Friday, 3 August 2012
Tampopo
Had to rename the blog since I didn't realise how lame the film 'Eat, Pray, Love' was and how easily the previous blog title was associated with that stinker. So, here comes Tampopo - a great film about food, films and (taking a bit of a liberty here) travel, so a perfect fit! If you don't know the film - rent it! One of Japan's best colour films (if not the best colour film - still doesn't beat some of Kurosawa's work).
Japan 2012 - Kaiseki Dinner at Ôgami
Kyoto is - amongst many other things - famous for its Kaiseki dinners, a traditional Japanese "Set Menu", consisting of a decent number of small dishes served consecutively, all prepared to the highest standards with regards to presentation, quality and freshness. I have been longing to try one of these dinners and while my original idea to enjoy such a dinner in the Ryokan I was staying in did not come to fruition (I think I needed to book a Ryokan in the $400 plus category to be offered that pleasure - that would be excluding the food), the front desk staff member of Ryokan Sakura, a young man with rather good English language skills, booked me into a small restaurant in Gion and enabled a fantastic culinary experience. The young man did not only make the booking for me and briefed the taxi driver by means of a Google Maps printout, but he apparently also instructed the staff at the restaurant about my lack of Japanese language skills - the chef and his apprentice were going out of there way to make me feel comfortable and to explain the food they presented, despite their very basic English language skills. At times, they would even consult an online dictionary to translate the odd word! But not to worry, with my basic Japanese (90% of which consists of food and drink related vocabulary, purely coincidentally of course), their basic English, lots of gestures, smiles (as we were progressing from dish to dish, probably more like an amazed, delirious grin in my case) and bows we managed to communicate well enough. The food was just as good as any of the food I had in the top restaurants I visited in other parts of the world, the presentation was absolutely stunning, the flavours spanning the whole rainbow of sensory colours you can imagine, the quality of the products flawless, the mixture of textures exciting and sometimes surprising... I could go on and on, let's just say that it was as good as it gets. I ordered two very nice Junmai Nihonshu flasks (served in an ice water bowl - excellent!) with the dinner, which were charged at 4,400 Yen, and the food should have been charged at 11,500 Yen, but for some reason I got a discount and only paid 14,000 Yen in total, which is an absolute bargain. The sensei presented me with a bill of 4,400 Yen to begin with and only if I protested vehemently (by pushing 20,000 Yen towards the chef, who only wanted to take one note of 10,000 of me) did his apprentice spot the mistake and pointed it out to his master. If you are looking for a Kaiseki experience where you sit on the floor on tatami mats, and perhaps get some touristy Geisha show thrown in for good measure, this is not the place to go - the restaurant consists of a long bar with perhaps 10-12 chairs at it, and the kitchen right behind the bar with the chef, his apprentice and a dish washer / helper preparing the food right in front of your eyes. The sensei was constantly apologising for his lack of English, and I was constantly apologising for my lack of Japanese and yet I like to believe that thanks to my exaggerated (and yet genuine!) gestures of appreciation of his art, we established an understanding. I just felt so sorry for the small team of three since I was the only guest on that evening, and yet one they couldn't properly gauge with whether he was just stuffing his face or actually rate their work. They also managed to cook up quite a generous portion of rice (flavoured with anago, sea eel - absolutely delicious, especially due to the brownish crust that had built at the bottom of the clay pot) and the chef and I agreed that it would be too much to polish this all off (him by sticking out his non-existent belly and patting it, me by patting my already properly stuffed gut), so they offered a take-away - two neatly wrapped up leafs, containing snack size packages of fragrant rice!
The place isn't easy to find, there is no sign in Latin letters anywhere, and if you are peculiar about your food and need to know what you are eating (and don't speak Japanese), you might be in a bit of trouble. On the other hand, if you like to be a bit outside of your comfort zone, enjoy different foods and have a bit of a sense for adventure, go for it! Oh yes, and if you're of the non-meat eating kind (Martin G., pay attention now!), this is perfect - lots of fish, tofu and veggies, no meat. None at all.
I have included pictures of the different dishes that were served on the evening, as well as a picture of the front (the entrance is on the left, next to the elevator door - no idea what's in the back on the right, but they showed me where to go!) and a picture of the business card (all in Kanji, but print it and a taxi driver can take you there). Please write a comment of you also went there and let me know about your experience (great likelihood with the constant readership of 2 people or so this blog enjoys...)!
Pic #1 - Right: White fish on plum sauce with young ginger and fresh wasabi. Left: Sweet corn porridge (for lack of a better word) with some quite umami (delicious) gelatinous stuff hidden beneath, topped with an ebi (prawn).
Pic #2 - Right: Cucumber purée with some white stuff (grated Yam, I imagine), and some bits and bobs (notice that most of the first few dishes come with freshly grated wasabi - wonderful). I had instructions to stir it all up (I am normally good at that anyway) and then spoon my way to the bottom - which I happily did! Left: A jelly (again quite umami, not unlike the sauce you get with Agedashi Nasu for example) with some bits of tako (octopus) in it, and some other very tasty yellow bits which I have no idea what they were - some fruit / seed / veggie I guess?
