Thai Restaurant, Oxford

Thaikhun

A new Thai restaurant has opened up in Oxford called Thaikhun and as I have this never ending crave for Thai food, I literally couldn't wait to go visit. My love for Thai food began when I was introduced to it in Thailand on my gap year and ever since, I've been waiting for a place that serves some classic dishes. So its about time a good restaurant opened up! 

And no surprises that I was there in the first few weeks of it opening...

The interior was absolutely amazing with the ceiling and walls being filled with typical items you would see in Thailand and it really felt like I was back there again. The staff greeted us with a bow, friendly Thai hello 'Sawadee Ka' and seated us to our very authentic table. 

The whole environment felt very much thought of, including the menu that was full of bright colours and mouth-watering food. The best thing was that the food was even more delicious and picture-worthy when it arrived to the table. We ordered just a wide range so we got to taste a bit of everything!

It is so great to see such a great Thai restaurant open in Oxford as it really is one of my favourite cuisines. I couldn't pick a favourite dish, but I always find that pad thai is an all time classic. I cannot wait to go more often with Sam, family and friends and taste more of what is on offer. 

Do you know of any local Thai restaurant near you that are worth visiting?

I'd love to hear all about them! So comment below :)

Love Anna x

My Birthday

Gees, Oxford

This year, for my birthday I hadn't planned to do much, I just wanted to spent some time with my family and boyfriend and have some fun. So the day before we went to a trampoline park in Milton Keynes, which was so much fun! Then on the following day, my sister booked for us to go to Gees in Summerton, Oxford. Gees is a restaurant that use to be a garden shop so with a glass conservatory, it really is such a pretty place to look into. Every time I've passed it, I've wanted to go there and finally I got the chance! And I got to say...it definitely didn't fall short of my expectations. 

When we arrived, we seated to our table that was just in the middle with the conservatory to our left on the kitchen on our right, which was nice as we got to see a bit of everything. The menu was already laid out and I noticed that it was printed for Sunday 8th February so I had to make sure I kept a copy for memory sake. 

To get us started we ordered a couple of drinks and I decided to go for an elderflower presse, thinking that it was the ordinary glass bottled ones. But I was glad when they were brought to our table and they were presented all lovely in glasses. 

We don't usually eat starters but we decided to try some out, so we ordered a couple to get us going but not too much so we could still enjoy our main meals. We tried out the squid, mussels and aubergine falafel. I'm a big fan of falafel so I really wanted to try it out and I enjoyed it just as much as original falafel. It had a hint of aubergine but enough to make the taste really nice.

Then our mains came and we got quite a variety of different dishes. This meant more sharing which is great for me and my greedy appetite!
I ordered the pollock with saffron mash and there was also grilled tuna steak, rabbit (which I was really against!) and a roast! They all looked great and more importantly tasted absolutely amazing. A successful meal as everyone managed to polish off their plates, which is another sign of how delicious it was!

Afterwards, they brought out my cute birthday cake that my mum personally made and sang happy birthday. The cake was such a perfect size, it was easy to take and we managed to finish it all between us too!
I've always loved my mum's cakes because she's made these for us our whole lives.

I honestly had such a lovely birthday this year and I am so happy that I got to spend it with my family and my boyfriend. I was so spoilt in terms of what I got to do, my birthday wishes and my birthday gifts so I'm very grateful for it all and I couldn't have asked for a better weekend! Thank you all to those who wished me happy birthday, to all those that I got to see and to all those who were crazy enough to buy me the best presents ever, you made it a memorable day for me <3

Love Anna x

The Perch, Oxford

Winter Walk & Lunch at The Perch, Oxford

It was recently my boyfriend's birthday and for his birthday we took a stroll through Port Meadow then had lunch at The Perch in Oxford, which is a historic and rustic pub that is tucked away behind the meadow. It was my first time there and I was so impressed with the food that was served and the environment. 

When the food was served I just couldn't resist snapping up a few photographs for my blog because the food and plating was just so lovely. 

First up was starters, I shared my boyfriend's because I made a silly mistake of eating quite a lot for breakfast, so wanted to make sure I wasn't too full for my main. His was a really delicious parnsip soup served with bread on the side. 

For my main I ordered leek and parsnip cakes with cider and rosemary sauce. I was so pleasantly surprised when it arrived because the cakes had strips of parsnip on top that really decorated it well. It tasted so amazing too and the sauce complemented it perfectly. I definitely recommend this dish to anyone visiting The Perch. 

My boyfriend went for the burger and even that looked very cute on its plate. The tomato relish was such a good dipping sauce for the chips. 

Finally, dessert...and I'm a girl who definitely cannot go without having something sweet to finish off, so dessert was a must. I ordered something I had never tried before and usually this backfires for me, however when the Hedgerow Fool arrived, I knew I had picked well. It was a mixture of berries and yoghurt served in a glass with a shortbread biscuit on the side. 

All in all, it was a wonderful lunch and the perfect place to visit on a cold winters afternoon. I love going for walks and visiting new, hidden away places. The Perch is such a rustic place with some of the most appetising food I had ever tasted. I must admit I was pleasantly surprised and would definitely recommend it to anyone who is visiting Oxford or near.

Have you recently come across any hidden gems around your town/city? I know I love finding new ones, so please do recommend any in the comments below! 

Love Anna, x

Browns, Oxford

Champagne Afternoon Tea for Three!

As a birthday treat for one of my best friends, I booked a table for us and another bestie to have some afternoon tea at Browns in Oxford. I have never had high tea before and so as a belated birthday present, we decided to indulge and go for some bubbly and yummy treats! 

Since I had already pre-booked the table and meal plan, when we arrived, we were immediately asked for our drink preferences and then served the food. It was such a cute experience, as all the foods were tiny and perfect for me, since I like a bite of everything! The champagne afternoon tea included a glass of champagne, 3 sandwiches, 3 sweet desserts, scones and a hot drink, which was all so filling. You can imagine all that squished only one small circular table was a little crazy as well!

All the foods were delicious and extremely filling! I enjoyed having a nice treat with my favourite girls and made us all so excited for Christmas! Since I hardly get to see my high school friends as often as I like, due to our busy lives, it was lovely catching up with some mini bites. 

I'm really into this whole afternoon tea lunches, so I'd love to hear all the places you have all been for some great afternoon teas! I definitely want to go to some more and I have my eye on The Raldolph Hotel, Oxford as my next visit! So please do link me to your blog posts or comment any recommendations down below. 

Also wishing my bestie a Happy Birthday <3 

Love Anna x