Page 110 – A Little Bird

28th March 20184th April 2018

London’s Best Food Delivery Services

London’s food delivery scene has come a long way since the early days of fruit & veg boxes. But with so much choice it can be hard to know where to begin, especially if you don’t want to be tied in to a subscription scheme. These tried & tested food delivery services are all based in London and offer everything from regular groceries to delicious home-made children’s meals:

Best for home-made meals: Potage

With a weekly changing menu, Potage offer just the sort of food you’d cook yourself given the time. Think rainbow salads topped with avocado and toasted pine nuts and homely spaghetti bolognese. The sides are tempting too; everything from rye crisp breads and fresh guacamole to their legendary double chocolate brownies. Available to order for breakfast, lunch and dinner Mon–Fri 7am–7pm up to 3 weeks in advance or on-the-go. Free delivery over £50. potage.co.uk

Best for special diets and health: The Detox Kitchen

New Mum? Going vegan? Getting fit? The Detox Kitchen have specially designed meal plans with varying calories to suit your diet. With a focus on health, the menu’s leaning towards plant based foods and lean protein make it easier to stick to your goals. Delivered daily across London between 3am–7am (free) or 7am–9am (£10) so your entire day’s food is on your doorstep when you wake up. From £28.90 per day. detoxkitchen.co.uk

Best for everyday groceries: Farmdrop

The joy of Farmdrop is that it’s as easy as doing a weekly online supermarket shop but all the produce comes straight from British farmers. The meat is particularly good, but you can get everything you might need from a dozen eggs to eco loo roll. New this spring they are offering British-grown flowers from Tregothnan in Cornwall; add 40 stems of narcissi to your order for £25.95. Delivery to your door in electric vans, morning or afternoon (free) or 1-hour time slots from £3. farmdrop.com

Best for Kids: Piccolo Plates

Nutritious, homemade, child-friendly meals delivered to the door. The menu features classic nursery tea favourites like cottage pie, fish goujons and berry jelly for pud, all with no added salt or sugar. Dishes serve two children and cost from £5. Free delivery across London. piccoloplates.com

Best for a treat: Pasta Evangelists

A delivery service for fresh pasta may sound a bit niche, but what could be more of a treat than coming home to find artichoke-filled gnocchi with burro e salvia and pine nuts waiting for you? The fresh pastas take a matter of minutes to cook, so they’re an easy way to elevate a mid-week supper. You can order as a one-off or as a dangerously delicious weekly subscription that arrives through the letter box. Pasta Evangelists change the menu weekly so you’ll never get bored. Delivery across London from £6.25 per serving. pastaevangelists.com

28th March 201827th October 2021

Kettle’s Yard House & Gallery, Cambridge

The doors to Kettle’s Yard House & Gallery have finally reopened. Following a two year renovation, this unique collection is now enlivened by a set of extended galleries, with their own distinct exhibitions programme.

Upstairs in the cottages, with Bechstein piano CREDIT: LOUISE LONG

Amidst a world of all-consuming ‘starchitect’-designed cultural venues, Kettle’s Yard is a sanctuary of domestic charm. The permanent collection is set within the former home of Jim & Helen Ede, a series of extended cottages in Northern Cambridge. Entering via its iconic manual doorbell, one is transported into the intimate atmosphere of a home. Every turn offers glimpses of art, objects and meticulously arranged natural wonders. Porcelain sets in corner cabinets, a set of ivory hair brushes on a dressing table or a perfect lemon on a pewter plate. Then up the spiral staircase, Brancusi’s Prometheus bronze head on a grand piano, or George Kennethson’s iridescent Staffordshire alabaster carving at floor-height beneath a sash window. Finally, one emerges into the 1970’s extended wing – light and expansive for music and entertaining, where Jim Ede personally welcomed his artist friends and undergraduate visitors every afternoon of term.

Jim Ede’s spiral of natural objects, reflecting his unique aesthetic and spirituality CREDIT LOUISE LONG

Everywhere, “objects which inform my heart” – remarked Jim. A subtle arrangement of ‘pocket pebbles’, delicate teacups into which sunshine pools, glistening fisherman’s floats, and even a rare poppyseed, desiccated during a flood. Not forgetting the masterpieces – including Barbara Hepworth Three Personages, or Lucie Rie’s elegant ceramics. Artworks of significant worth hand-in-hand with happenstance flea-market finds – all steeped in historical or sentimental value. A collection of five decades acquired largely through the Edes’ friendships with artists and makers.

