Mestizo was a place recommended for a dinner out and a get together with friends. It does not provide your standard run of the mill Mexican food. At Mestizo, you get something that is different and special. It’s not the first time that someone has recommended this Mexican restaurant, so I was more than happy to give it a try!

The warm atmosphere is set by its tones of deep reds and browns for the décor. There was a big bar area at one end of the restaurant, displaying all the shelves of spirit bottles! Downstairs, there was also a floor dedicated to private dining.

Mestizo has an extensive menu which ranges from small dishes, specials, tacos to the classic chilli chocolate mole dishes. We were given some tortillas with dips to start with. It was a decision between the tacos and one of the specials. I chose the vegetarian Chile Rellenis De Flor De Calabaza Y Queso.

The Chile Rellenis De Flor De Calabaza Y Queso was a pablano pepper filled with courgette flower, sweetcorn, courgette and mozzarella. The pablano pepper had a soft texture and it was melt in the mouth. The little silver pot of beans was topped with a sprinkling of cheese. Together with the rice, beans, pepper and vegetables, this made for a satisfying tasty meal!

The waitress told me that this pablano pepper dish was not cheese heavy, so I was pleased about that. When the main course was served, the pepper was covered in a yellow layer. I just assumed that this was cheese. But after tasting it, it was a sweetcorn sauce which I was definitely happy about!

A couple of friends opted for the Taco Tray! This was presented beautifully. Twelve individual bowls filled with the different meats, salsas, guacamole, beans, onions, sour cream, sauces and garnishes! A small basket contained the soft flour tortillas. Again, another filling meal.

The staff were really friendly and attentive at Mestizo. As we were a fairly big group dining, we all arrived at different times. But as soon as each person arrived, we were asked what we would like to drink. It was not like we had to look for the staff, they just came to us, which is the way it should be.

Even when we needed an extra seat at the table, the staff did not complain. They swiftly put an extra chair on our round window table.

The evening out at Mestizo was thoroughly enjoyable! Great food, good company and a fun catch up time with friends from near and far!

Mestizo, 103 Hampstead Road, London, NW1 3EL

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Crocodile Cafe is part of the Crocodile Antiques shop in Muswell Hill! You have the option of going through the shop to get to the cafe but I prefer the other way. The other entrance is next to the shop, down the green foliage plant filled aisle. Here you can pass by the fish pond with the carp!

The kitchen area of Crocodile Cafe can also be seen from this walkway. The pavement leads to a heated outdoor covered seating area on one side and the cafe entrance on the other.

Crocodile Cafe has lots of cakes on display, including scones and fruit bread teacakes. Along the top of the counter fridge are a row of small jars displaying the many teas on offer. The cafe does hot food such as breakfasts, soups, paninis, soups, jacket potatoes. It also does sandwiches and milkshakes.

At the Crocodile Cafe, you order at the counter, and then go upstairs to the seating areas. There are two areas, one of which had comfy seating! This area led to the shop.

The staff were really friendly and gave service with a smile. As we were indecisive on whether to go for the carrot cake or the apple cinnamon cake, we thought the easiest way would be to ask the staff. We went with their recommendation of the carrot cake.

The carrot cake was a big portion, definitely enough to share. It was moist, with raisins and carrots. A really tasty carrot cake and it was nice that it only had a thin layer of the cream frosting.

The tea was served by the pot. The vanilla chai tea was a lovely tea with the subtle flavours of the spices coming through.

Crocodile Cafe has a really relaxed atmosphere, friendly staff and good quality food. It is easy to spot the cafe by the painted mural of the crocodile on the side of the walkway!

Crocodile Cafe, 120 Muswell Hill Broadway, London, N10 3RU

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As it was a week of ongoing celebrations, this meant that there were a fair amount of meals out! On this particular evening, we decided to stay local and opted for The Sitara.

The Sitara describes itself as “The Indian Jazz Restaurant”! We were intrigued and not quite sure what to expect. Entering the restaurant, we were welcomed by the friendly staff. Framed pictures lined the red walls, tables lit by candlelight and jazz music softly playing in the background all contributed to the mood of The Sitara.

Our round table had the turntable in the centre, which made it a lot easier for us to share the dishes throughout our meal. As the menus were black, we had a little bit of trouble reading them as the restaurant was dimly lit. The kitchen was at the back of the restaurant and it was nice that we could see the food being prepared from the dining area.

For the starters, we had the meat samosas, pakoras and special mixed grill. The meat samosas came as a portion of two and were filled with minced meat and onions. The pakoras were deep fried onion bhajees and were fairly spicy.

The favourite was the special mixed grill. A sizzling plate of tandoori chicken, chicken tikka, sheekh kebab and lamb tikka. All of the meat was cooked perfectly and it had a wonderful delicious thick sauce. The sauce of onions, tomatoes, fenugreek and capsicum completed this special mixed grill.

Originally, we chose a few main dishes to share as we were not sure how big they were going to be. The main curries came in small silver bowls and after they were brought to the table, we decided that an extra one was needed. A selection of meat, chicken, lamb, vegetables and fish made up the main meal.

The karahi chicken was a tomato based dish with tender chicken cubes. The tasty sauce was made with garlic, spices and capsicum. The saag gosht had a fair amount of spinach in it and the taste slightly overpowered the lamb. Saying that though, it was still nice enough.

The dish that we added at the later stage was the fish masala. There was a good amount of cod pieces coated in the masala sauce. The fish was not overcooked and remained flaky.

For the vegetarian option, the matar panir was chosen. You can’t go wrong with the cooked cubes of cheese, together with peas in a spiced tomato sauce. We were also tempted by the classic dal tarka but this will have to wait for another visit.

To accompany the curries, rice, plain naans and garlic naans were chosen. The naans were piping hot and were freshly made. The rice was served on oval silver dishes.

The staff made sure that everything was the way we wanted throughout the meal. Even though the food was freshly made, we didn’t have to wait too long for our meal.

The Sitara is a gem of a restaurant! It’s great that all the food at The Sitara is made fresh to order and not prepared beforehand. The Sitara will definitely be our local Indian restaurant of choice!

The Sitara, 784 Holloway Road, Archway, London, N19 3JH

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