#bodean's

In my post yesterday I was talking about how excited I was for Thanksgiving and that my boyfriend and I were going to London to celebrate with his Nan with a traditional Thanksgiving feast.

Sadly, or not so sadly  (I haven't decided yet) we ran into some problems when we got to the restaurant we'd picked - Bodean's on Poland Street, off of Oxford Street. Now, we had researched affordable places to go that were easy to get to and serving the whole 'Turkey & Trimmings' thing and settled on this place. Tried to make reservations but they only allow you to reserve a table if you're a party of 8 or more. So we figured you'd still be able to turn up if there were less than 8 and see whether you could wait for a free table to open up because obviously people in groups of less than 8 want to eat out too right?

So, we get there, after walking from Notting Hill to Oxford Street to work up an appetite and see some of the Christmas lights, at around 5 which we figured would be a good time because it wouldn't be "peak" times for dinner and we'd have more chance at a table. We go in and the lady says they are fully booked for the main restaurant but we're welcome to sit in the Deli part of the restaurant to eat instead. So we do, and we're given this menu of sandwiches and stuff. Thinking there might be a different menu for Thanksgiving that we weren't given we ask for that and are told that they're not serving it in the Deli and we should have made a reservation. We explained how we tried to reserve weeks ago but that they don't allow for less than 8. It's kind of met with an "Oh yeah... that's right... well nothing we can do about it - it is Thanksgiving if you didn't know, so..." which we obviously do because my boyfriend is speaking to her with an American accent and we are asking for the Thanksgiving menu! I highly doubt all the tables in the restaurant are arranged into groups of 8 and above by the way...

Anyway, we decide to leave and go back to this Italian place we passed on the way to Bodean's called Spaghetti House. And this is where the story gets much more pleasant because the food was yummy, the staff were lovely to us, we were able to linger at the table long after finishing up and we even made friends with the couple who were sitting next to our table!

Then John and I escorted his Nan back to St Pancras so she could get her train and we headed back over to Euston to wait for ours. Slight downer at the end of that because our train back to Milton Keynes was delayed for an hour so we didn't get home until after 11pm.

Finally, on a last little cheery note, I want to list the things that I am thankful for:

I am thankful for my amazing boyfriend, for all that he does for me and how happy he makes me.

I am thankful that John's Nan could celebrate with us and that she enjoyed my gift of homemade cookies.

I am thankful for my family who are always there for me when things get rough and for letting me come home every weekend so I can go to work until I get a new job.

I am thankful for being able to live with John in a reasonably comfortable house.

I am thankful that John made me wear gym trainers yesterday because I would have been in terrible pain and moaning all day if I hadn't.

I am thankful for cuddles, love and laughter.

I am thankful for pyjamas after hot baths.

April 2011

On my aforementioned birthday it was a given that some sort of meal in a restaurant of some variety must be had. I toyed with the idea of going to a "nice" place and feeling a little awkward the whole time I ate, like an IMPOSTER, a child who dared pretend to play grown up. But then I thought, goddamnit, it's my birthday, I am going to stuff my gob with meat and chips, and I am going to get sauce all over my face, and I will not be ashamed of it! Thus I decided upon Bodean's, an American BBQ restaurant in Soho, and arrived so hungry I was practically foaming at the mouth. Bodean's is split into two parts - the ground floor is basically a fast food diner, while the downstairs, enticingly called the "Rib Room", takes on the role of restaurant. One thing we had not accounted for was the fact that the Rib Room closes after lunch at 3PM, I'm pretty sure the cheeky bastards made no mention of this on their website. We arrived at 2.15, and it was made immediately clear that: "GUYS YOU GOT JUST 15 MINUTES TO ORDER." This was enough to make me feel awkward about the whole affair. I felt stressed and rushed and fidgety, filled with a sudden irrational hatred for our waitress. The dark wood-panel and leather walls felt like a cave! "You're being weird." My boyfriend observed, quite rightly. "Can you stop it and just chill." Luckily before I wound myself up into an irreparable state, our meat platter arrived (very quick service!)... and all was right with the world again. The waitress, who minutes before was my most hated foe, was now my meat-brandishing hero. Here's what the meat platter, supposedly for two people, involved:

Lots of ribs of various sizes, all very juicy, succulent and saucy. Except the baby back ribs, these were a little chewy. But still great.

A big pile of pulled pork, this was especially tasty with BBQ sauce squirted all over it.

A black sticky mound of beef brisket, nothing wrong with this.

A few chicken thigh and breast pieces, obviously marinated in the obligatory BBQ sauce.

Some other types of unidentifiable but still delicious meats.

Fries, covered in a salty, slightly spicy seasoning. I COULD NOT GET ENOUGH OF THESE. It was a big bowl and I think I let my boyfriend have 3 fries. Two of which were those crispy crumbs at the bottom of the bowl.

Coleslaw. This let the team down a little bit, it was far too dry amidst all the other saucy delights.