Found in London - Purl Bar

Taking a break from my otherwise awesome music posts, every now and again I'm going to share with you some local hangouts in London that, as the late MJ once said, rock my world.

First up is Purl Bar in Marylebone - tucked away in the basement of an unassuming cafe, this cocktail bar is inspired by Prohibition-era speakeasies (which are, like, so in right now!) You can book an area, even if it's just you and your date, in their dimly-lit alcoves, which in a city where people spill onto the streets just to enjoy a drink, is a true luxury. With room to breathe, and just the quiet sounds of old Americana style music playing in the background, this is the perfect place to catch up with friends without having to shout over each other or fight through the crowds to get a drink. 

The minimalistic cocktail menu focuses on a "bitters" inspired selection with favourites such as Mr Hyde's No. 2, described as "a devlish elixir of Ron Zacapa 23, Cola reduction and Orange Bitters served in a smoke injected wax sealed potion bottle". Having tried this concoction myself I have to say it was a little strong for my tastes (a little different from my usual g&t) but half the fun was being warned of the dangers of touching the dry ice and pretending like I was in Harry Potter's potions class! All in all a cosy atmosphere, elaborate cocktails and great service makes this a worthwhile stop if you're ever in London.


Purl is open Monday to Thursday from 5pm - 11.30pm and until midnight on Friday - Saturday. 

Foodie Fridays: The Kitchen at The Dime

I’m not going to lie, I thought I misheard when I was first told that The Dime had begun serving food. While one can’t take away its ability to draw in thirsty crowds, the divey Fairfax bar is perhaps best known as the infamous site of Spencer “Crystals” Pratt’s bar brawl on MTV’s trashy hit, The Hills. Heck, we even spotted Andy Dick here with our own eyes, being—well—a dick. So it seems the tiny watering hole has a knack for attracting some of the less-desirable celebrity types.


Regardless, The Dime is indeed serving grub now (it has been since September), and some pretty finger-lickin’ good stuff we must say. The Kitchen is helmed by Kevin Luzande, Brandon Alegria, and Shanna-Lynn Milazzo, who met while working at John Sedlar’s Rivera in downtown, and are now all at the recently-opened Playa Rivera (Kevin is the chef de cuisine, Brandon on the line, and Shana a server).

Shanna and Kevin.

When they’re not working at the new restaurant on Beverly, the group of friends is just a few blocks away, busy putting their creative juices to use coming up with inventive bites in the tight quarters Kitchen at The Dime.


Don’t come here expecting foie gras or filet mignon. The menu—which changes weekly and is only available Sunday and Monday evenings—offers basic bar bites, often with unique and mouthwatering spins. Take for example the grilled cheese mac and cheese sandwich, a creation of Shanna’s which consisted of creamy elbow macaroni smothered between two slices of cheese and bread, then grilled to perfection.


On another visit, we got to try the zucchini sticks, a greasy spoon staple, which was taken up a notch with Kevin’s tartar sauce made of homemade mayo, capers, garlic, scallions, green olives, red pepper flakes, and cornichons.


The batter on these deep-friend wands of goodness was delightfully crunchy and paired nicely with the cool and freshly prepared sauce. Below, Abby graces us with a smile and dons her signature pose. Has zucchini ever looked so good?


Also on the menu that week was the chicken parmesan sub, which was hearty and had a great consistency. Oozing out of the sandwich, the mozzarella cheese was quite indulgent.


Once again, the Kitchen at The Dime went the extra mile, this time adding basil to the classic bar snack. Here I am, biting in... CHOMP!


The final option for this particular week was the buffalo chicken wrap, stuffed with Caesar salad, housemade dressing, and white meat coated with sauce so tangy and spicy you’d think you were diving into a basket of hot wings. To order any selection, simply mark off the quantity you want on the concise menu and take it up to the bar.


Since the fare changes weekly, it might be a while before The Kitchen serves the same offerings we got to sample. But check their Facebook page for other past dishes and a mouthwatering preview of what’s to come. Take our advice, skip the packed-house Friday and Saturday boozefests at The Dime and mosey on in on a Sunday or Monday evening to take a bite out of the talented trio’s delectable creations.

The Kitchen at the Dime, 442 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90036, 323.651.4421, MAP.

Photos by Aurora Tang.

NEXT TIME on Foodie Fridays: We're heading downtown to give you the scoop on Aburiya Toranoko, the new restaurant from Lazy Ox mastermind Michael Cardenas.

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Jini's Pick of the Week - East Village Bar, London

After last week's post about a guide featuring some of London's trendiest hotspots, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to check out (and cross off) one of the bars featured in the Pimp London Guide.

Just over a year old, East Village in Shoreditch, takes its name from the trendy underground suburb in Manhattan, and incorporates an element of NYC retro-cool into its stylings and decor. Whether you want to just relax in the chilled out deco lounge or dance to hardcore house and dance music in the club below, this has something for everyone. This has to be one of the less pretentious places I've been to in a while, but you'll definitely find the punters are still a trendy bunch and staff minus the attitude that you'd expect from most trendy hotspots.




I also have to give a shoutout to the manager Peter who totally went out of his way to help us with a few issues we had, and the bartender who actually had to get my attention to serve me (when does that ever happen!) On that note - if you find yourself in London with a night out to spare, definitely hit up East Village (and don't forget to take a picture with a flamingo or two)

Source: viewlondon

Jini's Pick of the Week - The Double Club

Last night, I had the opportunity to check out the latest trendy bar/restaurant/disco/art installation in Angel, London called The Double Club. The Double Club opened on 21st Nov 2008 and as the press release states, it offers "a unique approach to entertainment and hospitality, as well as creating a dialogue between Congolese and Western contemporary music, lifestyle, arts and design". It is in fact a Carsten Holler art project sponsored by the Fondazione Prada, where 50% of the club's profits go to the City of Joy charity.

As can be seen in the plan above, it is split into three rooms: the disco, courtyard bar and restaurant. Definitely the most impressive is the courtyard bar which has this great feeling of being outside indoors. My only complaint was that it took almost an hour to try and get served at the bar after 9pm, as it was packed inside by this point, and a steadily growing queue building up outside. However, the atmosphere was genuinely a relaxed and friendly one.

The food was tasty and even though it doesn't seem like much my friend and I stuffed ourselves on goat and spicy shrimps with a lovely side order of plantains and white mushy paste (aka chikwangue). We were even tempted by the cook who was bbq-ing burgers and various skewers in the corner of the bar space well into the early hours of the morning - last orders 1am!

We ended the night in the dance space, watching a live set of Congolese singer Gordon Masiala and the DJ positioned in the centre of the room on the revolving circular dancefloor. Plenty of opportunity to see people let it all go and show off their crazy dance moves to the Congolese tunes.

The place has a fantastic feel to it, with a vibe that I could probably only create on holiday in a tropical destination. Definitely worth a visit because it's only going to be around for 6 months - eat some goat while you can!

Just Press Play - Battle of the mp3 players

If I didn't suffer from stage fright, I would totally have been there for the launch party of Just Press Play at Bar Vinyl in Camden last night. Punters are challenged to bring their mp3 players to the bar and battle it out with an opponent to see whose tracks bring down the house...the crowd votes and prizes are won!

I wouldn't want to show people up with my mix of Disney's Greatest Hits and The Distillers Sing Sing Death House (hmmm...prob a good thing I didn't go then) but head on down if you think you're hard enough. Every fortnight on Mondays, free entry from 5am-midnight.

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