Latest news with #Surbiton
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'I had dinner at a proper curry house in Surbiton and it's a true gem'
Decent curry houses might not be hard to come by in and around Surbiton but I've found a true local gem with top quality food and even better service. I had walked and driven past Prithi Cuisine in Ewell Road, many times in recent years but I hadn't eaten there until recently - and I can confirm it won't be long before I'm returning. I must admit, I was a little tentative at first due to the lack of customers in the restaurant but I was greeted and shown to my table by Raj, the owner of Prithi Cuisine and a true gentleman. Raj quickly put my unease to rest as he explained Thursdays were typically his quietest days and Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays were "very busy". Prithi Cuisine in Ewell Road (Image: Gianni Cirillo) My mum and I ordered our drinks and specially requested Raj to point us in the direction of his personal recommendations for starters and main courses. He seemed delighted to recommend the chicken pakorani and green garlic king prawns for our starters. Did I know what to expect? No. Were the smells from the kitchen making me excited? Absolutely. The poppadoms and dips (Image: Gianni Cirillo) As we waited for the starters to arrive, Raj brought out a tray of warm poppadoms and a tree-like structure holding six different dips and toppings. Personally, poppadoms and dips are my favourite part of an Indian meal and Prithi's take on this classic appetiser absolutely hit the spot. The poppadoms were perfectly crisp and the dips were a faultless selection - some sweet, some spicy, some tangy but all delicious and allowed for each bite to be customisable. With our tastebuds well and truly primed and ready for starters, Raj brought out the chicken pakori and green garlic king prawns. The starters (Image: Gianni Cirillo) Both dishes were served similarly - boldly spiced meat served with charred green peppers and onions and a fresh salad on the side. Both the chicken and prawns were seasoned generously and served piping hot. The chicken was tender and juicy and the prawns were meaty and unquestionably fresh. The grilled vegetables held that trademark open-fire char and the side salad was crunchy, cool and an ideal way to reset the pallet before we got underway with our mains. Raj (middle left) with regular customers Nick, Paul and Ramkumar (Image: Prithi Cuisine) During the short interval after the starters, we got speaking to Raj who exuberated not only a pride in serving great food, but having a great connection with the local community. He knows his customers by name and works often with the local radio station and other businesses when he can - I'd known him all of 20 minutes but I could see, as clear as day, how much satisfying his customers means to him. Again my mum and I put our trust in Raj, who brought out two curries - the methi chicken and the royal king prawn korai as well as a saag aloo, a garlic naan, a peshwari naan and a bowl of pilau rice. Following the trend set by the appetisers and starters, the main courses packed punches of flavour although nothing was overly spicy (which can so often be the case in Indian restaurants). The Main Courses (Image: Gianni Cirillo) The chicken and prawn curries again featured a wonderful concoction of spices and were served in a great liquid consistency - not too thick and not too runny. This allowed me to tuck in to my curries via my preferred method - using the naan as a pocket to scoop up mouthfuls as opposed to a fork or spoon. The naans were hot, fluffy and structurally integral and the rice was steamed to perfection. The saag aloo is an Indian staple and more familiar to me than the two curries we'd been served, it was nothing revolutionary but it was certainly given the same culinary attention as the rest of the dishes and gave no room for criticism. Royal king prawn korai curry (Image: Gianni Cirillo) Despite the hefty quantity of food we'd been given, we polished it off such was the quality. Raj came round to ensure everything was to our liking and the smile on his face never faltered. As intriguing as the dessert menu looked, I had physically run out of space for any more food. I left Prithi with a stomach full of fantastic food and a heart filled with the infectious pride and joy that Raj holds in his restaurant. I can confirm that when I next have that Friday evening hankering for an Indian, I know where I'll be heading.
