The North Life

05/06/2024

📍 Nobu, Fairmont Monte Carlo - Monaco 🇲🇨

It’s been years since I’ve visited Nobu, anywhere.

I think I hadn’t returned partly because I thought it was a bit overrated.

But when the hotel you’re staying in has a Nobu restaurant attached, it makes sense to try it right?!

So that’s what we did.

The three of us ordered a range of dishes to share and I’m so pleased we did - as I got to try things I possibly wouldn’t have ordered. Such as the ceviche and the lobster salad.

The yellowtail jalepeno is a must; and the black cod is always a non negotiable when I spot it on a menu - anywhere.

The interior here has recently been refurbished to something simple yet still elegant.

The views out to the Mediterranean sea here are dreamy too.

19/05/2024

Hexham isn’t somewhere we often have a specific reason to visit - but now we definitely have one!

is a very cool concept. Firstly, the restaurant is gorgeous. Loved the central look down from the upstairs. Very atmospheric! The menu is an indo latino fusion - and totally has us wanting to go back to try more.

We leaned more towards the indian flavours on this visit, with a few latin flavours thrown in. We had:

STARTERS:
🍴poppadoms and chutneys
🍴onion bhajis (oh these were good!)
🍴chimichuri lamb cutlets
🍴spicy fries (addictive)
🍴cilantro special salad

CURRIES:
🍴the valley railway lamb curry, chicken tikka pathia and chicken tikka massala (we opted for tapas size)
🍴chilli king prawns
🍴plain and onion pilau
🍴garlic & cilantro naan

(our fav was the chicken tikka pathia).

The non alcoholic drink@options are fab here too - the homemade lemonade and mango lassi were 🤌🏼.

Anyone in or near Hexham who hasn’t tried here - definitely make sure you do! 🤤

Thank you

for a fantastic evening!

04/05/2024

03/05/2024

📍 Breeze Restaurant

We headed up the coast to Blyth, Northumberland for some lunch in the form of small sharing plates at - a fab little all day spot serving epic sandwiches, burgers, flatbreads, small plates, larger evening meals and beautiful cocktails and mocktails. (Our fav was the teriyaki beef 🤤)

Perfect place for the bank holiday!

*invite/ad

25/04/2024

📍The Blue Bell 🇹🇷

I’m going to be honest, we only live a 15 minute drive away from .bell - but we’d never heard much of this place.

So it’s either a real hidden gem outside of the immediate area or we’ve been living UNDER A ROCK.

Turkish food is up there for me…the flavours, the spices and the variety. But I’ve never been WOWED by anywhere up north UNTIL NOW.

(let me start by saying, the chef was feeling generous because he brought us an extra starters 😅…)

🍴WE HAD:

Cold Mixed Platter with Turkish Bread 🤌🏼
Pan Fried Tiger Prawns (in butter & garlic)
Icli Kofte (minced lamb deep fried in cous cous shell)

Pirzola (lamb cutlets)
King Prawn (in a creamy grlic sauce) - 🤤
Turkish Rice
Homemade Chips

If you’re within a drive of this place…get booked in. Stunning food, service, exceptional value for money and beautiful traditional interiors make .bell our current top hidden gem 💎

18/04/2024

📍The Northumberland Arms

If you haven’t already been to the .northumberland.arms in Felton, you MUST save this post and add it to your list! Hands down one of the best meals we’ve had this year!

We had…
STARTERS
Sea Salt and Olive Oil Focaccia (this was as good as any we’ve had in Italy).

MAINS
For the mains we went for Truffle Stuffed Chicken Breast and the Fillet Of Beef And Ale Braised Short Rib, with a side portion of Creamy Mash and Triple Cooked Chips (best chips we’ve ever had).

DESSERT
Brown Sugared Custard Tart and the Warm Pistachio Sponge and Yorkshire Rhubarb.

Trust us, this is a must visit restaurant!

13/04/2024

📍Fifteen Bar & Kitchen

If you’re looking for a wholesome Sunday dinner - you should definitely try in Whitley Bay.

This intimate restaurant offers 2 tasty courses for £18 or 3 courses for £21, all are very generous in size…we left extremely full!

Make sure you book in advance as this is place is going to be the go to for Sunday lunches in North Tyneside - but if you cant get booked don’t worry - the team have got you…
they do takeout!

For starters we went for, Tempura King Prawns and Tomato Soup, followed by the Vegan Nut Roast for me while Chris enjoyed the Roast Topside Of Beef, and because we were so full we just shared the Sticky Toffee Pudding for desert.

11/04/2024

DAKWALA BOMBAY CANTEEN 🇮🇳

My fav nee eaterie in town! And oh this is a good one if you love Indian food as much as me!

We had the delight of trying:
~Chit Chat Bomb
~Desi Tacos
~Lamb Chops
~King Prawn Tandoori
~Bombay Burger
~Railway Wala Mutton
~Old Delhi Butter Chicken
~House Special Black Dahl
~Pilau Rice & Naan

Such a stunning venue…can’t wait to go back to try their lunchtime thali platter! 🤤

24/03/2024

I think we’ve found our new “go to” Indian Restaurant, just a stones throw from Chester le Street in the village of Great Lumley.

We’ve had this indians recommended to us on a couple of occasions, and last week we eventually got the chance to visit and we had the most incredible meal!

The lamb chop starter was 👌🏼and our main recommendation would be the Chefs Special Lamb, one of the best Indian dishes we’ve had…oh and they also have a takeaway!

19/03/2024

If you can get a reservation - get to for restaurant week (this week only).

unbelievably:
2 courses £10
3 courses £15 😮‍💨

Our favourites were the roasted honey and bacon dates, the bavette steak and bone marrow (the sauce was sensational) and the panna cotta.