Pic #3 - Nihonshu, the way it should be served!
Pic #4 - Sashimi of tai (translated as Red Snapper by the apprentice, after he had consulted the Internet) and o-toro (outstanding melt-in-your-mouth fat tuna belly - best I ever had, and I had my fair share!)
Pic #5 and 6 - A clear soup (wonderfully flavoured, rich and aromatic - the chef gave the apprentice quite a bollocking since he didn't get it right, and then fixed it by cranking up the gas flame that I thought whatever was in that pot must be nearing nuclear fusion) with white fish (not unlike suzuki), a shiitake mushroom, Japanese chives, some clear gelatinous strip with a bit of red spicy sauce on it (to keep it separate from the soup, I imagine) and the best tofu I ever had in my life (you can imagine by now that I had my fair share of that, too). The dish, in all its simplicity, a work of genius! And look at the presentation, too - of course they would make sure that the lid would align perfectly with the bowl!
Pic #7 - Translated by the staff again as "Sweet Fish" (as they presented the two little buggers to me swimming alive in a wooden bucket full of water, minutes before they were skewered and put over a bed of hot charcoals) with some fresh green herb-based sauce and some white yam-purée like stuff (bottom dish), and a tomato mayonnaise (it was not really mayonnaise but had a by similar consistency) topped with a fried soft-shell crab - great contrast of crispness and soft textures in both dishes! The chef made sure to let me know not to eat that branch of leaves served with the fish, by the way - very caring!
Pic #8 and 9 - Language issues not withstanding, I interpret this dish to be titled "Variations on Edamame". The presentation blew me away (they prepared the dish behind the counter, withdrawn from my always closely observing eyes) and as the simple edamame (the soy been pod in front left, leaning on the little leaf-wrapped package) with its slightly rough shell has some flavoursome and nutritious soy beans inside, so did all the other bits on the plate, uhm in the basket, have something rather delicious inside their shell - the ceramic pod on top had some horenso (spinach), pumpkin and some fish I can't properly remember now (sensory overload, I guess) in it, the blossom (I guess that's what it was?) on the right hosted a piece of tako, and two bits of veggie and the bag, as you can see in the second picture, had a piece of sushi in it that is typical for the region, cured saba (mackerel) on rice, often wrapped in a persimmon leave - surprisingly durable due to the cured fish and vinegary rice.
Pic #10 - Pieces of hamo (pike conger) in a thin soup with tofu and vegetables - wonderfully flavoured broth (again), tender bits of fish, fresh lime squeezed directly into the pot, giving the soup a zesty tang to it, and a fully flavoured sauce to dip the fish and tofu into. Absolutely lovely.
Pic #11 - Kani (crab - of a rather hairy kind!) with a nice umami jelly to the right (I was scraping the loose bits of kani into this jelly - no idea whether that was the idea, but it worked for me) and another purée like dish, topped with a white snow fungus (which I ate before at Hakkasan in a sweet soup with Nashi pears!!). I was in culinary Nirvana by now.
Pic #12 - Finally - the rice! I was asked somewhere between pictures 6 and 7 (I think) how I wanted my rice, with tako, anago (sea eel), kai (mussels), or something not fishy at all that I forgot now, and I went for anago. Good choice! The rice was cooked in a clay pot on a gas flame and the nice brown crust you can see is the pinnacle of rice cooking (in my book anyway!) The anago lent the dish a nice earthy, sweetish flavour. The oshinko mori-awase (mixed pickles) were greatly varied and of a perfect crispy texture and the miso-shiro was - sorry to say it again - the best (at a margin!!) I ever tasted, it had an unusual fresh, almost citrusy twist to it.
Pic #13 - As if that wasn't enough, they finished me off with a dessert of mango and coconut sorbet and a pineapple jelly (hiding behind the mango sorbet in the picture). Good, but with desserts not really featuring heavily in the Japanese cuisine, not at the same amazing standard of previous dishes.
Pic #14 and 15 - Said business card.
Pic #16 - Look for this place!
The place isn't easy to find, there is no sign in Latin letters anywhere, and if you are peculiar about your food and need to know what you are eating (and don't speak Japanese), you might be in a bit of trouble. On the other hand, if you like to be a bit outside of your comfort zone, enjoy different foods and have a bit of a sense for adventure, go for it! Oh yes, and if you're of the non-meat eating kind (Martin G., pay attention now!), this is perfect - lots of fish, tofu and veggies, no meat. None at all.
I have included pictures of the different dishes that were served on the evening, as well as a picture of the front (the entrance is on the left, next to the elevator door - no idea what's in the back on the right, but they showed me where to go!) and a picture of the business card (all in Kanji, but print it and a taxi driver can take you there). Please write a comment of you also went there and let me know about your experience (great likelihood with the constant readership of 2 people or so this blog enjoys...)!
