The Dining Room

This week I was lucky enough to go to a nearby restaurant for dinner with the WI. I’d heard many things about The Dining Room, and I was really looking forward to it. For the evening we had a set menu with a set price for three courses, which I thought was pretty reasonable. Here’s the menu:

I chose the roasted Mediterranean vegetable start, followed by fresh asparagus risotto and then finished with sticky toffee pudding. I had hoped for a slightly more exciting and unusual menu, as these were the sorts of things you could probably get in a lot of gastro pubs, let alone a ‘posh’ restaurant run by a TV chef. Anyway, I digress. To drink P, S and I shared a bottle of merlot which went down pretty easily!

My starter arrived and I was impressed with the presentation, it looked beautiful. However, when I cut into it I was expecting something with a few more whole veggies, this kind of reminded me a little of a mousse quiche which was hot. It wasn’t unpleasant, but I wouldn’t have it again.

Plates cleared and wine topped up it was time to head onto the next course. I ummed and ahhhed about what to have for my main, but I ultimately decided the confit of duck would be a little too rich for me and the creamed potatoes may be a bit risky, whilst I’ve eaten so much fish this week that posh fish and chips didn’t seem too appealing. The asparagus risotto seemed nice and seasonal, and I haven’t had a risotto in ages, so I went for that. Again, whilst it was good, it wasn’t outstanding, and on the way home I said to my Mum I thought I could probably rustle up something not too dissimilar!

Savoury belly’s full and wine glasses empty we were soon served dessert. I haven’t had sticky toffee for ages so it wasn’t too hard to make a choice, although the thought of chocolate and pistachio was pretty tempting! P said she thought the sticky toffee was a little dry, but I quite enjoyed it, although a little more sauce would never go amiss!

I left the restaurant having had a good meal with good company as always, but I’m going to wait a while before going back to see if they have a different menu to try.

A sunny trail

As every blogger has already said, we had some good weather at the weekend. In fact, after the sub zero temps I experienced in New York, it was positively tropical!

Knowing that I’m due to run eight miles this coming Sunday, I knew I needed to get in at least six miles at the weekend and not shock my body! The last time I ran as far as 10K was mid February so I was a little nervous how my legs would cope.

I set off about 10am and the sun was high in the sky, but after about a mile and a half I was not feeling it at all and was ready to turn home. I’d planned to do my normal route which involves running along a busy undulating road, with a big hill towards the end, but I was not feeling good about it in the slightest

Having a conversation with myself in my head (as you do), I talked myself into going a bit further, telling myself that I had to run the distance, and if I didn’t do it today I’d have to do it tomorrow. Knowing I would dread it looming over me the following day, I decided to mix it up and run along a trail I hadn’t been down for over a year.

It turned out to be a great decision. The route was a hilly one, along some lovely trails. Combined with the good weather, different terrains and gradient, it made it really interesting and I ended up having a wonderful run in the sunshine, and I was so glad I stayed out.

The run took me past allotments, down pothole filled roads, up mud tracks, through a golf course, into a heath, up more hills, over a train line, past fields and plenty of horses. It really reminded me I need to experiment more with my routes, as variety will keep me interested and challenge me.

My times weren’t the quickest, but it was time on my feet having fun and enjoying the fresh air!

Mile 1	11:21
Mile 2	11:56
Mile 3	12:16
Mile 4	12:18
Mile 5	11:50
Mile 6	11:44
0.24	12:30
Total	1hr14,21
Ave	11:56

52 lists #5

Things you love about the town you live in

1. It’s really easy for me to get into London.

2. The high street has plenty of choice for places to eat, I’ll never go hungry, breakfast, lunch, dinner or even dessert.

3. The chances of you bumping into someone you know on the high street is high.

4. Valentine’s yarn bombing!

5. It’s close to the countryside and box hill making it great for running and biking.

6. There’s good pubs everywhere, great for an stop off on your bike ride, or after a long walk.

7. There’s lots of nice little shops that sell nice little bits for the home and make good presents.

8. I can get into the shops and back in 30 minutes walking if I need something urgent.

9. There’s a great park which makes a lovely place to sit in the summer and soak up the sun.

10. It’s home to some really super people, who I’m glad to call my friends!

Race recap | Reigate 10K

Last weekend marked my first race of 2014 – Reigate 10k. I signed up on bit of a whim as the race was cheap, not too far away, and a good distance to  begin the year on.

I did 5 miles the week before so I was feeling confident about the distance, although I knew I wouldn’t beat my 10K time from Brighton. Reigate is a lot hillier than Brighton! I hadn’t really looked at the route until about two days before the race, when I realised it would be four laps of the park, five if the weather was bad and they changed the route – how boring!

