Stressed out in Southwark?

I spent the last hour or so searching for yoga studios and using the nifty journey planner to determine how long it would take me to travel from the flat we hope to get on Tower Bridge Road and Maltings place near the London Bridge Underground stop to various yoga centers in London. Of course, I could have spent this time actually traveling to a yoga center or practicing at home, but I'm a self-diagnosed Kapha and sometimes I just like to sit and poke around online. Curiously, all of the studios I checked (Light CentRE, yoga place, islington yoga, all three triyogas) are approximately 20 minutes away, except for Jivamukti which is almost double the travel time of the others. Sadly, for both my wallet and my schedule, there is only one yoga studio (Yoga Globe House) I could find on the Southwark side of the river, meaning and Underground ticket would not be necessary. Do I sense a business opportunity in my (hopefully) new 'hood? If I am wrong, please do send the names of other studios my way.  I look forward to trying them all and reporting back, once I get settled with a flat and a job.

Settling in and Sticker Shock

I suppose you could say that my foray into vegetarian London began last Monday with a 29th birthday meal on a Continental red-eye flight consisting of an unrecognizable "Indian" dish.  I wish I had taken a photo to document it here, but I suppose I just wanted to dig in.  Mmmm.

My first meal on terra firma was, thankfully, more enticing.  In a sleep-deprived stupor, Keith and I stumbled around the corner from our flat and found Ultimate Burger on Tottenham Court Road.  

Being married to a carnivore means I am always on the hunt for eateries that please us both, and Ultimate Burger fit the fill.  The veggie burger is large and filling, though by no means meets the criteria as a low calorie health food.  The side salad was fresh and came with just enough of a yummy dressing.  The total for my portion of the meal was around GBP 9.50. Americans, multiply by 1.7 to get the US Dollar equivalent, as of October 20th. Now kindly remove your bottom jaw from the floor.

The next order of business on the late morning of Day One was to get caffeinated.  Thankfully, this was not difficult at all on Tottenham Court Road.  Observe the following two photos taken from exactly the same spot on the street, I snapped a photo across the street and then simply turned to my immediate right:

The blue awnings you see in each picture are both a Caffe Nero location.  Hilariously, each is within spitting distance not only of each other, but of  Starbucks as well.
I wasn't able to get the first location and its neighboring Starbucks in one shot, but rest assured, they reside on the same block.  Perhaps owing in part to the fact that it is not available in the US and therefore makes me feel sophisticated, I find that I prefer the coffee at European-based Caffe Nero.  Their supremely frothy soy ("soya" here in the UK) latte is unlike any I've experienced at Starbucks.

With our bellies full, we sought out a gym to help us get past our jet lag, and to ensure that we could still attempt to rock the slim-fitting styles that are so prevalent here.  This wasn't a difficult task either as Fitness First is situated directly between one of the Caffe Nero and Starbucks locations.
  
Due to our sleep-deprived yet caffeine-buzzed states, we shelled out GBP 70 each for a two week pass.  Our current flat is temporary, so we didn't investigate whether longer contracts are more economical.  The gym is rather posh, and has a pool, sauna, showers, and, much to my pleasure, several yoga classes including Beginner's, Dynamic (not sure yet what this is all about), Flow, and Ashtanga, which I took Saturday afternoon and will write about in a separate entry.  I have to give you a reason to come back! 

Actually, in a bid to keep you reading this post, I'll refrain from taking you day-by-day into my food journal of everything I've consumed since landing on this side of the Pond, and will stick to the highlights.  Friday night one of Keith's coworkers coordinated a last-minute gathering of 17 coworkers and some of their significant others at Turkish restaurant Tas, which I later discovered has multiple locations. I was impressed that they were able to accommodate our large party quickly without reservations. We ordered from a somewhat limited group menu that included an assortment of appetizers. For my main meal I had turlu, which consists of vegetables, potatoes, peppers, and tomatoes served with couscous and yogurt.  One of my fellow veggie dining companions assured me the Turlu is usually better than what we experienced that night, maybe because it was a crowded Friday.  The table shared three bottles of wine, and the total was GBP 24 per person.

It was a decent deal for the amount of food we had, but not nearly as good as our meal the following night at Indian vegetarian restaurant Sagar.  

I figured my first week as a vegetarian in London had to include Indian food.  We unexpectedly found this restaurant on Percy off of Tottenham Court road while walking back from the craziness that was Piccadilly Circus on a Saturday night.  I knew I wouldn't forget the name because for a moment Keith thought the salt and pepper shakers on the table emblazoned with the restaurant's name were misspelled jars of sugar.  For under GBP 25 total including service we had two glasses of house wine, an order of two samosas, and two masala dosas.  I'm by no means an Indian food connoisseur, but the food was flavorful, especially the samosa filling which contained cashews, and was not at all greasy.  The waiters hovered a bit, but it was getting close to closing time, and one brought me red wine when I had ordered white, but I will definitely return here.

Sadly, we can't afford to eat out every meal.  I haven't been able to start cooking yet, which I swear I will do even though I hadn't turned on my oven in New York for at least three years before we moved, because our flat is temporary so I don't want to stock up on essential ingredients, and all of my small cooking appliances are currently on a slow boat crossing the Atlantic.  Thankfully I've found some relatively affordable take-away options.  The yogurt here, both soy and dairy, is so much better than back in the States. I especially love Sojade Organic Banana With Bifidus Soya Yogurt, which is included in the photo of my groceries below.  I've also become a fan of the Ploughman's Sandwich, which consists of cheddar, pickle, tomato, lettuce, and sometimes may on brown bread for around 2-3 GBP, and is available everywhere.   Folks here do seem to love themselves a sandwich.  You can even get one at Boots, which is a pharmacy similar to NYC's ubiquitous Duane Reade, from which no self-respecting New Yorker would ever purchase fresh food.  My favorite version is made by fresh! naturally organic and is available at one of my new favorite places, Planet Organic, which sells healthy take-away food as well as grocery items.

I finally caved and did a little food shopping here, even though I'll have to move the remaining food to our new place in a week, because I was sick of having no food in the house.

The booty you see above (plus TP and and paper towels which would add nothing to the still life) cost GBP 25.33, or around $45 US Dollars. I couldn't resist a few Amy's items I miss from home even though they increase the already large carbon footprint made by the trip over here (the slow boat from the US).

I'm glad our flat was devoid of food before shopping today, because that meant I had to go forth and seek sustenance at a local eatery.  On the recommendation of the most recent issue of Time Out London, I headed over to Lantana, located on Charlotte Place, a charming pedestrian-only side street off of Goodge that is ironically located between a Starbucks and a Pret a Manger.

As much as I enjoy Caffe Nero's coffee, I am happy to support a local establishment.  I wish I had my camera with me, as the presentation of my soya latte was as delightful as the taste.  I guess I'll just have to go back with Keith over the weekend.  The ricotta pancakes I had with baked fruit and greek yogurt was great also.  Sigh, maybe I won't be able to make that 12:30 Saturday yoga class at the gym this week.  But stay tuned for my review of last week's class!