Friday, December 30, 2011
20 yummiest dishes of 2011
I've been to some pretty cool places this year, and had some awesome meals. These 20 dishes wouldn't have been as yum as they were if they weren't shared with fantastic people. I know some of you better than others, but trust me, food is only delicious when had in good company.
The Shake Shack Serenade - New York
Temple of burger-dom |
What a little moonlight can do
Ooh, ooh, ooh
What a little moonlight can do to you
-Billy Holiday, What a Little Moonlight Can Do
Maybe it was that late autumn, early winter chill. Maybe it was the little light bulbs hanging in a park at night. Maybe it was the burgers. Whatever it is, I'm in love with Shake Shack.
An Evening at Herman, Copenhagen
Oysterleaf |
Big Sur, California - Coastal Wondering
Big Sur |
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Da Ping Huo - Inspired by Sichuan
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Mapo doufu |
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Brenda's French Soul Food, San Francisco - OMG Grits!
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Be careful what you wish for, lady. |
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Peaches of New York - Momofuku Ssam Bar, Ma Peche, Momofuku Milk Bar
Momofuku Ssam - steamed pork buns |
18th Street is a Food Street - Delfina & Bi-Rite Creamery, San Francisco
Here I am, back onto my USA/Copenhagen/Amsterdam trip posts. Looking back, I didn't eat enough. (The blogger side of me disagrees - way too much blog material to type up). Throughout my time in San Francisco, I was utterly, horribly jetlagged like I'd never been before. I managed to get to Delfina - famed for their pizza but we went for the restaurant option next door. Fatigue got the better of me (trying to drive on the wrong side of the road didn't help) so I didn't check beforehand whether we could have pizza and normal mains (no, you cannot). I even forgot to charge my electronic devices - like my camera. Hence the blurry iPhone photos and the small meal. Bad, bad blogger.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Eat to Give - La Parole, a Social Enterprise
Canapes |
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Noma, Copenhagen. The World's "Best Restaurant"...
"Was it good?"
Everyone (who is foodie/geeky) has been asking me this since I got back to Hong Kong.
"It was interesting," has been my default answer, as a way of hedging my argument (and buying time to give it some more thought).
I want to just blurt, "no, the food wasn't the best I've had" but I think Noma deserves more than that (honest as that was). I've been putting off this post because I've been having an internal argument with myself about this, and the other obvious fact that it's been named "World's Best Restaurant" by the S. Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants award two years in a row.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Saturday Farmers' Market at Crossroads, Tuen Mun
Monday, December 05, 2011
Vegas for Vegans - Pura Vida
Black bean burrito |
Thursday, December 01, 2011
Geist, Copenhagen - late night New Nordic
Suckling pig with artichoke |
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
é by Jose Andres - Avant Garde-ism in Brash Las Vegas
Stairway to... Jose? |
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Bartolotta - There's an ocean in Las Vegas (for vegetarians too)
Mushroom ragout tagliatelle |
Friday, November 11, 2011
Red Door Cafe - Eclectic San Francisco, but what did you expect?
I suppose cliches and stereotypes all exist for a reason - a significant number of people who are seen as part of a particular "group" do indeed have similar qualities. San Francisco's stereotype, as a city, is probably hippy, eclectic and gay, so why should one be shocked when they arrive at Red Door Cafe?
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Coi Restaurant - San Francisco Sophistication
So you might have heard that I recently quit my job to
Monday, October 31, 2011
Aunt Or Private Kitchen (Ngoh Je) - Ngoh, Ngor, Or...
Deep fried shrimp toasts |
Sunday, October 16, 2011
8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo BOMBANA - Push the gondola out
Rib (for two) |
Sunday, October 09, 2011
Kin's Kitchen - Hong Kong Cantonese
Smoked Chicken |
Saturday, October 01, 2011
Shung Hing (Sheung Hing) - Chiuchow Chow
Not bugs! They're mini-clams |
Monday, September 26, 2011
Ippudo Fukuoka - Everything Tastes Better At Home
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Ippudo shiro |
I guess you could call it a ramen lover's Mecca, going to Ippudo, but that Mecca is almost only relevant to foreigners. We know Ippudo because it's in New York, Singapore, Hong Kong etc., and it's often true that the better ramen in these cities is from Ippudo. Hell, people are lining up for two hours to get in in Hong Kong! But in Fukuoka, or even Japan? I'm sorry to burst the bubble, but Ippudo simply doesn't rate.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Seema's Private Kitchen - East Africa in East Asia
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Perri perri prawns |
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Hachibei, yummy yaki - Fukuoka, Kyushu
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Yakitori! Lots of smoke, but no mirrors |
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!
