The Reef - I want the Reef to be better than it is. The Jerk chicken roti and johnny cakes are a firm favourite of mine. I like how they handle larger groups, the staff are always welcoming without being over familar, and super competent. But whenever I go off plan, sadness entails. We went down their for brunch, fuelled by a Groupon (lucky timing, as we had plans already to visit) and a booking with OpenTable. The best quote was "well, I'm glad we got the Groupon discount for that". It wasn't terrible, but undercooked eggs and generally rushed food made us cross this one of the brunch tour. Obviously, giving the ratings, many people disagree. But it seems once you go off the core food, the just can't deliver great food.
Little Jumbo - Following the twitterfeed of @LittleJumboBC, I noticed they had Greenalls Gin in stock. When I drank a lot of G&T in blighty, Greenalls was my favourite, mixed with a slice of lime and Schweppes' Tonic. Drank long and slow, G&T was a favourite summer drink, and I recall it being cheap. Or at least the same price as Gordon's. So, I got back there to rekindle my association, along with the Brunette of my Acquaintance. After a fine showing of 'Alan Partridge' at the Victoria Theatre, we went for an snack and a drink. Greenall's wasn't listed on the menu, but asking for it by name brought us both a double measure and a bottle of Fentimann's finest tonic.
And it was every bit as good as I remember. Slightly peppery, slightly sweet, and damn fine with lime and this fancy, drier tonic. The price point wasn't as cheap as I recall it being in London, but I suspect import duties and rarity here have something to say about that. But it was worth it for the memory and the new enjoyment of sharing it with the Brunette. Plus we had food, which was also excellent, but it always seems to be.
Be Love - I've kinda been thinking about how to recreate the Be Love bowl at home. I love the simplicity of it, but also the big stomach smile I had inside. Or more, just wanting to. But being lazy, I haven't done it yet. So after an awesome morning run around Thetis Lake with Andrea (whose blog contains warnings and is meant to be humourous), we headed there. I tried the Brahma bowl, just to try something else. It was also great. Spicy lentils, brown rice, greens and a raita. Good stuff, though a little fussier than the standard bowl, and I'd want a little more spice to the dahl (just shaking on the cayenne wasn't enough). I'd avoid the Americano next time (sorry, Almond Milk doesn't work as well as full cream for me) and go back to the herbal tea.
I also tried the almond butter and chocolate cheesecake (cashew cheese). Tasty and rich, but I didn't love this quite as much as the vanilla one the other week. Andrea, however, was in some sort of rapture, and I had to sit quietly while she finished communing with the spiritual side of Victoria. I guess Almond Butter is not my addiction. I will be back again this coming week for more of the Love Bowl.
McRaes - A Monday night softball game, and we took ourselves afterwards to McRaes. Monday night is half priced wings. $5 for a ten with any drink. Great deal, the blue moon wings (blue cheese and franks) are cheesy and hot with bite. Best of the ones ordered... the hot wings themselves were just a good example. Beer choices were limited but a passable mix of local drafts but you'll not find anything rare or unusual. Just place to go when in the area, I guess.
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