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Clockwise from left: Strawberry and balsamic vinegar, caramel with salted butter, olive oil and vanilla, cinnamon and pistachio

Who knew that there is a small Pierre Hermé shop in the Selfridges food hall?!  This is both the best and worst discovery of the month.  At £1.85 each, these macarons are painfully expensive and so incredibly good.  I was super excited about the unusual flavours, and faced with such choice, I asked the sales rep for a recommendation.  She proceeded to recommend three-quarters of the flavours…

Which, obviously, did not help.  I ended up buying the following: strawberry and balsamic vinegar, caramel with salted butter, olive oil and vanilla, and  cinnamon and pistachio.  I ate the olive oil and vanilla one first because I was the most curious about it, and wow, it was delicious.  It barely had any olive oil flavour, and I’m not really sure how to describe its taste (I’ll just have to buy another one sometime to figure this out…hehe), but the crispy outside and the smooth, airy filling tasted so good together.  Next, I tried the cinnamon and pistachio.  It was good, but not incredible the way the olive oil one was.  Afterwards, I had the strawberry and balsamic vinegar one, and it was the best of all.  I think it is one of the best macarons I’ve ever tasted.  It tasted like fresh strawberry purée with a bit of tangy balsamic vinegar… so delicious!  And lastly, I was quite surprised by the caramel and salted butter macaron.  I always get a caramel and salt flavour macaron when I see one (the caramel and sea salt Luxemburgerli from Sprungli is my favourite of that brand), and it usually has a standard taste of salty caramel.  This one from Pierre Hermé, however, tasted like the burnt top of perfectly made crème brûlée.

I apologize for the poor quality of the photo –  it was taken by my phone.  Next time, I’ll remember my camera!

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Pierre Hermé @ Selfridges
400 Oxford Street
London W1A 1AB
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Pork tenderloin marinated in garlic and rosemary, stewed cabbage with apple, and rice

I had a wonderful time in Prague over Easter weekend.  The architecture there is magical.  As a friend aptly described part of the city, “it’s a bit like Disneyland, except I have to remind myself that it’s real.”  It was really fun getting to try Czech food for the first time – though, to be honest, it’s not something I could get used to eating daily.

Since they use flour generously in Czech cuisine, my travel buddy had thoughtfully printed out an explanation in Czech of gluten-intolerance, which he found here.  If you don’t eat gluten and are going to Prague, I highly recommend that you bring a copy with you because I ended up having to pull out this Czech explanation at every restaurant I visited.

The first restaurant we went to was Café Louvre.  I ordered the pork tenderloin marinated in garlic and rosemary, potato dumplings filled with ham, and stewed cabbage with apple, and was able to replace the potato dumplings with rice.  The pork was tender, and went well with the sauerkraut, but as a whole, the dish was a bit bland.

Roast beef on cream, cranberry target, roll dumplings

My friend ordered the roast beef with cream, cranberry sauce, and roll dumplings (which were apparently more like bread than dumplings).

Roasting ham

Later, we walked by this ham and could not resist making it our dinner.

Slice of the ham

The ham was super juicy and satisfying.

Cheese stand

We had also walked past this cheese stand and noticed some interesting cheeses, so we bought a box of various samples of the cheeses.

Box of cheese samples

Have you ever had green cheese?  We were surprised to find that it was pesto-flavoured and pretty delicious.  The box also contained super spicy cheese (the orange one), herbed cheese, and two other kinds of relatively normal cheese.

Potatoes stand

Potatoes with ham and sauerkraut, basted in dark beer

The next day, we tried some potatoes with ham and sauerkraut, which had been basted in dark beer.  It was pretty good, and the tangy sauerkraut made the potatoes and ham less heavy.

