Author: Barbara Brudenell-Bruce

Bentley’s Summer Lightning – A Summer Success!

SUMMER LIGHTNING PARTY AT BENTLEY’S OYSTER BAR & GRILL

Tuesday 3rd August 2021

The frankly chilly! August weather did not stop our lively crowd of single professionals from dressing to impress for our stunning party at Bentley’s. The elegant, spacious Swallow Street rooms, one of Piccadilly’s hidden gems, downstairs was the perfect backdrop for us to socialise in our private rooms – yes, not one but two.

The party kicked off with a welcome glass of Piper Heidsieck champagne with Richard Corrigan’s kitchen treating us with spoonsful of delicious Ceviche of Scallops and Gurnard Red Onion, Lime, Chilli along with cheese Gougère bites. Oysters could be ordered by those fancying them or indeed fancying sharing them! The impeccable Bentleys team of Adrian, Corrado and Alexis were on hand to keep our chattering crowd’s orders filled with great efficiency, no long queues at the bar for us. We had better things to do!

Who recognised our friend Bethany Russell, not is she just a raven-haired dream of a girl, she knows how to run an event and genuinely loves mingling and chatting and making sure everyone is happy.   I think there is a blog about her fine self somewhere on the Rendezvous website! We have a long history of working together. It’s not just Lou and I she gets along so well with. She loves all you gorgeous, fun, brilliant and maybe slightly eccentric people! Bethany and I met at Franco’s famous Rosé party and have run parties together at The Goat, Aquavit, The Court, Franco’s and now Bentley’s.

Now then, back to you lovely people… what a guest list we had, we booked 75 people for a party in August. Woop! 10 of those were pinged on the days running up to the party, but the United Pingdom of Rendezvous was not deterred, everything aligned perfectly, and on the night, we had a marvellously even split of men and women. We were delighted to welcome so many new guests and mingle into the crowd – thank you, Robin S, for helping us do that.

The room was quickly buzzing with conversation and laughter, with some choosing the quiet area of the library side to get to know each other.

It’s wonderful to hear that so many of you started new friendships and even were spotted eating a late supper upstairs. Bentley’s have three parties of their own in August, so if you fancy dropping in again, please check our newsletter (or their website) for details.

Some Lovely Feedback –

Good morning Barbara,

Thank you for inviting me to yesterday’s Summer Lightning Party. It was a real pleasure to meet you in person and thank you for all your hard work in putting together such a great mix of people in a great venue.

I had a lovely evening and have connected with a few people whom may become real friends, which is what it’s all about.

Warmest regards,

P

Dear Barbara

Thank you for organising the Bentleys event last night, it was very well attended with some charming people.

B

Dear Barbara,

Thank you so much for a delightful party last night, I had a great time. After the difficult lock down months, everyone was in the mood to party, so there was a lively, friendly atmosphere. You are a great hostess, always very welcoming and you always manage to gather such interesting people!

Looking forward to your next event.

M x

Hello Barbara

Many thanks for a very entertaining evening last night.  Everyone’s delight at being able to mingle and meet new people was palpable. 

It also was striking how friendly everyone was, men and women, I look forward to coming again.

Best

P

Rendezvous Returns at 28:50 Chelsea

Rendezvous Return Party at 28°- 50° Chelsea

22nd June 2021

What a wonderful night we had at the swish new Chelsea edition of our favourite restaurant family: 28:50. Our first party since September last year, how crazy to have had our wings clipped for all this time.

We were greeted by 28:50’s Head of Marketing, Jen Atkins, who is an unstoppable force; no ask, however small, is a problem such is her uniquely positive attitude.  Like a champagne cork that has just popped, she was off like a torpedo hosting our every whim.  I don’t know about you, our wonderful guests, but I could get used to that!  More effervescence came in the form of a glass of Prosecco on arrival which slipped down exceptionally well and 28:50 treated us with their signature snacks including delicious truffle arancini and artichoke tempura with aioli.  And just as it looked as if we might be about to faint from hunger (maybe a slight exaggeration) along came tray after tray of man-size burgers on delightfully light and fluffy brioche buns, I think the word on everyone’s lips was ‘don’t mind if I do’.

So, I think you’re getting the picture. Sumptuous and brand-new restaurant, highly capable staff including the fabulous Jen, Manager Monika overseeing, and the wonderful Ruben topping up drinks.

