4 months, 3 weeks and 2 days

Winner of Palme D'Or this year. looks incredible. shame i guess it won't be showing here for a while...

national dining rooms at the national gallery (NOT the NPG!)

beware as this lovely space is only open between 10 and 5pm - useless for evening dates, but excellent for lunch. they even adjust the blinds for you if the sun gets in your eyes. on the plus side it's less swanky but equally classy when compared to the national portrait gallery restaurant (though clearly, being on the ground floor means the views aren't so great).

they have either table service (good) or canteen service (confusing) - worth bearing both in mind depending on your mood.

cafe wanda, clapham polish cafe

From Time Out: An unexpected find amid the bland gastropubs and bars of Clapham High Street, Café Wanda can rustle up anything from a takeaway cake to a full meal of Polish home cooking. It's an informal spot, furnished with potted plants and eastern European art, and is populated by a steady stream of Polish diners, all of whom seem to know the staff by name. The small menu of Polish staples and mainstream European dishes allows diners to pick and mix; vegetarians are well looked after. To start, the mixed vegetarian platter (goat's cheese bruschetta, roasted aubergine and courgette) was excellent, if about as untypical of Polish cuisine as you can get. This was followed by the two cornerstones of any Polish restaurant: pierogi and blini. Both were faultless: the pierogi succulent and flavoursome; the two large blini (with smoked salmon and sour cream) wonderfully calorific and comforting. Our waiter's comedic patter was relentless, despite our cringing, but service overall was tip-top. Café Wanda makes a fine venue for a quiet supper during the week and is an even better choice for a raucous group dinner at the weekend.

don giovanni at ROH

dates for tickets: fri 15th, sun 17th, tues 26th (all june), weds 4th, sun 8th (both july): info on cheap day release tickets here.

girls rock night - 93 feet east on 8th june

featuring The Duloks, amongst others.... should be great.

Yes, and am now typing the day after the night before to say that it was great, despite my fatal mistake in choosing to go with people who weren't exactly into the girl band concept of the night... hey ho. Duloks were crazy, sex-obsessed, out of tune but inexplicably hot, especially their lead singer, whose energy was enough to make me feel ancient. Also The Scha-la-las were totally excellent. I dig their dresses...

antony gormley, hayward, until 19th August

Check him out. Blind Light.

skylon at the RFH

It looks posh but pretty tasty... and they claim the grill is less formal...

mandalay

Edgware Road isn't exactly known for its exotic pavilions and lush, tropical landscape, but it does contain a gem of a Burmese restaurant – London's one and only. Mandalay is a small, family-run set-up, the menu influenced by Thai, Indian and Chinese cooking, as well as Burmese cuisine. Expect plenty of fish and seafood, fragrant bowls of rice and noodles, and light aromatic curries. If you enjoy healthy broths, opt for bottle gourd soup: scented with toasted garlic slivers and containing shrimps, rice noodles and strips of the gourd, it makes a superb palate cleanser. Staff are passionate about their craft and happy to take curious customers on a guided tour of the menu.

inn the park

From Time Out online: This is one of the best-located restaurants in London – and it's a looker too. The modern wooden structure fits perfectly into a lakeside slot in St James's Park, with every table having a water view. We've a real soft spot for this place – good for families (staff are charming with young diners), it's also a romantic night-time haunt, and whatever the occasion, it's affordable. Breakfasts might be a full english or a bowl of granola with yoghurt and pomegranate; at lunch there's a choice of sandwiches or a full meal. Star turns on a summer lunch menu were asparagus with morels, peas and mint in a butter-rich broth, and Devonshire Bronze chicken breast with braised fennel; beautifully tan chips were a nice side order. We made fast work of treacle tart with clotted cream, but special mention has to go to the British cheese plate: £7.50 bought goat's cheese, stilton and cheddar, a shiny apple, chutney and plenty of biscuits. All this is buttressed by a global wine list, and a fine batch of cocktails. A park café par excellence. Owner Oliver Peyton is also behind the National Dining Rooms .

mutual appreciation

108mins US
Director: Andrew Bujalski
Starring: Jason Rice, Rachel Clift, Andrew Bujalski, Seung-Min Lee
Teaching assistant Lawrence lives in a low rent New York apartment with his girlfriend Ellie. When Lawrence's best friend, rock musician Alan, arrives in the city, tensions in the relationship become evident. Ellie is clearly attracted to Alan, who gladly entertains her flirtations whilst rebuffing the advances of sexy singleton Sara.
http://www.londonnet.co.uk/films/mutualappreciation.html