Melbourne and The Great Ocean Road

MELBOURNE:

To Do:

Fitzroy area for shopping - great vintage and furniture shops

To Eat / Drink

Lentils as anything Abbotsford Convent  - a great place where you pay what you what

Naked for Satan - incredible views and great cocktails

Claypots - delicious seafood

Goldilocks - another bar with a great view, go if you are in the chinatown area

Dumbo - incredible for breakfast, preferably on route to the Great Ocean Road

Hawker Hall - delicious asian food and the best margaritas!


OCEAN ROAD

To Stay:

Pebble Point - ask for the secret sunset spot, theres a little bench, no people and staggeringly beautiful. We got fish and chips in town and had it on our balcony for dinner.

To Go / Do:

Cape Otway - we saw amazing wildlife around here - koalas, kangaroos and echidnas. Do the small walk so that you get the view of the lighthouse.

Melba Gully, Lavers Hill - fantastic rainforest walk

Wreck Beach, Princetown - go when the tide is out ( you can do ocean walk to apostles from there).

12 Apostles, Princetown

Gibson’s steps 

Loch and George

London Bridge 

To Eat, Drink

Forage on the Foreshore - best place for dinner or for a drink in Port Campbell

Stop in Peterborough for a coffee and to see the stunning beach there

Basalt wines, Port Fairy - really fun place to go for a relaxed wine tasting (loved the pinot noir and chardonnay) and delicious food (notably the chips!)

Tower Hill , Port Fairy - fantastic Jurassic Parkesque walks 

Driftwood, Port Fairy - great coffee 

Coffin Sally, Port Fairy - really fun for cocktails and pizza

Conlans, Port Fairy - delicious food in a slightly staid setting but worth going

East Beach Takeaway - grab a fish and chips from here and eat it on the beach - delicious!

Bells of Killcare, Central Coast

The Bells is a wonderful break from Sydney. We stayed there for two nights eating delicious food, drinking amazing cocktails and walking through lord of the rings type scenery.

Stay:

Bells of Killcare

Do:

Maitland Bay walk


Eat / Drink:

Bells of Killcare - must order the prawns and the Green Elixir Margarita (tequila, chilli, keffir lime, agave, apple)

Hardys Bistro - they do a great breakfast 

Sydney

To Do:

If your in Sydney for New Year watch the fireworks from Rose Bay, where you’ll get a great view with few tourists.  

Ken Done Gallery - full of colour and excitement, Ken Done is a very famous Australian artist whose work we loved

Watson’s Bay Walk - have lunch at Doyles and then walk around Watsons Bay - great views of the Sydney skyline.

Spit to Manly walk - beautifully wild walk, make sure you finish off at The Boathouse in Manly for lunch

Congee to Bondi Walk

Shopping along Oxford St - great boutique shops

Blue Mountains - Katoomba Walk - incredibly beautiful scenery, make sure you go early to avoid tourists and have lunch at Flemish Flavours (make sure you sit on terrace where theres a great view)

Carriageworks  - great building which often has interesting exhibitions on

To Eat / Drink:

Doyle’s, Watsons Bay - amazing view of city and delicious seafood - ask for upstairs terrace

Hardware, Bondi - great margaritas 

The Boathouse, Manly - a great spot with delicious watermelon margaritas right on Shelley Beach.

The Pado Inn - best burger

Shadey pines - fantastic speakeasy

Fish Bowl - if your having lunch on the move you must have one of these

Opera Bar - beautiful views of the harbour

Corridor Bar - great little bar in New Town

Gigi’s - delicious vegan pizza restaurant in new Town

The Dolphin - fun bar for a drink in Surrey Hills

Yullis - incredible vegetarian restaurant (must get the broccoli) 

Sean’s Panorama - fabulous seasonal restaurant in Bondi - unbelievably delicious food using the best seasonal ingredients in a simple, stylish setting.

Stay:

Paramount House Hotel

Margaret River, Australia

To Eat:

Elkano - amazing squid, oysters, margaritas

White Elephant Cafe - fabulous cafe right on the beach. BYOB. Delicious food.

Brewhouse - fun, outdoor setting - live music


To Do:

Hamlin Bay - beautiful beach with stingrays

Margaret River Basin View Point 

Voyager Estate - get the wine tasting and charcuterie board for lunch 

Yallingup Beach - Saana Cafe take away - fantastic healthy, delicious breakfasts to take away to the beach!

Berlin

We had a fantastic weekend eating and drinking our way around Berlin, topped off with a few great cultural interludes. Below are my top Berlin tips:

Shishi - Incredible hidden away restaurant, shaking up the best margaritas and serving the most delicious simple, local food - all in the best atmosphere

Das Bar - a tinly little candlelit bar with flowers hanging from the ceiling. BEST mezcal cocktails and great vibes

Zeit Fur Brot - MUST go here for a cinnamon roll, they are simply the best thing ever - melt in your mouth sensational.

