Restaurants and Food More About Kafe Ador, Izgara, Tesco

 

Kafe Ador drinks.

As you see, they have coffees, teas and infusions, smoothies, sodas and soft drinks.

Cafe Ador main menu.

Kafe Ador cute kids' menu.

Bring along your own washable crayons. Or use a pencil and pen and ask if your child can take it home to finish colouring it in later.

Kafe Ador is open early, from 8.30 am for breakfast. That's handy for people working nearby. Or a working breakfast.

Apart from the fabulous decor, what do I remember about my first visit to Kafe Ador? The tasty spinach in puff pastry tart. The huge croissant. 

Walking along The Broadway, to Tesco for yogurt, I pass the Izgara sign.

By lunch time you can find deals at sister restaurant Izgara, meaning grill, which has Turkish dishes, which runs lunch time fixed price deals in Hatch End. They have another branch in Edgware.v.

Izgara in Hatch End, showing board with lunch time deal. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Tesco

After five, when Kafe Ador is shut, Tesco express has half price deals on some of their bakery (not bread) to tide you over until you are ready for evening dinner at Izgara which is brightly lit at night. Izgara is owned by the same person as Kafe Ador. 

A Tesco almond croissant.

As I write this on December 20th I am thinking that here's the winter solstice, meaning the longest night, and winter dark evening in nroth west London when it is a pleasure to see lights in the restaurants along Hatch End as well as the street lights up the lamp posts.

Toast and fruit at Kafe Ador. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Hatch End was described in a local paper as the restaurant capital of north west London. 

Bus H12 from Stanmore to South Harrow stops a few steps from Kafe Ador and Izgara going towards Stanmore. Or the H14 to Northwick Park.

A pedestrian crossing takes you to the other side of the road for the H12 bus going towards South Harrow via Pinner.. And the H14 via Harrow on the Hill bus garage and railway station from Northwick Park Hospital.  

Walking back from Kafe Ador, passing Izgara, beyond the end of the shops in Hatch End rilway station. 

Bus Announcements

Outside the station is another bus stop for both buses - handy for getting off if you accidentally got the H12 bus going the wrong way, as I did yesterday on my way to a Toastmasters International meeting in South Harrow. Fortunately, there was a verbal anouncement, as I was in a seat at the front and could not see the direction board announcements.)

 Useful Websites

Transport and Transport For London

TFL

https://tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/

https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/h12/

https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/h14/

https://tfl.gov.uk/overground/route/lioness/

https://www.mylondon.news/news/transport/tfl-confirms-london-underground-trains-30612817

https://www.mylondon.news/news/transport/tfl-making-huge-change-london-30618454?int_source=nba

https://harrowonline.org/2024/12/20/festive-travel-and-roadworks-update-for-harrow-residents/

Kafe Ador

https://www.kafeador.co.uk/

Izgara

https://www.izgara.co.uk/

Tesco

https://www.tesco.com/store-locator/pinner/tesco-express

Please follow this blog and share links to your favourite posts.

Cheapest Croissant in London? Breakfast deal?

Half a high calorie low price croissant from Lidl. In London. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Lidl. 79 pence. In central London you would pay a pound or more likely two pounds. 

A joke candidate for mayor has the slogan, croissants for a pound.

Put it in your oven or microwave in your home or serviced apartment. Soft and munchy and sticky and sucky inside. Crisp on the outside.

Also check for multi packs in Sainsbury's, at 99p, Tesco half price from over a pound to fifty pence late at night (if there are any left), Costco, Amazon, and frozen dough to cook yourself.

Tesco Express often have them hot from the oven first thing in the morning.

Wetherspoons pub do a breakfast deal, coffee (or tea or small orange juice), croissant and preserve (jam) until noon, at three pounds fifty five pence.

Morrisons supermarket also do multipacks.

In London you can find cafes serving meals all day, but the croissants will probably only be at breakfast time. Look for cafes in places such as Morrisons in Hatch End. Waitrose in South Harrow near Harrow on the Hill.

Tesco online sells six Pret a manger croissants in a pack for £3.50.

