I would like to recommend a restaurant I discovered in Luxor. It is called Sofra Restaurant & Café. Both food and ambience were excellent and it was the highlight of the trip to Luxor for some people I was travelling with. We were so impressed that we went there four times in one week.
90 Mohammed Farid street, El Manshia
and near by the train station in Luxor
Phone 095 2 35 97 52
www.sofra.com.eg
Fabulous food, great staff, well stocked bar and spotless kitchens!
We enjoyed many a night here in February this year. Try the duck or kebabs. Tell them Caroline and Paul sent you, they assure us you will get a free drink!
Opposite Meridian Hotel, next to Murphys Irish bar. Passport Office Street.
It’s hands-on during the informal cooking workshop in a Bo-Kaap family home that follows a culinary walk through Cape Town's colourful Muslim quarter.
You will learn how to mix masala, fold samosas, and how to balance the delicate flavours of a Cape Malay curry. Real fun!
Beautiful historic Dutch bar in Soho. The interior is amazing and the atmosphere is buzzing. Good selection of Dutch and Belgian beers, and a superb food menu with lots of yummy Dutch snacks. The bar has a long history which adds to the vibe inside.
11 Macclesfield Street, Soho.
Piccadilly/Leicester Square tube
This was recommended by our hotel receptionist and was brilliant. It is a pub with great food and atmosphere and clearly was the place to be. It gets pretty packed, mind.
Address : VII. Akácfa u. 13.
Tel : (+36-1) 322 7645
Open daily :15:00-04:00
except:
Friday: 15:00-04:30
Saturday: 15:00-04:30
A fantastic tapas bar on (surprise-surprise) Alfalfa. Great Italian-style tapas, great wine, great service, laid-back and good music. Amazingly good value for money.
Also appears to have a slightly unusual resident transvestite.
Don't go for pudding at Tuereg over the road - it's dreadful!
Calle Alfalfa, 6
This restaurant, open only for lunch, is one of the loveliest in Istanbul.
It is situated inside the northern wall of the Spice Bazaar, and is entered via a stone stairway just inside the gate.
Remarkably quiet, decorated with lovely Iznik tiles, Pandeli is famous for its vegetables, and though it is always said that the food is not as good as it was in its fabulous heyday, one can still find subtle evocations of Ottoman cuisine.
Sample the meze, try the hünkar beğendi. A wonderfully civilised place in which to pass part of an afternoon.
Spice bazaar, inside the gate facing the water.
I travel in central London a lot at weekends, buying games, clothes and various other things. I have always generally enjoyed London, for all its opportunities and tucked-away secrets. But I then found a place which doesn’t have clothes or games. There was a children’s show on there (and this was many years ago) and we decided to sit down and watch. The show itself wasn’t really that good, and I soon tottered off. I wandered around, looking for anything interesting, but just found dull concrete buildings. But in the midst of this wall of grey I found a most peculiar sculpture. It was very hard to describe, as it seemed to be a partly squashed bug. A large sphere of metal with wiggly antennae, with two large flat metal discs behind it and I found it very amusing to hop from one disc to another, as they weren’t very high, and made a loud clang, much to the annoyance of my parents. As I got older I would always visit that metal sculpture. There were several large buildings nearby the metal toy. We ventured inside one once, and found it very family friendly. It often had exhibitions, and had a constant feed of entertainment, such as live music and dance, as well as a cafe, and a well-stocked book shop. This was of course, the Royal Festival Hall, which is now under refurbishment.
As I grew older still we would move around London more, and me and my little sister would beg our parents to let us go to the South Bank instead of boring clothes shops. We soon discovered the far-off ends of the South Bank, which seemed to never have an end to the various forms of entertainment. There were several good restaurants, along the bank, including a Wagamamas we still often visit, a Strada (best Italian food in the world) and a pizza place at the end. In the summer, we regularly visit the South Bank, as it provides a way to take up a day, and make it a fun one. We often meet friends there, or go and watch a show, as well as having dinner.
The great thing about the South Bank is that there is always a place you haven’t been, some unturned leaf, which is always ready and waiting, and bursting full of energy and imagination. And these leaves are always falling, so regular visiting is always needed. Still things remain undiscovered to my family, so we shall keep on visiting, and so should you.