Cornelia Parker’s ‘tears’ of pulverised Dover chalk, adorning the former bedroom window of Helen Ede CREDIT LOUISE LONG

Within the cottages, temporary interventions (such as Cornelia Parker’s chalk-dripped windows) continue to offer changing points of view. In tandem, the gallery spaces showcase a new programme of contemporary exhibitions. The first, Actions. The image of the world can be different (in two parts) presents iconic pieces by the likes of Richard Long alongside recent works by Khadije Saye, who tragically died in the Grenfell Tower. Part two includes screenings of John Akomfrah’s award winning Auto Da Fé, and new paintings by Caroline Walker. This summer, the galleries will stage Antony Gormley’s Subject, conceived as a site-specific installation contining the British sculptor’s investigation into relationships between the human body and space.

Rocking chair overlooked by Elizabeth Vellacott’s drawing Bare Trees and Hills and glistening fishermen’s weights. CREDIT LOUISE LONG

To experience the meandering journey of Kettle’s Yard is to be liberated from the sterile bubble of the purpose-built gallery, rediscovering integrity in the poignant spirit of the domestic. Here, a timeless capsule of an individual’s sensibility, philosophy, and way of life; but a tranquility enlivened with the textures, memories and mysteries of the home. Indeed, for those who delight in idiosyncrasy and eclecticism, Kettle’s Yard offers once again a home-from-home.

Exhibitions:

Actions. The image of the world can be different (Part 1 ends 2nd April. Part 2 11th April – 6th May)

Antony Gormley: Subject (22nd May – 27th August 2018)

By Louise Long

Louise Long is a photographic artist based in London, working in response to ideas of place, environment and culture. She holds an MA from the Royal College of Art, with recent exhibitions in New York, London, Sweden and Paris. www.louiselong.co.uk @louiseelong

Tel 01223 748100

28th March 201820th September 2019

Win a Copy of Skye McAlpine’s new book, A Table in Venice

Skye McAlpine grew up in Venice in a ‘dirty-pink house with watermelon shutters’. A home cook and lover of food, Skye’s recipes carry you through the day from Il Caffe to Aperitivo and onwards to sweet Pasticceria, informed by years of living and eating well in Venice. Romantic and warm writing is coupled with rose-tinted photographs of Venice, making this book a pleasure to open, let alone to cook from.

We have two recipes to share – one simple yet surprising linguine dish, and a slightly more challenging Zabaione, the lighter-than-air, Marsala-filled Italian dessert. We also have five copies of the book, A Table in Venice, Recipes from my Home to give away to five A Little Bird readers. To enter fill simply fill in the form below:

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LINGUINE WITH ASPARAGUS AND PROSECCO

Linguine con Asparagi e Prosecco

Cooking with Prosecco always seems rather extravagant, but less so if you take it as an excuse to enjoy the rest of the bottle with your meal. You could, of course, make this using white wine or a splash of vermouth but there is something about the delicacy of Prosecco that works particularly well here. You can almost taste the bubbles in the sauce. If you can use fresh egg pasta, better still.

For 4

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

400g asparagus, trimmed and cut into 3–5cm lengths

100ml Prosecco

a handful of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

400g linguine

30g salted butter

30g Parmesan, grated

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat, then add the onion and a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, over a low–medium heat for 5–10 minutes, until the onion becomes translucent. Add the asparagus and Prosecco, then season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes, until all the liquid has evaporated and the asparagus is tender. If it is not quite done by the time the wine evaporates, add just enough water to cover the base of the pan and cook for a little longer. Stir in the parsley.

Meanwhile, cook the linguine in a large saucepan of generously salted boiling water until al dente. Just before you drain the pasta, scoop half a cup of the cooking water out of the pot and set to one side. Drain the pasta, toss it back into the saucepan and mix in the reserved cooking water, little by little, and the butter. Stir well, then add the asparagus mixture. Give everything one last good stir and top with the grated Parmesan.