Garlic soup

In the evening, after going to a beautiful classical music concert at the Prague castle, we found the Restaurace Nad Uvozem nearby, which we had found in a guide book.  I ordered a garlic soup to start, and it was way too salty and probably had three cloves of garlic per bowl.  There were tons of garlic bits floating around.  Nevertheless, it was warming, and it was freezing outside, so I drank it all.  (If you are in the mood for garlic soup, check out this New York times recipe)

Grilled chicken with asparagus and camembert

For my main course, I ordered the grilled chicken with asparagus and camembert, and a side of rice.  It wasn’t particularly good, so I would not recommend this restaurant.  It has a good view and mediocre food.

And that ends my mini food tour of Prague!  Here are a few other snapshots from my trip:

At the Charles Bridge

At the Prague castle

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Café Louvre
Národní 22, Praha 1, 110 00

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Restaurace Nad Uvozem
Loretanska 15 Praha 1
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Peruvian ceviche

Kungsholmen is a restaurant in Stockholm that sits right on the water and has seven open kitchens.  Each kitchen has a different theme: Sushi Bar, Swedish Bar, Fast Food Bar, Spice Grill Bar, Slow Food Bar, Luxury Bar, and Fruit Bar.  I really wanted to try something from each of the bars, but alas, I had to limit myself to three…

The menu was simple, with about six dishes from each bar.  After enjoying a delicious Kir and changing my mind every five minutes about what to order, I decided on the Peruvian ceviche from the Spice Grill Bar for my starter and the half size of the Nigiri sushi from the Sushi Bar for my main course.

The Peruvian ceviche, as shown in the first photograph, was amazing.  The seafood was fresh and tangy and spicy, and I love that it was served in the tangy and spicy broth.  It was so good that I drank it with a spoon.

Nigiri sushi

The nigiri sushi was also quite fresh.  Interestingly, it came with three sauces: soy sauce, sesame sauce, and a sweet teriyaki-like sauce.  In the end, I preferred the good old soy sauce and wasabi combination.

For dessert, I split an extremely delicious crème brûlée with a friend.

Crème brûlée

The caramel was super thin and a little bitter, and the cream was so rich and smooth and full of vanilla flavour.  It was a great end to a great meal.  I highly recommend this restaurant for the good food, laidback atmosphere, and beautiful view.

Inside the restaurant

Entrance to the restaurant

Stockholm at night

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Restaurant Kungsholmen
Norr Mälarstrand, Quay 464
112 20 Stockholm
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Flavours of the day at Berthillon

A friend said she heard that Berthillon has the best ice cream ever.  I was skeptical.

As we approached the shop, we saw a long line of people waiting.  You know they are doing something right when so many people are lining up outside for ice cream in February.

After fifteen minutes of indecision, I decided to go for a scoop of Fig and a scoop of Pistachio.  It costs EUR 2.50 for one scoop and EUR 4.00 for two.  I could not believe that the scoops were so tiny!

Figue et Pistache

It was indeed the best ice cream I have ever had.  The fig sorbet was fresh and concentrated with the flavour of ripe figs, and the pistachio ice cream was the creamiest, most perfect rendition I’ve ever had… even better than the pistachio gelato I had once upon a time in Rome!  If you go to Paris, you must try it.

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Berthillon
31 Rue Saint-Louis en l’Ile
75004 Paris
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Tamarind margarita

After three failed attempts at securing a table at Wahaca, we finally succeeded after a thirty minute wait on a Sunday.  I wish this place had a reservation system because eating there was fun, yummy, and inexpensive.  It was recommended as one of the few places in London serving authentic Mexican food, and it’s also known as one of the best places for cheap eats.

Guacamole and chips

We ordered the guacamole and chips to munch on while we perused the menu. Though the menu was pretty exciting, I wasn’t impressed with the guacamole or the chips.  They weren’t particularly fresh or flavourful.

Nevertheless, the rest of the food was delicious.  The Wahaca menu has a street food section, with lots of small plates for sharing.  We decided to order the pork pibil tacos, the flaked mackerel tostadas, and the tender marinated chicken taquitos to start.  All of these were made with corn tortillas, so needless to say, I was pleased.

Pork pibil tacos

The pork pibil tacos were definitely the best dish of the night.  The menu describes these as “slow-cooked, melt in mouth pork in our special marinade” served on soft corn tortillas.  They were spicy, juicy, and messy.  You can see all the chilli oil in the picture.

