Monday morning set out to Lidl’s in Kemptown, mainly for the exercise, partly for cheap smoked salmon. Went via the greenway and station, down Queens Road and across the Lanes, just to add a hill and extra distance – this is physical therapy, not retail therapy.
Emerging from the sheltered Lanes onto the seafront brought the icy wind. I decided to carry on (I may be some time). 20 minutes marching along pebbles, climbing down beneath the Palace Pier to watch waves dash themselves against cast iron columns, and struggling up the steep shifting pebble banks back to the seafront road was enough fresh air and breathlessness. Plus I was suddenly hungry, not just peckish, but the kind of sudden shaky woozy hunger that seems to be a symptom of the dread diabetes. I cut up a side street to St James Street and there was a Tapas house I’d never seen before. First of the month, main pension has just swollen the bank account, and they take credit cards.
La Vendimia turned out to be the third and most recent of three Tapas bars owned by the same guy, one of the others being Solera in Sydney Street, which we use fairly often. I was the lunchtime customer. Glass of wine (from the owners vineyards in southern Spain – Jerez to be more precise) with bread, oil and garlic mayo whist I waited for meatballs in a spicy tomato sauce and tortilla with a bit of salad. Delicious, but not to be made a habit of.
Lidl’s was a brisk walk east. Found the smoked salmon, and added smoked bacon. smoked haddock and two bottles of wine. The under £4 tempranillo might have been a saving too far, but the £5.30 Rioja is excellent. Walked home over Queens Park, and resisted entering the Constant Service (or any other pub) on the way.
The salmon worked brilliantly with cream cheese and black pepper in pancakes for supper with a salad. This retirement thing is OK you know, but you have to set and meet tough daily challenges.
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