our left and Cher across the room.  Steven Spielberg was also in the house but he didn't have as good as a table as we did.  I ran into Madonna when I went to use the loo.  But most importantly, and this is an important point, this place introduced me to a life long passion for white burgundy.  I think Kerry and I drank the place dry.

This morning the children were promised the breakfast of a lifetime and no one was disappointed.

The youngens ordered waffles with berries and maple syrup. The husband had a ham and cheese croissant and I had Eggs Florentine made with spinach and artichoke.  Given that it was our first morning of the holiday we decided to start as we meant to go on and ordered a couple mimosas to set the tone for the remainder of the day.

The fly in the ointment was we didn't seem to get our mimosas with our breakfast.  About halfway through I started looking round for my drink and the owner of the restaurant caught my eye.  He rushed over and asked if he could help.  I explained our wee little problem and he immediately delivered the 2 most perfect mimosas ever made,  Even more perfect as he decided they would be on the house.  Now I ask you, could this day get any better?

Suitably carb loaded, we headed further downtown.  A leisurely walk across one of the most under appreciated parks in the city, Battery Park, we headed for the ferry port to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. 

As we rounded a corner, there she stood, so majestic, regal, composed, elegant, and unwavering in the promise she has made to hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of immigrants since 4 July 1876.  Abigail was so excited she was shaking and jumping up and down.  She couldn't speak except to say almost in a whisper, "There she is, Mummy."  I thought, I wonder how many other small children have hung on to their mothers hand with that excitement running through their bodies and said those exact same words.

The queue looked worse than it was although the sun was beating down and we had been warned that it might rain.  There was no sign of rain.  Nor was there any sign of our sunblock.  At the price of the tickets ($18 adult, $12/child), I had hoped they would throw in the sunblock.  But no.  Luckily, the ferry came equipped with just about everything a person could need, including sunblock.

We took up prime position on the bow of the boat and doing our best Titanic impression took endless photos and video.  With all four of us running various devices I reckon there was no angle of Lady Liberty that we didn't capture.  Trust me though, she looks great as a result of exceptional lighting and that bone structure, I say!

The park rangers were running a scavenger hunt which the children participated in and even got a badge to prove it.  We grabbed a cool drink and the requisite souvenirs (T-shirts, mugs, key rings, hats, etc) and headed for the ferry to Ellis Island.

I'd been to Ellis Island the first time I was here and was so impressed with the quality of the museum I could hardly wait to share my enthusiasm with the children.  They were struggling with it.  But we persevered.  I was less impressed with the museum this time.  It seemed difficult to navigate and was not clearly marked.  But standing in the Registry Hall, we all shared a moment.

I asked Sebastian if he could imagine the people that made a decision like those immigrants did; a decision to come to a foreign land with nothing but what they could carry in a trunk, speaking only a foreign language and having very little money.  Never knowing if they would ever see their families again, if they would die on the journey.  He said they must have been brave.  I recalled the words of the Star Bangled Banner:"...home of the brave..." and thought, yep, they must have been.

This was a unique opportunity to teach my English/American children about the history of the United States of America.  Let's face it, they don't learn much of it in the English educational system, not that I'm complaining.  There's a lot of history to learn and America teaches very little English history.

Once we got our feet back on Manhattan we headed for some lunch and picked Adrienne's Pizzabar on the pedestrianised Stone Street.  You gotta try this place, if you haven't before.  Wow, Amazing pizza!

We then headed to Wall Street.  I was thrown for a loop when Sebastian asked me to explain what purpose of the stock exchange.  I mumbled something about gambling and carried on walking.  It was a wholly inadequate answer but I'm not sure I have a better one.

Next, we headed to the 9/11 Memorial.  I knew this was going to be tough.......

Mothering Sunday

Is Mother's Day time for a mother to smother herself in all the love of her children or relish a day without the children? Is it a day to appreciate your mother or be appreciated for the mother you have become? Perhaps a little bit of all....but it is extremely difficult to fit all that into one Sunday. I love a good challenge.

My special day started with my husband delivering my favourite breakfast, eggs benedict, to me in bed. The children delivered their handmade pressies and cards and my husband provided a bit of ooomph with his exquisitely store wrapped package. In fact his gift was so well packed he said he had a "Love Actually gift wrap" moment (minus the mistress). If you haven't seent the film, go see it. The scene where Alan Rickman is waiting for a gift to be wrapped in Selfridges is hysterical.

