food

Slimming World- my week 2 results

- TracyB Leave a comment

So after last weeks weigh in and loss of 3lb I had a visit to one of those Ice cream/waffle places with some friends and thought I would treat myself!

kaspas ice cream

I did indulge in this caramel concoction which was worth every spoonful. This was on the Tuesday (the day after weigh in) so I thought that after this I would be strict on plan and hopefully it wouldn’t make much of an impact.

When i went to my Monday evening weigh in I was kind of nervous. I had been on plan ever since the ice cream and never really used up many of my daily sins that week. I was hoping for a 1-2lb loss if I am perfectly honest ( and I even turned down a take away on the Sunday evening as we had been out all day).

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Slimming World week 1 my results

- TracyB 4 Comments

So, I completed my first week following the Slimming World plan, a fairly easy one to work out and follow in my opinion. I was able to be completely on plan all week as I wasn’t really anywhere or had any plans that would throw any major temptation in my way. I am a sociable drinker only so I don’t really sit every evening with a glass of wine ( although I can drink like a lush when I am out in company!). Therefore, for me the syns tallied on alcohol only matters if I go out. In that respect I found that I wasn’t using any where near my limit of syns per day so far.

My weigh in is on a Monday at 5.30pm although I think I my change to the Monday morning club that runs at 9.30 as I found that last night I didn’t end up eating until 8.30pm and took a migraine while I was at the meeting, so I do not want a repeat of that.

I have to say I was actually quite nervous when I was waiting to be weighed, although I knew I had been on plan but I still felt quite bloated ( although I don’t have a period I still have the joys of the bloating and pains) and so I was preparing myself to have stayed the same.

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My decision to start Slimming World

- TracyB 2 Comments

I have been unhappy with my weight for some time, probably for a good year or so and my clothing now all resembles everything loose and flowy (which doesn’t help to be honest!)

The weight has slowly crept on over a long period of time, little by little, until I have gone up a size or two in dress size and now even those are no longer fitting comfortably. Everything I buy is cover up, long, oversized with a vest top underneath to help hold things in. I am on the short side at only 5′ 2″ so any extra weight at all has nowhere to hide. I have felt uncomfortable, fat and self conscious for a while and hate squeezing into clothes that never fit properly. It’s not just the fact I have to go up a size its more the fact I have an awkward shape as I put all my weight on around my middle. This means when I go up a size to fit my middle I end up looking like I’m a kid waiting to grow into my new school uniform!

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Bella Italia Oprington review

- TracyB Leave a comment

This time last week I had the chance to pop along the the new branch of Bella Italia that has opened in Orpington just next to the new cinema complex at The Walnuts centre. I have to admit it has been a few years since I was in a Bella Italia restaurant and so I was interested to see what had changed both in style and menu.

On entering the quirky style decor caught my eye immediately with vibrant colours and fabulous wall art. What did catch my attention was the brilliant use of lots of huge old picture frames painted in bright colours that made up the so called ceiling which you could see much higher up. I also adored the wire framed bulb lights which really suited the style perfectly.

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Ashford Eureka Park Beefeater review

- TracyB Leave a comment

I was recently asked to go along to this branch of Beefeater to review their menu ahead of Mother’s day and having not been down at this park before I was also interested to see what else was there.

We were booked into the restaurant for an earlyish meal around 6pm as a family of four before my eldest teen’s social like took priority and we became a party of three! When we arrived at Eureka Park it was clear to see the Beefeater was probably the main restaurant for the Premier Inn next to it and to be fair it seemed like it was one of the larger branches of the restaurant.

On entering it had a large bar area both with bar and table seating and seemed the perfect place for the people staying at the hotel to pop along in the evening and have a drink or some food. The reception area was a nice open space and we were greeted and seated straight away. Most of the seating in this branch is free standing tables and chairs however there is a diner style area of booth seating adjacent to the open cooking/ serving area and that’s were we were seated.

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Coast to Coast America Grill Bar- review

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Coast to Coast America Grill Bar- review

Last week I went along to the Coast To Coast American Grill Bar near Rochester to try out their menu and one of their lovely cocktails. I have never eaten in this chain of restaurants before so I was keen to try out something from their menu.

