Category Archives: coffee

Arancini Brothers Risotto Balls

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

So two men named Dave walk into a kitchen, sounds like the beginning of a hilarious joke but it’s what happens everyday at Arancini Brothers. The two owners, big Dave and little Dave, while in Australia were trained by Sicilian chefs to create ‘delizioso’ risotto balls, or Arancini for short, you just learnt something…you’re welcome.

Rice cooked with onions, garlic, herbs and vegetable stock are then flavoured with a variety of cheeses, parsley and lemon (vegan options available on request), then fried to perfection.

Once prepared the risotto balls can be order in wraps, burgers, stew bowls or by themselves as a tasty snack 

With locations on Old Street, Kentish Town, Dalston and a food van that regular visits local food markets you have NO EXCUSE not to try them out.

 

The Time & Place:

115A Kentish Town Road, London NW1 8PB | Mon – Fri 8am -9.30pm, Sat – Sun 9.30am – 9.30pm

592 Kingsland Road, Dalston, London E8 4AH | Everyday including Bank Holidays 10am – 10pm

42 Old Street, London EC1V 9AE | Mon – Fri 9.30am – 10pm, Closed weekends.

 Price:  Start from £4

Contact:  arancinibrothers.com

 

 

 

 

Something is wrong.
Instagram token error.
Load More

The Potato Project

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

 

I used to eat jacket potatoes with a drizzle of olive oil, not baked beans or ever butter, olive oil, very odd and not very imaginative, thankfully the guys at The Potato Project are here to help, especially if you’re failing at food like I am. 

Available on the menu combinations such as Autumn wild mushrooms + spinach + blue cheese & truffle oil, Thai chicken + coconut & lime curry and The naked potato with butter (just encase you’re a fan of the classics) all available on both sweet and your classic jacket potato.

 

Also available is a side of Sweet potato hummus with pear, Gin & Tonic ice Cream and coffee which, I think, is flirting with me??? 

 

 

 

The Time:  Mon – Fri 10am – 6pm

The Place:  

27 Noel Street, Soho, London W1F 8GZ

99 George Street, Unit 30 Boxpark Croydon, CR0 1LD

Price:  Start from £4.20 for a main and £2.60 for a side

Contact:  thepotatoproject.com

 

 

 

 

Something is wrong.
Instagram token error.
Load More

Smart Birdy Street

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

Fancy generating some electricity while breathing in cleansed air, doing a bit of shopping all on your lunch break, then head over to Bird Street.

Located next to Selfridges Oxford Street, Bird Street has been transformed into a techie smart oasis.

A row of pop up shops and eateries where Good Mood Food, smoothies, environmentally friendly & tech based accessories can be purchased.

 

Smart paving that helps generate power for the pop up shops & street lights (plus data collecting).

 

Andddd a bench that purifies the air around you while you sit in it, to help clear the lunges and the soul.

 

All surrounded by greenery & peaceful sounds to make your lunch break a serine experience, before you head back to the madness of the office. Perfect.

 

 

 

 

Something is wrong.
Instagram token error.
Load More

Balham got Milk

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

 

Do you live near Balham?

Are you planning on a restful Bank Holiday weekend, plus food?

Do you like wooden furniture? 

Did you answer YES to all of the above, then get your backside over to Milk, a ‘cool dude’ cafe on a cobbled road in the heart of Balham, that serves a variety of dishes, drinks (hot and cold), not to mention cake, the most important food of your 5-a-day staple.

 

 

And as well as the good food & fine wooden surroundings their website looks like an old skool computer, that alone is enough to get my bum in a seat:

 

Enjoy your eatings folks.

 

  • The Place:  18-20 Bedford Hill, Balham, London, SW12 9RG
  • The Time:  Mon – Wed 8am – 5pm, Thurs – Sat 8am – 11pm (dinner servered from 6.30pm) Sun 9am – 5pm
  • Contact:  www.milk.london

 

  • Images used from milk.london, media.immediate.co.uk & timeout.com
  • Info used from timeout.com & my mind.

The Chief of all Coffees

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

chief coffee insta

 

In a dark, dark town there was a dark, dark street and on that dark, dark street lays Chief Coffee.  Well Turnham Green isn’t that dark, and neither is the street Chief sits on (it’s not really a street either, more of a mews), but this was the best opener I could come up with.

Meet Chief Coffee, the caffeine establishment located in a Victorian bottle factory that boasts a pinball lounge in the basement.

image

 

Situated just off Turnham Green Terrace, Chief Coffee servers a variety of artisan coffee drinks with a variety of artisan beans, none of that Btarsucks rubbish, if you know what I mean.

In-house treats like sandwiches and pastries provided by local vendors are made daily, but you want to know about the pinball machines right?

IMG_8859

 

Grab your Cappuccino, hand-made cinnamon bun and wonder downstairs where you’ll find pinball machines of the Ghostbusters, Game of Thrones and Star Trek variety, to name but a few.

At present there are 9 machines residing in the Chief underground meeting room, which I’ve been told by my band of spies can be hired out for private events, if you’re interested email here.

If you happen to be in West London and are in dyer need of caffeine, I highly recommend popping into Chief. The staff are lovely, the building is stunning and the pinball is awesome…oh and the coffee is pretty OK too :0)

 

  • The Place:  Chief Coffee, Turnham Green Terrace Mews, London W4 1QU
  • The Time:   Mon-Fri 8am-5.30pm   Sat 9am-7pm   Sun 10am-5.30pm
  • Contact:  For more information email Chief Coffee here

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone deserves a Second Shot

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

1459579428-Second Shot Coffee - London-Bethnal Green Road-Business

Coffee, black gold or the bean that stops me from committing GBH every morning is now doing more than merely waking up the masses, it’s combating homelessness in the capital too.

