Continuing on the Kings Road, one of the first pubs I discovered on the Kings Road is the Builders Arms just off the Kings Road on Britten Street. Builders Arms is part of the Geronimo Inns portfolio located in a quiet residential street.
It is a very cozy pub with a log fire for those cold winter days. In the summer there are a few tables outside, but it is limited and hard to get a table. So it is not the best pub to recommend to sit outside. The food on offer is a simple gastropub meals, with a good Sunday roast and be sure to check their specials as they are always a delight. The clientele is very mixed, but it attracts a very Chelsea crowd on the younger side.
Not too far from this pub, is another pub that is also part of the Geronimo Inns portfolio called the Phoenix. Again, the food is similar and so is the wine list. Its ‘good-value’ menu offers Portland crab on toast, pan-roasted sea bass with a fennel, and pine nut & tarragon stuffing.
In some ways, I prefer this pub as it has a few more tables to sit outside on a very quiet street (Smith Street). The crowd is similar as the clientele likes to vary going from the Builders Arms to the Phoenix on occasions. But this pub has more of a separation between bar and Restaurant with a dining room in the back of the pub.
Tuesday, 26 May 2009
Friday, 15 May 2009
Kings Road
I had full intentions to start exploring London after my work hours and in the weekends. However, there were quite a few changes at the bank, and the team I joined were all headhunted over to another bank except for one woman. So she and I were suddenly running all the projects and I was making killer hours.
I was left with exploring the area where I was based, as I didn’t have much free time. From Earl’s Court, I soon wandered to South Kensington and from there I came across the Kings Road.
Kings Road derives its name from its original function as a private road used by Charles II to travel to Kew. It remained a private royal road until 1830, but people with the right connections were able to obtain a pass to use it. During the hippie and punk eras, it was a major centre for the counterculture, but is now gentrified. It is effectively Chelsea's high street, and is one of the most fashionable shopping streets in London. It has recently been criticised for looking like every other high street in the United Kingdom, having lost its character and just having high street chains. I have to agree with this criticism, but the people that wander on the Kings Road are not like any other high street. As it runs for just under 2 miles through Chelsea, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, you do get some very wealthy people strutting their stuff and driving their flashy cars down the Kings Road.
For me it is one my favourite streets in London as I enjoy people watching and the chances of running into one of my friends is very high as well. I would highly recommend a trip to the Kings Road and to enjoy a coffee on the Duke of York Square.
Now there is also a great little food market on Saturday’s, where you can buy some wonderful lunches. My personal favourite is the Brazilian stand, where they do a wonderful Feijoada – a national bean stew dish. It is not the lightest of meals, but I grew up on it and I can’t resist it whenever I see it.
In my next blog, I will continue to explore the Kings Road and cover some of the great restaurants and pubs that I like to frequent.
I was left with exploring the area where I was based, as I didn’t have much free time. From Earl’s Court, I soon wandered to South Kensington and from there I came across the Kings Road.
Kings Road derives its name from its original function as a private road used by Charles II to travel to Kew. It remained a private royal road until 1830, but people with the right connections were able to obtain a pass to use it. During the hippie and punk eras, it was a major centre for the counterculture, but is now gentrified. It is effectively Chelsea's high street, and is one of the most fashionable shopping streets in London. It has recently been criticised for looking like every other high street in the United Kingdom, having lost its character and just having high street chains. I have to agree with this criticism, but the people that wander on the Kings Road are not like any other high street. As it runs for just under 2 miles through Chelsea, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, you do get some very wealthy people strutting their stuff and driving their flashy cars down the Kings Road.
For me it is one my favourite streets in London as I enjoy people watching and the chances of running into one of my friends is very high as well. I would highly recommend a trip to the Kings Road and to enjoy a coffee on the Duke of York Square.
Now there is also a great little food market on Saturday’s, where you can buy some wonderful lunches. My personal favourite is the Brazilian stand, where they do a wonderful Feijoada – a national bean stew dish. It is not the lightest of meals, but I grew up on it and I can’t resist it whenever I see it.
In my next blog, I will continue to explore the Kings Road and cover some of the great restaurants and pubs that I like to frequent.
Sunday, 10 May 2009
my brief background
As my first blog, I will give you a little of my background to my arrival to the UK.
I moved to London in 2000 after graduating from a university in Boston. I had received a job offer in Chicago, but I was determined to make a transatlantic move to London. Prior to my job interviews in Chicago, I had also applied to a post-graduate course in business studies at the LSE. On the day that I received my job offer in Chicago, I also received my acceptance letter from the LSE and I knew straight away what my decision was going to be.
The LSE only starts its course in October, so I had a few months prior to the start date to do something useful with my time. I was able to get an interview with a European bank for a summer internship. The interview was very last minute and held on a Friday over the phone. The interview went well and they asked me to start straight away on Monday, which meant I had to sort out my accommodation very quickly in London.
If worse came to worse, I would stay in a cheap little hotel, but after spending some time searching on the internet, I found a hostel tailored for students in Earl’s Court. It was hard to determine if it was nice, but at that moment I was just happy to find a room in a good location. The hostel turned out to be well run and was very clean.
All the other guests were foreign students studying English for the summer in London. So needless to say, I didn’t have much conversation with them as they were beginners of the English language. I didn’t mind too much as my internship was keeping me very busy and I was very excited to explore London on my own in the free time that I had. I knew that the LSE would start soon and I would make friends from my programme.
I want to use this blog to share with you some of my experiences of London and the great places that I found along the way.
I moved to London in 2000 after graduating from a university in Boston. I had received a job offer in Chicago, but I was determined to make a transatlantic move to London. Prior to my job interviews in Chicago, I had also applied to a post-graduate course in business studies at the LSE. On the day that I received my job offer in Chicago, I also received my acceptance letter from the LSE and I knew straight away what my decision was going to be.
The LSE only starts its course in October, so I had a few months prior to the start date to do something useful with my time. I was able to get an interview with a European bank for a summer internship. The interview was very last minute and held on a Friday over the phone. The interview went well and they asked me to start straight away on Monday, which meant I had to sort out my accommodation very quickly in London.
If worse came to worse, I would stay in a cheap little hotel, but after spending some time searching on the internet, I found a hostel tailored for students in Earl’s Court. It was hard to determine if it was nice, but at that moment I was just happy to find a room in a good location. The hostel turned out to be well run and was very clean.
All the other guests were foreign students studying English for the summer in London. So needless to say, I didn’t have much conversation with them as they were beginners of the English language. I didn’t mind too much as my internship was keeping me very busy and I was very excited to explore London on my own in the free time that I had. I knew that the LSE would start soon and I would make friends from my programme.
I want to use this blog to share with you some of my experiences of London and the great places that I found along the way.
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