L'Assiette in Southbourne

She Said:

Brett's turn to plan date night took us to a sweet little French restaurant over in Southbourne called L'Assiette (French for 'the plate'). He found this place on Trip Adviser - as it is rated NUMBER ONE! of all local restaurants. You can see all the great reviews here! And, we're about to add to them.

This place was spectacular!

We visited on a Thursday night around 7pm, and had the place to ourselves! For such a highly-reviewed restaurant, we were surprised it wasn't more crowded - and it's a tiny spot. Probably no more than 15 tables total. But the fact that we were their only patrons (for about a half hour, then it started filling up), the service we received was impeccable.

Now, as you have read in our past posts, service in England isn't anywhere near what it is in the states, due in part to the fact that tips aren't really a driving incentive over here. But this place - this place breaks the mold. The service was better than most places we'd been to in Seattle!

Once seated, we were immediately brought over a jug of water, and amuse bouche's from the chef - i LOVE this!

Our waiter was quick to help us decide what off the menu to order (as EVERYTHING sounded amazing!). We were sitting by a little window that looked into the kitchen, and was fun to watch the chef hard at work - and the kitchen was impeccable! Spotless.

The menu changes weekly depending on what is in season. We started off with some Parmesan Cheese and Basil Risotto Balls (£5.45) and they were PHENOMENAL. Hot and crispy on the outside, with oozing cheesy rice in the center.

For our mains, Brett ordered the Rib Eye steak (cooked to perfection!) with portobello mushroom (£18.95), and i ordered Pan Fried Fillet Sea Bass with bouillabaisse sauce (£17.95). The fish flaked off the fork, and the sauce was so rich and amazing - brilliant drizzled over the vegetables and potato that accompanied. We also ordered a side of Mediterranean vegetables (£2.50) - but we barely touched these, as we were so full from the rest of the meal!


At the end of the meal, our waiter brought out some homemade shortbread cookies and bon-bons as a post-meal treat. It just kept getting better and better!

Amazing ambiance in this sweet little French spot - impeccable service, sweet little surprises, and melt-in-your-mouth food - L'Assiette is definitely one of Bournemouth's best kept secrets!

Bon Appetite!

L'Assiette
www.lassiette.co.uk
141 Belle Vue Road
Southbourne
Dorset
BH6 3EN
01202 420537

Funki Sushi. And yes, it was.

Funki Sushi

Bournemouth, UK

She Said:

I hate starting off our first Date Night post in Bournemouth on a sour note, but there is just no other way to describe this Date Night. So here goes.

After a few weeks living in our new digs here in Bournemouth, Brett and I were craving some good old-fashioned Sushi.

After a quick Google search, we found that there were two sushi restaurants within a 10-mile radius, and one within walking.

Funki Sushi it was!

It's a shame we didn't do a bit more research on this place before heading out on one of our first Date Nights. If we had, we would've been well-warned to avoid this place at all costs. But our lesson was learned the hard way.

Funki Sushi is located just outside of town center, and when we arrived, we entered what was clearly a restaurant-by-day-nightclub-by-night.

The place seemed cool and minimalist-modern-chic, but there were signs that past 10pm at night, this was a place Brett and I would stay FAR away from.

The waitress seated us with indifference, as if she loathed that she had to be there. We ordered, and asked for a couple waters. We were brought a bottle that looked like it had been used about 5 times prior to us, but were still charged £5 for it once we got the bill (even tho we asked specifically for tap).

The food took ages - probably about 30 minutes for Brett's Phad Thai and my sweet and sour Chicken. That's right, we didn't even order sushi... after getting a california roll as an appetizer and finding it less authentic than what we'd find in the Safeway Deli Section. Seriously. Brett enjoyed his phad thai, but my sweet and sour was soup.

Perhaps it's because we have been spoiled with Seattle sushi. Or perhaps it was the fact that the entire place felt like a shady night club. Or that the service was awful. Or that we were the only people in the entire restaurant for the first 30 minutes we were there (never a good sign).

