Be At One Monument Reopening

A few weeks back, I was invited by the team at Be At One Oxford Street to join them for Quiz Night celebrating the launch of their new cocktails. I put quite a bit of the night on my Insta Story, but I didn't do a blog post as there were quite a few of us and the table was constantly full of yummy cocktails, so I didn't really get an opportunity for nice photos (although my friend Maddie took some on her camera, perhaps I should ask her if they're any good...). I also had a chance to meet one of the lovely girls who are behind their PR - hello Kara if you're reading this - and it was truly a great night. I've been a fan of Be At One since I've started going to bars, so being invited to their events is honestly amazing to me!

On Thursday however, I was yet again invited to attend an event hosted by them. This time, it was to the re-opening of the bar at Monument. This is one I haven't been to before it went under renovation, so I can't comment on how much has changed, but I can say that right now everything looks fabulous, which isn't really that surprising since they put £300,000 into it. It's also very easy to find, as it's around the corner from the station.

When we went in we could still smell the fresh paint (I really don't mind) and it felt really nice to be one of the first ones there. Alongside promoting the reopening of the bar, they were also focusing on promoting one of the new drinks - Blue Steel. As I'm a massive Pornstar Martini fan (basic, I know), it shouldn't be shocking to anyone that Blue Steel is creeping up to the top of my favourites list. It's a mix of Beefeater gin, Prosecco Santome, blue curacao, white peach liquor, egg white and lemon. It is divine.

One of the reasons Be At One is my favourite cocktail bar is because there's something for everyone. Their menu boasts over 100 different drinks, and I know what you're thinking - yes, it can be difficult to choose one. So, their brilliant team has made it easier for us by adding a feature called 'Drinkr' into the Be At One app. Think of it as a cocktail cupid of a sort. You swipe as you would on Tinder, answering a few questions, and you receive a cocktail tailored to you based on your answers. It's pretty accurate. There are also in-app promotions, and it's handy to stay on top of what's going on in the Be At One world. 

Our lovely cocktail waitress Siobhan who made the night that little bit more special

An offer that they currently have on, not only for app users, is a £5 offer on their Blue Steel and Banoffee Old Fashioned cocktails. I myself haven't tried the BOF, but if you're a fan of banoffee and the traditional Old Fashioned, I really don't think you can go wrong here. If you're anything like me I also recommend the Kiss from a Rosé, Patron & Saint, Erin Rose (ice cream cocktail, yes please!) and Buenot - a creamy cocktail with, yep, you've guessed it, a Kinder Bueno!

If you haven't been to Be At One before - first of, where have you been?! Secondly, I honestly recommend checking it out. The cocktails are great, the bar staff is always the nicest and great fun and the music is on point, too. I'd also like to thank the Be At One staff and their PR team for inviting me, yet again, to a fantastic night! 

*A few of the photos were kindly sent to me by the PR so I could include them in the blog post. 

#MartyEats: Pan-Roasted Chicken with Dijon Mushroom Sauce and Brown Rice*

I love cooking, especially trying out new recipes, so when I was recently contacted by Trisha from HelloFresh asking if I was interested in collaborating with them, I jumped straight at the opportunity. They've recently released a new tool, called the Flavour Generator. So, what is it? It's pretty cool, actually! You choose the cuisine you prefer (Indian, British, Mexican, Italian or Middle Eastern) and then you pick the flavour - spicy, sweet, tangy, herby, or something you've never tried before. The generator then chooses one or two dishes that fit into this category, and off you go! My only criticism is that there aren't enough options meal wise, but perhaps that's because I have a very picky Mum (I'm currently back to living with my parents, explanation in the next blog post) who doesn't eat a lot of things. If I was cooking for myself or friends it probably would have been slightly easier. 

Anyway! We decided to go for British food with a spicy flavour (which again, quite daring for Mum, she's not a fan of too much spice). The generator gave us thyme and mustard as the undertones of the dish, and the two dishes were Pimped Up Pan Haggerty and this beauty you'll read about here. We agreed on this because, well, you can't go wrong with chicken & mushroom. 

