Last year I promised my beloved Diane that we would celebrate her April birthday in Paris. It didn’t happen. And it doesn’t look good for this year either, but we can still enjoy some Parisian comfort food – croque monsieur.
Continue reading “APRIL IN PARIS”
In a surprise move, the former president is joining forces with two well-known companies to launch the world’s first cruise line with a circus theme.
Our wine scribe Jim Walker enjoys everything about wine – from the glorious places the grapes are grown to the truly marvellous people who farm the grapes and turn them into the elixirs he loves so well. But, there is one fly in his vinous ointment. Read on to find out what it is.
Continue reading “THAT WRETCHED CORK!”
When the Covid-19 pandemic started, it caused panic buying of household staples like toilet paper and hand sanitizer. Now, the panic buying has moved on to world cruises where extended voyages to multiple continents are selling out years in advance for huge sums of money.
Continue reading “WORLD CRUISES SELLING OUT IN RECORD TIME”
A few weeks ago, I started experimenting with easy Americanized Chinese food—chop suey and chow mein. Here’s another tasty stir fry—lo mein.
Continue reading “THE HI AND LO OF CHINESE CHOW”
During this wretched you-know-what we have to comfort ourselves with whatever drink we have to hand. And so I have been exploring the depths of the Scotch Bucket and discovering some truly great whiskies. The bucket is now half empty, but at least we’re down to the really, really good stuff. Alas, I have no one to share it with due to social distancing, so I shall have to just tough it out and imbibe on my own. Continue reading “THE SCOTCH BUCKET IS ALMOST EMPTY”
We were curious to find out what our wine scribe Jim Walker had been drinking during the pandemic and thought it would make an interesting topic for his next Gentleman’s portion contribution. He was reluctant to tell us at first for fear that we, and our readers, would think he was being a bit braggy. However, he relented. Here’s what he’s uncorked. We are more than a little bit envious.
Continue reading “SO, WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DRINKING?”
During the Golden Era of cruising, ocean liners became the epitome of romance with many assignations, love affairs and honeymoons conducted at sea. But the decline of trans-Atlantic crossings by ship combined with mass-marketing of floating theme parks at sea changed that image. The only question is ‘would Cupid approve’ of the outcome.
Continue reading “ROMANCE ON THE HIGH SEAS”
During times of stress, we need comfort food more than ever. I’ve re-discovered delicious duchess potatoes–mashed potatoes, butter, garlic, cheese. How good could that be?
Once, when we were very young, I ventured into the strange world of stir fry. Now I’ve decided to tackle the Americanized version of Chinese food again.
Gentlemans Portion 