A wander down Abbeydale Road

Day three of our 'staycation' saw us take a wander down Abbeydale Road. We've always loved this area of town (we used to live down there about 15 years ago) and the antique shops and Asian supermarkets can keep me entertained for hours!

Come lunch time we fancied something healthy and light so we eschewed our usual haunts on London Road and headed into Nether Edge. 

Homemade by Thelma's caught our attention and I'm rather pleased it did because the food was spot on. Fresh, light and packed with flavour.

Gav went for a Moroccan lamb quesadilla.  

And I had a cheese omelette with a couple of salads.

We then went to see our mates at Hop Hideout and have a couple of beers.

It's such a lovely little spot to enjoy a beer or two - the selection available is just brilliant and there's always something new for me to try.

Later that evening we treated ourselves to a meal at Peppercorn - which was as good as ever - but, as I didn't take any pictures, you'll just have to take my word for it...

A trip down Kelham Island

Since I've started drinking more beer, Kelham Island has become one of my favourite places to while away an afternoon. So on day two of our 'staycation' we headed down there for a few pints.

We kicked things off with a celebratory breakfast of smoked salmon and scrambled eggs - coz we were on our holidays! We even had a glass of fizz with it!

We then headed down to the Kelham Island Tavern where I discovered the amazing M&T News - the monthly magazine of the Sheffield Omnibus Enthusiasts Society. I was just blown away by the level of detail in there!

A lunch at Craft & Dough was as good as ever. I think pizzas are just perfect with beer - tasty and filling.

We rounded off our day at Shakespeares which is probably my favourite pub right now - they just ALWAYS have at least three new things on tap/keg that I want to try. And this time I also dipped into the bottle menu with the Tripel Hopped Duvel.

Back at home we carried on the fun with a Blubus Maximus, which was too sour for my taste, but Gav enjoyed it.

Long Live The Blog!

So, I've been rather busy recently (this work/life balance thing has gone a bit skewiff recently... in a good way...) which means I just don't have time for the blog anymore (or the cleaning, gardening, painting...). 

And I've been pretty close to jacking it all in (the blog that is, not life!). I even talked about switching it over to Facebook where I could get away with posting shorter, simpler posts along with a few pics. But then I realised that I wouldn't be able to search through my posts, that linking to them could be a bit trickier and that some posts would just get lost on the page. 

So I think the way forward is to keep things short and sweet. Hell, nobody reads this thing in any real detail anyways (apart from my mum of course)... 

My Food Happy

Today I promised myself, and Twitter, that I would publish a post. See, a ridiculous amount of time has passed since my last post and I need to get back in the swing of things. Because I do enjoy writing and I do enjoy this blog... and I am on a mission to have a #Happy2015.

So, I thought it would be quite fitting to write a post about happiness - something quite vague,  a bit waffly and easy going - something to ease me gently back into this 'ere blogging lark. And, a couple of days ago, I got an idea for the perfect post. @EatSocialShef had tweeted a few Sheffield foodies asking us what our food happy was. I must admit that I really struggled to answer the question - so many things make me food happy and I cannot condense them all down into a 140 character reply. But it did strike me that it would be an interesting topic for a blogpost... even if it's one that will continue to evolve... and I will be adding to the list over the next few weeks.

PLATES (NOT SLATES)

The fact that this still an issue is beyond me. Sure, they may have been cool in 2003, but now slates are just chuffing annoying (and some would say they weren't that cool in 2003 either). Nobody can deny that they're horrible and impractical to eat from (surely???) and the sooner we stop seeing them in restaurants, the better. The same goes for wooden chopping boards (hygiene is more important than presentation in my book...), shopping trolleys (yes seriously) and jam jars (you think I want to drink my £9 cocktail out of an f-ing jam jar?). Controversially I don't mind enamel... 

A BIG WINE GLASS

Not because I want to fill it to the top and guzzle it down my neck, but because I really like smart glassware and I like long stems. I also like to swirl my wine and shove my nose into it (I'm generally playing rather than doing any serious wine tasting mind..) - both of which are impossible with one of those tiny wine glasses that always make me think of British Italian restaurants...

AUTHENTIC COOKING

British Italian, Chinese and Indian restaurants make me want to lock myself away and cry for an eternity. It's crap and there's no need to fob us off with the fake stuff any more - just because we eat a lot of meat and potatoes doesn't mean we can't handle your cuisine too.