Flaked mackerel tostada

The flaked mackerel tostadas had a great combination of textures with the crispy fried corn tortilla, the crunchy lettuce, and the saucy mackerel.  Not as good as the pork pibil, and not my favourite rendition of mackerel, but still good.

Tender marinated chicken taquitos

By the time I got to the chicken taquitos, it seemed like all the dishes we ordered were quite similar in taste and ingredients, with the main difference being the meat.

Chicken tinga tacos

The chicken tinga tacos that we ordered next were also similar, except with dollops of guacamole on top.  It didn’t bother me though, not having much variety, because I was super happy to have so many gluten-free choices.

Sangrita and tequila

My friend ordered sangrita and tequila, which were supposed to be sipped alternately.  I, unfortunately, forgot his review of this combination.

Mexican hot chocolate with a square of spicy chocolate

Finally, to end off the meal, I ordered the mexican hot chocolate, which was delicious, especially on a cold winter evening.  It was served with a square of spicy chocolate, and an unnecessary and large container of sugar.

Chocolate churros

My dining companions ordered the chocolate churros, which they really happily devoured.

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Wahaca
66 Chandos Place
Covent Garden
London WC2N 4HG
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Lamb with onion and spices, mixed vegetables in spices, and chicken in a mild spice sauce. Served with injera.

The first time that I had Ethiopian food was a few years ago in New Haven, and it wasn’t a great experience.  I can only remember that the bread was too sour, and that there was way too much of it: under the food, next to the food, and in the food. Luckily, at the insistence of two dear people, I decided to give this cuisine another try.

Even in London, city of a gazillion cuisines, there weren’t many Ethiopian restaurants to choose from.  I picked Addis, near King’s Cross, because it got great reviews and seemed authentic.

We ordered three dishes between two people: the lamb with onion and spices, mixed vegetables in spices, and chicken in a mild spice sauce.  The waiter first delivered a large metal tray covered in a sheet of injera bread (which is made with teff flour, hurrah!), with three rolls of injera bread on the edges.  Then, he returned with the three dishes in porcelain bowls, and proceeded to dump each dish onto the injera.

No utensils were provided, so I happily ate with my fingers.  It was really satisfying.  The lamb was cooked in an almost bitter spice, and the chicken was cooked in a tomato-based sauce.  The chicken dish also came with a whole hard-boiled egg, which was surprisingly good with the sauce because it balanced out the spiciness.  Both the lamb and the chicken were very tender.  The mixed vegetable dish was the mildest, and came with cabbage, potatoes, beans, and carrots.

The food got increasingly spicy in my mouth, so it was a relief to have the mango and passionfruit juices we ordered.  After finishing off the meat and vegetables with the rolls of injera bread, we moved onto the sheet of injera bread underneath.  This was incredibly delicious because it had soaked up all the sauces from the three dishes.  By this time, we were having a bit of trouble picking up the saucy injera bread with our fingers (I wonder how it’s supposed to be done), but managed to finish everything off the plate in the end.  I can’t wait to revisit Addis!

Mango juice and passionfruit juice

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Addis Restaurant
40-42 Caledonian Road
London, N1 9DT
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]]> http://thewanderingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/addis/feed/ 2 pik Addis-ethiopian Addis-juice http://thewanderingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/01/24/sweet-obsessions/ http://thewanderingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/01/24/sweet-obsessions/#comments Sun, 24 Jan 2010 18:15:56 +0000 pik http://thewanderingfoodie.wordpress.com/?p=256 ]]>

Sweet Obsessions

Coffee dacquoise and lemon dacquoise

In Vancouver, there is a cozy coffee and pastry shop called Sweet Obsessions.  When a friend recently spotted some gluten-free desserts there, I ventured over to the shop right away.  I walked away with two kinds of goodies: two dacquoises in coffee and lemon flavours, and a slice of black and white mousse cake.

