#646 - Drool over the food halls in Harrods

Timeout says:
You could admire the Mohammad Al Fayed waxwork in menswear or worship at the Dodi and Diana shrine in the basement. You could check out the ten-foot-tall gold pharoah in the Egyptian Room or try to eat and drink your way round all of the 28 in-store restaurants and bars. But when we're at Harrods and feeling the need for full-bore, over the top opulence, there's only one destination: the legendary food halls.

Dave did:
Never been to Harrods before, and if I'm honest I don't really respect Mohammad Al Fayed as a person. I won't turn this into a political discussion but the way he handles himself around the whole Dodi-Diana issue has not done him any favours if you ask me.

But anyway, Harrods is more than one man - in size and notoriety! This was to be my first visit to the department store and my expectations were much akin to how I imagine Vegas to be - Blackpool drugged up on steroids and acid!

On approach this idea was not dimmed (literally!)...it didn't take me long to spot which store was Harrods:



Upon approach my minds eye was still not disappointed as I came across a display window outside:



Upon entry, however, I was proven to be quite mistaken in my pre-judgement! Ok there were some cheesey bits and bobs around the place, but on the whole it was quite within itself, and with the sale that was on while I was there the prices seemed on the wrong side of reasonable but still alright as London goes!

Of course as Timeout mentioned, Mr. Al Fayed was there to welcome me into his store:





Yup, and he stays standing on that pillar all day! Amazing!!

I got to ride in the amazing 'Egyptian Escalator'!!



(and in case you were wondering it was indeed like any other!)

There was the big green teddy bear armchair (strictly no sitting allowed!)



And then there was the Dodi-Diana memorial...now this I had my apprehensions about. I had heard it was a bit OTT and self-glorifying, but in actual fact it wasn't that bad. Yes maybe its a bit crude being based in a department store (the Diana memorial in Hyde Park is something far more suitable - no matter how many casualties it holds to its name!) but it was still relatively understated and I guess created with good intention:



Unfortunately my initial fears were realised elsewhere in the store where I found this cringe-worthy statue:



The plaque underneath simply stated "Innocent Victims", its the dove I take issue towards!


But finally, I made my way to the Food Hall...and managed to sneak in a few freebie bites :o)



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