Bless You My Son

The Tasty Tuck, Tavistock Street, Bedford, MK40 2RX

Another week, another take-away try out! Both Mrs Belly and I had just reached the end of a pretty busy weekend and I really didn’t fancy cooking so we pondered what cheeky delight we should settle on. I had Chinese on the brain but Mrs Belly had a real hankering for Fish N’ Chips and since I’m not adverse to the fried spud & battery goodness I ...was pretty much down with this decision, the real issue was “Is there anywhere open?”. As Sundays go it’s normally pretty hard to find a chippy open but find one we did and it just happened to be another childhood haunt.

The Tasty Tuck is situated in the bright lights of Tavistock Street and was the chippy of choice after a good swimming session at Robinson Pool, it wasn’t the closest but it was the chippy with the funniest nickname. We never referred to it as the Tasty Tuck, it was always (and still is) known to us as “The Fisty ****” (I think you can guess the rest).

What I do remember about the place was in all fairness, it wasn’t all that great. It always seemed a bit dingy and the chips were always floppy & greasy, I’m happy to say though that all of that has changed.

Gone is the dirty insides and gone if the floppy grease sticks they used to call chips… hello crispy on the outside/fluffy on the inside chips and HELLO crispy olde style batter covering a very moist piece of fish.

I’ve raved in the past about Andy’s Chippy but to be honest I think they have a decent bit of competition for the crown!

Again, this chippy is situated on the other side of town form where I live but both the Batter & Chips managed to make it through the journey without going all soggy (quiet an achievement in my book). The staff where friendly too and we didn’t at all feel rushed like we have done in some other places.

I hate it when you’re in the door for less than 30 seconds and someone’s pouncing on you to order:

“What can I get you then?”

“Erm… I’m not sure yet. You see, I’ve quite literally walked through the door and you seem to have quite a lot of stuff on that big menu up there… You see the one behind you which is listing out the choices I have to make. Yes, that’s it, the big board with all the words on it that although I am a fast reader I’m still not frickin’ Superman so if you’ll just let me have a couple of minutes to allow my glasses to unsteam and my eyes to scan over those selections then when I have mulled it over and decided what I plan to spend MY money on I’ll let you know and you can get right to it and do your thing!”

I’ve come to the understanding recently that not every visit to these places is as good or as bad as the last so let it be known that this was a Sunday and if those same people who served on a Sunday are there the rest of the week then I can’t see their being too much of a deviation in the quality of the food.

Anyway, check them out if you’re swinging by that way and have a guttural growl coming from below. The noise will soon receded in gratification.

The Picture Never Lies (Almost)

Apparently this is what you should expect from Andreas in Bedford. I'm calling bullshit on this one as I have never had as good a looking as this from them, it's normally 2 inches thicker and the cheese is never that stringy!

Ram It Down

Boccelli's, 2 Ram Yard, Town Centre, Bedford, MK40 1AL 

Last night as the snow began to fall once more myself, Mrs Belly, Mama Belly & Papa Belly all headed out in the cold and landed here.

After Papa Belly stopped arguing with the taxi driver over ripping him off (this certain alphabetical firm seems to have a fluctuating “Via” charge, sometimes it’s £1 sometimes it’s £2, when you question them ...on this they “phone” the depot and confirm the charge, however what they didn’t expect was that Papa Belly also phoned the depot after the cab had left to complain only to find out that the driver had not called in at all and had phoned someone else to “confirm” the price… so, be warned!) We made our way inside the restaurant and were instantly greeted & shown to our table.

The waiting staff were extremely friendly and eager to please but you didn’t get that sense of fakery that you get in some places, it’s seemed as if they genuinely wanted to please you.

Boccelli’s is a very small place but really does have a lot of atmosphere, it’s dimly lit, quiet enough to talk but not quiet enough where your conversation will be overheard. The food is reasonably priced and the service was really excellent.


 For starters:

Mrs Belly & Mama Belly shared a pizza base with fresh tomatoes and pesto topping (obviously I had to steal a slice or two!)

Papa Belly had the garlic mushrooms and I had the garlic chili prawns.