Pic #1 - Right: White fish on plum sauce with young ginger and fresh wasabi. Left: Sweet corn porridge (for lack of a better word) with some quite umami (delicious) gelatinous stuff hidden beneath, topped with an ebi (prawn).
Pic #2 - Right: Cucumber purée with some white stuff (grated Yam, I imagine), and some bits and bobs (notice that most of the first few dishes come with freshly grated wasabi - wonderful). I had instructions to stir it all up (I am normally good at that anyway) and then spoon my way to the bottom - which I happily did! Left: A jelly (again quite umami, not unlike the sauce you get with Agedashi Nasu for example) with some bits of tako (octopus) in it, and some other very tasty yellow bits which I have no idea what they were - some fruit / seed / veggie I guess?
Pic #3 - Nihonshu, the way it should be served!
Pic #4 - Sashimi of tai (translated as Red Snapper by the apprentice, after he had consulted the Internet) and o-toro (outstanding melt-in-your-mouth fat tuna belly - best I ever had, and I had my fair share!)
Pic #5 and 6 - A clear soup (wonderfully flavoured, rich and aromatic - the chef gave the apprentice quite a bollocking since he didn't get it right, and then fixed it by cranking up the gas flame that I thought whatever was in that pot must be nearing nuclear fusion) with white fish (not unlike suzuki), a shiitake mushroom, Japanese chives, some clear gelatinous strip with a bit of red spicy sauce on it (to keep it separate from the soup, I imagine) and the best tofu I ever had in my life (you can imagine by now that I had my fair share of that, too). The dish, in all its simplicity, a work of genius! And look at the presentation, too - of course they would make sure that the lid would align perfectly with the bowl!
Pic #7 - Translated by the staff again as "Sweet Fish" (as they presented the two little buggers to me swimming alive in a wooden bucket full of water, minutes before they were skewered and put over a bed of hot charcoals) with some fresh green herb-based sauce and some white yam-purée like stuff (bottom dish), and a tomato mayonnaise (it was not really mayonnaise but had a by similar consistency) topped with a fried soft-shell crab - great contrast of crispness and soft textures in both dishes! The chef made sure to let me know not to eat that branch of leaves served with the fish, by the way - very caring!
Pic #8 and 9 - Language issues not withstanding, I interpret this dish to be titled "Variations on Edamame". The presentation blew me away (they prepared the dish behind the counter, withdrawn from my always closely observing eyes) and as the simple edamame (the soy been pod in front left, leaning on the little leaf-wrapped package) with its slightly rough shell has some flavoursome and nutritious soy beans inside, so did all the other bits on the plate, uhm in the basket, have something rather delicious inside their shell - the ceramic pod on top had some horenso (spinach), pumpkin and some fish I can't properly remember now (sensory overload, I guess) in it, the blossom (I guess that's what it was?) on the right hosted a piece of tako, and two bits of veggie and the bag, as you can see in the second picture, had a piece of sushi in it that is typical for the region, cured saba (mackerel) on rice, often wrapped in a persimmon leave - surprisingly durable due to the cured fish and vinegary rice.
Pic #10 - Pieces of hamo (pike conger) in a thin soup with tofu and vegetables - wonderfully flavoured broth (again), tender bits of fish, fresh lime squeezed directly into the pot, giving the soup a zesty tang to it, and a fully flavoured sauce to dip the fish and tofu into. Absolutely lovely.
Pic #11 - Kani (crab - of a rather hairy kind!) with a nice umami jelly to the right (I was scraping the loose bits of kani into this jelly - no idea whether that was the idea, but it worked for me) and another purée like dish, topped with a white snow fungus (which I ate before at Hakkasan in a sweet soup with Nashi pears!!). I was in culinary Nirvana by now.
Pic #12 - Finally - the rice! I was asked somewhere between pictures 6 and 7 (I think) how I wanted my rice, with tako, anago (sea eel), kai (mussels), or something not fishy at all that I forgot now, and I went for anago. Good choice! The rice was cooked in a clay pot on a gas flame and the nice brown crust you can see is the pinnacle of rice cooking (in my book anyway!) The anago lent the dish a nice earthy, sweetish flavour. The oshinko mori-awase (mixed pickles) were greatly varied and of a perfect crispy texture and the miso-shiro was - sorry to say it again - the best (at a margin!!) I ever tasted, it had an unusual fresh, almost citrusy twist to it.
Pic #13 - As if that wasn't enough, they finished me off with a dessert of mango and coconut sorbet and a pineapple jelly (hiding behind the mango sorbet in the picture). Good, but with desserts not really featuring heavily in the Japanese cuisine, not at the same amazing standard of previous dishes.
Pic #14 and 15 - Said business card.
Pic #16 - Look for this place!
