Lunch at Gees Oxford

Gees is one of those restaurants that you desperately want to be good as it is such a destination and yet for years has always disappointed.  For a very short 'hey day' Raymond Blanc made it his HQ and it was spectacular, but when he de-camped to the Manoir Aux Quat' Saisons, what followed was a poor imitation.  I read that it has been 'made-over' and everything has changed from the 'trying to be fancy' food to the 'trying to be fancy' interiors.  So we decided to check it out (I still wore some 'trying to be fancy' clothes, as there is little opportunity to dress up in Oxford)

Fabulous flowers is next door to the restaurant, and everyone stops for a bit of a browse amongst their beautiful blooms....

They can be bought online from fabulousflowers.biz and with prices around £30-£40 for a bouquet, they are just as lovely, but a lot more value than the more famous equivalents...

 These jam jar arrangements come in sets of 4 for just over 30 quid!

I wore my nude Valentino pumps, white denim leggings, silk Joseph blouse, there is one here for only £7.99, it is from the White Company and very similar, just badly displayed, so a bit of a steal.  The raspberry pink jacket is from the Helen Hospice shop, they have some beautiful proper vintage finds and since the hospice is for terminally ill kids, any purchase is justified...

My favourites were the jam jar flowers, if we could count on the weather, I would buy for an outdoor party...

And this is Gees, notice all of the bikes chained outside, you know you are in Oxford, and see a very hungry boy in a blue t shirt....

This pic is 'pre-makeover'....

Post make-over...

Hungry boy shouting 'come on' or similar as we approach the 'plant library'...

Again, only in Oxford, the plant selection is presented as books in the new lean-to entrance way....

I am taking lots of notes for my own conservatory...

I will buy some personalised planters from here...

There was a wedding in full swing at one end of the restaurant....

The bride looked beautiful in a simple silk number...

This is a wedding designed by Fabulous Flowers...

We ate burgers from the grill...

 I did the 'healthy' version and had slow roasted beetroot in place of chips...

And I am happy to report, it was DELICIOUS, back in the cottage a very full tummy later...

Gala evening in the Cotswolds...

The weather has been beautiful and a couple of weeks ago I got the chance to wear one of my 'fantasy dresses'.  Shamelessly inspired by Elie Saab, this dress hasn't had an outing despite hanging for a couple of years in my closet.  Attending the event had been questionable, so I wasn't fully equipped, I wore the dress with a neon cosmetic bag which doubled as an evening bag and a neon necklace.  This pic was taken at the cottage, I had  been weeding all day (note brown bin as the backdrop) and there was still evidence of mud and green under my nails.  On the shoe front, I went flat for comfort...

The event was held at a Cotswold hotel, sheep are a recurrent theme in the Cotswolds, and work particularly well in topiary...

The venue....

The entrance to the topiary garden, whatever the occasion, I am more obsessed by the gardens than anything else...

Stunning green colours, we have had the perfect combination of wet and sun to create this beauty...

I found the entrance to the swimming pool during my wanderings simply magical...

The champagne was flowing, not so much for me (I was driving) but everyone else was getting stuck in....

Some mini pics in case people aren't keen to be 'revealed'...

my super stylish friend....

Our tables in the marquee....

Chatting outside with friends...

Finding our tables for dinner...

Boogy-ing until the early hours....

Lazy summer days in the country...

This is my favourite place to be in the whole world...

Walking with dogs and the big boy to the farm shop....

Dogs cool off in the stream en route (only the one with legs, Miss B had a bad experience in a lake when she was 7 weeks old so is less keen).....

We don't have to go too far before we can 'off road'...

Going on a food hunt, we're not scared oh no stream cool splashy stream, we can't go over it, we can't go under it, we have to go through it....(do you know the book 'We are going on a Bear Hunt?')

Oh no grass thick swooshy grass, we can't go over it, we can't go under it, we have to go through it...

Miss B bounces like a Spring lamb most of the way there...

We pass the allotments that are looking pretty fruitful at this time of year...

Miss B can't bounce the whole mile and needs to be carried by the time we hit the raspberry fields...

At the farm waiting for me to do the shopping....

Farm grown spoils for lunch....

An 'open day' in the local village in the afternoon, raising funds for the church restoration 15 of the houses open their houses and gardens to allow the nosey (that was us) to come and snoop.  The dogs and the boy took a fancy to the classic Roller...

There isn't a huge amount of recreation for the young so climbing on the telephone box was top entertainment....

One family served home made icecream from their garage....

This was their garden, so beautiful....

Perfect cottages...

Grass verge with hollyhocks by the road...

More cottages...

Another open garden....

Someone who was so desperate to join in the fun.....

The lane to the 'big house' and the art exhibition....

Beautiful paintings of local views....

Perfect days, long may this good weather last...