Buddha Belly

Although it's been open quite a while this member of the HC Review Team has only just managed to get down to the Buddha Belly at Maidstone. They operate two restaurants - one in Maidstone and one in Bromley and have a website that is still under construction. The website looks good but has very little content - which is not how you'd describe the food on offer. The food looks fantastic and the range is superb! With a buffet choice of Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Italian and Mexican there is something for everyone (yes Mr. Fabes - we're wagging our finger at you! Apologies - a HC "in-joke" there.)

My visit to Buddha Belly was with a young lady at lunchtime so I had to restrain myself from diving face first into the myriad selection of beautiful food on offer. I had a mixed starter with some salad, samosa, spring rolls and stir fried vegetables. My main course was a construction of pure greed - a chicken biryani base with butter chicken on top (another lamb samosa fell onto my plate. Whoops). 

To round things off was a wonderful swirl of vanilla ice cream splashed with caramel, raspberry and strawberry sauce (there was chocolate sauce but four sauces would've been ungentlemanly) next to a selection of fresh melon and a Lemon Swirl. 

A fine selection of drinks were on offer (does anyone still drink Cinzano?!) but I needed a clear head for my first visit. 

4/5 Food (Presentation/Taste)

4/5 Staff (Helpfulness/Not in your face)

4/5 Toilets (Clean and well lit)

4/5 Drink selection (a food range)

5/5 Environment (Some light jazz, clean, well lit)

Car Crash Cheesecake by Benson Button

Racing around is fun but baking is a good way to relax, but when you combine the both you have problems. This is why I call this Car Crash Cheesecake. The first effort was rushed and ended up on the floor after spinning out of control. It was totalled. This time everything came together. Just like racing its a team effort and when it comes to eating this I have a whole team wanting a piece.

Ham, Eggs and Chips as thick as fingers

Well the post of my cheesecake never happened. 45 minutes baking was followed by dropping it on the floor, so what do you do after that disaster? Exactly you turn to drink and this Ham, Eggs and Chips bought from the  Albion Pub in Faversham. Lovely food I recommend a visit. Have a look at Faversham. That town is crying out for a pub crawl from the Hate Cuisine Team. Trying out the beers brewed by the oldest brewer in the UK Shepherd Neame. Mine is a pint of Spitfire 

Big Breakfast

The discovery of fire and invention of the wheel were pretty groundbreaking events yet nobody remembers the time that you could suddenly get a breakfast at anytime of the day. As a youth if I didn't have breakfast inside me by 9am I had a 22 hour wait until I had the opportunity again - but as an adult I can walk into an airport on a Wednesday and have a breakfast at 16:00 without question or discussion.

When did that change happen? It should be a monumental moment like the death of Kennedy. Do you remember what you were doing the moment all day breakfasts arrived?

Thanks to Cafe Rouge at Gatwick North for this bad boy ....