fried chicken eating place

london virgin lounge 1.46pm rain 16C monday 2017

i have just eaten a free chicken burger by billy and chicks, strange name for a restaurant in soho, but they are giving away 50 free burgers today and tomorrow. a chicken burger is a nice change from beef burgers that we get free … 

 

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it normally costs £8. a whole breast of chicken (or it might be boneless thigh) between two buns . they have a board outside the restaurant advertising  chicken , chips and drink for £5. and if what they say is true, that all prices are half price till this friday as part of their promotion, than at £2.50 it will be worth it. but when u go inside, there is no mention of this in their menu on show. so i am not sure if u can get that. though i think the price of £5 is the discounted price. (edited. it is for takeaway only, for 1 piece of chicken, chips and a drink (presumably a soft drink).

this chicken burger  i got can be bought at half price £4 during these 4 days of promotions  is about £1 cheaper than the cost of kfc (kentucky fried chicken) burger.  note, kfc never have vouchers for half price food like burgerking or macdonalds. i wonder why…

i got my burger free , of course as i was the 3rd person on line. in fact when i arrived at about quarter to 12pm, there was only this two japanese looking women in the queue. i was expecting a long queue but it happened later. then i was joined by my two friends, the couple who go to all these freebies. haha . i mentioned i shall also be seeing them in the free fish and chips on friday in greenwich, and they said they dont know that one. so i was able to give them this tip .

ah well, it is very nice all these free meals. but when you consider £8, i can get 2 whole chickens and have roast chicken for 8 meals or more. so it is really  hard to compete with that in my book. even kfc, £4 for 3pieces of chicken is still too expensive compared to what i can get with a whole chicken for that same price. sometimes i really wonder why people buy these , surely not all of them cannot cook. or have no ovens at home. ah well, perhaps i should be glad that there are people willing to buy from them… the commercial life of a city depands on these people. it provides jobs and  it makes city life more vibrant i think. 

added, i read in today’s metro newspaper, that chinese food tops takeaways in london, average spend is £107 a month. based on deliveroo figures. next is italian, ie pizza, followed by indian, american and mexican. an average of £25 a week on takeaways … i cannot imagine anyone doing this. the figures means there must be some who spend way more than that, and they are the ones who bung up the figures. 

added. 25.10.17 wednesday. i have since realised that there are lots of chicken shops independantly run all over london, and they dont rely on deliveroo, so i would guess that chicken takeaways must be ranked number one.

i must say all this chicken makes me crave a roast chicken from my oven. when i first heard of this free offer, i had visions of fried chicken , with their crispy skin… a bit like kfc. haha. so i was rather nonplussed when it turned out to be a chicken burger. 

my craving for something fried reminds me that there are a lot of independant chicken shops, all over london ,  selling fried chicken. i have never eaten from them, however, so dont know if it is crispy fried skin and batter. i have a feeling it is hard to find one with crispy fried battered chicken. it is difficult to cook myself, as all that oil is not something i want to have lying around after cooking it. not to mention all that oil in the air will really make my kitchen even more greasy than it is allready. so fried chicken is not something i can do at home.

life is a lot of fun these days. for me anyway. i doubt i could have such a nice life in malaysia, or singapore, or even thailand. i try to imagine what i will be doing, or what it will be like if i were to live there, but i cannot imagine that it will be as nice as this.

i know i shall never find free books to read, and of the latest novels too which i can find in the library here in london. and also the newspapers. i will complain about them not being very satisfying to read, but still i will be rather at a loss if they are not available. haha.

and then there is the changing seasons. and the weather, so mild , even the cold is lovely, and never too hot. so i dont ever have to use heaters, or airconditioners.

