pesto at the white horse, desford, leicestershire.

Pesto, found in the Leicestershire village of Desford, is an Italian restaurant with a tapas twist. Their plates are billed as piattini, or piattino, meaning small dish in Italian. With around forty dishes at around the £2.95-5.95 mark, the idea is to mix and match your favourites to create a shareable, Mediterranean feast. Not sure whether to choose pasta or pizza? Cannelloni or calamari? Rigatoni or risotto. No fear, you can have it all.

salamanca tapas bar, dublin.

A gem of a tapas restaurant in the centre of Dublin. Found on St. Andrew Street in Dublin 2, Salamanca serves up tempting tapas dishes from midday until late, every day. With a vibrant orange front, wrought iron lighting, handwritten chalk boards and lush greenery, the Spanish restaurant instantly grasps you with its Mediterranean charm. Inside it is deceptively spacious, as the friendly waiting staff take you past a well stocked wine bar to the rows of seating within. The interior continues the expected theme; think long candlesticks, wooden seating and large mirrors met with burnt orange walls and rich red trims.

spanish cookery class at l'atelier des chefs, london.

L'atelier des Chefs, translating as the chef's studio or workshop, is London cookery school which runs a plethora of culinary courses. From learning the secrets of baking bread to macaron masterclasses, their St Paul's and Oxford Street locations promise a fun event where you can learn new kitchen skills and make a few friends too. 

Their courses would make for perfect Mother's Day presents or birthday treats, with vouchers available too. I've been to all sorts of classes with my mum - from Tunisian cookery to cake pop decorating - although this time the London class was a bit far away from her Leicestershire home. I went along with my foodie pal Grace to sample their Spanish cookery class; 90 minutes of creating calamari, patatas bravas, traditional paella and croquetas. Challenge accepted!

tapas dinner party.

I’ve grown rather fond of dinner parties of late. So far I’ve had a go at Japanese themed night, a sushi making evening, Mexican nights, a vegan friendly evening and lots of homemade pasta production lines - ending up with tasty rewards. The latest on my list is a tapas dinner party, complete with tiny plates of Spanish inspired treats and a steady flow of sangria. Rounding up of course, with homemade churros for dessert.

the white hart, loughborough.

A couple of sunny weekends ago, my food blogger pal Alex joined me for a Saturday lunch at The White Hart. One of her (many) locals, Gingey can take all the credit for this little gem. We enjoyed a selection of their tapas menu, whilst planning an exciting new foodie venture we're in the middle of. More on that soon! For now, I'll leave you with a selection of tiny treats which are soon becoming the trendy British answer to tapas. 

tapas and cocktail class: rocket @ saltwater, nottingham.

Tapas? Cocktails? Fun with a group of lovely bloggers? This was a sure fire winning night. I went along to Rocket @ Saltwater at the top of Nottingham's Cornerhouse for a brilliant evening of cocktail making, tapas munching, photo snapping and general catching up with some of East Midlands' finest. 

camino, kings cross, london.

a few weekends ago i headed to london for a foodie weekend, which featured a long overdue trip to sticks n sushi after a day out at feast foodies festival. travelling down to london on friday night, i had to find somewhere near st pancras for a light bite to eat and catch up over a bottle of wine. camino ticked all the boxes; round the corner from kings cross, a well stocked bar and a tasty looking spanish menu. but how would it stack up?

the dial, burton on trent.

nestled between burton on trent high street and the town's cinema and leisure complex is not the obvious place that you'd find a place like the dial. straight through the doors, you're met with a clean and sleek colour palette, contemporary seating and a well stocked bar of sprits, wines and beers from near and far. 

don't be mistaken, burton is very close to my heart and was the nearest town to where i grew up. however there was a stylish and modern vibe to the place which felt more city chic than small brewery town in the midlands.

foodies meet at barceloneta, leicester.

last week, myself and four other midlands food bloggers headed over to barceloneta in the clarendon park area of leicester for a foodie meet up. queens road in particular is a lovely area of leicester, home to a handful of independent shops, delis, cafes and your usual charity shops as well as a few specialising in books and records. 

barceloneta is a spanish restaurant which is part of a independent trio of businesses on the road; bar dos hermanos, barceloneta and the salvador deli. welcomed with a friendly smile to the beautifully decorated tapas restaurant, little did they know five food bloggers had just stepped into the door...

las iguanas, leicester.

bringing latino vibes to leicester is the fun and friendly fiesta of las iguanas restaurant. with a warm welcome, colourful atmosphere and a south american menu boasting a whole host of meaty grills, delicious seafood and spicy vegetarian and vegan choices, we sat down and joined the party.