But no. It was the food. The food. Just. Wasn't. Good. Especially for the price. The whole meal - two mains, a roll as an appetizer, one glass of wine, and water we were charged for - all came to about £50 - which is $75USD.

Take our advice - go elsewhere if you're looking for authentic sushi. This place just wasn't good.

RATINGS:

Funki Sushi
20 Exeter Road
Bournemouth BH2 5AQ
England
01202 25 25 33

Romance: 1
Cool Ambiance/Interior: 2
All Around Service: 1
Cost: £££
Would we recommend it? Not really. Just not for us!

[The view from the restaurant was stunning!]

*Please note this blog is solely the opinion of the author(s).

At-Home Cooking Class: BEST. DATE. EVER.

Personal At-Home Cooking Class
with Bourgeoisie Brunch's Chef Ricky

He Said:

This for me is the alpha date. The Ferrari of dates. The luxury Dubai hotel, the fine bottle of wine of dates. It’s the Rolex, the Red Hook, the Seahawks winning the Superbowl and more than one week of summer in Seattle of dates.

Well maybe it’s not that good – but its pretty damn great.

Want to impress someone? Sweep them off their feet, pamper them, and have an absolute ripper of a time while you do it? Walk a few steps in the shoes of the mega-rich??

Of course you do, who bloody wouldn’t. For my birthday recently, Mandy did this by surprising me with a home chef!

Rick Flickenger from Bourgeoisie Brunch is a 5 star chef, culinary instructor, and all-around top bloke. He specializes in intimate cooking classes as well as being personal chef.

A budding home chef myself, Mandy organized an at-home cooking class for me as a birthday gift.

With a predetermined budget and menu (Mandy helped), Ricky handles everything, turning up with all of the ingredients and everything needed to cook.

After a quick introduction, and armed with a sneaky glass (or six) of red, we got straight into it. With Ricky, you can do everything and take full advantage of a proper class structure, or do nothing and enjoy the experience of your very own chef. For us it was 80/20 with Ricky getting involved when I was out of my depth or busy chewing his and Mandy’s ears off.

Making a full three course dinner with meals that would feel at home in any local fine dining restaurant, Ricky provides an in-depth lesson on the technique you’re applying and why it makes the food so good.

Lastly I’d like to mention how casual it was. Nothing was rushed, awkward, uncomfortable or forced. We’d prepare a course, eat together at the counter, share some wine and savor the moment. It really was something special.


Cheers,
Brett

She Said:

Brett’s right. This truly was one of the most amazing nights we’ve ever had as a couple, and it was all thanks to Ricky’s creativity and charm.

Brett has been cooking heaps since moving into our new place (and finally having a kitchen we can both move around in!) so I thought it’d be the perfect gift to get him an at-home cooking lesson. Not that he needs it, but I knew there were some techniques he’s been itching to learn, and it never hurts to keep learning! ☺

I found Ricky on craigslist when doing a search for ‘personal chef’ and boy, did I luck out! Ricky offers an array of cooking classes throughout the city, if that’s more your thing, but also does house calls.

This made it truly special.

We put our heads to gether on a budget (he even stayed under!) and some ideas for foods to cook, and he did the rest. Showed up right on time, boxes and bags full of the freshest finest foods.

We spent 4 hours, 3 courses (and thousands of calories) talking, laughing, cooking, sharing wine and stories. We ended the night with full bellies a great new friend.

The only thing I’ll warn you about – this is probably not the best first date, as it’s super intimate.

It would work, but only if you want your special someone to get down on one knee and propose at the end of the night. That’s the effect this night will have on you!

Definitely recommend this as a special Date Night… and it cost us less than a night at the Met! Can’t beat that.

RATINGS:

BOURGEOISIE BRUNCH
Rick Flickenger
206 769 3711
bbrunches@gmail.com

Romance: 3 - was sort of a group thing, so not uber romantic. But UBER cool.
Cool Ambiance/Interior: 5 - it was our house, so of course this gets a 5!
All Around Service: 5 - can't be beat!
Cost: YOU pick the budget!
Would we recommend it? 5: YES YES YES YES!