Now that he's shared his news on his own personal Facebook (something he usually ignores), I can proudly write about my husband's new job! It's been a long, loooooong slog to get here, 20 years of training in fact, but he's done it, he's a consultant in Maxillofacial Surgery, specialising in trauma, orthognathic and skin cancer treatments. I am so proud of him as I know it hasn't been easy, especially trying to juggle everything else along with shifts and exams, it's affected us all so it's a huge relief that with this new job, life can hopefully be a bit more settled and focused on more family time with all four of us.
So, the day he had the big interview and was given the news, we decided to celebrate with an early dinner out with the kids.
As it happened I'd had a last minute booking for an urgent branding photography job in Tunbridge Wells and they'd asked me to go for a quick recce as I've squeezed them in next week so we booked The Ivy in Tunbridge Wells and managed to fit that in first. After meeting my new client and checking out their offices, we walked down the High Street to the restaurant (I phoned them in advance to surprise Nik with a glass of bubbly when we arrived)!
He was soon onto the G&Ts as promised to our sister-in-law and K&P were helping pour his tonic into his pretty drink. We had some olives while we waited for our food, the kids were ravenous so we'd asked for their meals to come with our starters (as they are super slow eating anyway and would still be going when we got our mains). The olives were DELICIOUS but as we only got 6, despite them being large, they lasted mere seconds. A bit pricey at £3.50 for a tiny dish we thought.
The bartenders were amazing, happily letting the kids watch them make cocktails for other tables and even giving them a strawberry each while we waited for our food.
When the starters arrived, they looked amazing and did not disappoint in the flavour department either, we agreed mine was the best - the marinated tuna with the citrus dressing and wasabi mayonnaise - but Nik's calamari and prawn tempura was amazing too, perfectly crispy, tasty and not at all greasy.
Kalyan had the kid's burger and enjoyed the brioche bun especially!
Priya had the kid's fish & chips which is the same as Nik chose for his main course (see his below), she wolfed it down and both her and K liked the mushy peas.
For my main I chose the shepherd's pie which was lovely and rich with braised lamb shoulder as well as beef mince and a cheesy mash topping - yum! It also came with a gravy sauce but I liked it without. I also had a side of broccoli.
Overall we had a lovely meal out, it's a great restaurant for a celebration as the bar area in particular is very glam with it's art deco style and sparkling glasses all around. The staff are lovely, friendly and attentive, asking what we were celebrating and congratulating Nik. We have been here before a couple of times for brunch but this was our first dinner there and we all really enjoyed it.