GDG July Newsletter

In case you missed it here's a snippet of our fab July newsletter packed full of information on great things to do in London...

"Over the last couple of months London has seen new restaurants popping up with a frequency surpassed only by the NOTW's phone hacking allegations. We've forced ourselves to pick just three of our current favourites… Newish Pizza East on Portobello Road is perfect for a relaxed brunch date - it's a cliché but it's got a cool New York vibe going on and we love it! Pub wise The Devonshire Arms in Chiswick has just opened. Formerly under the care (!) of Gordon Ramsay it is now in the experienced hands of Nick Gibson of The Drapers Arms, Islington. It's an informal pub/restaurant with tasty British food curtesy of it's head chef hailing from The Deanstreet Townhouse in Soho. Finally, we're still loving the current trend for Spanish restaurants and the latest addition is José Pizzaro's eponymous tapas and sherry bar in Bermondsey - cosy and intimate, tapas is made for romance!"

We've got tips on what's hot in London this month, and suggestions on where to order delicious  hampers to give your picnic date the best chance of success!

Click here to read the newsletter in full...

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Miss Mary xxx

For The Love of Life!

I meant to write this blog post a while ago but life got in the way...  It's a review of a FANTASTIC pop-up restaurant I went to in Clapham at the end of last month.  Keep your eye on the FTLOL website to see if/when they do another pop-up because it is well worth going.

For the Love of Life at Tony's has got to be one of the best meals out that I have had in a long time - and I go to a lot of restaurants!

They had made Tony's (a fantastic greasy spoon in it's own right) into a quirky and cosy little restaurant with fresh flowers, candles and mismatched cutlery and crockery on each table.

The staff were friendly and helpful, not to mention skilful in navigating their way around the tiny cafe! It was BYOB and they kept all the white wines in massive bucket on the counter but never needed to be reminded which bottle belonged to which table... 

The food was absolutely delicious. I started with asparagus with a deep fried soft boiled egg which was cooked to perfection (never a certainty with asparagus). There were lots of murmurs of "how do they do that?" relating to the fact that the egg was perfectly soft boiled on the inside and perfectly deep fried on the outside - too much for our booze addled brains to make sense of!

Next up was a delicious (and not too rich/filling) parpadelle with basil but the star of the show had to be the desert... 

My table all opted for the doughnut station. A sort of DIY doughnut extravaganza with giant syringes of melted chocolate, crème Anglaise and strawberry jam. Not only did the doughnuts melt in the mouth but the whole humour of the doughnut station captured the relaxed and unpretentious attitude of FTLOL at Tony's. The food, the service, the atmosphere were all fantastic but there was none of the gastro-snobbery you sometimes find at pop-ups. 

Their aim was clearly to make sure that we (the punters) had a fantastic evening. Mission accomplished!

If FTLOL decide to do another pop-up restaurant then the team at the GDG would suggest you book it ASAP. The delicious food and the great atmosphere are perfect for a date, and ladies, the brownie points you'd get for agreeing to take your date to a greasy spoon will go a long way!