The Pesto pizza was pretty sweet! The base was authentic Italian while the tomatoes were very rich in flavour working really well with the pesto (I’m not a bit fan of pesto but I did find this to be mucho tasty).

The garlic chili prawns were nice and plum, very meaty and perfectly cook. The chili sauce had a small kick to it but nothing to be frightened of; it’s definitely a chili sauce that can be enjoyed by the more wary food goer.

I’d tell you what the mushrooms tasted like had Papa Belly not wolfed the lot down (obviously they were very good).

 Mains:

Mrs Belly – Chicken Risotto, I’ll just give you her 3 word review “That was awesome!”

Mama Belly - Fish (I’ve forgotten what she had now but again it was deemed wonderful none the less).

Me: Calzone with salami, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, onions & mushrooms. The dough was cooked perfectly as were the ingredients inside, I know on occasion that the dough can be very touch sometimes but not here! It really was a good tasting calzone but I would have preferred a lot more salami and a little less ricotta.

The thing I really liked about the portion sizes is that while they by no means small they were not overly large either and actually left room for dessert (something that doesn’t happen often these days. We often have the Starter or Dessert argument when we go out to eat; I prefer a starter while Mr’s belly always prefers the sweet desserts).

Papa Belly: Sorry, I really can't remember. (Perhaps I should start writing this shit down at the time of eating...)

Dessert:

Mrs Belly & Mama Belly: Lemon tarts (that’s what they ordered and not an attack on their characters by the way!)


 Myself & Papa Belly: Profiterole Ice Cream

I didn’t get to taste the lemon tarts but was told in no uncertain terms that it was "bloody lovely” and although it was cheesecake like it was served warm to the surprise but ultimately joy of the ladies.

 The real genius of the evening though was the profiterole ice cream; it was exactly as it sounds. Profiteroles encased in vanilla ice cream and my god it was so bloody good! I can’t really describe how good it was, it’s one of those things where I just say “you got to go try it yourself”.

The worst thing was the house white wine, fine it’s alcohol but god damn it was sharp! I’d suggest getting a different wine if you do head down there.

I would also recommend getting a nice Irish Coffee after your meal too, it was delicious and the whip cream could have covered my face had I have dived face first in to the cup!

I really was impressed by Bocelli’s and think If you’re looking for good Italian food with a nice atmosphere then in all honesty you can’t go wrong if you head there.

Bedford Belly on tour: Angus Steak House, Leicester Square, London A Man Of Few Words

Bedford Belly on tour: Angus Steak House, Leicester Square, London

2nd February 2012

Today I am a man of few words, Angus Steak House is pricey but frickin' awesome!

'Nuff said.






Additional: It has now been over a week since my visit and I am still craving the taste of the steak I ate, I just can’t get it out of my head.

What A Gem

The Ruby Murray, 17 High Street, Bedford, MK40 1RN

 

You know that promise I made to myself… the one we all made just after Christmas, you know the one. Well… I broke it again.

It was a cold Saturday evening, I’d been painting all day and was looking forward to heading in to town for a few pints then the phone rang and it was my friend asking if I’d want to eat while we were in town “sure I said I...’m not fussy about where we go”. So it was decided that we’d go and check out The Riverside Grill and we did just that with one small change, we went to the Ruby Murray instead.

I’ve been a couple of times before and each time it’s been packed but not tonight, tonight there were ten people sitting on one table and that was it… no one else.

As we were seated there was a whirlwind of action as we were surrounded by staff pulling out our chairs, whipping the napkins off of the tables and placing them on our laps as we sat (except for me, as soon as I noticed what was going on I grabbed my own napkin off of the table… I’m in a restraint to eat not to have my groin brushed by the hands of those that serve, cheeky beggars).

 Even though the restaurant was empty there was still a nice atmosphere about the place, it’s a very modern looking place and never seems uncomfortable, there’s plenty of space between tables so even when it is full you don’t feel like you’re sitting with people you don’t know.

As soon as we were seated our drinks order was taken and we were passed our menus. There’s a lot to choose form on eth menu but not too much and there as some dishes you wouldn’t expect to find in an Indian such as monkfish and some very unique starters.