And what about our guests?  Yes, you.  There was such great energy in the room; the newbies were scooped up and treated like old friends and old friends treated as precious treasure.  It really is such a joy to have Rendezvous’ wonderful events back – thank you all for supporting us over the years and continually introducing us to your delightful, single friends.

Looking forward to a bigger party in August and I do apologise (on behalf of Boris) for the smaller numbers.

Some lovely feedback….

“Just want to thank you for a lovely evening. So good to see old friends and make links with new”

“Great evening last night.  So good to be back seeing all the Rendezvous-ers and to be free again socialising and seeing all the gang!! Loved the venue and the food was very good!! Looking forward to the next event”

“Thank you very much for organising such a great evening, I really enjoyed meeting new people and having lots of superb chats.”

How to strengthen your immune system

How to strengthen your immune system | with Eva Akerholm | March 21^st 2021

As we start to go out and mingle with our families and friends again, it’s worth taking some steps now to prevent falling ill when we meet our loved ones.

Barbara chatted to a renowned health coach, Eva Akerholm.  The talk was a positive exploration of the impacts of isolation and restriction, and how to come out of it strong and healthy.

Eva talked about how the Covid pandemic has caused a number of factors that actually weakens our immune system at a time when:

• Staying inside with no direct sunlight makes us deficient in Vit D.
• Limited time outdoors reduces our access to oxygen and masks means we breathe in toxins.
• The extended period of isolation with lack of human contact is mentally challenging.
• Lack of exposure of the immune system to viruses and bacteria makes it weaker.

Eva’s long-held passion to support people to become healthier and find a balance in their life is paramount in this interview.

If you were unable to join us – please do take the opportunity to watch the video.  It’s only 30 mins and there is a lively Q&A at the end.

Youtube link https://youtu.be/oc1stDTZHAA

Who is Eva Akerholm?

Eva’s passion is to support people to become healthier and find a balance in their life. She is a certified Health Coach who studied at the Institute of Integrative Nutrition in NYC. The holistic approach covers, among other things, exercise, career, relationship, and spirituality. What we eat is driven by the way we live so by becoming aware of our cravings, understanding the impact of stress on our bodies and how lack of sleep impacts our appetite, we can start to turn life around, find balance and consciously eat and live the life we want and deserve.  A trial 30 min session starts at £20 to assess your health goals and to see if you’re suited to work together. Email: – eakerholm@yahoo.co.uk

A lovely time in the Vines

Mirabeau brought some Southern French fun into our homes and gardens with a very special virtual rosé experience. It was lovely seeing you, chairs pulled up, glass of the pink poured, and joining us for an entertaining hour.

Stephen and Jeany Cronk, founders of Mirabeau en Provence, were live from Domain Mirabeau, their sumptuous wine estate tucked away in the heart of Provence. With their good-humoured story about the ups and downs and process of establishing the UK’s most popular rosé brand it was a welcome break from the Lockdown blues.

Mirabeau Rosé Gin Fizz

Mirabeau Rosé Gin Fizz
From www.mirabeauwine.com

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS
50ml Mirabeau Rosé gin
15ml lemon juice
2 tsp sugar syrup
Mirabeau La Folie sparkling rosé
Lemon slices & rosemary
Ice cubes

METHOD

1. Pour the gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup in a cocktail shaker and fill up
with ice cubes.

2. Shake well until the outside of the shaker feels cold then strain into two
glasses filled with more ice.

3. Top up with Mirabeau La Folie sparkling rosé.
Garnish with a slice of lemon and a sprig of fresh rosemary.

4. Sending you warm wishes from Provence and enjoy!

Jeany and Stephen x

Podcast – “Divorce Needn’t be Complicated”

While in Covid-lockdown, Rendezvous chatted to The Divorce Surgery. If you or someone close to you needs advice on divorcing the considerate way, read on.

The Divorce Surgery was set up by Samantha Woodham and Harry Gates both family law barristers who were tired of seeing couples fighting in court; left at the end much poorer, emotionally, and financially.