CRISPY THIN PIZZA AND AL DENTE PASTA

Because life is way too short (and my stomach is way too small) for doughy pizza. And pasta should be cooked to the point that it still has a few white flecks of raw pasta in it on biting. In my opinion anyway...

HIGH WELFARE MEAT - ESPECIALLY CHICKEN

If we are going to raise animals, slaughter them and eat them, the least we can do is ensure they've had a half decent life. Non free range chicken makes me particularly angry. Most of us demand free range eggs, but when it comes to the chick itself, we baulk at paying a few extra quid. A fine example of this is the bog standard supermarket chicken and salad sandwich which boasts that it has mayonnaise made with free range egg, but mentions nothing about the welfare of the poor dead chicken that's in there. Our lack of concern for the chicken in our sandwiches means that cafes and restaurants don't seem to bother to care either...

But it isn't just chicken that I have issues with - a lot of the pork sold in supermarkets isn't British. This means that the pigs have been raised in conditions that could be found illegal in the UK. And I'm not saying that British regulations demand high welfare, but conditions are better here than they are in the majority of Europe. Not that we seem to be particularly bothered when it comes to buying bacon... I went to one supermarket the other week and of the four wide shelves of bacon, only four products were actually British. The rest was Danish. Oh and watch out for the ham, sausages and pork pies that are made in the UK using EU pork - I bet half of them have British flags on the label too.

With stupidly confusing labels it can be incredibly difficult to eat high welfare all the time, and I ain't no angel, but I do try! And why do I try? Because I feel physically sick at the thought of eating a non-free range chicken or an EU pig.

So to keep me food happy, I generally don't eat chicken* when I go out and I only eat pork, lamb and beef that bears the red tractor stamp with the British flag on it**. Better still I buy the local and high welfare meat I work with at Mr Pickles'. 

* Having said that the Milestone group (which includes Craft & Dough, Fancie, Wig & Pen as well as Milestone), Losehill House Hotel and Urban Quarter have all confirmed that they only serve free range chicken. There will be others - please let me know if you know of any!

** I think the majority of places I eat at use British pork, beef and lamb in their kitchen.

***

Now then, what makes you food happy?

2014

I started 2014 full of confidence and excitement. I ended it in a state of confusion and anxiety. In some ways 2014 has been a bad year - in others it's been tremendous. One thing that I am quite sure about is that I want to be happy. Sounds obvious right? Yes, but how many of us actually live our lives doing things that make us happy? I'm guessing a lot of us are stuck in the rut of doing things because we feel they're the 'right' thing to do.

Well, throughout 2015 I'm going to concentrate on being happy. My goals are quite simple. I'll be writing for fun a lot more than I have over the past couple of months. That means there will be a lot more blogging going on. I'm also determined to start reading again - I blame my English degree for ruining my love of a good book, but it's time to get back on it. And, I'm going to get a dog. I've wanted one for as long as I can remember and we were going to get one when we moved house, but I convinced myself it wouldn't be the 'right' thing to do.

See, doing the 'right' thing doesn't seem to have got me very far and I'm sick of it. Time to be happy.

The Wanders of Sheffield

I do like a good wander. And when I say wander, I mean somat urban. See, I do my wandering alone which means that I need to feel safe AND I need some entertainment along the way. And although a pub is generally a welcome form of entertainment, cafes, delis, butchers, bakers, fishmongers and grocers work nicely too. 

My wanders have allowed me to explore different areas of Sheffield - living in town, it's good to get out and about a bit, and it means that I'm central to a lot of good wandering places. As I've said, I like to do my wandering alone - it means that I'm more inclined to stop and chat to the people I meet on the way, that I can spend as much time as I like drooling at the display of meats in a butcher's window and if I suddenly find that I'm now longer in a wandering mood, I can just admit defeat to myself and get the bus home.

Previous wanders have seen me walking the length of Abbeydale and London Road, around Crookes and Walkely and around Eccy Road and Sharrowvale Road.

In fact, just last week I took a wander down London Road. I love this little strip of town - it's home to many of my favourite restaurants - but the Turkish and Polish supermarkets make it great for a wander too. Baklava, olives, spices, smoked meats and strange looking cheeses can keep me amused for hours and Ozmen is my absolute favourite for a good nosey.

