Bristol bypass breakfast

The Lounge, consider yourself bumped into second place. Today I discovered Lockside, a restaurant hidden beneath an underpass in south Bristol, bursting with atmosphere and serving fan-tastic breakfasts. We chose pancakes with streaky bacon and maple syrup; and a breakfast bagel with bacon, mushrooms and grilled tomatoes. Generous portions, family friendly, coffee on tap - it's a little bit of the big apple in little old Bristol.

Look where I've been...

 

Mrs P and I at Park Farm this September for the River Cottage Autumn Fair.

Greece is the word

It’s been a long break from the blog. Since my last post I’ve been to Lefkas, a small island just off mainland Greece which gives me a great excuse to talk about one of my all-time favourite cuisines.

I’m lucky enough to say that I’ve been going to Greece, or Greek islands, for years. Before I was fifteen I’d visited Zakynthos and Crete twice. Last year I spent a week in a small coastal village in Corfu with my boyfriend, and this year I was introduced to beautiful Lefkas on the other side of the Ionian sea. 

Greece for me is about the people – friendly, warm, interested; the climate – dry sunny heat; the landscape – unspoilt turquoise seas, tiny islands, caves, olive and cypress trees, dusty mountain roads… But, perhaps unsurprisingly, the thing that excites me most about visiting Greece is the food.

I thank Greece for opening me up to foods which many people are scared of – squid, cod roe (in taramosalata), dolmades (stuffed vine leaves) and love it or hate it foods such as olives and feta cheese. I’m grateful to my parents for introducing those foods to my diet from such a young age.

On returning from Greece, I almost always fall into a phase and find myself habitually buying Greek yoghurt and sprinkling oregano over everything. Unfortunately making Greek food at home in the UK is almost impossible to emulate. The small, tougher tomatoes we are accustomed to would never be allowed to deform and ripen to the standard which makes Greek tomatoes so sweet, juicy and delicious.

Tzatsiki is so easy to make and using UK produce shouldn't hinder the flavour. A good tip for getting the consistency right is to grate the cucumber and don't forget the olive oil. It's an amazing accompaniment to barbeques. We'd dip our souvlaki (skewered chargrilled meat) in it, and it works just as well with any blackened meat from the back garden barbie. Greek salad ingredients are all freely available here too. Extra Virgin olive oil is essential, as is a generous portion of red onion and oregano. As we can't be expected to mail order Greek tomatoes, beef tomatoes are the closest relative for making this gorgeous dish at home.  

I think it's safe to say Kalamari, battered fried squid, is my family's all time favourite Greek dish. So simple, we thought, that we (or my dad) visited a fishmonger and attempted to emulate this taverna classic in our accommodation (pictured). A worthy effort and gorgeous with plenty of fresh lemon juice and dipped in tzatsiki. We went only one day of the holiday without a portion of this in our bellies - beautiful. Most people I share my love of squid with don't understand how I can eat the rubbery fish. Again, i thank my parents - those who question it are missing out. 

Finally, Greece is full of fish. Natural harbours and fishing boats pop up everywhere, at least on the islands and Lefkas was no exception. On a particularly providential day in Sivota, a natural harbour on the east side of the island, we spotted three men on a boat (not Griff, Rory and Dara) holding up a huge tuna freshly caught that day. After some sweet talking with the owner, we secured ourselves two steaks providing we returned to the taverna that night as customers. Needless to say we went back, the waiters winked at each other, and we were presented with THE best tuna and probably the best fish I have ever eaten. Salty-fresh from the sea, meaty and mouthwatering. The tuna was served simply with lashings of lemon juice and a sprinkling of parsley. Oh, and chips. 

This is just a taste of Greece and its food. I can't recommend it enough.