travel

REVIEW: The Artichoke, Amersham, Buckinghamshire, England

The Artichoke in Amersham is Michelin starred dining, without the Michelin star – or the impossible booking procedure.

**I returned to The Artichoke for dinner more recently for a special anniversary dinner. I’d recommend clicking through to read my latest review here. **

Wanderlust Chloe The Artichoke9

The restaurant sits in the heart of a beautiful old town high street, which is full of luxury delis, old-fashioned pubs and a few standard chain restaurants. Without being pretentious, it is easily the best restaurant in the area.

Wanderlust Chloe The Artichoke8
Serving refined Modern European cuisine, the food is creative, delicious and stunning to look at. On my visit, I sampled the Lunch Tasting Menu – a £38 five course menu. I chose to accompany it with the £18 wine flight.

Wanderlust Chloe The Artichoke2The meal started with an amuse bouche which was a small spoonful packed full of complex flavours. Roasted salsify, toasted hazelnut soil, chervil emulsion, truffle gel and sweet cicely… all in one delicious mouthful! The freshly baked rolls containing salty ham were also heavenly.

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A January Adventure to Spain

Time to reveal my upcoming Spanish adventures. Stopping in Madrid, Seville, Granada, Ronda, Cordóba and Barcelona, I hoped I would soak up a better understanding of the country, and see it away from the buzz of the tourists.

REVIEW: Barcelo Solymar, Cuba – AKA ‘Fawlty Towers’

Barcelo Varadero Beach

My stay at the Barcelo Solymar in Varadero, Cuba was a real ‘Fawlty Towers’ experience. Find out why in my review of the hotel, restaurants and facilities.

“The best resort in Varadero, Cuba”… Unfortunately wasn’t where I stayed last week. Instead, I booked into the budget equivalent of Fawlty Towers. With a Trip Advisor rating of 3.5 out if 5 I wasn’t expecting pure luxury. Reviewers had complained about the food, service and state of accommodation. Needless to say, my expectations were relatively low, particularly when paying £50 a night for my own room and all-inclusive board. It was one of the only affordable options after spending months travelling around Central America.

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