The Christmas Jumper Wishlist

The festive season is almost upon us and I for one am very excited to have some time off work and to spend quality time with family and friends back in South Wales. I have even started playing Christmas songs - it's still bloody November I hear you say! The Christmas jumper craze has certainly taken off the past few years with an annual Christmas jumper day taking place on the 18th of December this year in aid of Text Santa too. I am also attending an exciting blogging event in Birmingham this weekend and the dress code is Christmas jumpers - yay! As a result of this, I thought it was best I gave you a heads up on the best choices on the high street this year!   

 

 Missguided - £18

Dorothy Perkins - £23.40 (Up to 30% off over Black Friday weekend)

 

Asos - £28

PrettyLittleThing - £12 (On sale!)

Dorothy Perkins - £20.80 (Up to 30% off over Black Friday weekend)

Dorothy Perkins - £13 (In the sale!)

  I can't wait till payday so that I can splurge on some Christmas knits!  Which one is your favourite? 

Restaurant Review: The Plough, Harborne

Last week we visited The Plough in Harborne for my 24th birthday. (I hate getting older!) I was really excited to try the main menu at The Plough after visiting there once before for a Sunday lunch. It did not disappoint. We did not book beforehand and arrived at around 7pm and despite it being a Thursday evening the place was pretty busy.  However, we were quickly shown to a table in a cosy corner in the pub part of the restaurant. We then ordered two 500ml carafes of The Plough red and white wine whilst we looked over the menu. It was my birthday after all. 

As The Plough are renowned for their homemade stone baked pizzas it was inevitable that we opted for one each. I went for the calzone which included mozzarella, tomato and two fillings of your choice from an extensive list including smoked salmon, pulled cajun chicken and many more. I was a bit cheeky and opted for three fillings for an extra cost, I chose caramelised red onion, prosciutto and goats cheese - a match made in pizza heaven! Sam went for the regular stone baked pizza which was topped with chorizo, roasted peppers, cajun chicken, caramelised red onion and black olives. He also asked for an additional topping of anchovies which I loathe! We also ordered a side order of fries. 

The food arrived quickly and was piping hot. I've never been so excited to tuck into a pizza since I last visited Rome! Mine was an insanely good combination - even if I do say so myself. Sam enjoyed his pizza thoroughly too but also agreed the taste of mine was better. I think it was the creamy goats cheese which made it a winner. The fries were also served crispy but with a fluffy and light centre.

The service was fantastic, the atmosphere was great and I had a really nice evening for my birthday - even if it was a school night! I will definitely be returning to The Plough for one of their Lickin Chicken events taking place on Sunday evenings which include a whopping 1 kilo of spicy buffalo wings with a celery and blue cheese dip! Find out more on their website here. Have you visited The Plough recently? What did you think?

Restaurant Review: The Pickled Piglet

I decided to book the Pickled Piglet for my dad's 50th birthday meal following some recommendations on twitter from some Brummie food bloggers. I can now fully understand the hype!
The bar and restaurant is located on Gas street, just off the infamous Broad Street and we arrived just before our 8pm booking last Friday. We were welcomed into the bar area and chose an aperitif each before being shown to our table. I went for the Lemon Sherbet cocktail which included limoncello, prosecco and sugar syrup. It was absolutely delicious and I wanted to try more of their amazing cocktails. 

We were then shown to our table upstairs where it was already very busy and it had a great atmosphere for a Friday evening. We began our meals with two sharing boards between four of us. We chose the British meat platter which included; peppered beef, air dried ham, seasonal salami, marinated vegetables and bread and we also opted for the baked camembert topped with toasted nuts and frosted cranberries, fresh bread, crackers and quince jelly. 

The star of the show was the baked camembert which was delicious and creamy however more bread was needed as we are a rather greedy bunch! The meat platter was also extremely tasty but I did feel it was a little expensive at £16 as there wasn't that much variety or meat included.

Despite that minor niggle, the mains were also thoroughly enjoyable. I went for the baked halibut and clams in a garlic & shallot cream sauce, butter beans & sea greens. It was a beautifully cooked piece of fish with a suitably brilliant sauce. Sam was also very pleased with his main of rump lamb, warm olive & samphire salad, braised potatoes & red wine sauce. I had one taste of his and I had to dive my fork back in for more - it had great flavour! 

We ordered the hand cut chips to accompany the main course and they really were out of this world and tasted properly homemade - insane crispiness and a fluffy centre! This was washed down with a lovely bottle of Prosecco - after all, it was a special occasion! My dad was also given a pint of one of their draught ales on the house by our lovely waiter John who knew it was his birthday.
Me and my mother opted out of desserts as we were in a major food coma. However, the boys decided to share one portion of British cheeses, fruit, nuts & wafer biscuits between them which was followed with a coffee each. 
The bill came to a total of £160 - you may think this is a little steep but, we had at least two courses each, two rounds of drinks and a bottle of prosecco! I thought it was well and truly worth the money, the quality of the food was fantastic and after all, you don't turn 50 very often so it was worth celebrating - even if my dad doesn't think so!
I will definitely be returning to the Pickled Piglet to try out their small plates/tapas style dishes in the near future!