BunnyChow- Nothing to do with eating Rabbits!

BunnyChow! Nothing to do with eating rabbits!

To be honest when my friend first invited me to try a bunnychow out I (Sammii) had no idea what it was! She described it to me as a bread box filled with a stuffing, with a cute little lid! Cute name, cute lid! I was sold! BunnyChow first started off as a pop up van in June 2013, since then, it has opened a permanent residence in Shorditch BOXPARK and more recently its new Bunny Bar on Wardour Street, Soho. 

Yesterday I visited its newest branch on Wardour Street, opened in September 2014. 

A little bit of history behind BunnyChow

The food bunnychow is a South African street food, it consists of a hollowed out piece of loaf of bread filled with curry. Stories say that the bunnychow originated when workers from India were brought over to South Africa to work the sugar cane plantations. They needed a way to transport their lunch. 

#no-dish-washing-required

I chose the Bangcluck Bunny "Chicken, squash, beansprouts & Thai ginger sauce"- £6.50

I loved the subtle ginger kick in the sauce, it tasted just like a Thai green curry minus the fire. The sauce was a bit too thick for my liking but I liked the generous helping of veggies on top. The chicken meat on the other hand... I thought this dish was meant to come with chicken??

The way the sauce soaked into the walls of the bread loaf, was one of the little joys while eating this. It reminded me of dunking bread into a bowl of soup on a sick Winter's day in front of a open fire. BunnyChow is one of the be-all's of comfort food. 

Monkey Gland Bunny-"Meatballs, peppers & Monkey Glad BBQ Sauce"- £6.50

I enjoyed the Monkey Gland Bunny more than the Bangcluck Bunny! The sauce was a nicer consistency- one which soaked into the walls better.

For me, once the novelty of eating your food from an edible bread box wears out, I would find no reason to eat this again. 

The staff of this branch were on top form, they were very friendly and helpful, even gave us a few samples to help us choose which Bunny to buy, and an extra sample during our meal! One way to get on the good side of me- free stuff! Especially free food! A friend who gives you food is a friend for life I say! 

There were alot of BunnyChow branded goods to choose from as well!

        

Atmosphere- 7/10
Service- 10/10
Food- 6/10
Chocolate Sushi Rating- 6/10

BOOM Burgers

Have you ever been to Notting Hill carnival before? 

This burger joint is in the heart of it all! 

Notting Hill Carni 2013

Though I (Sammii) didn't visit this place in the summer, nevertheless the jamaican vibes were banging from this little spot on the corner BOOM BURGERS

The soca tunes were trilling when we stepped in:

A small friendly chilled out setting with nice lighting. 

I ordered the signature jerk BOOM burger with plantain fries and a side of jerk wings to share with my entourage. 

The wings were booming! Beautifully crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside, the plantain fries were a little bit hard for my liking..

But how about the main attraction? 

The jerk BOOM burger? 

"Jerk Chicken with fried plantain, rocket, mango and paw paw sauce."

The bun was fluffy and soft, and the spices in the chicken were just right! I loved the mango and paw paw sauce! Divine! The only thing I can critisize on this was that the burger and its insides fell apart too easily! I hardly had to bite before the burger just fell into my mouth. I would prefer the chicken inside not to be so pulled. It was just baby food soft!... But I guess thats just personal preference...

The money shot ;D

Atmosphere- 10/10

Service- 7/10

Food- 8/10

Chocolate Sushi Rating- 8/10

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Inspired Afternoon Tea

How better to relax than a nice spot of afternoon tea? Especially if that afternoon tea is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory inspired! Me and Nabs loved the idea- lets go on a time warp and travel back to the 90's!

This afternoon tea was held at the One Adwych Hotel. Upon arriving we were greeted and shown to the front desk where we were shown to our table.  It was a nice little touch to have the menus with pictures of the families!

First up were the sandwiches! 

The vegetarian option

Cucumber and Chive Creme Fraiche on Wholemeal Bread

Smoked Salmon and herb creme fraiche

Caramelised Onion and Goats Curd Tart 

Leak and Stilton Quiche 

Beef and Horseradish on Onion Bread 

Egg Mayonnaise with Watercress

Cheese

Time for the sweets! :)

Cocoa Bean Financier 

Scone with Clotted Cream and Strawberry Jam 

Cinnamon Swirl Brioche

Candy Floss- they had a secret flavour seasonaly which we were left to guess what flavour it was! 

Gingerbread Pops

Golden Chocolate Egg Filled with Vanilla Cheesecake and Mango Puree 

Chocolate Caramel Milk (Sammii's favourite- you can't go wrong with milkshake and the little glass bottle with the straw just took me back in time)

Nabs here :)

As you can see the sweet selection looked pretty impressive, just as something in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory ought to be! Some didn't taste as great as they looked: I wasn't too fond of the Gingerbread Pop as I found it too dry. My favourite had to be the Golden Chocolate Egg (a combination of chocolate, cheesecake and mango, can it get any better?!)

One thing I would suggest (and this goes for all afternoon teas), if you can only eat Halal Meat and are not a vegetarian, don't say that you want the vegetarian option. Definitely specify (whether you're booking online or via phone, they usually give you space when booking online to add extra details regarding what you can or can't eat) that you can't eat meat unless it's halal but also say that you can eat fish. I made the mistake of saying I wanted the vegetarian option, and wasn't given the Smoked Salmon and Herb Creme Fraiche. I was really dissapointed as I love fish, especially Salmon so don't make the same mistake that I did! I was given a cheese sandwich instead :((

All in all we had a lovely afternoon; the staff were very helpful and the seating area was very comfortable. I went away wanting to watch Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory which is my absolute favourite adaption of Roald Dahl's classic book. I didn't like the 2005 Tim Burton adaption with Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka, I found it too serious and a little creepy, seriously lacking the magic the 1971 adaption had!

More Afternoon Tea posts to come :))

Atmosphere- 8/10

Service- 10/10

Food- 6/10

Chocolate Sushi Rating- 6/10

Patty & Bun, James St London.

Today me (Sammii) went on a date to Patty & Bun on James St near Bond Street tube station. One of the top rated burger joints in London! Was it worth the hype?

Maayybee...

Here is the menu..

Easy and simple. 

I ordered the Jose Jose Chilli Burger and a side of chips, the total coming to £11. 

The restaurant is off the main road of Oxford Street, I went on Friday evening for dinner and it sure was a popular time! I had to wait outside for half an hour before we got seated.

The restaurant itself is very small. Loud music... so loud in fact that I had to shout to my friend to have a conversation! One thing I don't like... restaurants that play music too loud, call me a granny but the only height I want triggered when having a meal is my taste buds!

Here comes the neat little parcels...

As always unwrapping the package is always the best part ;)

All of Patty & Bun's buns are brioche buns

However today, the bun seemed not very fresh, the meat and filling however! It hit the spot!

Atmosphere- 6/10
Service- 9/10
Food- 7/10

Chocolatesushi Rating- 7/10