Date night at The Finborough Theatre and The Troubadour.

Last Saturday night the husband had a date. We seldom have a proper date these days for one reason or another, call it laziness or exhaustion from long days at work coupled with dealing with a rather over exuberant toddler. Somehow the excitement of getting dressed up for a night out on the town doesn't often win out against a night on the sofa with a glass of wine.

Determined to fight this inertia the Husband went on a booking spree recently. So off we went to the Finborough Theatre to see a magnificently powerful new play, Black Jesus. Set in 2015 post Mugabe, a commission is set up to investigate the atrocities that took place during his reign. Centred around the story of one of the militia set up by Mugabe to intimidate his opponents, known as Black Jesus for he was the one to chose who lived or died. Shocking truths are unravelled and these people's lives will never be the same again. Definitely worth making a trip to Earl's Court to see this, if anything it will propel you to go home and research the history. Made me realise how little I knew.

Only an hour and a half long we had plenty of time to have dinner at one of our favourite places, The Troubadour. It was quite a contrast walking into the manic buzzing Troubadour where blues music playing in the basement rocked the floors of the cafe. You don't go to the Troubadour for its culinary expertise, though I was assured that the new Chef is working hard to improve the quality. It definitely has improved vastly from the smoked salmon pasta dish I had the last time I went, that was so salty I couldn't manage more than a couple of mouthfuls despite my hunger. This time we enjoyed our Steak Frites and Banoffee pie for pudding. Simple fare, good ingredients, well done.

The real joy of this place is the atmosphere and the waiters. Everyone clearly loves working here, so this translates to the happy smiley customers! This is the kind of place that is genuinely missing the smoky hues of pre ban times. Loud music, candlelight, small dark wooden tables and chairs, to me signify red wine and cigarettes fuelling philosophical debates with your neighbours *wipes away a tear*.

Nevertheless, The Troubadour can still provide a great night. I always remember walking past as a little girl with my Mother, clinging to her arm begging to let me go in and take a closer look at the coffee pots adorning the large glass windows. It is one of those unique London venues that makes you proud to be a Londoner.





Apologies for the poor photos, not much light available at The Troubadour!

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