Last days of summer - Brunching and Lunching in London

 

A few weeks ago now we visited a couple of friends in London, making the most of some of the last days of summer by spending a weekend with people we don't see often enough.

We wanted to stay away from the busy shopping streets, take in a bit of culture and (most importantly) catch up over brunch!
We were staying with our friends in East London so spent our first morning wandering around Spitalfields in the sun, popping in to shops, exploring Brick Lane Market and pretty much building up an appetite for brunch. Luckily enough we were right around the corner from The Breakfast Club.

Having been warned about the size of the brunches I was still fairly confident I could finish off this beast.

 

A stack of 2 buttermilk pancakes, with crispy bacon, poached egg, sausage and fried potatoes with maple syrup. Every bit of it was delicious and though I had to take a couple of breaks I am proud to say that my reputation is intact - and I finished the whole plate. Which is particularly impressive because there was no breakfast tea or fruit juice on the side, oh no, we all ordered boozy milkshakes - salted caramel and rum milkshakes no less.

When we were thoroughly full of food, we decided to walk it off and take in some culture - real two birds one stone stuff - with a trip to see the Jeff Koon's exhibition at Newport Street Gallery.

The exhibition was a good mixture of fun and clever - and contained the type of exhibitions you just want to reach out and touch - but don't, that won't go down too well.

Even though you're told that these amazing balloon looking sculptures are made of aluminium (I know, right?) you still won't believe it, even when stood with your nose as close as you dare without actually touching!

The pieces also make really cool photo opportunities which make you look like you're posing for a 1990's album cover, which we took full opportunity of.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's one room you can't take photos in - so I'll leave that one for you to discover. There's only 2 weeks left so you will need to be quick, but the exhibition is great fun, and completely subverts what you think you know about art.

So, having walked off most of our brunch we decided we needed a bit of sustenance in the form of a cocktail at Pharmacy2 - the Damien Hirst designed restaurant that you'll find on the middle floor.

It's delightfully different and (unsurprisingly from the name) based on a pharmacy, and they do a pretty good cocktail.

Just the place to round off our trip, before heading back out in to the sun, and back to our friends house for a BBQ - what better way to enjoy the last of the summer.