A Trip to Windsor

Windsor, Berkshire 

In January Sam and I took a little trip to Windsor. It was the first of what we thought was going to be part of our one trip per month resolution we made. But as Sam and I know all too well, life sometimes just has a different plan. But any who, our trip to Windsor was spontaneous and we had the best time. Windsor is a small town that is about an hour and a half drive away from where we live in East London. I had bought the trip for Sam and I as part of his Christmas present. We stayed in a hotel/spa called The Harte & Garter. It was the perfect spot for our two night stay because it was directly across the street from Windsor Castle (the biggest tourist spot of well duh Windsor). It was also conveniently located in the middle of the town, so we were able to walk to bars, restaurants, and shops. 

Windsor is really known for its historic architecture, streets, and castle. More recently it was famously shown around the world during the wedding of Harry & Meghan. On the first night in town Sam and I walked all over Windsor and through Eaton (neighbouring town) getting to know the area a bit better. In the town centre there is loads of shopping you can do, with a plethora of tourist souvenirs (like masks of the royals). Since it was a Thursday night when we arrived, we thought it would be a good time to do a pub dinner. We ended up grabbing food at The Windsor Castle (Samuel Smith bar). This pub looked like a great place to get some traditional pub food (aka I was really in the mood for fish and chips). It was also one of the more popular bars in the area (more than 5 people inside). It turns out Windsor in the winter and during half term is not their busy time of year. The food situation was a bit of a disaster because they did not have much left because we also didn’t realise that places were closing early. The mulled wine there saved the dinner. While we were venturing around after, we stumbled upon a beer tasting room called A Hoppy Place. They had loads of beer from all over and it is always nice when the owners are extremely friendly and happy to let you sample whatever beer you’re thinking of getting. On the way home we stopped at the Horse and Groom pub for one last drink. This pub is perfectly situated across the street from the Castle entrance and in diagonal view of our hotel. Again the staff was so friendly and it seemed like the locals were just as nice. Walking around at night was great because since it was early January all the Christmas lights were still up. 

On the second day of being in Windsor, Sam and I decided to go to Windsor Castle and go on the full tour of the grounds. Before that we had breakfast at Côte Brasserie, a gorgeous cafe/ restaurant right on the riverside. We made a reservation because we thought it might be packed on a Friday morning, but again we were surprised to be one of the only people there (plus it was about 8 am). We had seen from the day before that the line can get ridiculously long for the castle so we wanted to get there as soon as it opened to avoid being online all day. It turned out we accidentally timed it perfectly. By the time we finished breakfast we walked right up to the front of the line and got our tickets in minutes. **Disclaimer** if you do visit during the spring or summer I recommend buying tickets online to save you time. 

 

The castle is really worth every penny (or pence) to get in. It is stunning and the views from the top of the grounds that overlooks the whole town is breathtaking. We were able to see where past royals were buried, the church where Meghan and Harry got married, and the dining hall of the Queen. From the outside the castle really doesn’t look that big, but after walking more than 8 miles that day I was very mistaken. We opted for the audio tour (very attractive headphones come with it) to help us learn more about the castle because there is just way too much to read as you go through. I should also mention that this was free so it was really worth having. At the end of the tour we were able to get our tickets stamped so that if we came back to Windsor within a year (which we definitely will do) we won’t have to pay again. 

We finished the tour around midday and decided it was the perfect time to get afternoon tea. We were able to get a Groupon voucher for it at Cafè Rogue. Apparently everyone had the same idea because this place was packed out. This place was located in the shopping centre/ train station so it is an easy place to stop for a quick bite before leaving town. What really surprised me while we were  there was all the Americans walking around! It almost felt like I was back home being surrounded by my own accent. 