West Australian
08-06-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Higher gold prices lead to reduction in production during March quarter, Surbiton Associates say
An Australian dollar gold price heading towards $5000 an ounce has actually driven a reduction in production of the precious metal across the country, Melbourne-based industry analysts Surbiton Associates say. Surbiton said Australian gold mine production totalled 73 tonnes in the March quarter, six tonnes less than in the December quarter but three tonnes more than the March quarter of 2024. This took place as the London Bullion Market Association gold price ranged between $US2633/oz and $US3115/oz, which in Australian dollar terms was $4232/oz to $4960/oz. 'Effectively, the recent decline in Australian gold production was largely the result of higher gold prices,' Surbiton Associates director Dr Sandra Close said. 'At today's gold price the March quarter's output is worth over $12 billion, so understandably many producers are optimising their operations in response to such price increases.' Dr Close said the higher gold price had made lower cut-off grades economic because what was unprofitable to mine and treat in the past had now become profitable. 'If operations are able to lower their cut-off grades, then a greater amount of gold is recovered from each orebody,' she said. 'Also, higher gold prices mean that it is economic to reclaim more low-grade material from stockpiles to feed into the treatment plants, so the weighted average head grade of ore being treated declines. 'Although lower head grades result in less gold being produced and means cash costs and AISC costs per ounce increase, the value of each ounce of gold is higher. 'Surbiton Associates' latest analysis shows that low-grade, reclaimed stockpiled material is currently as high as around 15 per cent of the total ore being treated. 'Thanks to increasing gold prices, the proportion of low-grade material being blended into feed has risen steadily for the last five quarters, from a proportion of only around one per cent a year ago.' Dr Close said that it might be thought that higher prices should also stimulate gold output by encouraging the start-up of new projects and the re-commissioning of old projects on care and maintenance. However, she said many existing plants were now running close to their limit, so there was a shortage of immediate treatment capacity for emerging small miners wanting to sell parcels of ore or to have their ore toll-treated. 'On the face of it, lower gold production and rising costs per ounce might suggest that the gold industry in Australia is in trouble,' Dr Close said. 'Far from it. Many gold producers are experiencing high margins and are doing very well.' Those mines reporting substantially lower gold production in the March quarter included Tropicana 330km north-east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder down 57,000oz, St Ives south of Kambalda down 40,500oz, and Tanami in the Northern Territory down 46,000oz. Among the operations reporting increased gold production were the Cadia mine in New South Wales up 25,000oz, Bellevue north of Leinster up 22,000oz, and Fosterville in Victoria up 7000oz. Boddington south-east of Perth produced the most gold during the quarter, 126,000oz, while Tropicana churned out 105,267oz, Cadia 103,000oz, Kalgoorlie-Boulder's Super Pit 99,998oz, and Telfer 90,172oz.
Telegraph
30-05-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
The NHS lottery leaves patients waiting months for urgent care
SIR – Some 20 years ago, my girlfriend persuaded me to have my Zapata-style moustache (Letters, May 29) shaved off for a cancer charity. This raised some £250, which certainly made it worthwhile. It was only some time later, when I was thinking about growing it back again and met with sustained and vociferous resistance, that I realised that the original idea had been triggered by more than a single motive. Tom Stubbs Surbiton, Surrey SIR – In 1977, my great friend Stephen Denyer was warned by the careers adviser at Durham University that he wouldn't get a job with a City law firm sporting a beard. We stopped teasing Stephen about this when he became a senior international partner at Allen and Overy, and later director of strategic relationships for the Law Society of England and Wales. Stephen retained his handsome facial hair until his untimely death last year. John Jenkins
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Labour's First Renationalised Train Service Gets Off To A Hilarious Start
The first train to be brought back into public ownership under Labour was (metaphorically) derailed today, turning the major moment into a bit of damp squib. South Western Railway (SWR) officially came under public ownership at around 2am on Sunday morning as part of the government's promise to create 'better services'. The first service of the day – normally be the 2.27am train from Guildford to Waterloo – was cancelled. So that meant the pressure was on the 5.36am service from Woking to London Waterloo to mark the historic occasion. But any jubilation from the occasion quickly evaporated when the journey had to rely on a rail replacement bus service between two stops, Surbiton and Clapham Junction. It turns out that bank holiday engineering works had overrun meaning the train was no longer able to go down the intended track. But Keir Starmer seemed to overlook the embarrassment this morning, claiming on social media that his new public ownership scheme was 'just the start'. 