and then there are the tv programs. its varied enough for me to find somethings to my liking… added. 10.09pm, for eg, this tv program i just saw, elizabeth 1’s secret agents on bbc2. very interesting telling of the spies who got mary, queen of scots to sign incriminatory evidence to convict her of plotting to assasinate elizabeth, and manipulating elizabeth to sign her death warrant. what i did not know was that during the execution of mary, the axe man did not manage to finish her off on the first stroke, and had to chop her head off, and when he held her head up, he forgot she was wearing a wig, and her head fell off and bounced on the floor, and set her little dog who was hiding underneath her gown to barking… the two commissioners who organised it totally  suffered a mental breakdown after all that… as we can well imagine. it was like a farce… the program was very well done, as the british knows how to do these things so well… a mixture of understatement and drama and astute asides… brilliant. 

older cars to be charged in london , cheap flights

london 11.58am 15.9C cloudybright wednesday 2016

they keep saying london air is polluted. i cant see it, literally see it i mean, because the air dont look dirty. so i guess they must mean chemical pollution.

this morning i got this circular via an email asking me for my opinion . they want to impose a charge for any vehicles cominginto london that is 10yrs old or older. and extend the zone charged , and add a extra charge for heavy goods vehicles. hmm, i dont have a car, but simon has, i wonder if his car is over 10yrs old. it is quite a expense if he has to buy a newer car  just to escape this charge, if it is implemented. ah well, i suppose they want to discourage old car users. or rather they just want to discourage people from driving in london. you can see the logic of it, because a big city especially london dont really need more drivers coming into it, when public transport is so good.

then i read in the local newspaper, the westminster and city news, that restaurants are being squeezed out of central london by rocketting rents. all because they use the benchmark of what rent to charge by what is most recent, and this would be superrestaurants chains like 5 guys or shake shack, who can afford the high rents charged for prime locations, and this raises the rents for the others. well, i remember chinatown restaurants were complaining of this too. and no one is championing them. so i guess we shall see more restaurants closing to be replaced by chains, and costs of the menu items just increasing.

the thing is tourists dont really mind, or they dont know any better. or they have to eat out so what to do. haha put it down to the cost of being a tourist. and now with the £ being cheap for them, they dont-mind even less, to the detriment of the locals who want to eat out. what it means is the poor locals will just have to suck it up, or eat out less, or go to cheaper joints like burgerking, or eat at the street food pop ups (where u can get a nice meal for £5). come to think of it, london do have a huge range of prices for eating out, and a huge range of food choices from all over the world; so in that sense it is very competitive. the streetfood pop ups play a big part in that , i think. london is copying the street stalls in s.e.asian countries like bangkok , malaysia. it is genuinely street stalls, along the streets. unlike in malaysia or singapore where street stalls dont exist anymore, they are all collected in food courts now. the use of disposable paper plates and cutlery have negated the need to wash dishes etc. 

i suppose we cannot complain really, it is part and parcel of the cut and thrust of a free market. in fact, without it there would be no eating places at all, if u dont make it possible to adjust to the market so that these guys can make money. if they make a loss, they will soon go out of business. maybe what the local restaurants are complaining is that they make less profits if their rents increase. 

added. i just saw an advert in the telegraph, malaysiaairlines.com offering £399 to kl.no credit card charges too, and 30kg luggage allowance.  closing date 31 oct. for travel up to may 2017. that is the cheapest fare i have seen. i wonder if that applies for malaysians travelling here. that would be a bargain for them, what with the £ so low. i tried with a flight in may17, and it was true, there is availability , total came to £402 for a flight 24may to 20june17. hmm, tempting, but not for me, though would be worth it for a malaysian wanting to visit london, if it is possible to get this fare from kl to london.

the advert is in conjunction with liverpool fc. it seems they are partners . is something happening in the football world at liverpool fc from now till may2017 that would make a liverpool fc fan from malaysia want to visit uk?

added. 7pm 13.9C dry . i am now getting adverts appearing on my screen saying £475 rtn lon-kl. so why is that? have all the £399 rtn fares sold out? just as well i am not interested in going there. added. it looks like a different advert, for one thing, it expires 15oct, and travel before june2017. so the telegraph advert might be the newest one offering this cheaper fare. well, even though low, it is still £400 , so one must ask is it worth it to spend all that just to be able to eat nasi lemak, or laksa in kl. haha. ah well, if i have my parents still alive in kl, i would go back for a visit. 