I just discovered a new trick. If your laptop doesn't have a pound sign, only dollars. copy the price from a website. But then you get their size font like this. You have to change it like this. From bold to normal and then large to normal. But it changes itself back again!

I looked up Pret and found this in Sainsbury. Try Paul, three bite size pieces, one in Baker St, one Marylebone High Street, and others. Richard Pull, a Londoner , who used to write restaurant reviews for Harden's restaurant guide in the eighties, still he is a gastronome, passionate about food, says, You cannot eat a decent croissant tidily. In France the businessmen would dunk their croissants into their cafe au last. Nowadays everybody drinks cappuccino or flat white. PAUL'S is a famous French Baker, but now available in London. Notches but very good.

International Dinner Etiquette; what to do with your elbows, soup, fork, the British, French and Spanish customs

When it comes to dinner etiquette, there is no shortage of help out there on the internet. Queen Victoria would have been amused. I shall tell you what she did later.

UK flag.

UK
A quick reminder about Britain:
Forks are placed on the tabled with tines up. However, they are used for eating with tines down to spear the peas, not upwards as if the fork were a spoon or a shovel.

Elbows off the table.
Don't take the last piece of cake or anything else without checking nobody else wants it.
No dunking bread in soup.
When you have finished, place knife and fork together on the plate in the six 'clock position.

French flag.

France
Demonstrate savoir faire and gain some cache.

The French dunk biscuits in coffee at breakfast time. They use bread to scoop up soup and the last of the gravy.

Merci, or thank you means no thank you. I was offered coffee and kept saying merci, thanks, but never got any.

The French put their knife and fork together at the end of the meal in the five o'clock position.

Germany
The Germans, like the French, finish with knives and forks in the five o'clock
position.
https://www.german-way.com/travel-and-tourism/germany-for-tourists/dining-out-in-germany/dining-etiquette-in-germany/

Flag of Spain.

Spain
According to the writer below, the Spaniards are like the French banning hands hidden in laps, up to no good.
They eat croissants and toasts with small knives and forks.
No dipping bread in soup, but you can push food onto your fork.
http://www.notesfromspain.com/2007/03/29/spanish-table-manners-do-you-know-the-rules/

 Swiss Flag.

Switzerland
As in the UK, wait for everybody to be served wine, and for the host to suggest a toast, then clink glasses with everybody and maintain eye contact.
French bread, as in France is crumbly so you tear it with your fingers and don't attempt t cut it into neat slices because if you did that you would make a huge mess.

A Singaporean asks me:
"But if you break bread with your hands - what about the crumbs!"

I suggest you watch your companions. As in Singapore, you do not drop peanut shells on the floor, but in Raffles bar you are allowed to follow the fashion, the tradition of years ago and do so.

Coffee
The story goes that Queen Victoria visited the home of a miner. The miner offered her tea. Then he picked up the saucer and drank from it.
Queen Victoria did as he did.

In her house, he would have been expected to follow the court customs. But in his house, she followed the customs of the host.

As they say, when in Rome, do what the Romans do.

Italy
The Italians have espresso coffee, a short strong coffee, as an after dinner pick me up. At breakfast time they drink a long milky coffee. Italian waiters sometimes get irate. The believe that when in Rome, do as the Romans do.

UK flag.

Queen Victoria would have understood.

UK
On the other hand, we could  consider whether we want to be right - or to make money. In Britain we have a saying: The Customer Is King.

In the USA, the customers are very casual, and after cutting up their meat, just eat with a fork.
The staff also pack up your leftovers to take home. You don't have to ask the staff when you want the leftovers. The staff usually ask you!

Useful Websites

TRAVEL TO LONDON & Beyond

singaporeair.com
Visitsingapore.com

http://silvervaultslondon.com/

visitbritain.com

Switzerland
myswitzerland,com

Spain
www.spain.info

France
visitfrance.co.uk

Germany
germany.travel/en

ITALY
italiantouristboard.co.uk
umbriatourism.it

USA
visittheusa.co.uk

BRITISH DINNER ETIQUETTE

https://www.wikihow.com/Eat-Spaghetti

https://www.etiquettescholar.com/dining_etiquette/table_manners/dinner_etiquette/seafood.html

https://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/cooking-tips-techniques/cooking/how-eat-lobster

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/04/international-dinner-etiquette-your.html

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. I have several more tips in posts on etiquette. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Gau Again - a Hanoi coffee shop with cakes and pastries baked on site

We went to Gau in the old area of Hanoi, three times, on our way to and from the lake and St Joseph's cathedral.

