Five Of My Favourites !

Well its very nearly Christmas and all I wish for now is some snow! Walking the dog this morning everywhere was frosty and white, made me really feel in the festive spirit. One of the best things personally at this time of the year is the food and celebrations associated with Christmas and New Year, so this week I have  decided to blog about 5 of my favourite places to eat. Some on cruise ships, some not.

Fed Olsen Balmoral. I always enjoy the food on Fred`s ships and Balmoral last year was no exception. The quality of the meals are excellent, in fact the fillet steak I had was one of the best I`ve tasted. Maybe the presentation is not so ” Celebrity Chef” style but who cares if the food is good.

Talking of Celebrity Chefs, the best food I have had at sea was at Todd English on Queen Mary during a transatlantic crossing to New York a few years ago. The food was superb, the only problem was we made the mistake of booking lunch and the portions were so big we didn’t need dinner that night !I am really sad to see that the restaurant has now been changed to the Verandah Restaurant during her recent refurbishment.

If you are ever in North Norfolk give the Orange Tree at Thornham a try. This is a lovely country pub serving excellent food ( and wines ), lovely atmosphere, dog friendly and always busy so best to book. Their OT Balti curry is to die for and the pudding delicious. The fish and chips are good too!

One of the most surprising places on my list is Cagney`s Steakhouse on Norwegian Escape. I say surprising because for some odd reason I never expected the food to be good on NCL`s ship but it is, and really good too. The cover charge depends on what you chose from the menu. Not cheap but well worth giving it a try and a great atmosphere to go with it.

Last, but not least, Friday this week will see our annual girls Christmas lunch. Ten of us will head off to one of our favourite local restaurants The Butchers Arms at Priors Hardwick. It will be turkey and trimmings all the way. Yes its an old fashioned restaurant, the food is not the best in the world but the atmosphere makes up for it especially at Christmas – can`t wait !