On Friday, we often eat out in the evening. Recently, we have been in the habit of going to the Banana Tree which has the merit (among others) of being close to home. Today, though, we fancied a change and I arranged to meet Tigger at the cafe of the Barbican 2 cinema, next door to which is a branch of Côte Brasserie. As the name suggests, it is a French style restaurant though the prices might be described as moderate.

Busy St John Street

When Tigger left work at 6 pm, I left home and made my way to the bus stop in St John Street. The rush hour was in progress (always worse on Fridays) so there was plenty of slow-moving traffic.

Aboard the 153

I caught the trusty 153 bus. This bus is rarely crowded and, despite it being the rush hour, the bus was almost empty. That’s one reason why we use it whenever we can.

The Barbican Tunnel

I left the bus at the Beech Street stop which is under the Barbican road tunnel that I have photographed before.

Street art

Walking to the cinema, I stopped to photograph this piece of street art. It’s rather strange composition is probably explained by there being two or more works in the same space.

The cinema cafe

The cafe was not very busy and I didn’t have long to wait to be served. I found a table where Tigger would easily spot me when she came in.

In Côte

The restaurant was fairly busy but there were tables to spare. We offered to check in with the Track & Trace app but they informed us that they no longer displayed the restaurant’s QR code. I am not sure of the legality of that – I must try to find out.

Côte has an à la carte menu but also a prix fixe menu which is obviously cheaper though the choice is limited. It is available only until 7 pm and we arrived with just a few minutes to spare. They also have a number of vegetarian items and even offer a separate veggie/vegan menu if you ask for it.

Brutalist architecture, the Barbican

We were given a table at a window and the view was of this brutalist residential tower of the Barbican estate. I find brutalist architecture ugly, and in some cases hideous, but despite this, I am quite fond of the Barbican and its strange buildings.

The bus stop for home

After our meal, we strolled to the nearby bus stop to catch the 153 back to the Angel.

Aboard the153

Happily, we did not have long to wait for a bus and were soon on our way home.

Back at the Angel

A short journey later, we were back at the Angel and nearly home. We have made a good start to the weekend!