Once we had the chocolates which we didn't like.

Once we had croissant.

And once we had hot panettone. Panettone is the Italian come shape sweet cake bread,originally from Milan according to Wikipedia, also popular in European neighbour Spain and over in Venezuela, especially at Christmas in Italian restaurants and Italian cafes in London, England, and Tesco supermarket in the UK.

Only a couple of tables for two are downstairs. There's more seating upstairs, and out on the balcony.

The kitchen is upstairs, which happens so often in Hanoi at restaurants and coffee bars. The ground floor is needed for the shop and seating.

Dog in Gau, Naoi, Vietnam. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Singapore has a cat cafe, two cat caffes. In Hanoi, Gau has a cat-size little dog. In December the dog is wearing a coat. A dear little dog. The dog's name is Cappucino.

Don't call out the dog's name or you may find you have ordered another drink.

More Information From
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Joseph's_Cathedral,_Hanoi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panettone

Travel information
For hotels
booking.com
Comparison site:
https://www.clicktripz.com/rates/search/index
For airlines
travelok.com
vietJetair.com (Comprehensive list of budget airlines in Wikivoyage.)
For transport
https://www.grab.com/vn/en/

Language
Duolingo.com 
(Remember to click on the sound symbol to hear how words are pronounced.) 

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

Please share links to your favourite posts. I have several more on Hanoi, Halong Bay and Vietnam.

Best hot croissant in Hanoi, Vietnam - Gau Coffee and Bakery

Flag of Vietnam

Vietnam has many good things to eat and buy. We were in Hanoi. The second city.

Gau
We went to Gau bakery. Yes, Gau. The bakery is upstairs. The takeaway and ordering counter is on the ground floor. You pass the bakery if you decide to sit in the upstairs room which has a balcony.

What do I recommend? The hot croissants are great. 

Is everything great? Or were we just undiscriminating diners? No. Neither. Avoid the chocolates.

We went upstairs but didn't sit on the balcony. By the end of December, Hanoi was getting chilly. The small dogs were out in the street, wearing coats. So was the dog owned by the owner of the shop.

We were so impressed by the tiny white porcelain jugs with just enough milk for an espresso coffee (double espresso) that we asked for the source.

The Market.

"Take a photo of the jug!" suggested the cafe assistant. How helpful.

The market was only about four blocks away from Gau. En route we passed the landmarks we recognized:

1 The Blue Butterfly Cooking class and restaurant,

2 A couple of temples adjacent to swags of telephone and electric cables.

In the market, we found the white jugs in various sizes. We bought the tiny one - at under two pounds sterling. It will always remind us of Gau in Hanoi.

email: gaucoffeeandbakery@gmail.com
tel:+84 915.493663

Travel information
For hotels
booking.com
Comparison site:
https://www.clicktripz.com/rates/search/index
For airlines
travelok.com
vietJetair.com (Comprehensive list of budget airlines in Wikivoyage.)
For transport
https://www.grab.com/vn/en/

Language
Duolingo.com 
(Remember to click on the sound symbol to hear how words are pronounced.) 

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

Please share links to your favourite posts. I have several more on Hanoi, Halong Bay and Vietnam.

Learning The English Language: The Queen's English loan words and false friend words from the USA, New Zealand

Problem
Many people heard the Queen's Speech on Christmas day in the English speaking world. But foreigners often have trouble understanding English. Even the British can be confused and embarrassed in France, the USA or New Zealand.

French Au Pair Girl's Problem
When my son was small I had au pair girls from France living with me to help babysit when I was out teaching English as a home tutor. One of my au pair girls complained that she could not understand people in restaurants, cafes and bars. She asked me, 'Why do they say 'yeah' when the school books teach you to say 'yes'? She said, 'When I listen to the Queen's Speech I can understand every word.'