'After decades of Tory failure, our Plan for Change will put passengers first, as promised. That will mean better services, with simpler ticketing, on more comfortable trains,' the prime minister wrote on X. The Department for Transport also promoted the 'historic' occasion, claiming it 'kicks off a reset of the railways to improve performance and boost economic growth as part of the Plan for Change.' Despite this government spin, many people were quick to complain – including Liberal Democrat MP Monica Harding. 'This is hardly the fresh start my constituents in Esher and Walton were promised,' she wrote on X. 'Let's hope SWR under government control gets better than this!' First day of SWR's renationalisation and all trains from stations in Hersham, Hampton Court, Thames Ditton, Esher, Hinchley Wood, Claygate and Walton on Thames to London Waterloo are replaced by buses - a rail replacement service!This is hardly the fresh start my constituents… — Monica Harding MP (@monicabeharding) May 25, 2025 Others, of course, wasted no time in finding the hilarity of the situation. One can only chuckle at the irony: the first newly nationalised train service was…a rail replacement bus! — Andy Saunders 🇺🇦 (@1940Andy) May 25, 2025 South Western Railway starts as it means to carry on in public ownership as very first service is a replacement bus, (We didn't' even need to make this up) — The Rotherham Bugle (@Rotherhambugle) May 25, 2025 Keep Renationalisation Of Energy Firms 'On The Table', Pleads Nicola Sturgeon New Transport Secretary Admits She Doesn't Know How Much Renationalising The Railways Will Cost Labour Says It Will Renationalise The Railways Within Five Years Of Winning Power
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
South Western first rail firm renationalised by Labour
South Western Railway (SWR) has been renationalised, making it the first train company to transfer to public ownership under Labour. The first nationalised service will leave at 05:36 from Woking to Surbiton though it will be partially covered by a rail replacement bus service. The government has hailed the move as a "new dawn for rail" but it held back from promising lower fares, focusing more on plans to improve services and use profits to reinvest in infrastructure. Unions have expressed concerns over outsourcing to private companies, while the opposition Conservatives said Labour must "deliver on their promises". SWR trains are now the responsibility of DfT (Department for Transport) Operator and will be integrated into Great British Railways (GBR), which will oversee all railway infrastructure. GBR will not officially exist until MPs vote to create it, which looks set to be in the autumn. On a visit to a train depot in Bournemouth earlier, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander described the nationalisation of SWR as a "real watershed moment". Asked whether prices would go down for passengers, she told the BBC she could not promise lower fares, but assured passengers they would get "great value for money". Alexander is expected to travel on the first fully rail-operated route from London Waterloo to Shepperton in Surrey at 06:14. It will be the first service with the new GBR livery. The words "Great British Railways" and "coming soon" are painted in white against a royal blue background decorated with part of a union flag. Two more rail firms, C2C and Greater Anglia, will be brought into public ownership later this year. Four major operators have already been brought under public ownership under previous Conservative governments - East Coast Mainline, TransPennine, Northern and South Eastern (LNER). Seven more companies will be renationalised by 2027 as each of their contracts end – or sooner if their performance is judged to be unacceptable. These are: West Midlands Trains East Midlands Railway Avanti West Coast CrossCountry Chiltern Railways Govia Thameslink Railway Great Western Current government plans are to renationalise nearly all passenger rail services across England, Wales and Scotland by 2030, proposals which have been attacked the Conservatives. Shadow Transport Secretary Gareth Bacon said: "Labour have talked up the benefits of renationalisation for years and they will now have to deliver on their promises of lower ticket prices, an end to all disruption and strikes and better onboard services. The alternative is that, as usual, British taxpayers have to foot the bill for Labour." The RMT Union welcomed SWR's nationalisation but said it was concerned about outsourcing to private firms. RMT General Secretary Eddie Dempsey said: "Public ownership of South Western Railway is a major step forward and is a clear rejection of the failed privatisation model. "But the job is incomplete when our contracted-out members remain outsourced and not reaping the benefits of nationalisation." The government said it could not promise fares would be cheaper despite significant cost savings through renationalisation but any additional money would be invested in making services better. Whitehall sources have told the BBC ministers hope to find ways to cut the cost of rail travel but it is impossible to make promises before GBR is formally established and services renationalised. What difference will rail nationalisation make? Rail fares to rise despite renationalisation plans Will Labour's plan make train tickets cheaper?
