Hotel Rival - Stockholm, Sweden

Hotel Rival

3 Nights (Friday, Saturday and Sunday)

Room Type: Standard room*

Price: 5,085 SEK (room, tax, breakfast Saturday and Sunday morning only)

Overall Grade: A-

3+

1. The design of the room was everything you would expect in a Swedish hotel room - very stylish with some very practical elements. The window (with blinds) between the shower and bed was definitely exciting, as were the heated marble floors in the bathroom. I loved the CD player with CD's to listen to, ABBA's greatest hits of course (and Cherish, an R&B girl group from Atlanta - how did that get in there?!). The one natural light source in our room was a set of double doors that opened onto a back courtyard. They offered plenty of light and we were able to leave them open at night for some fresh air. The most practical bit of the room was the iron located on a track system in the closet, a feature we would love to have in our own home. See pictures below for the fold up iron.
2. Breakfast on the two weekend mornings was phenomenal! We especially loved the yogurt with toppings (muesli, sunflower seeds, etc.) and the Swedish pastries. The cinnamon bun (kanelbulle) was the highlight of the breakfast for Eddie. The breads were extremely good too and were available for purchase in the bakery on the ground floor. There were of course lots of other breakfast items like salmon, eggs, bacon, etc.
3. The floor we stayed on, the fourth, had a free coffee machine that offered a variety of drinks. Plus there was a container of yummy cookies (aka biscuits)! We took advantage of the free drinks and cookies a few times a day. (We weren't able to get free breakfast Monday morning but we were still able to get our coffee in the morning and then bread and pastries from the bakery.)
   

3-

1. The pillows that were on the bed were basically worthless as they sunk into a massless heap once you put your head on them. We had the same type of pillows at the Hotel du Vin in Brighton which makes us wonder, who likes pillows like that?!
   
2. The bathroom, while cool with the window into the bedroom and heated floor, was quite small, especially the sink. We made quite a mess when trying to wash our hands and faces in the small sink with the big faucet.
3. There was no temperature control in the room which made for slightly uncomfortable sleeping under the really heavy duvet. Luckily, we could open our doors and let the cool night air in but if you had a room overlooking the street in the front of the hotel you probably couldn't do that. A nice alternative to having temperature control in the room would be a flat sheet to use in lieu of the duvet.

*From Hotel Rival's website:

"We suggest that you reserve a superior room or de luxe room if you are planning to stay more than one night and have plenty of luggage."

We were a little concerned after reading that that the room would be tiny but that was not the case at all. It was quite a sizable room and worked well for three nights with one mid-sized suitcase. The addition of another suitcase would not have cramped the room up at all. Not sure if all their Standard rooms are the same exact size but if they are all like the one we had then no need to worry about space!

Hampstead - August 16, 2008

The day before Annie's parents went back to the US we took them up to Hampstead Heath. This is a place we've always wanted to visit and explore but have never had the opportunity. It was a quick trip up the Northern line and is like a different world. We had a great time in both the neighborhood of Hampstead and walking around the Heath.

The four of us enjoyed lunch at Cafe Base (71 Hampstead High Street) which was good, but relatively standard fare. Annie, her Mom and I all got wraps/paninis, while Annie's Dad got a burger. The sauteed potatoes we got were the highlight of the meal. If we go back again, we plan on trying one of the milkshakes they had on the menu.

While walking along Hampstead High Street we were lured into Rosslyn Delicatessen by some meringue in the window. We were surprised to find tucked away in the back of the store a room filled with American products! We picked up some "essentials": a bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch, original flavored Goldfish, Mike and Ikes and Nerds. Other products included Crisco, Old Bay Seasoning, Bisquick, Marshmallow Fluff, Lucky Charms, Kraft Mac & Cheese and lots more! Annie's Mom later remembered an article she read in the Washington Post that mentioned a store with American products in Hampstead. I guess we have found it!

