Latest news with #Plastics
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Scotsman
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Ara review: affordable fine dining that's perfect for any occasion
Some restaurants are perfect for dates - low lighting, quiet and romantic - while others are favoured for business lunches. Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... However, everyone is looking for that all-rounder - an eatery that is suitable for any occasion. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Looking to share some small plates and affordable glasses of wine with some friends, it's perfect. However, despite the relatively reasonable prices, the food is of fine dining quality, worthy for special occasions. Its location also makes it an excellent choice for a light business lunch or dinner. And the low-light, classy interiors - designed by Nina Woodcraft who also put together Silo in Hackney Wick - make a perfect spot for a date. Ara's grilled carrots, labneh and Vadouvan spiced butter. Credit: Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit | Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit These incorporate materials to minimise waste throughout. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The sleek banquette and booth seating is made from rescued diseased London elm wood that would otherwise have been burned, while the table tops and bar facade have been crafted using recycled Smile Plastics sheets. The dedication to sustainability can be felt in the menu as well - discarded fruit peel from the kitchen is used in the cocktails, while the wine list is full of organic, low-intervention drops. The mango sticky rice is a beautifully sweet aperitif made from a mango vodka and rice syrup, while I have a delicate and light Grignolino from Piedmonte, in Italy, which compliments the food perfectly. And the food is the real star of the show, and even though the menu is relatively small we really struggled on choosing what not to order. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Restaurateur and self-taught chef, Murat Kilic, who started out as a potwash at a greasy spoon. Credit: Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit | Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit And it's a real departure from Murat's previous ventures - Route, a successful bistro in Dalston, and Amber, which is nearby in Aldgate East. They focused on his roots in Turkey and the eastern Mediterranean, where his grandfather taught him to cook. He moved to London as a teenager to train as an electrical engineer, but quickly found his calling in the restaurant industry - starting out as a potwash at a greasy spoon. Now in his third restaurant, Murat has expanded his offering, with the menu influenced by his love of travel. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad We start with the potato bread, smoky from the grill, which goes perfectly with the burrata. The saltiness of the chilli oil and peanuts and sweetness of apricots cut through the rich cheese perfectly. Mussels' skewers with roasted chicken wing butter sauce. Credit: Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit | Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit The mussel skewers are small, but being finished on the barbecue leaves them beautifully smoky. Some of Murat's influences from Turkey shine through with carrots, which are soft, sweet and buttery and surrounded by labneh, missing just a hint of seasoning. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The fried chicken is a must order, crispy thighs covered in a crunchy south-east Asian salad rich in coriander. The best of the small plates comes last, mushroom dumplings with a garlic yoghurt flavoured with mint and Aleppo chillis that makes me want to lick the plate clean. Semolina halva with preserved lemon and whipped coconut , desiccated coconut. Credit: Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit | Oh Gravy! Media - Burak Can Aksit Due to our gluttony with the starters, we're advised to order just one main, the adana lamb skewer - a beautiful fine dining version of a Turkish kebab, with a deliciously charred pepper and red onion. This is easily big enough for two people, and the super crispy, thick-cut chips and punchy aioli are the perfect side. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The only thing I would say about this is the lamb is served quite pink - as I like it - but if you prefer it cooked well done then it's probably best to let the waiter know when ordering. Despite our stomachs rapidly filling up, I cannot say no to the stunning looking desserts. The semolina halva, topped with beautifully light whipped coconut and preserved lemon, is delicious, but if you go to Ara you have to order the chocolate Basque cheesecake. It's unlike any other cheesecake I've tried with the perfect amount of salt and chilli to complement the rich chocolaty flavours.
Daily Mirror
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Disney+ adds iconic 'wickedly funny' noughties cult classic that fans still can't get enough of
Disney+ subscribers should be running not walking to their TVs this Bank Holiday weekend as a fan-favourite teen comedy has dropped. Disney+ has just added a cult classic to its extensive library, which has already made its way into its top 10 most streamed films. Mean Girls is a modern-day teen classic, and now millennials can relive the magic over and over again as the Lindsay Lohan film was released on Disney+ this week. Created by 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live legend Tina Fey, Mean Girls originally hit the big screen back in 2004, with The Parent Trap's childhood star Lindsay Lohan as Cady Heron. After leaving her childhood behind in Africa, Cady joins a 'normal' school in Illinois where her two new friends give her the inside scoop on everyone's social status. Her path then crosses with the infamous Plastics: 'Fetch' creator Gretchen Wieners (Lacey Chabert), aspiring 'weather girl' Karen Smith (Amanda Seyfried) and their leader, the terrifying Regina George (Rachel McAdams). Cady initially doesn't see what the issue is with the Plastics until she becomes smitten with Regina's ex-boyfriend, Aaron Samuels (Jonathan Bennett). Besides its star-studded cast, which also features Fey herself as Ms Norbury, Parks and Recreation actress Amy Poehler and Scrubs' Neil Flynn, Mean Girls is a classic thanks to its stream of memorable one-liners. Some of the classics that continue to be used in Reels today include 'On Wednesdays we wear pink', 'That is so fetch', 'Is Butter a carb?' and 'I'm sick', followed by Karen's pathetic cough and Regina's response: 'Boo you w***e'. Mean Girls may not have the best Rotten Tomatoes rating with 84% but fans cannot help but express their love for the film, with it being labelled as 'wickedly funny'. Another remarked: 'Undoubtedly the best teen comedy ever adapted from a sociological study…' A third agreed: 'Mean Girls is a hysterical comedy about high school cliques, and may be the best teen satire since Heathers', while another describes it as 'comic gold'. More than 20 years have passed since Mean Girls was first released but has been given a new lease of life with the 2024 remake starring Angourie Rice and Renee Rapp as Cady and Regina, respectively. This version differs though, as it's actually a musical and has since been made into a West End and Broadway musical.
