• Added: 19th of September 2008
• Area: Elephant And Castle
• Category: Restaurants

London SE1 6SF

chodura said
Small south american restaurant on the E&C roundab
We discovered Parilladas del Sur while walking south to Kennington Park. We went there few times and both times were stuffed full for £10 worth of food per person. I would usually go for the big dish with beans, fried pork fat, rice, plantains, salad and beer. The restaurant is small and is frequented by south americans who would come either in large groups or lonely men. There is a TV playing south american music and dance shows. They also have traditional south american ice-cream although one day they ran out of it. It's a good place to go if you are very hungry.

• Added: 15th of September 2008
• Area: Bournemouth
• Category: Hotels and Travel

Bournemouth BH5 1AX
01202 396 234

chodura said
Good hotel best with a special deal on room rate
We stayed in Chine Hotel 1 night in February with a special rate. The room was OK, however the windows were dirty from outside so in a sunny day we saw all these streaks and stains on them. We stayed in a western wing, the renovated and modernised one. The room itself was old with old furniture but it had a flat screen TV which didn't fit in the decor. There was no minibar or fridge but had tea and coffee making facilities. The bathroom had a bathtub and a window. We have used the fitness centre (very small), pool (OK), sauna and the best part was the outdoors hot tub/jacuzzi. The breakfast was in the main building and was pathetic. The room looked straight out of the 70's - 80's with orange, brown decor. The croissants were just defrosted and were cold and unappetising. There was an OK selection of fried eggs, sausages etc. We were thinking, "Who would rent this hotel for their parties, banquets?" as it looked so unkempt, not even antique or vintage but just plain not taken care of.

• Added: 15th of September 2008
• Area: Southend On Sea
• Category: Hotels and Travel

Southend On Sea SS1 2JY
0871 984 6247

chodura said
Basic hotel, not that cheap
Travelodge prides itself on its cheap prices which it achieves by offering basic rooms with necessary but basic amenities. Our double bed was clean and adequate. The toilet had a shower, no bathtub. The window opened and the TV worked. There was no air conditioning so it became hot at night. However, we couldn't open the windows as this Travelodge is next to a nightclub and their patrons' screams were loud. Travelodge did warn us of this but we didn't expect the noise to be that excessive. The breakfast was exra £8 but we ate at a neighbouring cafe which was good and cheap (especially the pancakes). On the ground floor of the building there is a Chinese buffer restaurant (forgot the name) which had good choice of excellent dishes for £15 per person at dinner time. It also offered lunch but we ate elsewhere.

• Added: 15th of September 2008
• Area: Bologna
• Category: Restaurants

Bologna
+ 39 051 222529

chodura said
Expensive but good food
I found this restaurant in the travel guide book. I forgot that it was expensive and were surprised at the lack of menu and prices indication. The waiter approached us after few min, took our drink order and disappeared for several minutes. We discovered that this restaurant doesn't serve beer only wine so we settled for a cold white wine as it was very hot that day in Bologna. The waiter verbally told us the menu for the day and we ordered lasagna and pumpkin and cheese ravioli. The food arrived after some wait, the portions were on a small side. Lasagna was a bit dry and didn't have bechamel sauce as well as any tomato sauce. The ravioli were much better. Before food, they gave us some bread and salumi (cold meats) which was included in the coperto. We didn't have anything else after this and requested a bill which came to 40 euros but there was no detailed breakdown of this amount. The bill apparently included 10% service charge. The good thing about this restaurant is its outside seating area but right next to it is another restaurant much cheaper. Next time we'll go its neighbour.

• Added: 14th of September 2008
• Area: Bankside
• Category: Restaurants

London SE1 6SF
020 7277 0772

chodura said
Cheap chinese food restaurant
We regularly get a delivery order from the Well Chinese restaurant when we feel like we don't want to cook and don't want to spend too much. The portions are large and at the average cost of £4 per dish, they are very good value. Plus we get them delivered (minimum order £14 within 3 mile radius). We like pork dumplings, roast duck with fried rice, black bean sauce ho fun and others. We never actually ate inside the restaurant. The order process is very easy over the phone and the delivery is usually around 30-40 min later. The quality of food is OK considering the price but don't expect the best quality. Some dishes are too westernised with plain flavours and greasy.

