O perfil de Madameso

Generally speaking, coffee is not my cup of tea, but I let myself be persuaded by an appealing freebie offer in exchange for my mere opinion.
After laboriously locating the place, which despite sitting at the entrance of the Stables Market, can easily be overlooked since hiding behind a multitude of stalls, I entered the pop up café and was “welcomed” by straight-faced staff (I will happily put this down to the miserable weather Camden Town, and the whole of London for that matter, has been blessed with this past week).
The staff of two were sporting pretty cool uniforms (black T-shirts with funky goldie designs and camel straw trilbies,) which distracted me for a while from the time I was left to queue behind one single other customer (in total my waiting time approximated ten minutes), as did the minimalistic but still appealing decor of the place which consists mainly of vintage bags of grind coffee scattered around the place.
After finally being acknowledged mid-wait (i.e. five minutes of entering the place while only one customer was being served by one of the two staff), I proceeded with my order: two slices of cake, served on napkins with a plastic spoon but no takeaway box or paper plate… While I was keen to accompany these two treats _ how greedy of me but one can never underuse a freebie_ with vanilla-flavoured beverages (my eyes were on the Camden Fog and Vanilla Latte), I had to contend with two basics, in a mocha and a latte, as they had run out of vanilla-great…So much so this does not escape a mention! To compensate for my disappointment, one of the staff offered to make the drinks “sweet”, and gosh they were, to the point of repelling my naturally sweet tooth!
When came the time to pay, I came out as the mystery shopper I am. “Oops”, I could read on the two staff’s faces, one of whom had the consideration to help me take my drinks to the seating area which, with a total of two tables and six chairs, is pretty obsolete, and promptly reminds one that they’re treading in takeaway-or-leave-it territory, which makes the degustation even less enjoyable.
About the goods, I’ll give them that delectable coffee that is, for rather good price value (drinks range from £1.20 to £3.00 with a choice of regular and large portions, and go up to £8.50 for gourmet rare concoctions).
Still, though the place might be a magnet for organic-addled (gullible, if you ask me) customers, happy to wait up to twenty minutes for their caffeine fix (surely that is how long the two people behind me had to queue for), the experience forces the commuting comparison: we all know that taking the tube is a costly drag with its contrived and often belligerent passengers, and that the bus calls for a more enjoyable and cheaper ride, but at the end of the day, time is money and the tube will get you where you want to be in half the time it would take by bus. On those terms, Starbucks, which is located just metres from Terra Nera, must be laughing away….

Located within minutes from Clapham North station, among pubs and betting bureaus, Aquum is a distinctive spot on Clapham High Street.
Already from the outside, one can tell it’s a slick affair, which is all confirmed upon stepping in, even though some may find white (faux?) leather, gold-and silver-framed mirrors and crystal lampshades a tiny bit tacky.
On our visit, on Thursday evening around 6.30pm my friend and I were left spoilt for choice of seats as only a few punters had arrived before us. Unfortunately the same couldn’t be said for drinks, or if so, only on paper, as I had already scanned the cocktails I was going to go for on their website. So when came the time to order, I excitedly asked the waitress for one of these yummy-sounding molecular cocktails, with my choice leaning towards either the Mojito Martini (described as “perfectly shaken classic mojito, strained and topped with a Mango Espuma”) or the Straw Bairy only to be told none of the molecular cocktails were available and that these were soon to be withdrawn from the menu, so to console myself I drew my attention to their ‘Aquum Bubbles’ (basically a selection of champagne cocktails) and the Fool’s Gold, tagged with the promising strap line of “Has to be seen to be believed”, was a definite go, but I was once more deprived from this supposed delight as it turned out the venue had run out of gold; so, after no less than three failed attempts , I had to make-do with a somehow tasty Classic Champagne Cocktail (i.e ‘bitters laced sugar covered with cognac topped off with champagne).
The munchies had my friend and I respectively order a cheese burger and a (medium) sirloin steak, both with chips; and while she fully enjoyed her meal, mine (the steak) although nicely cooked, lacked in seasoning, but a lovely glass of red Delvin wine soon eased my palate out.
Three hours or so later, we finished the evening with some super-flavoured cocktails: Dirty Martini (which looks and tastes what it’s called) and an old-fashioned (bourbon, bitters and sugar).
The place filled up a bit more , totaling about 35 punters, but this still didn’t make the atmosphere any worthier of a trip from the other end of town.
I am sorry to say that the accusations brought upon Aquum for ‘bringing the West End to the South’ are undeniable, but both the service and the quality of products (with drinks ranging from £ 4.50 to £ 9.00 a glass and main courses hardly exceeding a tenner) might convince some.
This said, it is by all means a suitable option for SW4 residents in search of a swanky local.

