Smart British food brightens Soho October 19, 2009 Hix66-70, Brewer Street, London, W1F 9TRTel: 020 7292 3518 www.hixsoho.co.uk FOOD SERVICE ATMOSPHERE Cost in restaurant per person without wine: £55 IF I had a friend who was sceptical about the claims of British food to be world-class, I might well take him to a Mark Hix restaurant. Hix was formerly the executive head chef [...]
BILL OF THE WEEK September 6, 2009 IT’S over to Westminster for this week’s bill, which came from a little Italian restaurant, Quirinale, tucked away beside the Institute of Economic Affairs and beloved of Parliamentary types wanting to keep a low profile. Our five diners attacked their meal with gusto, eating beef carpaccio, bresaola, pork saltimbocca, salmon, risotto and tiramisu, and washing [...]
When you are betting on the oil price, timing is all-important October 28, 2009 JUST how high can the oil price go? It broke through $80 last week, and in the past few days Barclays Capital analysts said that they think that oil has now made the transition into a higher trading band and a sustained improvement in demand should continue eating into excess inventories. The chances of oil [...]
Grübel isn’t out of the woods just yet April 12, 2010 THE three keys that make up the UBS logo symbolise confidence, security and discretion. Investors and clients could be forgiven for thinking it needs to be redesigned. Battered by huge writedowns in the financial crisis and a flight of wealth management clients in the wake of a massive American tax evasion probe, the Swiss bank [...]
A new star appears in the East October 5, 2009 Eastside Inn38-42 St John Street, Farringdon, EC1M 4AY; tel: 020 7490 9240, www.esilondon.comFOOD *****SERVICE ****ATMOSPHERE ***Cost in restaurant per person without wine: £70 WALKING into the Eastside Inn, the first impression was unfortunate. The rain that was falling hard outside was also falling inside, and we had to step round three champagne buckets to get [...]
OTHER GOLF VENUES September 28, 2009 BROCKET HALLJust 22 miles north of London, Brocket Hall is a spectacular location with two championship courses which are at their most beautiful in autumn. There is also a driving range, a putting green and you can hone your skills at the Faldo Golf Institute. To make the most of the location, you can also [...]
No more pain: how health farms became spas, and we got a bit soft October 19, 2009 WITHOUT FAIL, my grandmother and her mother used to go to a “health farm” for a week. It sounded like my idea of hell: a week of deprivation, nothing fun to do or eat. The end results spoke for themselves, though – they’d lose six kilos in a week and come home with wonderfully tapered [...]
Trekking with condors and canyons makes the Wild West unforgettable November 22, 2009 COMPUTER-controlled fountains rising out of an artificial lake on the Las Vegas Strip cavorted to the strains of The Pink Panther. Later we joined the midnight crowds singing along to Don McLean’s American Pie at a laser show in Fremont Street, downtown where the first casinos were built. It couldn’t be a greater contrast with [...]
OUT OF OFFICE September 8, 2009 STARS AT TOWER FESTIVALThe Tower Festival is upon us yet again: hurry to get tickets for Nigel Kennedy on Thursday – on Friday there’s a Sadler’s Wells extravaganza not to be missed and on Saturday it just gets better with the divine Lesley Garrett and the Fron Male Voice Choir. Let’s hope the weather holds [...]
OUT OF OFFICE September 8, 2009 STARS AT TOWER FESTIVALThe Tower Festival is upon us yet again: hurry to get tickets for Nigel Kennedy on Thursday – on Friday there’s a Sadler’s Wells extravaganza not to be missed and on Saturday it just gets better with the divine Lesley Garrett and the Fron Male Voice Choir. Let’s hope the weather holds [...]