As it turns out thanks to the weather that we’ve had of late, it ended up being five laps round the park. Really, really boring! The race started in the centre of the park and the instructions were to run between the cones five times. The route was mainly on grass, with a little bit of path, which meant that it had the potential to be very, very muddy! I bumped into a friend on the high street before the race started who said he knew someone running it and had been told to wear trail shoes – oh how I wish I owned a pair!

The race was probably one of the hardest routes, if not the most challenging route, I think I’ve ever run. The ground underfoot was like running on treacle at points, your feet literally sinking into the mud and then having to yank it out again, I was convinced I was going to lose my trainers a few times, and had to keep checking my shoes were done up properly! The route was also very hilly, and at one point it was on quite a big slant, which meant my left foot was landing lower down on the ground than my right foot. I noticed that when I ran this part of the route I got some calf pain, I think because it was also muddy and I was landing on my feet funny.

It was a tough slog, and by the time I got three times round (and been lapped twice) I resented having to run two more laps. I did notice my run club training really paid off though. I felt strong running up the hills, I kept thinking ‘shoulders heavy’ and ‘pump those arms’.

On the start of the fifth lap I had a funny feeling the course might run long, and about half way round my Garmin beeped six miles and I felt a bit angry that I had to keep running to earn my medal!! It was definitely a tough mental battle, although I did have my iPod on which definitely helped.

I finished the course of 6.65 miles in 1hr17, an average of 11:41 pace, so a better time than my previous two 10Ks, Reigate Priory and South London. I’m not sure I would do the race again unless they changes the course, it was so boring and such tough conditions (which I know they can’t help!). As I finished the race and really felt like I’d earnt that medal, it was a tough one! I think only a dozen women finished under an hour, which just shows how tough the conditions were!

I then spent the afternoon in the pub with a friend eating an absolutely delicious burger, which kind of made up for the 800 calories I’d burnt off!!!

A big thanks too to Megan who came to watch me finish, act as my paparazzi, and bring water and mini eggs as a treat for me, she’s a super star!

A weekend with my muffins

Last weekend my muffins came to stay. I don’t get to see my muffins as much as I’d like, the last time was just before Christmas, but we always have such good fun together!

The girls arrived Friday night and after a delicious dinner thanks to Rachel Khoo we stayed up chatting and catching up, chatting work, life, friends, and boys.

Saturday morning we woke up late and after taking our time to get ready we headed to Guildford for some girly retail therapy. First stop was Bills, which despite tasty food, was actually really disappointing. We had to wait about 20 mins for our table (not their fault), we waited about the same time to have our drinks and food order taken, even longer to have our drinks served, which they only did when prompted, and even longer again to have our food served. We had to prompt them again to order dessert, which when the waiter did turn up, was holding a frozen loaf from the table next to us from people who complained. We told the waiter to go and sort the complaint before taking our order, and then he just seemed to forget about us. By the time he did come back to take our order we decided against it, and paid the bill (without the tip). I know it was a busy Saturday, but that was seriously bad service! Anyway, I had the chicken skewers, when they arrived they were tasty.

We wondered up and down the high street and I walked away with two new pairs of boots ready for my trip to NYC next month.

We headed home late for a quick change and then back out for dinner and drinks. Prudes was convinced we couldn’t get into any Thai restaurants because they would all be celebrating Chinese new year, Mingers and I weren’t quite so sure!

We had a lovely meal at a local Thai place, complete with Christmas decs and wood panelled walls.

We then headed out to a bar for drinks, and were almost certainly the youngest there thanks to someone celebrating a 50th birthday. Ooopps!

Sunday morning we had another lazy morning and then decided to walk along the heath to a pub that serves probably the best roast around. Oh my, it was so good!

Pudding was sticky toffee pudding, probably my all time favourite. It’s on my to make list, for sure!

By the time Sunday afternoon rolled around, and we had rolled back to mine, I was sad to see the girls leave. I love spending time with my muffins, but we’ve already planned some great things for the next few months, including a weekend in Essex, a trip to see the Dreamboys, and a holiday in the South of France. Roll on 2014!

A rainy walk on box hill

Back at the beginning of January Megan and I wanted to do a cheap day out, so we decided on a ‘welly walk’ and some much needed fresh air. Neither of us had been to box hill before, but as it’s practically on our doorstep we thought it would be a nice place for a walk, plus there’s a cafe at the top!

In our infinite wisdom after all the flooding we decided to try the ‘stepping stone’ trail, which we didn’t get to see because of all the water, oops! I think we got lost a few times too, so we’re already planning to go back and attempt it again. Plus, Megan has told me all about this really cool thing called geocaching, and there’s quite a few around box hill!

I’ll let the remainder of the photos do the story telling…

If you looked at all the photos I’m impressed! Sorry it’s so photo heavy, sometimes I see my blog as an online diary of all my best bits, so I can look back and remember things I’ve done, instead of photos staying buried in a folder somewhere!