The problem is that in everyday conversation, poeple often use slang, short forms, and new words. The younger generation are quick to take up new words. This is not a new problem.

Arabic and Hebrew
I read in books that Arabic comes in two forms, street Arabic and classical Arabic.
Modern Hebrew also has two forms. One is modern Hebrew. The other is the language of the Bible, known to Christians as the Old Testament because Christians also follow the New Testament about Jesus.

Londoners today don't use the same vocabulary as Shakespeare. Modern English is a polyglot or a language including speaking many languages, words we call loan words.

French
My family keeps a list of French words used in English. We have a list of about 300 words. Not counting foods such as croissant, and cooking utensils such as the bain-marie, we have many common words, such as bouquet, ballet, garage, and other récherché words, such as naive, panache, and whole phrases such as pièce de résistance.

Other European languages also have influenced English vocabulary. From the German language we get the everyday words kindergarden, child garden, and delicatessen. Dutch is similar to German. From the Dutch, across the water, we get the word yacht, a kind of boat.

We also know many words from Italian, Spanish, and Latin, such as villa, a grand detached house, and sombrero, a large hat and mañana, meaning tomorrow.

Bungalows
Some words cause confusion. In India a bungalow is a detached house. In England it is a one-storey dwelling, which in the USA would be a called a ranch house.

Embarrassing Moments in France
When I have travelled and lived abroad I have had moments of confusion, even embarrassment.  In France we could not understand why the grand hotel closed at 5 pm just when we drove up hoping to check in. The sign outside clearly said, Hotel de ville, which we assumed was city hotel. No, hotel de ville means Town Hall, the chief municipal office.

I went to France on a press trip. The local Prince was showing the English journalists his castle. He said, "Now you have seen the front side, I will show you my backside. "I had hysterics. In English, backside is slang for a part of your anatomy, below the waist, for what we also call euphemistically, posterior.

The French man then continued to send me further into hysterics by repeating, "Angela has asked to see my backside. She thought it would be interesting, unlike any backside you have seen in England. What is so funny?"

Embarrassment in New Zealand
In New Zealand, we drove around looking for our hotel. A friendly local told us the hotel was next to the station. We drove on looking for a railway station and could not see it. We asked again. We discovered that in New Zealand the sheep outnumber the poeple, and the buses, and New Zealanders use the word station for something to do with sheep, called a sheep station.

We drove to a beach bar and restaurant and saw a sign, no thongs. In England thongs are a modern name for what used to be called G-strings, ladies underwear revealing all at the back. I was not wearing thongs, neigher as underwear, not a bikini. The bar tender pointed at my shoes. Thongs, in New Zealand, are what the English call flip flops.

Embarrassment in the USA
In America, my greatest fear was realised; I said something rude. I wanted to buy stationery: a ruler, a pencil and a rubber.

I asked an assistant, "Do you sell rubbers?"
She answered, "No. You need to go a drug store." I walked around, found my ruler, a pencil, and a rubber!

I asked an assistant, "If this is not a rubber, what do you call it?"

"An eraser."

"You don't use the word rubber?"

"We do. But it means something else."

"What does it mean?"

"You buy it in a drug store. It used to be made of rubber. Now latex."

"Ah what we, in England call a condom, after the French city of that name."

So now you know what to say - and not say!

Chinese Pronunciation
Finally, a few local words. Please pronounce the letter rs R and L. I used to hear a joke that a pilot on a flight to China wished everybody 'a present fright'.

It's not just a joke. When you get on a flight to China, the pilot does say, "We wish you a peasant fright."

A peasant is a poor man. Pleasant is pleasing.

A flight is when a plane flies.  A fright is what you get when it descends too fast.

The study of English, and other languages, is always a joy.

Singlish - my next speech. Pick you at the airport. Borrow instead of lend. Off the light instead of turn it off. That's another story.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

What's As British as Bakewell Tart? For Almond Addicts.