It was lunch time when I last visited so I took a little detour off the main strip and headed for South View Road. Since eating at The Three Bears Kitchen with a friend a while back, I'd been dying to return. It's a daytime cafe and only opens Mon-Fri so a bit of planning is required if you do want to go. Situated in the Old Junior School, it's incredibly informal, but the food is really good (and very reasonably priced). Go for a salad, or one of their specials.

Gnocchi with pork ragu at Three Bears Kitchen - £6

Back onto London Road and I carried on down Abbeydale Road where my attention switched from food to retro/vintage/second hand furniture shops - I had to stop myself from looking as we're about to move house and I'll be shopping for furniture once I'm in my new house, not beforehand. 

Having said that I did pass quite a few Asian supermarkets (great for big packs of spices which are good value if you cook a lot), Forge Bakehouse and, new to the scene, Mr Pickles' Yorkshire Food Emporium. I popped in to meet Mr Pickles and I was impressed by the size of the store - having only been open for a week or so, there's a butcher's counter and a grocery section as well as a load of dried goods and drinks. Essentially Mr Pickles' will soon become your local supermarket (they will shortly have a supply of Sheffield's own gin too!).

Porter Brook Deli - Thanks Nibbly Pig for the pic!

I then turned back and headed back towards town, but as I reached Waitrose, I realised I hadn't quite had enough and I strolled down Eccy Road. With Fancie, Cocoa and Pollards, there's plenty for the foodie here, but Sharrowvale Road is also delicious with Sharrow Marrow grocers (and cafe), Roney's butchers, Mann's fishmongers, Seven Hills Bakery and Porter Brook Deli amongst others. After a swift pint of shandy in the Lescar (I was thirsty) I resisted getting the bus and walked home... which was when I realised how much my feet hurt!

However, I now have the wandering bug and yesterday I decided it was time that I explored Oakbrook Road. Wanting to fit in a trip to the Botanical Gardens, I strolled up Glossop Road, onto Clarkehouse Road where I cut through the gardens onto Eccy Road. Having not been in this part of the world for quite a while, I was taken aback by the beauty of the flowers and plants, along with the incredibly calm feel to the place.

Botanical Gardens

Onto Eccy Road however, and I was soon in Endcliffe Park which, packed with kids and dogs, was the complete opposite of calm. Heading out the other end, I was at Oakbrook Road and I soon hit my first destination - La Coppola Deli.

I sat outside and enjoyed a salad of cheese and meats, an espresso and a can of Sanpellegrino - blood orange. It's a wonderful spot and I'll be returning with Gav at some point - especially as they sell the perfect ingredients for a carbonara (guanciale, spaghetti and Italian eggs). Sitting outside, it did remind me a little of holidays in Rome - although the addition of some graffiti and cheap wine available by the tumbler would really make it for me!

Continuing with my stroll I soon passed Oakbrook Tea House and reminded myself that I needed to try it one day (one of the downsides of wandering alone - had I taken Gav he would've had room for a piece of cake). My next destination was Oakbrook deli where I picked up some rather delicious green olives to have with our tea later and then to Nethergreens where I also bought a few bits.

I then trekked up Hangingwater Road (which is when I started dreaming of having the money to live on this side of town), to Fulwood Road. I somehow resisted the temptation of a glass of wine at West 10 and strolled into Broomhill where a nosey round Oxfam, a drooling at Remo's menu and an apple from Fruit-a-Peel gave me enough sustenance for my walk back to town via Glossop Road.

***

Future plans for wanders include Nether Edge (another excuse to visit London Road/Abbeydale Road), Chesterfield Road and Woodseats (I used to live up there and haven't been back for years), Hillsborough (I'm about to move up there) and Kelham Island (I'm hoping to nail this one today).

Is there anywhere I've missed? Where do you like to go for a wander? 

2013

Each New Year I tend to blog a round up of the last 12 months... a breakdown of what I did and what I ate each month. It's never the most interesting of posts to write (or read) and it's generally just a summary of the last 12 months of blog posts. 

So this year I'm going against tradition, breaking the mould and switching the format. See 2013 meant a bit more to me than a few fancy meals and I want to share a list of the most important things I have learned instead. Some are a bit deep, some are a bit silly. But they all count.

