Bouvelard Brasserie

Country: France

Cost: £10 to £14 for a main, though they have a pre and post theatre menu during the week

Location: Covent Garden

A perfect location to catch up with my friend Sian, since we first  met in the gastronomic capital of France (Lyon) nearly 5 years ago.  Sian has a taste card so we got 50 % off the bill.  The food was delicious: I had venison and gratin dauphinois, Sian has tartiflette and we both had creme brule for dessert. Mmmmm.

www.boulevardbrasserie.co.uk/

The Scandinavian Kitchen

Countries: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland

Cost: from £5 to £8 for a main

Location: Great Portland Street

A fantastic little cafe and shop on Great Titchfield Street, the Scandinavian Kitchen has some delicious food and a lovely atmosphere.  We stayed 3 hours eating, chatting and drinking coffee.

One of my new favourite places in London! 

www.scandikitchen.co.uk/

De Hems Dutch Bar

Country: The Netherlands
Cost: £7.30 for a pint and a glass of wine
Location: China town

De Hems is a Dutch pub on Macclesfield Street in China Town. They have a range of Dutch beers on tap. You can't miss it because it stands out in China Town like a sore thumb :)

Katzenjammers

Country: Germany

Cost: around £6 - £8 for a main

Location: London Bridge

This German bar-restaurant has a lot of beers on their menu as well as some tasty looking food.  Didn't eat anything but I'd definitely go back to dine.

Mandalay Restaurant

Country: Burma/Myanmar
Cost: £5 - £6 for a main and £1.90 for plain rice
Location: Edgeware Road

I had calabash fritters, chicken and tamarind followed by coconut agar agar jelly. Mmmm.

Menu is here: www.mandalayway.com/restaurant/menu.html

Asian shopping

Countries: China, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand etc
Cost: depends what you buy
Location: Bayswater

                                         

Churros!

Country: Spain

Cost: £2.50 for chocolate and 40p per churro

Location: Queensway

Churreria Espanola serve both Spanish and English food so you can get paella and tortilla or a full English breakfast.

Notting Hill Carnival

Countries: Caribbean
Cost: free
Location: Notting Hill

Over a million people visit the Notting Hill Carnival, which has been running since 1966.

There are loads of stalls, floats, dancers and costumes as well as sound system points that are set up around the whole carnival area where you can have a dance in the sunshine.  Gets super busy though so best to plan your journeys in advance.

Sun Bailante

Countries: Caribbean, Africa, Latin America, Brazil
Cost: varies
Location: check individual event information.

Sun Bailante is a tropical music events group in London that have regular nights in venues around the city.  So far I have been to Sun Bailante events in Islington, Gloucester Road and Moorgate.  The music is brilliant, perfect to chase away the cold on a winter's evening.

Check out the site: www.sunbailante.com where you can listen to the some of the different types of music played at their nights.

Victoria and Albert Museum

Countries: Several
Cost: Free
Location: South Kensington

My first visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum!  I didn't have a chance to see everything but enjoyed the time I did spend there.  There's a good mix of old and new exhibits.