london’s first naked restaurant

london 4.25pm 23.9C sunny friday 2016

read in today’s evening standard that the naked restaurant that i heard about is opening tomorrow at elephant and castle and called bunyadi. it is only open for 3months. so it is a pop up restaurant; which seems to be the rage nowadays… it is like trying to gauge the interest and whether it can be extended to a full restaurant if demand is proven to be there.

u cannot just go there though, but have to register and be put on their waiting list. currently the waiting list is 40,000 strong. costs £69 for a 5 course tasting menu there. and diners are separated by bamboo curtains round each table. maybe very private but does not sound interesting. sounds very commercial and business -like, and gimmicky.

can’t help thinking that there are allready lots of naked places here in london , they are called saunas… so if all you want is to relax in naked comfort, those places are better venues for it. and in terms of participating in a naked  social activity, the naked bike ride that takes place tomorrow in london might be better for it… 

Digital StillCamera

Digital StillCamera

i got a birthday treat of a free krispie kreme from the company. so i redeemed it and had my nutella filled krispie kreme with the free waitrose coffee, whilst sitting in victoria station. it is nice now and then to enjoy these snacks, especially when they are free.haha.

 

fusion dishes

london 7.19am 12.6C sunday 2016

london has always indulged in mixing and matching, taking local indigenous dishes and mixing it up with their version. one example comes to mind, the invention of new indian curry dishes here in indian takeaways and curry houses   that u cannot find in india. america does it too… chop suey being a famous example.

usually it is the native cooks of those countries , coming to live here, who have adapted their traditional dishes from their countries of origin who have altered the dish due to the lack of ingredients or cater to local tastes… this article asks why thai foods have not been given that treatment… and now it seems some white chefs have done it… thai fusion foods has arrived. what is different this time is that it is done by white guys who have gone to thailand and tasted the dishes come back here to try to recreate it and have to adapt the ingredients they can get as well as apply it to new ways. that is how fusion dishes come about. and it looks like thai dishes are getting that treatment. when we hear that indian curry houses are finding it hard to get traditional indian cooks from india into this country because of the obstacles imposed by govt against such immigration, maybe the answer is here… to train locals or to allow locals to create their own version of indian foods… i think there are some indian restaurants that do this …fusion restaurants.

 when u can buy traditional dishes from supermarkets, it might be traditional curry houses are doomed. and fusion restaurants may be the ones that flourish and will be the future.

“Pad Thai is not even a very traditional Thai dish,” laughs Ben Chapman, co-founder of Smoking Goat. “It was basically introduced by the Thai government [in the 40s] to get people to eat more rice noodles.”

link 

 

Digital StillCamera

Digital StillCamera

Digital StillCamera

a display of flowers being manipulated to spell a word, or create a display. i saw it at my local library, to commemorate father’s day perhaps.

no doggy bag from fancy mayfair restaurants

london 11.54am sunny 12.9C good friday 2016

on a day when christ died i am talking of doggy bags from posh restaurants. haha. that is what happens when a religious day is not relevant to the many of us who dont observe it.

though all of the working people are happy to take the day off, nevermind who died to make it possible.

to those of us who think all religions are a nonsense, i am dedicating this post to you all non believers, to lighten your day and  for laughs. 

it seems some mayfair restaurants wont allow u to bag the food u cannot finish when u eat there for u to takeaway. the convention is to say u are taking it for the dog… though i must say i would be real offended if i am a chef there that u would give it to the dog, food that i have slaved over… might it not be more convincing and flattering to them if u were to say it is so delicious, i dont want to waste it, so let me bring it back to eat when i am not so full. i think we chinese say that when we are at a chinese restaurant and there is more food than we can eat. usually after a 10 course dinner.

 i cannot imagine any food being left over at a posh restaurant… because their portions are so small. but in a chinese banquet, it is often that by the fried rice ending of the 10 course dinner, most diners are full. though i remember at one dinner, even though we were all full, the fried rice was so delicious, we could still finish it off. 

