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" Address: Churchill House / 137 Brent Street / London / NW4 4DJ / Telephone: +44 (0)20 8457 2776 "
Belsize Park - London
Established in 1998
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Before I bit the bullet of entering a Giraffe; of my own accord - I did envisage the establishment via logo and brand as an affiliated joint connected to 'Glee' comedy clubs; 'having a Giraffe, laugh!' Easy mistake to make for a brand fiend such as myself, the elongated Giraffe type-set deemed mildly satirical, blatantly friendly; perhaps on the goofy side of serious humour. Funnily enough Giraffe's branding portrays nothing what it is... yes, it is a restaurant. I was deeply disappointed that satire wasn't at the foremost of thought, but it gave me food for thought. I then scanned earnestly to see if giraffe was on the menu, I was again let down. Why 'Giraffe' then? They are having a giraffe, laugh! I felt - until, I delved into the philosophy of 'Giraffe' to find a leafy connection. Here it is... "Giraffes are so tall they see a different view of the world. We LOVE fresh ideas." There you have it, just in case you pondered why Giraffe is called Giraffe - I suppose I get the gist a little more if all their establishments were situated on skyscrapers, hilltops and at 18 feet, 5.5 metres (height of an adult giraffe) above sea-level. Maybe if the restaurant chain manifested a menu from tall leafy trees and developed berry orientated concoctions that giraffes would daily chomp on - and then swilled down with some 'Boost' vegetable or fruit swamp juice, I could relate to 'Giraffe' better? I confess; I take branding literary after having a poetical brain-wave while digging my pearly whites into a 'Byron Burger.' Will I feel a foot taller after entering a 'Giraffe?'
Noticeably, there were no six foot six Peter Crouches when I entered, alas, there were no dwarfs either, most were of normal stature perched on sturdy chairs and slab bulky tables, reminiscent of Safari eateries. Designed to muscle out mass animal table invasions, the food won't survive, but the table may do. The 'Giraffe' furnishings are not exactly built for comfort or for a long grazing; their model implies 'fast-food' and service for small intimate groupings of up to four. Easy mobility is high on the business model, although seems cluttered when it comes to the décor. Odd, considering that the spacious interior is airy and has a decent amount of natural light - 'Giraffe' works well as a recognized chain of restaurants which is different to the agglomerative wine-bar styled eateries of the mid 1990s, however now 'Giraffe' has expanded to 43 establishments across the land. I wonder if their uniqueness has been diluted because of their notable establishment influx; the cultural eatery concept is no different to a 'Nandos' - I would even put 'Giraffe' in the same encampment area.
The menu is mongrel; why? There is a combo of Asian, Mexican, Italian-American dishes, fusions of continents under the umbrella of an African animal - absolutely... mongrel. "It's about exploring the wonderful foods from around the globe and opening our ears to music from around the world." As described by Juliette and Russel (with one 'l') 'Giraffe's' hands-on founders, who're London based. The menu doesn't say giraffe to me; on the general knowledge that giraffe's natural habitat is in Africa, mainly in Chad; sadly they're diminishing in numbers. 'Giraffe's' menu says, 'Goat' to me, because goats' eat anything. If you want to experience Jean Michel Jarre instrumentals that remind you of cows walking in a meadow while tucking into a meaty burger, 'Giraffe' is the place for you. I opted for the 'Chicken Schintzel Kiev' and perused over Robert Fisk's Kiev.
You know you've been served well and efficiently when you're aware of the smoothness of the 'order of service operation.' Thankfully, no deplorable idiotic recommendations of offers you've no interest over, or any emotive offloading of lip smacking or any weird introductory; such as, "My name is... Mishka; your sunny giraffe waitress; so imagine yourself somewhere in Sydney to Israel and I'll bring it to you in a form of a meal." I was disappointed that the staff didn't have long necks or long eye lashes or grind their molars in concentration, or moved with long legged grace - perhaps I should mark the establishment down for not recruiting giraffe orientated elegance, a noted corporate identity flaw you cannot ignore. My breaded chicken breast was succulent and had a giraffe kick to it; inside drizzled out garlic butter which moistened the well seasoned bed of mashed potato; the roasted fruits was plausibly from a giraffe diet cooked in the stifling African sun; thumbs up there - the garnish was rocket salad and char grilled lemon; this freshened up the palate and complimented the taste of garlic - all washed down with a frothy latte and an iced tap water and I observed the chaotic primitivism displayed on the walls, to try to make 'head or spirally tail' of it - I failed; maybe it suppose to encourage world travel discourse, but all it reminded me of was Prince Harry's art course-work several years after puberty, printed in the 'Observer' during a quiet day.
As I left a crisp twenty pound note for the service which covered the bill and then some leftover for my server's trouble for popping to my solitary table four times - I nearly said to an immigrant server while leaving to spend the crisp note on some orange town-hall chairs, I didn't, I smiled and nodded my gratitude instead. Well, Juliette and Russel (with one 'l') would approve of my smile, because a smile goes along way according to their website business ethics - in my case it went three feet towards the door. Again, you don't want to overdo it, otherwise the giraffe staff would think you're having a laugh. Worth noting also, I didn't gain an extra foot either but found out on a A4 note stuck pedantically beside the sealed outdoor menu I can go in on Orange Wednesday and get 20% OFF before going to the movies. Not all giraffes have this offer; therefore check beforehand as it appears the offer is an endangered species, close to extinction; just like the four-legged-kind whereby only 200,000 now exist. Shocking because man kind is making it tougher for giraffes to survive by industrializing Africa - the irony is, 'Giraffe' the chain of eateries could fill the African giraffe void in forty years or so. The diabolical fact is... 'Capitalism supersedes Conservation.'
Great food, curious sounds - 'worth hanging about in' - surely that's monkey business!©1st2thebar 2014
*This concerns the westfireld Stratford Branch at 304-305 The Loft The Gallery, Westfield Stratford, London, England E20 1ET 020 3463 9808 *
Having booked to go to the cinema at Westfield Stratford, my friend and I had yet to decide where to eat. We went to the food places near the cinema first, and contemplated our options. Wagamama and a few other places looked busy and had queues outside, but Giraffe looked busy but not rammed. I had eaten in this branch before (one Saturday lunchtime last autumn), and found it quite efficient, so we elected to go there.
Typically when we decided to go to Giraffe a small queue started to form, but they were just one party so we were seated in no time. Giraffe are an established chain of informal restaurants throughout the UK, concentrating on 'world' foods - burgers, Mexican dishes, and noodle dishes can all be found on their menu, which they claim are always freshly prepared. Being situated in a shopping centre there is no particular atmosphere at this branch, you can even sit 'outside' in the centre and look at the world go by (and I think half the world were in Stratford that Saturday). However, I often end up going to a Giraffe as they have a varied menu with plenty of veggie options. There is a bar area inside and either banquette seating with wooden tables, or dull silver metal round tables. There was nothing outstanding about it. Giraffe restaurants usually play world music but I couldn't hear it in this branch. I didn't visit the loo this time, they are at the back - but as all are on one level, they are suitable for disabled access. Décor generally is simple and unfussy.
Coming at other times you may want to have a breakfast or brunch here. They serve breakfast until 12 and have a good range of options including cooked breakfasts. Some classic brunch dishes are also available until 4pm. Our server was friendly and helpful, which was good as I was dithering. My first choice was which cocktail to have - a classic mojito or the mango and lime daiquiri. I am glad he recommended the daiquiri (they also have a strawberry one but I was concerned it could be too sweet) at £6.75. The cocktail was thick - a frozen daiquiri - and gave me brain freeze, but it was lovely. I would definitely have this again. My friend had a bottled beer.
I don't think their individual starters options are hugely appealing and quite limited (although the halloumi skewers could possible have tempted me) but they have a good range of sharing platters. We didn't want to be late for the film, so we passed on this and went straight to mains. I have never been particularly decisive when it comes to choosing what to eat, which is one advantage of being veggie - I often don't get so much choice. However in a Giraffe they do have lots of veggie friendly items and narrowed my original short list of four down to two as I decided I fancied chips. My next decision was do I have the falafel burger or the veggie focaccia? Our server was definite that the falafel burger was the best so I followed his advice and just asked for it without peppers (£9.75). My friend went for the chicken 'club' at £9.45, although he opted to have sweet potato fries.
My friend's burger came up first and I waited patiently for mine. We nibbled a few of his sweet potato fries and found them to be not that warm, and a bit soggy. My burger then came up, and them my chips followed. I was luckier with mine as they were piping hot, but I think they could have done with another minute in the fryer as they were a tad undercooked, noticeable only on the bigger chips. Fries are 'skin-on' but this only affects the ends, and I so like them this way. My 'deluxe' falafel burger was held together by a skewer, which stopped gravity having its way. The generous portion of falafels and rocket was balanced between a chunky burger bun with beetroot and dressing, with a big slab of halloumi on top. I ended up taking the 'lid' off and eating the rest of the burger with my knife and fork, as the bread was too much. It was served with a spicy harissa dip which I smothered on the halloumi, and it certainly had a kick to it. My friend enjoyed his club, saying it was tasty and well cooked.
We decided not to have a dessert as we decided to have a quick mooch around the centre before the film instead. We got the bill which came to about £30.
All in all, the restaurant was not as efficient as I have experienced in this branch before or in any other Giraffe. We came away a bit disappointed, but would no doubt return to this chain at some point.
I have nothing but possitive feedback after visiting Giraffe for our daughters birthday! We went to the Giraffe restraunt on The SouthBank and it was absolutely lovely. But don't be put off by the amount of young children inside as you honestly would ot notice!
When we first arrived it was noticably child friendly, we knew this by the amount of strollers and prmas in the entrance which has been purposley designed for families that want to eat with there children there is stacks of room for at least 20 maybe even 30 pram and strollers. The restraunt itself is very big spacious and has high ceiling which I am sure is why you can not hear all the children inside.
We got shown to our table very quickly, which we had not booked but this was no problem to them. They gave us our menus and a colouring book with crayons of a big variety that were in a cup on the table. Every child also gets a balloon attached to there highchair/chair which gave our lil one at least 30minutes of entertainment. All carefully thought about to keep the children from reaking havoc! Our waiter came over very quickly 'Shane' he was a lovely man very friendly and was very good with our two year old playing with her balloon and asking her what she would like. He was very friendly and did not rush us and was not bothered when we all changed our mind half way through oredering. He did not write anything down (I automatically thought he was going to forget) but he didn't and all the food arrived and was given to each of us correctly.