I've outgrown city living
I want to move to a house, have a spare bedroom, a separate dining room and a garden.

Nobody will hand anything to you on a plate
But if you commit yourself to something, people will help you make it happen.

Money isn't everything.
I currently earn less than I did this time last year, but I'm loads happier and I no longer feel the need to escape my life with expensive nights out and holidays.

I am a good judge of character
I've known this for a while, I just need to trust my instincts a bit more.

I can't make a good risotto
I can make an average risotto, but Gav's the risotto king in our flat.

I have a husband who loves me
And will support me in whatever I want to do.

I need to drink more beer
And less wine - the hangovers are a lot more manageable.

I could live on a pound a day if I had to
But I would really rather not and I'm grateful that I don't need to.

Owning a slow cooker isn't all about turkey casserole
My mother almost put me off these things for life with her turkey casseroles, but I'm actually quite pleased I've given in and bought one.

It's ok to end a list on item 9
If I can't think of anything decent for number 10.

So, there you go. That's my 2013. What was the most important thing you learned in 2013?

My amazing 2011

2011 has been a funny old year; one I'll never forget.

It began with me on garden leave after being made redundant from a job I loved. I'd been there for seven and a half years and I didn't just feel part of the team, I felt part of the furniture. It had been a relatively amicable affair and I still keep in touch with my boss, but it had still been a real kick in the teeth all the same.

So, times were not easy, but I was keen to get on with things. Yes, I allowed myself a couple of weeks to fester, but that was it. I had three months of garden leave to get through before I could get another job and I was conscious that was probably long enough for me to settle into some deep dark depression.

I read various articles on the net, seeking advice on how to cope with redundancy. Taking some of it on board, I made sure I had something to do every day, that I got up and out of bed when my husband left for work and that I wasn't sat about watching day time tv.

My employer had paid for a degree conversion course before I left and this made sure I had plenty of assignments and study weekends ahead. I also signed up for some voluntary work, giving advice at Castle Advice Centre, but I wanted something new and exciting to sink my teeth into. I wanted to make sure that my garden leave wasn't wasted and that something good would come out of it.

So I set myself the task of starting a blog. At first I didn't know what I wanted to write about. I had initially thought I'd write about coping with redundancy, but once my initial festering period was over, I'd started to enjoy my time off. I also knew that we were going to be ok financially (of course, I needed to find another job, but I knew we weren’t looking at losing our home) so it didn't feel right for me to attempt to share the woes of others. The next most obvious choice was food. I'd always enjoyed cooking and eating out so it was something that would hold my interest.

Of course, having my days to myself meant that I had time to cook and, more importantly, time to shop. I discovered Castle Market and the unusual ingredients I found down there, including offal. Not only does this meat generally take longer to cook than other cuts of meat, offal gave me something to research and to experiment with. It also gave me something to write about.

Thankfully I was only unemployed for one month (which meant I only had to visit the job centre 2 or 3 times) and I soon found myself a part time position in Huddersfield. I only stayed there for 6 months. It just wasn’t right for me and I left for a full time job at a large firm in Sheffield. This does mean that I don't have the time to cook as much as I used to but I've still kept the blog going.

So, it’s all been a bit weird work wise, but, thanks to this blog, I have still had an amazing year. It’s lead to so many new and exciting opportunities and, in a peculiar way, the massive kick in the teeth of redundancy has actually given me the confidence to throw myself at new things and place myself well and truly out of my comfort zone.

These are my (mostly) highlights of the year. I’m not going to go into too much detail here as it's all been blogged before. You’ll gather from the tone of the last few paragraphs that there will be some personal notes in the round up of my year... so here goes!

Writing a Food Blog for Exposed

I was very excited when I met with Exposed and learnt that they were looking for someone to write a food blog for them. Of course, I jumped at the chance.

It’s helped get my name out there, especially as I’ve managed to get a few articles in the magazine too and it's been a great way in to meet new people and attend different events. I've been bee-keeping with Sheffield Honey, to a cupcake and cocktail event with Fancie and The Wig & Pen, had tours around the Moss Valley farm and the Our Cow Molly farm, baked cakes with Lorna of Heavenlies, had a tour around Tai Sun, had a cookery class with The Milestone and been to a dinner shuffle with Spice Yorkshire, amongst many others.