I unwrapped my goodies and displayed sufficiently praise on the clay hearts and hand coloured cards. I oohed and aahed as I placed my new silver hoops in my ears. And then they all left me alone to enjoy my breakfast with coffee and the paper.

We then set off for the Isle of Wight to take Marc's mother to a late lunch. I had read about The Hambrough, the island's very first Michelin starred restaurant, in a magazine and we were dying to try it. I've been to loads of restaurants on the island and in my humble opinion, it is not the height of culinary experience. The Hambrough was exquisite. The food looked and tasted like works of art. Our children were immaculately dressed and no one spilt anything on anyone or anything. No dishes got broken. They even ate the food. Oh and don't tell anyone but they didn't even charge us for the children's main meals!

It was a beautiful day and the restaurant sits on a cliff over looking the English Channel towards France. We had sailed right past it last summer when we sailed across the channel. On this day we sat and enjoyed every luxurious moment and watched the boats pass us by.....

The restaurateur is just 23 years old. I cannot believe that a person this young would even be able to make something so wonderful. But he has. I hope the island supports this amazing endeavour and we hope to return and actually stay there as rumour has it that the rooms are just as luxurious as the lunch!

And I managed to give and get a little bit for me, a little bit for my children, a little bit for my mother-in-law. Luckily for me, Mother's Day is in May in America. Don't think I could have fit my mom in on this......although I'm sure she would have loved to give it a go!

Food as Science Theatre

The meal at The Fat Duck was sensational. I got the most joy watching Clare & Michael (& Marc) enjoy the 16 course Tasting Menu. It wasn't just about the taste but also about the theatre of presenting the food. My photos could only capture a very small fraction of the adventure involved.

There were a couple new things since the last time I was there including Whiskey Wine Gums which were attached to a map. It was a great way to taste whiskey!

We had a wonderful afternoon!

Yesterday Clare & Michael did some shopping and relaxing whilst I had to get some work done. We had a home cooked meal of lasagna courtesy of Mr. Marc. I tell you, I'd prefer to have his lasagna over The Fat Duck every day!

This morning we will deliver Clare & Michael to their hotel in central London for their return cruise back to the USA! I had so eagerly anticipated their arrival and their visit has seemed so short. My children instantly fell in love with them much like I did 20 years ago. Abigail was calling her Aunt Clare by the first evening.

Bon Voyage!

Making Friends

On Friday night, we went out for dinner at our local pizzeria. Sebastian had made quite a good friend with our usual waiter. he was gutted when we arrived to find out that the waiter no longer worked there. He got really sad.

The manager of the restaurant called over one of the other waiters who desperately tried to cheer Seb up by asking him about football. Seb has absolutely no interest in football so this simply didn't work. The waiter introduced himself as Nick and then he asked Seb if he wanted to make a special pizza.

Seb was no longer grumpy. He went back into the kitchen with Nick and got some pizza dough which he brought to the table. Nick brought over a bowl full of veg and showed Seb how to make the pizza dough flat.

And together they made a face. Out of pizza dough and veg. And our children had a blast! And Seb made a new friend. What a fab way to start a long weekend. Thanks for the kindness of the people at Punto's in Old Windsor!

Monday Mania

Monday nights are a little bit of fun and a little bit of chaos.

I pick up one of Seb's school mates, Hetta, at the same time as I pick up Seb on Mondays. I take her home and then pick up Abigail. Hetta's mummy, Sally, returns the favour and brings Seb home for me on Tuesdays. We race home and Seb has a snack and does as much homework as he can before we run back out the door to go swimming. Seb is taking private swim lessons as he hasn't come on quite as quickly as we would like in the school's swimming lessons. It's nice because Marc and I get in and play with Abigail one on one whilst Seb does his lesson. The second child never gets that undivided attention from mummy and daddy so she really enjoys it. She's getting to be quite good (better than Seb was at this age)!

