Five Edinburgh cafes for coffee 'holics

Kilimanjaro Coffee

This is the favourite, fantastic full English breakfast with what is an incredible lack of grease.  I know that sounds kind of terrible, but it's really good.  Plus we all loved the coffee here.

104 Nicolson Street, Edinburgh EH8 9EJ, Scotland

This photo of Kilimanjaro Coffee is courtesy of TripAdvisor

Dovecot Studios Cafe
Yummy home made cakes, soups and other fare.  Plus good coffee.
 
http://dovecotstudios.com/cafe/
10 Infirmary Street
Edinburgh EH1 1LT
Check opening hours I think its Monday to Saturday.

Black Medicine
I frequented the one on Nicholson Street.  Coffee pretty decent.
http://www.blackmed.co.uk/#aboutbm

Peter's Yard
Scandinavian, but with pizza. Sounds bizarre, but it works.  Baked goods, soups and other yummy stuff.  Not sure what the coffee was like as I didn't have one, but its' definitely worth checking our for the food. 

 

 

Quartermile
27 Simpson Loan
Edinburgh EH3 9GG
Area: The Meadows

0131 228 5876

http://www.petersyard.com

Spoon
Interesting beverages like fresh mint and chilli tea. Light and airy, an all day place where you can grab a coffee.
 6a Nicolson Street, 0131-557 4567
spooncafebistro.co.uk.
Open Mon-Sat 10am-11pm

Istanbul tips

Spice Markets

Cars use the tramways, so look out for these when crossing the road.

Streets listed on maps are often quite small laneways.  Easy to take a wrong turn.

Keep your eyes open as to where you walk, as lots of dogs and stray cats run free in this city.

Signposting is not great for sights of interest with the exception of the Grand Bazaar.  Indeed even finding the entrance to Topkapki Museum is not obvious, you know you are so close, but yet so far away, plus its hot and they are longish walks.  Amazingly this is even the case for exit signs, which again are not obvious.

Tickets are sold at booths away from the main entrance, so make sure to get a ticket before actually going to the entrance.

It is possible to buy a Museum pass.  When I was there is was 70lira.  You don't have to queue if you have the pass (but you might have to queue to get it).  The Museum pass gives you one off entry to the big attractions.

On the plus side, people are super friendly and even the hawkers of cruises and other are happy to give you advice and directions.

Away from Sultanhamet you can buy great fresh orange juice, though this just seems to be in the afternoon/evenings.  It is a bargain at 1 lira.  If you buy it at a major historical site they want 9 lira for the same thing.

My jewellery pick
OrtaAsya
rugs and jewellery store
Alendor Mah, Nur-u- Osmaniye
Cad. Atoy Apt No 3 Cagaouglu
Istanbul

Take the direction Grand Bazaar past the Cisterns walking away from Aye Sophia.  You take the left turn for the Grand Bazaar and it is on the left hand side.

T90 212 511 1350

On the right hand side walking up the hill, there is a little alley with a building at the end with lots of glass that looks like a luxury hotel.  There is a great pide place on the right hand side.  A pide, salad and drink will cost around 13 lira

I personally preferred the spice market to the Grand Bazaar, but I guess the Grand Bazaar is worth a visit.

Tips for coffee and hanging out in Canberra

Lonsdale Street in Braddon is a great place to hang out for a coffee or browse the quirky retail shops.  Its an area in flux as building takes place, so the complex below

27 Lonsdale street is home to a complex of pop up shops and restaurants, from nic nacs, clothese, 2nd hand/vintage.  A good place to browse.

Sweet Bones, http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/344/1720944/restaurant/ACT/Canberra/Sweet-Bones-Bakery-Cafe-Braddon

 Lots of gluten free and sweet treats.  Food OK, coffee OK.
 

However, I am told by my friends who live locally that Lonsdale St Roasters is this place to grab a coffee.  Judging by the queue, I am not surprised.

There are a couple of other places along the street that look worth checking out for a coffee and a bit to eat.
 

More shopping around on Lonsdale Street.
Other more mall like shopping is not that far away at the Canberra Centre.  The usual range of shops, from Big W, through to Zara and Hugo Boss.  So something for everyone.

