You might have noticed all sorts of little symbols popping up on your Qype page. What are they for? Well these are your very own personal compliments.

Sharing the love on Qype is very important and if you’ve done something wonderful, we think people should be able to tell you. They can compliment you on your reviews, your photos and even coax you into writing a bit more if you’ve been a bit quiet. You can even get flirty with a few Qypers you think are sexy. We secretly hope you’ll then hit it off at the Qype party and then there will be a Qype wedding,

All you need to do is either click on the compliment tab on a review, or the one on someone’s profile. Then tell them how lovely and brilliant you think they are.

Then sit back and wait for that cute Qyper to return the compliment. And by the way, we like your shoes.

It’s very very very nearly July. Which means lots more sunshine, lots more ice cream for Siany and lots more Qype partying! Hooray!

Not content with the London party on July 3rd (on a boat! with an accidental pirate theme!), in case you didn’t know already, we’re also whizzing up to Edinburgh for a bit of a shin-dig there too!

No details have really been finalised yet, we’re a spontaneous bunch you see. And to be honest, we aren’t really familiar with Edinburgh. So if you know the city well, please pop onto the discussion and tell us where we should have our little gathering that would be really helpful. Siany thinks it should be at the elephant and bagel cafe. Everyone likes bagels and elephants don’t they?

If you have any better suggestions, let us know. Otherwise you might find yourself there.

A recent chat on Qypewatch flagged up this fantastic feature. You’ve got your very own bookmark! This is a nifty little tool for reminding you of those places you see that you want to try. Here’s what it says:

“Welcome to Bookmarks, a handy page where you can store all those places you haven’t got round to visiting yet. Think of it as your ‘little black book’ on Qype.”

A few people didn’t seem to know where it was, or that the feature even existed so we thought we’d point it out to you here as well. It’s on the toolbar in your “My Qype” page. To add an entry, you just have to click on the “Bookmark” tab on a review. This means that you can keep track of all those brilliant places you want to go. After all, there’s a lot of bars that you have to visit - it’s hard to remember all of them.

Siany suggests you pool all of your bookmark tags with your other Qype friends and then go own your very own Qype Bookmark pubcrawl. If you can remember, let us know how it goes.

We know that Qype would be nothing without Qypers. Without reviews from you guys it would be very empty indeed.

We also know that as you’re the guys that use the site, you need to be able to get the most out of the site. This is why we want to draw your attention to this group. Qypewatch is very important as it means we know what you’re thinking. If we’ve added new features and you think they’re great you can tell us here. You can also tell us if you think they’re rubbish.

And if there’s something you think we need to change to make the whole Qyping experience even better, just let us know. We can’t promise to change everything, but if something makes sense then we’ll do our best. This way you’ll want to come back to Qype again and again and make the site even better with your brilliant reviews.

So go on. Get moaning. We won’t be hurt.

Qype just isn’t the same without lots of pretty photos to look at. And as you lot are a very handsome bunch, we want more photos of you!

We’ve noticed there are a lot of profiles without photos and well that’s sad. For many reasons. For a start, we won’t be able to tell what you look like at the next Qype party! And it also means you won’t get to be chosen for the all important award ‘Review of the day’. Which in Qype-land is frankly better than a Booker Prize nomination. Kind of.

Review of the day means lots more points, which means you’ll get a Qype Ninja in the post (don’t worry, they’re not harmed in transit. Usually.) So please put photos of your ugly mugs pretty faces onto your profile and make us happy.

We’d especially like to see the following: Very very drunken images - falling over photos are very welcome. Fancy dress photos! Images in far flung countries. Photos of you doing stupid things in places you shouldn’t be. If you can get all of this into one photo we’d be mighty impressed.

You beady-eyed Qypers might have noticed that there’s a category section on your reviews now. This means that you can help other people find your places even easier. You know how it is. Sometimes you just really want a Pan-Asian restaurant in London Bridge and nothing else will do.

So do fill this bit out. You’ll get extra points soon once the catagories are checked by the Qype elves. After all, you don’t want to find that your posh frock bistro is actually a greasy spoon do you?

You can also tag more than one category. Which means that if you can’t decide if somewhere is a cafe or a bar or a pub you can tag them all. And we suggest you do. Then the Qype searching system will be even better and everyone will love your reviews and give you great feedback and we’ll be very impressed with you and think you’re brilliant.

A fine selection of London’s most carnivorous Qypers descended upon Bodeans BBQ in Soho last night for the first ever Qype Meat Up, to sate their cravings for flesh with steak, ribs, pulled pork and chicken.

Along with the meaty offerings many cocktails were also imbibed (the cosmopolitans and the margaritas seemed to be a big hit) and even the Qype Ninja made an appearance to fill his his tiny Ninja mouth with some baby back ribs.

You can see everyone’s reviews from the night here (along with some more photos).

So what next? Another Meat Up or should we skip the dead animal for a month and have a Qype Veg Out instead (maybe in the private dining room at Mildreds…it has rude Victorian art on the walls!)?

Ahoy there, mateys!

You all all best be getting ready for Qype’s next great, big shindig on the Battersea Barge.

Mark yerr calendars for July 3^rd @ 19:00 hours when Qypers will walk the plank, have some grog, and just have a right jolly time ‘til the last buccaneer is standing.