Since the day was young and we were on vacation after all, we decided our next stop would be to the local brewery Windsor & Eaton. This was by far the best local stop of our trip. The beer was delicious, the tap room was very laid back, and there were DOGS!! Fun fact I learned while I was there was that their beer was served at the royal wedding of Meghan & Harry and Kate & William. They even had a cute mural on the wall outside for Meghan & Harry. We could have easily spent the rest of the day there but since we had dinner reservations to a nicer restaurant that night we thought it was best we quit while we were still able to walk back to the hotel.That night we ate at a really nice seafood restaurant on the water called The Boatman. This place had great servers and incredible food. They even gave us a coupon for the next time we go back to Windsor. Since we were beyond stuffed after dinner we decided to walk it off and take a stroll by the water. This led us to the winter fair that was going on in the local park. They had ice skating, outdoor movies, and a food market. On the morning that we left Windsor we were lucky enough to catch the changing of the guards. It looked like a mini parade as people lined the entire street for about a half mile. It was the perfect end to our mini trip. 

I highly recommend a mini trip to Windsor if you are in/ visiting London. It is such an easy trip to take on the final day you are staying in London, since it is only a 20 minute cab journey to Heathrow airport. From central London it is about an hour by train to get to. It is a perfect day trip for couples or families since there is plenty to see and do. I was very much looking forward to going there again this month with my parents and in-laws but obviously that plan had to change. But even though we had to cancel we are definitely planning on going back to this magical place this year. We have found so many great places to stay on Airbnb that will save us a lot next time we go. 

                                              

Tis the season...

Erdinger Oktoberfest, Stratford 
Museum of Natural History, South Kensington
Battersea Park, Battersea

     Ah! I really have no idea where the weeks have gone. It blows my mind that I have not written a post in 2 weeks and I'm heading back to New York in just 8 days! October really escaped me while November feels like its gone in a blink so far. But none the less I have been going to some really great spots over the last few weeks. There are some great traditions going on during these end of fall into winter months.

     In October it was all about the name stating Oktoberfest parties. Sam and I went to the final night of the Erdinger Oktoberfest event at stratford. It went on from September 27th to October 28th, but because of our schedules we couldn't get there any earlier, but figured save the best night for last. I had bought our tickets for 50% off from a post the company had put up on Instagram. I was absolutely over the moon thinking (well this is meant to be that we held off going because now tickets are super cheap!). Well it wouldn't be me unless I mucked up something in the seamless plan. Once I hit the submit payment button on the site, I realised that I had bought tickets for the night before we had planned to go. Since I bought the tickets on Ticketmaster there was no number or service I could call to cancel the payment. I couldn't even pawn the tickets to someone else because the cardholder had to be the one to get the tickets at the gate. Ugh I found myself in a real pickle thinking I'll have to eat the money on the 50% off tickets I was amped to get, and thinking I'd end up paying full price in the end anyway. Then I thought of a plan..... what if we just showed up on the last night, went to the ticket booth to get the tickets and then play dumb about the date? (What the date is wrong? OMG I had no idea!!) Could we actually get lucky and have a nice human let us go through even though it was the wrong day on the tickets? We got to stratford and walked up to the woman at the ticket office and I was really bricking it. I thought no way this will actually work, and I was prepared to just pay full price for tickets to get in, because after all I was dressed up and I wasn't going to go home after applying a fresh pair of fake lashes! (Yeah I do that now) When I started explaining the situation to the woman she quickly cut me off to search my name on the database for tickets. After thinking that we would be turned away the woman smiled and said "no worries, we're not sold out tonight so shouldn't be a problem to have you seated somewhere else in the tent." BOOM!! https://erdinger-oktoberfest.co.uk

     We walked through the gates and I was very pleased with myself and my good luck of the night. It was one of the first really cold nights in London so there was no one outside at all, despite the bumper cars ride being set up. We walked into the main tent and there were rows and rows of picnic style tables set up, a buffet, and live band in full swing. The tent is set up for seating areas, vip tables, and standing section. Since it wasn't sold out that night there was plenty choices for seating areas. The steins were massive!! (I've never drank from a actual 1 litre size stein before) So after having just 2 I felt buzzed quickly. And it wouldn't be a proper Oktoberfest without wiener schnitzel! The live band really made the night. They played some major classics "Sweet Caroline" and literally all the Oasis classics. The crowd was lively and everyone was singing along and dancing. It made me really want to go to Germany next year and go all out for Oktoberfest, Bavarian costume and all!

