After breakfast we split up. Gran and Grandad and I went to Knightsbridge to shop. I wanted to pick up some things. We started at ...nicks. It was more upmarket than I was comfortable with, so we looked around for only a little while. Grandad got tired of waiting for us so he went on ahead to Harrods. We got to the street and walked until I saw a shop I was very comfortable with. H and M. That place is dangerous for me, I keep seeing things I want to buy. We spent a while there.
I soon discovered it is also dangerous to shop with my gran. She is the adorable devil sitting on your shoulder saying 'just buy it'. She got me to try on things I never would have looked at otherwise. But some very nices choice. I had stopped in only looking for a jacket. I ended up buying a navy jacket, stockings, an argile V-neck, a white cardie and a grey dress.
Next stop was Harrods. We had fun looking at the ridiculous extravagance we found in that store. Thousand dollar cardies that weren't even that nice. Awefully tacky shoes. Disgusting shower fittings. It was all in good fun. It was nice to spend time with Gran. We didn't often get a chance to hang out just the two of us.
We headed back and had a light lunch. We really didn't want to fill ourselves up. For tonight was a night we had been looking forward to for a long time. For joint fathers and grandfathers birthdays we were all booked into La Gavroche. A restaurant with 2 michilan stars, owned by none other than Michelle Rue Jr. So exciting.
We got dressed up in our finest. I wore an amazing black dress I had bought before, plus the grey stockings and boots I had recently acquired.
In our shiny best we had some champagne and cake. We toasted to the birthday boys and drank champs. We didn't cut the cake.
We stood for an eternity on High Holborn waiting for a taxi. There just weren't any free taxis, being a friday night. Eventually we found two and made our way. From the moment we walked through the door I could feel the atmosphere. La Gavroche means street urchin, with a big drawing of an urchin boy by the front desk. They took our coats and lead us with sincere smiles down the ornate stairs.
The room was large and dark and full of tables. The wait staff were dressed up down to every last detail. Actually, everything was perfected down to the last detail. Metal centre pieces of different animals (ours was a lobster). The handles of the cutlery were in the shape of the urchin boy. Above us chandeliers swayed.
We were served apertisers with duck and some sort of pastry. We drank champs.
We got up to go to the bathroom. We were led to the door and when I got back my serviette had been refolded and waiting for me. After searching the amazing menu we all decided on the degustation. Each course had a wine served with it. I would have to be very careful not to drink too much. I didn´t want to be that person who passed out and missed the amazing food. But there was so much booze! At any one time we each had 3 to 4 different glasses of wine in front of us. It was a sea of glass.
Food highlights:
The first plate was seafood in a boat of some like of lettuce. With this most incredible sauce dabbed around it. I really liked that one.
The second was cheese soufflé. It was like air. I´ve never tasted anything quite like it before. It it disappeared in your mouth.
The meat was a duck thing is pastry and a braised beef with parsnip mash. Incredible. It was served to each person under a big round silver cover. Then all were lift at the exact same moment.
Cheese course was choices from a huge cart of cheese. Then a truffle with so much chocolate it could cause a blackhole.
We taxied back to the flat and then Dani and I were sent back to hers in the taxi. It was so much better then taking the tube or bus. We rolled in the door and collapsed into bed.
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