Japan 2012 - Kyoto
Unlike Nara, Kyoto with its almost 1.5m people and tens of thousands of tourists (I heard a lot of Chinese, French and Spanish people talking, and a handful of German and Russian, too - not sure whether the former were dominating by numbers or just volume) is a busy place. Buses are crammed, sights are packed with people, many restaurants cater for tourists (often too much for my liking) and in my particular case, the heat was almost unbearable. I don't mind 36C too much - if I am in a hammock in the shade with unlimited cold drinks at my disposition, and perhaps someone else already tending to the barbecue (that's an accurate description of most of my Brazilian family holidays). When walking through the glaring sun in central Kyoto with very little opportunity to escape to a shady (literally, not what you think) place however, 36C can get a bit too hot. The good news is that with the hundreds of bottled drink dispensers around town it's easy to stay hydrated. So if you have the physiognomy of a lizard, go to Kyoto in August and knock yourself out! Otherwise I would recommend avoiding the summer months. (There is of course one upside to summer, which would be the rather light attire worn by some - I leave the rest to your imagination.)
There are literally hundreds of temples and shrines and castles and Museums and Gardens and an Imperial Palace and whatever else you imagine to find in Kyoto: chances are, it will be there, and mostly in abundance. I went to Kyoto seven years ago, for a rushed visit of one day, and saw some of the sites then; I particularly remember a massive castle, must have been Nijō-jō, the Golden Pavillion (Kinkaku-ji) that seems to be hovering over a quiet lake, and Kiyomizu-dera, a temple complex including a pagoda, built on a hill, with "Teapot Lane" (yes, it's lined with dozens of shops offering snacks, souvenirs and tea) leading up to it. I returned to Teapot Lane (somewhat unwittingly - I was in the neighbourhood looking at some other sites and "stumbled upon it" and visited a few temples I hadn't seen before in the vicinity of the Ryokan I was staying at, Ryokan Sakura, not too far from the central train station in a quiet area, and excellent value for money. One of the front desk staff was particularly helpful in sorting out a visit to a Kaiseki restaurant (see the separate blog entry) and three of them came out on the street to wave me off when I left this morning (well, there was more bowing than waving, but you get the idea). There are two places however I want to specifically mention: one is a beautiful garden called Shōsei-en, located behind Higashi Hongan-ji temple, which could almost transport to a different world - it it wasn't for the high-rise building surrounding the park and appearing between the trees here and there, and the constant traffic noise from behind the walls. It's still a magnificent garden and worth a visit. The other is the Fushimi-Inari Taisha Shrine in the south east of town - on the map it looks a little isolated and you might be tempted to ignore it and go for the more densely sight-populated areas; well, your loss! After I locked away my luggage at Kyoto station (plenty of lockers, very convenient - Japan is one of the few places where terrorism, or the exaggerated fear of it, hasn't destroyed convenience yet, how about that!), I hopped in a taxi to go there (just under 1,000 Yen) and got to the Shrine about 10 minutes later. I had very few ideas about what to expect, I remembered reading something about hundreds of gates and foxes (statues of the animals, not the kind you see at night in the streets of Gion!) and that was about it. Well, I remembered the bit about hundreds of gates (all in bright orange, with the exception of a few stone gates in between) right, and there were also a large number of foxes (still mostly the animal statue variety), but what I wasn't prepared for was the walk up the hill, including hundreds (felt like tens of thousands) of steps - a walk that apparently stretches over 4km, most of them uphill to various degrees. And for most of the way up you are walking through those gates, and come across hundreds of little shrines, again often framed by a couple of foxes, and as you ascend, the number of tourists gets smaller (the majority of people give up rather early on) and the air gets a little cooler, because you venture deeper and deeper into the forest and closer to the hill top. For some it will be a deeply religious experience (I felt like I was going to meet my maker as I drenched myself in my own sweat), for some it will be a surprising experience (I am definitely in that group, both because I didn't know what to expect and since I was surprised about my own tenacity, making it all the way up despite the heat and the often rather steep, seemingly endless stairs), for some it will be a mystical experience (again, definitely in that group, this is a very special place, I wish I could go there when it wasn't so overcrowded) and for most it seemed to be a great photo shoot opportunity (in the lower parts, then turning back with probably hundreds of digital exposures and no appreciation for what makes this place so special). Okay, coming off my soap box again. A few practical tips: wear comfortable shoes, bring some change to buy a drink (again, plenty of drink dispensers on the way up), bring a towel if it's warm (I could have down with a shower and a fresh set of clothes), and if you want to explore a little further, bring a map in your own language - all the signs and maps around the place are in Japanese Kanji only, and I didn't dare to explore since I had a train to catch...
The Lonely Planet guide for Japan is suggesting that Kyoto is one of these places that everyone should have seen before they die - I couldn't agree more.