When it comes to divorce it is an emotional roller coaster. One moment you will perceive ‘I’ve got this’ only to feel upside down and have no idea where to turn moments later. The challenge is often not knowing where to begin. Divorce remains shrouded in stigma; associated with acrimony, stress, and huge legal fees. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

If you do want legal advice but are anxious about cost then consider using a fixed-fee, One Couple One Lawyer service. The Divorce Surgery can direct the disclosure process and provide an expert barrister to advise you both together as to what a court would consider fair.

Listen to Rendezvous talking to The Divorce Surgery

Dating Post-Apocalyptic Style in a House Share – What Could Possibly Go Wrong!

“When a day that you happen to know is Wednesday starts off sounding like Sunday, there is something seriously wrong somewhere” The Day of the Triffids (1951), John Wyndham’s 1951 post-apocalyptic novel.

Don’t you know the feeling…

I hope this finds readers safe and well.  I am, understandably, now starting to go feral in furlough.  The domestic goddess phase has, well, phased. Closet de-cluttered, under the kitchen sink clean, inside the dishwasher and washing machine surgically shiny.  Yes, yes, done. Domestic goddess bored.

So bored that I have been getting back on that thing called the telephone and, instead of fidgeting and looking at what my friends are wearing on Zoom calls, actually having a good old listen!

My current fascination is the lives of my single friends, and by chatting with them I’ve realised how many members of our dating network live with flat mates in a house share, rented or owned accommodation, and either full time or during the week.  Long gone are the days when the sharing economy was just for millennials, now it is for all ages.

My friend Harry (55) owns his house and wants to retrain (as a business coach). Since his children live with their mother, he decided to rent out his spare room during the week to pay for his studies. He joined the 40+ house share site Cohabitas and started looking for a suitable housemate. He found divorcee Katie (52) who works in London during the week… So, Katie and Harry began living together in a house share and now it seems that familiarity, far from breeding contempt, has started to fan the flames of attraction – at least for Harry!

My friend Lizzy (31) works for a social impact charity and lives in a house share called Lyvly, which facilitates harmonious living and work/life balance for 22 to 36-year-old young professionals. They match on age and encourage new friendships, by highlighting areas of common interest and promoting ways to meet the rest of the community. New members meet their future housemates via video call and visit the flat via 3D tour. Just before lock down, Lizzy met a man that she really connected with on Lyvly’s community app, doing a thing called ‘speed friendsting’ (a weekly opportunity to meet 2 other members you don’t know yet via video chat). She’s been telling me how they have been planning their first face to face date.

Is fancying your flatmate a symptom of Lockdown fever?

Before Lockdown Katie and Harry were like ships that passed in the night, or rather at breakfast, since Katie’s job meant she often worked late. But when Lockdown happened Katie was furloughed, so she decided to stay in London and, in the spirit of community, spend Lockdown with Harry rather than embrace solitude in the country. Suddenly, like shipwreck survivors marooned on a desert island, they found themselves thrown together – girl, boy, flesh and blood. Him Tarzan, her Jane. Maybe not quite, but things were definitely different. Previously they wouldn’t have gone to the movies, dinner, or concerts together. Now, eating together felt sort of date-like, as did exploring each other’s taste in music and TV. Intimate, but also awkward.

Feeling somewhat confused, Harry asked me to suggest some steps he might take to deal with the situation – for both their sakes.

Three steps.

Think about the reasons why you might want a relationship with your roommate. What is it about them that you find attractive right now? Do you have legitimate reasons for wanting to take the next step? If it just boils down to scarcity of choice, you need to know that they’re looking at things the same way, both physically and emotionally. Face it, if you are simply longing for intimate human contact, then it’s probably not a good idea.

Determine their feelings. Look for signs that your roommate has feelings for you. What is your roommate’s body language telling you? An interested person will make a lot of eye contact, touch you and lean into your personal space. They want to give you their full attention.

Be honest with yourself. When we have feelings for someone, we tend to see what we want to see. If it is unclear to you whether or not your roommate has feelings for you, chances are they don’t. 

Fight the urge to confess all. It may come to this eventually, but slow down. Give yourself time to see where your feelings are coming from. You may emerge from this lockdown in a wonderful new deep, supportive relationship. It is probably safest to focus on friendship and support, not muddying the water with full-on relationship pressure…. At least, not just yet.

Love in Lockdown…. 

While it’s wonderful to start a virtual relationship in lockdown, here are a few tips I gave Lizzy:

Try not to project too far into the future: It’s not helpful because your mind is not a crystal ball. Take each day as it comes. Hour by hour even.

