Within hours of touching down in Montreal I was comfortably esconsed in Restaurant Toqué!, one of Canada’s most-respected and highly awarded restaurants. The name amuses me greatly – a ‘toque de cuisinier’ is a chef’s hat but ‘toqué’ means goofy, crazy, loopy, mad… Perhaps the implication is that wearing one indicates the other? When Toqué! ... Read more »
Visiting the Marché Jean-Talon in Montreal’s Little Italy district, I felt like a kid in a sweet shop; overwhelmed by stall after stall piled with beautiful, fresh, brightly-coloured produce, I didn’t know where to look next. Punnets of tiny physalis, known locally as cerise de terre (ground cherries) sat next to the last of the ... Read more »
If you follow me on Instagram, Twitter or my blog’s Facebook page you’ll have noticed that I visited Canada recently, taking in Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto and the region around Niagara-on-the-Lake. I’ll be sharing lots (and lots and lots!) from that trip in coming weeks. I totally loved all the destinations I visited and cannot ... Read more »
Scotland is blessed with a terrific natural larder – top quality beef, poultry and dairy, an abundance of fresh fish and seafood, excellent wild game, not to mention the national tipple, scotch whisky, made from malted barley. But like anywhere, it can be cheaper and easier for the hospitality and catering industry to purchase lower ... Read more »
If you were to write a wish list for the perfect, modern country house hotel, what might you include? For me I’d be looking for a beautiful rural setting with plenty of varied attractions in the vicinity, easy to get to but still with that feeling of getting away from it all, sumptuous and spacious ... Read more »
Just before Christmas I was invited on a trip to visit Vilnius, Lithuania. As a country I’ve long wanted to visit, and with the added allure of December Christmas markets, I didn’t hesitate to accept. I spent a wonderful few days exploring the city (and nearby Trakai) with incredibly knowledgeable, not to mention helpful, patient ... Read more »
There’s something very indulgent about taking a mini city break in your own city of residence. Holidays at home (or staycations, in the American vernacular) usually involve heading out of town; a shorter journey than heading abroad, perhaps, but further afield than the place you live. On the rare occasions we allocate leisure time to ... Read more »
A few weeks ago, I was invited to Almeria and Murcia, two neighbouring regions in Southern Spain, to learn more about their agricultural practices and produce. 1 Agrobio – Biological Pollination & Pest Control We started with a fascinating visit to Agrobio, a company that produces and sells bumblebees for pollination and a wide range ... Read more »
When it comes to tourism in Belgium, Brussels gets a bad rap. Go to Bruges, they say, for the picturesque canals and mediaeval centre. Go to Antwerp, they say, for world class art and hipster fashion. Go to Ghent, they say, for more of the same plus cycling too. Go to Ypres, they say, for ... Read more »
Call myself a foodie* and never been to the home of the pork pie? Shame on me! Luckily, an invitation to attend the Artisan Cheese Fair in Melton Mowbray gave me the chance to fix this oversight and Pete and I made our way North on the first Saturday in May. Held in the Cattle ... Read more »
The Place of Onions, in old Lille. After last night’s rainstorm the intense sticky heat has broken and today is cool, breezy, fresh… I love it! A drop of… [more]
We went to Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire at The Void this morning, an amazing VR experience where we got to be Rebel Alliance members going undercover as… [more]