on the bab

Korean cuisine is something of a comfort food for me - I'm not sure why exactly, but I think it's partly because I grew up in Wimbledon, which is close to New Malden, which is a Korean hub and have great restaurants and Korean supermarkets. We also frequented Cah-Chi (a very good, family run restaurant which I'd recommend if you're in the area!) and it became our go-to as a family, so that probably has something to do with it as well.

In any case, Korean food - and Korean street food in particular - has been rising on the trend-o-meter of the London food scene, and one of the new (well, not so very new now but still fresh) hotspots is On The Bab in Covent Garden.

After being tortured by endless photos on Instagram of others feasting there, I finally made it with my sister for a relaxed, quick weekday lunch. We were able to get a table right away, but it was pretty busy and I imagine there are queues in the evenings and weekends.

The menu is varied, with many of the dishes offering a choice of meats and vegetarian options, and everything I've seen from there looks so appetising! But we stuck to a reasonable amount of food, and here's what we got:

"On The Bab" on the buns with spicy pork

Korean fried chicken with seasoned spring onion

"On The Roll" Korean style rice burrito with bulgogi beef

Broccoli Salad with Korean mayo

I thought everything was very fresh, flavourful and pretty filling - I enjoyed every dish, except the broccoli salad was a bit underwhelming. There was more mayo than broccoli, which is sometimes a good thing, but it wasn't exactly a salad. Other than that, we both devoured the lot and agreed that it was very delicious - I could easily have had one portion of that Korean burrito for a quick lunch, and it tasted pretty healthy too! 

I'd definitely recommend checking it out if you haven't already (it's amazing how quickly the London foodies make it to new restaurants! I always feel like I'm one of the last to try them) - it's certainly one to go for to avoid some of the tourist traps that Covent Garden has in abundance. 

On The Bab

36 Wellington Street

WC2E 7BD

020 7240 5568

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inventing impressionism @ the national gallery

This is a very "quick turnaround" post as I only visited this exhibition on Sunday, but since it ends at the end of the month, I desperately wanted to share it with you as I think it is one of the best ones I've been to.

That is, of course, a very subjective statement, because we all have different tastes when it comes to art of any nature. But my favourite period in visual art has always been the Impressionist movement, and if I had to choose just one artist to cover my walls with (one can dream), it would be Claude Monet.

So I went to the Inventing Impressionism exhibition, hoping that my expectations would be met - and they were. 

Over 80 paintings are on display that tell the story of the art dealer Paul Durand-Ruel, who was a true believer of the Impressionist movement and supported the artists who are some of the most renowned names today. I have always admired individuals who put their faith and passion into artists (whether they are visual, musical, theatrical, etc.) who were not so easily and well received in their time, and morally and financially helped them towards recognition. Durand-Ruel was exactly this kind of man, and all the paintings on display had passed through his hands at one point or another. 

I don't want to talk for too long about it, as you'll learn so much more about all of this if you go! Which I really hope you do, because there are some iconic masterpieces in that exhibition which are not to be missed. The National Gallery exhibitions always offer fantastic audio guides too, which we always take advantage of and enjoy - I'd highly recommend it.

It happened to be a beautiful day on Sunday, so I had the best afternoon having lunch with E (at Kanada-Ya, still the best ramen in London!) and strolling around in the sunshine. London is a real beauty when the sky is blue, isn't it?

I've added a few of my favourite picks from the exhibition at the end (there was a very subpar collection of postcards) - Poplars by Monet, Dancing Couple by Renoir and Pont Boieldieu by Pissaro.

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WA café

When we were flat-hunting a year and a half ago, it was a nightmare - as all Londoners will well know. We have specific requirements for the kind of flat we need to live in for our work - which meant that it automatically ruled out many nice, cheaper alternatives - and we were on the hunt for 3 weeks, looking at properties nearly everyday. But now that we've been living in our area for a good while, we are so, so happy to have chosen it as our home, and we constantly tell each other how much we enjoy living here.

The many perks include excellent transport links, living on a quiet residential street right around the corner from all the shops, banks and other essentials that we could possibly need, being surrounded by several green areas including a convenient running path through one of them, and good places to eat just a few minutes' walk away.

But now. Now, we have the number one reason why we love living here... the thing that will bind us to this area for life... and I'm only very slightly exaggerating. Meet our delicious neighbour, WA café.

I actually discovered this place entirely by accident, as it's on the other side of the station that I don't ordinarily walk past. I spotted it whilst on the bus, and when I hopped off, I went over to check what it was. And I was ridiculously excited to find that it was a beautiful Japanese café and bakery. 

One of the things I love most about my home country, of course, is the food. They obviously have all the Japanese food perfected, but they also do Western food like no other place. Their bakeries and patisseries are consistently gorgeous, and WA café is the best of its kind that you will find in this continent, I'm convinced of it.

From their impeccable cakes to the authentic "curry bun" (fried buns with Japanese curry inside), their matcha lattes and their huge gourmet sandwiches with homemade bread, E and I have loved every bite that has come out of this café and we have fallen hard for them. They make and bake everything on site, and each item comes out as they are freshly made in the kitchen.

The café itself is minimally decorated but beautiful nonetheless, but as we live so close, we've taken most of what we've tried to-go. And I'm slightly embarrassed to see the photos of all the things we've already eaten from here... but I have to be honest in my reviews! Yes, we have tried all of the following (though my sister was visiting recently and some of them were eaten with and taken by her, ok?), and yes, we loved every single thing. 

Here's a rundown of the items you'll drool over below, in order:

Japanese Curry Bun

Matcha Roll Cake

Mini Chicken Kara-age Roll

Sakura Cake

Chicken Katsu Sandwich

Chicken Teriyaki Sandwich

White Sesame Cheesecake

Azuki Bean Twist

Soufflé Cheesecake

Choux Cream Trio (with black sesame, matcha and vanilla custard)

Chocolate & Praline Cake

Matcha Latte

Ham & Cheese

Chicken Teriyaki Mayo

Melon Pan

Although it looks like we must have cleaned out the place, I promise that a) these were all spread out across several weeks (how many counts as several? 3?) and b) we've probably only tried about half of what they offer, which has me very excited. They change up their items daily, and I'm pretty sure that within the next few months, we'll have eaten our way through their whole menu. 

I think that this must be the most glowing review of any place I've every written on WTW - but they are fully deserving of it. I have no doubt that they'll only continue to get more and more popular, and there is no better feeling for us than to know that we are supporting an independent, local business while stuffing ourselves silly with such deliciousness.

It may seem far on the map (and it will be far if you live in East London - sorry!), but it's only 20 minutes away from Bond Street, 20 minutes from Earl's Court, 10 minutes from Paddington, and if you're visiting London and landing in Heathrow, it takes 20 minutes on a direct train and you could be tucking into some of this. Just saying.

Do me a favour and go. And when you do, let me know and I might just pop over and join you.

WA café

32 Haven Green

W5 2NX

020 8991 7855

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