Patty & Bun: The Battle of the Burgers Continues!

Earlier in the week I was out shopping and fancied a burger for lunch, at first it was a toss up between Five Guys and Shake Shack but we ended up deciding on Patty & Bun due to the close proximity at the time. 

On first impressions the restaurant is small and cramped cosy but it was nice; I'm all about the environment and I really enjoyed the music (quite a bit of reggae) it reminded me of Wishbone in that respect which is good. A quick glance at the drinks menu won Patty & Bun a few extra points: they serve Appleton Rum as well as Wray & Ting, it seems the hipsters are catching on to other popular Jamaican beverages as they did with Red Stripe but I digress...

I ordered a 'Smokey Robinson' Burger (which I should mention is served medium rare as a standard) and my companion ordered the 'Hot Chic' Chicken Burger. Our waitress assured us that we could share sides so we ordered the Chips with Rosemary Salt and 'Winger Winger Chicken Dinner' chicken wings between the two of us (yes I order wings where ever I go).

Read the rest for my thoughts and of course glorious food porn!

Flashback Friday: Aruba

I celebrated my birthday in Aruba a few years ago and had such an amazing time; this beautiful Caribbean island has one the best beaches that I've ever been to (second only to Varadero in Cuba) as well as a unique mix of cultures and nationalities (I met less than 5 native Arubans during my visit). The climate is very dry and desert-like climate which is a huge contrast to the high humidity of other islands such as St. Lucia, it was also quite windy and oddly enough there were no mosquito's or any of the other bugs associated with the tropics.

Chronixx - Smile Jamaica (Video)

One of my favourite songs from last summer; such a beautiful and patriotic song which always (mentally) transports me back to sweet, sweet Jamaica!

Tumblr Moodboard: Fashion and Collision

I've made several attempts at blogging in the past with Tumblr being the medium that I actually stuck with the longest. I love the idea of creating mood boards (must be my arts background lol) and decided to create a digital one; I guess that's what Pinterest is for, but I still prefer the idea of micro-blogging.

My latest page 'Fashion and Art Collision' focuses on specific style influences/style icons that inspire me at any particular moment in time. At present there is not an actual art element- but that's liable to change!

Click here to view it and don't forgot to follow; you can also see more looks from yesterday's Style Inspiration Esther Quek.

Style Inspiration: Esther Quek

I first discovered this stylish lady via my Tumblr feed as I'm sure many others have also; it was when I had a short hair cut and determined to go even shorter I looked for inspiration from women who rocked pixie cuts. Esther Quek is the Group Fashion Director of The Rake, and in my opinion has 100 percent nailed androgynous dressing! Whilst I don't think I could pull of most any of her looks, I love how she layers and pays attention to the small details.

Home Cooking: Rib-Eye Steak and Rice!

I'm a huge lover of steak; nothing, and I mean nothing goes down better than a medium-rare rib-eye! Although despite this proclaimed love I've never actually cooked steak at home before, but decided to finally give it a try and I must say it went really well!

I kept the seasoning fairly simple: soy sauce, black pepper, chilli and garlic (although I did add Jamaican All Purpose Seasoning - not the chemical-laden UK version). I seared the meat for a minute either side, then proceeded to fry for a further 10 minutes at a slightly lower temperature, turning the meat over half way through cooking. 

Here are the results:

Excuse the random parsley, I was in a rush to take the pic!

Next time I would reduce the overall cooking time by 2 minutes as a personal preference, but this method delivers perfect medium-well results. I may also try using jerk seasoning as well; I think the powdered version would work better in this instance, but for everything else stick to the paste!

Don't count on this being a permanent feature on the blog as I much prefer to make reservations, but cooking at home is fun nevertheless! 

NEW Timaya feat. Machel Montano - Shake Yuh Bum Bum (Original Soca Remix)

I have to admit I'm not a lover of Afrobeats at all, however the original version of this Timaya song grew on me while I was in St. Lucia and now it's a constant reminder of Carnival Monday and Tuesday! I think the Machel remix enhances the song without taking away from the original.

What do you think?

I've included the original below for those who haven't heard it. Now I just need to find somewhere to play mas this year!