Oh, well… what can I say????
At the August Qype party, I had the privilege to win a free dinner at this culinary gem!
My friends and I were treated to a premium sushi platter, exquisite seafood and delicious teriyaki surloin steak, plus the most delicious Spanish wine!!!
We were served by two super nice waitresses. We also had the luxury to drink some of the best Sake ever!!!
All this, courtesy of Emma, the restaurant manager, who is the sweetest thing you could ever come across!

Needless to say, I’m planning to return (and pay the price it deserves) to this amazing place.

Do yourself a favour: go and check it out!

This is a nice venue to see new upcoming bands perform in the intimacy of its small basement.
The Fly caters for all things rock and I recently went to see Guns'N'Roses' prime revivers, Wired Desire ( www.myspace.com/wireddesireband ).
On the downside, their weeknight opening times are rather laughable (curfew's at 9.30pm)!
This said, if you turn a blind eye to some of the staff's occasionally "knob'n'roll" attitude, you're in for good times.

Time for praise: Sartaj Balti House is the best non-Brick Lane-based Indian restaurant in London. Although its location doesn’t do it justice- hidden from the main road that is Charing Cross, dupe tourists will be prone to stop by for some microwaved pizza-, it benefits from sitting next to the Cambridge Theatre, and therefore offers a great pre-show offer: get there before 7.30pm and you’ll have a choice of Balti with free Nan bread for about 7 pounds. Décor-wise, expect to be immersed in tranquillity: fish aquariums and plants surrounding… One place to bring your new squeeze or visiting mates to.

The “Pout” gallery is the talk of its town, for no apparent reason. Please do not believe the hype: this has now become the upgraded version of the Good Mixer, with the only difference that there is no mix involved: think pouting and poseur clones in “indie” uniforms… Good choice for hopeful groupies though, with your chance to spot local royalty Graham Coxon and Clash reincarnations, The Holloways, among others.
Indicative prices for drinks: £ 5 for a glass of wine, £ 3.50 for a Peroni.

Another cursed-name venue, but hey it seems that it’s blessing in disguise!
Churchill’s IS the epitome of good pub food…Forget sausage & mash or fish and chips though: we’re talking Thai pub food. Go and see it for yourself, it’s only 5 minutes from Notting Hill Gate station. You’ll get your money worth: £ 6 for a big phat noodle or rice meal! Don’t get put off by the pub side of the pub where Churchill governs on wallpaper, but head straight to the green back garden, which is actually where the action is. This may sound very adventurous, but I just make-believe: I usually only stick with Pad Thai (number 5 or 6 on the menu).

Another skint-days resort is the White Lion of Mortimer in Finsbury Park.This pub is part of the JD Wetherspoon chain, and is a beloved spot for N4 locals.
I’m personally loving their “Beer and Burger” offer where for less than a fiver you can enjoy a pint of your favourite draught and a filling lamb or beef burger with chips…Miam, miam!

Pheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew!
Some quality-conscious bureaucrat did decide to keep this great independent chain alive!
Fopp is a cultural heaven for anyone in their right mind: obscure but worthy book titles, wide range of interesting music (jazz to folk, soul to rock, punk to pop), and amazing art-house and cult DVD selection.
Prices range from £ 3 to £ 15.
If you haven’t been yet, “you know nothing!”