Monday, August 5, 2013

Restaurant review: Sunday, 169 Hemingford Road, London, N1

Many moons ago I read these pages and wondered what it would take for a restaurant to score 10 out of 10. Now I write for them and I still haven't a clue. The problem arises, I think, because some people define 10 out of 10 as "as good as it gets", yet I had long conceived of 10 out of 10 much as I conceived of five out of five or 100 per cent ? in other words, perfection. Something that is incapable of being improved. But no meal is perfect. Every meal can be improved. Thus a dilemma: go through life as a restaurant critic never awarding 10 out of 10, or accept that there are some meals that, though not perfect, deserve that highest rank? My inclination is towards the latter.

Besides, perfection is over-rated. What is it, anyway? I think perfection is: the first day of a Test at Lord's; a pi?a colada in the Caribbean; the Wailers' first album; Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption; my father's arithmetic. You will note that all these things, while undeniably worthy of 10 out of 10, are capable of being improved. For instance, at Lord's there are always posh, fat drunkards you'd rather didn't disrupt the view; but you'd still get the bus home thinking, "Dear me, those Australians are rubbish, but that was a 10 out of 10 day."

Sunday in Islington, open for six weeks now, is my kind of perfect. On the two basic metrics which this page takes an interest in ? taste and value ? it is not far off incapable of being improved. Like many a good establishment, it is really two restaurants in one. Though closed on Monday, on other mornings it is a brunch palace. Delicious French toast with banana and maple syrup; fresh fruit and cereals with rich, smooth yoghurt; all manner of eggs and sizzling bacon and salmon with hollandaise; pastries from paradise; excellent coffee and teas ? all your favourites, done superbly. I can easily imagine long, lazy Saturdays armed with a rumbling belly, hot thirst and a wad of magazines spent here, and the odd Sunday, too. But on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Sunday also does dinner. And this is no ordinary dinner.

Six starters, five mains, four desserts, three sides, two kinds of booze and not a single dud between them. There are no spirits, so the alcohol is either wine ? white, red, ros? ? or an Aperol spritz (bit dear at ?7.50, but lovely for a summer evening). Among the starters, there are pork rillettes with bread-and-butter pickles and toasted sourdough (?7); juicy buffalo mozzarella with tomato salad, pesto and Parmesan croutons (?7); cured duck breast with cantaloupe melon, pickled ginger and soy (?7.50); grilled sardines with beetroot, watercress and gremolata dressing (chopped garlic, parsley, and lemon zest ? ?7.50); and watermelon-and-feta salad with pistachio-and-mint dressing (?7.50). Every one of these was blow-the-mind brilliant.

But they are as nothing to the ? dare I say it ? perfect salt-and-pepper crispy squid with papaya salad (?7.50), a wondrous union of contrasting textures and flavours. I've never thought to put a tropical twang on top of squid, but the freshness of this papaya, combined with the peppery batter on the squid, is just sublime.

A cod fillet (?14.50) comes apart in gorgeous little flakes, and sits very happily among chorizo, cannellini beans and saffron potatoes. The ricotta-stuffed courgette flowers with caponata are a steal at ?12; the rib-eye with chips and Caf? de Paris butter, at ?18.50, is cheaper than you'll find in most of London; and there is linguine vongole (?13.50) and a lamb fillet (?15), too.

The desserts ? ?5.50 each ? are a fabulous bargain. White-chocolate mousse with raspberry sorbet and shortcake; baked Alaska with lemon curd and berries; custard tart with raspberries; and, best of all, the Sunday Sundae: hot brownie, cold ice-cream, succulent cherries, and enough to convince me there may be a heaven.

I'm thinking hard about faults, really I am. The staff are all smiley and attentive, so none there. The interior is neither good nor bad, so none there. The food is almost incapable of being improved. Basically perfect.

Oh yes ? the Aperol spritz is a quid too dear. That's about it. So in the circumstances, I couldn't possibly award my first 10 out of 10.

9.5/10

Sunday, 169 Hemingford Road, London N1, tel: 020 7607 3868. ?70 for Two, including wine

Three more best for brunch

The Milestone

A high-quality gastropub that's simply fantastic for a laid-back brunch.

84 Green Lane At Ball Street, Sheffield, tel: 0114 272 8327

The Primrose Cafe

This remarkable caf? does a great brunch and lovely afternoon tea; by night, its cuisine is original.

