Lunch at Malibu Kitchen - The Ned

Have you heard about The Ned, London's newest hotspot? If you haven't, I'm here to tell you all about it and what you can expect if you dine with them in their Malibu Kitchen restaurant.

The Ned is a 5* hotel & members club, situated in Bank, London and is home to various restaurants, an indoor/ outdoor pool, spa & gym. I love when a new spot pops up in London, so when Callie told me she was taking me there for my 31st birthday; I was dead excited.

Nine, yes NINE restaurants make up The Ned's former banking hall and each of them serve a variety of dishes from around the world. In today's post, I want to take you to lunch at Malibu Kitchen. Callie, my BFF knows that I am obsessed with salads. I love a good salad and eat one pretty much every day, even mid winter! Callie was such a sweetheart and chose for us to eat at Malibu Kitchen because the menu is superfood salad, raw food and smoothie heavy...allll the good stuff!

Taking a glimpse at the menu en route, I was super exited. One look and you can tell it's going to be fresh, colourful and wholesome.

Initially, we were seated in the centre of the mini restaurant. Perching on stools, I wasn't the comfiest.  Fibromyalgia + stools don't mix incredibly well so Callie asked if it was ok to be moved to a booth. The restaurant was packed but the Maitre D' was kind enough to move us when a booth became available and they helped us move over our drinks. The Maitre D' was very helpful but I must say, some of the waitresses were not the friendliest. I hope their service improves as time goes on.

Drinks

To celebrate my birthday we went straight to the cocktail menu. A quick browse and we both landed on the Beetroot Sangria. Now, a word of warning guys...only go for this drink if you LOVE beetroot and enjoy a relatively bitter drink! It was all a bit much for Callie and she had to change her choice but I loved it and really enjoyed the earthy, sharp drink.

Not being content with just the one cocktail, we moved onto Aperol Spritz' which if you follow me on social media; you will know is my number 1 fave drink. The bar (situated to the back of the restaurant) made my Aperol perfectly, 10/10. 

Just look at the colour of the Beetroot Sangria.

Starters

Avacado Dip, taro chips & crudite 

Have you ever seen something so beautiful? 

Looking like something straight out of California, this Avo bowl was an actual dream. Buttery, ripe avocados with a whole host of crunchy bits to dip in. The taro chips were the tastiest little morsels and I'm going to need a huge bag of them right now come to think of it! At £7, I think the starter is really reasonable and I'd absolutely order it again.

Shishito Peppers, lemon, bottarga, almond aioli

Callie ordered these peppers and although they were presented nicely... I'm not going to lie to you. I only tried the one because I am not a huge fan of cooked peppers/chillis. The peppers weren't spicy which is a plus for me (I hate hot food) and the bottarga was super tasty. Callie seemed impressed and for £6 it's not going to break the bank.

Mains

Ahi Tuna Poke, avocado, sesame, jalapeño, brown rice 

I would honestly eat this dish every day for the rest of my life.

I like to exaggerate BUT when I say this is one of the nicest things I've ever eaten; I am not exaggerating. When we first sat down, the waitress told us the tuna poke bowl was out of stock and I was pretty disappointed as this is what I'd ordered in my head. By the time we actually made it past the starters, the tuna was back in stock and I of course put in my order. The waitress told us the tuna was so fresh that the chefs had only just finished preparing it... omg YASSS!

Another beautifully presented dish and the taste matched the aesthetics. The dressing, served in a separate dish was sharp, lemony, garlicy and just damn right incredible. I must have said 'mmmmmm' with every mouthful and basically hugged the Maitre D' when he asked if we were enjoying our food. The tuna looked and tasted so fresh and the rice was cooked to perfection. I like the bite that brown rice gives and the scattered seaweed was a pretty, tasty addition. For £13 I would say that this dish was worth every last penny and if you go to The Ned and eat this dish, tell me what you think of it!