Pic #1 - Maikos (apprentice Geishas) in the street of Kyoto (note that there are lots of services that dress you up as a Maiko for a day, so don't be surprised if you see some young ladies dressed up in this way who really don't strike you as Geisha material
Pic #2 - Wooden bridge in Shōsei-en Garden
Pic #3, 4 and 5 - Fushimi-Inari Taisha
There are literally hundreds of temples and shrines and castles and Museums and Gardens and an Imperial Palace and whatever else you imagine to find in Kyoto: chances are, it will be there, and mostly in abundance. I went to Kyoto seven years ago, for a rushed visit of one day, and saw some of the sites then; I particularly remember a massive castle, must have been Nijō-jō, the Golden Pavillion (Kinkaku-ji) that seems to be hovering over a quiet lake, and Kiyomizu-dera, a temple complex including a pagoda, built on a hill, with "Teapot Lane" (yes, it's lined with dozens of shops offering snacks, souvenirs and tea) leading up to it. I returned to Teapot Lane (somewhat unwittingly - I was in the neighbourhood looking at some other sites and "stumbled upon it" and visited a few temples I hadn't seen before in the vicinity of the Ryokan I was staying at, Ryokan Sakura, not too far from the central train station in a quiet area, and excellent value for money. One of the front desk staff was particularly helpful in sorting out a visit to a Kaiseki restaurant (see the separate blog entry) and three of them came out on the street to wave me off when I left this morning (well, there was more bowing than waving, but you get the idea). There are two places however I want to specifically mention: one is a beautiful garden called Shōsei-en, located behind Higashi Hongan-ji temple, which could almost transport to a different world - it it wasn't for the high-rise building surrounding the park and appearing between the trees here and there, and the constant traffic noise from behind the walls. It's still a magnificent garden and worth a visit. The other is the Fushimi-Inari Taisha Shrine in the south east of town - on the map it looks a little isolated and you might be tempted to ignore it and go for the more densely sight-populated areas; well, your loss! After I locked away my luggage at Kyoto station (plenty of lockers, very convenient - Japan is one of the few places where terrorism, or the exaggerated fear of it, hasn't destroyed convenience yet, how about that!), I hopped in a taxi to go there (just under 1,000 Yen) and got to the Shrine about 10 minutes later. I had very few ideas about what to expect, I remembered reading something about hundreds of gates and foxes (statues of the animals, not the kind you see at night in the streets of Gion!) and that was about it. Well, I remembered the bit about hundreds of gates (all in bright orange, with the exception of a few stone gates in between) right, and there were also a large number of foxes (still mostly the animal statue variety), but what I wasn't prepared for was the walk up the hill, including hundreds (felt like tens of thousands) of steps - a walk that apparently stretches over 4km, most of them uphill to various degrees. And for most of the way up you are walking through those gates, and come across hundreds of little shrines, again often framed by a couple of foxes, and as you ascend, the number of tourists gets smaller (the majority of people give up rather early on) and the air gets a little cooler, because you venture deeper and deeper into the forest and closer to the hill top. For some it will be a deeply religious experience (I felt like I was going to meet my maker as I drenched myself in my own sweat), for some it will be a surprising experience (I am definitely in that group, both because I didn't know what to expect and since I was surprised about my own tenacity, making it all the way up despite the heat and the often rather steep, seemingly endless stairs), for some it will be a mystical experience (again, definitely in that group, this is a very special place, I wish I could go there when it wasn't so overcrowded) and for most it seemed to be a great photo shoot opportunity (in the lower parts, then turning back with probably hundreds of digital exposures and no appreciation for what makes this place so special). Okay, coming off my soap box again. A few practical tips: wear comfortable shoes, bring some change to buy a drink (again, plenty of drink dispensers on the way up), bring a towel if it's warm (I could have down with a shower and a fresh set of clothes), and if you want to explore a little further, bring a map in your own language - all the signs and maps around the place are in Japanese Kanji only, and I didn't dare to explore since I had a train to catch...
The Lonely Planet guide for Japan is suggesting that Kyoto is one of these places that everyone should have seen before they die - I couldn't agree more.
Pic #1 - Maikos (apprentice Geishas) in the street of Kyoto (note that there are lots of services that dress you up as a Maiko for a day, so don't be surprised if you see some young ladies dressed up in this way who really don't strike you as Geisha material
Pic #2 - Wooden bridge in Shōsei-en Garden
Pic #3, 4 and 5 - Fushimi-Inari Taisha
Japan 2012 - Nara
Nara is a small town about 35km from Kyoto and I leave it to you to have a look at Wikipedia and other sources to read the usual stuff. I had a great time in Nara and fell in love with the place, not only because of the hundreds of tame deer who roam Nara Park (don't think fences - they are free to go anywhere they like so they use to hang out in front of major tourist attractions where they will be fed with special deer crackers sold by numerous street vendors across town); not only because of the very manageable size (I pretty much walked throughout town in a single day, seeing most of the main sights and a few more) and the relative quietness, both with regards to number of tourists and traffic, in comparison with Kyoto; not only because of the pleasant accommodation, Ryokan Matsumae, and the wonderful host Naomi, who served the most magnificent breakfast; not only because of the slightly run-down Izakaya (the nearest thing to a pub in Japan - unless you find one of the thousands of Irish Pubs which infested the whole world, just like McDonalds) down the road from the Ryokan, its rustic food, the Oden simmering right behind the bar, and the very friendly guests who were chatting away with me, despite my lack of Japanese and only one of the guests being able to speak some English - the already well progressed consumption of Kirin beer and Nihonshu (referred to as 'Sake' outside of Japan, a term which in Japan describes any type of alcoholic beverage) might have helped; and not only because of the local sake brewery (Naomi will tell you where to find it) where I tasted some very fine Sake from Nara, but unfortunately due to luggage restrictions did not buy one of the little sake barrels, which was decorated with little deer. I fell in love with Nara because of all of these and I hope I will get a chance to go back, then hopefully for more than just two days.