Lots of cafes and restaurants in the precinct surrounding the Mall.  http://www.canberracentre.com.au/

Further afield is Manuka, which has arcade and laneways.  Paperchain bookshop is really worth a visit http://www.manukastyle.com.au/about-manuka

This is a great little thin crust pizza place, woodfired and v. reasonable.  Not too many tables and rather busy.

At 23 Lonsdale Street, Braddon, open in the evenings.

Review from SMH

Then onto a totally different suburb, Maple and Clove,
Realm Precinct in Barton.

A little grass courtyard.  This restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

I wouldn't make a special trip to visit.  OK food and coffee, menu sounds good, but seems to lack "love". Dry bacon, that still managed to remain greasy, it had the feel, taste and smell of pre made hotel buffet food.  I had two lattes which tasted totally different.  One was Ok, but the second barely drinkable.  However, location is nice. 

Melbourne breakfast

OK there are lots of good cafes in Melbourne.  This one however does really fab poached eggs. This is the Egyptian.

Cafe Gaia
3/4 Avoca Street
South Yarra Melbourne

Coffee in London

Extract from the best 50 coffee shops in the Uk from the Independent

Eating in London

After a few years away from London we were pleasantly surprised by the explosion of fantastic places to eat, both high and low budget.

Here are a few we would definitely visit again. 

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal - www.dinnerbyheston.com

Dinner

We couldn't afford the Fat Duck, so we opted for a Heston fix, by a visit to Dinner.

We weren't disappointed. The meal we had was delicious.

This is the famous meat fruit. Definitely worth eating.




Al Boccon di'vino Non Solo Vina Ltd

Al Boccon di'vino Non Solo Vino ltd  www.nonsolovinoltd.co.uk/

Course after course, keeps coming to the table.  Once you take your seat, a Venetian feast is served.  Apparently modelled along the lines of an Italian wedding banquet.

This restaurant is in Richmond.  This is our main course, by this stage we were totally stuffed, having already had pasta, antipasto and more.

I think going for lunch would be a good idea, as you could at least try to walk it off.

Hansen and Lydersen www.hansen-lydersen

Street food from the markets.  Malby Street on a Saturday.

This is just one of the many tastes on offer.

Lots of food to grab on the go. From jamon to Norwegian salmon, cheeses and jams.

Polpo www.polpo.co.uk

Polpo.  This was one of our favourites, the Soho restaurant was friendly and the food was fresh and delicious.

One catch is that there are no reservations.


Noodle Oodle for a cheap and cheerful bite to eat, just outside the borders of Chinatown.  Hand pulled noodles www.noodleoodle.com.  Its not that far from the British Museum.

Campania -no website

Bethnal Green

95 Columbia Rd
Bethnal Green, UK E2 7RG

Campania is at the end of Columbia Road.

Southern Italian food: the owner and the majority of the staff hail from Naples.

The inside is small with rustic mismatched furniture.  Staff are friendly and it is frantic.
Simple, short menu.  Great fresh food.

Finally, last but not least, was Ev Restaurant, this is a chain of Anatolian restaurants.  However the restaurant itself did not feel or look like part of a chain.

Food was fresh and delicious.  this restaurant was tucked away at the back of Waterloo and felt like a find for locals.  Large outdoor eating area and also atmospheric restaurant with railway arches.
Ev Restaurant

Saturday food trek around Maltby Street

A browse around the backstreets, Neils Yard, The Butchery, Monmouth, Kernel Brewery and more, than on to Maltby Street for more food grazing.

Monmouth Coffee - my tour guides Phil & Annie, 

experts on all the tastiest and most stylish places to eat in London

Monmouth Coffee Company, 34 Maltby Street

This only happens on a Saturday in London.  My favourite day of the week in London.

It's a much more relaxed vibe than Borough markets and only a short walk away.

You need a good map if you are going on this food trek. Don't expect sign posting. 

You will encounter people clutching their maps disappearing down alleyways and under railway arches.

I am not sure if this map will help you.  MAP AND INFO  But if you can find your way around, you can graze your way from coffee to cake, to cheese and antipasto plate washed down with micro brewery beer or a gin.  It's a delicious way to explore London's South East.

The Butchery

The Butchery Ltd, 1 Rope Walk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kernel Brewery

The Kernel Brewery, 1 Rope Walk