Sunday Roast at the Hawksmoor Seven Dials

Now that I am getting closer to leaving London, I finally tried a real Sunday Roast with my friends! Sunday Roast is a fairly traditional British meal that compares to having a Christmas dinner for lunch. Since this is the first and only time we are eating Sunday Roast in London, we decided to have the best at the Hawksmoor Seven Dials.

Pre-Lunch Drinks

The restaurant opened at 12 PM (noon) so we opted for some nice cocktails at the bar before we were able to be seated. I initially had no intention of ordering a drink, but after poring through the cocktail menu, I found some of the most unique cocktails I have ever seen!

The Hawksmoor Cocktail Menu

The Corpse Reviver No. 2

Since there were so many drinks to choose from, I went with the bartender’s suggestion: CORPSE REVIVER NO.2. The drink is made from a mixture of Gin, Triple Sec, Cocchi, Lemon Juice & a dash of Absinthe. Although I do not like the taste of absinthe since it is close to star anise and licorice, I was surprised how well it went with the lemon! The sweet cherry at the bottom of the glass added a great pop of flavor in the end.

Sunday Roast at the Hawksmoor

When we finally got our table, the dining room was packed. Mind you, this was 15 minutes after the restaurant opened on a Sunday! I highly recommend booking a reservation in advance so you do not have to deal with the wait! If the place is this crowded, you know the food has to be good (t’was indeed!).

The Hawksmoor Sunday Roast Menu

Sunday Roast: roast rump of Longhorn beef, Yorkshire pudding stuffed with fried potatoes, carrots, greens, roasted shallots, and garlic.

Traditionally, large joints of meat were roasted on a spit over an open fire. To achieve a similar flavour we start ours on real charcoal and finish them in the oven. All are served with duck fat roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, carrots, greens, roasted shallots & garlic and lashings of bone marrow & onion gravy.

– Hawksmoor Seven Dials Sunday Roast Menu

Classmates Chia and Anjali

Anjali and Kathy

I am not sure how Sunday Roast became a tradition, but my gawd that was a ton of delicious food! The horseradish sauce is delightfully spicy, but the highlight was the duck fat roasted potatoes. The potatoes were light and crispy on the outside and perfectly fluffy in the inside. Just by looking at them stuffed in the Yorkshire pudding, you would have never suspected they were so tasty! Another pleasant surprise were the roasted garlic and shallots cooked in their shells. They were so soft and tender, you just scraped the meat off the shell and add it to each bite of roast. Ultimately, the unlimited bone marrow gravy tied everything together! For the quantity and quality of food, this meal totally warrants the £19.50!

We all absolutely loved the food and we never had such attentive (and attractive) servers in London! Too bad we are all leaving the UK in the next few weeks…

Lunch at La Coupe d’Or on Rue Saint Honore

After walking around Parc Monceau, we made it to Rue Saint Honore to go window shopping in the posh neighborhoods of Paris. We got hungry while we were there so we lunched at La Coupe d’Or.

Steak and Frites

Lamb and Green Beans

Fresh Berries and Whipped Cream

Cappuccino

Dinner at L’Auberge du Moulin near Saint Michel

After a long day, we decided to eat in the area before making our way back to the hotel. We went for L’Auberge du Moulin, which was recommended to us by a friend. The restaurant serves French food at a lesser price than commonly found in the city. We had a decent experience here, but it was not the best food we had in the city.

They are known for their fixed price three-course menus

My parents are reasonably satisfied! We were hungry!

What We Ordered

Foie Gras with toast and jam

I ordered the foie gras just to say that I have tried it in Paris. It was never my favorite dish, but I am glad it came with jam. I nibbled on bread and jam after a little taste.

My dad went for the Steak and Frites

My mom ordered boeuf bourguignon (beef stew).

I ordered the cheese fondue! I think this was definitely worth the meal! The fondue was very yummy!

Cheesy melty goodness!

Can’t go wrong with Creme Brulee!

