Belsize Park

🎅 Christmas Special 🎅 : The Stag – South End Green, London

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Ho Ho Ho, a Christmas special for dinner with jo…

I just came back from a six course Christmas extravaganza at The Stag pub. For those out-of-towners who aren’t familiar with South End Green, it’s next to Belsize Park and it’s where the Royal Free hospital is. My family are not so hot on planning; so much so that at 3pm on Christmas Eve there was no set plan for Christmas Day. I made a few phone calls and was pleasantly surprised to hear that the Stag had one table free. The man I spoke to couldn’t have been friendlier or more obliging. I was even told that whilst the fixed price menu did not include drinks, they were sure to be “generous with the mulled wine and port.” Good to know. Continue reading →

XO – Belsize Lane, London

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XO has all the chicness of Mayfair but it’s local enough that the thought of going there on a cold Sunday night isn’t daunting. Local is of course subjective, but for those who don’t live in or near the area, luckily XO is part of the Ricker group of restaurants (http://www.rickerrestaurants.com) so has sister pan-Asian restaurants, namely Great Eastern Dining Room in Shoreditch and e&o in Notting Hill. I recently became aware that La Bodega Negra is part of the same group but the vibe, not to the mention the food, is very different. Continue reading →