When we walked in it reminded me of another chain of ‘american grill style’ restaurants. It was nicely laid out with lots of booth seating and it automatically gave off a lively, fun, easy going feel.

We were seated in a circular booth seating area that looked over the restaurant and we could could also see the open style cooking area. It was a Saturday evening so the restaurant was fairly busy but this did not distract from the service we received while we were there.

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Review- Long Reach Beefeater, Whitstable

- TracyB Leave a comment

In all honesty I haven’t been to a Beefeater in a few years, therefore when I was invited to go along and review the newly refurbished The Long Reach Beefeater in Whitstable I jumped at the chance to see what they were like these days, I have seen lots of Beefeater restaurants pop up alongside Premier Inn’s as their resident eatery so unless I went in stayed there I probably wouldn’t think of going in to try it. Also Whitstable is one of my all time favourite places to have a day out so it was a good excuse for a little afternoon at the coast.

This particular Beefeater is attached to  Premier Inn just outside the main town, but had undergone a huge refurbishment at the the end of Oct 2015 when it closed for just a week for the work to be done.

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Lunch at Bexleyheath Marriott Hotel

- TracyB Leave a comment

I was recently invited to have lunch at my local Marriott Hotel in Bexleyheath and having only been in there once before many years ago for an afternoon tea with friends I took the opportunity to go and have a look at what was there. It has always ‘appeared’ quite business like to me as an outsider however, once you are inside the spacious and open reception area automatically that view is changed.

Love these light trees dotted about the hotel areas
Love these light trees dotted about the hotel areas

We were directed to the bar area which is much more informal than the restaurant looked and also had a different menu on offer. The bar had a welcoming feel with a mix of table styles, smaller ones with straight backed chairs as you would expect but also lower style tables surrounded by lovely comfy sofas for those who were just having a drink rather than eating.

While my friend and I was there we saw two other groups having an afternoon tea, as well as two ladies in their spa robes ( yes they have a spa here too) who wandered casually in for a drink and snacks in between their treatments which in fact we thought they were very brave to do so!

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Brewers Fayre- Midweek Value and Autumn menu

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Brewers Fayre- Midweek Value and Autumn menu

I will admit the only time I have used a Brewers Fayre is when I have stayed in a Premier Inn. It was a branch of the restaurant attached and each time we have been happy enough with the style of food and the choice offered.

Recently, in my local area a new Brewers Fayre has popped up next to a new hotel branch in Bexleyheath and I was lucky enough to get the chance to try out their menu.

In general there is a good varied choice of dishes available. But along side that there is a ‘midweek value’ style offer which allows you to get 2 mains off the list for £10.99, with the bonus of 2 starters for £2.50, and 2 desserts for £2.50.  Their fizzy soft drinks are also sold as a refillable option which offers amazing value when you have teenagers that eat and drink like adults. They also have added some new menu choices under an ‘Autumn range‘ throughout the main menu such as Cock- a – Leekie soup, Chicken and ham pie or even Smoked Haddock Florentine to name a couple.

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Chicago Town Takeaway pizza

- TracyB 1 Comment

Chicago Town Takeaway pizza- review

I am surrounded by boys in this house, teenage boys with the biggest one of all being my husband! Anyone out there with teenagers will know apart from the forced grunts of Hello and Goodbye the only time you see them is when they are down raiding the fridge and kitchen cupboards for food.

Therefore, when I was recently contacted to try the new Chicago Town Takeaway pizza I jumped at the chance.Let’s face it it’s pizza and generally 90% of what teens will agree to eat anyway.

Chicago Town pizza
Although other flavours were available we opted for these two

I will admit I personally am not a lover of frozen pizzas in any shape or form. I find they are overly processed and generally have bases that could break windows.

Our favourite pizza takeaway would always be Dominoes and they would generally retail around £15 mark for a large size. To be honest we always buy 2 large. Not only will they eat it that night but they also like a few slices left over for the next day. So, typical teens.

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