Dining Out Magazine

Sunshine, Champagne & Something to Celebrate!

By Amy Jensen @missamyjensen
It was my mums birthday last week so we headed of to the old favorite (Allard's obviously) for cocktails– Allard's Pimms (hard to go wrong), a maple something or other (tad easy to drink!),
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
a basil bramble (all ice and no cocktail– but good) and a Blueberry lemonade (again TOO EASY TO DRINK). 
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Happy from each others company! Or was it the cocktails?
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Ian joined us for a quick pint before we all headed along the road to Barca Art Cafe for a bite to eat. 
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Camera shy?
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
The food was delicious. Oh my goodness good. But I ruined it by deciding to try a G&T for the first time.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Who on earth can find any sort of pleasure from drinking that, I don't know! Yuck. And I stupidly went for the special rosewater one.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Rosewater? Really? It's just perfume you can swallow without damaging your organs. Ian's was ok, the cucumber made it better. Should have stuck with prosecco like Angie!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Other than that, Barca has super friendly staff and a quirky vibe. Also great for sunday lunch!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
We had this sharing platter to start, 'chosen by the chef depending on his mood'.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
He must have been in a very good mood.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Lamb with loads of lovely things. Whatever I can't remember they were, they were scrumptious.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Apparently this was a good steak, I wouldn't know.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
I do know though, that this orange duck was pretty sweet. Orange as in flavour, not colour– just to clear things up.
We headed out to Durham on the Saturday to continue celebrations with some close family friends.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
The day was hot, busy and covered in champagne. Well Pimms, then a coconut mohito (fabulousamazingloveit) followed by a raspberry mohito (justasamazingwantanother) and then I might have just had a little glass of champers.... Anyhow! The first bar we went to took 30 minutes to bring us our jug of Pimms which was almost fruitless and served in a 'I couldn't be bothered to clean this properly' jug.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Very silly place to put a plant. 
After this fiasco however, we had a great day! Searched for somewhere to eat to suit everyones taste buds and ended up in the very quaint Cotton's, which is great for afternoon tea and light lunch, with super lovely staff. 
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Nelly's best pose!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
There was a brass festival on too! Very cool.
Whisky River and Ebony were visited during the rest of the afternoon, the later of which is a seriously nice champagne bar near the Gala theater in Durham. Well worth a visit!


Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Outside of Whiskey River, that's the wear. Y'know, the other half of Tyne & Wear and all that.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
 Whisky River did that fantastic coconut mohito I mentioned earlier and is right on the river (as the name suggests) so if it's sunny, try and grab a seat outside!


Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Couldn't handle the hair being up eventually. Let it loose I say!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
COCONUT MOHITO. That is all.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Ebony, ebony, ebony. How wonderful you were.
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
 Ebony is the kind of place you walk into and worry your terribly underdressed, but in a good way. Nice people, nicely dressed, nice atmosphere. You just hope you're dressed as good!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Raspberry mohito!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Champagne? Pink? Oui Monsieur!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Love Angie me. Happy 21st mamma! 
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
Sunshine, Champagne & something to celebrate!
The day was ended on a high at Chiquito's, where we laughed the night away with magic tricks and burger buns– or lack of them! One of Ian's best mates, Neil ordered a naked burger expecting it to come with a bun but no dressing or lettuce etc. When the opposite arrived it's safe to say it took him a while to figure it out! He almost asked the waiter where the bun was! Kept us all hooting for at least 20 minutes! But you can probably tell that from my excesive use of exclamation marks! Fancy another? Oh, you're bored of exclaiming? Ok then... And Tracey (Nelly's wife) has a laugh that is enough to make you cry! That was the last one, I promise! Woops.
Good, good day. Sunshine made it EVEN better. Please stay?
 I've just been to York this weekend for the Pappas birthday so will hopefully be posting some pictures from that tomorrow! 

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