Recently we had the pleasure of trying out the latest craze in health chips. ProTings are baked chips with 15 grams of protein per serving! That means these chips have the power to stop that snack craving and also give you a power packed punch of energy needed to get through a work day or a work out. I found the chips to be surprisingly tasty for all that protein and healthy stuff.

Being a local San Franciscan I have seen so many shops and stores change hands in the last several years that it seems like there is a new restaurant or store that pops up every month. Rising rents have led to many of the original businesses leaving and the area becoming the most gentrified that it has ever been before. The fact that the people are non-flashy, friendly, and the real deal is what makes the people in this place unique.

The Rib Room Bar and Restaurant in Knightsbridge, London UK is a great location for the business traveller or local to enjoy the finest cuisine available. Decadence at every turn: The head chef Ian Rudge creates modern British dishes, ideal at any time of the day and featuring signature specialities such as The Rib Room roast beef brioche bun with horseradish, red onion marmalade and watercress; the seafood platter, with mini prawn cocktail, angel oysters and smoked salmon rolls and the deliciously decadent Naccarii caviar served with blinis, sour cream and a glass of Taittinger.

Recently I had the chance to try out a cold brewed coffee called CoolBrew. My first impression was the packaging looks a bit weird but once I tasted it I found out it’s high quality coffee. This cold brewed coffee is very pure and in a concentrate form so you mix it with cold or hot water and you get a perfect cup just like you brewed it yourself at home.

Considered one of the best places to get an amazing burger in London, Hache Burger is the brainchild of husband and wife team, Suzie and Berry Casey. What started out as a family run creperie in Camden eventually evolved into Hache Burger, with the motivation being to offer Londoners a quality burger sourced from the freshest local ingredients -a rarity at the time. Hache has been awarded “Best Burger in London” by Time Out amongst other awards from local and international food writers, along with a dedicated following in the city.

Coco is a new Brooklyn bistro located in Greenpoint. The restaurant is the latest venture of Michael Callahan - whose resumé already boasts several successful Manhattan restaurants, namely Indochine, Bond St, Republic, and Kittichai. Former chef de cuisine Fat Radish, Joe Capozzi, leads the kitchen and its’ menu which puts focus on local, American food. The restaurant also features a bar and late night with delicious smaller bites. Interview with Joe Capozzi of Coco:

Putney is home to the first London based Kitchenette restaurant, following the success of various other locations: many are in Turkey, with others operating in St. Petersburg, and Baku. This lively venture serves an all-day Mediterranean style menu - breakfast, lunch and dinner - with Turkish influences. Kitchenette’s interior simplicity is appealing, which brings the attention to the table, the quality of the food: a mark of many fine eateries.

Sitting quietly on Kensington High Street is an Italian restaurant named Acciuga (anchovy), and judging by its unassuming facade you’ll be forgiven for missing to note anything special. This restaurant however is the brainchild of young Guglielmo Arnulfo - head chef and owner - a man who states a clear intention to offer a traditional yet experimental menu from his native Liguria, with influences from Piedmont and Tuscany. Arnulfo gets fired up about the authenticity of other ‘Italian’ restaurants serving a dull Bolognese, but overall is indifferent to any menu other than his own.

Jean-François Piège, a very great and talented chef, helms Thoumieux. After a few years of experience at the Hôtel de Crillon, he is now at this kind of kitschy-chic brasserie with red seats, black marble top bistro tables, Christofle silver cutlery and a lounge at the entrance. On the walls, mirrors flanked by sconces and lithographs give a feel of the Belle Epoque. Straightway you are greeted with a slightly tangy sardine rillette, coarse salt, Bordier butter and cunningly sliced Poujauran bread.

At Ognisko, owner Jan Woroniecki (who is also the owner of Eastern European style Baltic Restaurant located at South Bank) set out to offer Old Polish cuisine meets the whole world in the wine list with an elegant backdrop. Located on the ground floor of the beautiful building that is the home to the Ognisko Polskie club on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, the bar and restaurant are open to the public for lunch and dinner seven days a week.