 

     Another amazing happening going on right now is all the seasonal ice skating pop ups and holiday stands. I recently brought my mini friend to the Museum of Natural History, hoping for a fun Friday afternoon activity. I was surprised to see how set up the holiday fest there was. The ice rink there really reminds me of the one that Sam and I have been to in Bryant Park, in New York City. The mini friend and I really enjoyed ourselves skating around the giant Christmas tree in the middle of the rink. They have a small rink section in the back that is for smaller children to have some more space and to not get skated down by the bigger kids. What was really sweet was the selfie corner of the rink. You push this massive red button and have 10 seconds to skate back to your spot before the picture gets taken. We had to do this a number of times, as every time we were getting ready for the picture my mini friend would take a spill on the ice or wouldn't be quick enough to get back in time. The nice part is that if you buy the picture in the main building after you're done skating, the proceeds go towards the museum.
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/ice-rink.html

              

   I will definitely be going back here for a little date night with Sam. They have a bar section where you can eat and drink after you have done your skating. It's a really comfy cozy section with lots of couches to hang out on. They carry the most perfect cold season drink, mulled wine that I just had to take advantage of while I was there. I mean come on I had earned it after lifting up a 7 year old every two minutes because she was like watching a new born deer walk for the first time. It wasn't even too crowded when we went which is always great because its just not as fun when you keep bumping into people on the ice. I'm sure this place will be packed out the closer Christmas gets. There are so many of these rinks opening up around London, I really want to partake in the ever popular rink outside the Tower of London.  I'm even trying to set up a trip to Bath to see their Christmas markets that I keep hearing so much about.

     The last bit of the season happenings are ALL THE FIREWORKS! Not even kidding you I have heard fireworks going off every night since Halloween. Much different from New York since they are illegal to buy and set off, but here it is an absolute free for all. Not to mention in New York you really only see fireworks during the summer time for the 4th of July or New Years day. You can buy frieworks just about anywhere here. I'm talking corner convenience store everywhere. I mean I like fireworks just as much as the next person, but every single night is a bit excessive. It's like people who celebrate their birthday for the entire month, it just looses its sparkle (pun intended). It really takes a bit of getting used to here and now I catch myself with the old lady remarks of (really again with the fireworks?!) BUTTTTT for this instance I went to the Battersea Park fireworks show in the beginning of the month which was absolutely amazing!! I am all about the organised fireworks shows. Battersea holds the special event every year near Guy Fawkes night (November 5), complete with bonfire and lights show. At one point I felt like I was at a music festival because they have the laser lights going with techno music. They had rows of food stands and beer lounges to hang out in before and after the fireworks. (Best to stay for a while after as the crowds were insane getting out of the park). This place got packed out really quickly. When me and my mini friend first got there we were practically the only people on the open field but half hour before the show you couldn't move. Luckily we had a blanket so we were able to have a rest while waiting. I was very envious of the people who brought fold out chairs, because the darker it got the more likely it was someone would step on your blanket walking by... or your hand. Battersea really put on such a great show as the fireworks went off to popular songs. They best were the opening and closing songs from "The Greatest Showman" (If you don't know what I'm talking about then do yourself a favour and rent that movie because it is amazing and the songs are out of this world!) https://batterseapowerstation.co.uk/whats-on/detail/battersea-park-fireworks

     So as I'm off to New York next week I am very excited to visit Astoria, get to have some of my moms amazing home cooked meals, and chat about all my favourite spots in my home town. It is still up in the air of when exactly I'll be back home in England because of this whole visa mess. But fingers crossed all goes smoothly so that I can be back for Christmas popping crackers and wearing paper crowns with my husband. 

WHERE ARE ALL THE PUMPKINS?!

The Breakfast Club, Spitfields
The Wheatsheaf, Borough Market
The Rake, Borough Market
The Hydrant, Monument Street

It's been a while since my last post and there are a few reasons for that.
1. I have been crazy busy planning my husband's 30th birthday (that was last night). It was 80s themed and turned out to be a great night.
2. I've been job hunting
3. Funds are low because of... well life.