 

stockpot to close

london 7.32am 12.7C cloud wednesday 2015

read this in the standard just now, bring back memories, as i go there during the 80s and 90s , those times were my heyday.

i had forgotten them, actually and that might explain why the young dont go there. not many people may realise that u can still get a 3 course meal for less than £10.

the trouble was there is another stock pot near there, and its prices are not as cheap. this stockpot branch in old compton st i dont pass by at all, even though i do go to that street; and so i have not seen its menu, and i was unaware of it. so i thought the old style stockpot was gone. now i hear it exists but only when it is about to close. pity to hear of it only when it is closing.

there is another stockpot in knightsbridge, and one in chelsea,but they might well be long gone, or has gone way upmarket if it has kept the name; so people might well get the impression it has got expensive. i myself was unaware of this old compton st branch still keeping to the old style.

i googled it and find the chelsea menu. it looks like typical prices for eating places (£8 or £9 for a main dish) , certainly u cant get 3courses for less than £10. so u might excuse the public for thinking that the prices in one branch applies to all the stockpots. 

now you know it pays to advertise and get people to know of you esp if u dont conform to the others. i wonder who owns the franchise.

it makes me wonder if there is any point in keeping prices low. it is a losing game as price is not a big factor in a bustling city with lots of visitors, tourists, business people, (transients,i call them)with money and are not price sensitive. they are looking for experiences, and willing to pay for it.

in the past eating places cater to locals who dont have kitchens , and have to eat out everyday. people live in bed sits or rooms. it was so in s.e.asia like malaysia, where single people moved to the city , no one cooks . everyone eats out. 

when i was a university student in singapore,after graduating, (during studenthood we ate our meals at our residence halls so no need to do this ) but after we graduated, i remember we would get together , a bunch of us, and contract the restaurant to cook dinner for us, giving them a fixed monthly fee and only specify how many dishes, leaving the restaurant to cook what is available that day.

but nowadays i dont think anyone does that anymore. do they?

 

tastecard

london 5.52pm monday 2015

to most, monday is going back to work after a weekend, and so its gloomy monday to them. haha. not me , or for john, who is going back to bournemouth this morning.

every day for me is a holiday and i am really happy it is so.

i got an email from metro, a free newspaper distributed at tube stations every working morning, and it tells me i can win a 12month free membership of tastecard. i just have to enter their draw, and they are giving away 2015 memberships.

but i have allready applied for my free tastecard membership from the dailymail, by just collecting 3 of their daily numbers. it will be sent to me in the next 15days. no prize draw needed.

i think tastecard is doing a publicity thing, and trying to gain more members. their success depands on more members who will go out to eat and patronise the restaurants that are in the scheme.

i am not sure if it will be of any use to me, but since it is a free membership for 12months , and i dont see any catches there, (for eg, asking us to give them our bank account number or credit card number so that they can charge us when the 12months is over and hope we will forget to cancel it… but no such requirement was asked or i would not have bothered.) it is like they giving us a 12month trial offer to see if we like it. who knows many might, after all if they go often to a restaurant, or a national chain of restaurants, it is attractive to get it at half price or a 2 for 1 price.  

well, i shall report on the experience, if i find a restaurant i like that will take them.