The Rosslyn, Hampstead High Street

Hampstead Heath itself was awesome. It is like a little piece of the countryside in the middle of London. There are loads of walking paths to explore, three swimming ponds (men's, women's and mixed) and lots more. During our exploration of the Heath, we stopped for coffee and cakes at the nice cafe, The Brew House at Kenwood House. Kenwood House hosts picnic concerts and that day they were setting up for the Van Morrison concert later that night. Nearby Kenwood House there is also a sculpture by Henry Moore, which we were excited to find!

On our walk back through the Heath to the Tube we went to Parliament Hill which provides great views of London. We could even see Crystal Palace TV tower, which we can also see from our apartment! We thoroughly enjoyed our walk and will definitely be visiting the Heath (along with Rosslyn Deli to get some Ranch!) again soon.

View from Parliament Hill, Hampstead

The Gate - Hammersmith, London

Street entrance to The Gate

Eddie passed the third and final level of the CFA (woo hoo!) and to celebrate we had dinner at The Gate. This was our third time to The Gate and as always, it was a pleasure. The Gate is a very reliable vegetarian restaurant that always has really interesting options. It is somewhat strangely located, tucked away behind a brick wall and a courtyard on a mostly residential street. It is on the first floor (2nd floor - American style) of a building shared with The Christian Community. It isn't a big restaurant but it has a very open feeling with very high ceilings and one very, very large window overlooking the courtyard. The inside is somewhat reminiscent (on a smaller scale) of Greens Restaurant in San Francisco minus the beautiful view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Courtyard of The Gate

Our choices for the evening:

Me:
Carciofini (₤6.75) - artichoke hearts stuffed with wild mushroom duxelle, fried in a beer batter and served on a puy lentil salad. Served with lemon and garlic aioli. Based on all the ingredients I thought I would love this dish but really, it was just alright.

Carciofini

Rotolo (₤13.50) - this dish was good, but somewhat heavy for a summer evening. Like my starter, I wasn't super thrilled about it. I think in both instances there were a few too elements to the dish. Nonetheless, I wasn't unhappy with my choices.


Eddie:
Halloumi Kibi (₤6.25) - the couscous salad (on the edge of the plate in picture above) that was served with the halloumi kebab was so incredibly good. It had a nice lemony flavor to it and I loved the pomegranate seeds as well. Oh yeah, Eddie liked his choice a lot!

Tortilla (₤12.75) - Eddie went back and forth on several of the main dishes and ultimately chose this one. He was pleased with his choice and really liked it!

To share:
Cointreau and chocolate cheesecake (₤6.00) - Eddie liked this a lot more than I did. Although I loved the consistency of the cheesecake I wasn't a huge fan of the very strong Cointreau.

Total for food, drinks and service: ₤58.56

The Gate isn't the easiest restaurant to find/get to on foot because of the busy roads and strange intersections right outside the Hammersmith tube station but once you master the subway it is very easy. If you exit the mall that houses the District and Piccadilly lines then go out the door by the Tesco and take the subway. Follow any signs to the Hammersmith Apollo and then you should be able to find the restaurant right around the corner.

We like The Gate and are always tempted by many options on the ever changing menu. As much as we like it The Gate can't replace our beloved Candle 79 - our favorite veggie restaurant in NYC - but it will do for our time spent living in London!

(On a side note I own one of The Gate's cookbooks: Easy Vegetarian Cookbook. I bought it after I saw that it had the recipe for Wild Mushrooms in Chipotle Sour Cream, a dish I loved after our last visit to The Gate. There are some other really nice dishes in the book as well.)

Atami - Westminster, London

My parents recently visited and while here Eddie and I took them to Atami, a restaurant that Eddie and I have enjoyed a few times before. Atami is a quiet restaurant located in a quiet neighborhood but it is always a pleasure to visit. The atmosphere of the restaurant is very nice, the service is always attentive and the food is very good.