Here's a picture of Sam and I from the party last night. :)

 


On Thursday night Sam and I went out for a little date night because I had been cooped up in the house for 2 days with all the planning and prepping for the party going on. But I was on a mission that night, and that mission was to find something very rare in London, possibly in all of the UK. It's finally autumn, my favourite season of them all. I was in search of the ultimate fall beverage, PUMPKIN BEER! I had done some research online and I knew my work would be cut out for me as most bloggers who were in the UK had similar missions set out and had a rough time finding it. So I read this one site who chatted about the few places in London that actually carried pumpkin flavoured beer. What was disappointing was that most of the places only carried them for a VERY limited amount of time and it was usually around Halloween. BUT HOW?!?! I mean if you walked into just about any bar in Astoria or New York City you are more than likely to find the bar serving multiple brands of pumpkin beer. It is fall after all! I mean come on even Starbucks understands how much love there is for pumpkin spiced lattes that they released it at the beginning of September, the companies earliest release of the classic drink. I even had to chat up my girls back in New York and LA to see if maybe I was the only one who thought it was weird that I couldn't find Pumpkin flavoured anything really. It was a quick response in agreeance that it was bizarre that I couldn't find what I was looking for. They were almost baffled by the thought of not being able to have such a popular seasonal drink a week into being in the fall season. One of my girls even noted that it was reason enough to move back to New York! Yes that's actually how much we love pumpkin. Dare I say I even had to import pumpkin flavoured candles because NONE were available online. WHAT AM I MISSING HERE PEOPLE?! Could it be that my new home country just didn't appreciate pumpkin flavor as much as my old home did? I mean I shrieked with excitement when I went into The Body Shop and saw they carried pumpkin vanilla flavoured hand lotion, body butter cream, and body soap. (Yes I bought ALL THREE!)

Anywho back to my mission on Thursday. So after reading up online, there was a bar in London that was said to have pumpkin beers this time of year. EXCELLENT!  So Sam and I planned out the night with the intention of dinner first and then drinks. We went to one of our favourite places in London, The Breakfast Club right by Liverpool street station. We had never actually eaten there before as every time we had went in we went straight into their speak easy bar downstairs for their yummy cocktails. I can't recommend going there enough. Just to side track a bit when you walk into The Breakfast Club and the hostess walks up to you, you ask them to see the mayor of scaredy cat town. You're then lead through a old fashioned 50s looking refrigerator and down the stairs is a small bar with tables. Have a look on their website for some pictures it is really cool. It's pretty dark down there so it's hard to get a decent picture without setting off a flash and being that person at the bar. So going there for dinner was a treat because we had heard that the food was good and it was always packed upstairs whenever we went. Sam and I both opted for the chicken and waffles meal with mac and cheese side (drooling face). It was needless to say that it was as delicious as it looked and they did not disappoint with what we thought the food would be like. At dinner I decided not to have anything to drink there as I knew I would be soon throwing back the much anticipated pumpkin beers I had set out for that night.  https://www.thebreakfastclubcafes.com/locations/spitalfields/

After dinner we opted to do the 25 minute walk over to The Rake in Borough Market. Being sensible as we had just stuffed our face with food and we were getting some much needed exercise (if you can call a casual stroll exercise).  So we finally get to The Rake and it's this little bar on the back side (lol backside) of Borough Market with a few picnic tables outside and stools inside. There's a lot on tap and they have screens up to show how much is left of everything. That reminded me a lot of a bar in Forest Hills, Queens The Station House. I walk up to the counter and I'm greeted by the female bartender there who asks for my order. Staring at all the beer cans in the fridge behind her I was looking for that little orange label of Brooklyn Brewery Pumpkin Ale that the website I had read promised to be there. "I'll have a Brooklyn pumpkin beer please!" I think she could tell how eager I was to get one. She replied back with a confused face and said "Yeah... we don't carry that." My heart actually shattered. WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T HAVE PUMPKIN BEER HERE!!!!! All the research, all the build up, all the satisfaction I thought I would have walking into that bar all gone down the drain. I asked if they carried any other brand of pumpkin beer, perhaps it was only the Brooklyn that wasn't in stock. She stared at me as if I was asking her to pour me a glass of milk! So I managed to order some other beer, as I literally can't remember what it was other than the number 7 on the board because what did it matter at that point it wasn't pumpkin beer! I have to say although I was massively disappointed with the absence of pumpkin flavor in my beverage I still very much enjoyed the The Rake. It's a good place to get craft beers and it is in a great area. It wasn't until Sam asked me where I had read that they carried pumpkin beer did I realise that my research had failed me. When I looked back on the site I had overlooked the fact that the post was written 42 months ago. So lesson learned there, always check the date of articles!