ZABAIONE AND MERINGUE SEMIFREDDO

Semifreddo di Zabaione e Meringa

Sheets of crisp white meringue with blissfully chewy centres, layered with a light-as-air zabaione – this is semifreddo-meets-cake-meets-pavlova. There is something about the pure white-on-white of this that I find soothing and very seductive, but I won’t deny that a handful of sharp red berries or some roughly chopped glacé citrus peel buried in each tier of zabaione has an alluring more-is-more charm about it too.

For 10–12

½ lemon

6 large egg whites

300g caster sugar

For the zabaione

6 large egg yolks

100g caster sugar

70ml Marsala

300ml whipping cream

Make the meringue layers first. Heat the oven to 140°C/Gas Mark 1. Line 3 large baking trays with baking parchment and draw a 24cm circle on each piece of paper. Turn the paper over so you can still see the lines and use them as guides.

Rub a large bowl down with the lemon half to cut through any grease. Put the egg whites into the bowl and, using a handheld electric mixer, beat on a low–medium speed until the whites begin to froth. Increase the speed to high and add the sugar a tablespoon at a time until the whites become glossy and form stiff peaks. Spoon the meringue on to the baking parchment and spread it out evenly within the circles.

Bake for 1 hour 10 minutes, then switch off the oven and leave the meringues in there, without opening the door, for an hour longer, until the oven has cooled. Take the meringues out of the oven and leave them to cool on the trays.

Now make the zabaione cream filling. Put the egg yolks and sugar into a heatproof bowl and whisk with a handheld electric mixer for 2–3 minutes, until light and fluffy. As the mixture begins to froth up, set the bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the water isn’t touching the base of the bowl. Keep whisking until the mixture is thick enough for a trail to stay on the surface when drizzled from the whisk. Slowly pour in the Marsala, whisking all the while. This should take 3–5 minutes, and as you add the liquid the zabaione will double in size and thicken. Remove the bowl from the heat and let the zabaione cool to room temperature, whisking occasionally to prevent a skin forming.

In a separate bowl, beat the whipping cream until it forms soft peaks. Gently fold it into the cooled zabaione. To assemble the semifreddo, place one of the meringue layers on a serving plate, and spread half the zabaione cream over it. Top with a second layer of meringue, then the rest of the zabaione cream, and finish with the final layer of meringue. Freeze for 3–4 hours, or longer if you like, until set. Slice like a cake to serve.

Extracts taken from A Table in Venice: Recipes from my Home by SkyeMcAlpine (Bloomsbury, £26) released on 28 March 2018

26th March 201825th October 2021

Peter Rabbit Trail at Kew Gardens

Beatrix Potter™ © Frederick Warne & Co., 2018

With the release of the new film, Peter Rabbit is having a moment. The latest childhood classic to get the blockbuster treatment, the all-star cast includes Domhnall Gleeson as Mr McGregor and James Corden the voice of newly animated Peter Rabbit.

But anyone faithful to the traditional nineteenth-century Beatrix Potter illustrations will love the sweet new trail at Kew Gardens. Spot life-size cut outs of the familiar watercolour characters including Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail set against the spring landscape of Kew.

All visitors receive a copy of Mr McGregor’s Garden Notebook on arrival, and can then follow the bunny adventure trail to the Festival Hub for exciting games, craft activities and workshops. Build a rabbit warren fit for a whole family, play giant food card games and make your very own fuzzy bunny ears. (NB activities run 10.30am – 3.30pm daily).

Visitors can also pop into Kew’s Kitchen Garden to admire the amazing display of colourful fruit and veg including seasonal asparagus, broad beans, lettuce, garlic and rhubarb. The Kitchen Garden team will be giving mini tours for families to show off the luscious produce growing in the garden in springtime.

Kitchen Garden talks will run on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (excluding Bank Holidays), 11.30am and 1.30pm.

