b'nou - Norwich City Centre

b'nou only opened a couple of months ago and its already made an impact. When we were looking on Tripadvisor for places to go we noticed b'nou was fourth and had 19 reviews, all of which were excellent, so we decided to check it out.

The restaurant is quite small and can probably only seat around 30 people (booking is essential!). It has a very homely feel to it and a lovely, relaxed atmosphere.

It all kicks off at 7:30. There are no menus, but a selection of tapas-type dishes that changes each night. One by one, each dish is brought round to all of the tables. Each dish costs £4 and if you decide to have one the hosts stamp a little card so they know how much to charge you at the end. Although they're small little plates, one between 2 or 3 works out well because there's lots to try. When we went, there were 13 savoury dishes and 3 desserts available and between the 4 of us we had 19 dishes. It was great to share lots of really tasty food and be able to try a lot of different things in one meal. Also because there's enough time to eat in between the next dish coming round you don't get too full.

All the food was delicious. Simple combinations executed flawlessly. When we were chatting to one of the owners he said they had lived in Spain for the last 5 years, which shows as the food is clearly influenced by Spanish cooking. He also said that the meat is all free-range, the fish is fresh on that day and the fruit and vegetables are locally sourced. A lot of thought and care has obviously gone into b'nou and it really pays off.

Here's some pictures of some of the dishes we had and the sort of thing to expect if you ever go there.

Smoked mackerel paté.

Chorizo, butterbean and roasted pepper rocket salad.

Baked camembert. 

Paella with chorizo, bacon, cod and prawns.

Chicken drumsticks (I can't remember what they were marinaded in - I think it was lemon and honey).

Tortillas filled with spicy vegetables.

Three types of mushrooms in a creamy sauce (the picture does not do this justice -it was amazing).

Chicken (again I've forgotten the flavour of it) with couscous.

The desserts were incredible.

Lemon and lime panna cotta.

Chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream.

Berry compote with vanilla ice cream.

We had such a lovely evening. The concept of the restaurant made it an interesting and different meal out and if I lived in Norwich I would venture there regularly. The owners were so nice, worked hard to make sure the evening was a success and are clearly passionate about their fairly new restaurant. I have absolutely no negatives about b'nou and I really hope it continues to be as successful as it has been since it opened.

Mid Year Resolution

If you regularly read my blog you will know that I have posted very infrequently over the last month or so. I have been quite busy, as since I've been home for the summer holidays I've worked on average five days a week in a hotel restaurant, mainly doing breakfast shifts, which means lots of early starts. Although I am usually a morning person, not having an option to wake up when I want most days has taken it out of me and I feel like I've been zapped of any energy. (I don't want to sound too moan-y because I do enjoy my job and I definitely need the money!)  My general tiredness and mood of the past few weeks has made me completely lose interest in blogging. Because all I've done in the last few weeks is work and exercise (I'm on a bit of a get-fit mission) I haven't really eaten out anywhere interesting and I haven't cooked anything blog-worthy either.

 

I'm currently in Norwich for a few days (this is as exciting as my summer travelling will get) for a bit of a mini-break and I've already eaten at a few really nice places that I just have not been interested in blogging about. I think this is a shame as I used to really enjoy writing posts so I have decided to make a mid year resolution to write at least one blog post a week. Hopefully writing this in a post will mean that I won't break my resolution and it will give me something to look forward to each week. Also it might make me do more than just work and go to the gym if I think I can make plans to go out somewhere I could blog about.

 

I'm determined to keep my promise to myself and to recapture my passion for food and enjoyment of blogging!

 

If you live around or are visiting Norwich then first of all, lucky you! I never realised how lovely Norwich is and there are so many places to eat! I wish I could stay for longer so I could visit more places. Second of all, I thought I would list the places I've visited so far that, although I unfortunately didn't take pictures of,  I recommend.

 

Number 12 Norwich - a pub-type place, that although didn't have the greatest or most stylish interior, was relaxed and served really delicious food. I had the ribs and they were SO GOOD. I don't think I spoke for the whole time when I was eating (a rarity for me) because I was so entranced by the barbecue-y goodness. Also, the service was really excellent.

 

Casa Pato - a Spanish restaurant with a small but incredibly delicious menu. I had the Serrano ham, tomato and olive oil bocadilla (sandwich) which was perfect for lunch time, and lucky for me I got to try some of the meat paella on one of the tapas boards which was really flavoursome and filling. Again, the service was great and they also made perfect coffee (no coffee is as good as Spanish coffee)!

Pandora's Kitchen - a lovely café. We only stopped for a drink but the cakes etc. on show in the window looked very nice. They had a wide variety of teas and yet again, the service was excellent. Everyone in Norwich seems so friendly!

As I'm staying in the city centre, everywhere I visit is close by, and its been lovely to wander through the cobbled lanes checking out the endless amount of cafés and restaurants. I've got a few posts from Norwich which I'll put up over the next week or so that I've planned since making my mid year resolution, but for now I need to get ready to go out to dinner! 

Birthday Celebrations in Cosy Club - Cardiff City Centre

Last week it was my friend's birthday and to celebrate we went into town for some food and drinks. The birthday girl wanted to go to Cosy Club, which is part of the same group as the Lounges (read about the Fino Lounge here). Cosy Club is similar to the Lounges and there are few around the South of the UK in town or city centres and they are open all day, for brunch and coffee to dinner and drinks. Cosy Club Cardiff is located in the St Davids 2 centre and is on the first floor with huge windows looking over The Hayes so is really bright and helps to create a relaxed atmosphere. It has a similar feeling to The Plough - the quality and offering of food and drink and the layout of the restaurant makes Cosy Club a casual yet special place for a birthday meal.

I decided to splash out a bit and order a Raspberry Mojito. As I'm only a poor student I normally can't afford cocktails as they can be pretty pricey, and even though this one wasn't cheap it was definitely worth it.

Mojitos are my favourite cocktail and this one was beautifully made. The addition of raspberries made it even better than a standard mojito and the flavour came through nicely but didn't overpower the lime and mint. Very refreshing on a warm evening.

I wasn't particularly hungry and opted for some tapas. I think the menu has changed since I went last week looking at the website and two of the dishes I had have changed or been taken off the menu.

From left to right: chorizo cooked in red wine; broad bean, pea and mint paté; and honey glazed 5-spice pulled pork. I think its been made more expensive on the new menu but they still offer 3 dishes for cheaper than they would be individually and they are still served with ciabatta. If you're looking for traditional Spanish tapas dishes then this isn't what is on offer at Cosy Club but its still really tasty.

It was all delicious; the chorizo was very flavoursome and the pork was very juicy and tender. I really enjoyed the broad bean, pea and mint paté and I think its a shame that its no longer on the menu. It was fresh and was great spread on the ciabatta.

Three of the other girls also ordered tapas and I tried some of the falafels with cumin and coriander yogurt that my friend ordered.

They were really tasty and well spiced and are still available on the menu so I recommend trying them out.

The rest of the girls all had the falafel burger.

The service was wonderful in Cosy Club and our food came quite quickly after ordering. If you're looking for somewhere a bit more interesting than the standard coffee shop or chain restaurant for lunch or dinner in the city centre, then check out Cosy Club, you won't be disappointed!