Although the mission was a fail Sam was still sweetly enough trying everything in his power to help me complete my mission of the night. He called another local bar that supplied craft beers that wasn't too far away. When he asked the staff member on the phone if they carried pumpkin beer they quickly replied with a no followed by a bit of silence, then said "wait yeah we do" I lit up like a Christmas tree! There was some more silence on the phone and the staff member came back with "wait it's not pumpkin flavored, it's yam" SERIOUSLY?!? how do you confuse one with the other besides the fact that they are the same colour. At this point I realised I had two options. Sulk about the defeat or enjoy the much needed night out with my husband. Luckily I decided to do both! http://craftbeerlondon.com/pubs/the-rake

The night quickly turned around though as Sam and I went to two other bars that night that we really enjoyed. After The Rake we decided to do a little pub crawl on the way back towards Liverpool street station. Our next stop was at The Wheatsheaf, a traditional English pub in Borough Market, just two blocks away from The Rake. If you're not from London what you need to know is Thursday is their Friday as most people who work in the city stay for the week and then head back North on Fridays. Everyone was out and every bar was heaving. What I liked about The Weatsheaf is that you can drink in the outside street that is right across from Borough Market. All the neighbouring bars also do this so it's basically like one big street party. And if you're thinking it yes I did ask the barman if they carried pumpkin beer, because i was still determined to have one. But sadly I was met with that same confused expression.  http://www.wheatsheafborough.co.uk

Our last stop of the night was The Hydrant on Monument street. As the name suggests it was a firefighter themed bar, complete with hydrant light fixtures and taps that looked like they were part of a fire engine. Of course Sam was keen on going in and the atmosphere was still hyped even for being past midnight. It was there that I experienced something that most Americans have never done legally in the States. Because the bar was closing and we had only just gotten our drinks, we were handed 2 plastic cups. I was confused what this meant but after asking Sam he said that bars regularly do this so you can take your drink with you so that they can close up. SWEET! I don't really know why this excited me so much but to be able to drink while walking down the city streets seemed wild. https://www.thehydrant.co.uk

We ended the night with an Uber eats order of McDonald's and my mood quickly lifted. Side note: Uber eats might be the best thing to have ever been thought of since the internet! Although I came up short with finding pumpkin beer, I'm hoping that as October quickly approaches I will be able to somehow get my hands on one before the season is over. There is also a craft beer stand in Borough Market that carries beers from around the world so definitely planning on taking a trip there soon. Well it's that or I'll have to stock up my suitcase with them when I go back to New York in November for Thanksgiving.

One, two, many...

Urban Food Fest at Montgomery Square, Canary Wharf 
Craft London, Greenwich Peninsula

   Friday night turned out to be an unexpected late one which lead to a sore head all day yesterday, but completely worth it! So Sam and I, and our friend Mark, checked out the final night of the Urban Food Fest in Montgomery Square. This small fest had everything you could need to enjoy a night out; fantastic food, bars, live music, and board games. All the food trucks were made from fancy old Volkswagen campers, or shipping containers. And apparently these food trucks are for hire (wish I knew about this before the wedding).