London bar denies homophobia after kissing gay couple ‘thrown out’ and woman ‘called fat dyke’ – Home News – UK – The Independent

London bar denies homophobia after kissing gay couple ‘thrown out’ and woman ‘called fat dyke’ – Home News – UK – The Independent.

this is the consequence of straight owners buying a gay restaurant and making it into a franchise.

the original balans in old compton st is now so straight, it is banning gays kissing there.

balans has an unusual pay structure. their waiters dont get a salary, they are all paid by the tips and it is lucrative, many have been known to pay money to be allowed to  serve.

it encourages them to get people to eat and get out quick, not to linger. they constantly come round asking if u want to order something when u have finished ( they make it like they are being very attentive to you, making out like american waiters do because in america the tips are what pays their wages too but in balans the waiter gets all the tip money)  and making it so u feel uncomfortable sitting at the table not having food in front of you.

that is why i think they dont allow kissing, it takes up time which can be devoted to eating and makes people linger using that seat which can be rotated with new customers.

when it first started, at that time when old compton st was not the gay street that it became later; i can remember we used to go there often as it felt like it was our space. and their plates are huge and portions enormous, haha. like the american system, huge portions… so that u can share a dessert and feel full. and forget about having a starter,just have a main, it will fill u up.

but i think the original gay owners sold out long ago,and it is straight owned now, with branches everywhere.

i wondered why the original owner chose to call it ‘balans’. i googled it and it means balance, but it also means 

balano-, balan-,

combining form meaning “the head of the penis in males; may also mean the glans clitoris in females”: balanoplasty, balanitis.

that sounds more like it. haha. nice cheeky title, haha.

a new format for posts

london

Sigh, the buggers are tinkering again. The side bar looks different. And it opens on the ‘text’ section, so i was thoroughly confused until i happen to just clik on the ‘visual’ box and thankgoodness the usual logos came up. one thing i would love them to change is to put capital letters on the first word of every sentence. that would be useful but that is not what i will get. 

added. i am not the only one confused by it. link

I was about to talk of these emails offering vouchers i get from amazon local cut price to events and restaurants. i have been getting these emails ever since i signed up to amazon’s kindle free books. so i guess it is a small price to pay for that. haha. some of the offers are rather tempting.

£19 for two people in a italian restaurant in the city of london for 2courses and from their menu 2 courses consisting of pasta and mains can be worth double if not more. (i think the menu a la carte prices are ridiculously high no wonder they have to entice people with vouchers. in fact, because vouchers are now the normal way for people to eat out, those without vouchers are subsidising those with.  i think if i were the kind of person who likes to eat out i would be tempted but luckily i am not a ‘lady who lunches’ haha. 

from experience, the final bill will be more, as u will have to include drinks and service charge and i guess the restaurant will hope u order wine that will double the cost immediately.

wine must the biggest con of all, where the restaurant dont even have to prepare the wine, just open the cork and pour it out and they can charge more than the meal itself.

but i guess that is business right? they must cover the overheads and make a huge profit otherwise it isnot worthwhile.

no one forces u to buy the wine , u can drink water a nd it would be just as good. these offers ensures people come to the restaurant, and increase footfall. that is the single most important consideration for any business.  

I would say to anyone who likes to eat out, these vouchers are rather good value for money. there is another one for a chinese restaurant in leicester square, £23 for a set menu for two people including wine. and the menu looks good. i wonder if vouchers like these are quite common nowadays and it is only me who have found out now. i know people use groupons, but they can be rather a hit or miss and have a limited time offer, whilst these vouchers from amazon local are unlimited and not depand on how many buy them.

I am not a person who likes to eat out, and even i am tempted.

Dish of the Day: The customer is always right | Dan Doherty | Independent Dish of the Day Blogs

Dish of the Day: The customer is always right | Dan Doherty | Independent Dish of the Day Blogs.

Good morning , it is 6.32am on a wednesday and it looks very nice out there, blue sky with bits of pink stained wispy clouds.

anyway this blog post by dan makes me realise why it is ok for high end restaurants to charge so much. everyone who eats there gets to  act like a little napoleon now and then, and the restaurant staff plays along with it and humours them, as they can afford to since they charge everyone  so much. dan gets all het up about it, but really if he looks at it as his restaurant is a theatre where the customers can act up now and then, whilst other times always being able to enjoy great food, in an atmosphere where they can act like they are lords and ladies and occasionally napoleon, with the staff at their beck and call; why it makes everyone happy and he gets repeat customers.