1 Clifton Arcade, Boyces Avenue, Clifton, tel: 0117 946 6577

Stravaigin

One of Glasgow's finest relaxed dining establishments, known for its lazy Sunday brunch.

28 Gibson Street, Kelvinbridge, Glasgow, tel: 0141 334 2665

Source: http://rss.feedsportal.com/c/266/f/3802/s/2f863fe7/sc/19/l/0L0Sindependent0O0Clife0Estyle0Cfood0Eand0Edrink0Creviews0Crestaurant0Ereview0Esunday0E1690Ehemingford0Eroad0Elondon0En10E8740A6270Bhtml/story01.htm

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Light mag. 4.7 earthquake - 61km NNE of Yining Xian, China on Sunday, 4 August 2013

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Source: http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/quake-info/388602/M4.7-Sun-4-Aug-61km-NNE-of-Yining-Xian-China.html

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US Army keen to learn from India's counter-insurgency operations

WASHINGTON: Impressed by the Indian Army's successful counter-terrorism operations, the US Army Chief has proposed joint training between the armies of the two countries.

Noting that there is much to learn between the militaries of the two countries, US Army Chief of Staff General Ray Odierno called for joint training to benefit from India's experiences in counter-insurgency in a tough environment and difficult terrain.

"We would love to do some joint training in the mountainous environment, because what the Indian Army has learned over the years, we would love to share what we learned about counter-insurgency and compare experiences and see how we can learn from each other and how we can direct that to use in the future, so for me it is something that is important," Odierno told PTI in an interview.

Odierno, 58, during a rare trip to India late last month, met his Indian counterpart General Bikram Singh besides holding meetings with Defence Minister A K Antony and visiting the Northern Command headquarters in Udhampur.

Highly impressed by the Indian military's successful counter-insurgency operations, he said, the US would like to learn from the Indian experience as to how to fight terrorists in a tough environment and difficult terrain.

When asked if the US would like to have joint exercises in Jammu and Kashmir where the terrain is difficult like that of Afghanistan, Odierno said he would like to look at that.

Odierno said that this is something that the US may be interested in but still need to take a look at by sending people to train in these types of environments.

"I think, we would like to look at...we send may be send some people to learn how you train and operate in those environment and those are kind of had some initial discussions on...much more has to be done. It is things like that we would be interested in," he said.

"Everybody recognises, India has so much in common with the US and that it is important for us to sustain a strong long-lasting relationship," the US Army Chief of Staff said.

"It is important for us to sustain a long-term relationship of one that is equal, one that respects each other's strategic autonomy, but that one that enables us to learn from each other to develop together, to deal with many of the issues that we face around the world," he said.
Indian and US troops have already held joint exercises in the past in the mountainous Ladakh region in 2003.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/us-army-keen-to-learn-from-indias-counter-insurgency-operations/articleshow/21594590.cms

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Fitness, Diet, and Health Apps for Your Smartphone or Tablet

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Recommended diet, fitness, and healthcare apps for smartphones and tablets ? designed to help you eat right, exercise, and care for self and family.

Source: http://walkacrosstexas.tamu.edu/blog/index.php/2013/08/health-fitness-apps-for-your-smartphone-or-tablet-introduction-3/

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Chris Sieroty - Does daily fantasy sports blur the line between fantasy and gambling?

Sports fans are wagering thousands of dollars on the performance of professional athletes each day online, and it is all perfectly legal.

Known as daily fantasy sports, the games are part of an exemption to federal law banning online gambling. In daily fantasy sports, winners aren?t determined by the outcome of a single game or the performance of a single player.

Most fantasy competitions ? football or baseball ? last a season, but more and more players are looking for their daily fantasy fix. Critics argue that turning fantasy sports into a daily competition edges it closer to being a game of chance that?s essentially equivalent to placing a bet at race and sports books in Las Vegas.

?I?m not going to give a legal opinion,? John Kindt, an emeritus professor of business and legal policy at the University of Illinois, said Thursday. ?But what I would say is that this was not the intent of Congress when it prohibited online gambling.?

The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 regulated online gambling by prohibiting gambling businesses from knowingly accepting payments in connection with a wager. The law excluded fantasy sports and legal intrastate and inter-tribal gaming.

?Fantasy sports interests argued that this was a season-long effort and substantially a game of skill,? Kindt said in a phone interview. ?That appears to have changed with daily fantasy sports.?

Kindt also described fantasy sports as an ?introductory venue? to sports gambling.