The menu at Atami is really extensive and has so much to offer, from single pieces of tempura and sushi to main dishes of seafood and meat. It can be a little overwhelming flipping through the menu trying to decide what to get so it was nice to eat there with more people as it gave us the chance to try out different dishes! I am so hooked on one of the mains (grilled jumbo prawn) that I never want to order anything different even though I am curious. Because my parents are omnivores like me I was able to try out some of the other main dishes!

So, here is a list of all the food we ate:

Me:
Grilled jumbo prawn (₤17.50) - I always order this! Grilled prawn meat removed from the shell, chopped into bite sized pieces and served inside the shell. My only complaint is that the dish isn't that big and doesn't included anything besides the prawn meat.

Eddie:
A selection of vegetable tempura, cucumber and avocado rolls. Eddie enjoyed all his food but did complain about the size of the tempura pieces - too big! You do pay per piece and it is nice to get a lot for your money but the large size does make for some tricky eating, especially if you aren't completely proficient with chopsticks.

My dad:
Monthly special - onglet of Chilean Wagyu beef (₤25) - this was served with chips made out of daikon radish which were especially good! My dad pretty much likes anything so he of course loved this dish but was slightly disappointed that it wasn't as good as the Kobe beef he ate while living in Japan many, many years ago.

My mom:
Corn fed chicken (₤14.50) - this is one dish I have wanted to try so I was glad she chose it. It was absolutely delicious and was quite a large portion compared to my grilled jumbo prawn. The chicken was cooked so perfectly and the dish included my favorite enoki mushrooms. My mom seemed very happy with her choice.
Dobin mushi (₤4.75) - I had this soup the first time we went to Atami and I thought it was good but not great. This time I thought it was great! It was the never ending pot of soup that lasted the whole meal while being shared between three of us.

To share:
Rock shrimp tempura (₤8.50) - this was the first dish we had and my parents were raving about it after the first bite. The mizuna leaf salad provides a nice bite to the slightly creamy dressing on the shrimp. I could probably eat this dish all by myself!
Cha soba chilled green tea noodles (₤6.50) - this dish was somewhat hard to share but we still managed to split it up four ways. It was a little bland for my tastes but it wasn't bad. Not sure I would it order again.


In addition to all the food above we also had two desserts: the chocolate fondant and some fruit cocktail custard that I can't really recall. We had a lot of food that night! I believe the total bill was around ₤150 (includes tip) but am not positive as my parents treated Eddie and I. (This also included a bottle of warm sake that seemed to never end and various other drinks.)

My parents were very impressed with everything about Atami: the decor, the atmosphere, the service and especially the food! They liked the fact that there were hardly any other diners (at one point we were the only ones) as there was no noise to shout over and it was overall more relaxed.

One of the concerns I had had about Atami in the past was the all important value for money factor. As much as I like my grilled jumbo prawn main dish I always thought ₤17.50 was a little expensive for the amount of food you got. After this visit though I saw that some main dishes were a better value for money which I was pleased to learn.

Eddie and I will definitely return to Atami in the future, with and without guests!

Swan Lake, Royal Opera House, London - 9 August 2008

Eddie and I have an understanding that if I attend metal concerts with him, he will attend the symphony with me. Getting him to go to the ballet or opera has been somewhat more of a battle. When I saw that the Guangdong Acrobatic Troupe of China was performing Swan Lake at the Royal Opera House I figured he would be more interested in that than the traditional ballet. I was right and we recently attended the afternoon performance. It was a truly impressive performance with beautiful sets and costumes.

The first few acts were slow moving and I was a little worried that the whole performance would follow suit but it got much better as the acts went on. There were of course lots of acrobatic moves, with and without the use of props. There were quite a few jugglers throughout the performance, making juggling with 6 balls look super easy. My favorite act/piece was the gym wheel act when several performers rolled around the stage in what looked like giant hula hoops. They had such control and command over the wheels and it was really a delight to watch. I think the most disturbing piece was when one of the women spun around from a noose, which was hanging from a man's waist, while he was hanging from the ceiling. I think I could have done without seeing that one! Eddie enjoyed the unicyclists that danced with ballerinas on and off the unicycles and the snake contortionist. The four frogs that dance on their hands in time to the music were absolutely adorable and the four men in tutus always made the crowd laugh.