22nd March 201825th October 2021

Easter Eggs for Grown Ups

We’ve had the arduous task of taste testing London’s chocolate eggs. Proving you’re never too old for an Easter Egg, and there are some splendid designs out there this year. This is our hand-picked selection of London’s most spectacular eggs for grown ups:

Artisan du Chocolat

Makers of the original – and still the best – salted caramel balls, Artisan du Chocolat achieve just the right consistency. For Easter find the original balls in mini egg shapes wrapped into this gorgeous bunny ears fabric. £9.99, about 20 eggs per pack. Shops in Kensington High St, Westbourne Grove and Lower Sloane Street as well as stocked at Selfridges. Artisan du Chocolat

L’Appetit Fou

The taste combinations in these delicate truffles are sublime: pistachio, raspberry, vanilla, orange, and more. Pick and mix from the foiled and non-foiled small egg selection £7.95 at this delightful chocolate boutique in Chiswick L’Appetit Fou

Carluccio

Go free range and decorate your breakfast table with these lovely hens that come in milk, dark and white chocolate. £7.95 each Carluccio

Pierre Marcolini

You will feel like you have died and gone to heaven upon eating these caramel rabbits, ducks and bells in a mixture of white, dark and milk chocolate. Total perfection. The Big-Eared Hat would be fun for children. £29 for a box of 30. Visit the stand-alone store in Marylebone or the concessions in Selfridges and Harrods. marcolini.com

William Curley

If you have a chocolate connoisseur to buy for, look no further than master chocolatier William Curley. With a rich flavour that almost tastes like it is doing you good. £35, Dark Chocolate & Salted Caramels Egg. Stocked at Harrods and online williamcurley.co.uk

The Delaunay Counter

The Delaunay’s Pastry Chefs and chocolatiers not only produce exquisite things for the restaurant, but also for the adjacent Delaunay Counter which is the perfect place to pick up take away treats including their range of Easter Eggs. From £9.25 thedelaunay.com

Divine Chocolate

Perhaps the best egg you can find at the supermarket, the Divine Milk Chocolate Gourmet Popcorn Egg with Joe & Seph’s Popcorn is back by popular demand this year. The popcorn and chocolate make a surprisingly brilliant match. £10. Widely available, including Ocado.

Paul A Young

The golden bunny makes a darling Easter gift. Paul A Young chocolatiers use only the best chocolate, here with a very fine gold dusting. £15 from shops in Camden, Bank and Soho. paulayoung.co.uk

Chococo

We tried both Chococo’s Milk Chocolate Heavenly Honeycombe Studded Egg and the Milk Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel Filled Egg and were blown away by the quality and presentation. With a very reasonable price, this egg is right up there with the very best and we particularly love the golden sheen on the honeycomb one. £12. chococo.co.uk Also from Lakeland and Harvey Nichols.

Fortnum & Mason

These hollow ‘goose’ eggs are really made from white and milk chocolate and come presented in a pretty egg box. £25 Fortnum & Mason

The Chocolate Society

The whole Chocolate Society range of Easter eggs this year is ridiculously good, combining innovative design with their world-class chocolate. We love their Hokey Pokey honeycomb eggs (£19.99 in both dark and white chocolate) but this trio of animals, Milk ‘Cow’, Dark ‘Zebra’ and Blonde ‘Giraffe’ with their shiny coats have to get top billing. £29.95 each The Chocolate Society

Booja Booja

These award-winning chocolate truffles come in a hand-painted papier mache Easter egg made in Kashmir. Booja Booja, Almond and Sea Salt Caramel Truffles come in small (£9.95) or large (£25.95). Available from Ocado and chocolatetrading.co

Montezuma

Montezuma’s Absolute Black Egg is made from 100% cocoa solids. We thought it might be so bitter as to be inedible but actually it’s delicious. It has a very thin shell, which melts in your mouth. A good one for your vegan friends. They make other great eggs too, with fun packaging. £9.99 Montezuma

Rococo

These small, beautifully painted eggs really pack a punch. The thick multi-layered (milk and white) chocolate shell is packed with an assortment of chocolates inside. We particularly love the Blue Paisley Dark Egg but there are several colours to choose from including yellow and red. £27 Rococo

22nd March 201822nd March 2018

Tommy Clarke, aerial photographer

Growing up on the South Coast, Tommy Clarke’s fascination with shorelines led him to lean out of an aircraft above Bondi Beach to capture the floating surfboards from the sky. Building a reputation for aerial photography, intrepid shoots followed snapping everything from the jaunty parasols of St Tropez to the epic salt lakes of Utah and San Francisco.

Whilst he might be known for hanging out of helicopters, it’s Brixton that Tommy calls home. With a gallery and studio space in nearby Clapham, he spends his weekends at the pub with his mates in front of the Six Nations and venturing out on his motorbike. Here’s his Insider London:

1. You travel a lot for work. What’s the first thing you do when you get back to London?
Swing by my studio in Clapham to see my team. Seeing friends is a priority, travelling makes me appreciate having most of them in one place when I’m home!

