of gardens and swordfish

last night i went to pick lois up from victoria coach station as she was visiting from norwich. typically, the coach was an hour and a half late, so i was sat on an incredibly uncomfortable plastic square surrounded by sweaty, smelly people, the low hum of ipods breaking the otherwise stale air and approximately seven free london newspapers for every person, with crazed men on the street trying to force even more terribly written stories encased with advertising into my hands. in other words, a bit of a nightmare. if it wasn't for my beautiful xda orbit i would've started crying, but i plugged the earphones in and whiled away the time with solitaire, facebook and the knife. good. when lois got off the coach though, it all turned for the better, and she told me of a nice restaurant in covent garden that we should go to. so we did.

as we got to covent garden, there was a mad surge for the lifts, so i decided the stairs were the way forward, only 193 not too many? nah. "lois i've done these before, they're easy" i warble as i begin the ascent with lois' suitcase. about ten seconds later i was out of breath and dying on the inside, but put on a strong face and upwards i go. at the top it felt as if my lungs were going to burst out of my ribcage, and my heart was obviously having a private house party, gabba on the soundsystem (mm recurring gabba theme, i like it). as we walked past various gold painted people and jugglers i spotted the rock garden and we got the waitress to make us a nice table outside.i browsed the menu and was a little upset to see lots of standard meats, but i was hungry nevertheless, and it was never my intention to eat an awesome meat anyway, just to eat! however, i was delighted to read the specials menu and see swordfish steak gleaming there, willing me to order it. which is exactly what i did without hesitation. it was to be served with caponata and basil oil. lois opted for the pork loin with sage and onion, bramley apple sauce and red wine jus. we washed it all down unconventionally with a bottle of enbleme d'argent 2004 merlot, which was bloody tasty! the swordfish was absolutely awesome, now my favourite fish! i would have never tried it if it wasn't for the challenge, so once again it has proved to be an invaluable quest in broadening my pallet. i think it tasted a little bit oily like salmon, but definitely a smoother taste, and the way it was cooked had it melting in my mouth, bliss. the accompanying vegetables and basil oil made the meal complete, and though it looks quite small, it was nicely filling. a definite recommendation from the beast feaster.for dessert i enjoyed a nice warm waffle with vanilla ice cream and cinnamon pear sauce, which topped of the meal wonderfully! lois went for the chocolate brownie (surprise!). i'm deeming the swordfish as a special fish strike, so it will not take a space from the seafood limiting list. roll on june and it's many delights!