I was going to try something different but you know what it’s like, you get talking and don’t really look too hard at the menu and then someone comes to take your order and you end up just falling back on the norm, I think the only thing I had that was different form the usual was the starter:

Chilli Prawn

 A mysore delicacy, lightly butter fried prawn pieces tossed with green chillies, curry
leaves and yoghurt. Served in a papadum shell.

Seriously flavoursome, the chilli is in no way overpowering and isn’t hot as you would expect it to be, the portions as pretty generous too but not too much.

 Lamb Rogan, Mushroom Rice (I love Mushrooms!) and Keema Naan.

The Lamb was cooked really well, a little bit pink inside but still melted in your mouth and the flavour of the meat really cut through, the sauce was thick and tasty with all of the spices really shining through

The rice was perfectly cooked and the Keema Naan had a generous helping of meat within its crispy bread shell.

After I finished I was pretty full but not over stuffed like I was with last week’s Indian. I’m not a small man by any means in length or width so perhaps I can ingest more than the average person, the rice in all fairness was enough to share between two as was the Naan.

 I think the prices are pretty reasonable and the staff are really helpful and friendly and if they don’t know something they will find out and return with an answer.

 As the night went on the place did fill up a bit more and the atmosphere became livelier.

If you want a good place in the town centre to go out to eat then I highly recommend the Ruby Murray, this is the fourth time I’ve been and I have never had a bad meal so set your taste buds to “BRING IT ON” and get yourself in there quick sharp!

January Blues

Blue Ginger, 116 Bedford Road, Bedford, MK42 8BG

 

So here we are, full of Christmas food guilt as we've all stuffed ourselves silly along with the poor Turkey (insert nut loaf for you crazy veggie types or "fake turkey" that tastes nothing like Turkey and besides if you wanted something that really tasted like turkey then why not just eat the damn turkey? It's dead already, you not eating it isn't ...going to bring it back, in fact you not eating it just means more will go to waste and have to be thrown away, didn't your mother ever tell you it's wrong to waste food?) the gallons of alcohol that have passed our lips, the cakes, sweets and sausage rolls we've ravaged over the last few weeks are gone and we sit, top trouser button undone, gazing woefully at the TV with nothing but fond memories fading gradually, slowly turning in to regret and although we promised ourselves “no more takeaways for at least two months” some of us *ahem* may have already fallen off of that rocky food train and maybe some of us found ourselves round a friend’s house to watch a movie (Apollo 18, thought it was gonna be good but turned out to be a bit shit *sigh*) only to have that dirty grub gremlin ordering, nay! forcing them to partake in a tasty Indian take-away from Blue Ginger… YES, YES for a million time YES, I'm talking about ME! 

 The shame I carry as I write this is infinite... almost infinite at least. OK, there is a small part of me that is happy... well, a larger part but that's my belly and it's kind of shaped that way so I'm not sure if that happiness counts... does it count? Who knows, all I know is that I’ll try to lock the gremlin up later and get back on the health kick but on that occasion I decided to let him have this one (trouble is I'll have to fight off the cake monkey next)!

It’s been a while since I’ve had a Blue Ginger meal so it’s a welcome treat when it finally arrives at the door. Myself, Mrs Belly and a couple of chums are watery mouthed as we dish out round one of the feast before us.

 
For Starter I shared a Chef’s Platter with my buddy, it comes with an Onion Pakora (posh way of saying Bhaji), a little chicken nugget (no idea what it’s actually called), samosa and a roll of sweet sweet chicken moo moo (seriously sweet but it’s a great tasting dish, never heard of it before and only tried it when I got sent one by mistake with my order a couple of years ago). We also had a couple of orders of Onion Pakora to share round (which we really shouldn’t have ordered but we’ll come to that later).

I’m not sure what everybody had for mains but I had a Lamb Rogan with Mushroom Rice and a Chili Keema Naan (which I shared with Mrs Belly). I’m not sure if they have a new chef or not but the Lamb Rogan was AWESOME! Really flavoursome, you could taste the tomatoes and spices in the dish, the lamb was really tender and not at all fatty and the vegetables in the sauce were not overcooked & mushy. The rice was as you’d expect it to be, light, fluffy and tasty! 


