Paul Potts - A star is born
June 17th, 2007I’m a sucker for the underdog, and when I spent last week in Britain, I picked up the vibe around Paul Potts, a mobile phone dealer who, well, see for yourself:
(first appearance)
(semi-finals)
Tonight are the finals, so anxious to see the results!
Update He won! See his final performance below:
Oh, and btw: NEVER EVER go to the Mi Familia restaurant in Stamford, UK. We had the worst treatment ever at that place.
June 17th, 2007 at 14:13
Ziet er toch niet slecht uit hahaha,
Ik hoor het wel een keer
Gr
Ed
If you’re anything like me, you will try anything once, and having been told about this fabulous place in Stamford by a well wined and dined friend of mine, I knew if she recommended it, I should give it a go.
Tucked in a quiet side street, sits a beautiful cottage type building complete with creeping vines and hanging baskets. Little do you know until walking through the door that you are about to be taken on an authentic culinary tour of South America with Joe and his team at Mi Familia.
Entering the whitewashed building you are greeted with a low ceiling bar with low chairs, neon lights and dark walls, in
contrast to the upstairs restaurant area, which combines old and new and very different impressions of South America.
Exposed beams open up the room to the pitched roof, while canteen-style seats and a centre console salad bar bring a contemporary edge to the eating area, adorned with trinkets in a South American style.
The funky South American restaurant and bar in Old Barn Passage, Stamford, offers exotic meats and treats, and I, for one, know there are certainly not many restaurants that can offer crocodile, bison and zebra on one giant platter.
Joe Ogiluie-Davis, originally from Brazil, opened his first local restaurant more than five years ago, known by many as the lively Panama Joe’s. The success and popularity of the Mexican- themed venue fuelled the way for Joe’s next venture.
Opened in December last year, it is still early days, but already weekends are often booked up a week in advance. Joe’s stepson and the restaurant manager, Dan, told us about the many people who visit Mi Familia, some just for drinks. He also told us how recent months have seen the opening of a decked outside seating area, which not only has let people dine and drink in the summer sun, but has also enabled extra space for socialising.
Apart from the variety of fresh meats, supplied locally and from London, the restaurant also prides itself on a constantly changing selection of South American lagers and an impressive collection of spirits. Not to mention more different tequilas than you could get through in one night! As for the selection of cocktails, well, it’s a good job I wasn’t driving home, because they were too good to stop at just one! The choice is outstanding, and you will undoubtedly find the perfect accompaniment to anything on the menu.
After much perusal we decided that, rather than change our minds anymore, we would order The Mi Familia Platter, which, available for two or more diners, gives diners a sample of nearly all the meats and vegetables on the menu, such as plantation, yuca and shark.
It was definitely a good decision and an ideal solution for larger parties, as it is a great way to try a bit of everything. The menu helpfully describes the exotic meats and tactfully gives comparison to other well-known alternatives, for example, “Wild Boar – tastes like pork used to in the old days”.
The first platters, a meal in themselves, hosted a selection of cold meats, fish and olives, with a whole plate of sausages served on a warm bed of red onions.
Feeling slightly full, I was relieved when there was a couple of minutes break, but nothing could have prepared me for the amount of food that was brought out next.
A plate of fish, including shark and catfish, vegetables and chicken kebabs, plantation, spicy wedges, sweet potato chunky fries and citrus cous cous a platter of exotic game, bison and crocodile tail – even the menu says it tastes a little like chicken, and it did!
Diners are also offered the option of a free-all-you can eat salad bar with any main course or buffet.
We certainly had no room for anything else afterwards, and a couple of coffees later, we asked for the bill. Our total bill came to £61, including our cocktails, which may seem a little pricey, but for the unusual food and sensational cocktails, it’s well worth it!
A real taste of the unusual in this funky South American-style restaurant.