Meeting up, good food and chat

I've just remembered I wanted to mention a small, but select, gathering in a local tapas bar last week.

Every last Thursday in the month, members of Lancsveg who feel so inclined,meet up for a drink and a bite to eat. May's meeting was in Duk, in Preston, Lancashire, a subterranean tapas bar with an extensive menu.

I actually turned up at its sister restaurant, Pond, and was kindly escorted up the road to the correct venue by a lovely barmaid/waitress, who made sure I arrived safely, and got herself a few minutes of fresh (well, city-fresh, so maybe a misnomer) air.

Six of us turned up, having booked for 7pm, the final time for their tapas offer of 3 for £10. Since none of us was starving we opted to order 9 dishes for £30, since there happened to be 9 vegan options - yes, really, 9 vegan options!!!! Every day!!!! Other restaurants, please take note :-)

I probably can't remember exactly what we received, but something along the lines of a bowl of olives, pitta bread and hoummous, a delicious green and berry salad, some Duk fruit stew, I think it might be Peruvian, but don't quote me on that, a couple of different potato dishes, delicious non-meat balls in tomato sauce, I think there might have been a chickpea dish, and I can't remember what else, but it was brilliant value, and such a delight to sample so many different foods, most of which were very tasty - the olives let it down, being pitted, drained tinned olives, in my opinion, and others. Nonetheless, a great evening.

It's always good to catch up with people we sometimes don't see for ages - obviously not everyone turns up to every meeting, this is the real world, not tv! One friend had been "headhunted" and now has a great new job, with a company car - thanks for the lift!, and another gets married very soon - good luck to you both. Another, like me, is studying at uni. She's just sat her exams, and isn't feeling too hopeful about one of them. My fingers are crossed for her. I know I've got a first in one module, and will find out about another tomorrow.

The down side to the night was the noise - it just reverberates around, it has nowhere to escape to, so it's difficult to hear what's being said accurately. Perhaps Pond would be a better choice of venue - it's at street level, so gets daylight too:-)

Still, it was good to catch up, and enjoy a tasty tapas. Hope you get to meet your friends soon, too.