2. Your subject matter tends to involve exotic destinations. Have you ever shot over London?
I have but it’s a tricky colour palette to work with, lots of browns and greys. London’s better at street level.

2. Favourite restaurant?
Chotto Matte – order the octopus, trust me.

4. What’s on your playlist at the moment?
Chris Stapleton.

5. Describe your perfect London weekend?
Saturday morning row, followed by brunch and then watching an England rugby match in the the pub with friends. Sunday spent riding out on my Triumph motorbike wherever it takes me.

Tommy Clarke’s first book Up In The Air is out on 25 April 2018. £25 amazon.co.uk

tommyclarke.co.uk

22nd March 201829th March 2018

London’s Best Bakeries

Easter offers the perfect excuse to visit a proper bakery. From hot cross buns and Simnel Cake to bunny-shaped shortbread, here are London’s best bakeries this spring:

Best for Cakes and Buns: Violet Cakes

Named as the bakery behind Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding cake, Violet Cakes has suddenly shot into the spotlight. But we have long been fans of founder Claire Ptak who is the author of several brilliant cookbooks as well as the host of the Violet Sessions podcast. The classic sponges feature buttercream icings that change with the seasons – in spring that means elderflowers, gooseberries, rhubarb and Alphonso Mango. In addition, the counter heaves with cinnamon buns, a fresh ginger and molasses cake, chocolate rye brownies, fruity spelt cake, flourless chocolate cake, oatmeal-raisin cookies, chocolate chip cookies, coconut macaroons, and chocolate-vanilla sandwich cookies. During Easter there are sticky hot cross buns made using homemade candied citrus peels. Pick them up at the East London Bakery at 47 Wilton Way. violetcakes.com

2. Best for Classics: Sally Clarke’s Shop

For a classic hot cross bun or traditional Simnel Cake it’s hard to beat Sally Clarke’s, just off Kensington Church Street. The wholesale Sally Clarke Bakery supplies not only Clarke’s Restaurant and Shop but also lots of London’s top establishments including Fortnum & Mason and Harvey Nichols. If you aren’t able to visit in person, you can now buy a wide selection of Sally Clarke bread and cakes (including hot cross buns) via Farmdrop, who deliver to the door. sallyclarke.com

3. Best for Gluten Free and Vegan: Fortitude Bakehouse

The newly-opened Fortitude Bakehouse in Bloomsbury specialises in slow ferment craft baking. Wondering what that means? Think sourdough cakes such as Barabrith with honey (pictured above), and Coconut sugar brioche buns for breakfast as well as gluten free and vegan bakes. Set up by Jorge Fernandez (founder of Fernandez & Wells) and Dee Retattali (Patisserie Organic), the inviting bakery housed in a former stables is best for take-away, although there is a tiny counter to eat at too. This Easter you can pick up hot cross buns, vegan chocolate truffles and a vegan Simnel Cake. But be advised the shop will be closed on Easter Sunday and Monday so buy ahead. fortitudebakehouse.com

4. Best For Donuts: Bread Ahead

Everything at Bread Ahead is enticing but the donuts have got to take the prize. With fillings like custard, jam, lemon curd or honeycomb, they’re sugary and light and scrumptious. You can buy cakes, donuts, buns and bread from their original Borough Market Stall and now at three other locations in Chelsea, Soho and Mayfair. Book in for an Easter Baking half day course, or a 2-hour Family Class for ages 5+ and learn to make a twist on the classic hot cross bun and some Meringue Bunny Kisses at the Borough Market Cookery School. breadahead.com

5. Best for Children: Daylesford

Daylesford have a small but particularly lovely range of Easter treats, including these organic shortbread bunnies and chicks that would make a lovely gift, and a welcome relief from yet more chocolate! They are also stocking a range of raw chocolate eggs and hot cross bites, as well as the classic Simnel Cake. daylesford.com

Best for Nordic Baking: Bageriet

We’ve written about them before, but Bagariet really does deserve a mention. As well as their legendary cinnamon buns, their Easter Princess Cake would make a pretty spectacular alternative to a Simnel cake. Delicate and delicious, outside there’s just a fine layer or marzipan, inside there’s light and airy sponge, raspberry compote and crème pâtissière. Princess Cakes are available year-round but you can request Easter decoration as in this picture above. bageriet.co.uk

