Recently we held a board games evening for our friends. There were seven of us in total which meant we could just about squeeze round the dining table to play the games.

Rather than cook a meal we decided to do a buffet spread which we laid out in the kitchen. This led to relaxed dining in the lounge rather than more formal dining around the table. I was pleased with how the spread looked, although I think we need a bigger kitchen!

Situated in the Parkgate Hotel in Cardiff The Sorting room offers Michelin starred fine dining.

In the grand rooms of the old Post Office, once filled with hand-written letters and brown-paper packages, now there are glittering chandeliers and plush leather sofas, where elegant lunches are enjoyed and sumptuous dinners savoured in the most glamorous surroundings.

Whether you linger leisurely over lunch, dress up for dinner or spoil yourself with our sumptuous Sunday lunch, the delicious dishes of our British-inspired brasserie menu and heady blend of bygone glamour in the most elegant surroundings, make any meal here an experience to savour.*

*from the Parkgate Hotel website

Oops! I forgot to photo the dessert. It was tiramisu.

Due to shopping a day earlier than usual we hadn’t yet visited our local butcher to purchase the meat to accompany our meal options for the next few days.

This led to ‘Fish Friday’ being ‘Fish Thursday’ and our Saturday curry night become ‘Curry Friday’.

We might be back on track by Sunday

PS: The curry was delicious

Later, following a visit with my mum there was fine dining at Chez Nous.

The fish was the main ingredient. I haven’t quite got the hang of photography angles in my new kitchen.

I have had two days where I wasn’t in control of my own time.

My car broke down last week on the way home from a visit to mum in the care home where she is temporarily placed for medical assessment. My car couldn’t be repaired at the roadside and had to be recovered to my dealership the following morning. The faulty part needed to be ordered so I had a few days without my car.

It should have been ready on Monday but it wasn’t. This meant that Mr C had to run me to and from Attingham Park for my Tuesday volunteering, after which he took me to collect my car and then it was time to visit mum.

On Wednesday Mr C was working away from home, he had placed an order that was due to be delivered that day. I was also waiting for a call from Mum’s Social worker. This meant staying at home until both things had happened. The call was late afternoon and shortly after whilst I was still on the call the delivery arrived! It was now time for me to visit my mum later than I intended.

This morning I woke up bright and early with my alarm, it was annoying me so I turned it off. Next thing I knew I had overslept. Rather than rush out I decided to have a chill out morning with a cup of tea and a bath before my afternoon volunteering in a local school.

I enjoyed my sunshiny walk to and from the school and reading with the children who were especially joyful today.

Later I briefly visited mum, she was not herself and sent me away. Much later I enjoyed ‘Fine Dining’ at Chez Nous.

It was nice to have a lie in after a week of early mornings. I was able to do some cleaning of surfaces and appliances in the kitchen. The fitter had thoughtfully reconnected the washing machine so I was able to put in a load of washing.

We had lunch at home before visiting mum. She was in bed and not in a happy place but mostly ‘herself’ which meant she can’t understand why she can’t go home yet.

After our visit we went to Ikea to purchase some draw liners for the kitchen cabinets. We found an ideal rack for the chopping boards but it was out of stock, but we could get one on Tuesday! We called in at Boundary Mill for a cup of tea and cake so that Mr C could browse the kitchen shop. I had other ideas, the clothing department called me. Luckily for the bank account we came away without making any purchases.

Later we dined in Giggling Squid, a favourite chain restaurant of mine which we first discovered when we were on holiday in Chichester. We were seated upstairs where it was cozy and warm with a lovely buzzing atmosphere. The food lived up to our expectations.

Fish goujons on ciabbata for lunch at Essington Farm Shop followed later in the day by ‘Fine Dining’ (steak au poivre) at chez nous.

I removed the top layer of ciabatta. It only needed one layer of bread for perfect indulgence.