The recipe has a level of difficulty (ours was 1, how adventurous of us), a nutritional values list and the breakdown of ingredients. I wish the ingredients weren't in ounces, but nothing a quick Google search can't fix. 

WHAT YOU'LL NEED (2 servings) :

340g of chicken breast

56g of sour cream

1 cube of chicken stock 

7g of thyme

255g of brown rice

2 cloves of garlic

115g of button mushroom

1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

salt, pepper, olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. Bring a medium pot of water with a large pinch of salt to a boil. Thinly slice the mushrooms. Mince or grate the garlic. Strip the thyme leaves off the sprig and roughly chop.
2. Cook the rice: Add the rice to the boiling water and boil for about 30 minutes, until tender. Drain.
   
3. Meanwhile, heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium heat. Pat dry the chicken with a paper towel, then season on all sides with salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, until browned, but not yet cooked through. Place the chicken on a baking sheet and transfer to the oven for about 10 minutes, until just cooked through.
   
   
4. Heat another drizzle of oil in the same pan over medium heat. Add the thyme and garlic to the pan and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook, tossing for 5-6 minutes, until browned. Season with salt and pepper.
   
5. Add ½ cup water and the stock concentrate to the pan. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Nestle the chicken in the sauce while it reduces. Bring to a simmer for 2-3 minutes, or until reduced by half. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the sour cream and 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard. Season to taste with salt and pepper. At this point, Mum and I thought it'd be best to use more sour cream next time - just a tip! We all agreed it needs to be a little creamier.

   
   

   
6. Finish and plate: Thinly slice the chicken and serve on a bed of brown rice (although as you can see we decided to do that before we added it to the pan). Drizzle with the Dijon mushroom sauce and enjoy!

We all loved this recipe and we'll definitely be making it again. Next time though, we'll make sure it's more creamy and we'll add a little bit more chicken. Do you think you'll be trying Hello Fresh's new Flavour Generator? Have a look at the tool and let me know what you'd choose to make! 

Love, 

Marty xx

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*This post was in collaboration with Hello Fresh in exchange for an honest review and a Hello Fresh box of my choice.

#MartyEats: Turtle Bay New Menu Review*

Turtle Bay Norwich has launched a new menu, following feedback from the customers. I personally didn't have any problems with the previous one, but I'm always happy to try new food! Maya very kindly invited me to come in and review it, so the meal was free of charge - the first time this has happened to me, a bit mind blowing really. We had fantastic service from the head waitress, whom I believe was called Evelyn, and Tom also checked on us a few times. But then again, the staff is very attentive to all their customers, so it was a no-brainer.

If you've never been to Turtle Bay (I haven't even heard of it until it opened here in Norwich last August), it's a restaurant full of Caribbean inspired dishes and drinks. Turtle Bay’s famous Jerk Chicken, Curried Goat, and other favourites are all staying on the menu, but 15 new dishes and 7 new drinks have been added the menu now has more veggie/vegan options than before. As my friend Lillie and I had plans to go out for cocktails that evening anyway, we decided to kick off our night with those exactly. We tried the Rum Negroni and Roots Culture. The negroni was very strong - not a surprise, since it contains Old J-rum, Campari, red vermouth, served over ice. Lillie and I were both fans of Roots Culture, however. Supposedly it was on the menu before, but I don't remember seeing it. It contains Uncle Wray overproof rum, strawberry liqueur, raspberries, lime, and lemonade. We had way too many of those. Both cocktails are priced at £7.15, or they're 2-4-1 during Happy Hour!

(Rum Negroni - left, Roots Culture - right)

For a starter, we decided to go with the Just Jerk Sharing Platter, which, by the way, is really filling. At only £13.95 it's definitely worth it. It comes with marinated chicken wings, glazed pork ribs (which I think we didn't actually get...), jerk beef riblets, Jamaican beef patty, sweetcorn fritters, spiced popcorn and super green salad. The beef patty and fritters were out favourite, but the salad was a little disappointing. It was dry, that's all. Could've done with some dressing. Turtle Bay also offer a Vital Veggie Plater. This has sweet corn fritters, crispy okra, jerk pit grilled mushroom & peppers with coconut glaze, pepper roti, bara flatbread spiced curried chickpeas & cucumber chutney, herb mayo & super green salad.