May your plates be filled with yummy mooncakes (not the foul ones) and your tables be filled with your favourite people.
Monday, September 05, 2011
Hakata Kurogane - Late night chicken wings at Hakata Station, Fukuoka, Kyushu
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Chicken wings! |
Saturday, September 03, 2011
Tea at The Fairmont Peace Hotel. Or, what not to do in Shanghai
This was from way back in the winter when I went for my xiaolongbao marathon and discovered the transcendence that was Sincere's hongshaorou. But as I was writing about tea at the InterContinental Hong Kong, I suddenly remembered this failure of an afternoon tea at Jasmine Lounge, on the ground level of the Fairmont Peace Hotel.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Tea at the InterContinental - Pinkies Up
Truffled egg sandwiches!!!!!! |
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Ruamjai Thai - Kowloon City Searching
Minced pork and basil stir fry (krapow moo) with rice |
Monday, August 15, 2011
Food bloggers & Food critics
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Pandas are bamboo critics |
But why does everyone keep thinking it's "bloggers vs. critics"? It's like when TVs appeared and people kicked and screamed about how radio and books were better. And yes, I do think letters are better than email for some things, but then again, each letter I'd send to my friends in Australia would take a week, and I'd have to copy them by hand word for word if I was talking about the same topic... Look, it's just technology, ok?
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Caprice - 3rd time in 3 years, now with 3 Michelin Stars
I can't believe it's been 3 years since I blogged about what is one of Hong Kong's most lauded restaurants, Caprice.
Well, maybe I can because the first time was a bit of a flop, and the second so average I failed to remember much (or maybe it was the wine, ahem). But - I must admit that I didn't have cheese either of those first two times, which was a huge boo-boo seeing they have their own cave and all but alas, birthday cakes reigned. Caprice is a restaurant for occasions, n'est-ce pas?
This time was actually no different, it was also a birthday, that of my dear friend's father. (Thank you uncle!) But this time I HAD CHEESE.
It seems weird to start describing a meal from the end, but then again, it was one of the highlights. So here you are, the obligatory cheese cart photo.
Well, maybe I can because the first time was a bit of a flop, and the second so average I failed to remember much (or maybe it was the wine, ahem). But - I must admit that I didn't have cheese either of those first two times, which was a huge boo-boo seeing they have their own cave and all but alas, birthday cakes reigned. Caprice is a restaurant for occasions, n'est-ce pas?
This time was actually no different, it was also a birthday, that of my dear friend's father. (Thank you uncle!) But this time I HAD CHEESE.
It seems weird to start describing a meal from the end, but then again, it was one of the highlights. So here you are, the obligatory cheese cart photo.
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Mmmm... oui... 'ello mes chers... |
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
My Q&A for Marketing Magazine
A few weeks ago, I had the good fortune of being contacted by Erica Ng of Marketing Magazine who asked little ol' me to do a Q&A as "advice" for PR people working with bloggers. It just came out in print in the July 2011 issue (don't think it's online), along with responses from other Hong Kong bloggers - beauty blogger Meling Lam of Apple113, tech & gadget blogger Jonathan Sin of Fun Lockr and travel blogger Michael Taylor of Accidental Travel Writer. As with most cases in print, because of space limitations, a lot of it was edited out, so I thought I'd share my original, unedited version. I imagine it also answers some of the questions people (like my own mother!) have about why I blog etc.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
It's all about the money - Whisk
Tomato, strawberry and mozzarella salad |
So I'm guessing, for a hotel restaurant like Whisk, they have some sort of projected profit goal thingy they have to achieve. And not being exactly the busiest restaurant in town, they'd be desperate for two main things: 1) attract more people, 2) lower (food) costs. With a $218 set meal, Mon-Sat, for 3 courses plus coffee/tea and petit fours, I gotta say they're trying very hard to do 1). But then, how about 2)? How low can those food costs go? To me, it seems like they've lowered it a bit too much. Tasteless beef, cheap balsamic glaze - I'd rather $218 for two courses and better ingredients - I only have one stomach, after all. One thing they don't have to change is the chef. He's turning out great stuff from what crappy things his budget allows. Either that, or he needs to source really local, but I don't think hotel management can accept that kind of operation...
