01:
Cyprus Mangal
I am an avid user of Top Table and for those of you that have not been introduce to this fabulous website, you’re in for a treat. There is something for everyone, dining on a budget, indulging in Michelin star restaurants, looking for entertainment – this is the place to start your search. You can get great deals, from discounts up to 50% off the bill to free cocktails with your meal. You can also clock up points when you write a review after dining and these points are put towards a free meal. The best deal I have found recently for those of you looking to dine out in the Notting Hill area is The Turkish restaurant Cyprus Mangal as they have a Christmas deal for 50% off the food bill and it is not limited to a particular booking time. The offer is on till 24th of December, and while it isn’t your traditional Christmas grub, there is plenty of entertainment on offer with lively music and a belly dancer – perfect for a Christmas party! I will be definitely be taking them up on this offer as my birthday is coming up so I will be sure to report back.
18:
Aesop skincare - The Poetry Collection
On my walk to work I am always passing interesting little boutiques and stores and one that I have recently come across is Aesop Skincare. My skin is in dire need of some TLC, as I am still using my light summer creams that aren’t nourishing enough, especially during this seasonal change. As the heaters get turned up and the weather gets colder your skin needs something that will sooth, protect and deeply nourish. So what better than an au natural skincare brand that uses the highest grade botanicals that contain very little chemical compounds and preservatives. They work in affinity with the skin’s physiology and are very gentle and calming.
This Aussie company started in 1987 and are distinguishable by their apothecary-style products. But not only do they create beautiful products that have a huge following, this Christmas they have brought out four beautiful kits that contain a selection of skincare essentials. What sets them apart is that they pay homage to the poets Keats, Rossetti, Shelley and Blake, as the sets are all tissue-wrapped in sheets of poetry. A beautiful gift that will not only nourish your skin but rejuvenate your soul.
05:
Read anything good lately?
I was meeting friends for lunch the other day at the Notting Hill Gate tube station. Standing by the exit at the appointed time, I received a text message that they were running a half hour late. I figured in case they arrived earlier than estimated, I should remain in the vicinity, so wondered where I could pop in to kill some time. The bright yellow beacon unto my line of sight was the Book Warehouse. Modest in size and collection, yes, but huge in savings. Their books cover the range of fiction, history, children’s literature, and more–my personal favourite was the wall of classic literature at the back, offering £1.99 novels or 3 for £4.99. Yes, that’s right–by the time I wandered back to meet my friends, my bag was 3 books heavier and £5 lighter 
While you’re there indulging your literary fancies and wishing oh-so badly you could live in a neighbourhood like this with so much at your disposal, why not live here? Notting Hill Properties is a few minutes’ walk away off Westbourne Grove and happy to place you.
23:
202 Cafe--great for breakfast, lunch, shopping, and people-watching.
Am compelled to pay homage to the 202 Cafe today, located at 202 Westbourne Grove. As fate would have it, I had a bit of time to kill this morning before work, so popped over there as it’s so conveniently close to our office in Notting Hill. Their breakfast menu was a feast for the eyes…porridge, fruit salad, eggs, smoked salmon and oh-such other delectable fancies…yet my tendency to lapse into a food coma soon after eating anything particularly savoury redirected me to a simple side option of toast with butter and fresh preserves to soak up the frothy cappuccino in my belly. On my own with nary a book to read, I felt perfect contentment merely sitting and soaking up the vintage yet contemporary-cool atmosphere of a cafe within a store…it reminds me somewhat of a favourite clothing/homewares store in the States (coming to London this year!), Anthropologie. Granted, I wasn’t a big money-maker for the staff today with my modest fare, but, for me (and my pocketbook), it was an ideal way to start the day, and I hope for a summer evening to soon occasion an after-work drop-in.
If you find yourself at or near 202 and daydreaming of how lovely it would be to live near this locale, why not give Notting Hill Properties a call or drop by–our offices are right off Westbourne in the Lambton Place mews.
17:
Taqueria is located at 139-143 Westbourne Grove in Notting Hill.
As an American living in London, one of the most difficult adjustments of an already tough transition was accepting the fact that if I ever wanted to eat remotely passable Mexican food again, I would have to either book my next flight home or, more economically, run out to Somerfield and buy an Old El Paso taco kit to experiment with at home. I have yet to find that Elusive Enchilada oozing with spicy yet sweet mole sauce in the UK, suffering instead through well-intentioned, yet poor attempts. It’s like all the right components are there, but it’s just the wrong stuff: the wrong kind of cheese, the wrong kind of beans (use refried, not kidney!!!), the wrong kinds of toppings (I recently ate pub nachos topped in “salsa” that was really tomato sauce belonging on pasta). In Ireland, there were actually alfafa sprouts. Blasphemy!
The light at the end of the churro? Well, I don’t see enchiladas on the menu per se, but the hands-down most authentic Mexican cuisine that I’ve tasted in London is at Taqueria, on Westbourne Grove in Notting Hill. The soft-shell tacos are served tapas style so that you can order up a plethora of choices to share with the table. I miss the shallow bowl of a standard margherita glass, but sipping this nectar of the Aztec gods from a martini one suffices just fine. My latest beverage discovery was the Michelada de Guadalajara, which is basically the cerveza version of a Bloody Mary.
Located just down the street from Notting Hill Properties, the restaurant is a local treasure for which we’re muchas grateful. Adios alfalfa enchiladas, hola Taqueria!
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