Pic #1 and 2 - Deer in Nara park
Pic #2 - Naomi's lovely breakfast at Ryokan Matsumae
Pic #3 - My Japanese style room at Ryokan Matsumae
Pic #1 and 2 - Deer in Nara park
Pic #2 - Naomi's lovely breakfast at Ryokan Matsumae
Pic #3 - My Japanese style room at Ryokan Matsumae
Japan 2012 - Introduction
So here is the thing - I am currently on a brief holiday in Japan, combined with a business trip next week to Tokyo (which has now been cut short to a couple of days to make time for another business related "stop over" in Kuala Lumpur), and even during the week's holiday, the emails don't stop coming in and the answers won't wait very long either. 'Enough typing for one holiday', I thought and therefore decided to not update my blog. I am very much aware that I haven't updated the blog in ages and that some really worthwhile mentioning impressions remain unshared (amongst them some top restaurants in Sydney and Paris), but didn't want to spend even more time on the iPad writing. So what has changed? I am up straight with my emails, without WiFi for the next three hours on a train from Nagano to Shiojiri and then to Nirasaki, and more importantly did I feel the urge to share some of my most recent impressions from my Japan trip. So here goes...
Sunday, 8 January 2012
Food Review: UPDATE - Shanghai Blues, London
I thought I'd post a quick update on this restaurant, since I've been back there today for another round of Dim-Sum. I arrived just after 2pm (after I stood disappointed before Hakkasan's closed doors - they are currently refurbishing) and got a table for one without any problems. Indeed, over the next hour or so there were quite a few more guests arriving for a late lunch. I can't really revise my views I expressed in my previous review; the food is very good but not perfect (one example, the Mu-Err mushrooms that came with the beef balls from the Sat/Sun specials menu were rather cold) and a great option for those who like it a little spicier (which is rather rare when it comes to Dim Sum in London). The service is friendly but not the most attentive (today's highlight were the scallop dumplings which were upended on the table as they arrived - the waitress removed them right away and placed a new order, after apologising, but didn't think about wiping the table. I'd still upgrade my rating to a 7, if not a 7.5 - just because it's not as good as Hakkasan, it's still significantly better than any of the Dim Sum places I tried in Chinatown.
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Piemonte - Osteria Boccondivino, Bra
As a founding member of the SlowFood movement, surely not accidentally located right next door to the SlowFood offices in a central pedestrian area of Bra, the Osteria Boccondivino celebrates the principles that have made SlowFood so successful - authentic regional food made from local produce, supporting traditional ingredients. The restaurant is linked to the Osteria dell'Arco in Alba and if you have been there before you will notice right away - the ambient is rather similar and the hundreds of wine bottles in the glass front wine cooler are reminiscent of similar views in Alba. The latest when you get to the Panna Cotta, you will recognise that the same recipe has been used here (it's rather unique with its unusually creamy texture, copied by myself by adding a big helping of Mascarpone after the cooking process... - not sure whether that's what they do here, but it leads to similar results). This was our last culinary stop before going back home today and you could tell that appetites had been somewhat quenched by now. Only two bottles of wine (between four of us - I was driving) felt almost anticlimactic... We also were less experimental in our choices and perhaps everyone just went for their favourites instead - and here they are:
- Lardo, Salsiccia di Bra e Carne Cruda, lard, raw sausage from Bra and the hand-cut raw veal, all at top quality and pretty much as good as they get.
- Uovo in cocotte con Tartufo Bianco d'Alba - a raw egg cooked in cream and topped off with a crust of parmiggiano and freshly shaved truffles; stay away if you can't deal with runny eggs, otherwise this is probably the best way to enjoy white truffles.
- Agnolotti "al plin", the traditional Piemontese mini-ravioli, stuffed with veal, rice and cabbage, and served with butter and fresh rosemary; again top-notch, difficult to make this much better.
- Coniglio "Grigio di Carmagnola" all'arneis - a good example for the work SlowFood does, this grey rabbit is a local variant that was about to disappear and was reinvigorated by SlowFood. Cooked in Arneis (a local white wine), simple and good.
- Faraona al rosmarino con Tartufo Bianco d'Alba - oven roasted Perlhuhn topped with black truffles, great autumn-earthy aromas, very tender meat, great dish.
- Tre sorbetti di frutta - sherbet made from lemons, grapefruit and tangerines, very refreshing with clean fresh fruity tastes.
- Torta di nocciole con zabaglione, hazelnut cake (famously made without any flour) with (cold) Marsala cream, very traditional, very rich!