It’s hard work keeping two blogs going at once, but I’m determined to stick at it!

Trip to Paris

One thing I wanted to do with some of my redundancy pay out was have a break away. I didn't want to blow the lot, but I did want a short break somewhere. So when the opportunity to go to Paris arose I didn’t need asking twice.

It was a lovely foodie break as I ate stupendously well (as detailed in my blogpost here) and I met David Downie for a coffee! I'd raved about his 'Food, Wine, Rome' and 'Cooking the Roman Way' and David got in touch to say thanks. A few emails later and we were meeting up for a coffee in Paris!

The Perfect Carbonara

The worst carbonara (ever)

Many won't understand why a carbonara would please me so much. All I can say is that until you've eaten a truly Roman carbonara, you'll never understand. I had a truly appalling attempt at a gastronomic version of this dish here so I was over the moon to finally find Zerboni Taste and the perfect pasta dish. It’s easily the best (probably only) place for genuine Roman food in Sheffield.

GDL

I completed the GDL (Graduate Diploma in Law) in June. It was something that I really struggled with at first. Motivation was lacking as I wasn't entirely sure I'd be able to find another job in law at the time. Having said that I stuck it through and I'm glad I completed it (and did rather well too) even though I have no current plans to go on and do the LPC (due to lack of funding). So, after many years of studying and working I am a qualified Legal Executive (essentially a solicitor without the grand title/pay packet) and that is where I will stay.

London

After a rather stressful week of law exams, I was able to celebrate with a trip to see a couple of friends down in London. Gav came with me and we had a great time; it was lovely to see our friends and spend some time catching up. Just as importantly we managed to eat well too! Lunches at Cambden market and down Brick Lane, sweet snacks at Chin Chin Labs and dinners at The Forge and Canteen was enough to keep my taste buds happy; it was just a shame that Fergus Henderson’s Bread and Wine couldn’t squeeze us in. Oh well… there is always next time.

I had intended on blogging the whole trip, but something or other came up and I never got any further than part one, which is here. Unfortunately I’ve now completely forgotten what I ate and there isn’t much chance of me getting part two blogged any time soon. Hopefully I will be more organised when we next head down to the big smoke!

Das Boot

Ok, my trip on a narrow boat shouldn't really be compared to some epic war film but, Jesus Christ, it was the worst holiday of my life. 7 days in very close (and grubby/uncomfortable) confinements with my family was far too much to bear. 'Cruising' for 10 hours plus a day crushed my dreams of relaxing pub lunches and boozy afternoons. Instead it was a week of grumpiness and locks. Lock after lock after lock. My God. Some days we had 25 locks and each was met with a crash as nobody could drive the damn thing properly.

Never. Ever. Again.

Sheffield Food Festival

I was giddy about the food festival; unnaturally so. I planned and shared an itinerary before the week started and then I went crazy trying to cram everything into the time and budget I had. It was a great week and it was lovely to see so many people in the food industry working with the community to create a real buzz for the city.

I was shattered by the end of it as I blogged a lot of it for Exposed too. Needless to say, I’m already looking forward to Sheffield Food Festival 2012. Bring it on!

Anniversary Meal at Anthony's

This is the most acclaimed British restaurant I have ever eaten at and although our anniversary meal wasn't our first meal there, we'd never tried the tasting menu. It was, as expected, amazing. Of course I blogged about it (see here).

New Name and Logo

I never liked the name Live To Love To Eat; it was a means to an end. I feared that I would procrastinate at setting up the blog if I dwelled too much on the name.

Feast And Glory was created in a brain storming session with a friend over a bottle (or two) of wine. I wanted something related to food (obviously) and the idea of sharing (feasting). I didn’t want to focus solely on Sheffield (although the majority of this blog is about Sheffield), but I was keen to give a British feel to it (Land of Hope and Glory?).

Once I had the name sorted, I knew I needed a new logo. Two year old pictures of a skinnier me were not going to cut it any longer and I wanted to make both my blog and twitter profile look more professional. Knowing Cindy Cheung (a designer and fellow food blogger) through Twitter I knew that she was the ideal person to help. She took on board my ideas, added some of her own and came up with these beauties!