Of course the two main stars of the show, Wu Zhengdan (Swan-princess) and Wei Baohua (Prince), were amazing to watch with Wu's elegance and Wei's strength. They built up quite a bit to the part where Wu dances on pointe on top of Wei's head and when it actually happened it was quite a sight to see. Wu did two moves on Wei's head: a turn on one leg and then a sort of back bend while on the other leg (sorry for the lack of technical terms!). I am curious to know who had the idea to dance on top of someone's head!

The whole performance runs about two and half hours long with one interval with the first "half" of the show longer than the second. We sat in the Upper Amphitheatre Right section and had a good view with the exception of one of the early acts where performers climb onto long poles and jump back and forth between them. The valance/cornice of the stage's curtains was covering our view of the top of the poles.

The Royal Opera House is a beautiful venue with an old world feel inside the performance hall: red velvet seats, shaded sconces, beautiful gold ceiling and wooden floors. There are modern touches though with air conditioning vents underneath the seats and a huge glass atrium that links all the floors outside the performance hall. The venue is right in the middle of Covent Garden so it is easy to reach on the tube or bus and there are plenty of eating options nearby.


We felt the performance of Swan Lake was extremely creative and well worth the ₤28 ticket price. It would have been nice to see/hear a live orchestra play the music but the performers were entertaining enough. Although we didn't see a lot of children this performance seemed like something a child would truly find fascinating. We know we did!

Hotel du Vin & Bistro - Brighton

Hotel du Vin & Bistro

2 Nights (Friday and Saturday)

Room Type: Standard double room

Price: ₤360 (room, tax)

Overall Grade: A-

3+

1. The hotel is well located for all the great parts of Brighton - the beach, the pier(s), the Lanes and North Laine shopping and restaurants/bars. The hotel is easily accessible from the train station via foot, although the trip to the hotel is much easier as it is all downhill! Going back to the train station was a little more work.
2. Staff/service. Eddie had originally booked a superior double room but when they gave us the one on the ground floor of the hotel overlooking the front entrance and the sidewalk outside we were slightly disappointed. Fortunately, they were able to accommodate us with a different room on the first floor. It was only a standard double room (₤10 cheaper per night) but it was surprisingly bigger than the superior double we were in originally. The staff were great about the whole thing and while the new room didn't have the stand alone tub, it was much quieter and felt more like part of the rest of the hotel. Actually, apart from the stand alone tub and the walk in shower the standard double was identical to the superior (the standard room still had the monsoon shower head.) The staff were extremely friendly and accommodating about the move.
3. The hotel building was very interesting, on the outside and inside. The style of the building is Gothic revival and mock Tudor (according to their website) and it is unlike any other hotel we have stayed in. While the lobby was small, it opened up to a two storey lounge/bar area that had big comfy couches and was constantly packed from late afternoon. Although I have read complaints online about the lack of elevator in the hotel the carved wooden staircase in the lobby was quite the showpiece. Outside, right off the lobby and lounge was a patio that definitely looked like it belonged to a beach hotel.

3-

1. If you stay in a room in the front of the hotel or one near the outdoor patio, it gets very noisy, especially at night. The window in our room had double glazing which helped with the street noise but the window in the bathroom did not. It seems kind of cheap that they would only do one window.
2. The place needs some sprucing up, especially the room floors and the tiles in the bathroom. In both rooms we saw the carpets were noticeably stained and the caulking on the tiles was either stained or falling off. The "bones" of the room are good but some things definitely need to be replaced, especially for the prices they charge for the rooms.
3. Breakfast was not included in the rate and at ₤9.95/person for continental only, we decided to search for our own breakfast both mornings.