Al Fresco Dining

Somewhat uncharacteristically, London (along with the rest of the country, it seems) has been enjoying some beautiful summer weather over the last couple of weeks. As a Londoner, I am all too aware that this cannot last and so made sure to make the most of it last weekend.

Following a rather painful and long week, me and Richard celebrated the start of the weekend with drinks in Wimbledon Village. We had a lovely walk up to the village (almost managing to avoid the rain completely) and chose to have a drink at Hemingway's Lounge Bar. The cocktail bar was quite busy and unfortunately we missed the before 9pm offer of 2 cocktails for £12 but did manage to find a table outside which fully protected us from the rain, enjoying the still warm evening with the freshness of the rain. I had the Tiki Coco Cabana (which I thankfully ordered when sober and just about managed to say) which was very lovely and a little strong, meaning I was sleepy and tired after just one drink. Yes, I am that rock n' roll...

Failing to have a lie in on Saturday, I had a bit of a fail with breakfast by firstly, not having enough eggs to make my pretend banana 'pancakes' and then slightly charring one of them. Not quite the start I was hoping for, but luckily I had my very strong Saturday coffee which saved the morning. Me and Richard then headed so Southside in Wandsworth so I could prepare for a cousin-reunion picnic that I was going to. I was only required to bring juice and water but ended up buying footballs, cricket bats and colouring books for the kids (and Richard, apparently).

Luckily for me, the picnic took place at Wimbledon Park which meant I had to walk a whole 3 minutes to get there. There was food, cake, drinks and gorgeous sunshine which made for a nice afternoon. The kids seemed to have enjoyed themselves too - the guys played all sorts of games with the kids and once they got bored, I took them to the lake to look at the ducks and dip their feet in the water to cool down. After a little too much food and the perfect amount of sunshine, everyone headed home and I "trekked" home to my flat, to have a quick change of clothes before heading out to Embankment to meet Richard.

 

We had dinner at Wagamama, grabbing a seat outside on Southbank and after a bit of walking (and refusing to queue for drinks) went to Fire & Stone and ordered some Pina Coladas, which although very well priced (at around £6) were quite disappointing, not tasting sweet or alcoholic enough. With our drinks finished, and being absolutely shattered after our days in the sun, we made our way back home.

Sunday had a very slow start which meant that breakfast was eaten at lunchtime and myself and Richard only managed to leave the flat after 2. We headed to Fulham to buy some paint for my room (which I plan to re-paint this weekend - by I of course, I mostly mean Richard) and some food for the day. Having returned home, we had a very late lunch, most of which Richard prepared, which consisted of steak, roasted cherry tomatoes and a baguette. The food was absolutely delicious, made even more so by the fact that we were able to enjoy it outside in the garden.

The evening was incredibly relaxed and we didn't end up doing all that much at all but it was what we both needed. Before we knew it, it was time for a very late dinner which provided me with the perfect opportunity to cook something from Hemsley & Hemsley's new cook book, The Art of Eating Well. Having looked through the book, there were so many tasty looking recipes which I wanted to try, I couldn't settle on just the one, so picked two: Pablo's chicken and superfood salad with miso tahini dressing (recipe can be found here). The chicken which looked and tasted deep fried was actually oven baked and covered in almonds rather than breadcrumbs. As for the super healthy salad; it was sooooo good. Although it was supposed to be enjoyed as a main, it proved to be the perfect accompaniment to the chicken and there was even some left over for Monday's lunch! The sun having set but the weather staying perfectly warm, we decided to enjoy dinner out in the garden too. It was the nicest, tastiest, most relaxing Sunday dinner ever and proved to be the loveliest evening... The ideal end to the weekend.

Who needs a shop when you have these in your garden?!

Happy Thursday lovies!!!!

Muah

Roo xx