I am glad I did not read the reviews on Yelp and TripAdvisor prior to eating at this restaurant, since some of the reviews are pretty bad. We encountered no service problems during our meal, but I think we were very lucky! Overall, it was an okay meal but the redeeming factor for me was the cheese fondue!

Dinner at Chez Clement at Champs-Elysees

After a long day, we treated ourselves to dinner at Chez Clement, a popular French restaurant chain in Paris! Luckily, we only had to walk two blocks away from our hotel to our nearest one!

View of the Arc de Triomphe from our table!

Mommy and Daddy!

What We Ordered

Sizzling escargot with garlic pesto! Tastes like very mild clams in pesto sauce = very good!

Seafood platter with salmon, prawns, and sea bass.

Salmon tartare served with a side of french fries (not pictured)

Rotisserie chicken and roasted lamb served with rosemary mashed potatoes.

For the price and food, this was a wonderful first dinner in Paris!

Roasted Meats for Dinner Near Prague Castle

After a long day exploring the city, Annalisa and I decided to grab a relaxing dinner near Prague Castle. Unfortunately, I can’t remember the name of the restaurant we ate at tonight, but it was just around the corner from our hostel. Since it was located in an alley off from the main street, the prices were extremely reasonable for the food and drinks we got!

The Daily Special from the menu. For a two course dinner, the cost is really not bad (translates to less than $10 USD)!

For 0.5 pints of beer, it cost 25 crowns, which converts to around $1.25 USD!

For around $10 USD, I got roasted duck, grilled kielbasa, and pork loin served with pesto gnocchi, sauerkraut and sweet pickled onions.

Aside from my birthday dinner the other day, this is probably one of my favorite meals in Prague! And around two-thirds of the price! Gosh that was good.

Enormous Fish & Chips at the Lazy Cow in Stratford-Upon-Avon

After Warwick Castle, many of us were on the verge of getting hangry (hungry+angry) so during our 30-minute commute, we looked up potential lunch spots in Stratford-Upon-Avon (AKA the birthplace of Shakespeare). The Lazy Cow restaurant was the leading search result so we decided to give it a shot! This meal was probably the highlight of our day!

Since it was smack in the middle of a popular tourist attraction, this place cost more than what we were aiming to spend on lunch, but it was so worth it!

Milk bottle light fixture at the Lazy Cow restaurant.

Complimentary breads and spreads for the table. The spreads included garlic mayo and sun-dried tomato butter. Surprisingly, the garlic mayo tasted better than the butter!

My enormous plate of fish & chips with a side of peas! The steak fries were crispy on the outside and perfectly cooked in the middle. The fried cod was flaky and clean tasting without any hint of fishiness.

The photo really doesn’t do the size and scale justice!  On the menu, this dish is called “Strips & Chips,” but these hunky pieces of fish were far from just “strips.” This plate cost £12, but for the amount of food they served, they could have easily charged more! I’m a big eater and even when starving, I could only manage to eat half of my food!

Grabbing Lunch with My New Flatmate

Right when I was heading out towards UCL to officially enroll, I ran into my flatmate, Jimmy, who just arrived from Heathrow. He looked so beat so I invited him to walk with me to campus.  There was no way I could let him navigate the city just freshly off the plane!

He looked starved so we quickly went into any random shop that sold cheap and good falafel and kebabs. It is such a mom and pop, hole-in-the-wall place that I don’t even know the name of this restaurant.

Chicken kebab pita sandwich with chili sauce

For three pounds, I could definitely live off of this!

Dinner at Cote Brasserie on Charlotte Street

After an exhausting day visiting famous Sherlock sites, a few of us decided to grab dinner at Cote Brasserie, a lovely French restaurant.

Dinner: Steak with garlic butter and frites

For less than 10 pounds, this was one of the best meals I had in the area! Not only was it “affordable,” the steak was thin, tender, and perfect! The server was also so sweet and allowed us to use the restaurant’s wifi. She even let us stay at our table for two hours, allowing us to contact our respective friends and families. Contrary to popular belief, so far, the British has excellent service!