Byron Burger

So...

We got an invite to a preview evening at the new Byron Burger opening in MK. Thought I'd let you all know what I thought.

Firstly the venue...

Loved it, light, spacious, loads of tables - but not crowded.

Staff were friendly & service was fast.

Now onto the important stuff - the food!

The Mr ordered a vanilla shake with malt - which he said was one of the best shakes he's ever had & I ordered elderflower presse which was lovely.

We both ordered the limited edition burger on the menu - which had a limited selection of burgers - he ordered fries as his side I ordered mac n cheese.

The burgers looked amazing & were juicy & full of flavour. They cook them medium which was perfect for The Mr - but I prefer mine cooked a bit longer & will ask for this next time.

The fries were good fries but the Mac n cheese was AMAZING!!! By far the best part of the meal for me & would come back just for this! 

If you go to a Byron defo try this as a side - you won't be disappointed!!

Will be back to Byron very soon!

Have you been to a Byron? What did you think?? 

How did I get on 13 in 13??? Whats next?

I set myself the 13 in 13 last year and wanted to have a quick review and see what this year plan might be?

1. Start a blog & make more comments on blogs I read – DONE & DONE – with limited success…. But I give myself a tick for this one.

2. Get more organised/de-clutter – DONE – well sort of – we did have a HUGE de-clutter – but this doesn't mean it is a finished task – I feel this is something that will be an ongoing project for the rest of my life – the constant cycle of de-clutter/sort out/ thin things out….

3. Garden – DONE – the grass is short – the patio exists (needs to be jet washed once winter has passed) the garden is usable! YAY!

4. Write letters/keep in touch – DONE – I have written several letters to my mum in Australia and have kept more in touch with family members that I usually do – YAY!

5. Get fit & Health – FAIL – oh dear…. I have truly done next to nothing on this over the past 12 months – opps…

6. Go on dates (With the Mr) – We spend most of our free time together – but not necessarily on proper dates – I think we went on a few but don’t feel I achieved this one properly.

7. Save £/make £ - this was an evolving subject – there were times throughout the year where very little £ was spent on anything unless absolutely necessary and times where we were more frivolous – so I say DONE as I have definitely got more of an awareness of what I spend on things I don’t need (tell that to all of the parcels that have been delivered from things I brought in the sales!!)

8. Capture the moment – DONE – We have had a few family meals recently and I was very aware of making sure we took some photo’s to capture the event - I love looking back at memories.

9. Appreciate and enjoy what I’ve already got – I think this another ongoing subject for me – ONGOING

10. Initiate plans with friends – DONE – I have been aware of making more of an effort in the coffee invites and lunches etc..

11. Do it now – ONGOING – my innate ability to be lazy often takes over – could do better :)

12. Book 3 weekend breaks – FAIL – total and utter fail – we didn't do ANY weekends away that weren't with family – defo want to try again with this one this year.

13. Ride my bike -  FAIL – another absolute fail on this one – the bike hasn’t made it’s way out of the shed – lets see if we can try again this year.

OK – so that’s how I got on with my task list from 2013.

I’ve decided that I’m, going to carry forward the Fails into this year as they are still things that I would like to do or get going with at least and maybe add a few into the mix aswell.

Another post to follow on what the 2014 aims are.

Do you set goals?

What are yours for 2014?

Diner dinner dates

We have a couple of American diners in MK and as we have a week off work & a few pennies to spend we have had a couple of diner dinner dates.

The newest arrival is Lone star Bar & Grill, this was our 2nd visit after not being very impressed the first visit we thought we'd give it another bash. We were glad we did, the toasted marshmallow milkshake is to die for! I'd go there just for one of these  - I'm now a milkshake covert!

We were also offered some pretzels while we waited for our food.

I had a PoBoy (southern fried king prawn sub) with a side of pulled pork & The Mr had a chilli dog with a huge portion of bacon Mac & Cheese - well what a feast! Steer clear of the sharing platter & go for a burger or sub - they were great (so good I forgot to take a pic before I'd finished half of mine!)

They could do with working on their atmosphere as its a bit flat but the food was good.

2nd up is an old favourite Buddies USA. Buddies has a few local outlets so I guess could be considered a small chain - but independently owned.