The menu was extensive but much of a much ness, sandwiches, burgers, wraps. You could have cold food or hot food and they came with chips. All the food was designed to come out quickly so children were not left ages for there food but not so fast you were rushed through your meal experience. I had a lovey steak sandwich in ciabatta bread, cooked to perfection, my husbamd had a burger which again was gorgeous good quality meat and a large helping of salad. My mother had a vegetarian option which consisted of halumi cheese and butternut squash with peeper is a wrap which oozed when you cut into it and looked rather scrumptious. The menu I do not want to go into too much detail as the waiter explained it was changing that week so will not explain what was on the old menu.
We made a conciuos decision not to order our two year old anything but they did have a children menu one for young children aged 0-6and another one aged 6-12, averagely priced at 3.95 and 5.95 which I think was fair for the portion sizes I witnessed. With all of us giving M some of our food she did not need a meal to herself. The Adult portions are very generous you certainly do not leave hungry but don't leave any food either.
As it was our little ones birthday they brought her out an Ice Cream with a strawberry in it and a candle for her to blow out, everyone sang to her and she loved it - this was free, no charge which was an added bonus.
For four of us to eat ad have drinks including coffee at the end of the meal it came to £60 which Ibelieve to be very good for the location and the quality of food we ate. We were in there over an hour, we were not ruched at all and made to feel very welcome and special, there were families in there that got there before us and were still slowly going through there meal again no rushing. This made everyone very relaxed and not on edge which you can feel like when you have a young child.
I also saw buisness meetings in there and older couples in there having a spot of lunch on the south bank. You can chose to eat outside (we didnt as it was raining), the poutside area looks very clean and has umbrellas for the hot days.
The toilets are very clean and tidy, there is a baby changing area that both sexes can use and a disabled toilet.
I would strongly recommend anyone going to Giraffe but especially those with young children, as you will be made very welcome and not rushed though your meal.
I attended the Giraffe restaurant in the Westfield shopping centre in Stratford for a friends birthday.
With my friends usual lateness, I was there first, and asked a member of staff if I could sit and wait until I arrived. My friend had not made a booking so The waitress asked how big the group was (even though the restaurant was especially empty) i informed her there was 7 more people to come and in my opinion she was quite rude to tell me that they needed to come quickly as the kitchen closed at 10. (it was 8.30pm at this point).
As I waited I asked for a drink at the bar, but the waitress there said she was "busy" (she was cleaning glasses) and so I asked a male waiter who asked if I was ok for a drink. To be quite Frank he was the only courteous member of staff in this branch.
In the end my friends came and we sat down to order. The menu is quite varied, but with typical dishes eg burgers, chips, ribs, chicken etc and with other culture foods like enchiladas and pasta as option, so in terms of food I would say there is definitely something for everyone and prices for starter are average around £5 which is reasonable. I ordered a mature cheddar cheese burger with chips which was about £12. I was happy with this price as I have eaten practically the same burger at Byron burger branch for same price and it comes without chips. I ordered an additional filling of avocado for about £1.50 and was quite annoyed when my burger Came without the avocado. I tried to get the waitresses attention but felt she kept trying to ignore me (honestly the service here was terrible!) so wen she finally paid me some attention she took the burger away and said she would change it. Then a minute later she brought it back and said she would bring me the avocado. Then sitting there for 10 mins whilst everyone else happily tucked into their food and I waited for my avocado she brought me out half an avocado, which I had to slice myself and put in the burger. To be quite honest I was not impressed! The food itself was fine I just did not find the experience recommendable as it was my first time in the restaurant.
My friends had the ribs which were a good size portion (whole rack) and you do find the price reflected in the substance of the food is the positive of this restaurant. It was just a casual evening out with nice restaurant atmosphere just seemed that as we came close to closing the staff seemed rude and probably just wanted to go home. I'd eat here again just definitely not this branch!
In contrast to many of the reviews here, I actually really enjoy eating at the Giraffe chain of restaurants, my favourite being the restaurant in High Street Kensington - although I have eaten at the Giraffe restaurants at Victoria and the South Bank Centre. While Giraffe is a chain restaurant, I do believe that this is one of the better chain restaurants as they don't have the feel of a chain restaurant.
I like the menu and I find that dishes are prepared with fresh ingredients. There are also a ecclectic range of dishes on offer - my favourite being the Szechuan Sesame Noodles and the Jambalaya Risotto - although there are all of the usual suspects also of burgers and pizzas. They are licensed to sell alcohol and also do a small range of cocktails which are freshly prepared. On average, a two course meal will set you back about £15 which, considering this is London, is not to bad at all.
Although the service at some of the restaurants can be a little hit and miss, the service at Giraffe Kensington High St. has great service and the waiting staff are always friendly, helpful and pleasant. They are willing to have a laugh and a joke with the customers, but at the same time remain professional, make recommendations and are prompt and courteous with service. They have always made me feel welcome.
I like the bright and cheerful decor in all Giraffe restaurants. Its fairly basic and Ikea like, but there are some really nice and funky paintings on the wall and its always clean. Some of the busier restaurants, like High St; Kensington can be a little cramped at times as they do try to get everyone seated as quickly as possible, but its still comfortable although you may need to fight past people if you want to get to the toilets!
Overall, I like the Giraffe chain. I think there are some that are better than others, but isn't that always the case with chain restaurants? I will continue to frequent the Giraffe in Kensington whenever I'm in the area.
I first discovered Giraffe a couple of years ago when living in Hampstead. I often popped into the small Hampstead branch for a smoothie or for breakfast pancakes but until recently I hadn't been for dinner. Over the past few years Giraffe has expanded rapidly, not only are they all over London but also in Bristol, Manchester, Oxford and various other places.
* * * *Restaurant/ Location* * * *
Giraffe now have 41 different branches with many of them being in London. I visited the large Southbank Centre branch. We arrived at about 7pm on a weekday without making a reservation. We waited about 10 minutes for a table as the restaurant was quite busy. Having not made a reservation this wait was reasonable and there was a comfortable seating area in which we could wait. The décor in the restaurant is bright and airy with bright colours typical of a chain restaurant. As the restaurant is quite large the tables were placed spaciously apart. The restaurant itself is very child friendly, children were given balloons and high chairs were available.
* * * * Menu/ Food * * * *
Giraffe claims to serve world food. This means that the menu seems to serve a mish-mash of burgers, pasta, stir fries, salad and a range of Mexican food. Although this can seem a little bit confusing, with no clear 'type' of food, it does mean that there is plenty of varied choice. They also have a range of specials which change on a monthly basis.
I dined with a few friends and we all chose something different from the menu. I went for the Jambalaya Meatballs (chicken and lamb meatballs with peppers, onions and tomatoes in a spicy cajun sauce) they were served on brown rice (I had also had a choice of fettuccine pasta.) When they first arrived the portion looked quite small and as we had opted not to have started I was worried that it wouldn't be filling enough. But I didn't need to worry as I only just managed to finish it. It was really yummy and filling and tasted very fresh. The sauce was not really a Cajun sauce and was not particularly spicy it was more tomatoey than anything although I did enjoy it very much.
One of my friends chose the Sushi Rice with Smoked Salmon (smoked salmon, brown sushi rice, avocado, cucumber, radish, baby spinach, green onion, toasted sesame seeds on a crispy nori with wasabi and soy dressing) This is a really tasty option if you like sushi. Although it doesn't contain any actual sushi it is sort of all the sushi ingredients in a salad. This is a relatively healthy option but is also very filling as the portions are generous.
My other friend went for the Classic Burger (a grilled beef burger with lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle, mayo and relish.) this came with a side of chips. The burger itself looked very nice, it was very tall and came upon a seeded bun. There was a large amount of salad on the bun.
There are a wide range of drinks including beers, wines, smoothies, juices and coffees. I had pomegranate juice which was very sweet and had a nice fruity taste. I often find that certain types of pomegranate juice can be a little bitter but this was nice and easy to drink.
* * * * Service/ Overall Experience* * * *
Overall I enjoyed my meal here very much. The staff were friendly and helpful and the service was very good. The menu is quite varied and full of healthy options. The bill for 3 of us came to about £37 which although not particularly cheap seemed reasonable, this included a main meal and a soft drink each. Perhaps with starters, deserts and alcohol it could work out to be quite expensive. The food is something a little bit different from usual chain restaurants with many different options on the menu.
There are Giraffes all over the country and I have now visited a couple of them, and yet I still don't really understand what is going on with Giraffe.
The restaurants all have a pretty standard look, bright, welcoming and the usual for a chain. The staff are generally friendly, and the service is usually reasonably good.
Giraffe offer a great breakfast menu, including pancakes, porridge and the good old full English. These are teamed with great coffees and tasty smoothies. Breakfast is one thing Giraffe do well. There is also a brunch menu with some more adventurous dishes on it. And then Giraffe's menu starts to become confusing, at best, and at worse, a tad messy.
Giraffe claims to serve 'world foods' and this is where the menu becomes confusing. Most restaurants stick to a food theme, whether that be Italian, Chinese, Japanese, or traditional English, or something else. Most pubs may have a bit of a variety, but they tend to have menus that consist of simple dishes. Giraffe, however, seems to be totally baffled as to what kind of restaurant it is. There's simple burgers and pizzas, sitting next to Enchiladas and Mexican dishes, meatballs, curries and more. It's just confusing. There's no cohesion to the menu and I feel this may explain why none of the dishes are particularly great. There must just be too much going on in the kitchen with all these different types of dishes and styles of cooking happening in one place.
Once you've navigated the menu, your food will appear and it always tends to just be a bit bland. Boring. The flavours don't pop and there's just nothing to write home about in the slightest. The prices are pretty standard for a chain restaurant, at around £7-£12 for a main meal, but I feel there are other places that do particular types of food on Giraffe's menu better.
Overall, Giraffe is an alright chain restaurant, but the lack of cohesion in the menu is frustrating and the food quality is certainly nothing special. The breakfasts are worth visiting for, but that's the only thing to get excited about.
Giraffe is one of the best chain restaurants that I have ever set foot in. Its a great allrounder for the following reasons.
Its fantastic for a laid back late morning breakfast. The good morning brekky and pancakes are top notch and the smoothies go down a treat after a rough night out. Also the coffee is of a high standard and the tea comes in a nice little pot.
Lunches and dinners take the form of a querky yet very tasty 'world food' menu. They have great burgers, salads, nachos, noodles and ribs. All topped with mouthwatering sauces and complemented by wondrous sides and all the condiments you could think of.
Also they have a great drinks menus including fine wines, world beers and great cocktails.