    For dinner I got the pork classic gyro (kebab) from The 3 Little Pigs London, and used my newly found beer pairing skills and went with a pilsner from Signature Brew. Sam and I were lucky enough to meet the owner of the souvlaki greek truck and he was a really nice guy. He showed us around the VW bus and how he converted it into the perfect on the go business. The food had the just right amount of smokiness and was really filling. There was a lot of space to hang out with all the tents and tables around it was easy to grab a few seats. The live music for the night was a female singer and songwriter S.O.S. She was very talented and got the crowd going with her classic acoustic covers. There were loads of games to play at the festival but Sam, Mark, and I hung out until closing playing classic giant Jenga game. I attempted to teach the guys a classic American bar game "Shoulders" (they weren't into it). Now even though this fest will no longer be in Canary Wharf, it is scheduled to be in London at the Euro Car Parks every Saturday. The great part is also that it is free entry to get into the festival! To check out more about these vendors and the Urban Food Fest visit the links below. 

https://www.the3littlepigsldn.com

https://www.signaturebrew.co.uk

http://www.urbanfoodfest.com

 

    As we were on the tube (conveniently located in the square) I think we got a whole two stops before Mark suggested one more drink at Craft London. Classic last words to what was already a pretty drunken night. The appeal to it was really the 360 view from the bar which overlooked the O2 arena. If you got a glimpse of my Instagram story that night I was really excited about this as every snap from my story had something to do with the O2. As a New Yorker, nothing really comes close to Madison Square Garden but I have to say that the O2 is a beautiful sight. It also gave me and Sam the idea to check out the "Up at the O2" experience where you can actually climb on the top of the arena. Anywhoooo back to what happened that night. The bar was pretty much closing when we walked in as there wasn't a single other customer in sight, but the hostess told us we could go up to the bar since they weren't shutting the doors for another 30 minutes. CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! We drank for those whole 30 minutes, and then some! We ended up making friends with the managers of Craft London and one of the bartenders. And as you do in that situation you talk about the classic question that comes up when someone hears my American accent "how did you guys meet?!" this is where I usually hand the conversation over to Sam because he tells the story much better than I do. It wasn't until our new manager friend bleeped in on his walkie to the hostess to lock up downstairs that I realised it was well past 1 A.M. We must have covered every topic of conversation in the 2+ hours since we had arrived there. I even had the guys hounding Sam about getting a dog! That is friendship right there. The bartender was a girl from Italy, and of course in my drunk mind it was the perfect excuse to say the 4 sentences that I know how to say in Italian, after taking 6 years of classes. So after I told her how much I like cheese, soccer, and dogs in Italian, I knew it was probably time to go home. Well that and as I went to go high five her I smacked the top shelf of wine glasses hanging over the bar. Oops! So I will say Craft London by far has the friendliest staff I have ever encountered, and the view really is a beaut too! I can only imagine how packed out that place gets on nights where the O2 is playing concerts. But to get an Uber cab over there is hard work. Lesson learned, know where your nearest parking lot is before getting charged £6 for an impatient driver. Or maybe not drink so late next time so we could have actually gotten the tube home. Another massive difference between London and New York, 24 hour subway system. To get a peak at the bar check out the link below.
https://craft-london.co.uk/bar/

   So all in all Friday night was a massive success! These two places were perfect for our small group but really could be done with a larger group. But with every great night there is a price to pay as I was in fetal position most of the day. Would I have done anything differently you ask? Maybe just skip out on that G&T at the end of the night with the generous pour to it. Other than that I experienced two great venues and got plenty of ideas for the next few places I want to check out.

A little taste of home...

BROOKLYN BREWERY at THE HOXTON, Shoreditch

   I am really excited to write this first post about an event that I went to with Sam on Wednesday night. You know those really random Instagram ads that pop up on your feed? Well that's what led us to finding this event at The Hoxton Hotel in Shoreditch, for Brooklyn Brewery. The tickets were £20 each and it included beer and food pairing. This was spot on for us since Brooklyn Brewery is one of the first places that I brought Sam when he visited New York when we were first dating. We've been huge fans of the craft brewery ever since, and it was even more exciting because not that many people in London really know about the brand. This meant more freebies for us! The purpose of this event was because of the new Hoxton Hotel opening up in Williamsburg Brooklyn in New York. If you've ever been to or go to New York, Williamsburg is one of the most liveliest areas apart from New York City itself. I can only assume the reason why Brooklyn Brewery teamed up with The Hoxton was because it is probably the biggest tourist spot in Williamsburg. Brooklyn Brewery was founded in 1988 so it's recently celebrating it's 30th anniversary, which was another reason this was a special night. How convenient that Sam is also celebrating his 30th year of life!

