You’ve probably heard of The Ned already. Based in the City, the building was once occupied by Midland Bank, but is now London’s newest hotel, member’s club and event space from the guys at Soho House.
There are no fewer than nine restaurants within the property, plus a couple of bars, 252 bedrooms, a spa, member’s club, rooftop pool and six private event spaces.
We opted for one of the restaurants to celebrate a birthday back at the end of Summer. Arriving into the vast, open spaced banking hall the place was packed for a Tuesday evening. Most of the restaurants are based around the banking hall, with a central music stage which was home to a live jazz band on the evening we visited. After spending nearly 10 minutes trying to find the restaurant we were having dinner in (this place has no signage whatsoever - a little too cool for that) we finally found it tucked away in the right-hand corner, separated from the hustle and bustle of suits and stilettos.
Malibu Kitchen offers dishes that are health-minded and in several instances vegan, raw and gluten-free. This may not sound that great for some, but the restaurant and food are great, and there is a burger on the menu for the carnivores.
The plates are small, so we ordered a few and shared, plus our own main dish - which worked out well given that there’s plenty to choose from on the menu.
Rolls with raw vegetables, nuts and sauce to dip.
Courgette ribbons, basil pesto, pine nuts.
Rolls with raw vegetables, nuts and sauce to dip.Courgette ribbons, basil pesto, pine nuts.
Plantain crisps and shrimp salad
Sea bream taco, panko, green papaya, pico de gallo
Ahi tuna poke, avocado, sesame, jalapeno, brown jasmine rice
Sea bream taco, panko, green papaya, pico de galloAhi tuna poke, avocado, sesame, jalapeno, brown jasmine rice
Curly kale, red pecan nuts, apple, radish, sprouts, ginger, miso 
Elderberry pavlova, grapefruit curd, raspberry, pomegranate
The dishes were full of flavour, and delicious. We went for a little explore after and couldn't believe how big the space is. I want to go back and stay for the weekend, however I may need to sell an organ or two to pay for it as it's not exactly within my budget!
Malibu Kitchen @ The Ned
27 Poultry, London
EC2R 8AJ
The Miss Clara Hotel was our accommodation for the second leg of our honeymoon last year. The younger sister of Stockholm’s very luxurious Nobis Hotel is one of the city’s most treasured Art Nouveau buildings. It was a former private girl’s school - the hotel is actually named after the headmistress, and many of the original features remain.
Located in the center of Stockholm, within walking distance of most major tourist sites - including the Royal Palace and Gamla Stan (Old Town). Plus there's plenty of bars and restaurants in the area should you want to eat out instead of at the hotel.
The bedrooms are true Scandi-minimilist-chic - think parquet wooden floors, white walls, marble bathrooms, and many materials used in the rooms have come from all over Sweden - the wood the beds are made from is from Gothenburg.
If you love interior design, then this hotel will be right up your street. I found myself geeking out at some of the designs in our room - for example, at the end of the bed is a framework of a seat, which is actually fully functional and surprisingly comfortable to lean against whilst reading. The window space has been designed for storage purposes, housing the fridge and mini bar, as well as having two seating areas atop.
Each bathroom has been kitted out with toiletries by the gorgeous brand, BYREDO and has the fluffiest of dressing gowns for you to snuggle up in.
We were in Stockholm for two nights and although we didn't spend to much time at the hotel, we did spend our first night curled up under blankets on the window seats in the bedroom, watching the world go by on the streets below whilst eating room service pizza, delivered from the pizzeria next door to the hotel.
The Miss Clara has a restaurant and bar, which proved to be very popular on the weekend evenings we stayed there. Breakfast is served in the restaurant each morning, and had a great selection of food ready to set you up for the day, including a waffle maker and all the toppings you could think of.
Fluffy bathrobes, BYREDO toiletries, window seats and delicious pizza delivered to your room, and a waffle maker in the morning- this hotel was made for me in mind!
Sveavägen 48, Box 1616
111 34 Stockholm
Phone: +46 (0)8 - 440 67 10
Travelling the world is one of my absolute favourite things to do, and ever since I started travelling with work, I have serious wanderlust! There are so many place to explore and experience in the world, and I’ve tried to set myself the goal of visiting some of them this year.
Today, I want to share with you the 5 places that are currently top of my travel bucket list …
Grand Canyon
I’ll always remember a friend of mine visiting the Grand Canyon a few years back, and showing me their photos from the trip. Ever since then, I’ve wanted to go and explore the area maybe even swinging by Vegas for 24 hours of fun!
Croatia
I haven’t had a beach holiday for a very long time, and Croatia has been tempting me with its beautiful beaches and gorgeous weather so I’m hoping to get over and explore its beautiful islands and mainland cities.