Talking to others can help put things into perspective. And if you can’t talk, write your feelings and thoughts down on paper to help you question how rational you’re being.

Don’t watch the news 24/7: You can get overwhelmed. Just tune in to the news at 6pm and maybe one of the national bulletins. That is enough. Reality isn’t just what’s going on in the outside world.

Post Lockdown flat sharing

Lyvly predict the major trends could be:

A greater emphasis on the importance on who you live with, as you may spend most of your days with them.

An increased demand for better living conditions, with wider rooms and the space to work from home.

The need to belong to a group or community that can help during hard times.

Everybody is learning a lot about themselves in lockdown. We value our freedoms a little bit more and this crisis has given perspective to many things we took for granted or considered essential. Most importantly, lockdown can teach us to value the real things that matter most, like friends and family and your house around you.

I get a kick out of quarantine….

I’m used to being asked to be someone’s Valentine, but when a meme asked me “Will you be my quarantine” last week I was touched. Until now the closest I’d ever come to quarantine was a weekend at Soho Farmhouse.

Now, along with most of the world, I’m stuck in lockdown and writing from my kitchen in London. The news is very saddening, and I wish everyone who is suffering a speedy recovery, but Miss BBB is here to share the Lockdown Lite, not the Lockdown Heavy, which takes some pizazz for a long-term social butterfly and prolific networker, who has now joined the lonely ranks of home worker. I figure butterflies are all about transformation, though, so I am trying to treat this as a ‘chrysalis’ phase; preparing to open my wings and flutter again when this era is over.

My birthday at the end of March was the first big test. I like to celebrate in style in a great restaurant surrounded by my lovely friends and this year it even fell on a Saturday, which should mean an all-day, all-night birthday with a guaranteed lie-in and full recovery day. What to do? Desperate to get out, a trapped butterfly is bound to damage its wings.

Fortunately, the restaurant sector is delivering a master class in adaptability which is deeply impressing this entrepreneur. First of all, it was Zuma to the rescue.  Miso cod, sesame spinach and a bottle of sake (why not?) delivered right to my door. Well, within a safe two metres.  That was just for starters. The next delivery came in the form of the Cheese Truck – I had ordered a Lockdown Lottery bag of 1 kg of the best British Cheese going. Why risk a lottery? Well, I’m a girl who thrives on spontaneity and there’s not much of that in lockdown, so surprise me! They did and it was great.

So in some ways it was like any other birthday — I drank too much wine and ended up stumbling into bed. “Where have you been?” my live-in boyfriend asked, understandably confused since we’d been in lockdown together all week.

“At a party,” I merrily slurred. “What? A party? Where?” “On the sofa, it was a sofa party”. I’d had a merry houseparty with my besties. One in Australia, one in Monaco, one in Wimbledon and one in Norfolk.  I have to say, we’ve embraced this new technology like over-enthusiastic teenagers, and we’ve embraced wine deliveries like an old friend coming for dinner.

We can do this people! Even if the world has turned to crap (no wonder the shops immediately ran out of loo roll!). I’m here to help, so to kick things off here are some tips for tackling the shock of the new normal. #domesticgoddess

1. Carrie Bradshaw wrote her Sex in the city column on a Mac at home. Note: whether its emails, conference calls, or video Zooms; communication is always better when you’re wearing marabou.
2. Declutter – Mari Condo your house and organize your closet. Find clothes to wear in combinations you never thought of before.  Trial them at home so all your new ideas can be sashayed back into the office, assuming there will still be such a thing.
3. Keep life civilised: Open your curtains, get dressed, wear perfume, try new playlists on Spotify. Thirty-six hours in the same pyjamas promises a fate worse than the virus.
4. Don’t eat from the fridge. Plan your meals, embrace your inner MasterChef and eat like a queen.
5. Dance – be it Tik Tok, live instructors or YouTube tutorial learn something new. It’s time to tango!
6. Host a virtual quiz or wine tasting.
7. Plan a Friend trip – having missed them, plan to visit them.
8. Help others, it’s good for the soul.
9. Drink wine.
10. Drink more wine.