   Now when you think of tasting beer you wouldn't really think eating would go hand in hand with it, but it did! There were six different dishes paired with each FULL beer. Right there in itself was worth the £20 paid for the tickets. And by no means were these small samples of food. I was actually stuffed about midway through the tasting, but that was of my own fault for trying to finish each beer before the next dish came out (I didn't win that game). Not to mention the food was DELICIOUS. Check out this menu.

     So the top line shows the beer being served and under it is the meat dish it was paired with, and under that was the vegetarian meal. We were able to try every dish because I don't think any of the vegetarians showed up, THANKS! I'd have to say the my favourite dish was the Reuben sandwich paired with the Brooklyn Scorcher. These people really know what they are doing with this pairing because I have never been a big fan of IPA beers but the Scorcher with the Reuben was the perfect match. Brooklyn Scorcher is a good way for newbies to IPAs to get a taste of it. It's a low percentage IPA which is rare. Definitely a good one to look out for if you're cooking anything with sour taste to it.

    My favourite of all the Brooklyn beers is the Sorachi Ace. But it comes with warning that I say drink these with caution! They are so tasty but dangerously high in alcohol percentage at 7.2%. Also worth checking out is one of the newest Brooklyn Brewery beers, Naranjito (Spanish for Orange). Although it's already been in New York for a year, it's only been available in the UK since this past spring! This beer is really worth picking up if you're lucky enough to come across it in the shops. It has a citrus orange (hence the clever name!) taste to it that was so good with the breaded chicken with chipotle mayo pairing. The beer really made the flavours of the dish pop, and I'm sure it would taste good with any Mexican meal.

    The setting of this tasting was very intimate, I wanna say there was about 20 people there. I love how the place was set up in the Garden Room, which was located in the middle of the ground floor of the hotel. There were a lot of plants around, hence the name of the room, and just felt like you were hanging out in a backyard. The tables were setup in a German beerfest style, which I really liked because it meant that we would have the opportunity to talk to the other people going to the event. The people that sat next to us were all so nice, and funny enough weren't English themselves. No other Americans, but it was nice to not feel like the only foreigner in the room. Strangely enough even the people sitting next to us had never really tried a Brooklyn beer until that night. I really was so shocked when the woman presenting asked how many people had tried Brooklyn beers before and only a few people held up their hands! How was this possible?! The event itself was great because you got to really talk to the people working for Brooklyn Brewery on the UK side, and we got loads of Brooklyn Brewery half pint glasses which now take over my entire kitchen counter. If you're interested in learning more about Brooklyn Brewery you should definitely read about the owner Steve Hindy. He has a really interesting story of how the brewery came to be http://brooklynbrewery.com/about/history#welcome-link 

   Going to the Hoxton Hotel was also a new spot for me to explore in Shoreditch. The area really reminds me of Williamsburg Brooklyn. It's very trendy and for going out on a Wednesday night it was packed out! I figured most of the people in there would be going to the same event I was there for but NOPE! It's got a lot going on and a great happy hour selection. The Hoxton Grill is a good spot for date night, and after sampling a good amount of their food it is worth every penny! (or should I say pence?) I can definitely see myself going back there for some weekday drinks, and giving the new hotel in Williamsburg a look when I'm back in New York. https://thehoxton.com/london/shoreditch/hotels

https://thehoxton.com/new-york/williamsburg/hotels

So the moral of the story is..... although sometimes annoying, always check out the Instagram ads for events going on near you. They may end up being more than you hoped for!

Please feel free to leave a comment about Brooklyn beers you've tried or maybe any upcoming beer events you know of for the company. 

Since it's Friday and I won't be posting again until Sunday, where I will talk about somewhere that I will be checking out tonight, I wanted to end with some American to English translation that I've been learning/using since moving. 

Word of the day:

Zucchini ------ English way to say it Courgette