Photos of almond slices by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

A box of Mr Kipling's almond slices contains six slices. But not for long. Within a couple of hours of my buying it, as you can see, the box contains only four slices. In order to take the photo, I had to ask the calorie policeman, "Where have you hidden the almond slices?" 

Problem
I went to Derbyshire, to the Writers' Summer School at Swanwick, but this year they did not serve Bakewell Tart which I had sampled and loved the two previous years.

If you want Bakewell tart or rather pudding from the town of its supposed origin, go to Bakewell in Derbyshire. At least two places serve what they think is the best and most authentic version.

If you don't make it to Bakewell, copy what I did.

I went into my local Tesco supermarket - a small branch. What did I spy? Mr Kipling almond slice.

An alternative excellent almond snack to have with your mid morning coffee or mid afternoon tea is Costa's almond slice.

I don't drive to the shops. I walk. The calorie count of these delicious desserts is horrific.

As they say, move more and eat less. So I shall swim at the gym and share the next almond slice.

Croissant
Even more shockingly calorific and lip-licking delicious is the almond croissant you can buy freshly baked and often still warm in the morning (is it only Sunday morning?) from Tesco supermarket in London.

Bakewell Pudding and Tart
http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Bakewell_pudding
http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Bakewell_tart

Costa's Raspberry and Almond Bake
See my previous post and picture of the Costa's Raspberry and Almond Bake.
http://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/costa-at-hays-galleria.html

Croissant with Almond Filling (from Tesco)
https://plus.google.com/+AngelaLansburyauthor2/posts/RPaxZsfwhY1

Tesco's Almond Slice
https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/254947308

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

French Food, Restaurants and Celebrations For Bastille Day, July 14th French National Day - Vive La France!

The red, white and blue of the French flag light up Wembley Arch in London in Sympathy with the French.

Problem
How should I celebrate Bastille Day and where?

Answers
First - what's it all about? The storming of the Bastille, a prison in Paris, capital of France. In 1789. Year of the Revolution. Taxes were high, food prices were high, and King Louis XVI was unpopular, and so was his wife, Marie Antoinette, who was supposed to have said, 'Let them eat cake'.

When I was researching my book of quotations, entitled Who Said What When, I discovered that Let them Eat cake was supposedly said by another unpopular character more than a hundred years earlier. No record of a time and place for Marie Antoinette saying any such thing in her lifetime. The same applies to a lot of famous quotations.

How do I remember which of the many Louis kings was married to Marie Antoinette? Louis 16, and for him and his wife and the rest of France he was not sweet sixteen. In fact on Bastille Day things went very sour for him. He is supposed to have asked one of his ministers, "Is this a revolt?" And he got the riposte, to use a French word, "No, it is a revolution!"

Bastille Day is celebrated in France, Belgium, Canada. If you want to practise your French, it is also spoken in Switzerland and Saint Martin island  in the Caribbean. Many cities have French quarters or French associations.

Romania's capital, Bucharest, has a landmark copy of the Arc de Triomphe and a statue of Charles de Gaulle. The Romanian word for thank you is m e r s i.

Hotels and restaurants and French areas worldwide have had red, white and blue of the French flag, French music, and French food.

In France expect to see military parades and fireworks and lights on public buildings. This year, 2017, American President Trump enjoyed a Michelin meal in the restaurant in the Eiffel Tower. The menu featured the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty. You could make your own menu if eating at home.

What could you do with red, white and blue? White meringue, with red raspberries and blueberries.

French Wines
Red wines from Bordeaux and white wines and sparkling Champagne.

French Water
Perhaps Perrier water. I recently discovered that Perrier water comes in many other flavours, such as Lemon.