Admittedly this is all quite pricey. Breakfast usually sets you back about £10-£15 per head and lunch and dinner you are lucky if you can eat for less than £20. However, the staff always serve with a smile, the atmosphere is great and the food and drink is definitely worth forking out for. I never leave this restaurant hungry or disappointed!
I went to a Giraffe restaurant a number of months ago with my girlfriend. It was winter and snowing and we were in the Spitafield area of East London. She had just got back from Scotland and it was colder in London than up there. It became unbearable and we were hungry so sought refuge in the nearest heated establishment we could find. This came in the form of the restaurant chain Giraffe.
I'm not usually one for restaurant chains as i find them characterless and stale... and I'm not going to change my mind after visiting this one. That said, this is probably one of the better ones... feint praise indeed.
It was still fairly stale and characterless but at least it was warm. Or so we thought. Why do patrons of restaurants feel the need to hold the door open when it's freezing outside? Worse still, here they left it open. One thing I will say in favour of this place is that mostly congenial waiter was very quick to see our shivers and graciously shut the door... which he had to do on numerous occasions.
This was a perfect example of the pleasant and helpful staff at Giraffe. You can't help but think they are spoon fed their pleasantries but they do it well at we felt very welcome.
Giraffe is quite a bright place and family friendly. If you don't like children you're better off at you're local oyster bar because there are lots of them here. And yes, they are noisy and no, you can't turn them off. And yes, sometimes they run around in an unruly manner like they've been on a diet of espresso all day.
The food is diverse and is consistently unexceptional. You can eat most things here from burgers to pizza to Thai to Mexican. Everything is of a standard standard and is relatively well priced with mains coming in at between £7 - £12. If only the food was as colourful as their menu (I mean literally colourful) then we would be in for a treat but unfortunately it's quite bland. I had an enchilada which was OK but a little tasteless. The burger was better and of a good size and tender but I guess a burger is quite hard to get wrong (although many have).
In all, this isn't a bad place to go and they do have chains everywhere. Just know that you are going to get OK food, hyperactive children and friendly service.
I recently went to Giraffe at the Lakeside shopping centre. They have a new part called the Boardwalk which comprises of restaurants and a cinema. There is so much choice here but as we had never been to a Giraffe before we thought we would give it a try for lunch. The restaurant itself is relaxed and friendly and we felt comfortable and well looked after - the service wasn't exceptional but pretty good and seemed in keeping with the laid back vibe. They have a cheap menu which is just over £7 for two courses but there is limited choice and my partner is quite fussy. Most of the meals are reasonably priced anyway - around £4-5 for a starter, the average main course is about £10 although many are cheaper and only the steaks are really more expensive. They have an extensice wine list and cocktail menu but unfortunatel as we were driving we couldn't try them out! The menu is very varied which is perfect for a fuss pot like my partner but less so for me as i really couldn't decide what to have! In the end we settled on hot cheesy garlic bread as a starter which we shared and as a main i had a duck stir fry which was delicious and my boyfriend had a burger with added cheese and bacon. We bth enjoyed our food and will definitely return when we are next on a shopping trip to Lakeside. Giraffe regularly have offers like buy on get one free on main courses which you can find on money saving expert.
I'm reviewing this under 'Giraffe Restaurants London,' though it's mainly focussed on the Walton on Thames branch, which is just down the river a little!
Giraffe.. I'd never heard of the place until we got one near to us in Walton on Thames, I wanted to straight away as I liked the name! We've been back quite a few times since, most recently a glorious sunny May bank Holiday, where we sat outside...and watched the traffic. Well, you can't have everything!
Looking at the website I see they are ever expanding and are up to 28 branches, mainly in the south of England, however I've not (yet) tried any other branch but this one. They have a relaxed style, and have the 'world' theme, world music and world cuisine. Well, 'world' cuisine for the masses anyway.
We went there for a proper lunch but they are forever advertising the fact they do breakfasts, snacks and encourage you to just pop in for coffee or cocktail. I know many eateries offer this but it's one of the few places I know where I'd feel comfortable doing so. The place really is chilled. Whatsmore they aren't that badly priced, the Walton one is right round the corner from Starbucks and Costa and they undercut them on all drinks. I might make this my local 'coffee' shop as well as restaurant.
As I mentioned they are open for drinks, and drinks you must try. They have an extensive cocktail menu, being adventurous I stayed away from my usual 'Margarita' and tried an 'Appletini'.. I'd seen JD and Turk drink these on Scrubs but had never been anywhere that served them here to try them! I'm in love with 'Appletinis' now. In fact our table did pretty well at sampling the cocktail menu, though before you assume we were a load of drunks they weren't all boozy. The fruity non alcoholic cocktails also just hit the spot on a sunny day.
We were served by about three different members of staff throughout our meal, which I don't object to, the place was busy and we were taken care of and served at a brisk pace which is all that matters. This company however clearly drum into their staff to be happy cheery and super helpful, and sometimes it just seems like they are trying too hard. The waitress that served us more than any was just that. I find people who bubbling over with personality like that exhausting... maybe I'm just a moody cow!
Anyway, we ordered our drinks and mains and as with all restaurants now they always ask if you want extras to get you to part with more money. She offered us garlic bread to start, two of us wanted it, two didn't so she said she'd bring us one of thier 'really nice cheesy garlic breads to share.' Only two of the (addmittedly rather fussy) friends I was with didn't like cheese. Why offer one thing then when the customer says yes, change it to something else?!
Onto mains.. the food as I mentioned is 'world' food so there's pretty much something for everyone. They really have tried to not leave anyone out there so you can have 'English' Sirloin Steak, 'Thai' Duck Stir Fry, Enchiladas if you're in a Mexican mood, Curry, Sushi and even a Chicken Shnitzel Burger. I've had their Prawn Mango Salad and Enchiladas in the past and I recommend either. This time around I thought I'd see how Giraffe fared on my favourite -Ribs.
The food came quickly and we all enjoyed what we had. The 'Thai Duck Stir Fry' was a hit and my two friends that ordered the 'Chicken Shitzel Burgers' got through them eventually, they looked really good but as my friend said 'I can't eat that, it's a big as my head!' My ribs were good, the meat was cooked well however, I felt the marinade wasn't as rich and sticky as it could have been. I've had better elsewhere. The ribs are described on the menu as being served with 'the house slaw.' I love Coleslaw so it sounded good to me. What I actually got was a lettuce leaf with what I can only describe as a purple blob on it. We commented that it looked like the Milka Cow had left us a little pat. I guess they put beetroot in their 'slaw'. A bit of a bizarre thing to do I thought, I hate beetroot and I think it's quite a aquired taste. It certainly didn't make thier 'slaw' look appetising either.
After the 'purple pat' incident, we felt we needed something sweeter and the puddings here were to die for! I always look at the puddings before I start my meal so I know what to leave room for. True to form I went for chocolate. Their Chocolate Brownie is gorgeous, served with ice cream, and if that wasn't calorific enough they poured over a good puddle of chocolate sauce. (I decided not to look up the calories on this one like I did after going to Pizza Express! I think it's better not to know!) Two of my friends shared a huge 'Rocky Road Sundae' which was ice cream, marshmallows, brownie and all other manner of decadance in a sundae glass. It must have been good as I've not seen a battle of the spoons like it! Maybe 'fought over' is a better phrase to use than 'shared!'
Bill for four with cocktials and three courses (though we shared the first) came to £120. The cocktails were £4-£7 each so you can see that the food was fairly reasonable. If you are visited a Giraffe, expect to pay £7-£11 for your mains, starters and pudding around £5 or less. Also, they do deals during the week where if you get there early evening they do two courses for £7.95. Various offers go on throughout the week so it's work seeing what's what. Also, I would recommend visiting their website and signing up to their newsletter, I often get sent print off vouchers for two for one meals or drinks.
For more info visit www.giraffe.net
They also have a list of branches here to see if there is one near you.
It took me a long time to finally get to Giraffe, after I'd heard so many things about it. Everyone told me about the wonderful breakfasts they have so I decided it was high time I made my way to the restaurant in Brent street.
I was delighted to discover a colourful, vibrant and unique looking place that had loads of things to look at and enjoy. It has a great atmosphere, the staff are all extremely nice, chatty and helpful. The chairs are all a bit different and the tables don't all match. You might think that this wasn't a very nice look, but actually it's charming.
The breakfast I ordered was the veggie brunch (which is served until 4pm) and included beans, veggie sausages, tomatoes, mushrooms, potato wedges and lashings of toast. It was a nice full plate and at £7 it was well worth the money. In terms of other foods there are lots of sharing platters and such which are ideal with the mid week cocktail offers that giraffe have. They also have a small menu available during the week between 5 and 7. There are a range of burgers, pastas, pizzas, currys, all sorts of really unique dishes. It really is world food and there is evidently influence from all over the world.
There is often world music also playing in the restaurant, so when you wait for you food (which by the way comes REALLY quickly, with a huge tub of dips and sauces) you have something to listen to. Vouchers can often be found online for giraffe, and it's well worth signing up to their mailing list and online club for extra deals. A main can cost anywhere between £7-12 but is definitely worth it for the quality of produce and the atmosphere.
This is a restaurant chain and many branches can be found across London. I knew there is one in Chiswick but never had courage to visit one after looking at their diverse menu.
I visited one at Bishops Gate near Liverpool Street station last night with my friends. Most of the restaurants at old spittalfield market are part of the chain with nothing unique to offer. We decided to give Giraffe a try and thus we ended up there.
Located in Spittalfield market, which is undergoing re-development. So lots of shops are yet to open. The area is quite buzzing with descent crowd. There are lots of standard chain restaurants though..
Quite trendy with mediterranean feeling. Staff was very attentive and friendly. Open plan kitchen, so you can see whats cooking. Walls were with all the shades towards Orange, giving you the feeling of African Safari and Giraffe (as an animal).
Menu is very confusing with dishes ranging from Thai Curry, Naan & Curry, Mexican food, Burgers and pancakes. They tried to be jack of all, but ended up with Master of none. The menu is very limited and taste is ok.
I opted for Veggie Thai Curry, and others went for pork thai curry, burgers etc. We all had same opinion about the food that it is good but not excellent.
The worst thing about the restaurant is the size of a portion. For £8, I got very small bowl of thai curry with tea-spoon-full of rice noodles. I had to get extra portion of rice to get myself stuffed. Otherwise we were thinking of visiting Burger King after that. My friends got very tiny chicken part (particle !!) in an expensive £8 burger with the tiny bowl of chips.
OK restaurant, with OK food. But very expensive for that category and portions are very tiny. Limited choices and no focus on particular kind of food. Just like local Kebab shop, which does Kebabs, Curries, Pizzas, Pastas, Fish & Chips, Jacket Potato and almost everything.
I would not bother visiting Giraffe again.
A vast menu with meal choices from all over the world.


