Simply Fish and Camden Lock

I can’t think of a better way to spend the day!

Last weekend, when we had unusually good weather, we went day tripping in Camden.

Walking from Camden Lock to Little Venice

Walk From Camden to Little Venice

The original reason was to review Simply Fish on Inverness Street, but as train fares can be quite pricey we decided to make a day of it.  I don’t know the area very well, so put it out to my twitter mates and they suggested going for a walk along the canal after lunch from Camden Lock to Little Venice as it also goes by the Aviary of London Zoo.

The area around Camden Lock was absolutely heaving, as the sun was out, but it had a fabulous buzz.  Once we worked our way through all the people, it got much quieter and you almost forget that you were in the middle of London.

It was a beautiful walk, it was a couple of miles but being a tow path it was flat so our 5 year old daughter managed it easily.  Once we got to Little Venice, we had a sneaky drink and then hopped on a boat back to Camden Lock.  Perfect!

Simply Fish, Camden

But back to Simply Fish, the original reason we went.  It’s a stone’s throw from Camden Market, tucked away on a side street away from some of the hustle and bustle but still busy enough for a bit of people watching.

Simply Fish, Camden

The inside of the restaurant was reminiscent of Wagamamas to me, simple but with clever designs.

SimplyFish Camden

We initially were sat inside, which wasn’t a problem as the folding windows were fully retracted as it was such a gorgeous day.  However, there was one table outside and I noticed the people who were at it were about to leave so I pounced!

Sitting outside SimplyFish

SimplyFish pride themselves in the fact that the fish is brought in daily from Cornwall and is from sustainable stocks.  The concept is simple:

Simply Fish Concept

To start I had Cornwall Mussels with Coconut & Lemongrass Sauce as you can see, someone else took a liking to them and helped herself.

Mussels with Coconut Milk

 

For a main, I had Japanese Seared Salmon with Coriander Rice and Miso Sauce.  It was to die for and we are going to try and replicate the recipe at home.

simplyfishsalmon

To start Hubby had the Arbroath Smokey Fish Cakes with gribiche and to be honest I have no idea what gribiche is.  We ordered the Marinated Prawns in garlic & chilli for Madame as a starter, I was a bit worried about the heat, but she loved them.  Both of them had the SimplyFish Cod and cut chips with crushed peas & tartar sauce.  Madame is not the best eater, she’s not picky, she just doesn’t eat a lot and there was very little left on her plate.

Fish and Chips, Simply Fish

The service was excellent, this may have something to do with the fact they thought I was from a magazine and if I’m honest, I didn’t correct them.  :-) However, I did notice that others were receiving good service as well.

I would really recommend this as a family day out if you get the weather for it.

 

 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Madame has taken to leaving her own design flare around the house recently.

So I don’t know what possessed me to buy her these for Valentine’s Day.  They’re super cute though.  They’re home-made crayons from the Little Green Paintbox, which come in a lovely little canvas drawstring bag. They also do other shapes as well (cars, bears, elephants, tortoises)!

However, she did try to eat the brown one!  Can’t blame her really as it really does look like a chocolate.  No fear though as they’re made from soy wax and bees wax and are coloured with natural mineral powders!

Happy Valentine’s Day Everyone!

When I was a kid……

I never appreciated how lucky I was growing up in Canada, until I had my daughter.   It now hits home whenever I roll up the rug in the front room, so she can ride her tricycle around the lounge and spend endless hours suffering germ infested soft play centres.

When I was a kid (god, I must be getting old) we lived in a small rural community with approximately 10,000 people.  We moved there when I was 2, there was a sawmill nearby and both my father and grandfather worked at it.  We lived in a secluded development set back from the highway and surrounded by forest.  In the morning, my sister and I’d head out the front door, with barely a goodbye to my mum and not return until dinner time.  We spent the whole day cycling, exploring and getting into healthy mischief.  If we got hungry during the day we all descended on the nearest house and helped ourselves to the fridge.  It was one big happy community.

This was my playground:

I’d give my right arm for that space and freedom again!  However, saying that, you make the most with what you have.  I’ve been in the UK for almost 12 years and I’m incredibly happy here and consider it home.  However, I still struggle with the lack of space.  I’m learning how to make up for it and have gotten over my urge of knocking down internal walls to make more space.

Nevertheless, in reality this is my garden:

It measures, approximately 5 x 9 metres.

However, thanks to ingenious toy manufacturers we have managed to create a scale model of my childhood playground.  We now have Outdoor toys, Little Tikes slide and a Little Tikes Playhouse.  It’s not Canada, but we’re enjoying the great outdoors!