 

Eat Sheffield Awards

This must have been the biggest food event of the year in Sheffield, so I was honoured to get an invite. It was a great opportunity to meet some people in the media world (as I was sat at the ‘media table’) and of course it was lovely to hear the awards being announced first hand. My full write up of the event is here.

Sheffield’s food scene

Sheffield doesn’t have the best of reputations for food but I do honestly think it is growing. Not only do we have some fantastic producers in this great city, eating out is on the way up. Over the past year I’ve had good meals at The Milestone & The Wig and Pen, the Devonshire Arms and, of course, the Samuel Fox. With Barretts and Kitchen also receiving much praise over the past year the restaurant scene is rather exciting at the moment.

For more informal dining there’s The Great Gatsby, The Wick at Both Ends and the Rutland Arms offering bar/pub eats in town and I’ve enjoyed meals at each of these over the past year. The number of Chinese restaurants has exploded recently too. The new Orient Express, Mandar Inn and the recently expanded Harmony all aim to feed the huge influx of Chinese students that come to our city every year. This is excellent news for us locals as the food is good and, as aimed at students, cheap.

In other food news Gusto Italiano has moved to Norfolk Row and now sports a tasty

A la carte menu; good coffee has landed, thanks to Tamper Coffee and the Bradfield Farmers market has had a very successful first year.

* * *

An eventful year, I’m sure you’ll agree and this little lot is just scratching the surface! There was the PJ Taste ‘Taste of Christmas’ event, the Tamper Coffee evening, my first trip to a Supper Club and various trips to Bradfield, Nether Edge and Sheffield Farmers markets. I also discovered the power of the smart phone which means I tweet constantly and bore others with pictures of almost everything I eat.

Without wanting to sound cheesy I must say that the best thing about this year was meeting so many different people. From Sheffield food producers, to chefs and restaurateurs it's been lovely meeting so many in the food industry. I've also had the opportunity to meet many other food lovers and bloggers. If you haven't read the blogs by Ros, Anna or Komal then you really should. They're as enthusiastic about food in Sheffield as I am and are lovely people too. Ros and I have become good friends and we're currently working on a food project together, which is rather exciting. I won't go into too much now, but all will become clear soon.

After such an amazing year, my main new year resolution is to make sure that 2012 is even more amazing. As for my other resolutions... watch this space!

Happy New Year everyone. Thanks for reading.

A trip down memory lane....

The other weekend I was invited down to Vanilla Coffee Shop, a new coffee shop down Abbeydale Road.  Gav and I used to live that way a few years back and as it was a nice day, I decided to take the walk back into town and get some reminiscing done on the way.

Vanilla Coffee is a brand spanking new coffee shop near Millhouses park; one that I'd heard bits about through Twitter and Facebook.  As a fan of Sheffield food, I was pleased to see owners Suze Goodman and Sheila Clapham share their passion and show their enthusiasm through their menu which has dishes incorporating ingredients such as Pumpkin Oil, Catherine's Choice and Sheffield Honey. 

 

Foodie Goodies for sale.

There's a really easy feel to the place, which Suze says is thanks to the fact that so many family members work there.  Suze's daughter Sophie works in the shop and has taken it upon herself to help with the marketing side of things and step-son Matt is a trained barrista who is relishing the chance to create some latte art.

Food wise, the menu is evolving as Vanilla has only been open for a couple of months and they are still discovering what will work for their customers.  They serve breakfast, lunch and light bites and along with Sheffield food, Vanilla are enthusiastic about retro food.  Think animal biscuits, iced gems & wagon wheels.  It isn't all just cake and biscuits though and there is a focus on the healthier side of things with both yoghurt & porridge available for breakfast. 

Pork Pie

After a quick chat and a cuppa, I was off on my way and my next stop off was at Roses the Bakers.  This business has been going since 1940 but this was my first visit!  They have three stores; this Abbeydale Road store, one on Ecclesall Road and another in Crosspool.  I popped in to see what they had.  There was plenty of bread on offer but I had a long trip ahead and didn't want to carry anything.

So, on spotting a tray of various pasties and pies I ordered the smallest pie going (my plan was going to be little and often on this trip).  I didn't know what it was, as there weren't any labels, but as a pie is a pie, I wasn't scared. 

Just as I handed my cash over, I did enquire as to the nature of the pie and was pleased to find it was a pork pie.  It wasn't a melton mowbrey style pork pie, which is my favourite but it was tasty enough.

