I was so excited to take over EAT. I was brimming full of ideas, had invites to visit various places and then the unthinkable happened. I lost my appetite. It completely disappeared overnight. Those that know me know that I have never been a massive eater. I am certainly no Tarrare (aka – The Man Who Ate Everything). I prefer to try a bit of everything and savour the flavour, probably having leftovers over the next few days. That said, there are probably a few exceptions, especially in the case of BBQs where I could happily graze all day. But eating 3 regular courses in one sitting has always been hard for me. Please note, I do not have any kind of eating disorder. I know a number of people that have experienced these conditions and they have had to deal with them in a variety of ways. What I figured out in this time is that I had been experiencing a great deal of stress. I took on too much work, took on a lot of other people’s problems and left no time for myself. Rather than being a stress eater, I go completely the other way and cannot eat anything at all. It is as though my throat is completely blocked. What great timing for this to happen! As a result, I’ve spent the past few months dealing with/removing the various things that have been stressing me out. Thankfully, with the support of family and friends, things have become a lot easier and I am finally hungry again! In the past few weeks, I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy a cheese and wine night at The Beer Seller, try a few new seasonal dishes at Verdigris and even a trip out to The Old Auction House for some Raclette. As my stress subsides there is a lot more foodie fun to come, so please watch this space.
Category: General
EAT 2.0 – The Reviewer Returns!
Hello everybody! Hope you have all been enjoying the intermittently hot summer. Since I took over EAT from the lovely Caroline, I’ve been toiling away to connect with recently opened businesses (I’m looking at you Filakia and your sexy whipped Feta), reacquainting myself with established ones (Hi Goupie!) and moving the blog to a new platform. I guess I should probably tell you a little about me. I’ve lived in Tonbridge for the overwhelming majority of my past 40 years on this planet and absolutely love my hometown. It’s certainly changed a lot over the past 5 years or so, which is very exciting for a foodie like myself. I think that variety of choice we have is fabulous and I can only see it improving over time. One major change worth noting is the rise and rise of International Food shops. I almost cried when Organic Village Market started selling bread, the smell alone fills me with joy. I’ve also been known to enjoy a wine or two, which has led me to do a few wine exams (purely for educational purposes obviously…) and get super excited about the fact that Verdigris now do over 40 wines by the glass. We also now have the wonderful Carafe distributing a carefully curated selection of wines, from their base just down the road. Another place worthy of note is the great Escape Art Centre. Fantastic exhibitions aside, their wine list was created by none other than the Editor of Decanter Magazine. Lock up your cellars people, I’m going to try it all! It has been great to see the town bursting back into life in recent weeks. The Nelson Arms has restarted its live music schedule, so you can listen to some fabulous tunes alongside a great burger and a cheeky pint from the West Kent CAMRA Pub (and Cider Pub) of the year. The Beer Seller are continuing to sell a great selection of beer and wine and have even organised a festival, complete with great local acts for this coming bank holiday weekend from 27th August. As you can probably tell, I haven’t even scratched the surface of what the great town has to offer. But I’m certainly going to do my best! I look forward to sharing more with you all. Speak soon – Your New Eat Reviewer x