I can’t wait to go back to box hill again when it’s a bit drier, and maybe try some other walks!

Finding friends in a new town | part two

It’s about two years ago I wrote my first post about finding new friends when you’ve moved to a new town. Later, I even bought a book that was all about making new friends, which I would definitely recommend! Two years and a bit years on since moving to Surrey it’s not really a new place to me anymore, and I think I can share a few more tips about going out and making friends.

1. Make an effort with work colleagues. You spend more time with these people than anyone else, so it’s important you make an effort to get on, as when it gets tough as work it’s always nice to know someone can make you laugh! I’ve got some really great friends at work now, some who never fail to make me laugh, and some who I can rant at when things aren’t always going right.

2. Try to join local groups with similar hobbies to you. I joined the WI a year ago, and haven’t looked back. One of my two closest Surrey friends is someone I met through the WI. Having a club to go to ensures I have a reason to leave the house to go out and socialise with new people, I’ve met people from completely different stages of life to me, got to know little hints and tips about the local area, learnt new crafts like quilting, and I’m never short of someone to go for a coffee or try a new restaurant.

3. Look online. The main website that seems to be good for this from what I’ve found is meetup.com, which I was introduced to through Megan. You do have to have a little confidence to get out there and meet people you don’t know before, but stepping outside your comfort zone is worth it. On meetup.com I’ve found ladies groups, social groups, craft groups, exercise groups, and more. One group in particular I belong to is a ladies group who organise really fun social outings, such as aerial hoop, hot yoga, chocolate workshops, wine tastings, and more! And, if there isn’t a group in your area, why not set up a group, as chances are there will be others in your situation!

4. Use social media. Reach out on your blog and through twitter to meet other people in your area. I’ve met quite a few bloggers now who live around the SE and all of them have been just as nice as they are on their blog. 

5. Never stop looking for friends and never turn down an opportunity to meet someone new. My other closest Surrey friend Megan became my friend in an unusual way, and just proves you can make friends where you least expect it! We were both listed on spareroom.com looking for a flatmate and she messaged me asking if I was still looking for a room. Unfortunately I had just moved at the time, so whilst the timing wasn’t right with housing, I offered to show her what I’d learnt since moving to Surrey and after meeting in a local pub one night we’ve been good friends ever since! I’ve also been introduced to some really lovely people through friends of friends, and can now count them in my circle of friends, so getting out of your comfort zone is definitely worth it!

If you’ve just moved and looking to make friends I hope these tips help. I’d love to know if you have any other tips to share!

#janathon day four

Just a quick one today to check in and let you know I completed day four of #janathon. Not a run, but instead a lovely, muddy walking around Box Hill, up and down steep muddy steps and grassy hills, with plenty of puddles. I think we covered over two miles, although we got a bit lost and didn’t see the stepping stones that were the whole point of the route we were on! But, we were out for over an hour and I got a sweat on, so I’m pretty sure that counts, right?

Tomorrow I’m planning a quick run in the morning, and I’m planning to share more of my Box Hill photos with you in the week, stay tuned!

Sloe picking

A couple of weeks ago, just after the first frost, my friend P and I went sloe picking. She’d been promising to take me for ages, so I made sure to have a bottle of gin ready and waiting for when the first frost would come, which is apparently when you know sloes are ready to pick.

P’s mum told us about a woodland near her house which had loads of sloes, so one Saturday morning we wrapped up warm, took the dogs with us, and went picking.

At first we weren’t exactly sure what a sloe looked like, and were frightened of picking something poisonous, but thanks to Google, we found the right berry and filled our boots.

And how cute are her dogs? They were pretty worn out after the long walk!

We ended up picking way more sloes that expected, which meant I didn’t have enough alcohol. Not a problem though, I went straight to Sainsbury’s and bought some vodka, to have something a bit different. I followed Nigel Slater’s recipe for the sloe gin and vodka, but I’m pretty sure I messed it up. I don’t know for sure as the whole thing takes about 10-12 weeks to do its thing. At first they looked terrible, but now, about three weeks later, they’re looking pretty good. And it made absolutely loads, hence all the jam jars I ended up using! One thing I would say though, sloes are an absolute bugger to prick. Eurgh, it took me hours! The end result better be worth it!

I can’t wait to try some, only 6 more weeks to wait!! Have you ever gone foraging before? Ever made or tried sloe gin?

Shopping in Dorking

I had a go at a video this weekend. The quality isn’t great, it’s super shaky and juddery, and I couldn’t work out how to mute the sound of the video to have just the sound of the soundtrack, the cuts between shots are terrible, but……here it is. Please don’t say anything mean, it’s just an experiment for now.