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|It's not very diet-friendly, but my family wants this Thanksgiving Broccoli with Cheese Sauce every year!
I was on the phone with my sister Sandee and we were talking about Thanksgiving Dinner. Sandee had just asked me what I wanted to bring for dinner and immediately my foodie brain had switched into high gear. I started rattling off ideas for interesting Thanksgiving type dishes I had seen in magazines and on other food blogs. Sandee listened patiently, and then she quietly said, "Don't try out anything new on us."
Thanksgiving Broccoli with Cheese Sauce
(about 6 servings)
6-8 cups fresh broccoli flowerets
1 can Campbells cheddar cheese soup
half a soup can of mayo (do not use fat free)
1 T fresh lemon juice
generous amount black pepper
1 cup (or more) grated sharp cheddar plus 1/2 cup for top (optional)
Pour well drained broccoli into casserole dish with a lid. In a bowl mix cheese soup, mayo, lemon juice and pepper. Mix in 1 cup grated cheese. Pour sauce over broccoli and bake covered until just starting to bubble, about 35 minutes.
Remove lid and sprinkle over 1/2 cup grated cheese and bake until cheese is melted and slightly browned, about 10 minutes more. Serve hot.

subset: commoncrawl


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Nathan Vincent Crochet Art
Nathan Vincent's Majorly Masculine Yarn Art
To celebrate Father's Day, I wanted to feature an artist whose work honors masculinity while also turning it on its head. Crochet artist Nathan Vincent was raised in the Midwest and later attended art school in California before moving to New York City, where he found his true calling: questioning gender norms through working in a very cozy medium.
Nathan explains,
The works shown here focus on the contradiction between medium and subject matter. The objects created were inspired by memories of attempts to be masculine. Men I have known spent much of their time in the garage with tools getting greasy and doing the heavy-duty lawn work. They watched Sunday afternoon football on their recliners with the remote in hand. My uncle was a body builder, which to me was the physical epitome of masculinity. I remember my father getting home from work, propping his briefcase on the bed and removing the paperwork. And, I distinctly remember longing to be tall enough to use the urinal in the men's restroom like the big guys. By crocheting the objects that are linked to these masculine ideas, I am breaking down the barrier of traditional gender permissions. The objects are no longer rough and manly, but soft and inviting. They evoke the feminine. The nontraditional sculpting process of crochet allows me to draw attention to the challenges of defining gender identities.
See more of Nathan's work in the slideshow, and learn more about the artist in this video on Road Trip Nation. Through June 26, catch his work in the exhibition The Mysterious Content of Softness at the Bellevue Arts Museum in Seattle.


