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‘Twas the Lunch Before Christmas – A Review of Goram & Vincent
Read full review: ‘Twas the Lunch Before Christmas – A Review of Goram & Vincent‘Twas the lunch before Christmas, and all through the place, The in-laws were smiling, all brimming with grace. Four days of their company, not just one night— So off to a restaurant to soften the plight. The Goram & Vincent, with its scenic display, A bridge in the distance—the Avon, they say. “Isn’t it lovely?”…
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Gigi Pizza, Bristol: A Slice of Cool in the Coolest of Cities
Read full review: Gigi Pizza, Bristol: A Slice of Cool in the Coolest of CitiesPizza. It’s no longer just food, is it? It’s a way of life. A cultural moment. Where once you’d pop out for “a pizza,” now you find yourself wading knee-deep in existential questions. What sort of pizza are we talking about here? Is it artisan? Sourdough? Neapolitan? Detroit-style? Vegan? Bristol, the city that could gentrify…
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A Christmas Miracle at The Granary Club
Read full review: A Christmas Miracle at The Granary ClubPicture the scene: it’s the office Christmas party. You know the type. The “celebration” where enthusiasm is proportionate to the amount of Pinot Grigio consumed, and nobody really wants to be there except Sandra from accounts (until she’s crying in the corner). The buffet is a fluorescent homage to beige, the wine a choice between…
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Review: Graft Graffiti Workshop, Bristol
Read full review: Review: Graft Graffiti Workshop, BristolLet’s face it. Corporate team-building activities are, more often than not, the stuff of nightmares. You know the drill: you’re lumped in with colleagues you actively avoid in the office, sent to a field in the middle of nowhere, and made to build a bridge out of twigs or solve a “problem” no one cares…
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From Downton to Downtown: The Andaz Experience
Read full review: From Downton to Downtown: The Andaz ExperienceWhen you’re nipping into London for a quick overnighter, location is everything. Schlepping across the capital like some 18th-century explorer, map in hand, is a waste of valuable time you could be spending doing literally anything else. So, you want a hotel near a major tube station—a station that’s basically a public transport Swiss Army…
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One Aldwych: Quietly Exceptional in the Heart of London
Read full review: One Aldwych: Quietly Exceptional in the Heart of LondonHere’s the hard thing about being a luxury hotel in London: standing out. Honestly, who isn’t spoilt for choice? You’ve got the big-name establishments with their red-carpet entrances, top-hatted doormen, and an air of aristocratic pomp, servicing those who like their luxury served with a side of flash. Then there are the multi-national chains—slick, polished,…
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Twice Blessed at Bentley’s: A Week of Unimaginable Indulgence
Read full review: Twice Blessed at Bentley’s: A Week of Unimaginable IndulgenceThere are weeks when the heavens part, the stars align, and the gods of gastronomy beam down upon you. This, dear reader, has been one such week for me. Not once, but twice I’ve graced the hallowed halls of Bentley’s in Mayfair. First, hosting a client Christmas lunch in the Mersea private dining room, and…
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The Breakfast Club: A Review by Someone Who Knows How to Plan Ahead
Read full review: The Breakfast Club: A Review by Someone Who Knows How to Plan AheadGen Z’s are famous for their desire for instant gratification—except, it seems, when it comes to queuing outside the latest Instagram restaurant. Unlike most of them, I can make a plan and stick to it. So, instead of standing in the rain with the hopeful hordes, I booked a table. Yes, it’s called being an…
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Shaken, Stirred, and Cloaked in Mystery: Manetta’s Bar Unveiled
Read full review: Shaken, Stirred, and Cloaked in Mystery: Manetta’s Bar UnveiledTucked away in London, where cobbled streets and whispered secrets meet, lies Manetta’s Bar. You know the type. One of those subterranean jewels you have to “accidentally discover,” as though stumbling across Narnia through the back of a wardrobe. No natural sunlight, of course. Carpet so thick you immediately reassess your own home’s threadbare offerings.…
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The Gate Hotel, London: Style Without Substance
Read full review: The Gate Hotel, London: Style Without SubstanceThe trouble with hotels is this: they face two challenges—the building and the service. Separately, neither means a thing. The finest architecture without warmth is just a shell; impeccable service in a soulless box feels like being hosted by a robot. The Gate Hotel, sadly, is a masterclass in missing the point. At first glance,…
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Paul Southgate is The Travel Critic—the kind of traveller who claims to love adventure, as long as it includes 24-hour room service and a spa.
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Paul Southgate: a patchwork of Hughs stitched together with fraying thread. The poor man’s Hugh Grant, all charm on a budget. The thinking woman’s Hugh Laurie, though thinking too hard might ruin the illusion. He’s got Hugh Jackman’s kindness, but not the abs, and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s enthusiasm for food, minus the ability to turn nettles into Michelin-starred soup. A wannabe Hugh Hefner—pipe dreams in a velvet dressing gown—but in reality, closer to Hugh Bonneville, bumbling through life with a comforting sort of dignity. A man of many Hughs, and yet…none of them.
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