I carried on walking, past Tesco and up towards the junction with Woodseats Road.  I almost missed Cafe Surtees, but the Cafeology sign caught my eye.  The cafe doesn't look up to much but their facebook page tells me that they specialise in free-range locally sourced meats and eggs, so it's probably worth a look in if you're down that way.

Rhythm and Booze seems to be taking over all the old Thresher shops across Yorkshire including the one at the bottom of Woodseats Road.  According to their website, the first store was set up in Barnsley but now they have stores in the majority of the main Yorkshire cities.

Then I passed the flat that Gav and I shared back in 2002.  It was a great flat; 2 bedrooms, kitchen diner and a huge living room on the top floor.  But it was all single glazed when we lived there and the noise from Abbeydale Road got too much (and it was a tad cold in winter) so we didn't stay long.

Throughout our time there we didn't pay one visit to the restaurant which was only a couple of doors down from us.  Arts it was called.  It didn't stay open too long and it's now a Persian restaurant.  

In all honesty, back then we were far too skint to splash out on restaurants and our favourite place for food was Danums Pizza (now Pizza Zone).  They did a pretty good Tandoori chicken pizza along with the standard selection of kebabs and southern fried chicken.  In all fairness I probably wouldn't eat there now and I certainly wouldn't have anything with chicken on it as I'm pretty certain it won't be free-range! 

I kept walking, past B. Ciccarella (where Gav used to get his hair cut), Sharps fruit and veg and Castle Martial Arts which used to be Wedding Daze (and where I got my wedding dress from).

Then I came across the first of many supermarkets down this way.  Reza supermarket is Turkish, I think, and it's full of big bags of spices, boxes of tea, bags of nuts and Turkish desserts.  I didn't spot any savoury snack food to nibble on though so I kept on going.

I wondered on past The Grand Potato; somewhere I have seen on many occasions, but never ventured into.  Unfortunately I had to give it a miss again as it was shut.  I will have to try that chilli and cheese jacket potato one day…

I walked on and spotted Ei8teen-In.  It didn’t look like much from the outside, but I thought I recognised it from another blog so I wandered in (in fact the blog had actually been about Café #9). 

I was the only customer and ordered an Americano.  The owner warned me that he made them strong and this pleased me.  As I sipped from my rather large mug of coffee I chatted with the owner and it turned out that I was quite lucky to have stumbled on this place at all!  This was his last shift before packing it in and closing up.  As a former surveyor, he’d had enough of the long, stressful hours and wanted to get back to a more structured routine.  He’s glad that he’s given it a go and he’s happy that the two ladies who are taking over the business are going to do the place proud.

Coffee slurped I carried on my merry way, past the Broadfield (soon to be re-opened under the Forum group) and onto one of the oldest supermarkets round this end; Shah Supermarket.  It’s an amazing place full of fresh fruit and veg, curry pastes, rice and well, pretty much anything you’d need for a real Indian feast.  I spotted a pack of Palak Paneer and bought that to have at home later (although it wasn’t that good to be honest!).  

Practically next door to Shah is Alyan Sweet Centre, which sells hot food as well as sweets.  There was a whole counter full of the sweet stuff, but I headed over to the savoury section.  Unfortunately on asking what something was I couldn’t understand the broken English response, and just kind of nodded in acceptance of the item.  

My snack had been heated and turned out to be a bit like a veggie burger packed with cooked onions, chilli and spices.  It had heat, but not enough to take over the delicate spicing.  I was quite pleased with my surprise snack and it kept me going as I carried on walking.

I strolled past The Pad and Timewarp Collectables; shops that I love but rarely dare venture into.  I love retro stuff, but my flat (and bank balance) is too small to justify any of the purchases I would like to make.  Across the road is recent Eat Sheffield Award winners La Mama.  This Latin Tapas Bar has a large selection of dishes including calamari, ceviche, empanadas and lamb.  It really does look good but it’s one I’m yet to try.

Just a bit further down is Bragazzis; somewhere with a strong reputation in Sheffield, but somewhere I’ve never quite ‘got’.  The coffee isn’t the best the city can offer, the menu is limited and the deli is pretty sad.  A bit further down the road is their attempt at more formal dining; Bucca di Bragazzis.  The menu reads well and I think I’d be a happy diner here, but again, I am yet to try it.