And speaking of buccaneers, there’s talk in yonder party forum of Qypers donning pirate get-ups for the event. May be worth yerr while to check out a costume shop like this one in Clapham so that Cap’n Rob  won’t be settin’ sail solo, if you catch mi drift!

You might be able to tell from the title of this post that we’re excited. Well you will be too in a minute. Look at this picture. It’s a ninja! Isn’t he cute? Bet you’re thinking ‘I wish I had a ninja’. Well you soon will do, lovely Qypers.

Just get to 1000 Qype points and a lovely l’il ninja toy will be high kicking his way to you. You get other great stuff too (yes, more booze), but we’re guessing you’ll be more excited by the cuddly master of the darks arts. He’ll be rustling about in his packaging just itching to get out so you can ninja people while you’re sat on the sofa. Siany is under the impression that Qype HQ has done nothing but play ninja battles ever since they arrived.

We also reckon they’ll come to life when you’re not looking, like in Toy Story, but that makes them even cooler. So get qyping and you too can have your own little cuddly toy too.

Frankly, this is even better than the trip to Barbados that’s still up for grabs. Wow, we never thought we’d say that.

Last night a small group of Qypers and London foodie bloggers attended a very exclusive sake, shochu and sushi tasting event that was co-hosted by Akashi-Tai brewery and held at Tsuru, a recently-opened Japanese restaurant in Southwark near the Tate Modern.

Learning, eating, and drinking. Three of my all-time favourite things! All being done at the same time! Brilliant! I was happy as clam, so happy I could almost hear the Sound of Music soundtrack streaming in the distance…either that or I was subconsciously humming it to myself… possible, and scary in retrospect.

Round 1:

The evening began the way the best evenings usually do. With cocktails! We were given the choice of Tokiwa Rhubarb Fizz (shochu, rhubarb puree I believe, simple syrup, soda and mint) and Kappa Saketini (shochu, sake, and a cucumber slice). The rhubarb fizz was lovely; light-bodied and rose-coloured, with a slight tanginess reminiscent of summer afternoons… on a front porch …overlooking a garden perhaps. It’s so drinkable that it’s dangerous. That I didn’t get the recipe is part blessing, part curse.

Completely different yet just as intriguing was the cucumber-flavoured saketini. I only sampled the saketini (twice) because I’m not the biggest fan of cucumbers, so although it was tasty and as refreshing as you’d expect a cucumber cocktail to be I stuck with the fruitier rhubarb concoction. Servings of chilli-sprinkled and edamame were brought out and devoured at what was surely a record-breaking pace. Great way to start the night.

Round 2:

We then took our seats to hear from both co-sponsors of the event about the good things that were to come next. A pairing of Carpaccio of Seabass with not one, but two chilled sakes. The seabass was exquisite!

Fresh, delicate, and just the right temperature to truly appreciate the flavour of the fish (call me crazy but it drives me mad when sushi/sashimi is served too cold!).

This was first paired with Akashi-Tai’s Daiginjo, a cold sake with a light-to-medium flowery start and dry finish. My untrained palette did not pick up on the lemony flavours described by our host Wakana, but once we moved onto the second sake the difference in body and flavour helped to distinguish the first all the more. We were then treated to the award-winning Junmai Daiginjo. This variety’s more pronounced citrus undertones and smoother finish made it a clear favourite of the group. Apparently this second variety is less familiar to the Japanese palette but has been doing very well in exports to the European and North American markets.

Round 3:

Our hosts at Tsuru then served Nasu Dengaku, broiled Japanese eggplant with a sweet miso paste on top, simple and delicious, and well paired with warm Akashi-Tai Honjozo. I realized, however, that I preferred cold sake so I opted for more Junmai Daiginjo.

Round 4:

Genmai aged sake served with free-range chicken yakitori skewers. Akashi-Tai experimented with using brown rice rather than polished white rice for this sake, and when it was originally produced, it was no winner. But that was back in 2002. Fast-forward to 2008 and the years of aging have turned it into something truly innovative and pleasing. The warm honey coloured sake has lingering hints of caramel and cocoa and should be considered comfort food in my book. I can easily imagine pairing it with dessert as an alternative. (Apologies in advance if that breaks any rules of sake drinking!)

Round 5:

Just when I thought we were nearing the end of the tasting we were presented with large sushi platters of hamachi, tuna, shrimp and other assorted pieces.

Our last sake experience of the night with this course was the Honjozo Genshu, a distinctly creamier sake that had a sort of oakiness in aroma and taste that I found to be a perfect finale to the evening.

I had not been exposed to sake on many occasions before last night but thanks to the informative host from Akashi-Tai I’m well on my way to becoming an aficionado. I predict a Qype sake group in the making very soon! Thanks to Sally Bishop for organizing this enjoyable evening, and rolling up her sleeves and making those cocktails too!

If you’re planning to pay Tsuru a visit a great time to go is during their monthly presentations of touring Japanese artists that aim to expose the rich sounds and culture of Japan to the U.K. The next event is coming up on the 25th of June, when DJ Paul Fisher will be on location presenting an eclectic selection of Japan’s “sonic specialties.” The event will also be sponsored by boutique sake brewery, Akashi-Tai, which will offer free sake cocktails from 6.30pm onwards.