Eats | Gatehouse Coffee, Walmgate Bar, York

It was August Bank Holiday Monday in Britain - so of course it was raining. I wanted to go somewhere cozy to begin reading a history tome, and as I was strolling along I saw a sign for a coffee shop, set in the gatehouse of the ancient city walls of York. I made the decision to go and check it out.

I think the best way to describe the atmosphere and decor in this lovely, friendly little place was 'Gryffindor Common Room'. Essentially, it was a coffee shop inside an ancient castle. It was full of little nooks of seating and eclectic furniture. It even had a terrace area on top of the gatehouse, but due to the rain this was closed.

I had a hot cocoa with cream and marshmallows, with a mini brownie. It was all brought to me in my little reading nook and I was delighted to discover that the brownie had been heated to gently melting deliciousness. So delighted was I that I proceeded to have 2 more brownies after that. After all, for 30p each, who can complain? The hot chocolate was also very good and the range of teas and coffees looked broad, if you are a tea/coffee drinker.

This was a wonderful place to spend a rainy afternoon, so much so that I hesitate to tell anyone about it in case it gets too popular. Nevertheless, go and check it out - take a book or a friend and get cozy.

What I've Been Reading (II) | August 2015

Another few books that I have had the pleasure of reading this month, as we welcome in September! Two were from the library and one was a loan from another blogger, for whom I did a guest review. See below for details.

French Milk by Lucy Knisley

I have been lusting after another of Knisley's books on Amazon - 'Displacement' - so I was pleased to find this one in the library for me to have a taster. French Milk is a graphic memoir which follows the author and her mother on a month long trip to Paris for significant birthdays. What follows is a commentary on the French city, particularly focussed on the art and the food (clearly both beloved topics of the author). Being a fan of Guy Delisle's travelogues, I expected to enjoy Knisley's work in a similar manner, and I did. It was not as polished as Delisle, and perhaps that detracted a little from my enjoyment; however, the style of drawing and writing was pleasing and I hope to look for others of hers in the future. 

The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

This novel was also from the library and I picked it up as I am a sucker for historical fiction and have read all the previous books in this series, called The Cousins War, which is set during the English Wars of the Roses and follows significant royal and aristocratic women of the period. The White Princess focusses on Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV and wife of Henry VII. The story takes place after the Battle of Bosworth and the defeat of Richard III, when Henry VII becomes king and claims Elizabeth as his bride, to 'unite' the Lancaster and York factions of the country. As ever, Gregory is able to weave a consistent narrative around actual events whilst holding to her own interpretation of character's motives. This series (which begins with The White Queen) remains an enjoyable read, for those who know the period and those who need an introduction - especially those who appreciate a female perspective on an essential male dominated world.

Abraham Lincoln: Pocket Giants by Adam I P Smith

I was kindly asked by HistoryASM to review this book and I provided a guest review which can be read here. An excellent introduction and overview of Abraham Lincoln's life, this book was short, informative and well written. 

Eats | Banyan, York

In pursuit of a new burger place in York, my partner and I decided to try out Banyan, off Stonegate. We had heard a few good things about the place and I was intrigued by the menu. 

Oh year, it was good stuff. My partner had a bacon burger and I tried out the burger topped with beef brisket, blue cheese and bourbon BBQ sauce. It was delicious, and accompanied by fries which were both crispy and moist at the same time. On the side we also tried out some cheesy garlic bread, which similarly did not disappoint. On top of that, service was attentive and the atmosphere was relaxed. The whole meal including drinks came to around £30 which, for a seriously good burger, I was willing to pay.

We will be going back again, and I will be trying more of the appetising menu. If I can tear myself away from the beef brisket and blue cheese...

Days Out | Fountains Abbey, Ripon, North Yorkshire

Recently I went on a little day trip out into the North Yorkshire countryside and headed over to Fountains Abbey, near Ripon. A huge site, featuring a Elizabethan manor house and Georgian water gardens, my visit this time focussed on the ruins of the monastery that stood here from 1132 onwards. The ruins are beautiful; evocative and intriguing, beautiful and desolate. A perfect place to wander.

Fountains Abbey also has a reasonable cafe, toilets and the usual National Trust shop. There were loads of families about having picnics in the abbey grounds, with the children contentedly running amok amongst the ruins. 

£11.00 Adult, £5.50 Child, £27.50 Family. 

Free to National Trust members.

Eats | Ambiente Tapas Fossgate, York

Alan and I have regularly enjoyed trips to a little tapas restaurant which opened up behind York Minster a couple of years ago. It was vibrant, with an excellent choice of tapas, both hot and cold, with a wide selection of wines and sherries to choose from to drink. It was therefore with some interest that we noted that Ambiente had opened up a newer, larger premises, closer to our house, in Fossgate. We decided to go and give it a try.

I fear that we may have attended on a dud night. The food was perfectly reasonable, but dull. We ordered a selection of bruscetta style nibbles, with a few other items on the side, including calamari, goats cheese and patatas bravas (not pictured). It is hard to describe what was wrong with the food (with the exception of the calamari which was, frankly, so distasteful to me that I couldn't eat it - and I'm a calamari fiend) - but it was just 'meh'.

The bruschetta items were particularly disappointing. The bread was thick and the too doughy, the toppings too little to cover it. Perhaps some of it was our choices of dishes, but the whole thing felt rather starchy, heavy and unappetising.