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Details & Care
A fine texture coats a modern dress shirt cut from pure cotton with a measured spread collar and rounded, adjustable button cuffs.
- Removable collar stays.
- French placket.
- Back yoke.
- Curved hem.
- Cotton; machine wash.
- By John Varvatos Star USA; imported.
- Men's Furnishings.
- Item #623293


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On Sunday, the U.K.-based Sunday Telegraph ran a story saying that Facebook (FB) chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg and Yahoo! (YHOO) CEO Marissa Mayer were in talks about partnering around search, with a goal of helping Facebook better compete against Google (GOOG).
Although I think there is a possibility that the two companies could work together on this in the future, there are several reasons why you shouldn't believe this report.
1. Why would the Sunday Telegraph know that Mayer and Sandberg have been talking? Someone would have had to leak it to the paper -- and this person would have to have been either Sandberg or Mayer. Sandberg doesn't gain anything from leaking that Facebook doesn't know enough to do search themselves. Mayer, for her part, has tried to come down hard on leaks since she arrived at Yahoo. Why would she suddenly start leaking now?
Some have speculated that maybe it was activist investor Dan Loeb or another Yahoo board member. But, again, why? Loeb has been long Yahoo for well over a year. He's never once given a direct interview to CNBC or Bloomberg about his position. He once spoke at an investor conference about his position, making a few brief remarks. That's it. It doesn't sound like a guy itching to leak information.
2. If you were a Yahoo or Facebook insider, why would you leak news to the Sunday Telegraph? If I were Loeb, and I wanted to leak information, I certainly wouldn't think I needed to pick up the phone and dial London. I would call up Michael De La Merced at The New York Times or Evelyn Rusli at The Wall Street Journal.
3. The Sunday Telegraph gets all its scoops wrong. For well over a year now, it's always been the Sunday Telegraph that's run stories speculating that Research In Motion (RIMM) would break itself up, or that we'd see a company like IBM (IBM) buy its enterprise business. All these stories were completely bogus. Why should we start trusting them now?
4. Danny Sullivan is right that Yahoo can't really "help" Facebook with search now, given that most of its talent left the company in 2009 after Yahoo outsourced its back-end search to Microsoft (MSFT), along with the technology. Marissa Mayer has deep experience in search, and Yahoo could certainly build up its expertise in search from scratch, but they're not ready to help Facebook today.
5. Facebook has been talking about search since 2007, yet it has done nothing to get into it, save for floating a few tasty rumors out there to excite the press and investors. Searching for my high school buddy's name in my Facebook search box doesn't make Facebook a search company any more than driving my car to the mechanic for an oil change makes me an expert in car engines.
I think both Facebook and Yahoo should get into search more themselves, but it's premature to say that they're ready to jump into a partnership together.


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Arcia out of the lineup for fourth straight game
DETROIT -- Rookie outfielder Oswaldo Arcia was on the bench for a fourth straight game on Thursday, but Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said he wants to get him back in the lineup on Friday against the Tigers.
Arcia didn't start any of the club's three games in Atlanta but did serve as a pinch-hitter in all three games, belting a pinch-hit homer in Wednesday's 8-3 loss.
Gardenhire said that with Justin Morneau starting at designated hitter, it forced Chris Parmelee to start at first base. He also wanted Ryan Doumit in right field because he's been heating up this month and has had success against right-hander Rick Porcello in the past.
"He's fine," Gardenhire said about Arcia. "We're just trying to mix it up here with Parmelee. Morneau is DHing today. He took a ball off his leg at home plate and is pretty sore. But he wants to play so it puts Parmelee in the infield, and Doumit is swinging pretty good so I wanted him in there."
Gardenhire said that the lack of a DH in Atlanta was the main reason why he didn't get Arcia in the lineup against the Braves. The Twins also faced left-hander Paul Maholm on Wednesday, which is why the left-handed-hitting Arcia was on the bench.
"I understand that a young guy like that shouldn't sit very long," Gardenhire said. "But we also just had National League baseball, which didn't bode well for us. But we need to play everybody and he's one of them. I want to get him in there."
Rhett Bollinger is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Bollinger Beat, and follow him on Twitter @RhettBollinger. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Heifer's Haiti Island Adventure
9 Nov 2012 at 08:16
Sick grew tired of his travels around the country and was happy to spend some time sitting around with Roseline and her Heifer.
With Sick
Press | FAQ | Terms of Agreement | Privacy Policy | Copyright © 2011 Flatter World Inc.
FLAT STANLEY® is a trademark of the Trust u/w/o Richard C. Brown f/b/o Duncan Brown. Used with permission. All rights reserved


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Topic: my grandfather
My grandfather was diagnosed with this terrible disease last week. It came as a total shock to everyone. He has also been a very healthy , strong, independant man. He went to his yearly checkup last December and all his bloodwork and tests came back fine. A couple of days later he came down with what we thought was the flu. After battling that for a few weeks he started to turn a horrible shade of yellow. He went to the doctor and he said he didn't know, so they sent him for an ultrasound. That came back fine so he had a cat scan. That showed a blockage but even them they were not sure what it was. They put a stent in last week to try and help with the jaundice, but that didn't help. Yesterday we thought we had a bit of good news-the doctors were going to do chemo after they initially said they would not. The stent they put in last week was not working so they put a different one in yesterday that drains outside of his body. They found out when they put that one in the cancer had spread too far and that no treatment would work. They have only given him 1-2 weeks to live and have advised us to call in hospice. My grandfather is 80 years old-he has 4 grandchildren, 7 great-grandchildren and 1 great-great grandchild. This is a horrible horrible disease. I am sorry to rant so much but this is the first place I can vent my feelings.


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Open to the public at 6:30 p.m. today is a celebration of the arts featuring the Oakland Youth Orchestras and Herb Babcock's sculptures in the Oxford Fine Arts Center, 745 N. Oxford Road in Oxford.
Featured in the atrium gallery are pieces created by renowned local artist Babcock.
A series of his work� will be on display in the Oxford Fine Arts Center atrium gallery throughout February.
From his studio in Oxford, Babcock combines metal, glass and rock in sculpture. His work is represented in national and international exhibits, galleries and collections. Some notable public installations include five sculptures named for the Great Lakes in the "living room" of the MGM Grand Casino and Hotel in Detroit, Woodward Marker Tower in Campus Martius and Young Bamboo In Wind at the Hsinchu Culture Center in Taiwan.
Also on Thursday in the Oxford Fine Arts Center is the Oakland Youth Orchestras' Winter Concert featuring four orchestras and Oakland Youth Orchestras alumnus and soloist Lauren Rodewald. Rodewald began playing the bass in sixth grade under the direction of Clarkston Schools' Wendy Stuart. Two years later, she began private lessons with John Kennedy and joined Oakland Youth Orchestras' Strings Orchestra. Rodewald was a member of Oakland Youth Orchestras for five years, serving the last two as Principal Bass in Symphony Orchestra. While still in high school, Rodewald was thrilled to serve as substitute for both the Oakland Symphony and the Birmingham Bloomfield Symphony orchestras. She has performed in a number of competitions and music conventions nationwide. In her freshman year at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Rodewald is majoring in Double Bass Performance, studying with Diana Gannett. She is Principal Bass of University Philharmonia Orchestra at Michigan.
Tickets for the Winter Concert will be available at the door. Price for admission of adults is $10, $5 for children and students, and $30 for four tickets.