In the UK you can buy a croissant cooked on the premises daily at my local branch of Tesco. Reminders of French and French language are all around in England. For example, you might enjoy:

au gratin, (with cheese)
bain-marie, (double boiler)
ballet,
banquet,
banquette, (long seat usually along wall)
biscuit,
bouquet,
bouquet garni,
buffet,
café,
canapé,
casserole
consommé, soup
chocolate eclair,
coq au vin, chicken with win
c r è p e, (thin pancake)
croissant, crescent shape flaky pastry
croquette, fried cylinder of mashed potatoes or other food in a casing
croque Madame
croque Monsieur,
croutons, diced fried bread, often in soup
duck a l'orange
entente cordiale
entrecôte,
flambé,
French onion soup,
gourmand,
Gourmet,
hors d'oeuvres, starter, literally outside(s) (dishes) of the work(s)
marrons glacé,
menu,
Pains perdue, (bread lost or egg lost sunk in the bread)
pâté
patisserie,
petits pots de chocolat, (small pots of chocolate)
pommes Anna, (sliced potatoes, layered usually with a cheese and cream sauce and onions)
soufflé
terrine
valise,
vinaigrette
vol au vent
and RSVP!

I have been keeping a list of French words used in English and so have other members of my family.

French Music
At some point you might play The Marseillaise. The French songs which come to my mind are the one I learned at school as a child in England, Sur le Pont d'Avignon. Later I loved to hear Edith Piaf sing Je Ne Regrette Rien. You might also like a song associated with food or drink, such as The Night they invented Champagne! Or I love Paris in the Springtime.

You could also celebrate by seeing a show called An American in Paris. It is being shown in London. There has to be a joke in there somewhere. I am looking for it.

Stories
In London the Borough Market area has had French bands. If your budget does not stretch to Michelin restaurants, you could celebrate French food in Cafe Rouge which has branches all over Britain.

One of my favourite French cheeses, Gaperon d'Auvergne. French cheeses are available in London at a grocers' with a chilled cheese room and a café , La Fromageri, which is near Baker Street station and Madame Tussauds. (Madame Tussaud was also French -  and started her career taking waxworks of the victims of the guillotine).

Bastille Restaurants
Where do you find Bastille Restaurants? Place de la Bastille is in Paris.
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/RestaurantsNear-g187147-d188456-Place_de_la_Bastille-Paris_Ile_de_France.html
Washington DC has a Bastille Restaurant.
One restaurant is holding Bastille Day event menu on Friday July 14th and Saturday 15th. Another is holding a Bastille Day celebration week until Sunday July 16th.https://www.tripsavvy.com/bastille-day-events-1040032

But you also find restaurants called Bastille in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and in San Jose, Costa Rica.
http://www.labastillerestaurant.com (Belfast, N Ireland)
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g309293-d2479270-Reviews-Restaurant_La_Bastille-San_Jose_San_Jose_Metro_Province_of_San_Jose.html (San Jose, Costa Rica).

Tips
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bastille_Day
www.duolingo - to learn French free on line
www.caferouge.com (French restaurants all over England, Scotland and Wales)
https://www.lafromagerie.co.uk (French food, cafe and cheese shop)
wwww.us.france.fr (official tourist board website)
https://flights.ryanair.com/en-gb/flights-to-paris
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attractions-g187147-Activities-Paris_Ile_de_France.html

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Henry VIII, his wives, and Elizabeth I on Charing Cross Station

Charing Cross murals remind me of Henry IVIII and his unlucky wives. Henry doesn't look too pleased. Nor does Ann Boleyn. Cardinal Wolsey doesn't look terribly happy either. Elizabeth I is not exactly delighted either. Why do I like these portraits when they look so grim? I refuse to buy pictures to hang in my house which show glowering people. Same goes for miserable looking Teddy Bears and toys. But rather than looking at a blank wall, I'd always rather look at portraits of important people, and be inspired to learn a little more history.

Many kings and queens of England had dramatic lives, or made memorials of events in their lives. I love these murals. Charing Cross is associated with Eleanor, whose loss was

Problems
How do you know when it's your stop?

Answers
On most London trains you get a recorded announcement:
The next station is ....

Stories
I once missed my stop. What was worse, my stop was the point at which everybody got off. The train diverted off down into a dark siding. I alerted the driver and he took the train and me back to the station. I did feel foolish.

I expect when I arrived home late, somebody said to me, "What took you so long?"

The answer was, "A train driver accidentally took me into a siding. But when I pointed out that the train was not empty, he brought me back."