Run don’t walk.




*invite

11/02/2024

Could this possibly be the best Sunday lunch in the North East? Easily.

From the truffled cauli croquettes to the braised beef filled yorkshire puddings…

I’m not sure we’ve ever found a 10/10 Sunday lunch anywhere but here. 🤌🏼

1 course £18
2 courses £23
3 courses £28


at

08/02/2024

📍 THAI TASTING MENU launch at Mantra Thai, Newcastle

has launched their highly anticipated stunning tasting menu, which comes with or without wine pairing.

We had an amazing night and enjoyed the most outstanding service and food which consisted on the following dishes…

🇹🇭 Tom Kha Hua Hin Seafood Bisque (prawn)
🇹🇭 Samui Sunrise Salmon
🇹🇭 Tamarind-Kissed Duck à la Phetchabun
🇹🇭 A Taste of Thaification: Pad Ka Prao (seabass)
🇹🇭 Ayutthaya Fusion Cuisine: Hor Mok (thai fish curry)
🇹🇭 Timeless Taste of Rattanakosin: Massaman (lamb)
🇹🇭 Tricultural Sweet Symphony: Khanom Thuai Foi Thong
🇹🇭 Worlds Unite: A Symphony of Vanilla, from East to West

The flavours seemed to have so much more depth than your usual Thai dishes, and the origin and inspiration for each course was explained to the room as the staff meticulously presented the food to the tables - which was such a lovely relaxing experience! For those having the wine pairing, each wine was also presented in the same way.

For anyone who loves Thai food and is wanting something a little different and extra special, this tasting menu is only running every Tuesday and Thursday night until the 30th April and I’d highly recommend it! Booking is essential. They also offer a vegetarian option.

*Invite

05/02/2024

Hopped across to last month with some friends to try their restaurant week menu….I walk past this restaurant often but never actually tried their food!

If you’re after tasty authentic thai then add here to your list! We’d definitely love to come back to try their full menu.

🇹🇭

29/01/2024

📍 Sachins Indian Restaurant, Newcastle

Not sure why we waited so long to return to this OG!
is a one of Newcastle city centre’s longest standing Indian restaurant. We visited here years ago and recently returned to see if it was as good as we remembered! It was. 🤤

18/01/2024

📍 Hibou Blanc
for Newcastle Restaurant Week 🍽️

We’ve wanted to dine here for so long! So when restaurant week was announced, this was top of the list!

The ambience, the service and most importantly the food were all PERFECTION. We both couldn’t resist the steak and chips, then we had the rice pudding crème brûlée and poached pear. The food was flawless 🤌🏼.

may still have some lunch tables available in their restuarant week menu - but tbh you should just go regardless! We will be going back for one of their legendary steak nights!




*gifted meal

14/01/2024

🤔 Anyone ever had a deep fried mars bar…for breakfast…?

On our recent visit to Edinburgh we decided to try - after so many people recommended it! 🦆🧇

One of their menu highlights is the scottish delicacy that is the deep fried Mars Bar!
Glad we tried it - but would we order it again…? Hmmm!

08/01/2024

📍 My Delhi Indian Street Food

🤫We were given a sneaky preview taste of the Newcastle Restaurant Week menu at - and it’s a good one! Swipe right to see what we had!🍴

WHAT WE LOVE…🤤
Samosa Chat
Onion Bhaji
Highway 24 (chicken)
Butter Chicken 1950s
(with pilau rice and the dreamiest garlic naan)

Mocktails:
Diliwalli Lemonade
Delhi Sunrise

Also you HAVE to end your visit with the chef’s gulabjamun and the Delhi chai! 🤌🏼

*invite

29/12/2023

If you seen my previous reel…THIS is where I wished we’d gone to for food in Edinburgh..!

So if you’re heading to Edinburgh soon I highly recommend 🤤

This is a throwback to our last visit - we loved everything about this place, the concept, the service (the waiters ask you if you’ve been to Dishoom before - and if not they are great at advising on flavours and recommended quantities), and most importantly the AMAZING food!

We had:
Mango Lassi
Khichia & Chundo (papad/poppadom & chutneys)
Bhel (puffed rice snack)
Chilli Chicken (a must order imo)
Chicken Ruby (so creamy and dreamy)
Mutton Pepper Fry
Kachumber
Chilli Broccoli
Garlic Naan
Steamed Basmati Rice

For dessert (not pictured) we had
Dark Chocolate Pudding with Cinnamon Ice Cream
Pistachio Kulfi
(this was two years ago so the menu may have slightly changed since!)

Also - we left with some of their incense sticks and still order these two years later as the scent is ridiculously good. I’ve tagged the product incase you fancy a try!

I still really fancy going for one of their breakfasts too - has anyone tried these? 🍳

12/12/2023

🎄🍴Lord Crewe Arms, Blanchland - Northumberland

We’ll struggle to find anywhere more perfect at this time of year than the ✨

The menu is seasonal with a good selection of main dishes (including vegan/vegetarian - the team encourage guests with dietary requirements to call ahead so that these can be accommodated).

On this visit we started with warm homemade sourdough, followed by venison haunch and rack of lamb - both served with red wine jus. The side of grilled hispi cabbage with garlic and miso butter was a stand out!

There’s a couple of beautiful dining rooms here and a separate bar area - we ate in the gorgeously cosy Hilyard Room by the fire.

(reservations strongly recommended - this place isn’t huge and it’s popular for a reason).

Who’s been here - and who now wants to go for their festive food fix✨

10/12/2023

(throwback to) A SUNDAY WELL SPENT
The Coach House // Middleton Lodge

♥️ if this is your perfect Sunday meal too.