A new burger menu has been added. And if you know me, you know I'd be all over that. This features a Jammin’ Lamb Burger (which I decided to go for) alongside four others including the brand new Two Way Chicken Burger, a new Mushroom and Goats Cheese Burger, as well as the favourite Jerk ‘n’ Pulled Pork Bun. I'm a massive burger fan so I'll definitely be going back to try the rest. The lamb burger was great, pit grilled and came with Caribbean slaw and spiced fries. You also have the option of going for the salad, which well... I didn't go for haha. The burger is priced at £10.95 and it's definitely worth the price considering it already comes with the sides. The only downside was that the bun fell apart, but that's not the end of the world.

Lillie decided to try the Slow Braised Beef Rib, another brand-new dish featuring ‘Jacobs Ladder” short rib of beef. You can choose your own choice of glaze; classic (spicy), pineapple (fruity), and coconut (creamy) which is the one Lillie went for. It comes marinated in sweet onion chutney, served with sweet potato fries, and watermelon, lime, and coriander chow salad. She said she really liked it, and she devoured it like a champ. 

Lastly, the dessert. My favourite part of every meal. Despite being extremely full from our starter and the mains, we knew we had to try the sweet stuff. I went with the Passion Pie - a passionfruit meringue pastry served with passionfruit sauce. Yum. Sickly, but oh my god how yummy. Will definitely have again. Lillie is a big cheesecake fan, so her choice was the Banana and Toffee Cheesecake, which was also amazing. The desserts are priced at £4.95, which is reasonable considering I couldn't even finish my portion.

As I've already said, the food and the service were fantastic, so I'll definitely be heading back soon. I really want to try the Two-Way Chicken Burger and Bajan Beef Cheeks One Pot. I really recommend the Norwich branch, as I've not been in a friendlier restaurant for quite a while now.

Have you ever been to Turtle Bay? What dish do you recommend?

Love, Marty x

*Turtle Bay invited me for a review and the meal came free of charge

#MartyEats: Blue Joanna, Norwich

I promise that this blog is about more than just food. I really do. Blogger just hasn't been working for me, and because I'm pedantic I want to slightly stick to a schedule, so here's another #FoodieFriday. But lemme tell ya, it's a good 'un.

#MartyEats: Festive Brunch at All Bar One

Hello hello! I thought I'd kick off coming back to blogging with a post about two of my favourite things - food and champagne! Last Saturday (26th of November) was my birthday, and few of my friends and I headed to All Bar for their Festive Brunch. They currently have an amazing deal of brunch and a glass of Prosecco for £10, or brunch and a glass of Moet for £14 - a steal if you ask me. And, when you sign up to their newsletter, they send you a code for a free glass of bubbly for the table.

#MartyEats: All Bar One, Norwich Relaunch

#MartyEats: Burger & Lobster, Soho

I used to love Burger & Lobster. That is until they've expanded their menu (you'd think that would be a good thing) and upped their prices. Oh, and made their portions smaller. This is not going to be a good review, and I am super sad about that.

#MartyEats: Wild Thyme, Norwich

The same day that my friends and I headed to the Plantation Gardens, we decided to try out a veggie restaurant called the Wild Thyme. We heard good things - apart from Sam, who feels very strongly about having meat in all of his meals #CrossFit. So we just didn't tell him where we going, until we were on our way haha (hi Sam!). 

COCKTAIL MASTERCLASS AT REVOLUCION DE CUBA

(source: Revolucion de Cuba, Norwich)

The UEA Cocktail Society held one of its socials at Revolucion de Cuba, and honestly, it was probably one of the most fun nights I've ever had (most likely due to the amount of alcohol I had consumed, but ah well).