Best for Choice: Harrods Food Hall

You might be sceptical about shopping for bread in Harrods, but if you’re yet to visit the new Roastery and Bake Hall it is well worth doing. The first stage in the almighty two-year revamp of the Food Halls, or so-called ‘Taste Revolution’, the new bakery opened in November 2017. As well as the slightly ridiculous – personalised sourdough anyone? – there’s 15 varieties of bread and more pastries and patisseries than you could ever dream of. The cronuts are a highlight, and listen out for the bell that’s rung every 30 minutes to indicate that a fresh batch is being removed from the oven, so you can buy your bread still-warm. harrods.com

Best Bakery Chain: Gail’s

Gail’s Bakeries have popped up just about everywhere across London from Queens Park to Dulwich Village with their most recent opening in Camden last week. The bread is delicious, but go for the Hot Cross Buns which are the best in town. Soft and with plenty of fruit and a sweet glaze, they are the perfect spiced bun. They stock a mini Hot Cross Bun and a seasonal Chocolate Sourdough too. gailsbread.co.uk

Best for Bread: E5 Bakehouse

Beneath the London Field’s railway arches find Hackney’s favourite bakery. The focus is on sourdough country breads and ryes – we recommend the Currant Loaf that is best enjoyed toasted with butter and a cup of tea. Buy a loaf to take away or sit and stay for a coffee at the excellent in-house cafe. Committed to sustainability, deliveries are made on Dutch bicycles and flours are all UK organic. e5bakehouse.com

21st March 201829th March 2018

Bill Murray’s New Worlds at Royal Festival Hall

The story goes that acclaimed German cellist Jan Vogler and actor Bill Murray met on a transatlantic flight to New York. The idea was hatched to create a ‘theatrical album’ – a blend of poems by Whitman and passages from Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast and Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s, interspersed with instrumental pieces by Bach, Ravel and Piazzolla and classic songs from the Gershwins, Bernstein and Stephen Foster all the way up to Van Morrison.

The resulting album, New Worlds was released last September. Any sceptics should wait to see the show live after the US debut received surprisingly stellar reviews. Bill Murray, accompanied by a virtuoso chamber trio: Vogler on cello, violinist Mira Wang, and pianist Vanessa Perez will be performing for the first time in the UK at the Southbank’s Royal Festival Hall on 4 June 2018. Book your tickets now – on sale from Friday 29 March.

20th March 201825th October 2021

How To Create an Easter Table

It’s officially spring and we’re eagerly awaiting the Easter holidays. These chic decorations will have your Easter table looking picture-perfect next weekend:

1. Danish Bordfolk Egg Cups

Called Bordfolk (or ‘table people’ in Danish) these egg cup characters would make for a very friendly breakfast table. Lucie Kaas has updated the 60’s and 70’s tradition with these simple designs and great colours.£14.00 brassicamercantile.co.uk

2. Papier-mâché Bunnies

These bunnies make a nice place setting, and the hook and ribbon behind means that they can later be hung in a child’s bedroom. £15.00 edit58.com

3. Felicity Jones Wild Flower Garden Porcelain

One for the grown-ups, the Felicity Jones porcelain and white earthenware collection at Petersham Nurseries brings spring right onto the kitchen table. Created using pressed flowers from Petersham’s own wild flower garden including daisies, shepherds purse, clover and cow parsley pressed into clay, the mugs are then handpainted using underglaze colours to create a beautiful watercolour effect, and the rim is finished with gold lustre. If you’re going away this Easter, these would make a lovely house gift. £55.00 petershamnurseries.com

4. Meri Meri Plates & Crackers

Meri Meri have all sorts of lovely things for Easter, including a great fill-your-own bunny piñata, Easter cookie cutters and these jolly plates and crackers. 12 plates £5.75 shopmerimeri.co.uk and 6 mini crackers £18.00 shopmerimeri.co.uk

5. Easter Trees

Svenskt Tenn’s arrangement is the chic answer to an ‘Easter tree’. Their decorative glass eggs are €4 each svenskttenn.se but this is very easy look to replicate at home. Buy a bundle of branches from your local florist – magnolia, forsythia, or blossom work particularly well – and splay the branches wide in a vase or jug. Then buy your eggs to decorate the tree or make your own by painting egg shells as follows:

Blow a raw egg using a needle to make a small hole in the top. Turn the egg upside down and make a slightly larger hole in the bottom and break the yolk by placing the needle inside. Then gently but firmly blow into the smaller hole to remove the innards and rinse the shell in water and vinegar.
Once it’s dry you can paint the eggshell with poster paints, felt pens or pastels and leave to dry.
Attach your eggs to the tree with a ribbon glued carefully around the egg.

