Anam: My favourite cocktail bar.

Courtesy of Shane Harrison.com
http://www.shaneharrison.com/site/

'All good things come in small packages' or so the saying goes. Normally I scoff at this age-old adage, dismissing it as a get-out clause frequently rolled out by short people. It's like saying I'm small so I must be good. Snigger.

When it comes to my favourite cocktail bar, tucked away on Chapel Market in Angel, I have to admit it's a point well made. With seating for only 15 people upstairs and around 20 downstairs, Anam is small but perfectly formed. This alone isn't anything special - what makes it my favourite cocktail bar is the amazing barman. Winter or summer, rain, snow or shine he will greet you with a smile, a friendly 'how are you', some excellent banter and proceed to make your favourite cocktail with minimum fuss and maximum efficiency.

Last week was a bit of a shocker; I saw the new SATC movie and it was awful. No matter how much I loved the series, even maybe the first movie, there is no escaping the fact that the second one is a shocker. I was heartbroken.

As if that wasn't enough, the boy I was dating mysteriously disappeared off of the face of the earth, which is always a bit gutting. What do you do in that situation? When you go on your fifth date, which you think went quite well and then nothing? Not even a courteous It's not you, it's me message?

So far as I can see, there are only a number of options available to you. If you give him a call and he picks up the phone do you say - err so I was just wondering what happened to you for the last 8 days?

If you call and he doesn't pick up do you take it a step further and call from a friend's number to see if he picks up then and quickly hang up the phone (in the manner of a semi-stalker) if he does? Or do you not call and instead blindly hope that he has been struck down by a bus and is currently in the throes of amnesia but is mumbling your name whilst in hospital and his mother is trying to figure out who this mysterious Julianna girl is?

I opted for the latter, and a catchup over cocktails - the best salve to love life problems I've discovered to date. There is nothing that a good gossip and a sip of something fruity cannot cure... So Anam it was. Browsing through the gargantuan menu is half the fun here - there are drinks on this list you would never have dreamt of as well as old favourites.

Dubious as it sounds, they also make the best Long Island Iced Tea, turning it from a horrible confection of gut-rotting spirits savoured by fake-burburry lovers in the local 'Spoons into a far classier (who'd have thought?) balance of flavours deliciously offset by a generous squeeze of lime. And there's an outdoor seating area in the summer, which is great for watching the rather random life of Chapel Market go by. Boy, what boy?

3 Chapel Market
Islington, London N1 9EZ
020 7278 1001

This is the first of three posts - watch out for the next two tomorrow!

Cream tea and cocktails in the shire

It's been a while since I've written a post - things have been manic recently. For one, I've moved away from Dubai and am just about to go on a round the world trip, which means one thing. Crumbs and Dirty Dishes is going international! I intend to learn at least one dish in each country I visit and I intend to visit quite a few countries so watch out.

But for now, I'm back in England, well until Monday at least. My god, how I've missed it. Public transport, proper pubs, walking from A to B - it has been quite an experience. But no trip back home is complete without a jaunt down to Oxford. Not only did I spend three amazing years there, I think it's such a beautiful and fun place when the sun is shining. Want to read more? Here's my travel guide to 24 hours in Oxford.

And, perhaps more importantly, it is home to the best cream tea and cocktails this side of, well anywhere. Screw The Ritz with its stalish scones and slightly crusty fingerless sandwiches (not to mention the tacky decor), The Rose could blow it out of the water on a bad day. On a good day, I wont even insult The Rose with a comparison to such an inferior establishment.

Unfortunately, this not being the land where people are paid ridiculously low amounts to slave away all day (yes that's a Panorama reference), the owner of The Rose was taking a hard earned break on her bank holiday and it was closed. Saddening yes but not the end of the world. There's always Browns to back it up.

Luckily, that was open. I know its a chain, but Browns in Oxford must be doing something right. Especially when it comes to the cream tea. Huge scones that are light and moist are served straight up with lashings of clotted cream and strawberry jam. For two pounds ninety five. Tasty and credit crunch friendly it's indulgence on a budget so all those thrifty types needn't feel at all guilty.



I could barely wait to take a picture before I tucked in. Furthermore, what is it about cream tea that is so conducive to gossip? We'd barely poured our first cup when the tongues were wagging and the juices flowing. No matter that I'd been out the country for the past two years, one hour of cream tea and I was fully updated on all the scurrilous goings on of our group of friends. So good was the chit chat session that the only male party soon made his excuses and left, running away to the land of real ale and pork scratchings as fast as his legs could take him.

Once sated with scones and scandal, we made our way over to Keble to say hello, take advantage of the bizarrely hot weather and lie on the quad whilst spying out the lie of the land.



But no trip to Oxford is complete without an appearance at The Duke of Cambridge, my second home and place of work for many a cute guy over the past five years. Their happy hour certainly makes me happy, especially when paired with their vast and expertly mixed menu. Whats not to like? Bottoms up...