My birthday celebrations

Another year, another birthday... I seriously can't believe it's June already. At the risk of sounding like a carbon copy of everyone else, where on earth has this year gone?

My birthday fell on a dreaded Monday this year so I decided to do most of my celebrating the weekend before. The week leading up to my birthday weekend was pretty dull weather-wise, but the sun came out just in time!

We took Jessie for a long walk on Saturday afternoon then went to Etc for an early dinner. Although I've only been to Etc a couple of times, it's quickly becoming one of my favourite restaurants for special occasions.

The sun was still blazing when I was getting ready so I decided to wear one of my brightest outfits to make the most of it.

When you take a look at what I ate and drank on Saturday evening, it's easy to see why Etc has become a firm favourite...

Lavender Fizz - a gin cocktail 

Sweet potato confit, crispy chorizo and sage 

Cauli-meflower (chargrilled cauliflower steak, spiced red lentil dhal, tempura purple sprouting broccoli, caramelised grapes and curry oil)

Etc Berry Mess 

Banana Daiquiri 

'That all looks amazing!' I hear you say (hopefully). And you'd be absolutely right. 

On the Sunday, we took Jessie for another long walk then drove to Joe's Ice Cream on Wellfield Road for the first time in years. I'd never dream of ordering a tub of plain vanilla anywhere else, but I can't resist Joe's vanilla ice cream. It tasted just as good as we remembered, if not better. 

As always, the weekend flew by and it was business as usual on Monday. I had 5 meetings so it was a long day in work, but I had lots of lovely birthday wishes and a couple of cards from my colleagues. I also brought doughnuts and cookies in to the office, and it would have been very rude of me not to sample a few for myself as the birthday girl.

I opened my presents from Neil (and Jessie!) when I got home from work, then we went to Romeo's by the Sea for a quiet meal. We were home by 8:30pm and finished off the evening by sitting down to watch an episode of Homeland, our new series of choice.

Thank you to everyone for your lovely gifts, cards and messages. I had lots of pink and Disney-themed presents and cards as always, and I'll continue to post lots of my gifts on Instagram over the next few weeks.

I'll leave you with one happy thought... 200 days to go until Christmas Day. You're welcome!

Restaurant Review: Romeo's by the Sea

It's been a while since I've written a restaurant review so I thought it was about time I rectified this situation! Penarth has some lovely independent Italian restaurants, one of which I blogged about many moons ago (Villa Napoli), so I thought I'd focus on another one of these restaurants for my first review of 2017.

Romeo's by the Sea is situated a stone's throw away from Penarth Pier which means it's conveniently within walking distance of our house. We visited for the first time last August to celebrate our second wedding anniversary and we've been twice since then with my parents.

The picturesque location of Romeo's by the Sea means it has a perfect seaside view if you're lucky enough to bag a table by the window. We've managed this on two out of our three visits so those are pretty good odds! The restaurant has plenty of external seating as well as ample seating indoors and I would recommend that you book a table if you'd like to try it out, particularly if you're visiting over the weekend. 

Romeo's has a very extensive menu and offers something for everyone, whatever your tastes. There are lots of vegetarian and/or gluten free options, as well as a hefty fish and seafood offering. I've tried the Penne Spezzatino, Penne Amatriciana and Tagliatelle Chef and I can very highly recommend all three! We also treated ourselves to starters and a bottle of wine on our first visit to Romeo's which were just as tasty as the mains.  

You'll be pleasantly surprised when you look at the prices on the menu, particularly as the portions are always very generous. I love restaurants where you get plenty of food on your plate and Romeo's certainly ticks that box. Just to give you a rough idea, a meal for four with soft drinks, main courses and two sides cost £54 which I think you'll agree is very reasonable considering the quality of food and those massive portion sizes. 

The staff members are all so friendly at Romeo's and, although the service is always quick and efficient, you never feel as if you're being rushed out of the door to free up a table. We've dealt with lots of different staff members during our three visits and they're always very eager to help and to make us feel welcome. 

Have you ever been to Romeo's by the Sea? Will you be adding it to your 'must-do' list after reading this post?