Prices are reasonable but our bill was slightly misleading; with a total of 8 truffle dishes being ordered (plus all the other stuff, some of which listed above) but only two bottles of rather basic wines and a round of Passito (sweet dessert wine) we ran up a total of 365 Euros. Very friendly and competent service and a nice atmosphere in combination with the flawless food make this a safe bet and a place to come back to, just as it's sister-place in Alba.
- Lardo, Salsiccia di Bra e Carne Cruda, lard, raw sausage from Bra and the hand-cut raw veal, all at top quality and pretty much as good as they get.
- Uovo in cocotte con Tartufo Bianco d'Alba - a raw egg cooked in cream and topped off with a crust of parmiggiano and freshly shaved truffles; stay away if you can't deal with runny eggs, otherwise this is probably the best way to enjoy white truffles.
- Agnolotti "al plin", the traditional Piemontese mini-ravioli, stuffed with veal, rice and cabbage, and served with butter and fresh rosemary; again top-notch, difficult to make this much better.
- Coniglio "Grigio di Carmagnola" all'arneis - a good example for the work SlowFood does, this grey rabbit is a local variant that was about to disappear and was reinvigorated by SlowFood. Cooked in Arneis (a local white wine), simple and good.
- Faraona al rosmarino con Tartufo Bianco d'Alba - oven roasted Perlhuhn topped with black truffles, great autumn-earthy aromas, very tender meat, great dish.
- Tre sorbetti di frutta - sherbet made from lemons, grapefruit and tangerines, very refreshing with clean fresh fruity tastes.
- Torta di nocciole con zabaglione, hazelnut cake (famously made without any flour) with (cold) Marsala cream, very traditional, very rich!
Prices are reasonable but our bill was slightly misleading; with a total of 8 truffle dishes being ordered (plus all the other stuff, some of which listed above) but only two bottles of rather basic wines and a round of Passito (sweet dessert wine) we ran up a total of 365 Euros. Very friendly and competent service and a nice atmosphere in combination with the flawless food make this a safe bet and a place to come back to, just as it's sister-place in Alba.
Saturday, 26 November 2011
Piemonte, Osteria dei Sognatori, Alba
This family restaurant is situated only minutes from the Alba market and is an ideal place to go for a simple lunch after you have done your shopping. The Osteria dei Sognatori (Tavern of Dreamers) offers limited choice but great value for money if you don't mind the Italian equivalent of pub grub. Between the four of us we shared two litres of the house red (Barbera d'Alba), plenty of Antipasti, four Primi, three desserts, coffees and water and paid 120 Euro. The food included:
- Vitello Tonnato, veal with tuna sauce (more mayonnaise than tuna, but very nice meat)
- Bagna Cauda, cauliflower and kohlrabi with the typical anchovi / garlic / olive oil sauce
- Toma al tartufo, local chesese with truffles and a sprinkle of olive oil
- Insalata di pollo, chicken salad
- Warm sausage with stir-fried cabbage, greasy but tasty
- Tajarin al Ragu, pasta with meat sauce
- Risotto con tartufo, risotto with truffles
as well as three rather mediocre puddings.
The service was run efficiently and very friendly by two young ladies and while this certainly wasn't our best culinary visit during our stay, it makes for a nice change - and a bit of a break for your wallet!
- Vitello Tonnato, veal with tuna sauce (more mayonnaise than tuna, but very nice meat)
- Bagna Cauda, cauliflower and kohlrabi with the typical anchovi / garlic / olive oil sauce
- Toma al tartufo, local chesese with truffles and a sprinkle of olive oil
- Insalata di pollo, chicken salad
- Warm sausage with stir-fried cabbage, greasy but tasty
- Tajarin al Ragu, pasta with meat sauce
- Risotto con tartufo, risotto with truffles
as well as three rather mediocre puddings.
The service was run efficiently and very friendly by two young ladies and while this certainly wasn't our best culinary visit during our stay, it makes for a nice change - and a bit of a break for your wallet!
Friday, 25 November 2011
Piemonte - Bottega di Rosanna, Neive
Since I started visiting Piemonte in 2002 and came back year after year, with only one exception, every time I went I would visit the Bottega di Rosanna in Neive. Previously called the Bottega dei Quattro Vini and located just opposite the town hall in Neive in the basement of another municipal building, Rosanna and her husband Marco are running a small Enoteca that sells exclusively wines from Neive and offer a small range of simple dishes, limited to a handful of Antipasti, a couple of Primi and about four Dolci. I haven't been coming back for the culinary highlights so much, but predominantly because of the very warm and friendly service and the extremely reasonably priced wines, providing a great opportunity to sample a good range of local produce - the bottles are sitting on shelves spread throughout the room and you can casually browse for your next bottle. Who needs a wine list, right? I can't help the impression though that Rosanna has become a bit light at the upper end of the spectrum - while in the past you would find the best producers from Neive on the shelves, represented with several of their fine wines (such as the Master of Neive wines, Sottimano), these great wines have disappeared from the shelves and she is rather catering for the lower price ranges up to 20 Euros per bottle. I believe the Bottega di Rosanna still merits our annual visit; try the following when you're there:
- Acciughe al verde, salted anchovies in a pesto-like herb sauce, wash 'em down with a bottle of Roero Arneis from Bruno Giacosa
- Lardo con miele e nocciole, lard with honey and hazelnuts
- Insalata di Toma d'Alba, green salads with local cheese, hazelnuts, and pomegrenade
- Vitello Tonnato, thinly sliced veal roast with tuna sauce
- Salumi e Formaggi, local cold cuts and cheeses, simple and nice
Dependent on your appetite, choose from Tajarin with Ragu or butter and sage, or the rich vegetable soup. We usually skip dessert and have a café instead which is being served with a biscuit topped off with some whipped cream...