Share your Easter table decorations with us by tagging us on Instagram @alittlebirdcom.

20th March 201820th March 2018

Small Wonders: Punchdrunk for Families

As anyone who has experienced a Punchdrunk performance will know, their version of ‘immersive theatre’ is quite unlike any other. Rather than sitting to watch a story on stage, you travel on foot about the set as the drama unfolds around you. Imaginary worlds are bewitchingly brought to life and the best part is, the audience is a part of the action.

The Punchdrunk concept seems made for children so we are hugely excited about their new family show. Small Wonders is a new production specially for those aged 6-11 and their families. Entirely interactive the scene is set at Nanny Lacey’s flat in Tottenham inside which are her collection of miniatures. These homemade creations capture the adventures she’s shared with her daughter Bella over the years. Like 3D photographs, they’re treasured moments of time and each one tells a different story. But Nanny Lacey’s getting older and soon she’ll have to leave her flat and her beloved miniatures behind, surely there’s time for one final adventure?

Conceived by Punchdrunk and written by Nessah Muthy there are a only a limited number of tickets left to the show that is sure to be a sell-out.

20th March 201828th October 2021

Travel Guide to Cartagena

‘There’s not a single line in all my work that does not have a basis in reality. The problem is that Caribbean reality resembles the wildest imagination.’ Gabriel García Marquez

To visit Cartagena, the birthplace of Colombia’s beloved Gabo is to begin to understand something of the magical realism of his books. A Unesco World Heritage site, the sixteenth century colonial Old Town of Cartagena de Indias exists as if from fiction. It’s a place where the sun beats down relentlessly on a maze of cobbled streets and squares, where colour-pop houses have balconies that heave with luscious bougainvillea; a place so beautiful it scarcely seems real. Watch the bars come alive after dark as the locals knock back fiery aguardiente and night dancers’ salsa their way through Parque Bolivar beneath the stars. Colombia seems to be the hot ticket in South America right now, and Cartagena is the place to start:

When to visit: There are no seasons in Colombia so you can visit year-round and the temperature is consistently hot (27-29°C).

Things to Do: Wander around the streets of the Old Town and soak it in. Get some shade at Parque Bolivar; sit alongside the locals taking their siestas on benches and admire the statue of Simon Bolivar, who liberated the Amsericas from the Spanish and the locals playing chess. Then drop in to the neighboring Museo de Oro; a miniature version of Bogota’s great Gold Museum. Sadly the imposing yellow Cathedral will be closed for renovation until 2019. Visit the San Pedro Claver instead on the grand piazza, and then wander around to the Old Clock Tower, stopping to try the sticky sweets in jars at street stalls along the way. The early evening, when it’s cooler but not yet dark is the time to walk around the 4km city walls. A visit to up-and-coming Getsemani, outside the walls is also a must.

Shopping: Set within the white-washed walls of a 300 year old townhouse, St Dom is a chic boutique that wouldn’t be amiss in the Marais. Stocking only Colombian designers, find clothes, art, homewares and best of all, playful accessories from fruit-bowl jewellery to rattan clutch bags and colourful folding fans. Sun hats are essential for strolling the streets, get yours from one of the market stalls lining the pavements; Yosuzi style in every colour and at a fraction of the price. The coolest mens beach kit I’ve ever come across is found at Soloio where everything from the trunks, T-shirts and towels down to espadrilles are adorned with popping sunshine prints.

Where to Stay: A pool is a must. If budget allows, the grand Sofitel Santa Clara with it’s leafy internal courtyard garden and vast swimming pool offers luxury and views over the city walls to the sea. Even if you’re not staying there, visit for a drink at El Coro where there’s live Cuban music at night and a glamorous old school bar. Equally lovely and perhaps more intimate, Casa San Augustin is luxurious and romantic with its charming blend of Colombian and contemporary design. There are plenty of cheaper options, but a pool and air conditioning are essentials.

