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I’ve returned to Cafe Reem in Harborne many times over the last couple of years and it really is one of my favourite places to eat at lunchtime.  It’s also a great choice for a coffee and a cake, but for me if I’m popping in to meet up with a friend I usually opt for one of their magnificent Mint Teas rather than coffee.  There’s so much emphasis on coffee in cafes these days that tea often gets forgotten or alternatively some good quality teabags are used, but a premium price (similar to the more pampered coffee) requested for the privilege. Cafe Reem is different because tea there is fresh and really an art form in its own right. Not only that but you get plenty of hot water provided, so your tea lasts for the duration of your catch up, which is just the way it should be.

Cafe Reem isn’t just about the tea though.  There’s a lot more to sample and enjoy. With its focus on Middle Eastern cuisine it’s perhaps no surprise that falafel is a speciality and well worth sampling.  It’s prepared with care with a well judged combination of spices to create aromatic and flavoursome falafel.  My personal favourite is the Falafel Burger which is good size for a filling lunch.  It comes with a centre of goat cheese, sumac, and caramelized onions plus it’s served with hummus, imhamara and salad. There are a range of sandwich options available with falafel fillings and they are just as good, but a little smaller on the portion side if you want a lighter lunch.

For my next visit I’m eyeing up the brunch menu which looks perfect for a leisurely weekend breakfast when you don’t have any particular plans for the day.  There are a number of dishes with eggs that have caught my eye including O’jah, a Palestinian omelette, and Shakshuka, a one pot egg dish made with peppers.

Update: I went to Cafe Reem a few weeks ago (writing this in October 2018) with two friends and was disappointed.  I’d raved about the cafe to them and felt very embarrassed by the customer service: an order forgotten; an order got slightly wrong; a lot of grief about a slightly torn bank note; and a disappointing reaction to a hair in a dish (not sure where the hair had come from, but I didn’t like the way the issue was handled).  I do expect to go again with other friends, so I’ll know better if it was a once off then.

For some time now Bearwood (a suburb about 4 miles from the centre of Birmingham) has been a bit of a hot spot for local restaurants that have something different to offer.  Like anywhere else within the West Midlands, it has its fair share of curry houses with a few Chineses, pizza takeaways and chip shops thrown in, but there are plenty more including a few decent Italians, an Austrian restaurant (currently closed sadly), a Persian and an Eastern European grill. In recent months a number of cafes have opened up mostly on the main high street (Bearwood Road) offering a range of offerings and it’s pleasing that these have been mostly independent outlets.

The other day I tried out the latest cafe opening called Why Not Coffee with a friend. Inside there’s a soft industrial decor with wooden tables, metal vintage milk churns and some leather armchairs.  We wanted to sit somewhere comfortable and luckily there was a suitable spot for us  There are also some big tables with high stools which would be great for a meeting or for home workers. They do provide free Wifi and every seating area has a power socket and USB charger, but I didn’t try these out on my visit. I’d have preferred a little more softness to the decor, as I find that works well in a cafe as it helps absorb some of the noise, but Why Not Coffee has a very clean look and a pleasant atmosphere.  There is a spacious, clean and well equipped toilet at the back, but you do need to go up a few steps to get to it. Within the main cafe, I noticed a thoughtful box of things for children, including drawing materials and books.

Now neither of us are coffee drinkers, but we didn’t let the cafe name put us off.  The tea was nicely presented with the milk in miniature metal milk churns.  Like many cafes, there seems to be a desire to charge a similar price for tea to coffee, often without the justification in terms of quality or range.  The tea was perfectly pleasant, but fairly ordinary, so it felt a bit pricey. We were provided with some extra hot water though when we asked, so that did help ease things along.

In the interests of research I tried out one the cakes.  It was a difficult choice because there were quite a few tempting options available.  My carrot cake was delicious and very moist.  I thought the cakes were reasonably priced too.  There are some lunch options available and the bread on display did look nice, so maybe I’ll try some on another visit.

This month’s Degustabox has a new year, new me theme with lots of healthy options in the box, but there are also some nice treats too, so it should clear away any post-Christmas gloom.

I’ve been out doing plenty of walking and I find that the Mahtay Yerba Mate Sparkling Tea is a good size to take when I am out and about.  It’s a light sparkling drink that gives you energy too.  Another great companion for a walk is the Pulsin Vanilla Choc Chip Protein Booster which is a handy taste bar containing 13g of plant based protein.  Back at home I used the Pulsin Vanilla Whey Protein Powder for adding a protein boost. Explore Cuisine Organic Edamame & Mung Bean Fettuccine is a great way of adding extra protein and fibre to your favourite pasta dishes.

January is a time when many of us are looking to try to lose a little weight.  I was interested to try the LighterLife Fast Ready to Drink Shakes, available exclusively from Superdrug, but I found the shakes a little sweet for my taste, but I am interested in trying the rest of the range.  Eating more oily fish is something I’ve been trying to do and my go-to sources are mackerel and tuna.  Wild Planet Albacare Wild Tuna Steaks are 100% pole and line caught.  They are cooked once to retain the natural juices in the tin, so don’t drain and use the Omega-3 rich juices to enhance the flavour and your nutrition.  Clipper Tea has long been a favourite of mine.  Clipper Everyday Organic Tea makes a really good cuppa and it’s organic and the teabags are unbleached.

Also keeping me going this month have been the Jordans Juicy Red Berry Frusli Bars made with handfuls of zingy cranberries and raisins. Hersheys Cookies N Creme 5 Pack Snack Pack have provided a very welcome sweet treat. I love noodles for a quick and tasty meal so the Miso Tasty Spicy Ramen Noodle Kit was very welcome.  A little spice got added to our meals through the Latin American Kitchen products from Santa Maria: Chipotle Mayo Topping and Colombian Crunchy Chicken Bites Seasoned Corn Coating. A refreshing contrast was provided by the Robinsons Fruit Cordial with a more sophisticated mix of fruits than the average cordial.