In addition, we also suffered from some fairly inattentive waitressing and had to wait a long time for the food which, when it arrived, was disappointing.

As far as we are concerned, the Ambiente Tapas at Monkbar in York continues to be excellent. This new venture? Still needs some work, I think.

What I've Been Reading (I) | August 2015

This has been quite a productive reading month, so this is split up due to having to take several books back to the library. A mixed bag of young adult fantasy, classic juvenilia, crime and history.

 Panic by Lauren Oliver

I picked this up at the library having read 'Delirium' by the same author and feeling that this one might be similarly entertaining. Telling the story of a group of teenagers experiencing their final summer after school, this novel is different as at the centre of their story is a dangerous, secret game, played for a grand monetary prize. Each character has a different reason for choosing to participare and so, within this ongoing narrative, is a story of various teenage dramas, familial suffering and come of age details.

I enjoyed this, but I wouldn't say it was particularly memorable.

Lock No. 1 by Georges Simenon

I had heard about the release of these books from some book tubers, and when I saw one in the library I picked it up, as it was quite short and I enjoy a good crime novel.

I found this intriguing but it was not particularly gripping - this particular story, featuring a variety of suspects with animosity against a canal barge baron on the outskirts of Paris, fell flat with me. I felt no interest in the characters and Inspector Maigret, who is the central character of all these novels, was a bit of a shadowy figure.

Not yet put off, I will be trying another of these at some point, in case this was a dud story in the series. 

Heresy by S J Parris

Knowing my liking for C J Sansom's novels, my sister kindly lent this one to me. The central character, Giordano Bruno, is based on a real life character who was used by Francis Walsingham to spy against the Catholic threat under Queen Elizabeth I. This opening novel, set mostly in an Oxford college, has all the intrigue and claustrophobia of a country house murder combined with elements of 'The Name of the Rose' by Umberto Eco. It was entertaining and full of lively characters.

I am a sucker for Tudor history and I will be looking to read the rest of the series.

The Beautifull Cassandra by Jane Austen

One of my Penguin 80p classics, I enjoyed this with a glass of wine one evening. It is full of little stories written by a youthful Austen, for the entertainment of her family. They are not sophisticated and are full of the kind of melodrama that she later exorcises from her final novels. For all that, they are an insight into the development of a writer and the young narrative voice is diverting.

Elizabeth's Spy Master by Robert Hutchinson

Having read 'Heresy' earlier in the month, I picked up this short non fiction book about Sir Francis Walsingham and his spy network. The book covers Walsingham's early life and his time as an Ambassador in France, tracing some of his ardent anti-Catholicism to his presence at the St Bartholemew's Massacre, when the French Catholics rose up in Paris and massacred the Protestant Huguenots. It then moves on to the development of Walsingham's spy network, his use of cryptographers and ciphers, and his most famous case, the entrapment of Mary, Queen of Scots.

The book was interesting but for some reason, the writing style was quite boring. I cannot put my finger on it, but it did not work for me. What should be a narrative about the development of the first spy network was making me yawn by half way through. In the end, not my cup of tea.

Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill

My final selection was again, the result of listening to Book Tubers. A young adult novel set in a dystopian world where female children can no longer be conceived naturally, the story follows a group of 16 year old girls who are the ultimate designer test tube babies. 

Created to be perfect, they are brought up in a nunnery like school, separated from the outside world, trained only in the ways of pleasing men, either as wives or as concubines. This means that they are obsessed with their beauty, their bodies and their weight. They are trained to the day when they must meet the boys from the outside world, who will select those they wish to have as wives and those who are destined to be concubines; and, worst of all, those who they wish to have for neither.

This is a gripping but horrific read; it is centred on 2 girls, freida and isabel, who were once best friends but drift apart as the pressure of this final year of their school lives moves on. The novel is full of terrible scenes of body shaming, graphic discussions about eating disorders and a hugely obtuse attitude towards sex and love. 

I would recommend this novel to my adult friends, but I would be wary of actually letting a teenage girl read this. It is a powerful and dangerous read, meant to be a message, no doubt, about our ongoing preoccupation with appearances. Unfortunately, (spoiler alert) the conclusion to the novel leaves little chance of redemption for the characters and therefore no chance to amend many of the injustices of the novel. I will remember this one for a long time.

Eats | Veeno, York

I had wanted to go to Veeno for a while, ever since hearing it had opened up on Piccadilly in York. It is completely Alan's sort of place - wine and Italian nibbles. We decided spontaneously to get the other day and we were not disappointed. 

We chose to enjoy a bottle of the House Red (which was a lovely mix of Merlot and Nero D'Avola, and good value at £11), and several of the wine cafe's sharing platters, including a bruschetta selection, a meat and cheese board and some homemade breads with family made olive oil.

Everything was delicious, varied and perfect for supping with our bottle of red. We had cheeses which were smoky, spicy and creamy; a variety of cured meats, all with unique flavours, flavoursome bread with excellent olive oil, and bruschetta featuring sweet peppers, rich olive tapenade and a particularly potent chorizo paste.

Future trips will definitely include a bit more wine tasting - perhaps branching out into a few more of their recommendations - and certainly plenty more of their sharing boards. Service was friendly and attentive, the atmosphere was relaxed and convivial, perfect for my kind of night out.

We will be back and would highly recommend it. 

We're pretty intrigued by the Apericena, an Italian buffet and drink offer which takes place every Wednesday. Watch this space.