Cafes and Bars: Visit Pasteleria Mila for a typical Colombian breakfast of arepas (corn pancakes) and black coffee. Cool down with an ice cream on a stick from La Paleteria in every flavour imaginable. Café del Mar on the westernmost ramparts of the Old Town may be touristy but the view is unbeatable for a sunset drink. Or grab a beer at Donde Fidel beneath the clock tower and enjoy the theatre of the street; it’s the ultimate people watching spot. Alternatively you can order rum by the bottle which arrives with a bowl of ice and limes, perfect fuel for an evening of pulsing salsa inside the tiny bar late into the night.

Lunch Restaurants: Famed La Cevicheria draws a crowd at lunchtime with its fresh ceviche and cold beers served informally at tables on the pavement (expect to queue). Perhaps even more delicious is the tiny El Boliche Cebicheria, just around the corner that serves up small plates of ceviche and hot empanadas washed down with ice-cold mint mojitos.

Evening Restaurants: € Demente in Getsemani is a fun local hotspot with. €€ La Perla is famed for its tiraditos – raw fish marinated in yellow chilli. €€€ Alma, within Casa San Augustin’s courtyard garden is romantic with a sophisticated menu €€€€ Carmen is expensive for good reason with set tasting menus.

Beaches: The Rosario Islands National Park is just 45 minutes from the city. An archipelago of 30 islands, hop around by boat and swim in clear Caribbean waters.

Read: Gabriel Garcia Marquez Love in the Time of Cholera. Charles Nicholl The Fruit Palace.

20th March 201820th September 2019

Charmed lives in Greece: Ghika, Craxton, Leigh Fermor

‘The olive groves are amazing at this moment – asphodel, Adonis Blood and huge mauve anemones, snow drifts of daisies, celandines, dwarf geranium, crocuses, violets, and right up at Vaidenitsa monastery, where we all picnicked yesterday, snowdrops and primroses in the stream-side moss. One almost faints…’

John Craxton, Reclining Figure with Asphodels I, 1983-4, private collection UK.

Any fans of Patrick Leigh Fermor’s travel writing will enjoy this small exhibition at the British Museum that delves into the extraordinary friendship between artists Niko Ghika, John Craxton and writer, Patrick Leigh Fermor. The trio met at the end of the Second World War and went on to become lifelong friends, spending much of their time in Greece. The exhibition focusses on Hydra, an island where Ghika’s family home became a central gathering place, Kardamyli where Leigh Fermor built a house with his wife Joan, Chania on Crete where Craxton restored a house and finally Corfu, where Ghika and his second wife Barbara transformed an old building into an idyllic home and garden. A shared love of Greece and its sights, sounds, colours and people is evident in the work of all three men.

John Craxton, Fish Market, Poros, 1952. © Craxton Estate, London.

Having loved the covers of Patrick Leigh Fermor’s A Time of Gifts and Between the Woods and the Water, it’s interesting to see Craxton’s original artworks for the book covers on display, as well as evocative paintings that transport you to the familiar Greece of summer holidays past. There are also some fascinating photographs of Craxton with Churchill, Niarchos and Onassis, as well as pictures that document the building of the Leigh Fermor house at Kardamyli where they received a constant stream of famous visitors and wartime friends.

Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghika, The Assault, 1946. Private Collection © Kalfayan Galleries, Athens, Thessaloniki.

Alongside the free exhibition The British Museum is running a number of talks:

Niko Ghika: from rocky Hydra to the gardens of Corfu on Tuesday 20 March 2018 at 1.15pm, free

Paddy Leigh Fermor and friends in Greece on Friday 27 April 2018 at 1.15pm, free

John Julius Norwich and Artemis Cooper in conversation on Patrick Leigh Fermor on Thursday 17 May 2018 at 1.30pm, free but early booking advised

Curators’ introduction to Charmed lives in Greece: Ghika, Craxton, Leigh Fermor on Thursday 24 May 2018 at 1.30pm, free but early booking advised

Michael Palin on what makes a great travel writer on Friday 15 June 2018 at 6.30pm, £5, early booking advised.