Tips
1 If you get off at Charing Cross Station, as the signs tell you, you can visit Trafalgar Square, The National Gallery, or The National Portrait Gallery.
2 If you are simply passing through, sit by the window and keep a look out for the murals.
3 Get to know what your usual stations look like.
4 Some people aim for an exact train time.
5 Some people can plan which end of the train to sit at to be near the exit stairs.
6 Note the time of your last train.

Breakfast On The Go
Others who change trains at a big station allow time to dash to a kiosk for a breakfast croissant before returning to make their connection. One girl had a regular morning order. She would arrive and wave. The cafe owner would grab her wrapped croissant from the counter and hand it over. She would hand over the exact money, race back down the stairs and onto the train to arrive at work exactly on time.

Keep a tube map in your pocket for every journey. Then if the trains are delayed you can plan an alternative route.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charing_Cross_tube_station

Author
Photos by Angela Lansbury.
See my other posts on London stations and stations in Singapore.

Italian Coffee? Can you name a Coffee? Espresso. Lavazzo.

Can you name an Italian coffee? Espresso. Lavazzo. Lavazzo is the one I have seen most often advertised by their signboards on the pavement (US word sidewalk) outside coffee shops in NW London. At the Business Centre near the Angel station in Islington, one of the sponsors of the event was Lavazzo and they held tasting events in one of two talks areas.

Registering and Seating Mistake
My business partner and I arrived too early to register. After registering I wanted to take my place early, knowing that on previous occasions I had arrived late and got no seat. I made the mistake of allowing myself to be persuaded to use my time going to see a few stalls, and wandered like an arrow away from the  area instead of circling it and watching as the seats filled up and going in when half of them were full.

Although my business partner wanted to save me a seat, two people from the Lavazza company or area took seats which the organiser had allocated to guests. Despite registering, that was not enough effort on my part. The limited number of seats went to those registered on a first come first served basis. My partner phoned me but by the time I raced back along the hall no seats were left. I tried to ask a nearby stall holder if I could borrow a seat. He said he needed it for anybody who turned to talk to me. But I could sit on it until somebody turned up. I thanked him and sat down.

I had a seat. But I was too far to hear the speaker. So I went and stood on the side of the workshop.

Entertaining Talk Mentioned Croissants
I enjoyed the talk. I already knew the story of the Turkish invaders, who were supposedly discovered tunneling into Vienna, and thwarted, and the bakers celebrated by baking a croissant, in the shape of the crescent on the Turkish flag. (If the Turks had won, perhaps the canny bakers would have sold the croissant for the opposite reason. Since many people say the story is a myth, as somebody once said to me, quoting a common quotation phrase, why let the truth get in the way of a good story.)

About half way through this entrancing  entertainment my colleague signalled to me to swap places. As he left he told me that he was annoyed that the drinks were supposed to be paired but that was not happening early enough, nor in time to serve hot coffee with the food selection offered.

Hot and Cold Coffee
The solo drinks machine served three cups at a time, so the tables were given drinks one table at a time. It took at least ten minutes to serve all the tables.  (It was in plastic disposable containers the size of espresso cups and half full as is normal size for espresso in Italy.) By the time the speaker finished his lengthy introductions and suggested matching the first set of coffee with the food the coffee of those served first had gone cold.

Food Pairing
The food selection was liquorice, figs, milk and dark chocolate. The two big surprises for me were the food and the coffee.

I Applaud Iced Coffee
By the time I arrived the first three coffees, black coffees, originally hot drinks had been drunk by my colleague. What I got was a later serving of an iced milky coffee which seemed to have a frothy top. It was delicious. And it went perfectly with the liquorice. The liquorice was in cylinders like the sort which used to come in L i c  o r i  c e Allsorts.

Delights of Soft Liquorice
The brand name for the UK confectionary should be L i q u o r i c e  All sorts (only one space before the capital A). I am using spaces to defeat the spellchecker which despite my ignoring suggestions which flash up and flash off before I can click on the x to reject suggestions, has once so far succeeded in changing the word to Louise when I was not watching.)

