03 Feb Andina in Shoreditch, London

I take pleasure in the passage of time. Some people lament loosing their youth and feel like their best years are behind them in their 30s – I’m the polar opposite of that. There is nothing I miss about being younger. I prefer my body now, know how to handle my personality better (I can be a handful at times) and feel much calmer and wiser. That weird, empty void that used to torture me when I was younger now feels like a warm, cosy hiding place, and I have finally struck a balance between being open to new friendships and an appreciation of the old ones. While new people bring excitement and adventure, there’s an easiness that comes into friendships with time, which is very relaxing. Anton, who I came to Andina with a dew days ago, is one of these old friends.

The restaurant was great, when we finally got in – we were on the waiting list for about 2 hours. It could have been a result of being ravenously hungry and therefore grumpy, but one woman at the front of house seemed annoyingly passive aggressive. However, all the other staff made up for this, as did the food. Having worked in restaurants I also know that she could have just been having “one of those nights”, so let’s give her the benefit of doubt. The food was amazing! I’ve never been to Peru, so I can’t say whether it was authentic or not, but the produce was great quality and the flavours interesting, yet not over-complicated. We ate corn cakes, spicy ceviches, lamb and cassava chips washed down with Pisco sours and Peruvian beer. The bill came to £55, which felt very reasonable. In the future, I would always book ahead