- Acciughe al verde, salted anchovies in a pesto-like herb sauce, wash 'em down with a bottle of Roero Arneis from Bruno Giacosa
- Lardo con miele e nocciole, lard with honey and hazelnuts
- Insalata di Toma d'Alba, green salads with local cheese, hazelnuts, and pomegrenade
- Vitello Tonnato, thinly sliced veal roast with tuna sauce
- Salumi e Formaggi, local cold cuts and cheeses, simple and nice
Dependent on your appetite, choose from Tajarin with Ragu or butter and sage, or the rich vegetable soup. We usually skip dessert and have a café instead which is being served with a biscuit topped off with some whipped cream...
Piemonte - Osteria Del Vignaiolo, La Morra
This little gem can be found in a tiny village called Santa Maria, which is just 4km outside of La Morra on the way to Alba. It's a burgundy red building on the right and provides seats for about 30-35 guests. Its brick vaulted ceiling and a fire place provide a comfortable atmosphere, and the service is very attentive and friendly. The Osteria Del Vignaiolo is located in one of the best wine regions in Italy and is surrounded by Nebbiolo vines, producing some of the finest Barolo. The young chef is a master of oven roasted meats, but also features a few fish dishes on the menu, such as smoked eel, Loup de Mer and Marlin. Here are some of the highlights we sampled today:
- Insalata tiepida di coniglio, salad of rabbit, perhaps the best starter on the menu, perfectly flavoured, with tender bits of rabbit meat.
- Scallops with artichoke - flash-pan-fried, with great roast aromas, a light and extremely enjoyable dish.
- Tajarin al tartufo bianco, pasta simply served with butter and white truffles thinly sliced for you at the table - a Piemonte classic.
- Stincho di agnello, oven roasted lamb shank, absolutely gorgeous tender meat full of good flavours, top notch!
- Ossobucco de cervo, venison shank, again very tender but a little dry (typical for the very lean venison really).
- Coscia d'anatra con Arneis, duck leg cooked in Arneis, a typical local white wine.
- Tortino caldo di cioccolata, warm chocolate soufflé, of course still liquid inside.
- Tarte Tartin di mele, an apple tarte, served with gelato di fior de latte, lovely milky ice cream.
- Ravioli di cioccolata, chocolate ravioli in a slightly overpowering cherry sauce.
The wine list offers great choices in all price ranges, the puddings are served with a complimentary glass of Moscato d'Asti and with five of us sharing three starters, five Primi, four Secondi, five Dolci, two bottles of white, one bottle of Barolo and some coffees and limoncello, the bill at 370 Euro (including 160 Euro for truffles, fairly priced at 4 Euro per gram) was great value for money. This is surely one of our new favourites and top ranking restaurants in Piemonte.
- Insalata tiepida di coniglio, salad of rabbit, perhaps the best starter on the menu, perfectly flavoured, with tender bits of rabbit meat.
- Scallops with artichoke - flash-pan-fried, with great roast aromas, a light and extremely enjoyable dish.
- Tajarin al tartufo bianco, pasta simply served with butter and white truffles thinly sliced for you at the table - a Piemonte classic.
- Stincho di agnello, oven roasted lamb shank, absolutely gorgeous tender meat full of good flavours, top notch!
- Ossobucco de cervo, venison shank, again very tender but a little dry (typical for the very lean venison really).
- Coscia d'anatra con Arneis, duck leg cooked in Arneis, a typical local white wine.
- Tortino caldo di cioccolata, warm chocolate soufflé, of course still liquid inside.
- Tarte Tartin di mele, an apple tarte, served with gelato di fior de latte, lovely milky ice cream.
- Ravioli di cioccolata, chocolate ravioli in a slightly overpowering cherry sauce.
The wine list offers great choices in all price ranges, the puddings are served with a complimentary glass of Moscato d'Asti and with five of us sharing three starters, five Primi, four Secondi, five Dolci, two bottles of white, one bottle of Barolo and some coffees and limoncello, the bill at 370 Euro (including 160 Euro for truffles, fairly priced at 4 Euro per gram) was great value for money. This is surely one of our new favourites and top ranking restaurants in Piemonte.
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