The View Tube Reopens On Saturday
This is good news and now I’ll be able to take a walk along the Greenway and have a coffee.
What About Gluten?
I love this notice from Waitrose.
What About Gluten?
The notice says.
Bread sliced here may contain nuts, peanuts, sesame and other allergens.
There is no mention of the biggest allergen in bread; gluten.
Who’d Want To Live In Chelsea?
I wanted to go to a shop called Mr.Resistor in Parson’s Green. Hopefully, they’d be able to provide me with lights that solved my lighting problems. Sadly the light that might have solved the problem was out of stock, so I decided to come home. I had gone by taking a bus to Liverpool Street station, then the Central line to Notting Hill station for the District line to my destination, which was close to Parson’s Green station. The problem had been the bus, as all of the traffic in the City was gridlocked. Possibly because of the Crossrail works.
So instead of retracing my steps, I thought about getting a bus to perhaps South Kensington, where I could get some lunch at Carluccio’s. I really don’t like taking pot luck in an area I don’t know, as getting glutened isn’t fun! I did find a bus stop, with a choice of just one bus; a 22 to Piccadilly Circus. At least it was going in the right direction, but then it got stuck in traffic, due to all the tractors and white vans. Kingsland High Street may not have the glamour of the King’s Road, but at least the traffic keeps moving. In the end, I dived into the Piccadilly line at Knightsbridge station and took a train to Holborn, where I got a friendly 38 bus to the Angel. I just had time to grab my supper and some sandwiches from Marks and Spencer before I had to come home to catch an appointment.
Chelsea may have advantages, but I certainly didn’t see any today. Get past Piccadilly Circus and the traffic frees up, you’ve got the Underground and lots more bus routes. But then I suppose those in Chelsea and the surrounding areas of London don’t believe in public transport and clog up the roads with their tractors. It’s significant to me, that Kensington and Chelsea is one of the London boroughs in greatest opposition to the new London sewer. Could it be that the councillors are getting so many complaints about where to park during the construction?
On the other hand, this trip showed how Crossrail 2 or the Chelsea to Hackney line is badly needed. But do the residents of Chelsea want it constructed given the problems Crossrail is causing in the City. Parson’s Green station is incidentally pencilled in, as a station on the new line.
Next time, I go that way, I’ll take the Overground to West Brompton station and then change to the District line.
Why Does It Always Rain On Mondays?
As it’s Monday, the cafe opposite; Eggs Milk Butter, was closed today.
Why Does It Always Rain On Mondays?
So there was no popping across to get a coffee. I just had to take a walk in the rain.
Why Can’t I Shop In One Store?
Sainsburys and Waitrose are side-by-side at the Angel, but as the picture shows, I have to shop in both.
Why Can’t I Shop In One Store?
This Waitrose doesn’t sell any decent gluten-free bread, whereas their store a mile or so at Highbury Corner does. So before going to Waitrose, I had to get the bread from Sainsburys.
Government To Set A Minimum Price For Alcohol
The Times is saying that the Government will be consulting on this. What I noticed was that the article was accompanied by a picture of a plastic bottle of own brand supermarket cider, which it said could treble in price.
If it increased in price by ten times, it wouldn’t bother me, as that is the sort of drink, that would make me ill, as I’m allergy to gluten, which those drinks often contain.
My preferred long drink is actually Aspall’s cyder, which is generally about a couple of pounds for a half litre. The muck shown in the article is quoted as costing about £1.20 and that’s for four times as much.
I prefer to enjoy my drinking, rather than drink to oblivion.
So I’m very much in favour of a minimum price for a unit of alcohol. It might cost me a couple of quid a week at most.
Carluccio’s Or Starbucks?
This is a decision, I have to make every Monday morning at the Angel.
Normally, if I want a coffee early in the morning, as I’m off to the shops, I go to the cafe opposite.
But on Monday they are shut and I also generally go to the Angel to get my provisions for the first few days of the week.
So do I go to Carluccio’s or Starbucks for my pre-shopping coffee, whilst I work out what to buy.
For some time, I’ve gone to Starbucks, as it’s close to Waitrose, but recently, I’ve started to use the Carluccio’s a little further away.
Could this be because of all the publicity about Starbucks tax position in the UK?
After all, their coffee is only ten pence more, you get a comfortable seat and friendly staff, the queues are minimal and if you need to use the medical comforts, they are clean and excellent.
It will be interesting to see, how many people change their coffee habits!
A Problem For A Jewish Coeliac
Now I’m not Jewish, although I’m suspicious that my coeliac disease comes from an Ashkenazi Jewish line from my great-great-great-grandfather who came over to work in the fur-trade at the start of the nineteenth century.
I do like to have eggs for breakfast and if I cook them at home, I will generally have them with beans and bacon. Today, though, I was on the way to IKEA via the Angel, so I popped into Carluccio’s. Usually, in such a situation, I have eggs florentine with a portion of pancetta. The pancetta is a great way to mop up the sauce and the yolk from the poached eggs.
I suppose if you are Jewish, you could accept the offer of Scottish gluten-free oatcakes. The oatcakes are fine, but they are a bit hearty for breakfast.
A Superb Gluten Free Meal At Kings Cross
I popped into Kings Cross station and had a superb gluten-free meal at Leon.
As you can see the surroundings weren’t bad either for the sit down part of a fast food restaurant. It made your average burger joint look exceedingly plastic, tacky and in the worst possible taste from across the pond.
To cap it all, the Catalan Salad and White Bean Stew with a Fresh Lemonade was just £8.55.
Twinkies Goes Bust
I read in The Times yesterday that the maker of Twinkies, a North American snack food, has gone bust. After reading their Wikipedia entry, I don’t think anybody who cares about their food will be bothered. In fact the entry, is one of the funniest I’ve seen in a long time. I particularly liked the part about their shelf life. They can also be deep-fried, like Mars bars.
The Anonymous Widower 