Beuster Bar - really fun and really reccomend it, then just up the road there is Nathanja & Heinrich which is amazing too!

Bone Berlin - in this fab street food market, really fun for lunch.

Top Cultural tips: Jewish Memorial and climb the top of the Reichstag - must book!



Mexico

We had a fabulous three days in Holbox and four in Tulum. WOW, I love Mexico - mezcal margaritas, tacos, beautiful un spoilt beaches, colours and the general buzz. Below are a few of our favourite spots…

HOLBOX:

Stay: Casa Tortugas or Casa Sandra

Get up early and go for walks along the beach

We had a great massage on the beach in a shack next to Casa Tortugas, one of the best massages ever!

Illuma - amazing food, atmosphere and cocktails

The Roof - Casa Tortugas - mezcal cocktails and sushi

Hot Corner - great local bar with an amazing taco shack next door - BEST shrimp tacos!

Main square - we brought a bottle and sat and ate street food in the main square. The tacos were delicious and its fun to take in the atmosphere there.

TULUM

Stay: Nomade - incredible! try to get an oceanfront or sea view room

Yoga in the mornings on the beach at Nomade

To Drink / Eat :

Gitano - jungle fever cocktail / pork tacos

Lunch on beach at Nomade - try the octopus!

Dinner at Be Tulum - open fire. If ‘Feel Dr’, a musician, is playing at Nomade or Be Tulum have dinner on the beach and make sure you see him play!

Casa Jaguar - INCREDIBLE cocktails, order:

Crisanto -mezcal infused green chilli, cilantro, pineapple, chilli, anchovy salt)

Chechen - mezcal avocado, coriander, chilli, salt

Eufumia - amazing tacos on jungle side

Arca - incredible Michelin level food in beautiful atmospheric jungle setting

Lisbon

We had the BEST weekend in Lisbon - eating delicious food, drinking cocktails in old brothels and getting lost on the cobbled streets of Alfama. Below is our recommended itinerary.

Click on the snaps below to see what they are  ... 

Friday Evening

Mercado de Ribeira - street food style, eat on communal tables

Pesano Amor - brothel turned cocktail bar

Saturday

Fiero Da Ladra - flea market

National Pantheon (used to be a shoe factory)  - amazing views

Tazza in Giro - Breakfast - amazing little spot just on the edge of the flea market with a view of the pantheon. Best orange, cayenne pepper and carrot juice!

Church of Sao Vicente of Fora - beautiful church to pop into as you roam around Alfama

Ceramic shop we loved in Alfama -  'Caulino'.

Chapito - lunch - delicious salads and amazing views

Contemporary art tour (1.5 hours) - was an interesting insight into modern art in Lisbon. We visited two galleries which we would never have discovered otherwise.

LX Factory - incredibly inventive cocktails in a bar that didn't have a name at the time of our visit as it had just started but the 6th image is a photo of it.

Lost n Bar - cocktails with great views

9pm - A Travessa Dinner - incredible portuguese food, set in an old monastery - must book!

Sunday

Wander around Barrio Alto

MUDE design museum 

Costa da Caparica beach - Kontiki for lunch - great beach bar

 Pharmacia - dinner - incredible views over the city, delicious cocktails in an old pharmacy / drug store setting.

Monday


Pasteis de Belem - INCREDIBLY delicious portugese custard tarts

Belem Tower

Lunch at O’Velho Eurico - very local, on the street, absolutely delicious seafood

Wandered around Alfama  and stumbled across an amazing square where we sat in 'O Corvo' and had an aperol spritz.

 

V E G T A I L S

We have created a range of vegetable cocktails which are not only delicious but also, in part, healthy, featuring fresh seasonal vegetables, herbs and high end spirits. 

We are also working on different ways of serving our cocktails, making them eco friendly and 100% edible!

Check out our 'Peppertita' below for a little vegspiration ... 

image1-6.jpeg

RA Lates: Night at the Palace

We had a WONDERFUL night at The Royal Academy for the celebration of the Charles I exhibition. We popped up with our bars, Betty and Shirley, who loved being in a palace for the evening whipping up show stopping cocktails!

Marrakech

We went to Marrakech for New Year and fell in love with the place. The food, souks, sunsets, design, craftsmanship, and 24 hour buzz made it a trip to remember!

Top Tips:

Dar Yacout - incredible pidgin pie, slow cooked lamb

El Fenn - beautiful, comfortable and show stopping views from the rooftop

Le Jardin - delicious lunch

 

Shirley at The Royal Academy

We had a wonderful time debut'ing Shirley, the latest addition to the Christabel's family, a metallic / mirrored bike cocktail bar. Shirley popped up at The Royal Academy, and wow o wow did she shimmer and shine in such a spectacular location ... 