 The chili naan was not too hot (in my opinion, Mrs Belly will most likely tell you differently since a piece of chili did hit the back of her throat resulting in a coughing and splutter show for the next 5 minutes after which we all gave her a round of applause) but again was full of flavour, it was however a bit "damp" but that's to be expected really considering the journey it's had in it's foil pouch.

I did ask what everyone else had but as I said I can’t recall it now, what I can tell you is that everyone really enjoyed their meal however everyone was proper stuffed afterwards since we’d ordered way too many Bhaji’s. It felt like we’d never be empty again!

Everything was pretty damn good and considering the drive everything that should have been crispy was pretty much still crispy (excluding the Naan) despite sweating in its own steam for the duration of the journey.

The only issue I have with Indian food is that it can be a bit pricey, I’m not saying Blue Ginger is overpriced but it’s high enough to ensure it’s not something you’re going to be getting once a week or even fortnight.

I must point out that whether on the phone or in the restaurant the staff are always friendly and helpful. I haven’t had a bad experience yet with Blue Ginger and highly recommend grabbing yourself a munch from those Raja’s of the Indian Restaurant

King For A Day?

King Cod, 193 Bedford Road, Kempston, MK42 8DD

 

Two word review: NO SCRAPS!

Another lunchtime another growling belly (I mean my actually Belly, not my alter ego), so what’s a man to do? KFC? BK? They’re the same everywhere you go so where’s the fun in that?

No dear friends, I will not go to the messiahs of Franchise belly entertainment. I am the common man, I am tasting for you! I’m clogging my ...

arteries so you don’t have to (what a champ eh?).

The first chill of the year is upon us, a chill that can only be melted away with the warm deep fried promises of a large sausage in batter & chips (I’m sure other things would do just as well like a healthy soup or a nice hot cup of tea but as I said before “I am the common man, I am tasting for you!”).

So… King Cod (or as I call it “Posh Chippy”) is the newest chippy to open up in Kempston. I think it’s been around since the spring. When you enter the place you’ll see what I mean by “Posh Chippy”, the decor is very modern, exposed red brick wall on one side, gleaming stainless steel counters and serving area, olde pictures of Kempston's past on the walls (for sale too!) and a specials board which today listed (among other things): Pork & Chili Sausages… what kind of chippy does that?

A POSH ONE!

So, we have posh chip shop decor, posh sausages and blood posh prices! Large Cod £4.65… that’s just the fish man! I’d expect a large cod plus a snog behind the bike sheds for that sort of cash!

Anyway… down to the food.

Large sausage in batter & large chips (no ‘king scraps *grumble grumble*)
The portion was pretty big and I’m ashamed to admit that it did beat me. I’d say I have eyes larger than my belly but I have quite squinty piggy eyes (which ironically match my porky piggy belly) so that would be quite frankly, balls…

The chips themselves were a pretty mixed bag (no pun intended) some were over crispy, some were soggy and others were undercooked to the point of almost being raw in the middle. They were all kind of greasy too. I think it all depends on the cook. I went back one lunch time recently and had some amazing chips, they were crispy on eth outside and fluffy on the inside, perfectly cook. I went back a couple of weeks later at the same time, different cook, shite chips.

 My initial impression of the sausage in batter was good; I was impressed that even after a 10 minute car ride home the batter had remained very crispy, not a single piece of it was soggy at all. Sadly the look & touch of the batter was the best part, biting in to the batter I could feel it crumble away (not in a good way, in a kind of stamped on Crunchie bar was but without the awesome taste) then I felt your mouth was awash with grease, swimming heavily around the inside of my chops. That’s when I hit the sausage, firm and meaty but with that odd Walls sausage roll after taste. A Horrible fatty just off meat taste…. Blurgh.

 

As a customer you expect some sort of standard from the places you frequent such as flavour. There just doesn't seem to be any consistency in chip shops and the like. Yes, I know they're just chip shops but if one guy/gal can perfect their product to a set standard why is this information not passed on to the other cooks?

 I’m not sure what’s happened in the Fish N’ Chip world this last decade or so but there seems to be an increase in shite chip shops. Those that were once grand are falling in to their fishy knees while the new blood fails to rise above their spuddy ankles all of them resting their battered heads in a greasy puddle of muck.