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Royals unable to figure out Pettitte, fall to Yanks
Shields takes another tough loss despite notching seventh quality start
KANSAS CITY -- Andy Pettitte has always been trouble for the Royals and nothing has changed.
Pettitte pitched the New York Yankees to a 3-2 victory over James Shields and Kansas City with 30,910 fans at Kauffman Stadium on a breezy, 66-degree Saturday night. The victory gave the Yankees' left-hander a career record of 15-3 over the Royals.
The second straight loss to the Yankees meant the Royals have lost five of their last six games, their roughest patch of the season. They dropped into third place in the American League Central, behind Detroit by 1 1/2 games, while the Yankees pushed one game ahead of Baltimore and Boston in the AL East.
Shields went eight innings, was charged with just two earned runs and his record slid to 2-3 despite a 2.48 ERA. No excuses from the No. 1 starter.
"You've got to pitch better. That's it," Shields said.
All three of his losses have come in one-run decisions, 1-0 on Opening Day and twice by 3-2 scores.
"We haven't given Shields much run support this year, and in a game like that, we've got to give him more," designated hitter Billy Butler said.
Butler did his best, belting a solo homer for his 500th career RBI to give Shields a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning. But Vernon Wells overcame that with a two-run homer in the fifth and that settled the issue.
The Royals just couldn't break Pettitte of his very annoying habit of beating them so consistently. This victory was his 10th straight winning decision over them going back to a win on Sept. 4, 2000. He's made 14 starts in that stretch.
"He's very intelligent when he pitches," the Royals' Eric Hosmer said. "He gets the most out of every one of his pitches. He's got a really good game plan, and between him and [catcher Chris] Stewart back there, they're very smart."
Pettitte went seven innings. David Robertson pitched the eighth and struck out the side. Mariano Rivera, on his farewell tour, gave KC fans a look at his 622nd save in the ninth.
Shields was more irritated that he drilled Stewart with a pitch to start the fifth inning than he was with Wells' homer that followed after two outs.
"The home runs are the home runs, but you can't give Stewart the free base; 1-2 count, you can't hit him right there," Shields said. "To me, that's unacceptable. He's a nine-hole hitter and I had him [in a] 1-2 count, and you've got the leadoff hitter and [Robinson] Cano coming up. That's unacceptable right there."
Wells connected on a 3-1 pitch, a drive to left field.
"It wasn't that bad of a pitch," Shields said. "It was middle away on 3-1. He's a pretty good hitter, and you fall behind on a good hitter and they're going to put a swing on it. He made a good swing there."
For Wells, it was his eighth home run this season but just his second in 44 career at-bats against Shields.
"Typical James Shields, changing speeds," Wells said. "He had a good fastball, too, that made his offspeed stuff be even more effective. Luckily, he fell behind me and had to throw fastballs, but he's as good as they come. He's 'Big Game James' for a reason."
Both teams had scored single runs in the third inning. Chris Nelson led off the Yankees' half with a double and, after two outs, he sprinted home as third baseman Mike Moustakas snared Cano's bouncer and flung it high over first base for an error.
"Shields threw a great game for us today, he got a ground ball when he needed it and I just threw it away," Moustakas said.
Royals manager Ned Yost went into more detail: "It's one of those situations where Cano has had a bunch of success against Shields (31-for-76, .408, to that point) in his career. He had a base open and Shields did a phenomenal job of pitching to him in terms of not giving him anything to hit. He got him to top the ball, Moose ranged over to his left, caught the ball ... and just got under the throw a little bit."
The Royals got a run in their half, starting with a swinging-bunt single that Pettitte thought was a foul ball off Elliot Johnson's foot. The ball dribbled out to Pettitte as Johnson zipped to first base safely.
"It was a trying day for me today. I knew Elliot Johnson fouled a ball off his foot and he scored. Nobody else saw it. I'm looking around at everybody and they're looking at me like I'm crazy, but you can see the ball spinning sideways," Pettitte said. "I asked the ump and was looking around at all the other ones, and nobody would help me out. I'm the only one that can see the ball is spinning sideways? If the ball is spinning sideways, it means it went off his foot."
Johnson stole second base and moved around to score on two groundouts.
Rivera came in for the ninth and got two quick groundouts from Butler and Hosmer. Salvador Perez doubled down the right-field line and speedy Jarrod Dyson ran for him. Moustakas' bid for a hit with a line drive went just foul down the right-field line.
"I hit it and it stayed pretty straight, and toward the end it kind of came a little further right," Moustakas said.
Then he flied out to left and Rivera had his 14th save in 14 opportunities. His farewell season is going well.
Dick Kaegel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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This game was classified by the community with the following category scores - Violence=0/3, Sex=0/3, Mature Content=0/3. Take control of a chopper, zipping amongst city buildings as you race to beat the clock. Earn more time by undertaking challenges, and get the highest score you can. View your game statistics, and improve your skill over time. Rotor features a fun, physics-based flying model, and original art design, with players able to dictate the colour palette to suit their own aesthetic preferences.
Buy Xbox content on Xbox.com. Your Xbox 360 console will automatically download the content next time you turn it on and connect to Xbox Live.Learn More


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Black Metal Cats is a Twitter account that celebrates the inherent doom that our feline friends possess by pairing cat pics with metal lyrics.
Top 15 Popular PostsShirtless Dude vs. Photoshop
Cowboy Boot Sandals
For Rectal Use Only
Funniest Photoshop Battles
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Dogs Being Jerks to Cats
Cats Acting Weird
NYC Subway Dog Bags
But I Don't Have a Cat!
Eyebombed City
Humans Are Getting Dumber


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Jean Fillioux -1953- Private Collection - Grande Champagne
With his roots firmly planted in the pure, time-honoured tradition of his ancestors, a man content in the shadows and a conjuror of magical aromas, Pascal will be happy to welcome you into his cellars where you can discover and share his Collection Privée.Learn MoreExcl. Tax: €368.33 Incl. Tax: €442.00
Armagnac Ryst Dupeyron -1953- 70cl
The Dupeyron House is one of the oldest Armagnac house and is 100% family owned. Ryst Dupeyron have one of the largest vintage collection of about 100 different years from 1850. Ryst-Dupeyron is settled in Condom, in the very heart of the Armagnac region, in the beautiful house of the Marquis de Bonnas.Learn MoreExcl. Tax: €463.33 Incl. Tax: €556.00


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How Can You Get Some?
Here are other things I've chosen as Kalyn's Kitchen Picks.
More Tasty Blogs or Dishes with Thai Flavors:
Thai Chicken Soup
Wake Up Your Mouth Thai Cucumber Salad
Thai Barbecue Chicken with Cilantro
Pad Thai for Beginners from Chez Pim
Pim's Pad Thai from Nook and Pantry
Spicy Thai Noodle Salad from A Veggie Venture
Thai Green Curry from Tigers and Strawberries
Thai Beef Salad from What Did You Eat
Thai Style Chile Beef from Nook and Pantry
Great photos and descriptions of many Thai dishes from Real Thai
Great Thai Recipes from Appon's Thai Food Recipes


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|The Daily Show With Jon Stewart
|Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
|Exclusive – Rick Perry Extended Interview
We finally got around to watching Texas Gov. Rick Perry on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart last night. And it turns out the interview contains an interesting discussion related to same-sex marriage. As if he's reading directly from this blog, Stewart brings up Perry's statement in his new book that if you don't like medicinal marijuana or gay marriage, you shouldn't move to California.
"Even within Texas, it's not a monolith," Stewart tells Perry. "You got 55 percent of the vote, and that's a big victory, but 45 percent of the people in Texas didn't vote for you. Thirty percent of those might want medicinal weed or gay marriage. Are there certain basic rights that all Americans should have no matter where they live, even if the majority would suggest otherwise? Are you with me on that? And can't freedom also be protected by government?"
"Absolutely, I get that," Perry says, before doing some sort of ape-like gesture with his hands on Stewart's desk and saying that he thinks the federal government should only perform certain basic functions like delivering the mail.
Gee, that's very fuckin' enlightening, governor.