• Added: 14th of September 2008
• Area: Elephant And Castle
• Category: Restaurants

London SE1 5TY
020 77012367

chodura said
Small south american restaurant on Old Kent Rd
We discovered Parilladas del Sur while walking to big Tesco. We went there few times and both times were stuffed full for £15 worth of food per person. We would usually go for the Argentinian churrasco for 2 people, a big dish with lots of grilled meat: large steak, chicken leg, sausage, fried plantain, salad, and beer. The restaurant is small and is frequented by south americans who would come either in large groups or lonely men. There is also an outdoor seating area and it has upgraded its sign and outside area. It's a good place to go if you are very hungry.

• Added: 14th of September 2008
• Area: Elephant And Castle
• Category: Restaurants

London SE17 2NG
020 7277 1991

chodura said
Local family owned Italian restaurant
La Luna is our substitute for a Pizzeria Castello that closed in 2007 although it doesn't live up the same quality. We went there twice and were satisfied with it. On both times one of us had a pizza, and the other a pasta dish with wine one time and beer the other time. The pizzas are a bit rustic with large toppings sloppily thrown on it but it is oven baked and thin-crust. The pasta dishes were hot and nice. We also had tiramisu which was a bit too dry without any liquor in it. The restaurant plays Italian channels on its large screen TV, one day it was Italian football and the other day we saw San Remo music festival. The owners are a couple of brothers from the south of Italy, although a young english waitress spoiled the atmosphere as she didn't know anything about Italian cuisine.

• Added: 14th of September 2008
• Area: Elephant And Castle
• Category: Restaurants

London SE17 1JL
020 7277 3388

chodura said
Excellent Chinese restaurant
I find Dragon Castle to serve a better quality Chinese food compared to the restaurants in Chinatown. It also helps that it's near our home. We've been there several times and were always pleased with it. The prices are of good value compared to the quality of food and restaurant interior. You could take someone there on a romantic dinner or a large celebration dinner. We usually go there for dim sum and order about 10 dishes for two of us, some beer and chinese tea and end up paying around £10-15 per person. There is a large amount of waiters there and gets busy on weekend evenings. The restaurant actually reminded us of restaurants in China or Singapore with the quiet background music, soft light, chandeliers, and waterfall feature in the entrance hall along with pleasant music playing in the toilets. The toilets are clean, modern and of a higher calibre than other restaurants in London in general.

• Added: 14th of September 2008
• Area: Inverness
• Category: Hotels and Travel

Inverness IV2 6UN
01456 486 658

chodura said
Cosy, friendly, clean bed and breakfast
We were driving during snow storm to Kinbrylie Bed and Breakfast and were almost sure we were lost. However, we found it, and in the morning had our doubts about its location removed by looking out the window. Kinbrylie is removed from the main place and is very romantic, quiet. You can have a "get away from it all" weekend or active, horseriding, walking, trekking weekend or Nessie search weekend. We stayed there to visit Loch Ness for our first time and were very pleased with the B&B. The owners very nice and friendly had an old dog which greeted us. We stayed in the family room which had a large modern bathroom with a rood window, bathtbub, shower, heated towel rail. The room had TV with freeview. In the morning in the large breakfast room, I had the full English breakfast while the others opted for a continental breakfast with toast and home-made jam. There was also a computer with free albeit slow Internet. We would definitely come back here again to relax and explore more of the Loch Ness.

• Added: 14th of September 2008
• Area: Stonehaven
• Category: Hotels and Travel

Stonehaven AB39 2BD
+44 01569 76693

chodura said
Stylish, cosy B&B with a friendly owner
We stayed at Bay View B&B one night on Easter weekend. The owner Janice met us and was excellent, very friendly and hospitable. it was snowing all that weekend and it was romantic staying in bed and looking out over the snow. We booked two rooms and both rooms were excellent. It has original artwork by the owner ( we think). We stayed in the red, Indian style room while our companions stayed in the neigbouring green, Japanese style room. Both rooms were cosy with large soft sofas and large immaculate beds. Both rooms had flat screen TVs with freeview. Both rooms french doors went to the large terace with table and chairs facing the sea, which was 100 meters away. We didn't have a chance to use because it was too cold and snowy. The bathroom was modern and had a shower but no bathtub. In the morning the owner Janice prepared us breakfast, for me full English and for others continental. She went us as far as preparing us a traditional Stonehaven breakfast dish of pancakes & berries.