Shirley the Bike Bar

We have had a lot of fun creating Shirley the newest member of the Christabel's Family - a beautiful bike cocktail bar which features a mirrored body, metallic chassis and harlequin mirrored / copper cocktail bar. 

Shirley is now ready for a party!  

Gunton Arms

We have just got back from an incredible weekend at The Gunton Arms in Norfolk.  The owner, Ivor Braka, an art dealer has created a place which is stylish, comfortable, relaxed and completely unique - we felt so at home that we really didn't want to leave! 

It is a very special place the Gunton Arms, the walls are laced with mind blowing art where you will find Damien Hirst's in the loos and Tracey Emin's in the dining room.  Not only is Gunton dripping in the most exciting art,  but it is also the home to some seriously delicious food -  Stu the head chef cooks from an open fire in the middle of the Elk room which is a show in itself - the venison and scallops come highly recommended! 

We walked the beautiful grounds of Gunton, ate, drank, and peeled ourselves away only once to catch some fish and chips in Cromer at No.1 Fish and Chips -  it sure did live up to its name. 

The perfect staycation! 

 

San Sebastian

We went to San Sebastian last weekend and our taste buds did not want to return! It's the perfect mini break - a beautiful small coastal town inhibiting the most incredible, unassuming pintxos bars and restaurants all serving mind blowing food. If you go, below are our top tips...

 

La Cuchara De San Telmo -  foie gras, baratta and clams, pork

Txeptexa - baby squid, anchovies

Ganbara - mushrooms with confit egg yolk

Borda Berri -  tuna, pork ribs, lobster ravioli

Koktoxa - michelin starred, expensive, but mind blowingly delicious and incredibly inventive.

La Bretxa Food Market - feast your eyes on the incredible fresh produce

Atari - best G + T

 

 

Ruby at The Royal Academy

Ruby had the time of her life at the RA Lates: Electric Forest Festival at The Royal Academy. Here she is slinging cocktails in her glad rags...

Colourful Cuba

We travelled around Cuba for two weeks in April and were completely blown away by the colours, atmosphere and community spirit amongst the locals. Below are a few moments we captured and our top tips...

Favourite Restaurants: La Guarida (Havana) , Otramanera (Havana) , El Cocinero (Havana), Santy's (Havana), La Esquinita - best Pina Colada (Vinales), Finca Paradiso (Vinales)

Do: Horse trek in Vinales, Open top car ride in Havana, see Jose Fuster's buildings in Havana, Revolution Museum in Havana, eat lobster and drink mojitos in Playa Jutias

Hidden Gem: Playa Jutias

Top Tip: Theres sporadic internet so best to switch off your phone, stay with locals, drink rum and explore

Cocktail Experiments

In light of our Summer series of cocktail masterclasses we got down to a bit of experimentation over the weekend with a whole host of seasonal vegetables, fruit, herbs and some saucy spirits.

Our findings were that pressed peas make for a fantastic Summers cocktail shaken with agave, lime and Sipsmith gin,  Margaritas are sky rocketed to the next level when the tequila is smoked and carrot, coriander and tequila are a dream team.

The shining star was our 'Sweet Pea' - freshly pressed peas, agave, lime and Sipsmith gin

 

 

Mar-tea-ni Masterclass

We hosted our 'Mad Hatters Mar-tea-ni Masterclass' on Saturday, a new concept which we have been working on with Black Cow Vodka (the worlds only pure milk vodka) and Tea Pigs tea to create a milk + tea martini masterclass! Our aim for this event is to create a fun, interactive experience which strips back the pretence of cocktail shaking and transforms it into something that people will learn is simple, fun and interesting when shaking and experimenting with different flavours.

Having been greeted with earl grey bubbles, guests were excited to investigate the table (littered with golden tea pots filled with Tea Pigs syrups, fresh fruit and veg,  Black Cow vodka bottles, tote bags, fabric pens and more fun surprises) and get shaking!

Jeremy demo'd a Rosemary + Orange Earl Grey Martini in order to show how the basic Martini is shaken. This was followed by a tasting of a shot of the unbelievably smooth Black Cow vodka and a bite of their velvety cheddar cheese - a real treat for the tastebuds.

The highlight was when guests got to shake up their own concoctions mixing up different herbs, fruits and tea syrups with the Black Cow vodka to form their very own bespoke mar-tea-ni, accompanied by DIY tea bags which were filled with different infusions.

We love seeing how creative people can get when they switch off from everyday life and get absorbed into alcohol fuelled creativity. The tote bags were a fun addition as they were scrawled over with designs and martini recipes, creating a bespoke recipe bag to take home - whoopla!

We have a few more surprises in store for the next: goo.gl/gEpYvg

 

Email:
hello@christabels.org

 

Telephone:
+44 (0) 7792004109