You can buy a Degustabox here and get a monthly box of food to help you discover new tastes and brands.

The arrival of the monthly Degustabox always leads to a bit of excitement in our house.  There’s usually something new to try, in fact quite a few things.  We like to see what we like and what we might like to buy in the future.

The Nuttvia Breadsticks Snackpack was virtually inhaled by my son not long after this picture was taken.  Unsurprisingly the combination of breadsticks with chocolate and hazelnut spread went down incredibly well. Feel Good Drinks Water Infusions were for me to enjoy. I have to say I preferred the Orange, Mango and Water to the Strawberry and Mint. Kabuto Noodles Thai Green Chicken Curry are a favourite lunch time treat – they are so quick and tasty too. The Pulsin Kids’ Fruity Oat Bars Orange Choc Chip made an appearance in my son’s lunchbox and the empty wrapper was returned which is good news as anything not eaten usually comes back.  I like that it doesn’t contain too much sugar (for a fruit snack) and it’s high in fibre too. When the Heinz No Added Sugar Hoops came out of the box, I realised that I hadn’t introduced my son to hoops at all, so we were soon able to put that right. Valfrutta offered a ready to eat Mediterranean meal.  I had the Basmati Rice & Lentils and it was very tasty – so convenient too.

I was so pleased to see the Hippeas Organic Chickpea Puffs as I’ve had these before and they are very moreish.  Likewise my son was chuffed to bits to see Pechkeks Misfortune Cookies for the same reason.  We’ve had a box before and he was very taken with them – they are a slightly different take on the fortune cookie and recommended for Halloween or if you just want a bit of fun.  I’m afraid I’ve never been that keen on Vimto, but my brother loves it and he was very happy to try this Vimto Millions Gift Jar and gave them the thumbs up.  We had some spare ribs in the freezer so we dug them out for the Lee Kum Kee Sauce For Honey Garlic Spare Ribs and they were delicious.  We also got a Lee Kum Kee Sauce For Tomato Garlic Prawns which we have yet to try.  Now my son is adding salt to his food it’s good to have a healthier alternative available so we were happy to try the LoSalt, which has 66% less sodium. A couple of very moreish treats to finish on.  Pip’s Real Hot Chocolate Co Real Hot Chocolate Coins make delicious hot chocolate and are so easy.  They were the perfect match for Michel et Augustin‘s oversized cookies with chocolate chips.

Vegan food is really on the up in Birmingham and I’ve been invited to sample the cuisine of a few vegan establishments in recent months.  I’m finding within my circle of friends that more people are adopting the vegan diet or simply incorporating more vegan food into their lifestyle these days.  After all as my dining companion, my 10-year-old son, said ‘vegan food is just food’ and it is that simple.  There’s every reason to try to include some vegan options in our diets whether it’s for health reasons, animal welfare concerns, thinking of the environment or just fancying a bit of a change.

Fressh has recently set up in City Arcade (right at the Union Street end near W H Smiths, Sainsburys and Poundland).  It’s really centrally located so it’s perfect if you want a bite to eat while you are out shopping or you pop out of work for some lunch. Sit by the window if you fancy doing a little people watching while you eat, but you can take away your food if you prefer. The decor is really ‘fresh’ too with lots of white and clean lines.  In fact, we got a really fun, fresh vibe from the cafe.

The menu is simple and pared down.  Until 11am there’s a breakfast menu available which looked interesting, but we were there for lunch. We liked the names of the burgers: I had a What the Guac and my son had a Son of a Bun. We paired up our burgers (which can be gluten-free on request) with some Baked Skin On Fries, but there are also Baked Kale Fries available.  Our burgers were packed full of flavour and they made a good hearty lunch, which we needed as we had been doing plenty of walking that morning. We certainly didn’t miss the meat or the dairy products.

To wash our food down I had the Organic Coconut Water which I find very hydrating without making me feel I have water sloshing around inside. My guest for the day had Homemade Lemonade, a traditional lemonade with lots of lemony flavour which is just the way he likes it.

The staff are friendly, helpful and eager to please.  From what I overheard when I was eating they seemed knowledgeable about the food and able to answer any questions.

Filled fresh pasta is a bit of a family staple in this house and it makes a quick and easy meal, when we are short on time.  I love the fact that they are cooked almost instantly and usually they don’t need a lot of sauce because of the filling.

Dell’ Ugo send me some samples to try and we tried them out for a family meal.  I think though that they are a bit of a grown up sort of taste experience and would be better served to adults. There are some strong tastes and flavours in the range and they might not suit children.

My pick of the bunch was the Asparagus and Mozzarella with Lemon Butter.  These ingredients are basically some of my favourite foods and it’s a great combination of flavours. The pack came with the filled fresh pasta and a little pack of flavoured butter.  After you have drained the pasta, you melt the butter in the pan and return the pasta to the pan to coat the parcels with the sauce. Then serve with parmesan and/or black pepper to your personal taste. I really enjoyed this bowl, although there was slightly too much butter for me and I didn’t feel I needed any parmesan.

Next up was the Goat’s Cheese and Beetroot with Mint Butter variety. This was less successful for me. There was too much butter by quite a long way so it was very greasy and with parmesan as well it was over done.  I wish I’d left the parmesan off as you don’t really need it with the goat’s cheese.

There are 5 fresh pasta meals in the Dell’Ugo range, so there will be one to suit most people.  I liked the fact that you don’t need to buy a separate sauce. It all comes included.