?Young people love sports, love to take risks and don?t realize that gambling can become problematic,? he said. ?Fantasy sports on a daily basis is pushing open the door to these concerns.?

Today, there are 35 million fantasy sports players in the U.S. and Canada, according to the Fantasy Sports Trade Association. The fantasy sports industry generates $3.07 billion annually from entry fees and direct spending on subscriptions to magazines and websites catering to fantasy players.

By comparison, casino visitors in Nevada wagered more than $3.4 billion on sporting events in 2012, according to the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

The FSTA doesn?t separate revenue figures for daily fantasy sports. However, there are plenty of websites offering daily games for money, including FanDuel, Play Daily Fantasy Sports and Cantor Fitzgerald?s Top Line Gaming Labs.

Certain states continue to have more restrictive laws. But in Nevada and other states that allow fantasy sports to be played for money, the daily contests are essentially unregulated.

Kindt said although states can have parallel anti-gambling laws, Internet gambling is a federal issue. He said any outright state ban on gambling through fantasy sports would conflict with federal law.

He also argued that those advocating for the legalization of sports gambling don?t understand the consequences of opening the door to sports gambling nationwide.

?It would destroy amateur, collegiate and Olympic sports,? Kindt said. ?The NCAA and professional leagues are still extremely concerned about sports gambling, and are seeking to protect the integrity of sports by keeping out gambling.?

Copyright GamingWire. All rights reserved.

Source: http://www.casinocitytimes.com/article.cfm?contentandcontributorid=62435

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Selling FSBO... Realtor comes into picture after the fact? - Zillow

Commission just like everything else is negotionable, if you do not want to pay full commission then negotiate that. I beleive buyers agents usually get 2.5-3%. You could play hardball and say no commission but you could lose the sale. I would try to negotiate your the commission down down to 1-1.5% since your FSBO and the buyer found you on their own, if the agent has a problem with it and the buyers really want the house let them pay the rest of his commission.

Source: http://www.zillow.com/advice-thread/Selling-FSBO-Realtor-comes-into-picture-after-the-fact/505145/

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Sunday, August 4, 2013

Bridging loans and bridging finance - iccwest

Most people require a loan at some point in their life. There are many specific types of loans that you can choose from. However, you should be clear about the main differences between bridging loans and bridging finance, in the event you are offered either of these products.

Bridging finance is usually available to larger organisations, building contractors for instance or property developers who will get regular injections of finances from clients who have purchased properties from the developer. Thus, bridging finance can aid a developer to complete their project with easily available funds, secured against the development, while being reimbursed by clients. These loans are far less risky for the lender because the property developer or borrower will acquire a secured cash flow from customers. The lender knows that there is property acting as security against the loan which can be realised in case the borrower has difficulty repaying the loan for any reason. In addition to property developers, homeowners who have decided to sell a home and invest in a new one may do so with bridging finance also. The bank will advance the cash for a lower rate of interest than market rate to get a brand new house while they wait for the payment from selling the family home. However the time period during which the bridging loan needs to be repaid depends on the lenders terms.

A closed bridging loan http://www.financemyhouse.net, for instance, will need to be repaid in a pre-determined time frame (hence the term closed bridge), whereas an open bridging loan may have a more flexible repayment term.

Bridging loans are short term loans which are generally given to smaller clients or companies for periods ranging from a few weeks to few years. Interest rates on this type of bridging loan will be above bank rates to reflect the risk to the lender and the cost of realising the value of any assets used as security if the loan is defaulted on. There may also be a lower loan to value (LTV) on such loans in order to minimise the lenders risk. However, if you repay the bridging loan within the specified time period, you are able to close these loans in advance of the agreed term, often incurring mo exit fees.

Bridging loans have become much more popular in recent times due to the reluctance of mainstream lenders to lend to ?risky clients? post credit crunch. They are often used to solve cash flow issues, caused by a large tax bill for example, and they can be returned and closed when the issue has been resolved.

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Masthaven? has been offering bridging loans since 1983 and the company prides itself on? its transparency. There are no hidden fees in our terms, hence the company?s? clients don?t get any nasty surprises upon completion.

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Additional? benefits of using Masthaven are there are no exit fees ? ever ? and interest is? charged on a daily basis. This combined with Masthaven?s market leading rates? means that the borrower is really getting the best deal out there in the short? term lending arena.

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Source: http://www.iccwest.com/bridging-loans-and-bridging-finance/

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