Michael Palaeologus

Beach volley ball - thats the volunteering I want to do.

Ssssssshh! Keep quiet or some plonker from Channel 4 will want to come and make a TV reality series about us then Richard Curtis will write a rom-com based here AND then we will have coach loads of tourists driving round the area.

Sainsburys Red Label. Well done Est Dulwich, no off-colour references to "tea-bagging"

Yes - that does take the gilt of the gingerbread somewhat. You dont have to follow the herd you know....

You sexy thing ... something seldom said of John Henry Newman

Veer Zara. On the basis of the idea from Floating Onion, I and a friend tried the new Veer Zara (formerly Pistachio Club) yesterday evening. The place is painted a glorious red, lots of red, the staff are wearing red with red ties. Its red. A little more time could have been spent finishing of some of the small details like straightening the pictures and taking at least one of them out of the plastic wrapping before putting it on the wall. There were 6 staff on duty, plus the owner and the owner's mate. Service was attentive but with obvious signs of this being a very new enterprise, waiters not knowing the menu, food taking a little too long to come out of the kitchen and delivery orders being incorrect, judging by the phone calls being fielded by the owner. Food was standard stuff, albeit with the trendy new stylee names favoured by the refurbished curry houses. Veer Zama dont have their "House Specialities" or "Chef's Recommendations" they have their "Veer Zara Creations". Still its good to ring the changes. Popadoms were served with a mint raita (good) but confusion was caused when we asked for pickles - a pot of lime pickle was eventually produced, no other pickle was available. I had Shashlik Chicken which "is cooked from fresh which is why it takes longer to cook Sir" - it was fine but took too long to appear, standard Shashlik as one would expect. My friend had Jeenga Prawn (a "Creation") which promised much but tasted suspiciously like supermarket curry powder. The portion of Brinjal was good, rice and nan were standard. All beer was bottled (not chilled enough), no draft. Our bill was ?15 each. OK, so not a disaster and it is very early days; however they will need to sharpen up fast if they are to succeed against the cut throat competition on the Lane. Being average simply wont do. There was nothing which was bad but nothing which was stand-out excellent or different, nothing to drag me away from my own favourites on the Lane. Curry Club is a few weeks away yet, so I suggest that we do go to Veer Zara and see how things are then. People can then make their own minds up.

Good call Mr Onion, I might try it beforehand just to make sure and to drop a few hints re the 11th.

JC's love child Hibbsie ...

You must have a good haircut before you attend Mick Mac :))

Given the "Berlin" thread: "The Germans" ...... "bombed Pearl Harbour" So that the Germans then.

Sorry Karter, a week later and I will be tucking into a Turkish or two :))

Hi All - sorry been away moving Mother, back now. Re date for October, dont mind really, mid October? I am on hols in October, but could do Monday 11th - hows that?

Agree with the recs above. Also checkout Unter den Linden from Brandenburg gate to Museum Island, one of the hotels has a huge Fish tank that goes from the top to the bottom of the atrium. The Pergammon museum is great - the Ishtar Gate is a must see and evidence that it wasnt just the Brits that nicked other countries treasures. Potsdama Platz is a good place to start as it is easy to get to and easy to get to Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenburg Gate, etc from. The Holocaust Memorial sounds grim but is fascinating and cleverly done, makes you think hard as you wander through the upright stones. Berlin Zoo is good for an inner city zoo, they have a panda which eats Bamboo and poos mostly, but its a Panda, they also have a lion that is able to projectile wee on the humans watching it through the bars of its cage when locked in-doors - funny if you are a distance. They have other animals which have less interesting excretion habits. Ka-De-We is the big department store near the Zoo and Kurferstendamm (spl?) or Kudamm is where you can find shopping nice bars and restaurants at the Zoo Gardens end. GOD there is so much more, I love Berlin. Buy a Lonely Planet guide - they give a good overview. Depending on the weather and available time, go to one of the city lakes and stroll round the lake before having a proper lager with a blanket on your lap watching the sun go down. Henne restaurant is a small gem of a restaurant. Its history goes back pre-war and it has always sold one thing - roast chicken. Your meal consists of roast chicken, potato salad and brown bread, nowt else. Its not a KFC type place but its is drenched in Berlin history and much loved by Berliners.

Very enjoyable evening, good food and good company. The evening took on a celebratory turn when Hibbs had rice thrown over her, sadly of the hot pilau variety rather than wedding, but its the thought that counts. No food poisoning to report.

I like Chinese, I like Chinese I love their tiny little trees

Its tomorrow my curry loving Lovelies! I am gagging for a ruby.

Sue Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I am very happy to hear this news. > > Wetherspoons have a great range of well-kept real > ale at excellent prices - which hopefully they > won't raise because it's ED. > > Agree the food is bog-standard microwaved crap, > but it is filling and cheap crap, and good value > for what you get, especially with their > two-for-one offers. They're not in the market for > competing with Franklins! > > The atmosphere varies depending on the pub, but I > used to run a group which had regular monthly > get-togethers at Penderel's Oak on High Holborn, > and it was ideal for us because there was a large > no-smoking area (in the days before the ban), and > no music, so we could hear ourselves speak. Its > loos were also, deservedly, featured in the Good > Loo Guide! > > I think The Vale is in a good spot, near the > station, but it's always had a rather strange > atmosphere and the ale not always well kept. I > hope its new incarnation thrives! > > :)-D > > ETA: Guess we won't be seeing the gloomy Skidmarks > in there :)) Best stick to the Bishop, mate :)) > I'd rather cut myself to bits with a rusty saw > than drink in there, but each to their own :)) I find myself agreeing with Sue. The Vale isnt a huge asset to the area and has no USP. At least the beer in a 'spoons is ale and cheap and the food is OK in a school dinners sort of way. .. and I work in an office above the Penderel Oak! Its a bit cavenous but its fine for a few cheapish pints after work.

It would be good to see you LB! :))

Thanks Ally, I too dont understand why people are making gratuitous comments about the hygiene of a restaurant in which I have had many very good meals with no ill effects and they have never been in. Sometimes it is good to engage brain and use discretion rather than typing the first thing that comes into the head. If people have no intention of coming to a Curry Club meeting, then why post negative comments here? Freedom of expression within a community is a right, but with rights come responsibilities to that community. Anyway, Curry Club at the Curry Cabin at 8pm on Monday 13 September 2010. Meet at the East Dulwich Tavern at 7ish for those that want. Curry Cabin East Dulwich Tavern

Oh, now I understand. I have just got back from a holiday in Hungary and saw these in Sopron and Budapest.

Cool. Thanks Simpo! I will have to investigate.

Why weren't we all invited to Tayyabs? Hmm? :))

Excellent! Come to the Curry Cabin - thus killing a number of birds with one stone.

Thanks for that Ladymuck, very useful.

Having said that, a favourite lunch of mine is fried sliced pork luncheon meat on bread and butter. My Gran gave it to me as a treat when I was a nipper. War time favourite it was, only then they used dripping not butter.