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Best Chicken I've Ever Had - Chicken Village (Ji Cun) Panyu
Sunday, July 17, 2011
After Seven Years of Blogging and e_ting: My 7 Links
It's my first time participating in any real "blogger" activity on the internet, and I thank Connie of Connvoyage and Aaron of Aaron's Worldwide Adventures for tagging me (and Erin of Our Tasty Travels for pointing me out to Aaron!) and getting me involved in Tripbase's "My 7 Links" project.
The idea is to go back to your own posts and find one to fit each of the 7 proposed categories, then 'tag' 5 more bloggers to do the same, to "share lessons learned" and bring old posts back to see the light of day. So, without further ado, here are my 7 links.
The idea is to go back to your own posts and find one to fit each of the 7 proposed categories, then 'tag' 5 more bloggers to do the same, to "share lessons learned" and bring old posts back to see the light of day. So, without further ado, here are my 7 links.
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The ingenius start to our meal at Singapore's FiftyThree |
Sunday, July 03, 2011
Roast Your Own Pig - Pacific Sky BBQ at Whitehead Golf Club
Friday, July 01, 2011
Would Your Grandmother Approve? - Ugly American
Entrecote |
Ugly American is helmed by a chef who (as the magazines say) has headed kitchens in such places as Dan Ryan's (awesome!) and Fat Angelo's (not so awesome).
The intro on their Facebook page says:
This is not a restaurant made to impress snobbish critics or high society, but rather one where chefs go to eat.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Noodles, liver and tofu - A mini Sham Shui Po food crawl
Inspired by Jason's post on Lau Sum Kee, one weekend, Jen and I went to Sham Shui Po, western Kowloon, just a little further west from Mong Kok.
The morning before we were due to meet, I trawled Openrice and the wider internet for tips on where to go - because we weren't gonna go all the way out there* just for a plate of noodles!
*ok, it's not that far - very convenient by MTR actually.
So I drew up a crappy map (I would have printed a Google map, but I don't have a printer at home... is that weird?) and wrote the names down in my kindergarten-Chinese handwriting and set off.
Lau Sum Kee
48 Kweilin Street
Lau Sum Kee is known as one of Hong Kong's last remaining wonton noodle shops that still kneads their dough using a huge bamboo pole.
How it works: there's a huge bamboo pole on a lever of sorts that goes above a table. Dough is put on the table, under the pole. The noodle maker rides the pole and bounces on it rhythmically to flatten out and knead the dough. (However I say it, it sounds scandalous, but trust me, it isn't. Or don't trust me and watch the Youtube video above.)
[edit: thanks to Miki in the comments below for reminding me to say that you can't actually see anyone doing this at Lau Sum Kee - well, at least we didn't when we went... Also, another place that supposedly does bamboo noodles is Wing Wah in Wanchai. The noodles there are less bouncy and more pasta-like though, and similarly, I never see no poles.]
The morning before we were due to meet, I trawled Openrice and the wider internet for tips on where to go - because we weren't gonna go all the way out there* just for a plate of noodles!
*ok, it's not that far - very convenient by MTR actually.
My Sham Shui Po "map", if you could call it that. How about "Artist's Representation of SSP"? |
Lau Sum Kee
48 Kweilin Street
Lau Sum Kee is known as one of Hong Kong's last remaining wonton noodle shops that still kneads their dough using a huge bamboo pole.
How it works: there's a huge bamboo pole on a lever of sorts that goes above a table. Dough is put on the table, under the pole. The noodle maker rides the pole and bounces on it rhythmically to flatten out and knead the dough. (However I say it, it sounds scandalous, but trust me, it isn't. Or don't trust me and watch the Youtube video above.)
[edit: thanks to Miki in the comments below for reminding me to say that you can't actually see anyone doing this at Lau Sum Kee - well, at least we didn't when we went... Also, another place that supposedly does bamboo noodles is Wing Wah in Wanchai. The noodles there are less bouncy and more pasta-like though, and similarly, I never see no poles.]
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Mission Chinese Food Event in Shenzhen
I seldom write about one-off events, as I try to make this blog as useful as possible, but this one-night-only pop-up event in Shenzhen by Mission Chinese Food triggered some pretty interesting things that made me think more about where modern Asian/Chinese food is going.