Back over the road is one of my absolute favourites; East and West.  These guys specialise in Southern Indian and Sri Lankan food and it’s a little different from the bog standard curry house.  Well worth a try if you haven’t been before.

Moving closer towards London Road is Caspian (another Persian), Home Café (a new Caribbean café) and then Dhanista’s.  Many, many years ago Gavin and I went for our first meal out together at La Dolce Vita, now Dhanista’s, so this place will always have a place in my heart, no matter what guise it’s trading under.  Having said that, Dhanista’s has an extra special place in my heart.  The cuisine is similar to East and West, it’s just a little more formal (i.e. you eat from plates rather than stainless steel bowls) and the menu is larger.

Across the way is The Rude Shipyard; a café with a focus on the arts.  There’s books, music and poetry to be had as well as tea and cake.  Moving onto London Road there is Parthenonas which is somewhere we have been before (and will not be returning to).  Then there’s the glorious Amigo’s Mexican Kitchen which has recently had its second refurb, to give it more of a restaurant rather than café feel. 

Across the way is Wasabisabi (my absolute favourite Japanese restaurant in Sheffield) and Orchid Thai (one of the worst restaurants I have ever been to).  Walking a bit further I came across Dim Sum.  I’ve been lucky enough to go Yum Cha a couple of times with Chinese friends (believe me, having someone help translate the menu is a huge bonus).  Yum Cha is an old Chinese tradition of going for some snacks with friends.  I am told that traditionally people would Yum Cha on a Sunday morning, but Dim Sum caters for the demands of the people and serves these snacks all day.  The menu is tapas style, but way more unusual; think chicken feet, tripe and jelly fish.

Across the road is Hong Kong Wok.  I hear it’s ok, but as I’m still grieving for the loss of the Vietnamese Noodle Bar, I haven’t been.  Opposite is Pho 68, a Vietnamese that I have heard good things about, but have not had the pleasure of trying yet.  Chinese fondue restaurant Jabu is here too.   This is a strange one as you get a stock pot and a selection of items to cook at the table.  I don’t get it myself; probably fun to do at home, but I don’t really like the thought of going out to cook myself dinner!

A bit further down from Jabu is the fabulous Noodle Inn and its sister Mandar Inn.  Noodle Inn is a fantastic alternative to that much loved Vietnamese Noodle Bar with its huge portions, hot and spicy dishes and oodles of noodles.  Mandar Inn has a very similar feel to it but the dishes are a bit more traditional which means there are more unusual dishes on the menu, making it a bit of a haven for us foodies.

Moving further down is Zeugma which is an old favourite of ours.  This Turkish restaurant specialises in barbecued dishes and the lamb kebabs are gorgeous.  Everything is cooked in front of you on hot coals (which does mean that you leave smelling a bit smoky) and, as is quite a common theme down this part of Sheffield, the portions are huge.  Over the road is Cake ‘R’ Us.  The name itself makes me smile… was the ‘s’ dropped in error?  Specialising in cake, it isn’t something I’d travel for, but as they will soon be expanding to Division Street I reckon I’ll be popping in a bit more regularly. 

Turkish supermarket Ozmen is back over the other side of the road.  It’s huge and doesn’t just cater for the Turks.  There’s Caribbean, Chinese, Polish and loads more in there.  Essentially, if you’re after an unusual spice or herb, or just a decent selection of olives, Ozmen will sort you out.

By this point I was feeling peckish again and on spotting falafel bar Fanoush I decided it was time for lunch.  I ordered a falafel wrap with some fresh apple juice.  I was able to choose from two types of hummus and a selection of salad stuff including olives and chillies and the end result was a huge wrap stuffed full of sheer goodness; tasty and healthy. 

Moving closer towards town, there’s Barry’s which is a pub serving up West Indian food.  It’s another I haven’t been to, this time because I’m not sure it will be any good….  Further down the road is Yama Sushi, another excellent Japanese restaurant.  It’s a really sweet little (tiny) place and some people would argue it is the best for sushi in Sheffield; it certainly is one of the more reasonably priced places.

Phew!  What an amazing morning!  I was shattered but it was great to have a good wander down there checking out the new and catching up on the old. 

Abbeydale Road and London Road are easily one of my favourite areas in Sheffield for food.  Where’s yours?