Angus Hegarty, Age 13, East Barnet
Embankment or Waterloo Tube Station
My favourite place in Pipa is the Coffee Shop run by Hudi and her husband Paul. Great for a chat and to find where to go for a good party that night. Cheap grub and the best caipirinhas in Brazil.
My favourite restaurant is Agua Na Boca, translation = mouthwatering. Perfect name. A beautiful restaurant with lots of beautiful dark wood furnishings; tables inlaid with spices and a mouthwatering menu. The crab starter is to die for! There is also a great creperie restaurant with architecture that looks like it was influenced by the Gaudi architecture of Barcelona.
Choose a baking hot day to step through the thirteenth century gateway of Monteriggioni (there's no way I'm going to attempt spelling that a third time) and you'll find yourself in the world of Sergio Leone. Sit on a bench opposite the church and you can quickly recreate entire scenes to while away the time whilst your travelling partner finds joy in the few shops this walled town has to offer. Time passes quickly here and you may find it worthwhile to return at night for a new take on the town and some delicious restaurants.
Between Siena and Firenze.
Cute cafe and wine bar in North Beach run by a Brit. Cold beer and decent wines. Free Wi-Fi, Premiership on the telly, great sandwiches, delicious fondue. On Mondays and Fridays local musicians and poets perform.
www.melt-cafe.com
Melt!
700 Columbus Ave @ Filbert
San Francisco
Tel: (415) 392-9290
This little takeaway with tables, located in the happening area of Kreuzberg, is unbelievably cheap.
The Bavarian style “pasta” it serves (comfort food at its best!) is freshly prepared in many different ways which all sound delicious. According to a local it’s as good as the one Mutter used to make which is surely a compliment.
Wienerstr., Kreuzberg
Friends is a training restaurant which is training young people who have previously been living on the street a trade - be that catering or waiting. It is open from 11am daily and serves a variety of really good tapas - both western and Cambodian.
Near the national museum, Phnom Penh
Real Cretan food in a nice casual chic environment.
Fresh produce shipped daily from the island of Crete. Owner Stavros Theodorakis, famous Greek journalist is around most nights making sure his guests have a great night out.
Gamopilafo (Cretan risotto served at weddings) is the best you can get outside Crete. Around 40 euros per person including wine and dessert. Reservation recommended.
Vrasida 13 (oposite Athens Hilton)
Athens
+30-210/721-0501
St Ouen's has five miles of unspoilt Atlantic beach and is one of the best surfing spots in northern Europe.
At the mid-point of the bay is Big Vern's beach cafe where the full breakfast will set you up for the day. Note however that at weekends, throughout the year, it is very busy.
Halfway along Five Mile Road.
Ignore the photo of Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock they've got hanging from the wall and wedge yourself into this small bar/restaurant for some fine, fine food.
Pedro Almodovar is said to love the place. After a few raciones it's hard to disagree. They deserve recognition for their liberal use of olive oil if nothing else.
Calle de la Libertad 4-6;
Tel: 91 532 12 19;
Metro: Chueca
World class Sichuan cuisine by
Chef Liao He Yi & his team in the five-star German-run Kempinski Hotel.
No visit to Chengdu and Sichuan would be complete without a visit to Shuxiangge. Try some of the very famous local dishes: Mapo Toufu, Lai Dumpling, and Han Steamed Bun.
Kempinski Hotel Chengdu
42 Ren Min Nan Lu, 4th Section,
Chengdu 610041 Sichuan Province
People's Republic of China
Phone: 86 + 28 + 85269999
www.kempinski-chengdu.com
Contact details:
Bernhard Kern 86+13350056464
(speaks fluent English & German)
Email:bernhard.kern@kempinski.com
For a cheap lunch, try the cafe in the Ensemble Artisanal shop, where tasty tagines, harira soup and couscous are served.
Ensemble Artisanal, Avenue Mohammed V, not far from the Koutoubia Mosque.
A good breakfast is a Sydney institution. From fresh fruit to slap up eggs and bacon with all the trimmings. Washed down with a cup of the best coffee to set you up for the day. Don't miss out, avoid the hotel smorgasbord rip offs and you won't blow the budget either.
The best cafes are in the Inner West (Glebe, Rozelle, Balmain), Eastern Suburbs and the sea side suburbs (Bondi,Bronte, Manly). The locals have their favourites and don't like to broadcast their location. But just head for the ones with a crowd and enjoy.