Unlike the UK confectionary, which had hard liquorice, the one served by Lavazzo was sort. Unlike the hard one which I did not like, the soft one was wonderful. I would like to know where to buy it. When I find out, I shall tell you in a post on this website Travel with Angela Lansbury on blogger.com

Look for Lavazzo Cups
My colleague had noticed and taken a goodie bag under the table containing information on Lavazza, samples of coffee and one small porcelain coffee cup, Italian espresso size. I was disappointed not to get a complimentary cup. It means at a break from work only one of us gets the cup, or we use it in succession. But he said he likes a larger espresso serving anyway.

Espresso All Day in England
Another interesting finding from the talk by the chef promoting Lavazzo, was that although in Italy it is still the fashion to have espresso only as an after dinner pick me up in the evening, in the UK espresso in drunk earlier in the day, after lunch and even at breakfast time. (In coffee shops as well as at home.)

Coffee Shops Make Good Business
We also heard the history of coffee shops. When they started, as is often the case now, people met to have business over coffee. One of the coffee shops, Lloyds, became what is now still the biggest insurance company in the UK. Another coffee shop became Sotheby's selling, auctioning antiques and high price furniture and furnishings.

Coffee Eclipsed By Tea
Tea was introduced and took over as the drink of choice, as you will see in British WWI and WWII films where in time of trouble or dramatic comedy the heroes and heroines of the day sit down to chat and recover over a 'nice cup of tea'. But in our era coffee has again become a favoured drink after dinner and throughout the day.

Coffee Revival
To my surprise I did not like any of the sweet chocolate or fruits with a strong coffee. They seemed to me to match a sweet coffee. You should try this at home. Match up your dark and light and strong black or weak, sweet white coffees with dad and light chocolate and figs and soft liquorice.

To sum up, the things I learned were:
1 The Italians still drink espresso after evening dinner in tiny cups. Lavazzo produce small Italian size espresso cups so look for them when Lavazzo put on a promotion.
2 The croissant is supposedly an imitation of the crescent on the Turkish flag when Viennese bakers celebrated surviving a threatened invasion.
3  Arrive early at workshops.
4 Look around or ask for a take home 'goody bag'.
5 Taste and buy soft liquorice.
6 Make at home or order in coffee bars and restaurants a cold, frothy sweet white coffee made from Lavazzo coffee.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

French words of the day for connoisseurs: amateur, bain-marie to repertoire - and making mayonnaise

amateur
bain-marie - Mary's basin or bath, bowl or pan suspended in hot water, for steaming, lie poached eggs but usually bigger for delicate sauces like melting chocolate, or hollandaise - an egg rich sauce
chauffeur
cjef
connoisseur
croissant
cuisine
debut
entrepreneur
mayonnaise - egg yolks(s) (usually two egg yolks) whipped up with oil, traditionally olive oil
separate the yolk from the egg, dribble in oil with drops slowly or it doesn't emulsify but ends up runny - you must get air in as fast as the oil. When it starts to mix well you can add slightly faster. Add lemon juice to add flavour - maybe this helps the emulsion?
milieu
repertoire

In the right milieu your chauffeur will drive you to a restaurant patronised by millionaires where as an amateur you can enjoy your debut as a from a chef in his milieu you learn from a connoisseur how to make croissants and use a bain-marie to make mayonnaise. 

Breakfast Travel Diet - I must avoid the almond croissant

My favourite snack is Costa's almond bake slice.

I've looked at snacks in Waitrose cafe and at Costa, as well as the freshly baked croissants and muffins in Tesco and Morrisons - and tea time scones with cream at Marks & Spencer to take home and divide between two people or two meals.

Croissants are the worst and if you look at recipes to bake your own you see why they are so calorific and taste so good. Full of butter. My other favourite is almond fillings and marzipan. Marzipan is basically ground almonds mixed with sugar, the amount of sugar varying from about 25% to 75%.

You are better off buying a sandwich - but the egg with mayo could contain more calories than the chicken sandwich.

As for bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese!

So I have to run to and from the shop in order to eat half a croissant. Anybody want to run with me and then share my almond bake?

We've started doing a daily calorie count in our family.

http://www.costanutrition.co.uk