I have decided that every time a brand asks to meet me for lunch, I'm going to suggest Malibu Kitchen and I'm slowly but surely going to try every last dish on that menu. Please give it a try next time you are in central London and I'll probably see you there seeing as I think I'm going to move in. My aim is to eat at all nine restaurants by the end of the year...watch out for my reviews along the way!

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DUCKSOUP | Soho

After staying in on Friday and Saturday due to a Fibro flare up; I was delighted when Bets asked if I wanted to have a luxury lunch at Ducksoup, Soho as a belated Birthday treat. Of course I did! I browsed the menu on the way to meet her and I was salivating at everything from the cocktails to the main courses!

I've never been to Ducksoup before but I love going to places that Bethany picks because she has the best taste and I trust her with my (food) life. This place is teeny tiny and very snug but even though it was busy; it was nice busy. Bets and I could hear each other easily and playing in the background was a record player that you could play their selection of vinyl on - a nice touch don't you think?

My beautiful babe, Bets and inside the exceptionally cosy Ducksoup

We got stuck in and ordered a cocktail each. I went with a Negroni and Bets had a blood orange and mescal cocktail. They were were pretty small, but certainly packed a punch! The slice of dried orange in mine was a welcome addition and the only negative thing I have to say about them is that they weren't big enough!

Now, considering I love the finer things in life, I have never tried oysters before. I think this might be due to the fact I once witnessed my Mum being verrrrry sick thanks to food poisoning from oysters. As I previously mentioned though, I trust Bets and considering they had oysters on their menu for £2 each - how could we resist? I know lots of people like tabasco sauce on them but I dislike hot stuff so we simply enjoyed them with a little fresh lemon squirted on the top... I AM A CONVERT. I absolutely loved it! I could have eaten tonnes of them!

For starters we decided to pick two dishes and share them. We nibbled on beautiful chunks of Finocchiona (salami) and chewed on their wonderful lamb riblets which were mega tasty. They came away from the bone so easily and the yoghurt and sesame seeds were the perfect accompaniment. I'm annoyed that sadly I didn't snap a pic of these two dishes!

For our mains we picked their Mozzarella, salted anchovies and green beans and also the chargrilled Quail which was served with faro, mint and green beans. Both of these dishes were so nice. Although it seems like we ordered a lot for a lunch; the dishes are all relatively light and great to graze on!

After the cocktail was out of the way we moved onto a nice glass of their white wine and it was bloody tasty (that's my professional opinion for you right there).

Our lunch was such a treat and if you are in Soho and fancy browsing a beautiful, eclectic menu and trying some tasty seasonal dishes; I highly recommend you pop in!

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All Star Lanes | Holborn, London.

A few weeks ago, Callie and I headed to All Star Lanes in Holborn for a Barry M beauty event. The event focused on Barry M's Quick Dry Speedy Nails range and the venue was very fitting. The event itself was held in their private bowling room which included a bar and seating area but after the event we treated ourselves to a meal in the main restaurant.

I've been to All Star Lanes a few times and I always have a splendid time there. I've been there to bowl with my pals and to sip cocktails on a date but this was my first time eating there and I wasn't disappointed.

Callie and I both fancied something naughty to eat and drink and All Star Lanes definitely has some very naughty but nice things on the menu! I picked a Lemonade Float and Callie got a Coke Float and there's something really nostalgic about these kind of drinks. I love scooping the frothy ice-cream off the top and I love how the ice cream makes the lemonade all creamy. I didn't fancy a starter as I knew the main would be hearty and thank god I didn't get one because my Buttermilk Fried Chicken Burger was huge and insanely nice! The burger has lime and chilli slaw in it and a chipotle mayo which I didn't fancy as there's something about chipotle that I don't like. There are lots of sides to choose from but I went with sweet potato fries which are my fave. Cal and I shared a pudding and although I prefer savoury food, I LOVED the dessert. We got the Blueberry Cheesecake Jar which is topped with crumbled Oreo biscuit. OMG it was so good!

All the mains are well priced, well below £20 (apart from the whole lobster which is £27.50) and even if you don't fancy going for a bowl, if you want some american style munch - I'd highly recommend going there for a meal.

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