The dacquoises, made with alternating layers of icing and meringue, were creamy and fresh.  The coffee flavoured one wasn’t as flavourful as I would have liked (I hoped for a dacquoise version of Ben & Jerry’s Coffee Coffee Coffee ice cream), but the lemon one was delicious. The meringue was crispy and the icing was buttery and lemony and so good.

Nevertheless, my favourite purchase was the black and white mousse cake.

Black and white mousse cake

This is the best mousse cake I’ve ever had.  The white chocolate mouse was really airy and melted right away in my mouth, whereas the dark chocolate mousse was denser and a bit fudgy.  The two layers complemented each other, and neither were too sweet.  I think I had an Emile moment (you know, in Ratatouille, when he eats cheese and strawberries together and suddenly, fireworks start exploding in the sky).

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Sweet Obsession
2611 West 16th Avenue
Vancouver,BC V6K 3C2
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When I was asked by the wandering foodie to do a guest post on Singaporean laksa, I knew some research would be in order.  After all, no ordinary laksa would suffice, and Singapore is chock full of “hawker centers” (food stall markets) that almost always offer some version of this Southeast Asian delicacy…

I decided that the best approach would be to ask one of my Singaporean friends, who had only one suggestion:  Katong Laksa.  I visited one of the two Katong Laksa locations in Singapore, both of which are located along East Coast Road, the main route through the coastal district known as Katong.  It’s the kind of place you would never come across unless you were looking for it, sitting on an ordinary street corner directly across from a competing laksa vendor.

There are only three menu options at Katong Laksa: small, medium, and large.  You can also order your laksa with or without cockles, but I highly recommend the former.  I ordered a medium, which was a very substantial portion (and cost a mere 4.50 SGD).

My laksa had no fishy odor whatsoever, only the pleasant aromas of steaming coconut milk and an array of sweet-smelling Singaporean herbs.  The broth was pungent yet mild, and had obviously been stewing away for many hours before my arrival.  The noodles were perfectly cooked and short enough so that the entire dish could be consumed with only a spoon (no chopsticks allowed).  Both the shrimp and cockles were fresh and expertly prepared (not a grain of sand in the cockles and perfectly deveined shrimp).  Each portion is topped with a mysterious but delicious green and slices of fish cake that add just the right amount of extra flavor and texture to the dish.  You can also add some heat to your laksa with the provided chili sauce, but I recommend the unadulterated version.

All in all, Katong Laksa is quite the unique and delectable experience.  It’s a must-try if you ever find yourself in Singapore.

-Ryu

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(328) Katong Laksa
No 216 East Coast Road, Singapore, 428914
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Arbutus

Braised pig's head, potato puree, ravioli of caramelized onions

Talk about a day of good food.  After having had lunch at Borough Market, my friend and I went to Arbutus in Soho for some dinner.  A foodie friend had recommended this place to me, saying that if I wanted good British food, this was the place to be…

To start, I ordered the restaurant specialty of braised pig’s head.  It was served with a slice of andouille sausage on grilled onions, and some creamy mashed potatoes.  The pig’s head was really tender, and the mashed potatoes melted in my mouth.  Nevertheless, the pig’s head could have been more flavourful.

In the end, I preferred my friend’s appetizer of pork porchetta.  As my friend described the dish, there were so many flavours and all of them were so subtle.  It was delicately delicious.

Pork porchetta, shaved pecorino

For my main course, I ordered the Icelandic cod.  The fish was so smooth that the layers easily came apart; it was a nice and light main course to follow the heavier appetizer of braised pig’s head.

Icelandic cod

My friend ordered the steak, which was cooked to the mandatory degree of medium rare, and which came with the most amazing gratin dauphinois ever.  This gratin was rich, creamy, and even better than the one I had at Les Editeurs in Paris.  The steak itself was very juicy, and tasted great with the red wine sauce.

Bavette of Scottish beef, gratin dauphinois

In all, a great experience.  At around 18 pounds an entrée, it wasn’t cheap – but I’ve been told it’s hard to find this quality of food at this price elsewhere in London.

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Arbutus
63-64 Frith Street
London W1D 3JW
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