We hadn't been to a Buddies for a while and they had introduced a new burger The Juicy Lucy a burger with cheese 'inside' the middle of the beef burger. Buddies if famous for its burger toppings so I went for my favourite The Fat Boy (pulled pork) with the addition of gravy and pastrami one my 'loaded fries'

The Mr had a Schwarzenegger (cheese, mushroom & bacon) with the addition of an egg. He also loaded his fries with pouring cheese and pastrami - please note the token sweet corn on the side - there were not eaten as there was no room left after the mountains of burger and cheese!

The verdict - lone star win on milkshakes, buddies win on atmosphere & crazyness of food selection will defo be visiting both again.

Ghost the stage show

A few weeks ago we had a weekend away at my Aunts in Manchester.

Part of this trip was a visit to the theatre.

They are big theatre goers & recommended this show. I had of course seen the film so knew the story & thought I knew what I was in for.

Well what can I say....

It was amazing!!!

The use of effects, stage trickery & lighting was captivating & allowed them to add a depth of movement not often seen on stage. 

The cast were amazing & it literally has me sobbing in places, I'm a softy anyway but even the most hardened of our group had a lump in their throats.

The highlight of the show was of course the Oda Mae Brown character who had us all laughing out loud & thankfully brought some much needed smiles through the many moments of tears.

Me & the Mr both thought I was THE BEST show we have seen so if its coming to a theatre near you any time give it a watch - but wear waterproof mascara & take some tissues & sunglasses!!!

Enjoy! 

Wimbledon

Wow....

What a match!!

I'm not a tennis fan but started watching half way through and was gripped.

I won't pretend to understand tennis or how it's scored but you could tell by the crowds reaction what was going on & there were some very tense moments.

Well done Andy, you've worked very hard over the years & finally Wimbledon is yours.

I was welling up when he won, felt a huge amounts of pride & achievement for him & may have celebrated with a few ciders & new blackberry pimms ( which is very nice - nicer than original pimms if you ask me)

Did you watch it? Was your heart in your mouth???

  

6 months in......

So..... 6 months in & how have I been getting on???

 Well - the blogging has been a bit of a fail.. Posts dried up pretty quickly - but here is a post so looks like I'm giving it another go. 1/10

 The decluttering is an ongoing mission - lots of clothes & unused items have found their way to charity & new homes - so 5/10 for that one.

 Gardening, now this one is much better :) we regularly sit out in the garden for coffee or more recently just to enjoy the sun, the lawn is lovely and green and regularly mowed. 8/10

 Writing letters - have only written 1 so far this yr, dreddful, have even purchased pretty writing paper, so defo a could do better on this one. 1/10

Get fit & healthy - ahh another one not on top of, I am walking my pooch & have tried to get back on the diet wagon, but am nowhere near losing that stone - 2/10

Go on dates - this one has been ok, dinners to new restaurants, cinema trips, days out to lacal events. Maybe not dress up & taxi dates - but quality time non the less - 7/10

Save/make money - 50:50 on this one. I've given loads to charity that could have been sold, but in the interests of decluttering I just wanted it gone. I do have a few nice items that a friend is going to eBay for me and have curbed my spending. So maybe 6/10

Capture the moment - if taking pictures of food counts then this one us in the bag. Sadly I'm not sure it does. 4/10

Enjoy what I've got - this one has been very good, whilst decluttering I've found lots of forgotten items that are now in regular use. 7/10

 Initiate plans with friends - a few lunches, charity shopping days have been arranged by me - another could do better though - 5/10

 Do it now - I do it now (sometimes) 5/10

 3 weekend breaks - we are staying away for the weekend but at my aunts next weekend - finances has meant that weekends away haven't been top of my agenda - but I've still hot 6 months to see if I can squeeze this one in 2/10

 Ride my bike - not happened, not even once 0/10

 Oh dear - it doesn't look like I'm doing very well does it. How are you getting on??

SNOW – SNOW – SNOW

This is my obligatory snow post.

I don’t know about you but I don’t mind a bit of snow as long as I can stay in the warm and look at it from the safety of my sofa.

Driving in it, walking in it, shoveling it, no thank you, I think I'm just not a fan of being cold & wet.

I would though like to give a HUGE hats off to the gritting team in Milton Keynes @Twit4GritMK, the roads have been amazingly clear due to their tireless efforts of repeated gritting and ploughing away of snow throughout the nights. I can't thank them enough for keeping MK moving and making it much safer for everyone to get around.

Are you a snow lover? Whats the snow been like in your area?