Let's Lounge @ Mamounia Lounge Knightsbridge

After a first visit to Mamounia Lounge Mayfair a few months ago, this weekend Mr. A and I had a really amazing evening at their new branch recently opened in Knightsbridge.

Located just a few metres away from iconic Harrods, Mamounia Lounge Knightsbridge is a hidden gem offering a Fusion of Moroccan and Libanese Cuisine.  Although it looked
quite small from the outside, as we went in, it offered a pretty good organised space for a Restaurant with a lovely décor inside. We were politely greeted by the host and escorted to the bar where we started our evening.

I had heard that they made excellent cocktails and had to try one! 

We were given an extensive drinks menu to choose from 

{which I'm sure would cater to everyone's need!} 

and I was very happy to see that they also offered an interesting 

non-alcoholic cocktails section in addition to the usual fruit juices available.

Being a fan of mojitos, we tried the classic virgin Mojito as well as the Strawberry Mojito.

Beautifully Presented Strawberry Mojito 

Once our drinks were ready, we were keen to sit down for dinner. 

The front part of the restaurant was already buzzing with customers while at the back 

it seemed to offer a much more quiet and private space, which looked more inviting to us. 

As we walked further to our table, I was pleasantly pleased by the beautiful interior 

which gave a very cosy and stylish feeling as we were seated.

Next comes the food section ...

Dinner @ Mango Tree - Belgravia

Mango Tree in Belgravia - This is a restaurant I have heard so much about for their
great thai dishes and has been one I wanted to visit for a long time.

Finally, I had a reservation and would finally have a taste of what all the talks are about!

Upon arrival, the staff was extremely friendly and polite. 

We were escorted to our table and seated very comfortably in their quite big dining room. 

As we were going through their menu, we could see that their cocktails were very 

popular as the waiting staff were going back and forth with wonderfully 

presented drinks on their tray.  So we had one! It was fun and fruitilicious!! :)

We chose one made of lychee, passion fruit juice and grenadine - 

named the Director's Choice Cocktail.

The starters arrived and looked absolutely amazing. 

The Mixed Skewers (Chicken, beef and lamb) were well marinated and nicely flavoured.  

My favourite one was the delicious chicken skewer dipped in freshly made satay sauce, 

and then the lamb. The Beef was slightly tough to take off the skewer and a bit chewy 

(not recommended). Then of course, typically Thai, we had to have the
Tom Yum Goong Soup. Full of flavour, with big fresh prawns and with just
the right amount of spice I loved it!

However for the price on the menu, it was a very small portion!

One not to be missed as a starter is the Green Papaya Salad which was exquisite! 

I never would have believed  that it would be so good as I am usually 

not a big fan of green papaya...  Now definitely a favourite!

Next, the Mains :

LEFT - Grilled Duck in sweet and tangy tamarind sauce

RIGHT - Chicken in Spicy Green Curry

Served with Jasmine White Rice

Excellent combination for mains although again, I found the portions extremely small! 

Luckily Mr. A and I are not big eaters and with the starters, it was just enough for us two. 

The Duck was very nice served on some greens and the green curry was irreproachable. 

Right amount of spice (despite the big chillies used as garnish), soft and juicy pieces 

of chicken and I just love the thai aubergine in the curry sauce!

Lastly, dessert time! Cannot leave without trying out their dessert! 

A Sweet Lychee and Ginger Cheesecake served with lychee jelly. 

The cheesecake was simply wonderful. Light and springy cheesecake 

as should be with a crumbly layer of biscuit base - Oh so Yummm!!!

Overall, the experience was not disappointing. 

The atmosphere was nice although I do not recall any music playing ... 

Maybe I was just too busy chit chatting with Mr. A  - (^.^) -

The Staff were very smartly presented, polite and very attentive. 

Also what caught my attention is the impressive teamwork of the waiting staff. 

It is always nice to see this as it has become quite rare!

Definitely worth a visit but be ready to be spending quite a bit! 

A bit pricey to my liking but book through toptable  

and it'll be a bit more reasonable.

Mango Tree

46, Grosvenor Place, Belgravia 

London SW1X 7EQ
   

Sunday Brunch @ The Luxe - Spitalfields New Market

Another Beautiful Week-End in London for the bank holiday weekend!

To make the most of the good weather this Sunday, Mr. A and I hopped on the BBB
(Barclays-Boris-Bike) and cycled it from London Bridge all the way to Spitalfields Market,
going across Tower Bridge.

Amazing Tower Bridge!

After a good session of physical activity, it was time for brunch! I was starved! Last week we had brunch at Patisserie Valerie and it did not disappoint so I was considering going back there but Mr. A had the great idea of trying out The Luxe at Spitalfields.

The Luxe is owned by Masterchef UK judge John Torode and what is interesting with this venue is that there is a different eating and drinking experience offered on each floor. The buzzing ground floor café-bar is a pleasing spot for breakfast, brunch or a casual lunch while The basement bar (a music venue) is dark and moody. On the first floor, The Luxe offers a very different atmosphere for fine-dining.

For today, the café-bar was the perfect place to rest after our cycling trip and to feed ourselves! To keep it on a healthy note, I went for the Veggie Fresh Fruit Juice which consists of Carrots, Tomatoes, Celery and Apple Juice. So refreshing!

Veggie Fruit Juice @ The Luxe 

Mr. A went for a café- mocha which was very tasty!! :)

Just like a home-made Mocha! Mmmmm :) 

The menu at The Luxe is very well organised and it didn't take us too long to decide.
This time, I decided that I would go for a Full on English Breakfast with sausage and bacon.

Oh so heavy Full English Breakfast !! Never again!! 

  ...  while Mr. A went for a Lumber Jack with waffles, blueberry pancakes, French Toast, crepe and sausage. This option was certainly full of carbs but this dish was amazingly delicious! Topped with maple syrup, the waffle was crispy and the blueberry pancake was very light ! No wonder it was gone in minutes!! :)

The Lumber Jack 

Oh wow! What a brunch! My Full English Breakfast was not particularly superb 

but the place compensated for it as it did offer a nice atmosphere to spend a beautiful day in! 

The Luxe has large open windows letting the sunshine in and the music was pleasant. 

Definitely a place I would recommend to have a light snack and coffee on a beautiful day!

www.theluxe.co.uk

The Luxe @ Spitalfields E1 

109 Commercial Street

London E1 6BG