The Second Shot Cafe in Bethnal Green has combined London’s coffee culture with the fight to eradicated homelessness by hiring former rough sleepers, providing training & one-to-one support, food drives, community support activities, a pay-it-forward scheme where customers can prepay for items that can be claimed later by a person in need (loving that idea!), as well as a number of other initiatives that aim to help people reintegrate back into full time employment and ultimately a stable live style.

CjTOKbGWUAAmmq9

 

By using local vendors and working with Cafe by Crisis, The Connection at St Martins in the Fields Second Shot is doing it’s part for the cause one Espresso at a  time.

 

…I’m coming for a coffee and cake soon guys!

 

  • The Place:  Second Shot Cafe 475 Bethnal Green Rd, E2 9QH
  • The Time:  7am-6pm Mon to Fri & 9am-7pm Sat & Sun
  • Contact:  For more information regarding Second Shot and their mission contact them at their Twitter page @Secondshotcafe or go to their website Second Shot

 

 

 

 

*Info used from the good people at Second Shot

*Images used from Twitter.com/secondshotcafe & instagram.com/secondshotcoffee

 

Dolce and Amaro, Willesden Lane North West London

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

 

20140601_183939806_iOS

 

Spring has finally reared it’s beautifully, cherry blossomed head, and you find yourself in North West London in serious need for a properly made, Italy Cappuccino but also need to pick up some pasta for dinner…what do you do?

You head over to Dolce & Amaro in Kilburn, that’s what. The new (and very lovely) comers to the area, having opened in late Jan 2014, offer a wide array of delectable yummies such as homemade hot and cold food, PROPERLY made coffees and teas, cakes, some pre-packaged foods for instance pasta (hence the comment above), all available to eat-in or take away, including the CAKE.

Bless their entrepreneurial hearts they open from 8am – 8pm Monday – Saturday, and 8.30/9am – 6.30/7pm on Sundays, those kinds of hours would kill me so I wish them every success!

Also I have it on good authority (the horse’s mouth, so to speak) that the owners, Dolce and Amaro, are quite found of people popping in for a chin-wag, so if you happen to be on Willesden Lane and are in need of some friendly banter, I personally recommend stopping by. The Cappuccino is also pretty damn good too.

 

Open hours:

Mon – Sat: 8am – 8pm

Sunday: 8.30/9am – 6.30/7pm

 

Address:

98 Willesden Lane,

London, NW6 7TA

 

  • Info received first hand from the Co.Owner of Dolce & Amaro

 

 

Damn fine Italian coffee makers revealed

Cafe Provencal, Herne Hill South East London

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut
Reply

CAFE_PROV_IMAGE_17_09_13

So your in Herne Hill and could really do with a coffee, you know because it’s ‘a’ day in the week and you just can’t survive without a caffeine hit, or you fancy some lunch with a mate in a comfortably cool environment that doesn’t cost the earth, then Cafe Provencal should be the place you head to.

A lovely independent, “non-pretentious” (as stated by a reviewer on Tripadvisor.co.uk) restaurant with a welcoming atmosphere for all…and ‘price considerate’ which is AWESOME right now!

Bounce your way over to this hidden South East London delight, for foodses, drinkses and good timeses, plus  it’s next to Herne Hill Station which is nice and handy.

 

ADDRESS:

Cafe Provencal

2-6 Half Moon Lane,

Herne Hill,

London, SE24 9HU

 

OPENING TIMES:

Open from 10am daily, closing times vary

 

CONTACT:

020 7978 9228

info@cafeprov.co.uk

www.cafeprov.co.uk

 

Hidden foody gem revealed!

 

 

 

  • Info used from cafeprov.co.uk and tripadvisor.co.uk
  • Image used taken from google earth google.com

 

Houspresso, Gospel Oak

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut

Info used taken from houspresso.com

Images used taken from beyroutey.wordpress.com

Houspresso, situated between Hampstead Heath and Kentish Town, is a property consultancy which also doubles as a coffee bar.

‘We take as much pride about our cafe and what we do there as we do with the agency and architectural sides of the business.’

Inspired by hearing the story of how Lloyds of London started out as a coffee house in the City of London where sailors, merchants and ship owners would meet to make insurance deals, they decided to do something similar with homes and property. Their 21st century version means they have a lovely, informal place to meet. And if it’s just a really good coffee or tea you’re after, they’ll do that for you with pleasure.

 

For more info visit their site www.houspresso.com

 

Houspresso Property Cafe
1a Mansfield Road
Gospel Oak
London NW3 2JD

www.houspresso.com

Hidden thing to do in London, Revealed!

 

 

 

Unpackaged, Islington

Posted on by Rai The shiny nut

All info used as been taken from hipshops.com and beunpackaged.com

All images used have been taken from beunpackaged.com

Unpackaged is an award winning organic grocery based in Islington, selling a range of organic food and environmentally friendly household products & toiletries in bulk, encouraging the customers to bring their own containers to refill. This saves money for the customer as they can purchase exactly the amount they want, and is good for the environment as it reduces carbon emissions and waste to landfill. Their aim is to create a beautiful, stylish environment, selling wonderful products, that inspires customers and makes it easier for them to refill than go to a supermarket.

For further info regarding their products or how to shop with them please vist the website or email them at info@beunpackaged.com

Opening Hours:

Monday – Friday, 10am – 7pm

Saturday, 9am – 6pm

Sunday, Closed

42 Amwell Street,

London, EC1R 1XT

www.beunpackaged.com

Hidden thing to do in London, Revealed!