Then we go out for a bite to eat. The children got to pick the spot today and they choose Pizza Hut. I don't normally mind this as they have one of the best salad bars in England (they are not big on salad bars in this country) and they are the only place I've ever found Blue Cheese dressing (my favourite). Today, the salad bar had no Blue Cheese on offer. They had run out. And they had run out of milk (Abigail's favourite dinner drink). Then the Supreme Pizza got delivered with 4 pieces of mushrooms, white onions instead of red, and yellow peppers instead of green. Heck, if I'd known they were out of food we would have gone elsewhere. In the end, we got the pizza for free and they only charged us for Marc's salad. I'm still afraid it might be a while before we go back!

The children are in bed, exhausted from the swimming. Marc has taken Bailey for a quick walk (in the rain). I am going to go put on my pjs and crawl into bed with my book! Night!

Top 5 Favourite Restaurants

5. Red Lobster, Anywhere, USA - OK, don't laugh but I crave for the Linguine Crab Alfredo. I can't help myself. If there was a way to ship it to me I would. But I can't. I've researched this. I pig out when I go home for a visit. I've tried to perfect the recipe in my kitchen but I can't. My sis swears that she and her husband have done it but I've tried their recipe and I beg to differ. Although there's is good it just ain't the same!

4. Caviar Kaspia, Paris, France - I spent my 30th birthday here with a gaggle of my best mates. We drank vodka and ate caviar and drank vodka and drank vodka. I hear I had a great time!

3. Blue Water Grill, NYC, NY USA - I have eaten at the restaurant almost every time I have visited the Big Apple. I even blagged my way in with a fake table reservation (booking) one night when I desperately wanted to take my husband. Kerry & I had a most memorable meal there and walked out with half the cutlery! I love this place.

2. Me Dhuniye Restaurant, Soneva Fushi Resort & Spa, Maldives - The floor is sand and you can't wear shoes anywhere at the resort. The food is delicious serving up fresh sashimi caught just a couple hours earlier. They had a crab curry soup to die for. Marc & I spent our honeymoon here and it was a dream come true.

1. Sushi Den, Denver, CO USA - This is the first place I ever ate sushi, over 20 years ago. It is still my favourite place to eat. I eat until I am on the verge of exploding.

My dream day is breakfast in bed(eggs benedict), lunch at Red Lobster, dinner at Sushi Den. I love food when I don't have to shop, cook, clean up! One of my favourite foods is not represented on the list: Mexican. That would tip the list to 6...so I am going to sneak it in here......Blue Bonnet, Denver, CO USA - Bring on the chile rellenos! Now only those who read the whole thing know about this place! Sssshhhh!

The Look Out

Phew, it's the end of my day and I'm shattered. It was a beautiful spring day and we had so much fun. The children played and the play ground didn't get too crowded until after noon.

It was Joy Cook's birthday. She brought a cake which the children and adults alike enjoyed tremendously. We ate sandwiches and grapes and apples and hearty picnic snacks. The ladies enjoyed our tea and the children got lost in the trees. It was a real adventure!

Abigail fell asleep in the car on the way home and I took a bit of a nap myself although I did wait until I was no longer driving.

We went out to dinner at a new Italian restaurant in our village, Punto. This is significant because we live in a small village and other than a fish and chip shop and a few Indian takeaways (best avoided) there isn't much else to choose from. We normally drive to Staines or Windsor. But this Italian place opened up a few months back and we finally decided to give it a go. It was not a decision we regretted. The service was child friendly. The food was great. It was very good value for money (1/2 the price we normally pay for dinner out). A great day off all in all!

The Fat Duck

A work colleague of mine has done me a huge favour and as a BIG thank you I took him for lunch at The Fat Duck in Bray. If you are unfamiliar with this restaurant, let me clue you in. This place has been named THE best restaurant in the world. The French Laundry in northern California held this distinction for a few years but last year they were usurped. I was very pleased to hear the news as Bray is just down the road from our home (about 7 miles). Having never been to The French Laundry I was curious to see what the food taste like at the BEST restaurant in the world.

The restaurant is the brain child of Heston Blumenthal (what a great name!). He takes a very scientific approach to food and mixes colours and flavours in ways you never imagined (hoped?).
The first time I went with Marc for Valentine's Day last year. This was a wee bit of a disaster. My husband is not known for his culinary adventurous nature. He hates fish (unless it is sushi and even then only certain sushi). When we turned up and found that the tasting menu (12 courses of bizarre offerings) consisted of a lot of fish, Marc took a dive and insisted on ordering from the a la carte menu. It was enjoyable but I still had a deep seeded desire to try the tasting menu.