If you're a foodlover from the States, or are kind of crazy and read about food way too much, you've probably already heard of MCF, or even been. They went from Mission Street Food to Mission Chinese Food, doing fusion-y Asian American within an actual Chinese American restaurant in the Mission district of San Francisco. I'd never eaten there, but from what I could gather from the interwebs it's boldly flavoured, nouveau soul Asian - which I would really have liked to eat at this event in Shenzhen, but at the same time I thought it might be a little odd - bringing soul-Asian back to Asia*.
Aside from the food itself, I want to talk about what this meal by Mission Chinese Food (hereafter MCF because I'm lazy) meant to me.
I didn't really know what to expect, but luckily there are adventurous folks like Gary and HK Epicurus, who were more than willing to come along, so across the border we went.
The first thing that came out were slices of giant clam (though I think it was geoduck) on vinegared(?) melon in tomato essence, dotted with parsley oil and shiso. It was a clean, elegantly presented dish served to us in individual portions - so we pretty much knew for sure we weren't going family style.
If you're a foodlover from the States, or are kind of crazy and read about food way too much, you've probably already heard of MCF, or even been. They went from Mission Street Food to Mission Chinese Food, doing fusion-y Asian American within an actual Chinese American restaurant in the Mission district of San Francisco. I'd never eaten there, but from what I could gather from the interwebs it's boldly flavoured, nouveau soul Asian - which I would really have liked to eat at this event in Shenzhen, but at the same time I thought it might be a little odd - bringing soul-Asian back to Asia*.
Aside from the food itself, I want to talk about what this meal by Mission Chinese Food (hereafter MCF because I'm lazy) meant to me.
I didn't really know what to expect, but luckily there are adventurous folks like Gary and HK Epicurus, who were more than willing to come along, so across the border we went.
Clam/geoduck sashimi/carpaccio |
The first thing that came out were slices of giant clam (though I think it was geoduck) on vinegared(?) melon in tomato essence, dotted with parsley oil and shiso. It was a clean, elegantly presented dish served to us in individual portions - so we pretty much knew for sure we weren't going family style.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Cantopop - Organic is Good Business
... but little else.
I know it's not fair to judge a restaurant after having tried 2 things at the opening cocktails and one lunch, but as far as judgment on a purely personal am-I-gonna-come-back-if-I-had-a-choice grudge goes, my mind is pretty much made up for now.
About 3 years ago, when "organic" hit our local wet markets, my mom bought some choi sum for about 1.5x the price of normal choi sum, and stir-fried it for us for dinner one night, without telling us it was organic. As we dug our chopsticks into the jade green mountain of veg, I still remember dad and I saying almost simultaneously, "hey this choi sum is good, where did you get it?". In the dark days prior to this moment, we had sadly gotten used to the taste (or lack thereof) of a proper choi sum. This one was a sweet, fresh, juicy (oh yes) awakening for our palates.
Since then, when people say, "all that organic and healthy stuff is bland", that's the example I quote. I do believe that organically farmed vegetables have great potential to be hyper-tasty.
I know it's not fair to judge a restaurant after having tried 2 things at the opening cocktails and one lunch, but as far as judgment on a purely personal am-I-gonna-come-back-if-I-had-a-choice grudge goes, my mind is pretty much made up for now.
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Sous vide char siu and egg rice |
Since then, when people say, "all that organic and healthy stuff is bland", that's the example I quote. I do believe that organically farmed vegetables have great potential to be hyper-tasty.
Monday, June 06, 2011
Coo-coo for Claypot Rice - Choi's Kitchen (See Fong Choi)
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Eel claypot rice |
Friday, June 03, 2011
40 hours in Singapore - 3 Hainanese Chicken Rices
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Yet Con |
Yet Con
25 Purvis Street
+65 6337 6819
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Chicken - Yet Con |
Monday, May 30, 2011
Pasta basta - Al Molo
Just a quick scribble and a bad photo of last night's impromptu dinner at Al Molo, a Dining Concepts restaurant with Michael White's (of Marea NYC fame) name all over it.