Tatler Asia
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Tatler Asia
12 essential teen movies every millennial grew up watching
2. 'Clueless' (1995) As if! Based on Jane Austen's Emma , this Beverly Hills classic gave us knee-high socks, rotating closets and the ultimate glow-up arc. Cher (Alicia Silverstone) is the queen bee with a heart of gold who learns that matchmaking is harder than it looks—and that sometimes love is, awkwardly, your ex-stepbrother. 3. 'Mean Girls' (2004) New girl Cady (Lindsay Lohan) infiltrates the Plastics—North Shore High's glittering, backstabbing apex predators—but quickly discovers popularity is a dangerous game. Rachel McAdams is flawless as queen bee Regina George, and the film is endlessly rewatchable thanks to Tina Fey's script, razor-sharp one-liners and fetch never happening. 4. 'Bring It On' (2000) Spirit fingers and cheerocracy! Torrance (Kirsten Dunst) inherits a cheer squad with stolen routines and must go up against the fierce Clovers, led by Isis (Gabrielle Union). It's a sly commentary on cultural appropriation wrapped in pom-poms, backflips and some of the best sports choreography of the decade. Unbeknownst to many millennials, Bring It On actually launched an entire franchise, but nothing beats the original. 5. 'She's All That' (1999) He bet his friends he could turn a nerd into a prom queen. And then she took off her glasses and—boom—artsy goddess. Laney Boggs (Rachael Leigh Cook) is the original Pinterest-core muse, and Zack (Freddie Prinze Jr) the ultimate '90s heartthrob. Yes, it's predictable. Yes, we still fell for it. 6. 'Save the Last Dance' (2001) Ballet meets hip-hop in this angsty Chicago-set romance. Julia Stiles (the Queen of Teen Movies) plays a grieving dancer trying to get her groove back, while Sean Patrick Thomas teaches her that rhythm isn't just in the music—it's in the soul. It's gritty, romantic and proof that Julia Stiles had a PhD in early-2000s teen drama. 7. 'A Walk to Remember' (2002) If you didn't cry watching this, you might be a robot. When bad boy Landon (Shane West) falls for terminally ill Jamie (Mandy Moore, in peak angelic phase), love blossoms between Bible verses and telescope dates. Nicholas Sparks strikes again, this time with enough teen heartbreak to make your middle school diary blush. 8. 'The Princess Diaries' (2001) One minute she's invisible; the next, she's heir to a European throne. Mia Thermopolis (Anne Hathaway) learns manners, gets a makeover and finds out being a princess isn't all tiaras and state dinners. Julie Andrews is regal perfection, and the foot-popping kiss is seared into our brain cells. 9. 'Step Up' (2006) Older millennials had Save the Last Dance . The younger ones? Well, they're still hanging on to this gem. He's a street dancer. She's a classically trained ballerina. Together, they pop, lock and pas de bourrée into our hearts. The chemistry between Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan is sizzling, the dance scenes are iconic and the soundtrack is fire. 10. 'The Lizzie McGuire Movie' (2003) This is what dreams are made of—literally. Lizzie (Hilary Duff) goes from clumsy middle schooler to accidental pop star in Rome, complete with a supposedly evil doppelgänger and a Vespa-riding heartthrob. It's a campy, glittering farewell to one of Disney Channel's best. 'Hey now, hey now,' this is peak Duff. 11. 'Not Another Teen Movie' (2001) Before Captain America, Chris Evans was the jock in this savage send-up of every teen trope ever. From the token goth girl makeover to prom-night chaos, this spoof hits every cliché from all these teen movies and somehow makes them better. It's hilariously meta, crude and surprisingly smart beneath the whipped cream bikini. See more: Catching up with Captain America actor Chris Evans 12. 'High School Musical' (2006) You sang along. You learned the dance. You probably quoted 'stick to the status quo' when a colleague steps out of line. If these are not the hallmarks that put this Disney classic into the list of greatest teen movies, then we don't know anything anymore. Troy (Zac Efron) and Gabriella's (Vanessa Hudgens) West Side Story -inspired love over show tunes broke the Disney mould and launched a thousand lunchroom performances. We're all still in this together. Who hasn't yelled 'What team? Wildcats!' during a particularly challenging work project? Also read: From boho to glamour: the Vanessa Hudgens style saga