Williamsburg
New York is one of my favourite cities in the world, having visited a couple of times before, I am desperate to head back this year, and this time I want to explore the places I’ve not yet got a chance to see, such as Williamsburg. I’ve always stayed in Manhattan and I’m quite keen to stay across the river on my next visit, which is handy as it just so happens that one of my favourite hotels, The Hoxton are opening their first US one in that area, so I now have a very good excuse.
Lisbon
This is a recent addition to my list. After visiting Madrid with work, I was reminded how amazing the food and atmosphere is and, when I’ve mentioned this to people they’ve recommended I visit Lisbon as it’s got the same style as Madrid but way better. I’m hoping to see if they’re right this year!
Iceland
This country has been on my list for a few years now - my husband has been a couple of times with work, and has said he’d love to go back and explore. So, hopefully we’ll get around to doing just that in 2018.
What’s on your bucket list? Have you visited or done any of my travel plans, i’d love to hear your experience and make sure you give me some tips for things to see and do?
We all know that at the end of another year, a little reflection on the past 12 months plays on our minds, and welcoming in the new year brings new expectations, goals and hopes.
2017 seems to have flashed by in a blink of an eye yet again - I honestly don’t know how it went so fast and how much happened in a year that I thought wouldn’t be as intense as the previous one.
Looking back it couldn’t have been further from that, from personal achievements, great moments I’ll always look back on, and some I’d like to just bury in the back of my mind and forget about, 2017 was insane.
There are always going to be some pretty shitty lows, and the most significant for me was my mama's cancer growing and her having to go through chemo all over again, bringing some new, horrid side effects and just more cancer shite being thrown her way. My mental health took a huge hit towards the end of the year, and whilst I’m glad I’ve got the most amazing support network around me, it has made me realise that I want to make some life changes in order to reduce my anxiety and stress levels, and try and bring back some normality and positivity in my mind and body.
More on that shortly.
As I mentioned, 2017 bought some great moments that I never thought I’d experience, let alone achieve. So, I thought I’d share a mini round-up for you, as well as some changes (see how I’m not saying goals?!) coming up in 2018.
TRAVEL
Towards the end of 2016, I started a new job - a huge step up in my career and something I have to say I’m pretty darn proud of. With the new role, came a lot of traveling, and my first trip of 2017 was to Sydney, travelling in Business Class with Emirates which was an experience in itself. Albeit I was only there for 3 nights, but I managed to see the city and have a mini-adventure before hopping on the plane home. A trip I’ll never forget.
Next came Paris in March and April, followed by Chicago in June, which was a city I fell in love with and can’t wait to visit again this year. July saw me head back to Paris to celebrate my birthday (no work involved!) before heading to Berlin in August and Madrid in September.
In October, I finally managed to pin my husband down and book our honeymoon! We visited Sweden and had the most amazing trip - it was the first time we had both visited the country and found it to be so beautiful.
CAREER
As I said earlier, I started a new job in the latter part of 2016, so 2017 was a big year for me and my career. Travelling played a huge part, but I finally felt settled and found myself really enjoying my job and feeling valued by my team and peers.
CH-CH-CHANGES...IN 2018
When you go through some pretty horrid shit, it really does put things into perspective. As I said earlier, I want to make some life changes in attempt to bring back some normality and positivity in my life. I’m not calling them goals, as I personally think calling them that adds a little pressure to achieving them, which I don’t need right now. I’m going to try and make one small life change each month, building up to the Summer when I have the strength and confidence to tackle the big ones I’ve got my eyes set on.
If you’re a regular reader, you’ll have noticed I started to post less towards the end of 2017. This year I will be posting regularly, but not as often as I have done previously. I want my content to be something I love talking about, and that feels natural to me. I’m also prioritising spending time with my favourite friends and family.
Over the last six months, I’ve really struggled with putting my wellbeing first. I’ve noticed my body has really taken a hit from it all - it’s crazy what stress can do to you and your body. So, I’m going to try and put myself first more, and look after myself by eating well and having an exercise plan in place - heck, I may even join a gym!
I’ve started to realise that it’s ok not to be able to control everything that life throws at you, and although I’m still taking baby steps with this one, I am starting to just take these sort of situations as they come and just go with it.
Something I want to change is not taking on everything at full-speed. I have a pretty busy life and I know I need to slow down and not stress out thinking about how something could have gone, and what it could have been and also not overthink plans that are coming up in the near future. I want to try to acknowledge the present a little more, enjoy what is going on around me and think less about the ‘what ifs’. This is probably going to be the hardest change of all, but I know I need to be patient.
So, 2018 come at me!
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