The agnolotti was the only dish that ticked all the boxes, but the plate had been sitting in the warmer for too long and my sauce ended up forming a nice skin on the plate. Mm-mm! Who wouldn't like some skin on their sauce! Our tagliatelle was limp, overcooked (fresh pasta requires an eagle eye that kitchen seemed to lack last night) with a bolognese that was this standard only blander (a grating of parmiggiano helped). Tomato sauce in the other pasta (I think it was a spaghetti) hardly tasted of tomato, despite being very, very red.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
40 hours in Singapore - Founder Bak Kut Teh
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Ribs at Founder Bak Kuh Teh |
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Fifty eaters in one room - Dynasty
Those claws enticing much? Well, the invitation to this dinner at Dynasty was, because a.) it's one of those fine Cantonese "classics" I hadn't been to, and b.) I hadn't been to any of the famous foodie meetup dinners organised by KC Gourmet before. There would be about 50 foodies in one room. Whoah.
These were the wines on our table. (Don't judge!) You can read Diary of a Growing Boy's notes about them, but may I point out the first bottle on the right - it's Chateau Dynasty, courtesy of Growing Boy, fitting for our dinner at the eponymous restaurant (but no, the winery and restaurant aren't related). It's a Michelin 1*, whatever that means in HK (as I've said too many times).
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Chowmeet at Hong Zhou (no, not Hangzhou in China)
Twitter (and sort of pre-Facebook), I stalked foodies on the foodie forum Chowhound, especially on the Hong Kong/China board. Of late, Twitter has stolen more and more of my time, but I was fortunate enough to make some foodie buds back on Chow. Some live in Hong Kong, while others are frequent travellers, and once a year, they'd meet here for some good, er, chow. These meetings were dubbed Chowmeets, and even though I was invited to one last year, I couldn't make it (darned flu), so I have my immune system as well as the gracious organiser to thank for this year's meetup.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Eat to Support Japan - Sushi Fuku-suke
Sake and sashimi. Two things people in Hong Kong have suddenly become afraid of after the unfortunate events of Tohoku. The least we can do is help by continuing to consume safe Japanese produce. A blanket "no" is just dumb. I can't believe one of Hong Kong's most 'prominent' food show hosts, Ah So (So-sze Wong 蘇施黃), blatently wrote in her column in popular local magazine Eat & Travel Weekly that people shouldn't eat Japanese seafood at all, because it's just "too dangerous". What utterly irresponsible behaviour.
So I was more than grateful when some knowledgable foodies found out about Sushi Fuku-suke in Causeway Bay, whose owner/chef is from Sendai (and who, as we sadly discovered later, had lost his brother in the disaster), and counted me in for this exquisite and meaningful (on top of the usual curious and gluttonous) night of eating and drinking.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
The Miele Guide 2011 - Public Voting Opens & Why you should vote
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Click me! |
So, a day or two after the whole World's 50 Best thang, you're thinking, "another day, another award". Yes, and no. The difference is, you get to vote for this one. You also get to add to the list of restaurants if the "panel" hasn't included them already. I don't know the stats but I think it's been heavy with votes from un certain démographique*, y'know, plus, I think native votes from Hong Kong have been wildly under-represented. It's time we tipped the scales and ruffled this guide's feathers a little.
There is a selfish ulterior motive though (not so ulterior now that I'm telling you I suppose?). Supposedly they will 'reward' the blog with the most click-throughs some interviews the winning chefs, and there's a gala dinner involved too (where the chefs are supposed to cook for you - but I thought they'd get to take a rest and receive their awards all dolled up and stuff?).
I've done a fair number of chefs' interviews, but they've all been for 'serious' publications and never this blog (where I can - and have - gone crazy and said stuff no editor would ever want to publish). I would love to ask the chefs some really ludicrous questions (ok, the kind PR peeps are probably not going to let me win now... not that I was going to anyway...)
To vote, click the Miele pic in this post, or the banner on the right hand side. Voting closes
Look, I'm not going to win this click-thru thing, but I'd like to think that we can shake things up, and your 10 votes might just do that.
P.S. Suggestions for ludicrous questions very welcome. If I don't get the chance this time, I might wrangle a few out of someone/somewhere later ;)
P.P.S. Do you find it disturbing that I'm doing this? It's not like Miele's paying me or anything (just to be clear...)
* The Miele Guide is published by Ate Media, and one of its founders is Aun Koh, aka the blogger Chubby Hubby, and we all know how much they love Iggy's, and Singapore in general...
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