Having a ritual to end your day is as important as one to start it. I suggest wine, cooking, Netflix, camomile tea and bed. At weekends shake it up with delivery food, new wines and perhaps a new cocktail, followed by Netflix, camomile tea and bed!

As we settle into the new world of social distancing we need to focus on priorities. Instead of moaning about the state of our nails and home-hair we’d do better to remember the keyworkers on the frontline and be thankful.  We will get through this thanks to their sacrifices and dedication. After COVID we can hope that society will continue to pull together and look out for the world as a whole.

The only thing we need is love.  Look after your loved ones and we will get through this.

Now you know that you’ve been Tango’d!

The Trafalgar St James’ Hotel.  26^th February 2020

Our guests have been asking me for years to create a party involving dance.  And dance we did…thank you all our talented dance-up-for-it guests for being such fun.

We’ll look back on February 2020 as when our dance party passion was born.

Our super friendly and fun professional dance duo Ann and David who focus on the Argentinian Tango spiced up the party. We all got a chance to experience the passion of Tango.  There were a lot of different dance abilities, but Tango is a serious dance of love; learning, I noted, was taken very seriously indeed.

Our super-experienced dance duo took us through the most iconic dance moves of the Argentinian Tango. We started with the walking steps, progressing to travelling ‘Ochos’ and ‘Milonguero Ochos.’

Nice to see more men than women, but those on the outside didn’t seem to mind propping up the bar and overseeing the canapes – and weren’t they great canapes!  Mushroom & Truffle Arancini, Goats cheese and beetroot tart and Beef Sliders with cheddar and pickle.  There were plenty to go around.  The Trafalgar’s Head of Events, the fabulous Diogo Pessoa E Costa oversaw the proceedings and he loved that we had such a great time.

In under an hour, we were circling Biblio’s floor like Marlon Brando and Maria Schneider, in the famous film Last Tango in Paris (1972).  Roll on our next dance party!

Some lovely feedback –

Thanks for a fun night – I was tango-ing in the office today!

Thanks very much for a really fun evening learning the Tango,
X, X and I had a great time.
It was a clever idea to swap partners every few minutes, it broke the ice,
and everyone met lots of people that way. The guys all clearly enjoyed the foot slide up the leg movement! Nice venue and useful to have a car park on the doorstep.

Dear Barbara,
it was a great idea to introduce the Tango dancing which meant everyone had to participate from the start.
It was certainly not a problem to follow instructions closely to ensure that we complied with the specific and intimate requirements of tango dancing!

Thank you so much for organising such a fun event last night.
The venue was perfect, the canapés were delicious, nice crowd of friendly people with the ‘stars’ of the evening being the Tango teachers.
I thought the evening worked very well. The instructions were clear and easy to follow. We all paired up and tried the steps. Changing partners at each new step was fun and an opportunity to meet more people. It was a most enjoyable and lively evening.
More dancing events with instructors please!

Hi Barbara, thanks for a great evening last night.
It was such fun and gave us all the chance to get up close and personal while learning to Tango! A real ice breaker …..Love S x

Dear Barbara

Regards
M

Tango Fires up our Feet…

The Trafalgar St James’ Hotel.  26^th February 2020

Our super friendly and fun professional dance duo Ann and David who focus on the Argentinian Tango spiced up our February party. The passion of Tango was experienced by our guests. We were a mixed ensemble of dance abilities, we moved at a comfortable pace.

Born in the slums of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tango during its 100-year history blossomed into a global dance culture attracting all ages. There are three types of Tango. When you’re in love with your partner, you dance Argentine Tango! When you’re less in love, you dance ballroom Tango! And when you’re not in love anymore….well you dance International Tango.

It’s all about love. So, it was a very fitting dance choice for our single guests.

Close embrace Tango involves touching another person with half or more of your body. This is very intimate. It is also perhaps surprisingly very safe. The safe zone was explained as the airport hug which broke down any insecurities around dancing with new people.

Our super-experienced dance duo took us through the most iconic dance moves of the Argentinian Tango. We started with the walking steps, progressing to travelling ‘Ochos’ and ‘Milonguero Ochos.’

In under an hour, we were circling Biblio’s floor like Marlon Brando and Maria Schneider, in the famous film Last Tango in Paris (1972).

If you want to learn more you can join Ann and David as they run regular classes, 1;1 tuition and events full details at http://www.learningtango.com/.