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Shane Warne and Sophie Monk 'kiss'
Shane Warne has denied kissing Sophie Monk, but the radio DJ says she doesn't lie.
Monk was tricked into admitting she had kissed the former Australian cricketer when being quizzed about her love life by her 2DayFM co-hosts.
But Warne says it is not true, and he has confirmed he is dating 30-year-old model Emily Scott.
Monk's co-host, Jules Lund asked the radio DJ about her dinner date with the cricketer during their Thursday show.
"You went out to dinner with him in London ... you know you kissed him," Lund teased his co-host.
"Wait, how do you know that?" Monk responded.
"How did you know I kissed him?"
After questioning his co-host, Lund admitted he was only bluffing.
"I don't know if you kissed him; I'm just making it up, but you just admitted to it," Lund told Monk.
The alleged kiss and dinner date occured late last month while 34-year-old Monk was in Britain to interview pop star Miley Cyrus.
After the catch-up, the cricketing spin king headed to Paris for a whirlwind trip with Emily Scott, before they headed to Las Vegas for a holiday with the 44-year-old's children.
When Warne appeared on the Kyle and Jacki O Show on Kiis 106.5 on Friday morning, he was shocked when the radio hosts brought up the kiss.
"I think Sophie mentioned on her radio show that you guys had hooked up," Kyle Sandilands told Warne.
"What," Warne exclaimed.
"No, that's not true; we've been friends for ages," Warne said.
Earlier in the interview, Warne talked about his relationship with Scott, confirming they are an item.
"Yes, Emily is my girlfriend," Warne said.
"She's met my parents, met the children, we hung out in Vegas ... she was fantastic with the children. She's been cool. She's a really cool girl. We are going great," the former cricketer and poker player said.
"We're having a great time. She's been fantastic."
After Warne's radio interview, Monk took to Twitter to declare she is not a liar.
"My biggest flaw is I don't ever lie," Monk tweeted on Friday.
Monk, who previously dated Cameron Diaz's new boyfriend, Benji Madden, then retweeted a cryptic message about lying.
"@guyemartin: @sophiemonk a wise person once told me "you have to have a good memory to be a lier'' (sic).
"Ha that's why I don't #GoldFish," Monk wrote in reply.
In the past month, Warne has posted many photographs of Scott.
He posted a sweet picture of her DJing on Friday, captioning the image "Missing my GF".
He earlier regrammed a hot photo Scott posted of herself dressed in a black leather-look mini dress after a night of fun in Vegas.
He has also posted photographs of the two together at various events.
Warne's previous relationship was with Elizabeth Hurley, which the pair called off late last year.
After ending his engagement to the British actress and model, Warne seemed to be happy with single life.
He told Kyle and Jackie O on their radio show in May that he was not in a rush to date.
"I haven't been on one date yet," he told the radio hosts. "I just haven't moved on like some."
Since their separation, Hurley, 48, has dated business tycoon David Yarrow.
With AAP
Rachel Clun is a reporter at the Brisbane Times, with a special interest in health and entertainment
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There's a new DVD set out by NBA Entertainment (was discussed in here before on an NBA.com poll) called, "NBA's top 10 greatest." I was finally able to watch it recently, and I was horrified. It is by far the biggest sham of a DVD set I've ever seen. Clearly, someone put it together inside of a week.
-The main DVD, set up like a selection show with a panel of experts such as Walt Frazier, Bill Walton, George Gervin, Dave Cowens and Ric Bucher
They don't really select the top plays themselves, they just go over their opinions, and the winners are ultimately decided by the fans from various NBA.com polls.
And, by what they've shown from all-star voting, the fans are GREAT at picking from lists.....
The best part: They dont even SHOW you the greatest moments, just clips. They list who won each poll, and after announcing the winner, they don't show you the actual winning PLAY again, they just move on.
The categories for greatest moments are:
-Greatest finals moment- Jordan's shot in game 6 (even though it says game 7 on the list) of the 1998 NBA finals beat Jordan's flu-game in 1997, the 3-overtime game between boston and phoenix in 1976, and Magic's best game of his career as a rookie in game 6 of the 1980 finals. Thhis can be argued, but it was by far the most sane list.
-Greatest move- Jordan's hand-switch in game 2 of the 1991 finals beat
-Greatest coaching performance- Phil's title run beat out Red's title run. I guess winning 9 titles in 12 years is better than winning 9 in 10 years?
-Greatest duel Magic vs Bird beat out Celtics-Lakers by a hair. Not that I need to remind you, they PLAYED ON THE LAKERS AND CELTICS. Assinine to put teams and player rivalries in the same category.
-Greatest shot- Fisher's 0.4 shot to beat the Spurs somehow managed to beat Jerry West's halfcourt buzzer-beater to send game 3 of the 1970 finals to overtime, Miller's 6 points in 3 seconds to tie NY, and Paxon's three to win the Bulls their 3rd straight title in 1993. Huh?
-Greatest upset- My favorite part of this list. Why? because their nominees were three upsets and two COMEBACKS. Somehow, the Nuggest upset of Seattle in 94 managed to lose to TMac's 13 points in 1 minute vs the Spurs. PICK A CATEGORY, NBA.com! THE ROCKETS BEATING THE SPURS AT HOME WAS NOT EVEN AN UPSET AT ALL!
The best part about this category? They didnt even SHOW all 13 points, just the winning shot
-Greatest team- 96 Bulls beat out the 87 Lakers and 86 Celtics. Can't say it's a horrible pick.
-Greatest new star- Lebron. Did they just throw in this one to make it an even 10 categories?
-Greatest dunk contest performance- Vince in 2000 beat out MJ in 88 and Spud in 86. No argument here, for once.
-Greatest duo- Pippen/Jordan beat out Magic/Kareem. Again, good enough selection.
.......and now for the REAL fun part:
Included are their selections from the best games of the last 4 decades, in their entirety. Included are:
game 7, 1970 NBA finals, Lakers at Knicks:
Ok, Willis Reed hobbling off and hitting 2 jumpers to start the game was cool. Walt Frazier's 35 points, 14 assists and 7 boards was great too. However, this game was over IN THE FIRST QUARTER. NY won by 14, and it wasnt even that close!
You know, I seem to recall a 3-overtime game in 1976 that was kinda good....naaaaah, lets watch Willis Reed hobble around for 4 minutes!
game 2, 1986 first round, Bulls at Celtics:
Ok, the reason this game was shown was obvious: Jordan's record 63 points. At first glance, it was a close game too- double-overtime. Once again, however, anybody who's seen this game will tell you that aside from Jordan, nobody else played well in this game. The Celtics played like utter garbage. Great single performance, but you could pick at least 8 or 9 Celtics-Lakers games from the 80's that were better games. this game might be between 15-20 on a better list.
game 6 (not 7 NBA, learn to count), 1998 NBA finals, Bulls at Jazz:
Again, until the last MINUTE of the game, it was very poorly-played. Pippen was about %10 with his bad back, the Jazz were cracking under the pressure, and the Bulls were in the prevent offense stalling to keep it close, because Jordan was the only Bull that wasnt injured or choking. Great last minute, too bad the first 47 were ugly.
I seem to recall several Knicks-Pacers games that were of better quality in that decade, along with some Knicks-Heat games, Bulls-Knicks, etc.
The best one, however was their choice for the current decade:
game 5, 2004 WCF, Lakers at Spurs:
The last game I said was a great final Minute. This game? A great final 0.4. That's it, folks. The final score was 74-73, and it wasn't because of good defense. This probably shouldn't be on the top 100 list.
Just had to get this off my chest. If I ever see the guy who put this set together, I'm going to beat the crap out of him.


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I'm not entirely espousing this idea for any other reason than the fact that I think it will be fun to discuss...
Imagine for a moment that Wayne and Edge both walk. Why not consider the one guy we'd never consider: Terrell Owens.
Now I know what you're thinking "Dude, F that..." but let's be clear before we write off the positives of this:
1-- TO can be had for just about nothing right now in a trade.
2-- We know he can not only play, but he helped another team get over the hump and played a courageous game in the Super Bowl (easily the Eagles Super Bowl MVP had they have won).
3-- With Wayne gone we'd need to get another reciever anyway, why not go for the best available (especially since we'd have the money he wants).
4-- We have the money for him if Wayne and Edge walk (he's really not asking for *that* much if you go back and look...he really was seeking a salary equal to recievers like Marvin's)
Now let me respond to the "attitude" issues...obviously TO has major attitude problems, BUT:
1-- TO has issues with not getting the ball. Imagine a recieving corps of Marv, TO, Stokley, Clark, and Fletcher. Basically, Manning could have his way with any defensive 2ndary and TO would easily have the most TDs of his career. A team can only double one guy or the other...if they go w/ Marv we hit TO if they go w/ TO we hit Marv...touchdown!
2-- Dungy is a players coach, and he is also a humble man that is loved by *ALL* of our players. We won't have the kind of locker-room split that the Eagles have, because TO will fall in line with *everyone*. Dungy will help him to become a more reserved person on-and-off the field, and I think that Marv would do the same.
3-- TO has issues in major cities with giant markets. He couldn't handle Cali and he couldn't handle the East Coast, but the midwest might be just the place for him. The media circus just doesn't exist in Indy like it does elsewhere.
4-- Unlike Ron Artest, TO realizes the predicament he's in. He knows he's got one more shot and it's a desperation shot by any team that takes him (anyone want to say we aren't desperate?) so call me naive but I think he will calm down wherever he goes.
This will obviously never happen...but if it did, I'd support TO just like I supported Ron...I'm desperate to win and if it means getting a player I strongly dislike, I say do it! What do you say???


