If you fancy a coffee in Newcastle, where do you turn? There are tonnes of Starbucks, Costas, Prets and other mainstream chains, which are great when you want something filling on the fly. But how close to real coffee do they actually taste? Let’s face it, a whole load of Starbees drinks are milk, sugar, cream and flavourings with a side of coffee. And sure, sometimes you need a sugar injection, but sometimes you also need a serious caffeine fix. I always associated a strong coffee with a bitter taste, at least until I tried the coffee at Laneway & Co on High Bridge Street. And let’s just say, not all coffees are created equal.
Harissa Kitchen: A Taste of Something Different
Harissa Kitchen is Sandyford’s newest restaurant, occupying a prime spot on Starbeck Avenue. The restaurant is the brainchild of the talented Jamie Sadler, who is the Managing Director of Food Nation. Food Nation is a brilliant social enterprise that encourages people to make healthier food choices. So you just know that anything Harissa Kitchen serves is going to be freshly made, healthy and tasty. I got invited down to check it out and jumped at the chance.
Afternoon Tea at St Mary’s Inn Morpeth
You might have heard people shouting about Jesmond Dene House in Jesmond, a student hot spot just outside of Newcastle city centre. It’s a stunning luxury boutique hotel housed in a fairytale Arts and Crafts building that is set in the beautiful surroundings and greenery of the dene. It’s quite rightly a popular and impressive place to eat and rest your head. What you may not of heard of, however, is its sister hotel, St Mary’s Inn, which is a pub and B&B on the site of the old St Mary’s Hospital, just outside of Morpeth. I must admit, I hadn’t heard of it either, so was more than keen to pay a visit when I was invited to check out their afternoon tea a couple of weeks ago.
The Kingslodge Inn Durham – A Delicious Dinner
The Kingslodge Inn Durham is the city’s newest pub and my lovely fiancé and I were lucky enough to be invited to try a three course meal there last week. Despite already living south of the river, we don’t often venture down to Durham for food or drinks, mainly because that usually means someone has to drive and doesn’t get to drink! We could get the bus, but I hate being at the whim of public transport so Andrew took one for the team and drove us down the A1. What did we find when we got there?
Ninja Burger – New at No. 28
Last week I went to the launch of Ninja Burger at No. 28 – an award-winning bar above Newcastle’s Grainger Market. I’ve been to No. 28 a few times before, but mostly just for drinks and I had never thought of them as somewhere to grab food. That is all about to change with the launch of Ninja Burger, who want to create “the most delicious burger the city has ever seen”. There is certainly a lot of competition in Newcastle, as new burger restaurants are popping up left, right and centre. So how did Ninja Burger compare?
Google’s Digital Garage Comes to Newcastle
All snaps courtesy of Jonathan Linsley – thank you for sharing!
If you’re a North East Blogger and you’ve not heard of Google Digital Garage then you are missing out! Google has brought its very own digital training team to Newcastle City Library and over the next few months you can go along to any of the seminars that they are putting on for free. Yes, free! So you have more money to spend on implementing all the ideas that you get from attending one of the sessions! Not only that, but they are running 40 minute one to one sessions that you can book to discuss whatever your heart desires. I mean they’re probably not going to want to dissect your love life, but I’m sure they will advise you on Google Analytics, Adwords, SEO or just a review of your blog. So what are you waiting for?
Fenwick Beauty Week – Starts Today!
Last week I was lucky enough to get invited to the Fenwick Beauty Week launch in Newcastle. A bunch of lovely NE Bloggers met at Mason + Rye in the food hall to be introduced to the Beauty Buyer Grace Ruthven and get a sneak peak of what some of the beauty houses Fenwick hosts were going to be getting involved with over their upcoming Beauty Week. And boy was there a great selection. A lot of the places were limited, but really there was no bad choice to be made – each counter was offering something fabulous, from demonstrations to make overs, manicures, perfume sampling and more. I managed to bag myself a facial from Sisley and a manicure from Nails Inc. I was one happy bunny!
Sampling Spring Cocktails at Science Bar
On Sunday night I was lucky enough to get invited along to an evening sampling the brand new cocktail menu from Newcastle hotspot Science Bar. I’ve been a fan of this watering hole ever since it was North Bar and the walls were covered in porn. When North shut down I even went along to pick up some of the disco balls that had previously been hanging from the ceiling. Now that is dedication. Science Bar is known for its lovely cocktails – all of which have some kind of scientific theme. So what can we expect from the new cocktails on the menu?
A Decade in the Toon: 10 Things I’ve Learned in 10 Years
Wow, ten years in Newcastle upon Tyne. Who would have thought I’d still be here ten years after rocking up at the University in tears because I was leaving my friends and rubbish ex-boyfriend behind? I must admit, it hasn’t all been plain sailing and I’ve considered leaving more than once, but somehow Newcastle just keeps me in its grasp.