So when the opportunity arose to go with my colleague I was well excited! We nearly had a disaster when my companion seemed almost as unenthusiastic as my husband did about the tasting menu but when he saw my disappointment he agreed to give it a go.

He approached each course as if he was playing chicken with his food. To be fair, he only balked at the snail porridge (which did have snails on the top and really was green porridge on the bottom). Everything else he ate. He only spit one thing out.

My favourite was the surprise. I had heard of the famous scrambled egg and bacon ice cream. I had felt nauseous at the thought of it. I was regretting the end of the dinner mostly because it meant I had to put my money where my mouth was (literally) and eat this final course for dessert. Surprisingly, it was my favourite of the afternoon.

We got a copy of the menu detailing everything we ate. They are major fans of using liquid nitrogen to cook with. Do Not try this at home!

The restaurant isn't really about great food. It is about food as a scientific experiment. It is about experiencing food less like sustenance and more like art. I have to say I focused solely on the food which probably isn't true of any other restaurant I've ever been to (one possible exception is Caviar Kaspia in Paris). I was fascinated by the experience and recommend it to anyone.

PS Don't go if you are very very hungry (possibly even a little hungry). Despite spending more on this meal than any other in my entire life, I was still hungry when I left. Wish I'd eaten more bread......

Class Mum

I am Sebastian's class mum at school and share the responsibility for his class with Sandy. The other Year 1 class has another class mum, Lucinda. We help out at PTA events and typically organise a couple of coffee mornings and evenings out during the term. It is nice to catch up with the mums and have a chat about what they are up to. They are a great group of girls and we always have a fab time when we get together.

The other night a few of us met up for dinner at a restaurant in Windsor, Thai Square. This little place is a bit deceptive from the outside. It looks really small with seating for about 12 people. Then you enter and go down these stairs. A "courtyard" of gold and terracotta opens up and there are loads of tables, usually all full. The food is equally surprising. When I normally go to Thai restaurants I get the standard Pad Thai Noodles. I've been some dodgy Thai restaurants and been disappointed whenever I stray from the standard.

This restaurant has one of those menus that you could read for hours and want to order everything. I got a starter of chicken wrapped in spinach leaves which were then fried to make crispy with a side of sweet chili dipping sauce. For a main I got "Weeping Tiger" which are thin slices of marinated beef grilled and served with a spicy BBQ sauce. The meat was so tender it melted in my mouth. I also got to try the dish that Joy ordered. Not sure what this was called but it was equally divine. We enjoyed several bottles of wine and some great conversation.

We've got a busy weekend ahead of us!

Windsor Restaurant Recommendation

When Cafe Puccina in Windsor Royal Station closed a few years back, mothers in Berkshire cried a few tears. It was a very child friendly place with great nappy changing facilities and the menu catered to young and old. The space has been empty since they moved out until just recently. A new restaurant called Agora has just opened up in the space and Marc and I tried it out when we were finishing up our Christmas shopping. It was fantastic and is NOT a chain. I had the calamari starter with a green salad and the calamari was probably the best I've ever had. Marc had a steak sandwich with chips and it was also good (although there was a bit of gristle in the steak, although not enough to spoil the meal). The teas and coffees were nice enough to warm our toes. Although the children were not with us that day and the decor doesn't scream child friendly, the menu did cater for the younger members of our population and we do intend on taking Seb and Abby. If you just happen to be in Windsor, (with or without children) I recommend you give it a go. It's across from Bar HaHa.

Seb's cough and ear ache has spiralled out of control and I finally put him on antibiotics on Tuesday. He has stayed home from the child minder's the last 2 days and I have had to work from home. It's hard to get back into the swing of things when trying to care for a sick child. Today the pain has subsided although he is still coughing up his lungs every so often.

It is 7 am and still dark outside. January & February are the darkest of dark days in England. The wind is blowing a gale and rain comes and goes. Hope the weather and our health improves as we haven't had such a great start to the new year.