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Ree Drummod, the face behind the Pioneer Woman website, cookbooks, novel, and TV show, has closed the gap between agriculture and consumers. Now, in a partnership with Land O'Lakes, Drummond will help home cooks discover a new frontier in their kitchen with the company's latest butter creation, olive oil and sea salt.
It's no secret that Drummond prefers butter over today's alternatives. A quick look at her cookbooks or website yields few recipes lacking it. In a June 15, 2011 blog post, Drummond admitted to using 121 pounds of butter during a two-week period while taping the initial episodes of her Food Network show, "Pioneer Woman Cooks." That is more than 24 times more butter than the average American consumed in 2008.
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'Never mind the scoring explosion that came at the end of the preseason. Ruff's going to have to keep a close eye on matters and judge whether he still has a team capable of dictating an uptempo game. If he doesn't have the horses, he might need to slow the pace, which will be no easy task after two seasons played full throttle.'
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text: Despite losses, joining Big 12 was the right move for WVU By Dave Hickman April 3, 2013 Story Share MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Remember that whole Orange Bowl era?If you're a West Virginia fan, certainly you do. Those were heady times, weren't they?The football team had just walloped Clemson 70-33, finishing off a season in which it won or shared its sixth Big East championship in nine years. It had won 10 games - the seventh straight season it had won at least nine and the 10th year in a row for at least eight victories.The basketball team, three weeks after that Orange Bowl, was 15-5 and headed to its fifth straight NCAA tournament appearance and its seventh in eight years. It was a run that included three Sweet 16s, two Elite 8s and a Final Four.Oh, and the athletic department as a whole - primarily because of those two just-mentioned runs of success - was flush with cash. Well, OK, maybe not flush. But its head was above collective water, enough so that renovations to the football, basketball and soccer facilities were no cause for alarm. Nor were the increasing sums of money being paid to its coaches.And, of course, there was that whole Big 12 thing. Goodbye flailing Big East, hello stability and security. While so many of its counterparts - Cincinnati, Louisville, Connecticut, Rutgers - were trying desperately to find an escape hatch, West Virginia was already slipping through one. On the other side was a financial bonanza and, just as significantly, a place at the competitive big boys table.Oh, boy, this was going to be good.More than a few funny things happened on the way to paradise, though. Well, not exactly funny ha-ha, mind you.In just over a year, the basketball team that was 15-5 a few weeks after the Orange Bowl has gone 17-28 and missed not only the NCAA tournament, but any postseason at all. Well, OK, there was a postseason. It was a defeat at the hands of a 20-loss Texas Tech team in a Big 12 tournament that ended before it began for the Mountaineers. Think of the early Big East days when WVU didn't even qualify for one tournament and was one-and-done in seven of the first eight at which it did compete. The football team lost five in a row at one point and won one more game than it lost in finishing 7-6, despite the most prolific passer and receivers in school history. Even the consolation of qualifying for a bowl game turned into a nightmare with a non-competitive loss to a team, Syracuse, from the very league it had tried so hard to escape.And all it took to accomplish that was $13 million. That's the approximate deficit the athletic department ran during the 2011-12 school year. And with declining attendance at football and basketball games as those seasons wore on, expect another deficit in 2012-13. The red ink isn't even beginning to disappear.It helps little, either, that the NCAA's Final Four will be played this weekend with a field that includes two members of WVU's old conference (Louisville and Syracuse) and another with a former Mountaineer coach in charge (Michigan and John Beilein).Yet despite all of that, one thing becomes only increasingly clearer as time marches on.If West Virginia had it all to do over again it would do the same thing. It would pay all the money it took to escape the Big East, it would jump at the chance to join the Big 12 and it would take its lumps and hope for - and work toward - better days. And it would be right to do so. We bring this up today for a couple of reasons, including the seeming unrest in some quarters over how things have transpired. Some look at the deficits and the lack of success on the field, the still-spiraling salaries being paid out and the increases in ticket costs and mandatory donations and see nothing but a huge mess. And it is.But consider the alternatives. And that's the real point here today, because so many things that have happened since West Virginia pulled the expensive trigger on its move to the Big 12 might well have eliminated the school from being in a position to do so. And had that happened, WVU would be adrift in an athletic no-man's land.It has always been well known that one of the most attractive aspects of West Virginia to the Big 12 Conference hierarchy was its immediate availability. The league needed a school and WVU said it could be there yesterday. Certainly its recent history in football and basketball helped its cause, but that availability was necessary. Had West Virginia told the Big 12 it could come, but not for another year, all bets would have been off.West Virginia was in the right place at the right time to crawl through that escape hatch, and the eventual financial rewards will more than make up for any current deficits, even if those deficits seem astronomical now. It's not even worth arguing the point. It's short-term sacrifice for long-term gain.And while the competitive aspect of the move isn't as easy to quantify or predict, if you're a WVU fan you don't really want to argue that the school bit off more than it can chew, do you? You've spent all these years arguing that WVU was just as good as anyone else, so embrace the fact that now the Mountaineers have the chance to prove it.The alternative is not something you really want to consider, is it? But let me force you to do so for just a moment. Let's say the Big 12 - or anyone else - was looking for a school today. Let's say WVU and Louisville were still on the table. Let's say that now neither had an advantage in when it might be available.It might seem short-sighted to consider this, but the here-and-now often sways these decisions big time. Who would the Big 12 want if it could only take one? In October of 2011, it was West Virginia. Today it might well be Louisville.Now it's the Cardinals coming off a resounding BCS bowl win, a trip to the Final Four in men's basketball and even Sunday's win over top-ranked Baylor in the women's tournament. And there's no argument at all that Louisville is a better geographic fit for the Big 12.Meanwhile, the ACC and the Big Ten have made it clear time and again that West Virginia wasn't high on their wish lists. The SEC isn't calling. And the Big East continues to crumble.So had it not been for West Virginia's abrupt and costly-for-now jump to the Big 12, who is to say the school would not be looking at a football schedule in future seasons highlighted - highlighted, mind you - by games with SMU, Temple and Central Florida? The basketball team would not only have a slate that no longer includes Syracuse and Pitt - soon off to the ACC - but sans Georgetown and Marquette and the New York area schools and the Big East tournament.In other words, it would have been everyone's worst nightmare from a few years ago when schools were fleeing the Big East left and right and WVU was wondering if it was about to become irrelevant. Except now it would be reality.Say what you will about West Virginia's struggles on the field and the court and in its wallet and everything else. But know that things could be much, much worse right now. And unlike the current situation, there would be no light at the end of the tunnel.Reach Dave Hickman at 304-348-1734 or email@example.com or follow him at twitter.com/dphickman1. Story Share Story Share Trending Now 1 Gazette editorial: Is it time for health care for all yet? 2 Blankenship again urges Supreme Court to hear appeal of his conviction 3 Malfunctioning aircraft lands safely at Yeager Airport 4 DHHR: WV medical marijuana law will need $2 million in upfront costs 5 Vintage West Virginia: Putnam Village Play ball! Power begins season tonight Previous Story Home runs help Nitro rally past Sissonville Next Story


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My husband and I are cracking up at this :)
Sunday was designated as a "homework day" but really, everyday is a homework day. Especially when you have to stand up in front of the department chair and other intimidating faculty and orally defend your thesis at the end of the term… it's a good motivator to get things done. Fear, anxiety, and stress are the healthiest ways to go from "to do" list to "DONE AND DEAD" list. It is better to be feared than loved, after all. I don't know how that applies to anything I just said but it felt right. That Machiavelli, what a guy.
But I digress.
I am a huge fan of going to coffee shops to do homework during the weekend because libraries stress me out. It's hard to focus when there are so many books leering at you, like they own the place. Anyway, getting out of the library means I can explore Philadelphia and do things like rub Benjamin Franklin's belly for good luck. Or run around pretending to be Paul Revere and screaming, "THE VEGANS ARE COMING!! THE VEGANS ARE COMING!!"
This weekend, my friends and I found a coffee shop that met our standards for homework-doing. It was edgy and cool and I obviously didn't belong.
Unfortunately, it was also a suffocating 1000-degrees Fahrenheit and crowded. A stormy sea of Apple products, beards, and glasses met our arrival. We were the conquistadors of this coffee-drenched land and scavenged for seats, listened to the stories from the indigenous people, and claimed the end of a long bar-table for the Spanish Empire. It was uncomfortable and awkward but you know what, I was at a cool coffee shop and I had a chair – things were looking good in spite of being forced into an advanced yoga position to get into my chair.
After doing some table-vulturing, (where you stalk people who look as if they are leaving their coveted tables with a wider work-space than the three inches we were given) we landed a table. It was a triumph. Not just for us, but for Spain. My friend enthusiastically slid into her seat, an antique wooden bench, and then started making loud noises indicating discomfort. That vintage bench, it turned out, was not conducive to human butts. It splintered off straight into said-friend's backside. I had to force her into the bathroom and perform minor surgery by pulling out wood chips embedded in various areas of her body. It was a true bonding experience.
Finally, after all of the tree remnants were removed from my friend's epidermis, we settled into our work. Of course, this was not the end of our trials and tribulations.
The coffee shop was loud and I was already having trouble concentrating but on top of that pre-existing loudness, a folk band started playing. This was randomly punctuated by the sound of coffee grinding and the existential sighs of so many failed writers and actresses. I enjoy a good folk tune and I'm especially partial to the sound of acoustic guitar so that part was nice. But then, there was an hour-long banjo solo. And the banjo player was really into his music which I can appreciate but not when I'm analyzing literature. Homer, Hesse, and Hemingway don't go with Hoedown.
You can only get hit by the elbow of an over-enthusiastic, bearded fiddler so many times before you give up and call it a day. And that's just what we did.
And then we immediately went to another coffee shop across the street decidedly banjo free. Success.
– Daughter


text: Tomlinson Industries now offers a "safer upper assembly" for S Series Faucets. This safer upper assembly requires a three-step action to control dispensing and prevent accidental dispensing. The faucet handle must be lifted, squeezed and then pulled down to activate. Release the handle to shut off. This safety feature is now available for the S